Mythonian
01-20-2015, 09:08 AM
http://www.fcwars.net/node/images/forerunnerconflict.png
Update 9.3
Battles Next Week!
http://www.troll.me/images/y-u-no/short-notice-y-u-no-tell-us-sooner-thumb.jpg
Sorry for the short notice. Things have been pretty crazy the last few weeks, but we finally got everything situated and finalized, and we can't keep waiting around any longer: Battles are starting up! The 25th is the first battle, so be there Sunday at 6:00 PM EST!
Attack Plans are being finalized now and will be posted in the morning. In the meantime, here is the Warmap: http://www.fcwars.net/node/warmap/l1/ap0.png
It's pretty confusing at first glance, isn't it? We're changing a few things this war, details below...
The Rules of Engagement
Back in Halo 2 and Halo 3, the wars were pretty simple. REDD attacks Map A, BLUE attacks Map B. The games are played and the winners declared, and that's done week after week until one side wins the war.
Well, at the end of Halo 3, when Halo: Reach was coming out, we wanted to add more depth to the wars. Make it more like a simulation, add some strategy to it, make it more engaging and interesting. So, we added an economy system. Eventually, we added troops and brigades and more purchases and auxiliary attacks, and it got a bit out of hand at times. Well, it certainly added more strategy to it, but instead of making it engaging and interesting for the average members, it actually turned people away from it. Nobody understood wtf was happening, so we scrapped that and started over from scratch.
For instance, here's how attack planning works now:
1) Choose enemy planet you want to attack.
2) Choose friendly planet you want to "cycle."
3) Send to War Directors.
Bam. For those who care about the specifics, read below:
The Rules of Engagement for the First War of MCC (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?14149-FC-Accords-Article-V-Rules-of-Engagement).
The Warmap
For those who have already read the RoE linked above, you can probably skip this section. For the rest, here's the warmap we're using this war:
http://www.fcwars.net/node/warmap/l1/ap0.png
We started from scratch, but we kept several of the good ideas about the old RoE and warmaps. Capital Battles are similar to how they worked in H4, and we took Kaz's suggestion about stacking maps (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?14335-MCC-Mockup-Warmap). (but we modified it a bit)
Basically, here was the plan: have as much map variety as possible. It's quite unlikely that we will ever play the same map twice this war. You guys might remember when we played Deuterium like 4 times in a single H4 war, or Tritan about 5 times in a Reach war. We wanted to avoid this for our war, and since we have 100+ MCC maps to choose from, we should be fine. Here's the summary of how we achieved this:
Each planet has 3 maps on it.
One map on each planet is active at any given time.
After a battle on that map, it is cycled to the next map.
Each army can choose a single planet they control and cycle it as part of their attack plans as a way to disrupt the enemy attacks.
If a map has versions in multiple games, the attacking army is able to choose which version to play. (these are indicated by the game icons under the map names)
We hope that it will work out pretty well and give us a good variety in maps this war.
MCC Issues
MCC is still being patched by 343 and will continue to for awhile to come. The most recent patch yesterday helped a lot and apparently matchmaking is significantly improved. Over the coming weeks as they iron out more of the issues, things will progressively get better, but until then we've made some temporary adjustments...
We will be limiting games to 6v6s. Getting 12 people connected to a lobby is about the limit right now, and especially for H3 and HCE games the networking becomes pretty bad in larger games, so until 343 fixes stuff we are going to stop at 6v6 player counts. We're also going to be doing 5v5 maps that feel like they are a bit too big for 4v4 but not large enough for 6v6. (basically, it's the same as we did in original H3)
Even with the above, things will be tough sometimes. It won't affect everybody, but a few people will have issues. So...
Make sure you have an open NAT. This could be due to forwarding ports or a variety of other things, but if you don't have it open you need to fix this ASAP. It's probably hurting you more than any issues with the game itself. http://support.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-one/networking/nat-error-solution
Specifically with port forwarding, there are dozens of tutorials on the internet about how to do it, and even YouTube videos about it. Do a search (include your router's brand/model) and get those ports forwarded. http://support.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-one/networking/network-ports-used-xbox-live
Taking care of the above is something you do BEFORE Sunday, btw... If you need help, get it before then. Seriously.
Have some patience. There's a reason we don't let kids join FC, and every member is expected to be mature, especially during FC events. If you're going to cry over restarting the game or resetting your console a few times, then I've got little to say to you. Most of the stuff here (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?14846-How-to-Use-MCC) is still accurate, so read up and know when you need to reset.
