PvP Operations

[jahlon]

Tonight, I realized that this game is going to need some serious ROE (Rules of Engagement).

We are fortunate enough to have several PvP veterans from various games, which is going to help, but even we do stupid things....which we did.

Tonight was a great example of what happens when you aren't organized. 6 Reds showed up, killed us and several other friendlies. We got picked off one by one in our own neighborhood. We got owned, and then and then left before we could find them or get retribution.

Even though most of us knew better, we sort of lemminged into them in ones and twos and got roasted. By the time we got gathered up, we were unable to purse them, however, we ended up loosing Spoooooooooookies a second time, because he got 3 v 1.

I think the form-up in response was great and is something we need to have more of. This is a PvP-centric game and we need to knock the rust off and get used to fighting as a cohesive unit.

[Teti_AA]

The one major downside I've noticed is that it can be hard to rally up quickly unless everyone has set their memory to a guild house in Rookborne housing area. I think all members of adequate level should record that in their memory tome for a moment's notice to be able to respond quickly.

[Dusk Dusk]

Last night was what I believe to be our first large guild PVP Raid/event. And I completely agree with the statement that we need ROE or SOP’s (standard operating procedures). So I figured I’d help kick it off and continue the discussion with more of a focus organized events. At this point it is a list of suggestion (and a few questions) more than direct guidance:

I’ll start with the most important first… Voice comms
Typing is slow and waiting for visual cues is easy to miss, both can leave us all dead. And while it is not mandatory to be on TS3. It should be strongly encouraged. If you’re in PvP, you SHOULD be able to HEAR your teammates. You don’t have to speak; you don’t even need a mic. But you really need to listen.

Communication discipline
This one is hit or miss depending on the group personalities… Generally, you can chat, giggle and joke all day long on TS; in fact it’s usually encouraged. But when we are in a major fight. Shut up and listen. If this means you need to set a push to talk, do it. The only comms on during a fight is fight related (priority targets, enemy movements, directions…). If we die because you were laughing hysterically or had on open MIC blasting the TV… need I say more?

Calling Intel
Accuracy, Brevity, Clarity… call out how many you can see at the time (or a best guess). Give cardinal direction in relation to the group (north, south, east, and west) and any important details such as vehicles, gliders or mounted/ Siege weapons/ Ship class? Also, I’m sure we will become familiar with enemy Guild Tags, if you know the tag and you know they are a group to be on the lookout for, call that too.

Friendly Signs/Markers/visual cues
For individual(s) leading a PvP event, a PvP party or an entire raid. Please mark the lead with an appropriate icon. Last night we used both the star and the heart. This allowed for friendly players to quickly pick out, follow and rally on our lead members or rally points

Enemy Signs/Markers/visual cues
Preferably set by the 1-2 members acting as the party/raid lead. Please place a number and call out the target of priority for the group to focus fire. The numbers signs work quite well. Last night we used mostly the #1… However, I think we should stick to what numbers have the most contrasting colors, the 1 is a yellow that blended in with the grass and could be hard to locate quickly.

Target Priority
So far it seems that like most engagements, if you can identify the healer(s). Kill them first. Are there any other standard priorities that we have noticed so far, or is it situation dependent. (I.E. should we focus tank before high DPS, or the reverse). Also, if you locate a similar group leader ( I don’t know how you can, but if you do); they should be a priority kill. We used to have our scouts do this in GW2 at times. You can pick them out by following the groups’ movements.

Group cohesion
If we are in a group, we should focus on maintaining that group. This means several things:
A. That you don’t run off and try to chase a single individual. This could be a trap or it may not be. But will likely leave you separated from your group and leave you vulnerable and the rest of us weaker. So NO CHASING SQUIRLS!
B. While moving quickly is important. If we are between fights or getting spread thin, we should take the time to have a full rally - as the larger the group, the stronger the group.
C. This may be true in this game, it may not, and it may not even matter. But, should we try and maintain general front line / back line positions? Generally the tankier/bunker type build play up front and the DPS / Heal stay towards the back. Is this something we should work to improve?
D. If you can, try to aid our healers if you see them getting focused. The same is said for the raid leader. That’s said, the raid leader and healers need to not run in head first or drag far behind.



Other suggestions


Priority Skills and abilities
This one is up for major discussion. Are there specific skill that an individual should wait to use until the lead asks for it… case in point, should we use heal bombs (a guild wars 2 term). The concept is that we have our healers not use there large AOE heal in combat. If the entire group needs heals, the healer or the leader calls out for the heal bomb. Everyone rally’s on the icon and all the AOE heals are casted at once.
Are there any defensive or offensive skills we need to identify and start using? My initial though is the song craft large AOE heal.

Mounts
Keep more than one mount on you (not counting the donkey)… more than a few of us lost our mounts last night. You can hop on a buddy, but it may also help to have two.

Battle pets
Are battle pet useful in PvP? I honestly haven’t tried yet. However, at the very least I believe we should ALL have out our battle pets… why? Because most players tab target. And if 50% of their targets are pets, that more frustration for them, more of a visual distraction and they will probably soak damage that was meant for one of us.

AOE caps
Does ArcheAge have an AOE cap or is it true AOE… as ask because several games (to include GW2) had a cap on the number of targets that could be affected by a single AOE. If the answer is yes, then we can exploit it. If it’s no, we may want to spread out just a little.

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