Thread: Battlefield 2 TACTICS Articles: First Draft

As most of you may not have noticed, there is an articles section of TTP. Over the past couple of weeks/months, I've sort of been working on rewriting the TACTICS thread.

Below, I'll be posting the first drafts of the articles-to-be. My main goal in these is to go over the basic combat operations of *Inset name here* and how *something* works with the team. I do not want these articles to be full of specific scenarios for certain maps against a certain enemy at around 9:00 CST.

If you have comments or suggestions about one of them, please mention which article you're talking about first, then the section if possible.

Rip 'em apart boys!

EDIT:Here's the link to our current BF2 articles. Potemkine just copy/pasted NyQuil's originals.
http://www.texasteamplayers.com/index.php?cat=50


Messing around to give myself some visuals for possible formatting...
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_________________________________________________W hat's a horizontal ruler? Now you know. It's the line above this.
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See?

TACTICS: Helicopters
All about those whirly-gigs, and how you can use them.

Transport Choppers:
Nothing really fancy about transport choppers, but that doesn't mean that they aren't useful. Here are a couple of fun things the well-organized squad can do with 'em...

HALO (High-Altitude, Low Opening) Drops:

• The first step for a successful HALO operation is to get the whole squad into the transport with the SL in the pilot's seat.
• After that is done, the SL needs to reach a high altitude (300+), then position the chopper over the drop-zone.
• Upon the transport's arrival, everybody but the SL will jump out. CRITICAL: Jumpers should wait to open their parachutes until they're absurdly close to becoming a dead body splattered on the ground.
• If squad members die, they can simply spawn on green, regroup, and jump again.
• Repeat until flag is captured.

Multiple operations can be run out of the following set-up:

• Pilot: Squad-leader, support
• Gunner 1: Medic
• Gunner 2: Medic
• Passenger 3: Engineer
• Passenger 4: Engineer
• Passenger 5: As circumstances dictate

Operation Gale Force Wind:
Flag-hopping TTP style. Hit 'em hard and hit 'em fast.

• Once you've loaded up the transport, the SL should head to whatever flag he so desires.
• Upon arrival, everybody but the SL and one engineer should get out and cap the flag.
• After capturing the flag, the folks on the ground should mop up, then get to the chopper.
• Repeat.

For the Pilot:
You should always have an evacuation route to a flat area of the map so that if the chopper starts to take a lot of damage, it can be landed and repaired WITHOUT having to go back to the originating helipad.
With this operation, you can fly extremely low and dodge around buildings, trees, hills, etc... your goal is speed, not stealth.

Operation Party-Pack:
Operation Party-Pack is intended to provide support and firepower for ground-based troops.

First, the SL pilots to a firefight, then his squad members can do some of the following:

• Hover by friendly troops/toss packs out the side for healing/ammo.
• Spot everything possible.
• Another fun thing to do is drop grenades, C4, and mines out the back to take out enemy troops.
• Use the mini-guns on enemy infantry and light vehicles; the mini-gun is ineffective against enemy armor.

For the Pilot:
You should always have an evacuation route to a flat area of the map so that if the chopper starts to take a lot of damage, it can be landed and repaired WITHOUT having to go back to the originating helipad.
Ideally the helicopter should not fly directly over friendly forces and DEFINITELY not over the flag for fear of possible artillery strike.
When you have ground targets, make slow, wide turns to ensure a good visual for your door gunners.

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Attack Helicopters:
For information relating to the squad set-up, communications, and target aquisition, please refer to "The Bomber" article.

For the Pilots...
Positioning:

• Generally, the attack chopper should be hovering behind the battlefront and advancing as the infantry pushes forward. Your job is NOT to be a bad ass... it's to strike armored targets from a distance. If you hover at a medium distance from a battle ground forces are engaged in, you allow the gunner to use his machine-gun effectivly and you can still easily TV the armor that comes along before it becomes a threat to the infantry.
• Do not fly in flag areas attempting to take a flag with the chopper -- this is a job for ground forces. Your job is to support ground forces. Besides, if you try to cap a flag, you might get hit by arty. Circling on the outside will give you the best chance to retreat if arty starts to fall.
• Similarly, there's no reason to go deep into enemy territory. You'll be more effective on the battle line than if you're 1000m past it, since you'll be able to help your men on the ground by covering them, taking out armor in front of them, etc...
• Now, for altitude, you can either use the hills and other low lying terrain, hovering behind them and lifting up only long enough to engage the enemy (armor) with a lethal shot, or you can fly high. Altitude ALWAYS helps and NEVER hurts unless you're locked onto by AA or a jet, in which case you can dive a lot quicker than you can ascend.

