Rider II squads & vehicles idea
The Rider class has many problems but what can be done to fix it without fundamentally changing the entire class. Unarmored and armed jeeps like the Willys Jeep and Kubelwagen are the logical step forward but they won’t be added for the same reason why the Opel Blitz isn’t the german APC. Every nation’s most iconic jeep already exists in game as wreckage and drivable vehicles you can find strewn about the map. (I personally don’t want what I thought was part of the map to start shooting at me). But these are not the only jeeps of each nation.
Before I get to the vehicles, let’s first talk about the class itself. One of the biggest downsides for putting rider class in your line up (besides the well known issues with the bikes) is how small the squad is. The maximum squad size for riders is 3, a squad size of 3 isn’t enough to go into combat with, a single casualty and what you planned to do with your rider squad are changed immensely. With jeeps you are able to seat 4 soldiers in it, so a max squad would be 4 and another soldier isn’t much of an upgrade. Rider II should start with a squad size of 4 and upgrade to a maximum squad size of 6. However a slightly bigger vehicle is required to fit the bigger squad so the vehicles I’m suggesting are categorized as light trucks not jeeps. These light trucks should only be lightly armed. Just like how bikes are, all the new vehicles should be able to be stolen by the enemy team, have no overheating on the machine gun, and have an ammo box onboard. These vehicles fill in a missing gap in enlisted, and that is transportation. (To clarify I don’t mean acting as a mobile spawn point) Any squad regardless of what team they’re on, can commandeer an empty one of these vehicles to quickly get around the battlefield. This is way different from APC, which can only be moved by the squad that spawned it in. Allowing for new tactics and strategies to be formed while still being vulnerable to small arms fire. Also a new way to get points with rider class, you get points for each friendly soldier not from your squad that rides on your vehicle. When another friendly soldier not from your squad rides on your rider vehicle (be it stealing your empty vehicle or sitting in the empty seats) you get a certain amount of points per soldier. (Even if your rider squad is dead you still get points from soldiers riding your vehicle) Something that would also be useful is leading indicators for planes show up, the light armament of the vehicles most likely isn’t enough to take down planes by themselves (might cause them to crash if they’re in a dive) but it is enough to possibly deter them.
Tech Tree vehicles and squads, All 4 of the following vehicles will be BR2 so they don’t interfere with the bikes in BR1, most likely should be placed after the APCs in the tech tree. The squads are mostly motorized infantry divisions except for 2 and those I explain why it should be the squads.
USA - WC-51
Armament - 1x 12.7mm M2 Browning
Top speed - 89 km/h - might have to be lowered so all the rider II vehicles have around the same speed
(this is the similar but less produced WC-52)
Capacity - 10 people (possibly 11 if the gunner is standing up to man the gun)
With a fully upgraded squad not every seat is being used so another squad or part of another squad can join your squad in the back of the vehicle. Also would be useful for fitting a larger squad like a 9 man rifleman squad into an abandoned WC-51
Squad - 83rd Infantry Division
Nicknames: “Thunderbolts”, and “The Rag-Tag-Circus”
First Allied Unit to cross the river Elbe and the closest American unit to Berlin, famous for moving as fast as an armoured division due to them stealing both friendly and enemy vehicles to make sure no soldier was left walking. If a British vehicle gets added to this squad in the future, it is possible for this squad to actually have the vehicle historically.
USSR - GAZ AA (DSHK)
Armament - 1x 12.7mm DSHK
Top speed - 70 km/h
Capacity - 6 people (2 in the cab, 4 squeezed into the bed) might be able to carry more if they’re holding onto the side of the truck
Squad - 144th guards motor rifle division
Germany - Horch 108 type 40
(These following 2 pictures are for the early war model of the Horch 108)
(The Horch 108 type 40 which had the middle supporting wheels, and 4 wheel steering removed because it was too costly and complex)
Armament 1x 7.62mm MG-42
Top speed - 60 km/h might need to be increased to make it around the same speed as the other rider II vehicles.
Capacity - 8 people so able to seat 2 more more soldiers plus your squad, just like the WC-51 it will be really useful for fitting a larger squad into an abandoned Horch 108
Squad - 14th motorized infantry division
Japan - Laffly S15R captured from the French in Vietnam
Armament- 2x 7.5mm MAC mle 1931
Top speed - 72 km/h
Capacity - realistically 5 but can easily fit 6 because the seats are bench seats
Squad - 5th division, participated in the invasion of Vietnam so most likely the soldiers in the historic photograph are from the 5th division
Remember that because the rider vehicles can be stolen what could make one nations vehicle better can also be used against them.
All 4 of the previous vehicles should handle quite similar to APCs, but you can go a lot faster than APCs but turning is a bit easier than APCs but still could be a problem. More importantly these vehicles should be able to go over or destroy obstacles that would have stopped bikes.
Specialists for squad unlocks (all nations squads have the same specialists) only 5 specialists so if you want a full 6 man squad you have to have at least 1 rider.
1st specialist choice - engineer or medic
2nd specialist choice - radioman, assaulter, or sniper
3rd specialist choice - engineer, assaulter, or sniper
4th specialist choice - radioman, mortarman, or medic
5th specialist choice - machine gunner or Anti tank gunner
And because gaijin likes to make money here’s a brief summary of possible event and premium vehicles
Ambulances (premium) - BR1 because most ambulances are unarmed - instead of ammo boxes a medic box
Armored cars (events and premiums), event armored cars with 3 or less crew should be in rider I squads, while 4+ crew cars should be in Rider II squads - BR2 because anti tank weapons are more common with up tiers too BR3, armored cars armed only with machine guns or crappy autocannons so it poses no direct danger to other vehicles, should also have a fatal flaw like being opened top, that allows the crew to taken out with only small arms so players don’t have to waste anti tank weapons on a rider vehicle, but still protects the crew from everything but a determined player
Some examples include - M3 scout car, Kfz 13, M3 halftrack (event vehicle for USA it’s so easy too add just use the Russian premium model), BA-64, Sd.Kfz 221, and switching the Sd.Kfz 221 (s.Pz.B.41) too rider
I am open to criticism and comments
- Yes
*Theres some issues that need to be addressed first - No