Forge in the Wars
As a result of the voting from awhile back (link (http://fcwars.net/forums/poll.php?pollid=373&do=showresults)) we added numerous H2A forge maps to the war. They are below:
Short Circuit
4v4
Sym
ForgeHub (http://www.forgehub.com/threads/short-circuit-1-1.148067/)
Gorged
6v6
Sym
N/A
Hive
4v4
Sym
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SH8M5h5BR8)
Narrows
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/03f36703-4e12-43e3-bbdc-bfa23708afd1)
Guardian
4v4
Asym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/056651d2-21cd-439d-8d5f-d1085a747bfe)
Epicborough
4v4
Sym
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-nZaIoYtz4)
Countdown
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/44d3b038-46f8-410e-b7b8-fce7107ec66e)
Oubliette
5v5
Asym
ForgeHub (http://www.forgehub.com/threads/h2a-wip-oubliette.148222/)
Panic Attack
5v5
Sym
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe8pHXrh38U)
The Pit
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/c83dfd38-fb83-433b-ba2c-b88411058867)
Undertow
4v4
Sym
ForgeHub (http://www.forgehub.com/threads/undertow.148149/)
Monarch
4v4
Asym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/5d8b36c7-c40d-4c30-817c-74c2b2390bb4)
Centerpiece
4v4
Sym
N/A
Curfew
4v4
Asym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/028a94b8-33e4-4264-aa34-ea64f9d5d4ef)
Zealot
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Resivore/95335aa1-ee0f-4527-9d0c-03a219d77426)
Delta Facility
8v8
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/37753838-cdd6-4857-ae02-685668516216)
These are the only forged maps used. It may seem like a lot, but we actually have ~90 maps on the warmap this war, with the stacking of maps and cycling. Don't expect to play them very much, but the Forge Department will be having meetings and testing nights to ensure the maps work well.
If you're interested in joining the Forge Department, click here (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?12939-Forge-Department-Signups).
Just to briefly explain, all other maps played with be using the default versions that come with MCC. For H2A, this means we will be using "Shrine," for instance, and not "Sanctuary Anniversary." Same for the other H2A maps. For the other games, we will not be using any forge variations at all, only the base maps. [this may change for future wars, but at the moment this is what we decided on]
Gametypes Galore
So these are still a bit of a work in progress, only because there are so many of them. Here's the full list:
Halo: Combat
Evolved
Halo 2
Classic
Halo 2
Anniversary
Halo 3
Halo 4
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
M Sabotage
S Sabotage
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
M Sabotage
S Sabotage
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
M Sabotage
S Sabotage
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
Extraction
I've got them figured out and am in the process of going through and setting them up and saving them. You'll be able to find them on my fileshare in-game within the next day or so. Attack Plans are going to be up in a few hours and I'll be focusing on the gametypes needed this week first, and after that will get the rest finished and uploaded to my fileshare.
Streaming in FC
With built-in streaming via the Twitch App on Xbox One, we're expecting this to be a very common thing now, and we as a community want to embrace it. We added the Member Streams (http://fcwars.net/forums/twitch.php) page and can feature streams on the main forum page. However, when someone decides to stream and wants us to help advertise it, that person is accepting a few responsibilities.
That stream is representing FC as a community. As such, we've determined an official policy about streaming and advertising that stream on FC, whether this advertising be through a feature, through posting it in the chatbox or a thread, posting it in our Skype groups, etc. While representing FC, we have some expectations of you...
The below is the full policy. If you plan on streaming, read it and understand it. Ask us questions if you want clarification on anything. If you aren't a streamer and don't plan on ever doing any, you can probably skip the below.
A streamer is responsible for what happens during their stream. While they cannot control what people post in their chat they can moderate it and should be expected to do so. Likewise, someone streaming needs to be aware that what they say is public and they should consider that when speaking. Also, they need to inform their teammates of that as well so they are aware of it when speaking and communicating.
If someone is in the stream chat being a dick and insulting people, the streamer or a mod in the channel needs to deal with that appropriately, either through timing that person out for a bit, removing that message and giving a warning, etc. Obviously they can't do this instantaneously, but are expected to do it once they notice the messages. Someone who continues to spam or post offensive material in the chat should be banned from the channel by the streamer or a moderator and the individual would receive the appropriate action/infraction.