Lining-up Gunners:

• If you are flying all over the place all the time the nose cannon becomes ineffective fast. You can't see crap that way... ESPECIALLY through the TV. It's like trying to gun someone down while riding in a buggy; it's not really that easy, even if you lead. Of course, if you already read the section about positioning, then you're probably hovering already. Yes?
• The TV missile has an effective range of up to about 350m. You can't see that far... but your gunner can during TV flight. So, if you know the approximate location of your target, line your gunner up and hope that he'll be able to spot the armor and adjust accordingly.
• If you have a visual on the target, center the target in the HUD, hover, then place the target in the centered lower portion of the HUD. This provides your co-gunner with a perfectly centered TV guided missile view. Let your gunner acquire the target and release his missiles.
• Be steady and slow while you are lining up for the shot. Hold it there until either you can't any more or your gunner fires. Once fired you can do what you need to. It's not like the TOW or the LGM where if you jerk the stick it will mess up the path of flight.
• Lets say you are approaching a vehicle (Hummer, APC, Tank, etc) and you and your gunner fail to take it down in passing. Instead of continuing straight forward, pull straight up and hover backwards to get directly above the vehicle. This way, there is no chance that the vehicle can take you out with a 50cal or main gun. After you've gained some altitude you can come around for another pass.

Repairs:

• When you start taking hits ABORT AND EVADE!!! Heli's don't have lots of armor, so if you've got a jeep blasting away at you he's going to smoke you in no time. Back out and try again from a new angle or from a MUCH greater distance. As the pilot, it's your job to be SAFE. Being deadly is the gunner's job. If you can't keep him alive, then what good are you doing with the heli?
• A good rule of thumb is if you're at half strength on your aircraft get repairs. You should also keep in good coms with your gunner as to how many missiles he has left.
• Always have a planned alternate airfield for emergency repairs in the event of a catastrophe -- don't be afraid to land in places other than the helipad. If you're playing as an engineer, you can hop out and fix the chopper. If not, you could request a supply drop from the commander.

Rockets:

• Use your rockets wisely. Let your first shot be a kill shot; that's what the TV is for. A rocket at an attack chopper just gives away your position.
• However, if you're facing off with an attack chopper, don't just let your gunner do all the work. As you close in, keep the other pilot honest with your rockets. Your rockets plus your gunner's gun can quickly take out a heli that you are having trouble TVing.
• It's the same with armored targets. If you're making a pass at something, especially an AA mount/vehicle, fire away. Kill it. It's much better to have that dead than to insist on your gunner getting the kill.

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For the Gunners...
How to Kill Things:

• Is this target STATIONARY (not moving) or MOVING?
• If the target is stationary, place your cross hairs over it for TV guided missiles, then click ONCE to fire. The missile should track over to the target and cause much destruction.
• If the target is moving, attempt to lead the target (guess how fast the target is moving, then fire where you think it will be by the time the missile hits). Carefully compensate as the missile tracks toward your target. DO NOT get click happy. If you start clicking too many times in a panic you will miss completely.
• If the target is a moving light enemy vehicle (i.e, buggy), use regular guns instead of missiles. These vehicles can be unpredictable and chances are you will kill the infantry with the guns sooner than you could hit the buggy with a missile.
• That brings to mind another point: TV guided missiles are cool, but they aren't everything. Don't rely on them exclusively. If you get into close combat with another chopper, the gun is your best option, fired in short 2 to 3 second bursts.
• Again: Just click once to fire and guide. Lead the target without getting too anxious... most people new to the TV missile will get anxious when the missile gets closer to the target and end up over-compensating at the last second, thus over/under shooting it, when it was perfectly on target to begin with.

Other Things to Note:

• You should also remember to constantly spot targets -- you are an MAV (manned aerial vehicle) who can provide intelligence to other ground and air forces.
• Prioritize your targets: The enemy attack chopper should always come first, followed by any AA turrets in the area. After your airspace is clear, get to work nuking those tanks. You also need to make sure to tell your pilot what you're aiming at so that he can line you up properly.
• You can also use TV guided missiles to destroy commander assets from a safe distance. NOTE: Takes multiple shots.

