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MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#3701: Dec 25th 2023 at 1:11:43 AM

What I could find on that is phrased specifically in the context of "the conflict between the Allies, the Soviets and Yuri's Epsilon", which does not account for the climax of that part of the storyline ending with the emergence of the Foehn Revolt as a new faction that basically inherited the Allies and the Soviets' mantle of resistance against Epsilon's quest for world conquest.

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
SgtRicko Since: Jul, 2009
#3702: Dec 25th 2023 at 3:02:05 AM

Can't recall the exact posts but it was also all over their Discord server; they kept mentioning that for all intents and purposes 3.3.6 would be the last major update and the Mentalmeister's team would start moving on, save for smaller patch fixes.

And it's a real shame nobody at EA's never thought about hiring his modding team. Because not only do they apparently have a better grasp of the game engine than the original Westwood team at this point, but their mod has added so much functionality and improvements that EA simply releasing a graphical "remaster" on the original would be a massive letdown.

MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#3703: Dec 25th 2023 at 3:46:13 AM

You should also give credit to the team behind creating Ares (and now Phobos) for the MOAPYR team being able to even start developing their features to begin with.

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
MajorTom Since: Dec, 2009
#3704: Dec 25th 2023 at 7:31:02 PM

A mild curiosity I’ve noticed in Tiberium Wars. The GDI AA Battery is a twin Gatling style weapon, but for whatever reason, the barrels do not spin when firing even on max graphical settings. A rare case of not paying attention to detail I guess.

RainingMetal (Handed A Sword) Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#3705: Dec 25th 2023 at 7:34:20 PM

Even the Gatling weapons in Generals clearly spun. How shameful.

ASAB: All Sponsors Are Bad.
amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#3706: Dec 26th 2023 at 4:09:52 AM

To be fair, there are multibarreled AA autocannon designs that do not rotate either, like the Shilka and the Flakvierling.

That being said, the GDI AA battery shows how overspecialized GDI became in fighting Nod: it's only really useful against close air support aircraft, but then again it's not like Nod even has a strategic air force against whom SAMs would be more effective.

MajorTom Since: Dec, 2009
#3707: Dec 26th 2023 at 6:33:22 AM

Which is funny because the AA Battery sucks against Nod aircraft compared to its effectiveness against Scrin aircraft. They rip right through Stormriders and the fighters launched by Scrin carriers. (Though dollar for dollar they aren’t quick at killing Devastators or carriers if they’re in range. Then again, neither are Nod SAM’s).

I’ve noticed that Nod SAM’s are terrible at fighting Scrin (or Nod) aircraft but are excellent at blasting GDI stuff.

Excepting Storm Columns, Scrin Anti-Air just kinda sucks. The plasma missile turrets are short ranged and not as powerful or continuous as their human faction counterparts. Likewise the only thing going for Gun Walkers is their tankiness at absorbing damage. (Seekers and upgraded Shock Troopers just kinda suck at it at all.)

amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#3708: Dec 26th 2023 at 11:38:52 AM

You know, I wouldn't be surprised if such substandard effectiveness of some GDI gear against Nod kicked off a defense contract scandal or two after the war, similar to the A-SAT FUBAR.

Imca (Veteran)
#3710: Dec 27th 2023 at 7:14:38 AM

I just assume the scrim got every one, we almost got our ass handed too us by a mining team.

The actual invasion fleet would reasonably find it a milk run.

MajorTom Since: Dec, 2009
#3711: Dec 27th 2023 at 8:23:22 AM

Either that or they find GDI much more formidable in the absence of having suffered a decapitation strike and some severe beatings by Nod.

Also no shock or surprise this time and it’s likely GDI would’ve further improved their tech possibly using captured or recovered Scrin tech to help.

Given that such a setup would be in the RTS genre, it could go either way depending on the player’s actions.

And speaking of players, I’d expect a true sequel to Tiberium Wars to feature Foreman 371 returning with his AI either leading an Enemy Civil War or the Overlord promotes him to leading the invasion force.

Edited by MajorTom on Dec 27th 2023 at 8:25:00 AM

Tacitus Since: Jan, 2001
#3712: Dec 27th 2023 at 10:07:39 AM

I just assume the scrim got every one, we almost got our ass handed too us by a mining team.

The actual invasion fleet would reasonably find it a milk run.