If someone on their team is being a dick and insulting people, the streamer also needs to deal with that. We understand that people can get frustrated during games, but avoid it becoming excessive or blatantly rule-breaking. The streamer is expected to (1) inform them that the communication is being streamed and (2) warn them not to break the rules. After doing so, if the person continues then the streamer is protected and the individual would receive the appropriate action/infraction.
If a streamer fails to properly handle their stream, or if they themselves are acting out inappropriately, they are responsible for it. Anyone who streams FC events or gets their stream highlighted/advertised on FC's website, FC Skype groups, etc. is agreeing to take responsibility for what happens on their streams and is saying they will be handling it.
1) For chat moderation, they can either take it upon themselves or give mod privileges to respected members so they won't need to worry about it. This can include HC members, Forerunners, Precursors, WDs, Global Mods, etc., so it's more of a team effort than everything on the streamer himself. We can't expect people to pay attention to every statement said and remove it instantaneously, but looking at the chat between games or when there's a break should be easy to do. Using a bot to help out with this (perhaps with periodical reminders to keep things clean) might be a good idea as well.
2) For trash-talking and such, be mature. We aren't expecting a G-rated channel, but don't begin insulting people. "God dammit he shot me through a fucking wall" is fine, but "Holy shit these guys are trash" is too much. Have some common sense with this stuff. If you're just doing matchmaking against random opponents it's not as big of a deal, but streams of battles and events need to be more mature.
3) If a teammate is doing the rampant trash-talking (and your stream includes their voices as well), a streamer can simply say "hey, I'm streaming dude, they can hear you" or "calm down dude, just call out instead of raging" is enough to absolve the streamer of responsibility if the teammate continues trash-talking. The streamer just needs to show they don't condone it. The teammate might get infracted, though, if they don't stop. (We understand that games can be infuriating sometimes, so that should be taken into account for these issues in the future.) If a streamer is expecting to have issues with this, they can exclude the audio of their teammates.
The Swing of Things
Things have been very slow the last two months. We haven't done a whole lot, and people have dropped into inactivity. Try to spread the word about battles this Sunday, get people aware. Urge them to show up, and most importantly urge them to be patient if things don't go perfectly smooth.
TL;DR: Sunday the 25th. 6:00 PM EST. Be there.
~Mythonian :cyborg:
Update 9.3
Battles Next Week!
http://www.troll.me/images/y-u-no/short-notice-y-u-no-tell-us-sooner-thumb.jpg
Sorry for the short notice. Things have been pretty crazy the last few weeks, but we finally got everything situated and finalized, and we can't keep waiting around any longer: Battles are starting up! The 25th is the first battle, so be there Sunday at 6:00 PM EST!
Attack Plans are being finalized now and will be posted in the morning. In the meantime, here is the Warmap: http://www.fcwars.net/node/warmap/l1/ap0.png
It's pretty confusing at first glance, isn't it? We're changing a few things this war, details below...
The Rules of Engagement
Back in Halo 2 and Halo 3, the wars were pretty simple. REDD attacks Map A, BLUE attacks Map B. The games are played and the winners declared, and that's done week after week until one side wins the war.
Well, at the end of Halo 3, when Halo: Reach was coming out, we wanted to add more depth to the wars. Make it more like a simulation, add some strategy to it, make it more engaging and interesting. So, we added an economy system. Eventually, we added troops and brigades and more purchases and auxiliary attacks, and it got a bit out of hand at times. Well, it certainly added more strategy to it, but instead of making it engaging and interesting for the average members, it actually turned people away from it. Nobody understood wtf was happening, so we scrapped that and started over from scratch.
For instance, here's how attack planning works now:
1) Choose enemy planet you want to attack.
2) Choose friendly planet you want to "cycle."
3) Send to War Directors.
Bam. For those who care about the specifics, read below:
The Rules of Engagement for the First War of MCC (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?14149-FC-Accords-Article-V-Rules-of-Engagement).
The Warmap
For those who have already read the RoE linked above, you can probably skip this section. For the rest, here's the warmap we're using this war:
http://www.fcwars.net/node/warmap/l1/ap0.png
We started from scratch, but we kept several of the good ideas about the old RoE and warmaps. Capital Battles are similar to how they worked in H4, and we took Kaz's suggestion about stacking maps (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?14335-MCC-Mockup-Warmap). (but we modified it a bit)
Basically, here was the plan: have as much map variety as possible. It's quite unlikely that we will ever play the same map twice this war. You guys might remember when we played Deuterium like 4 times in a single H4 war, or Tritan about 5 times in a Reach war. We wanted to avoid this for our war, and since we have 100+ MCC maps to choose from, we should be fine. Here's the summary of how we achieved this:
Each planet has 3 maps on it.