TACTICS: Anti-Aircraft

Ok, so you've become suicidal and decided to hop onto an AA turret. If you're harboring illusions about shooting down enemy jets, you're in for a rude awakening. As a rule, AA in BF2 is only supplemental to good air cover when it comes to jets. In fact, it can be useless against a transport full of engineers too. A good attack chopper crew can nuke you fairly easily as well...

...but hopefully the following strategies will assist your team's flyboys in dominating the skies. And we all know that aerial domination is a really good thing for your team. I'm sure it's worth the sacrifice.

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The Basics:
1. Get into your death-trap of choice.
2. Identify an enemy air asset: listen for the enemy, watch for "red" jets in your mini-map, and communicate with others to speed along the process. You can also look out for tracers from the jets.
3. If the vehicle is close enough, there will be a green box around it and you will start to hear a beeping sound.
4. Once you get a solid tone, fire away!
5a. Your target is now flaming wreckage. Feel free to continue the hunt until you think your victim's vehicle has re-spawned, then continue on to...
5b. The jet/helo is in the air! Run away from the turret! You are now the number one priority for the next pass.
6. Find a different AA position and repeat.

Vehicle Specific Procedures:

• Transport choppers: You can usually let them drop their flares in a panic, then fire once you've locked onto the chopper again. You're also fairly safe to reload and take more shots at them as necessary.
  
• Attack choppers: As with transports, you can usually let them drop their flares and then get a lock on the chopper. If they still don't know your position after you've unloaded on them once, feel free to reload. If they do know where you are, then you can either get to hard cover really fast, or stay on the turret and hope that you get him faster than his gunner gets you.
  
• Jets: Ok, if he's a good pilot and he knows that you're there, you're toast. You just want to take pot shots at unsuspecting jets. My strategy for shooting down jets is as follows:
  
  • 1. You get your initial lock as the jet is headed towards your position.
  • 2. Flares are dropped. Keep tracking him as he goes over your position.
  • 3. Obtain a solid-tone as he's headed away from you.
  • 4. Fire and book it out of there. (If you're a true durka-durka like me, you can stay on the turret and keep up the hunt. However, death is nearly guaranteed.)
  
  

Other Considerations:

• SPOT that chopper/jet before doing anything; paint him on the screen - by spotting him you are doing everyone on your team a favor.
• Make sure you don't fire a missile too close to one of your own team's air assets. Another bad thing about AA is that it can manage to lock onto teammate's vehicles after you've fired. Nothing is more depressing than getting a couple of teamkills because of a stray missile.

Your Weaponry:
Stationary Turret:
Even if one missile hits you've done your job effectively. The more skilled jet pilots will also be able to blow up the turret before they even come into firing range. Generally best for pot-shots. I suspect that if you could get multiple AA turrets to be manned, they might actually become effective in the long-term.

Mobile AA:
The 2-man mobile-AA package is an excellent way to boost the efficiency of the mobile AA. One player is an engineer (to repair the vehicle) and the other is support (to rearm it since it can burn ammo very quickly). It works as follows: Player 1 (either kit really) mans the AA. Player 2 should hide at a safe distance when the AA is active. When you move to a different spot, which should be often, Player 2 should hop in the AA for the ride. The bombs from the fighter planes usually don't take the Mobile AA out, so this is the time when the engineer gets to start repairing like crazy. Really simple and fun if you've got a reliable squad mate to do it with.

Positioning the Mobile AA against an obstacle to take a direction out of play can also be useful, since it forces bogies to come at you on your own terms. On the flip side, it does give them a way to avoid you as well.

The Essex:
It's useless. Really. Don't even try it unless there's either...
A. An enemy transport or...
B. An attack chopper with a "special" gunner.

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A parting thought: Think of AA as a method for taking pot shots at jets and helos, then getting the hell off of it before you get strafed.

TACTICS: The Bomber

Today we will be talking about the use of the Su-34 and F-15 aircraft to give your team the advantage.
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Squadding up:
First and foremost, the pilot and his bombardier must be in the same squad. If they aren't, then I might as well not write this article. After that, it's probably easiest to have the bombardier be SL, since the pilot will probably be too busy flying the plane to do everything detailed below. If possible, you should also have the pilot of the fighter jet in the squad too. If other people join the squad, the SL should inform them that this is an air squad, then insist on having them leave and join a different squad; one thing I absolutely hate to see as a commander is a full squad with the SL in a jet. They just won't be as efficient with a flying SL than with a ground-pounder, unless you're having them play AA.