...Holy crap, the scrin are Deep Rock Galactic if they sent more than four dwarves to the same mission.

amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#3713: Dec 27th 2023 at 1:45:58 PM

[up][up] ...he's a mining foreman, not a military officer. If they really did send him back before the planet is fully pacified, I'd expect it to be alongside the regular forces, not in charge of them, and primarily because he's got familiarity with indigenous tactics and weapon systems and therefore doesn't need babysitting.

MajorTom Since: Dec, 2009
#3714: Dec 27th 2023 at 8:07:24 PM

It’s kinda implied mining foreman is a military officer rank. Given the inextricable nature of Tiberium and the Scrin.

Of course, if anything I almost expect Foreman 371 to wage civil war upon the Scrin if for no other reason than “Supervisor tried to kill me despite performing my mission as tasked, This Means War!.”

Possibly set up by Overlord to deal with the whiny and insufferable Supervisor. In a whole he masterminded the whole “rebellion” to strengthen his position (and possibly Foreman 371’s prowess) and cull the liabilities sense.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#3715: Dec 27th 2023 at 11:08:15 PM

I liked how the Scrin were shocked by GDI and NOD still fighting each other even while the Scrin invaded. They were left wondering wtf is wrong with humanity.

Disgusted, but not surprised
MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#3716: Dec 28th 2023 at 2:54:49 AM

I'm skeptical about Foreman 371 leading a rebellion just to get back at the Supervisor, even if it's being masterminded by the Overlord. It would be far more logical for the Overlord to take the Foreman out from the Supervisor's jurisdiction and either promote him or change his job position as a reward for managing to independently salvage something out of the disaster (and defying his superior's obviously stupid orders), and then dress down the Supervisor for being a General Ripper. Not out of benevolence, mind you, but cold practicality.

Like this fic's first chapter, for example. Yes, I know, it humanizes the Scrin's behavior too much, but I absolutely love the Overlord's depiction; no nonsense and clearly an absolute autocrat, but surprisingly reasonable and practical for a tyrant (must be a follower of the Evil Overlord List).

Edited by MarqFJA on Dec 28th 2023 at 1:58:40 PM

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
MajorTom Since: Dec, 2009
#3717: Dec 28th 2023 at 11:09:18 AM

^^ Now imagine their reaction with a much more unified and intact (if perhaps reduced population) humanity on a second go.

Doubly so since GDI and Nod both now know Scrin technologies, tactics and weaknesses.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#3718: Dec 29th 2023 at 12:36:30 AM

It's an open question whether a united human front — especially one benefiting from the Tiberium Control Network — would be evenly matched against an actual Scrin military expedition (and not a glorified mining escort).

Disgusted, but not surprised
MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#3719: Jan 1st 2024 at 5:32:02 AM

Some of you guys may remember me talking about offensive superweapon ideas for the factions of my Red Alert reimagination here. I just got struck with an idea for the Bolivaria faction's offensive superweapon, since I had been unsatisfied with my provisional idea for it.

See, I was musing whether Japan should have a weather-controlling superweapon or a seismic superweapon as the culmination of its effort to dominate either of the two most dangerous natural disasters that regularly strike it and its East Asian/Pacific dominions - typhoons and earthquakes, respectively. But then I remembered that Latin America is also very prone to destructive earthquakes - in fact, it's the second most earthquake-vulnerable macro-region in the world according to some sources (e.g. a UN report in 2020).

And honestly, it makes more sense for Bolivaria, which is ruled by a socialist militaristic dictatorship like the USSR, to use a superweapon that causes earthquakes rather than Allied Japan, because while an artificial hurricane can be focused on a limited area, the geological mechanisms behind seismic waves (as I understand them, at least) means that an artificial earthquake is guaranteed to cause secondary seismic events in nearby or even faraway areas besides the actual target, and thus would be prone to causing plenty of collateral casualties and damage (at least lore-wise; gameplay-wise, this has no effect). It would be like the difference between GDI's precise and ecologically clean Ion Cannon, and Nod's indiscriminately wide-scale and ecologically dirty nuclear missiles.

With that in mind, the original chemical superweapon could be made into a support power, with the potency scaled down to more a plausible level.

What do you guys think?