One map on each planet is active at any given time.
After a battle on that map, it is cycled to the next map.
Each army can choose a single planet they control and cycle it as part of their attack plans as a way to disrupt the enemy attacks.
If a map has versions in multiple games, the attacking army is able to choose which version to play. (these are indicated by the game icons under the map names)
We hope that it will work out pretty well and give us a good variety in maps this war.
MCC Issues
MCC is still being patched by 343 and will continue to for awhile to come. The most recent patch yesterday helped a lot and apparently matchmaking is significantly improved. Over the coming weeks as they iron out more of the issues, things will progressively get better, but until then we've made some temporary adjustments...
We will be limiting games to 6v6s. Getting 12 people connected to a lobby is about the limit right now, and especially for H3 and HCE games the networking becomes pretty bad in larger games, so until 343 fixes stuff we are going to stop at 6v6 player counts. We're also going to be doing 5v5 maps that feel like they are a bit too big for 4v4 but not large enough for 6v6. (basically, it's the same as we did in original H3)
Even with the above, things will be tough sometimes. It won't affect everybody, but a few people will have issues. So...
Make sure you have an open NAT. This could be due to forwarding ports or a variety of other things, but if you don't have it open you need to fix this ASAP. It's probably hurting you more than any issues with the game itself. http://support.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-one/networking/nat-error-solution
Specifically with port forwarding, there are dozens of tutorials on the internet about how to do it, and even YouTube videos about it. Do a search (include your router's brand/model) and get those ports forwarded. http://support.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-one/networking/network-ports-used-xbox-live
Taking care of the above is something you do BEFORE Sunday, btw... If you need help, get it before then. Seriously.
Have some patience. There's a reason we don't let kids join FC, and every member is expected to be mature, especially during FC events. If you're going to cry over restarting the game or resetting your console a few times, then I've got little to say to you. Most of the stuff here (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?14846-How-to-Use-MCC) is still accurate, so read up and know when you need to reset.
Forge in the Wars
As a result of the voting from awhile back (link (http://fcwars.net/forums/poll.php?pollid=373&do=showresults)) we added numerous H2A forge maps to the war. They are below:
Short Circuit
4v4
Sym
ForgeHub (http://www.forgehub.com/threads/short-circuit-1-1.148067/)
Gorged
6v6
Sym
N/A
Hive
4v4
Sym
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SH8M5h5BR8)
Narrows
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/03f36703-4e12-43e3-bbdc-bfa23708afd1)
Guardian
4v4
Asym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/056651d2-21cd-439d-8d5f-d1085a747bfe)
Epicborough
4v4
Sym
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-nZaIoYtz4)
Countdown
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/44d3b038-46f8-410e-b7b8-fce7107ec66e)
Oubliette
5v5
Asym
ForgeHub (http://www.forgehub.com/threads/h2a-wip-oubliette.148222/)
Panic Attack
5v5
Sym
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe8pHXrh38U)
The Pit
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/c83dfd38-fb83-433b-ba2c-b88411058867)
Undertow
4v4
Sym
ForgeHub (http://www.forgehub.com/threads/undertow.148149/)
Monarch
4v4
Asym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/5d8b36c7-c40d-4c30-817c-74c2b2390bb4)
Centerpiece
4v4
Sym
N/A
Curfew
4v4
Asym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/028a94b8-33e4-4264-aa34-ea64f9d5d4ef)
Zealot
4v4
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Resivore/95335aa1-ee0f-4527-9d0c-03a219d77426)
Delta Facility
8v8
Sym
XboxClip (http://xboxclips.com/Mythonian/37753838-cdd6-4857-ae02-685668516216)
These are the only forged maps used. It may seem like a lot, but we actually have ~90 maps on the warmap this war, with the stacking of maps and cycling. Don't expect to play them very much, but the Forge Department will be having meetings and testing nights to ensure the maps work well.
If you're interested in joining the Forge Department, click here (http://fcwars.net/forums/showthread.php?12939-Forge-Department-Signups).
