How should Main Bases be configured?

[sfscriv]

There are many possiblities to hinder a team's main base from getting base raped.

1) Make the main base off-limits

2) Have it to where only one type of enemy kit can enter the main base

3) Put the main base a good distance away from the main playable area

4) Other

[sfscriv]

I went with option #4 - Other

It is upsetting when your friendly main base is getting attacked by the whole enemy team (base raped).

Many people think the main base should be off-limits to allow the loosing team to organize a counter attack.

Boy, it sure was fun to go deep behind enemy lines, kill the enmy commander, destroy the enemy commander's assets, and steal an enemy transport helicopter for the get away.

I think there are ways to make frequency and intensity of an enemy attack on a friendly's main base less frequent and less intense. Putting distance between the main playable area and the main bases is one obvious design solution. Other possibilities would be:

- player determined stationary gun, anti-aircraft, and anti-tank positions

If the gun position were determined by a player, there would be less of a chance that the field of fire would be blocked by an obstacle. The pilots would also not know exactly where the gun positions were each match to conduct their bombing runs.

- bots (NPCs) in the defense

One of the things that upset me about BF2 was no one would stick around to defend friendly control points. How can you blame players for not wanting to wait around for the enemy to make an appearance. Let the bots do the dirty work of providing stationay and mobile security to control points and the friendly main base. It will at least take longer for the enemy to destroy all the friendly commanders assets with a handful of bots defending the base.

[pershainovitsh]

I wouldn't want bots in multiplayer conquest mode. To me it feels very out of place and dying to a bot would feel unfair. I do agree that the main base should be far away with the possibility of sabotage by enemies. Planetside 2 solved this problem by having a huge visible force field around the main base (warp gate). Of course, this would only work in a futuristic setting.