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
SgtRicko Since: Jul, 2009
#3720: Jan 1st 2024 at 7:43:41 AM

How about supersonic cruise missiles with plasma warheads? It's what the USA used in Act of War, and it's not too far-fetched: a missile that's too fast to intercept, and upon detonation utterly scorches the area due to the extreme temperatures of the plasma warhead.

Or if you wanna go REALLY sci-fi bonkers, a grey-goo nanomachine swarm that devours everything in it's radius. Could also spawn minions, if for some reason your faction designed them to create nanomachine blob monsters or something.

Another one, if you're planning on making them a faction with a limited or modern-day tech, could be a large-scale rocket and/or artillery strike with dozens of warheads saturating a large area for about a good 30 seconds or so. After all, it's kinda what real life Russia's actual specialty is turning out to be in Ukraine, so why not make that something a videogame army does?

Took me a bit to think those up, especially since you've already mentioned most of the other Superweapon concepts in your previous post.

EDIT: Here's another one! Thermobaric or Fuel-air bombs. It's both practical and incredibly destructive, yet not too absurd in terms of technology. Yes I know, the USA already had those in C&C Generals (and Nod too, if you count their tiberium vapor bombs).

Edited by SgtRicko on Jan 2nd 2024 at 1:46:21 AM

amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#3721: Jan 1st 2024 at 8:33:59 AM

How about an EMP that isn't temporary?

MajorTom Since: Dec, 2009
#3722: Jan 1st 2024 at 12:52:35 PM

From a gameplay perspective EMP that’s permanent is no different than simply killing the unit/structure. Unless there’s functionality that allows repair or recovery from that state.

Given the abstraction in RTS regarding fuel, ammo, regular maintenance, food and other things, temporary EMP is easily explained as backup or redundant systems coming online or field repairs. (Which is why logically EMP just outright kills aircraft in Generals and Tiberium Wars, not enough time to fix it before they crash.)

MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#3723: Jan 1st 2024 at 1:57:54 PM

A permanent EMP would be different from killing the unit/structure if you provide a way to restore its functionality, i.e. it's a status effect that can be removed by using the proper unit. Something similar is done in Company of Heroes, where vehicles can receive "critical" damage that disables one of its components and inflict an appropriate debuff (e.g. damaged engine makes the vehicle very slow or even immobile), and the damage and associated debuff(s) can be fixed by using the faction's engineering units (be it engineer infantry or repair/recovery vehicles like the Bergetiger).

That said, in my setting, such a superweapon would be more appropriate for the European Federation, which after WW2 would be very much invested in developing EMP technology as a way to quickly halt the Soviet Army's infamous mass tank assaults in their tracks; or China, which would be quite invested in EMP technology as a way to deal with the high-tech forces of its nemesis, the Empire of Japan.

[up][up][up] I'm trying to design each faction in a way that fits the real-life counterpart and/or common stereotypes involving it, within reason of course. Your suggestions are completely out of left field, in comparison.

That's why I initially went with the super-narco bomb that drives all units berserk and deals DOT to structures (representing their crews going crazy and wrecking shit inside them), culminating in all infantry dying and all vehicles and structures becoming crewless/ownerless (i.e. you need to recover/recapture them with the appropriate units). I drew upon real-life Latin America's pervasive drug cartel problem, and imagined them as becoming an unofficial arm of the Bolivarian regime, with their domestic drug trafficking focusing on helping to keep the people complacent (though given carte blanche when it comes to dissidents and "uncompliant" communities) and collaborating with the military to develop narcotic-based combat stimulants and chemical weapons.

Edited by MarqFJA on Jan 1st 2024 at 12:58:48 PM

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
Imca (Veteran)
#3724: Jan 2nd 2024 at 8:32:51 AM

How about an EMP that isn't temporary?

Temporary EMP are actualy much more realistic then you think, the US military investigated electromagnetic pulse weaponization extensively during there cold war nuclear program...

The reason it never went any where is most electronic systems recovered in under 45 minutes as the the energy dissipated... only a small minority of systems sustained permanent damage.

The end result was noted to be interesting, and potentially have applications in disruption to let a broader strike through...

But not worth it over just deploying the nukes as nukes.

Edited by Imca on Jan 3rd 2024 at 1:33:21 AM

MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#3725: Jan 2nd 2024 at 5:14:00 PM

Of course, if they figured how to make an EMP bomb that isn't reliant on nuclear fission in its mechanism, that would change.

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

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