FAForever Forums
    • Categories
    • Recent
    • Tags
    • Popular
    • Users
    • Groups
    • Login
    The current pre-release of the client ("pioneer" in the version) is only compatible to itself. So you can only play with other testers. Please be aware!

    Change Mantis to T1 tank icon

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved Suggestions
    55 Posts 25 Posters 5.8k Views 2 Watching
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as topic
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
    • UvesoU Offline
      Uveso
      last edited by

      I can only answer how difficult it is to change.

      Go to this line:
      https://github.com/FAForever/fa/blob/deploy/fafdevelop/units/URL0107/URL0107_unit.bp#L220

      Change it from

      StrategicIconName = 'icon_bot1_directfire',
      

      to

      StrategicIconName = 'icon_land1_directfire',
      

      That's all.

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
      • ValkiV Offline
        Valki
        last edited by

        Compared to 2015 I see a lot heavier use of LABs in lower leagues at least, I don't know if is just changing meta or the buildpower buff LABs received. I myself hopped onto this trend after some impressive mixed LAB gameplay by an opponent.

        But it is hard to see if those are 3 LABs or 3 Mantis raiding something.

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • T Offline
          Tagada Balance Team
          last edited by Tagada

          I will make a commit on Git and bring it up with the balance team.
          #MakeMantisGreatAgain

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 4
          • Dragun101D Offline
            Dragun101
            last edited by

            Its an intended feature of the Mantis as part of Cybran Intel Game. I don’t believe it should be changed

            I’m a shitty 1k Global. Any balance or gameplay suggestions should be understood or taken as such.

            Project Head and current Owner/Manager of SCTA Project

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
            • arma473A Offline
              arma473
              last edited by

              It's an unintended side effect of what is generally a good system (use different icons depending on whether it's a "bot" or a "tank"). Cybran has bots instead of tanks for t1 because they look cool, not because of the intel game. We have to decide between two imperfect options:

              -Mantis has "tank" icon even though mantis are bots
              -Mantis has "bot" icon so it's harder to tell them apart from LABs

              So either you have to tell people "diamond is a tank and hexagon is a bot EXCEPT for mantis" or you have to tell people "LABs look like this, t1 tanks look like this, but watch out, you can't tell Mantis apart from LABs"

              It seems obvious to me which one we should prefer

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • Dragun101D Offline
                Dragun101
                last edited by

                Disagree. The Mantis has a Bot Icon because Cybran thing is subterfuge (that and ability to threaten anymore but not necessarily engage everywhere) and at T1 you cannot really have classic counterintel like stealth avaliable easily in mass espacially for land.

                So they gave an intentionally “deceptive” Strategic Icon, so espacially early game, a Cybran could fool an enemy with a Mantis as NotLab or Hunter as notTank.

                (There is also I believe a speed/dps implication of what gets a Bot vs Tank Icon. Just in general. But that a different tangent).

                I’m a shitty 1k Global. Any balance or gameplay suggestions should be understood or taken as such.

                Project Head and current Owner/Manager of SCTA Project

                arma473A 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                • arma473A Offline
                  arma473 @Dragun101
                  last edited by

                  @Dragun101 said in Change Mantis to T1 tank icon:

                  There is also I believe a speed/dps implication of what gets a Bot vs Tank Icon

                  T2 - hover tanks are fast and cheap (blaze) or fast and expensive (riptide), heavy tanks can be slow (Obsidian) or fast (Pillars), bots can be slow (Ilshavoh) or fast (Mongoose/Hoplite)

                  T3 - bots are fast when they are from SupCom 1, but T3 armored bots and sniper bots are slow.

                  I don't see any patterns

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                  • K Offline
                    Katharsas
                    last edited by

                    It makes no sense (both in terms of gameplay and lore) that you can zoom in and clearly see that its a Mantis (aka bigger threat than lab), and then just zoom out and somehow the information lost now?

                    The other factions would have to gimp their own tactical overview on purpose to remove information they already have, why.

                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                    • Dragun101D Offline
                      Dragun101
                      last edited by

                      Because Cybran is messing with your intelligence gathering simply put

                      I’m a shitty 1k Global. Any balance or gameplay suggestions should be understood or taken as such.

                      Project Head and current Owner/Manager of SCTA Project

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                      • F Offline
                        FunkOff
                        last edited by

                        Mantis is a t1 tank. That is all. (Although if the supcom 2 example is to be followed, it could have +25% damage (10 instead of 8 for 33.33 dps) in exchange for -25% hp (200 instead of 270).

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • Sir-PrizeS Offline
                          Sir-Prize
                          last edited by

                          If it's a gameplay mechanic it should have counterplay, which in this case either doesn't exist or is switching off "Always Render Strategic Icons"... a setting in the options menu that you don't even have to be in game to access. That's not gameplay. If it was an intended mechanic, Mantis would appear with tank icons for the user - not that lore really matters but from that perspective why would you jam your own sensors?

                          To a lesser extent it creates the same potential problems for the Cybran using Hunters+Mantis as it does for the opponent. You won't know what your land mix is when just looking at it, and have to remember what you sent where and go out of your way to actually select units in various places to confirm what's what, whereas other factions can just zoom out and know how many LABs and tanks they have and where they are. This is potentially meaningful, especially early, as you might well push in with a LAB in a fight that a Mantis could win but a Hunter will lose, or hang back when you could have raided with Mantis and taken a lead. This goes against the point of strategic icons, which is basically the selling point of the game.

                          TLDR this isn't really a fun or interesting skillset to punish or reward for either side, and it's pretty hard to believe it's a deliberate design choice beyond "Mantis have legs".

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                          • T Offline
                            Tagada Balance Team
                            last edited by Tagada

                            PR is up and merged.
                            https://github.com/FAForever/fa/pull/3265

                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 5
                            • AurikoA Offline
                              Auriko
                              last edited by

                              I'm quite sad noboby took draguns comment seriously, I think it makes perfect sense. Mantis has been like that since SupCom ... i'm sad this feature is removed to satisfy 3-4 people ....
                              #mantisarebots !!!!

                              Sir-PrizeS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                              • BlackYpsB Offline
                                BlackYps
                                last edited by BlackYps

                                His argument falls apart because it also affects the cybran player himself.

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                • TheWeakieT Online
                                  TheWeakie
                                  last edited by

                                  Who cares whether its an intended feature or whether it was in the OG supcom or not. All that matters is if its good or bad to have it in the game.

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                  • veteranasheV Offline
                                    veteranashe
                                    last edited by

                                    Does anyone ever do this or is this a non issue

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • DeribusD Online
                                      Deribus Global Moderator
                                      last edited by

                                      Do what?

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • veteranasheV Offline
                                        veteranashe
                                        last edited by

                                        Mix in hunters with mantis to make a army appear larger and more dangerous than it really is

                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • AurikoA Offline
                                          Auriko
                                          last edited by

                                          Compromise : instead of a tank icon, you put the bricks/percy icon : it's still a bot, but it has a X instead of a cross to differenciate it from the hunter. Of course it would have 1 white bar to indicate it's a t1 bot and not a brick. mantis.png

                                          ValkiV The_JanitorT 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • ValkiV Offline
                                            Valki @Auriko
                                            last edited by

                                            @Auricocorico Pretty brutal to have T1 <X> units being spammed out

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                            • First post
                                              Last post