Comms:
After getting their squad put together, the air combat crew should check and verify communication between one another and command. Be sure to let your commander know of your squad number as well as your intention of bombing the opfor armor into scrap. Communications between pilot and bombardier are essential, whether they be for target acquisition, weapon status (reloading), or the bombardier informing the pilot that there's a bogey on his six.

Regular Flight:
The bomber is a school bus in the sky in the hands of an unskilled pilot; even though it is the most powerful weapon in the game, it's only effective if you keep it in the air... and the key to keeping the bomber in the air is to stay at a safe altitude until you go in for a bombing run.

• For the pilots:
  Altitude is your responsibility. You will want to be floating around the map at a safe speedy altitude of no less than 400 while your bombardier is acquiring targets. Resist the urge to dog fight other jets and never fly any lower than you must.
  
• For the bombardier/squad leader:
  While your pilot is keeping you safe up in the stratosphere, communication and target acquisition will be your responsibility. Remember that you can change views and look around outside of the cockpit when you're not in the LGM launching view - use this to your advantage and advise your pilot of any bogeys that you spot which may try to kill you.
  

Target Acquisition:
Now that we have the bomber safely up in the sky, let's talk about the three types of target acquisition... get ready co-pilot, this is all you:

• Scenario 1:While the two of you are flying at a high altitude to avoid enemy forces and being spotted, the bombardier will have his map view up. When friendly forces on the ground spot enemy armor, the bombardier will see the red armor, right click on it, and paint a DESTROY or ATTACK marker on the target. The pilot will then turn on the line, cut throttle and line up the bombardier for the kill.
  
• Scenario 2:Your commander has deployed a UAV over-flight showing a lot of infantry and/or painted a line to a cluster of infantry. The bombardier then needs to paint or accept the line. Be sure to report back to your commander with the results.
  
• Scenario 3:This one wins wars gentlemen. Squad-leader: Ask your commander to zoom in 3X on a stationary enemy asset and place a destroy marker on it for your bomber crew -- it is critical that the marker placement be EXACT. Make sure that he doesn't half ass it and just put it in near-by, since your bomber crew depends on it for mission success. Pilot, check weapons systems with your gunner and make sure he isn't reloading. When weapons are ready for deployment, turn into the line like in Scenario 1. If the bombardier is successful in destroying the marked asset, the SL should report back to command requesting a new line. If the pilot lines it up right, you can even take out multiple commander assets in a single pass. Repeat as necessary.

The Bombing Run:
High alt is everything when flying a bomber. When you hit from an almost vertical angle, the enemy will have a hard time hearing and seeing you beforehand, and the AA will find it nearly impossible to get a lock on you when you fire the afterburner on a steep slope towards the clouds.

Pilots:

• Most importantly, setup your copilot properly. After all, they're doing the bombing, right?
• Once you've spotted the target in your HUD, inform your bombardier that the target is coming up by saying "target" or "mark" or whatever seems right... just in case they aren't paying attention.
• DO NOT pull out too early; LGM locks aren't always that quick or accurate, so stick with the dive until you pass the target. That way the copilot has time to get a lock, or if they didn't get a lock, then they've at least had enough time to try to hit the target with a maverick missile. If you pull out when they're manually guiding, you completely throw things out of whack and make it difficult to hit anything. If your target is infantry, feel free to strafe it with your machine gun.
• MOST IMPORTANTLY you need to pull back up using afterburner until you're at a safe altitude. DO NOT GET GREEDY. I don't care how many square boxes you see down there and how many kills you THINK you can get by continuously flying low over a hot zone. It isn't worth it to lose that bomber, not even for a second - ESPECIALLY if it is in good hands with a chain of command. Be selective. Be safe. Stay alive.
• Keep and eye and ear out for AA when you're going in on a bombing run.

