Gameplay.
You will also notice different units that were not included in the Original RA such as the Flak Truck and Supply Truck.
Game-play is also a bit tricky and difficult to understand if you haven't played OpenRA at least a couple times, which I recommend if you haven't already. Well, Lets get cracking on how to make you an overall better player and team player in OpenRA.
OpenRA Guide, Chapter one: Game Theory.
When you get right down to it, the entirety of Game-play can be sub-categorized into two parts:
Micro - the ability and capacity to command and control many units, aircraft, infantry, naval vessels, etc. at different times in a controlled and strategic manner.
Look at this picture, could you imagine how difficult it would be for a novice player to micro all of these units into battle?
Most novice players would get so overwhelmed with the size of their army, believing that size is everything, and will throw these units into battle without any real strategic thought.
There are few players that actually do this since, if you are a great player and are able to get an army of massive size, you should be able to micro them equally as well.
Macro - the ability to build and construct buildings, defenses and ore refineries in strategic places that serve your economy and base defense.
Now, look at this. Could you imagine how difficult it would be to a novice player trying to macro all of these ore trucks efficiently? Although Macroing is difficult to get down at first, it is way easier to understand how to Macro your building and defense's placement than Microing your troops efficiently into battle.
Mapping theory, Expansion, Economic building placement.
Mapping Theory.
Basically, When starting or in a multiplayer lobby about to play a game, examine the map you're about to play on; check spawn points, geography of the map (Rivers, Lakes, Mountains, Ore placement). Check to see which spawn is situated closest to the most ore. (for the sake of this chapter we'll assume this is a Free For All match and will cover teamplay later) Determine where other players are situated if possible; understand their motives, goals and objectives. There are a number of questions you want to ask yourself:
"Which spawn has the most ore?"
"Are any of these players next to me better than me? Should I be worried If they attack?"
"Does the player next to me want the same ore pile that I want? Would I be willing to fight him for it to gain the upper-hand?"
"Is this mostly a land or a water map?" Should I be worried if an adjacent player were to get a naval army?"
"How would I go about taking the adjacent player down? Do I want to attack him fast? (3-10 Minutes in-game) Or do I attack him later? (10 Minutes - ~ )"
Those are all great questions to ask yourself. Remember, If you know you cannot beat the adjacent player next to you, it is a good idea to either not spawn next to him, or not attack him in-game. (maybe he won't attack you)
Expansion.
After you found your first ore field and your harvester starts collecting, you will notice: those resources won't last forever. Ore mines can regrow gold, but that takes time.
In the early game it is usually enough to reveal the area around your base with some light units such as infantry, jeeps and yaks. This will also secure the next ore patch a bit.
Base Walking.
Tip: If an ore field is in your build radius, place the next building in that direction so next time you can build a refinery on the edge of the ore field.
Base Moving
A less risky method is building a weapons factory and a service depot. Together they grant you access to build additional MCVs. Not only will this allow you to construct while one truck is on the move, you will get additional build space on the map and buildings are constructed a little faster with more than one construction yard active.
Important: Enemy construction vehicles are easy targets, because they have weak armor and drive slowly. You should never leave it undefended and if under attack, deploy it into a construction yard to get better armor and to initiate repairs. It is advised to scout and secure the area before moving, to avoid getting the core unit of the game in trouble.
Economic Building Placement & Expansion.
Doesn't it seem like common sense to place an ore refinery CLOSEST to an ore pile? Doing so will improve faster Ore truck path time, higher income of money AND less overcrowding of your base. (I only mention because some new players that play 45 min to 1 hour long games produce really overcrowded bases) At the start of a match, after deploying MCV, you should already understand where you want certain buildings to be placed. I.e., ore refinery should be placed closest to ore pile, Barracks should be situated where most of the opposing players might attack from, power plants in a safer place until enough time passes where you can build defenses.
Upon Expansion, Ore refineries should be placed closest to ore with care. You never know who is on the other side of the ore pile hiding in the fog of war trying to take the ore too, Could be a veteran player, could be the whole team, who knows? Always remember to defend the advancing path of your expansion with defenses or units. Use team chat to inform your fellow teammates about your expansion goals and motives; team-chat is vital for victory!
Expansion also comes with a price. Expanding too early, before setting up at least a base Economy, will cause you to suffer minutes later. Be it you run out of money, or you get attacked very soon 2-4 minutes into the game. Remember to think about expanding before you do it and think of all outcomes and remember, let your teammates know what is up!
In conclusion, expansion and strategic building placement is vital to your macro economy and for victory! Almost all OpenRA veterans use base expansions to win. Stay in your base at your starting point and you won't last long.
A great tutorial on this game, congratulations.
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