Title is a bit convoluted so let me explain quickly
Within the game, it is cool to see slight asymmetrical balances within each faction, as long as it doesn’t make one faction too unfair against the others.
Whilst the Soviet faction does have access to body armour, and it is quite powerful (radically changing the balance of many weapons), they are not the only faction with a benefit unique to them.
The Japanese army is able to equip Shin Gunto Katanas to every single soldier, allowing a player to move quickly (50% faster) as a Japanese soldier than in any other faction. Now, I am well aware that you can get swords in every faction, but these are so limited in number and rarely given out during events, that this is still basically an advantage provided mostly to Japan. Since we have good parity at all tiers in terms of weapon balancing (for the most part) I would like to provide a 2 part suggestion;
Adding a unique tool or effect to Axis and Allies, that is a useful utility that provides a reason to play that specific faction
In summary, before a deeper explanation below:
USSR - Body Armour
Japan - Shin Gunto Katana
Allies - Bangalores
Axis - Upgraded Flasks
First I’ll discuss my idea for the Allies. The classic M1A1 Bangalore, known under a few names, was widely used and adopted by both USA and UK during WW1 and WW2. This item is devastating at removing fortifications, and this would fit in really well with Enlisteds Sandbox. An Allied soldier could use their Bangalore to instantly remove stuff like barb wires, czech hedgehogs, sandbags etc. My suggestion would be to place the bangalore (a single use item) within the slot where a soldier can equip TNT / AP mines / AT Mines. This would provide a unique utility to USA that no other faction has, a way to quickly dismantle fortifications at the opportunity cost of the soldiers Mine or TNT (which is very valuable, so the choice should be balanced, and also encourages taking different loadouts on soldiers and bringing variety and interest to loadout building). This would also be the only way in the game to quickly destroy a czech hedgehog. For the uninformed, czechogs are incredibly broken in Enlisted. They are entirely immune to damage, from ANY source, and take an agonizing 12 seconds to deconstruct. The worst part is that placing these in doorways and windows entirely breaks the AI pathfinding in the game, having a massive impact on the game, for just the placement of one hog.
Secondly, I am not entirely sure what to give the Axis, but I have some smaller ideas, and maybe the community can come up with some as well.
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Axis flasks are upgraded - They provide 2 or 3 minutes (regularly 1) of infinite stamina, and also regenerate the users health over time (slowly, out of combat, back to full HP whether that is 10 or 13.5). This suggestion comes under the basis that during the war, the countries used more than dubious substances to enhance the capabilities of their soldiers.
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Blendkörper 1H or Blendkörper 2H. This is essentially a light bulb filled with chemicals that creates a thick smoke screen effect. The Germans used these to block the sight in windows from pillboxes and machine gun nests. This could be a unique smoke grenade effect, allowing Axis to chuck these and have them explode in windows or doorways, blocking sightlines and honestly, I’d make these stronger than the current smoke grenades we have in the game (they are pretty pitiful). Another upside is that since the glass has shattered, the enemy cannot throw back the grenade (you can throw smoke grenades you find on the floor, removing their cover lol). This is a bit of a weaker idea, maybe the glass grenade could be a sort of flashbang, although again I’m not really sure I want to be flashbanged in Enlisted, and its not historically accurate at all.
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Cosmetic item = Y Shaped Leather Belts. This would be a minor addition, but German soldiers used specific leather belts and shapes to distributed their weight better. This could in Enlisted translate to more efficient stamina use and stamina recovery speed. This is a weak idea though as its a weaker flask effect and not the biggest benefit to actual gameplay.
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Stronger shovel. Overengineered German shovel with better digging efficiency and digging area. These are even visually on the German soldiers sometimes as cosmetic items, the little folding shovels they have.
Lastly to finish, the idea is that these tools should be
1 - Unique to the faction
2 - Offer a useful utility that isn’t directly a weapon
3 - Goes into an equipment slot (Melee, Grenade, TNT, Flask, Binos, Medkits etc) or are part of a cosmetic item (body armour is a cosmetic, Shin Guntos are a melee weapon)
4 - Is a benefit to a soldier, not a unique ability for a vehicle (No, not Axis Zimmerit to stop TNT charges or something)
5 - Fair, balanced, and grounded in some form of reality. This is a WW2 simulation, not a MOBA. I’m not looking to add superpowers to soldiers that make them do crazy things
Thanks for reading 