Bombardier:

• The pilot can see the target(s) a lot sooner than you can, and if you've done your job of painting a line properly, he should only have to make minor adjustments as you're coming on target. Otherwise, your target should be dead center.
• The simple thing to do is center the reticule on the boxes that start showing up once you get into range, then launch when you get a lock. That's the beauty of the Laser-Guided Missile, you don't have to be dead-on to get a hit. Sometimes though, you won't even have to wait for a hard lock... Once the pilot starts his dive, look forward and wait for a solid block around the target. At that point, just let one fly and keep your cursor on the target as best as possible. Usually a lock will kick in then, and *boom*.
• If the target you're aiming for won't give you a lock, such as an infantry cluster or commander asset, you will be firing a "maverick" missile. The first thing you need to do when firing a maverick is to tell your pilot so that he will keep the plane steady. Pilot, it is critical that you do not yank, pitch, roll, yaw, and generally be a jack-ass when a maverick missile is being fired. Once you've done that center your reticle on the target, then click (keep the mouse button held down) and drag the maverick missile to the designated target. This will effectively destroy the infantry with splash damage and result in lots of kills. Remember, you will not achieve missile lock so you must guide the missile down to the target manually. If you're aiming for assets, you will know you've scored a hit when the cross hairs "bloom" and you see a yellow destroyed asset marker. The pilot will then climb back up to a safe altitude and the SL will report to command on the mission's outcome.

Another bombing option that is open to the bomber crew is the dumb bomb (as opposed to the smart bomb). Obviously, the pilot can't place these anywhere near as precisely as the bombardier can with a LGM. Pilot: If your target is an infantry cluster, then you can consider dropping the five carpet bombs to obliterate the whole area. Just check with your bombardier first to make sure that there aren't any friendlies down there and to ensure that he isn't going to try and maverick the target.

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To the infantry/teammates:
Spot everything! It makes the bombardier’s job of acquiring targets a lot easier. A good bombardier will prioritize spotted vehicles before anything else, since he'll know exactly where the target is, and if his teammates can spot it, then that probably means that they can, are, or will be engaging in combat with it.

TACTICS: Armor

So, you just got hold of a tank and you're all excited to go blast away all of the foolish opfor grunts. What you need to recognize is that while your tank may be potent with it's main cannon and it's turret machine gun, it is NOTHING but a rolling fireball without infantry -- and when I say infantry, I'm not talking about just engineers, I mean INFANTRY.
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How you support your squad:

• As a tanker, your primary goal is to engage other armor, which will save the rest of your squad from having to deal with it.
• If there's no hostile armor present then you can have a field day eliminating the enemy infantry at your position.
• Your tank's bulk will also provide cover for your squad from enemy fire when you're moving across the map; you can serve as a sort of mobile bunker.
• Ideally, you will be playing as medic, support, or possibly engineer to help keep your squad at full combat readiness while you're driving alongside them.

How your squad supports you:

• You can get repair support; two engineers is ideal. They'll be able to get behind you and repair in the midst of an armor to armor fire fight.
• Your squad can provide a turret gunner to help with target acquisition and to deal with pesky infantry.
• Your squad mates can spot targets for you and provide even more assistance with target acquisition.
• Infantry will keep anti-tank troops at bay by engaging them. You shouldn't have to worry about spec-ops planting C4 on you.
• Your tank can't fit into an alleyway. Thus, you can't engage the infantry hiding there. Fortunately, you'll be right with your squad, and they can deal with any threats from that quarter.
• Your squad can tell you when there are mines right next to you and whether or not it's safe to move.

Armor movement:

• Recognize that your tank, while it may be fast, must NEVER go faster than the slowest man can run. If you rush ahead of your squad, you're depriving them of your firepower, cover, and either healing or ammo if you're playing the proper kit. Another problem with leaving your squad in the dust is that you're loosing the benefit of having them on the ground next to you repairing and taking out the AT infantry that are going to turn you into a pile of scrap metal otherwise. That is a loose-loose situation right there folks.
• Along a similar line: NEVER JAM ON THE GAS. I don't give a damn how threatening that enemy APC looks. Remember, the stakes here are greater than just you. If you die your squad will loose much of it's ability to combat armor, cover from enemy fire, and the sheer destructive power of your tank. Have faith in your engineers, don't leave them all in the open with a hungry APC.
• You also shouldn't leave that big target sitting still too long. You don't want to have an arty strike or an air strike called down upon you and your squad's position because you decided that this was a really good position to camp the enemy from.
• If your squad has several pieces of armor, move in a column. Remember to have the front and sides of the column covered so that nothing will take you by surprise. You should also make sure you have enough spacing; it just won't do to have you all wiped out with a single air strike.
• Your main gun should almost always be facing outward to engage other vehicles. That means looking down the street, because last time I checked enemy vehicles don't fit down alleyways.
• If you're in an APC, you can also provide transport to your squad over a large distance, provided that you won't come into contact with hostiles.

