Approaches

We talked about how the approaches to a teams’ base need to provide variations in play style so that more players find the style of approach that they enjoy best and can also have the opportunities to try different styles against their adversaries. In this lesson I want to discuss making the approaches interesting through the bases’ Geometry. That is, I want to discuss how a Lobby can help add to the map’s overall fun for a wider group of players by providing more options to the players invading a base.

Lobby

A Lobby is the term I will use to refer to an anti-chamber, or small room or tunnel, that leads directly into the main Space. For the purpose of this discussion, we will look at base design, but the concepts are useful through out a map. Players can use a Lobby in several ways, such as a staging area, a stealth approach under cover, and a recovery area after a mad rush to the enemy base. The Lobby accomplishes each of these through the common feature in the Geometry that provides cover both from adversaries in the base and outside the base.

Staging Area

Remember we said that a base with opposing ingress Paths helps make it possible for a team to coordinate a push from opposing directions, in essences creating a flanking maneuver against anyone in the base? Well, having a Lobby along one of the ingress Paths helps to setup such a push. One or two of the players can move into the Lobby and wait for the rest of their team to setup their approach on the other side of the enemy base. They can essentially hide in the Lobby, so long as their adversaries guarding the base don’t make regular rounds to check the various approaches.

The effectiveness of a Lobby being a staging area is in part due to its Geometry. If it’s doorways do not allow being observed readily from either the exterior or the interior of the base, then it makes a great hiding room to wait in.

Take the upper tunnel to Longbows’ base back against the mountains. Since most players remain down below, anyone in the upper tunnel is generally safe.

Take the lobby to Boneyard’s ship in Invasion. Even if the Spartans knew the Elites were in there, often times they realized that it was safer to just stand back and wait for the Elites to emerge, rather than be taken down as they moved through the doorway (which had a very narrow, yet sharp corner). It was generally an effective staging area in many cases.

Take the lower tunnel into the bases on Standoff. Once far enough into the tunnel, you could not be seen; yet, you didn’t have to emerge into the next room of the base. And even if you did, it tended to act as a Lobby as well (so long as the guards didn’t make their rounds down there).

Stealth Approach

So many times I have seen players approach in Stealth through a Lobby before springing into action when the base empties out (when his adversaries all go outside). The Lobby’s Geometry offers cover from being seen, particularly after the Active Camo runs dry.

Once in the Lobby, the player can slowly sneak up to the base proper, such as the flag room, and wait for the room to become empty before making a run for the flag.

Recovery Area

Another use for Lobbies is the protection their Geometry offers when a player is making a mad rush for the base and is being shot at along the way. If he successfully reaches the Lobby, he can rest and recharge his shields while his adversaries are making their way to where he is at. The Lobby buys him time to recharge, while not directly moving into the base proper.

Summary

A Lobby can make a base more interesting by offering a place to stage for a coordinate push.

Lobbies can be fun for players that enjoy the stealth approach (to the enemy flag for example).

Lobbies can also double as protective areas to recover and recharge shields in before moving further into the base.