<:: NEW FUNCTIONARY FIELD DEPLOYMENT ADVICE

[Simman102]

0. PREFACE

The server has a relatively steep learning curve, which causes extreme disparities between new and veteran players. This thread is an informal collection of advice from more seasoned players to the ones which might find themselves struggling. It's written with the assumption that you, the reader, are already familiar with fundamentals of the gamemode, as well with general server and faction rules. What you are about to read is by no means something that you have to adhere to, but will hopefully make your experience of the server smoother.

I. INVENTORY SETUP

A simple setup of your inventory which allows you to operate in the field without struggle would resemble this:

Spoiler: Relatively big image, inventory.

Most noteworthy are your uniform, your firearm and your filter. All three are absolute necessities which you should receive from a Rank Leader upon creating your character. Bar the bundle of zipties which is required per in-character protocol to carry, the quantity of other items pictured is merely a suggestion, but as mentioned before, will make your experience smoother.

If you run out of something while in the field, be not afraid to ask other units for any spares which they may carry. Similarly, should something be requested, share your own if possible.

II. USEFUL COMMANDS

There are a few useful commands which are worth mentioning as they are otherwise not introduced.
This is the effect of a command called:

/togglevisor

Another one we recommend you bind to a key and abstain from using it through chatbox:

bind p "ix toggleraise"

It allows you raise or lower your weapon without having to hold R, thus eliminating accidental reloads.

Finally, the /sc command, which is an abbreviation of /SetChannel. Whenever you interlock a protection-team (this is achieved through the patrol menu available under the TAB menu), you gain access to the team's channel - switch to it by performing the /sc pt command. To return to tac, use /sc tac.

III. "HELP, I DIED"

Death in combat will, inevitably, affect you as well, sooner or later. Make sure you are aware of the current server rules regarding that as this chapter will focus entirely on the mechanical aspect.

You drop all equipped weapons upon death. Notify a Rank Leader at earliest possibility (assuming you have no backup elsewhere) to be issued a new one. Keep in mind that if you dropped multiple weapons for whatever reason, you will likely have only one of them replaced, the one appropriate for your rank.

On top of the weapon dropped, you just lost all your reserve ammunition. It is advised you replenish it from the vendor, if possible.

In addition, unless you were killed by extraordinary means, you likely lost all your armour as well. You can make sure of this by inspecting your info bars provided you have them enabled, or by hovering over your uniform in your inventory. Replenish it by using Battery items from the vendor, each one restoring 50 armour, meaning you need a total of two if you died.
Heading out without any armour will likely result in your death from one to two bodyshots, diminishing your engagement.

IV. APC

Formally known as the "Armoured Personnel Carrier" or, in certain contexts, "vehicular asset", is this vehicle which you are very likely to encounter during your gameplay:

The intricacies of operating this vehicle will be omitted in this guide as a new player is extremely unlikely to be tasked with doing so. Instead, we will mention the following console command:

zapc_enterhatch

Which is required to embark the passenger hatch of the APC. This might be necessary to perform in a quick manner during recovery missions (you might die otherwise), so we recommend binding it to a key, by pasting this into your console:

bind h zapc_enterhatch

To leave the hatch you merely have to press E (or any other key that you may have manually bound +use to).
If you wish to learn more about specifics skipped in this section, consult a Rank Leader in-game.

V. THIRDPERSON

Thirdperson, outside of the toggle present in the Settings, is also a command which you can bind by pasting the following into console:

bind g ix_togglethirdperson

While under normal circumstances a matter of preference, in combat thirdperson is an undeniable advantage, as pictured below, or for the sole factor of the ability to determine the visibility of your playermodel to others (and the effectiveness of your cover).

Spoiler: Both are at the same location at the same time.

Should you choose to stick to exclusively thirdperson, we recommend using the following command in console:

hud_draw_fixed_reticle 1

Which will provide you with a rudimentary crosshair for combat purposes. Otherwise, mastering fluid transitioning between first- and thirdperson will drastically increase your chances of survival.

VI. OUTLAND BIOTICS

Also known as "Vortigaunts", "Vorts", just "Biotics", or "greenskin lizard f**ks", are one of the most panic-inducing enemies you may face on the field. Their ability to fire a pinpoint accurate beam which will kill you on contact across the entire map tends to limit your interaction with them to, more or less, sightings of this caliber:

Or, perhaps, this:

Engaging them alone over long range is a nearly guaranteed death sentence if you take their 150 maximum health into consideration. Should the presence of one be made known (and it usually is, over the PT radio, once one of the members of your team drops dead), take cover and pay attention to the decisions of your team leader - most likely, a retreat is imminent as most of the time Civil Protection is ill-equipped to handle this threat (assuming you have no Transhuman support).

On the other hand, vortigaunts are largely immobile once they start shooting - this grants you the opportunity of killing them with a coordinated push, should they be close enough for your weaponry to be viable. Once again, pay attention to the commands issued by your team leader.

Final note: vortigaunts have a secondary ability colloquially referred to as "groundpound". It wil instantly kill everyone (that isn't another vortigaunt) in their vicinity at the cost of completely depleting them of their stamina, making them an easy target afterwards (should they be singled out).

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