Tactics: Commanding

The primary function of the commander in BF2 is to support the team's squad-leaders. As a commander, your goal should be to provide pertinent tactical information to your SLs and to provide material support for the troops. If support comes in the form of arty, so be it. Great, you can get some kills in and piss off the other team when the screen goes yellow, but that should never happen unless you‘re actually helping your guys on the ground.
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The Basics:
You can command even without assets, it’s just not as convenient. If the evil spec-ops have blown your equipment, then quit your whining and go back to basics. Coordinate your squads, spot enemies for your team, and drop supplies and vehicles.

Communication:
A commander who doesn’t talk to his squad leaders is a terrible commander. Period. Remember: Your primary function is to provide information.

As a commander, you have a couple of methods of communication at your disposal:

• You can type something out for the whole team. To do this, click the "team" option below the chat box in the bottom-left corner of your screen, type out what you have to say, and hit enter.
• You can type out something to a specific squad. This is similar to the team chat. Highlight the squad you want to send a message from on the left side of the screen, then hit the "squad" option below the chat box, etc...
• Most importantly, you can talk to all of your squad-leaders at once by using the V key. It's a lot easier to talk through the command channel. If you don't have a mic, go get one.
• You can use the pre-recorded comments. Right-click on a squad’s stat bar, then pick the appropriate comment. They usually get the point across if you don't want to want to talk.

Orders:
You're the commander, therefore it is your responsibility to ensure that your squads have orders that will help your team win the battle. If you're lucky, you will have squads that are capable of covering vital points on the map by themselves.

• How to issue an order:
  1. Give a verbal or written order to a squad through the channels listed above. You can make this order even clearer if you...
  2. Paint a line. You can give the squad a line to their objective by selecting the squad, then going to the map, right-clicking the objective, then picking the proper order from the list that comes up.
  
• When to issue an order:
  1. Decide which squads are your "tactical" squads and which ones are your "fodder" squads. Your tactical squads are the ones that are self-directed and the ones that follow orders well. Your fodder squads are the ones that don't seem to accomplish much or those that are oblivious of your orders.
  2. Decide which points on the map are most important. These may be flags or they may be choke-points.
  3. Assign your tactical squads to the most important points if they haven't already done so themselves.

-- Your tactical squads can cap flags. Your fodder squads might defend them. --

The map:
You can zoom in with a magnification of x1, x2, and x3. To zoom-in, click on the area you want to focus on, then use either the scroll wheel on your mouse or click the x3 button on the screen. Once zoomed in, you can use the WASD keys to slowly move about the map. The only two zooms you I use are the x1 for a look at the overall situation and x3 for spotting the enemy and placing supply/vehicle drops. For the rest of this post, I'll call the x3 option "zoomed-in."

Spotting enemies:
One of the most useful abilities of the commander is to spot enemies. Spotting allows you to inform your troops about enemies even when your UAV is employed elsewhere.

The precise method for spotting: Zoom-in, right click on the enemy in question, and hit spot. If you've just done a scan and you remember approximately where the enemy is, you can usually get away with spotting zoomed out. Otherwise, you'll have to zoom in and find precisely where the enemy is before spotting.

The fast method for spotting: Keep the map zoomed out and pepper an area with "right click and spots". If there is something there, then it will usually show up. If there isn't an enemy, then there will be question marks.

When you have a tactical squad heading to a flag, spot everything possible. This is one of the key differences between an average commander and an excellent commander.

Note: When you’ve just done a satellite scan, you have to wait for the red dots to fade before you can actually spot them. It’s annoying to have to wait, but it’s also annoying when your commander is raving in Arabic and nothing is showing up on your map.

Requests from squad leaders:
SLs don't always have the time to pick a precise location for their request, and if you blindly hit affirmative without checking, that jeep might just end up in a tree.

Here's how to do it right:
1. Check to see if it's from one of your tactical squads. If so...
2. Zoom-in to place the supply/vehicle drop in a useful position.