Just to briefly explain, all other maps played with be using the default versions that come with MCC. For H2A, this means we will be using "Shrine," for instance, and not "Sanctuary Anniversary." Same for the other H2A maps. For the other games, we will not be using any forge variations at all, only the base maps. [this may change for future wars, but at the moment this is what we decided on]
Gametypes Galore
So these are still a bit of a work in progress, only because there are so many of them. Here's the full list:
Halo: Combat
Evolved
Halo 2
Classic
Halo 2
Anniversary
Halo 3
Halo 4
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
M Sabotage
S Sabotage
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
M Sabotage
S Sabotage
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
S Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
M Sabotage
S Sabotage
Conflict
Asset
M Liberation
Hill 30
Occupation
Extraction
I've got them figured out and am in the process of going through and setting them up and saving them. You'll be able to find them on my fileshare in-game within the next day or so. Attack Plans are going to be up in a few hours and I'll be focusing on the gametypes needed this week first, and after that will get the rest finished and uploaded to my fileshare.
Streaming in FC
With built-in streaming via the Twitch App on Xbox One, we're expecting this to be a very common thing now, and we as a community want to embrace it. We added the Member Streams (http://fcwars.net/forums/twitch.php) page and can feature streams on the main forum page. However, when someone decides to stream and wants us to help advertise it, that person is accepting a few responsibilities.
That stream is representing FC as a community. As such, we've determined an official policy about streaming and advertising that stream on FC, whether this advertising be through a feature, through posting it in the chatbox or a thread, posting it in our Skype groups, etc. While representing FC, we have some expectations of you...
The below is the full policy. If you plan on streaming, read it and understand it. Ask us questions if you want clarification on anything. If you aren't a streamer and don't plan on ever doing any, you can probably skip the below.
A streamer is responsible for what happens during their stream. While they cannot control what people post in their chat they can moderate it and should be expected to do so. Likewise, someone streaming needs to be aware that what they say is public and they should consider that when speaking. Also, they need to inform their teammates of that as well so they are aware of it when speaking and communicating.
If someone is in the stream chat being a dick and insulting people, the streamer or a mod in the channel needs to deal with that appropriately, either through timing that person out for a bit, removing that message and giving a warning, etc. Obviously they can't do this instantaneously, but are expected to do it once they notice the messages. Someone who continues to spam or post offensive material in the chat should be banned from the channel by the streamer or a moderator and the individual would receive the appropriate action/infraction.
If someone on their team is being a dick and insulting people, the streamer also needs to deal with that. We understand that people can get frustrated during games, but avoid it becoming excessive or blatantly rule-breaking. The streamer is expected to (1) inform them that the communication is being streamed and (2) warn them not to break the rules. After doing so, if the person continues then the streamer is protected and the individual would receive the appropriate action/infraction.
If a streamer fails to properly handle their stream, or if they themselves are acting out inappropriately, they are responsible for it. Anyone who streams FC events or gets their stream highlighted/advertised on FC's website, FC Skype groups, etc. is agreeing to take responsibility for what happens on their streams and is saying they will be handling it.
1) For chat moderation, they can either take it upon themselves or give mod privileges to respected members so they won't need to worry about it. This can include HC members, Forerunners, Precursors, WDs, Global Mods, etc., so it's more of a team effort than everything on the streamer himself. We can't expect people to pay attention to every statement said and remove it instantaneously, but looking at the chat between games or when there's a break should be easy to do. Using a bot to help out with this (perhaps with periodical reminders to keep things clean) might be a good idea as well.
2) For trash-talking and such, be mature. We aren't expecting a G-rated channel, but don't begin insulting people. "God dammit he shot me through a fucking wall" is fine, but "Holy shit these guys are trash" is too much. Have some common sense with this stuff. If you're just doing matchmaking against random opponents it's not as big of a deal, but streams of battles and events need to be more mature.
3) If a teammate is doing the rampant trash-talking (and your stream includes their voices as well), a streamer can simply say "hey, I'm streaming dude, they can hear you" or "calm down dude, just call out instead of raging" is enough to absolve the streamer of responsibility if the teammate continues trash-talking. The streamer just needs to show they don't condone it. The teammate might get infracted, though, if they don't stop. (We understand that games can be infuriating sometimes, so that should be taken into account for these issues in the future.) If a streamer is expecting to have issues with this, they can exclude the audio of their teammates.
The Swing of Things
Things have been very slow the last two months. We haven't done a whole lot, and people have dropped into inactivity. Try to spread the word about battles this Sunday, get people aware. Urge them to show up, and most importantly urge them to be patient if things don't go perfectly smooth.
TL;DR: Sunday the 25th. 6:00 PM EST. Be there.
~Mythonian :cyborg: