Artillery Rework: Aiming, Ordinance Amount, Cooldowns, and Countering

Suggestions
1

Artillery is something that definitely has historical basis, and needs to have a place in the game, but currently is very imbalanced in comparison to other game mechanics.
Causing issues like:

  • it being too easy to operate

  • being able to be used without any exposure to the enemy

  • no counter to it, as the location its being fired from doesn’t exist

  • by raining down so many shells, it absolutely obliterates anything within its area

  • there is no friendly fire damage, so it can be exploited heavily for pushes where teammates can freely walk through it.

  • being heavily spammed by numerous players, causing a nearly endless bombardment.

  • requires only a single person to use but can easily wipe out an entire team.

  • and plenty of other issues.

On the flip side, players have expressed that it is a barrage rather than something that can be used with precision, occasionally not actually hitting where the player wanted it to.

It has been brought up before, and again just recently that by comparison, the mortar squad (which is overall weaker generally) takes considerably more steps AND teamwork to use effectively.

So since my suggestion contains both buffs and nerfs, I am listing it specifically as a REWORK.

Suggestion:

First and foremost, the way in which the artillery is aimed and shell count needs to be changed. Considering that they are very large shells and therefore large impact, a player should need to physically be able to see what is being fired at.
(Historically, shells were zeroed in with the help of the radioman, where shells were fired one at a time until the correct aim was achieved. We see this to some degree in the game where one or two shells drop before the rest of the barrage, but these are not given any kind of zeroing effect.)

So, what I propose specifically is that the player has 2 options. Both starting with actually seeing the intended target.

Option 1:
They click once (use the “fire” button) on the intended location, and 3 shells are fired at random within a 20m radius of that point.

Option 2:
They hold the button on the intended location, and it fires the shells one at a time, each one getting more accurate than the last *as displayed below.

Artillery-Radius
Artillery-Radius2000×2000 183 KB

This allows for more precise strikes like rather than an exploitable bubble of explosions.
The radio operator would become more of a precision instrument.

Example of use:
Players could now use this to strike specific positions such as trenches, nests, and even eliminate tanks.

Regarding Cooldowns:

Currently players are limited to one barrage every two minutes, and must wait for other players to finish their barrages before being able to fire one themselves.
This would remain the same.

    • In regards to the aircraft runs, this would still be a shared team resource, HOWEVER, up until the point that the sirens sound when the aircraft are close, other players will still be able to drop standard artillery. (the bomber strike would still be aimed as it currently is.)
    • In regards to SMOKE artillery, the cooldown on this would be MOSTLY separate from the standard artillery. Each have a timer of 2 minutes (with the perk), HOWEVER they cannot be fired within 30 seconds of each other.
      (The smoke would be aimed by visually selecting 2 points, and the line would be dropped between them.)

Countering:

Actual artillery sites would be added to the game.

These artillery sites would be outside of the normal play map, and would be able to be attacked and eliminated by aircraft.

When players use artillery, the site will become very visible to enemy aircraft. If attacked and enough damage is done, the artillery will become unavailable for a period of time.

  • This means artillery will no longer be without a counter.
  • this helps give aircraft additional targets to help their team.

Final Note

I know this is a fairly long read, but I ask that you read it through thoroughly before passing judgement.
I think with these changes, the game will see a much better degree of balance.

3 Likes
2

If I were a tank or a firepower point
I don’t want to see shells coming every few seconds.
This will only return to the crazy barrage of previous years

You have never experienced a time when explosion damage can be used to deal with friendly forces.
That won’t help our friends

Those monkeys don’t use planes to attack things that won’t hit them
Not to mention the possibility of failure

Does each player have his own artillery battalion?
this sounds like a joke
And a few maps cannot reproduce this
You may have to fly to the sea to counter the anti-aircraft guns in the Pacific and Normandy beaches.
Usually the former will knock you down directly

Smoke does not require points
Nor should they show their heads to mark
The purpose of calling smoke is to obscure the sight of the shooter
Instead of letting people expose their heads to wait for death

There is a real need for precision artillery that can take on tanks
But my preferred method is to let players build large mortars themselves or directly call V1 bombs

3

Option 1 is 3x 76mm shells at a 20m radius. For reference, the diameter is longer than 6 shermans laid front-to-back in a line, or 4 mauses in a similar configuration. Then turn that into a circle.

A single Maus (10.2 L, 3.71 W) has a surface area of 37.842 m^2
A 20-meter radius has a surface area of 1256.637 m^2

The chances of hitting a Maus-sized target is about 3%. Multiplied by the number of shells, 3- It’s about 9%.
For reference, a standard artillery strike dumps 3 “spotter” shells, then dumps 16x 76mm-caliber shells at a 24m radius. A 2% chance per shell, with a 32% chance for the entire barrage, excluding the less-accurate spotting shells.

Infantry aren’t Maus-sized.

The point I’m trying to make is- This is a massive unnecessary nerf intended to solve a problem in the worst way possible.

I’m uh sure that giving every player in the team access to their own artillery won’t result in arty hell like in the past. Not at all.

You mean distract pilots with another pve target that has minimal influence in a match?

For option 2.

I would genuinely be fine with this as an exclusive radioman squad ability.

Regular artillery is already powerful enough to deal with trenches and other positions, but too unreliable to use for the purpose of destroying enemy tanks. There’s also the restriction that it can’t be used against greyzoned tanks.

4

If you want precision, use a mortar. Simple as

5

In terms of game balance though, there is a huge imbalance here.

Artillery, which has considerably more damage per shell, is easier to use, drops more of them, and pelts an area,
While mortars that are considerably less powerful must rely solely on precision to have any meaningful effect.

From a game balance perspective that seems quite reverse of what the case should be.
Which is the one with the larger shell and more power should require precision, and the one that is smaller and less powerful should be the saturation weapon.

6

@Lthiddensniper , @Lisqs , @Naohmcete , @ModGage , @Bigote0070 would you guys mind dropping your thoughts on this?

I’m going off a compiled suggestion from my friend group, and I’d like to make sure its not just one-sided players responding to the post to determine if I continue this line of suggestion.

1 Like
7

I like it,but not agree with the timers, sadly I prefeer we have a global timmer for avoid literally nuke a defending spot in seconds, think for a moment if 10/12 dudes at same time choose to send same attack to some area, it will be a true KABOOM,also for Pacific we could add a feature for naval attacks

1 Like
8

So remove the individual usage?

Edit:
The post has been edited to reflect the dislike of players being able to individually use artillery, without having to wait for a teammate’s artillery to finish.

9

Certainly.
While I agree with some of these changes, others seem weird or unnessecary or inefficient. Baseline is that I agree Radio Operator could use some changes. Changes to prevent them from sitting in the back and changes to turn them into team utility rather than just artillery and suicide rush.
Shell count and precision should change, not just that but where we can hit. I’d opt for removing danger close airstrikes until we figure out that weird friendly fire situation, I used to play when artillery killed friendlies too (or I am greatly mistaken and am remembering a different game) and I know currently that friendlies don’t take damage now. Both are not ideal so I suggest for now moving their targeting capabilities to part of the objective and past it into the enemies greyzone.
I think you’re on the right track with the idea for less area and shells and more aiming and frequent mini strikes.
If we were to change the mechanics to this it would be a more interesting class.

  1. Less Shells; we lower it to like 3 or so we could lower the timer for everyone.
  2. Increasing accuracy; we have the shells become more and more accurate the more the ability is used by the whole team.
  3. Lower timer?; I’m not 100% on this but it could be lowered just a little if the rest of these changes come into play.
  4. Tangible Placement; There is a place to bomb to destroy artillery temporarily and it loses all accuracy that has been progressed so far by the entire team.
  5. Team Cooldown; We still need at least a slight timer inbetween each person using the ability but it only need to be 15 seconds or so. THIS IS ONLY GRANTED if these other changes favoring accuracy and precision come in the game.
  6. Artillery Sites; Now @guardianreaper0 did mention having one artillery site for each person but I think a shared team one will suffice, combined with that site being visible either all or most of the time. With this idea implemented we can also play with the idea of some player controlled artillery pieces in the play area like we see scattered around the map, but this is a far away suggestion.

I know as well that changes to the fragmentationd damage and their interaction with fortifications would be beneficial. In addition different shell types might be interesting.
These were my thoughts and the changes I’d rather have added as some I agree with and some I do not.

2 Likes
10

  • First off, I’d like to note that the lack of friendly fire situation is one of the reasons I specifically suggested 3 rounds, not 5 or so.
    By making the precision element much more required, it helps to minimize how exploitable it is to use in the friendly fire situation. Making it less likely to eliminate multiple squads across an area while teammates walk through freely.
    With the suggested change, it may eliminate one squad (or position if used correctly), but not wipe out an entire area while allowing a zerg rush through.

  • In regards to allowing you to hit in areas where you are currently unable to, this is one of the reasons I suggested switching to a visual method of targeting, rather than just map selection.
    If you can physically see your target, you can hit them. Whether or not its in the greyzone.

    • With the reduced shell count, it helps to minimize the likelihood that someone just nukes the enemy’s spawns.
1 Like
11

my idea of artillery is the same as that of red orchestra 2

an artillery like the one we have now, saturation style, and one that lasts longer, but fewer projectiles explode

1 Like
12

Welcome to the average GR post.

13

That’s not usually the case. By the looks of it he has better ideas in game design than most of you all.

2 Likes
14

I was expecting you,instead of only tell that,trll us your opinion

15

I already have.

16

…no?
Artillery by its very nature is an imprecise weapon. It’s hard to perfectly arc a shell through the air and hit a small spot. Hence why it’s always many guns firing several times in a barrage
Meanwhile the mortar is attached to the infantry. Moving with and firing as needed on targets much closer and (at least IRL) in visual range. Needing to get much closer hits with much fewer stonks due to it being smaller

So as is they make sense

1 Like
17

Then besides the changes to accuracy and what not could we change it to an artillery site we can bomb and reduc or remove it’s fragmentation damage dealt to structures?
I’d be happy with just that.

1 Like
18

Yes I’m ok with this (good luck bombing ships in Pacific)

1 Like