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Commander’s assets:
As a commander, it's your responsibility to know how to use the commander's assets efficiently -- these things don't magically make your team into a fighting force. You need to know how to use your assets to provide your team with more high-quality information and to give them added agility and fire-power.

Satellite scan:
So, the sat scan bar is full up, and you've pressed the button to run it. The red dots that you can now see sprawled across the screen each represent an enemy unit. How can you use this information for the benefit of the team?

1. Check to see if anybody is capturing one of your flags.
2. See if the enemy is heading towards a flag completely unopposed.
3. Tell your squad leaders about the above situations! Redirect a tactical squad if you need to, or just order them to have a squad-member or two spawn at the flag and defend it.

4. Next you’ll want to advise your tactical squads of any opposition they might have at the flag they’re heading towards. Information is the key to success for those guys -- give it to them! If there’s only a guy or two, then spot them out so that your squad doesn't get an nasty surprise. If there’s a lot of opposition, you might put up UAV or tell them to go to a less heavily defended flag; perhaps you should even put down some arty.

Artillery:
Q: Why would I wait to get a bunch of kills?
A: Those kills you could be getting might not further any strategic goals.

Remember: As a commander, your goal is to provide support for your squads. It is not to go out and rack up tons of kills. You should put arty on a target when you have a tactical squad approaching a heavily defended flag, an opposing squad is camped somewhere where you don’t want them, or if the enemy is trying to take a flag and you have the time to blow them into little pieces beforehand.

Also: It’s best to advise your squad leaders when you’re putting arty on something. It’s unbelievably annoying when you TK people that hopped onto the flag when there's a big red picture of artillery right there on the mini-map. Inform, inform, inform.

At worst, an arty strike will land 15 seconds after you launch it. That means that if a flag has already been neutralized, you are quite possibly too late to keep it from getting captured! If you plan on keeping the enemy from neutralizing a flag, pay attention and launch just before they get there. This can often be done in conjunction with the satellite scan -- you see the enemy approaching, you launch the arty on the flag, and it lands just when they get there.

UAV:
As commander, your job is to provide quality information to your troops. With that in mind, the UAV is an immensely powerful tool at your disposal. However, if you position the UAV incorrectly, you may be wasting much of it's potential.

To effectively place a UAV, first you must determine where the heaviest action is. After that, you must try to determine where the action will be headed. Finally, place the UAV between your troops and their objective with your troops just on the edge of its coverage.

By having the bulk of the UAV's coverage in front of your troops, they will be able to see what's headed towards them and plan accordingly. They'll be able to see if their advance is clear, and where they'll be taking fire from. What your troops probably don't need to know is that there aren't any enemy units behind them.

If the UAV is about to finish up, try to spot notable enemy units so that your troops won't be completely in the dark once the UAV goes down.

Supply/Vehicle Drops:
In order to let your team make the most of a supply crate or a vehicle drop, you have to do a bit more than click blindly on the map.

Some things to consider when you want to place a supply or vehicle drop:

• If you drop supplies square on a flag that you want captured, then the enemy gets to use them, not your troops.
• If you drop them in the open, then your troops may be exposed to enemy fire if they try to reach the supply crate/jeep.
• Will the drop be accessible to your troops? After all, vehicle drops are pretty useless when they land on something, flip, and burst into flames. The same goes with supply crates in trees.
• What will happen if the enemy gets in a position to use them? Will they be exposed to fire from your team? If so, that’s good; perhaps you’ll lure them into the open.

I usually try to place a drop on or just a bit behind the current lines, preferably somewhere sheltered. It gives my troops a good place to fall back to without being exposed to any more enemy fire while still giving access to the contested area. If I have a tactical squad approaching a flag that has some opposition, I'll try to place supplies in a position where the squad will be able to make use of them once they're at the objective. Just make sure you place the supplies well and try not to give away their position when you're doing that.

Other uses:

• If a lone wolf is trying to cap one of your flags, drop a vehicle on him! This will only work if the fool is in the open, but it is extremely satisfying.
• Supply drops can repair your assets. Just place them next to your destroyed sat scanner, UAV trailer, or arty and within moments they’ll be as good as new!

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So, in conclusion: As a commander, your primary purpose is to provide information. You need to give as much support to your tactical squads as possible via your commander’s assets. Action commanding has no place on TTP!

The key word for all of this is COMMUNICATE!

Let's see... two days and nobody has said a thing? There must be something wrong with these...