What makes you (not) fallow orders and work as a squad

General Discussion
21

If CIC wants something done, they should order the SQUAD LEADER to do it. Outside of that, there’s not really much CIC can actually do.
CIC is more of a ‘relay information’ thing, where you provide info on the queen, location of hive and casualties, or things that need doing. If you aren’t providing call-outs on dead marines and other situations, you’re not doing your job.

That’s not to say CIC is incapable of directly herding marines- You absolutely can by ordering SLs specifically, the problem is that if the SL is bald or doesn’t listen, you’re basically shit outta luck outside of demotion for insub. I’ve seen countless occasions where even groundside COs struggle to herd marines because their SLs are bald motherfuckers who genuinely don’t care about the CoC- They’re just there to unga frag.

Squads follow orders and work together when the players in it actually want to. Much of the time, squad cohesion depends more on who is in your squad rather than how good the leader is. Leadership matters a lot of course- A good leader can get a large chunk of normally apathetic players to care and actually follow you into hell. But unfortunately, a good chunk of players just don’t give a shit, and never will. It’s not necessarily that they’re stupid, just that CM is a game, and not everyone will be as invested.

Personally, my biggest factor for whether I follow my SL is whether I know they’re competent or not. As superficial as it is (why not give all the unknowns a chance?), I’m a player, and if the satisfaction and fun I get from ungaing and holding LMB on 2D bug sprites is greater than the enjoyment I get from following someone on some fetch quest, I’m ultimately going to choose the option that I enjoy, unless I’m specifically bound to do so e.g. I’m in the unfortunate position of aSL and so must follow the bald XO’s orders as per roleplay rules.

You see this a lot when someone with sizable clout rolls up like fucking Windhealer, and then all the mute PFCs magically learn English and start praising their lord and saviour.

Likewise, if someone who I recognise as being actively responsive and who makes the round more interesting if I tag along, I’ll dive in hell and back for them, even if it’s some ridiculously stupid flank that’s obviously a terrible idea.

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22

Only when I notice the SL or aCO is too new. I was clueless to how the flow goes and they more likely than not are as clueless if not more than I was.

That said, even as a pfc as young Morrison I tend to follow all orders or at least follow the SL as much as I can.

I will try to pry him from under the queen if necessary ( even got medals for that) on the frontlines but I will not follow him into the 5 Prime Warriors I know are just behind that corner because he wanted a flank. Good SLs know better.

My thinking on following someone is that if the squad isnt cohesive at least a pair is formed with me and the SL. He also got the Command channel and possibly more info about the OP than I have because of it.

I always prep as if I’m going to be aSL. LDs, radio backpack, jtac pamph for pfc and even flares if I can spare the storage. I will ask for aSL when possible. That is because in playing a lot with that big L beside my sprite will make people recognize me and know my style of leadership. The ones that agree/like how I do things might join me, cohesion goes up, shit gets done.

I also tend to respond more if people call me by name. I have Morrison highlighted and if SL or Command keeps calling me as ‘Sniper’ or ‘FTL’ I might not see. That also is linked to ego. Being called by name feels better for the recognition than calling my role or rank.

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23

Something that screwed my eyes open Clockwork Orange style is realizing how many ESL folks we have that are just here for the gameplay and don’t even understand what you’re saying unless it’s single words in Runechat. It’s a minority but perhaps a larger one than I thought. No offense Prime XX Sent/Spitter but I have no idea how you do it without ever typing or reading a word my friend.

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24

I enjoy playing with ESL people. However, if your role requires a good deal of communication, a good grasp of the English language is key. You can tell if it is going to be “one” of those rounds if your SL speaks broken English or barely communicates at all.

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25

flanks lowkey suck balls as marines in general because of how fast xenos can rotate over and cap you.

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26

Honestly as soon as a leadership role makes a very stupid call, I stop listening. I’ve had many SLs and command roles just command the entire force into a death trap. Or if they’re making shit calls and start with the attitude, I completely disregard at that point cuz you’re on your own if you dont want to perma. One thing I do listen to though: A commanding SL that clearly is robust.

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27

Fair, but got to keep in mind some times ordering the Full force to dive into a death trap is the right call. I know i have to order lads to dog pile warrior chokes because they just keep lettings the one off ungas get grab and not pile in after them. its really not hard to a break warrior choke if you just say ‘fuck it first man falls second man frags’

That’s why some times you get odd calls that seems dumb at first but frankly is right call if albeit it a bit of risk.

got to understand many times the calls seem bad because the force only in part pushs meaning its under strength were as the risk calculus done by CIC is counting on a on mass push.

That being said some death traps are some thing that really should never be pushed one among them are queen and boiler corner traps.

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28

I know, but because newbie command thinks that “military strategy” means just organising a flank as a solution to every problem, then I just quit listening and I no longer blame myself for focusing on the left part of the screen.

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29

I used to follow all orders regardless of the situation but that slowly changed with time and experience. Sometimes your leadership just makes bad calls and refuses to recognize or understand it, and often times the signs manifest before the actual orders are made.

A classic CIC example is looking at the tacmap pre-drop on a large map like Trijent Dam and seeing the squads separated to completely different sections of the map. Theoretically a good plan, sure, but in practice ends up in a flank-and-spank in a high percentage of times. I have done enough of those to know how it will go, so I may hold topside until second or third drop to see whether it pays off rather than being round ended in 35 minutes.
For squad orders it depends on several more factors. Is my SL/aSL trustworthy? Is CIC commanding my SL/aSL trustworthy? How is the flow of information? There is nothing worse than being commanded into a hopeless maneuver by somebody who refuses to explain why, say, running from a highly advantageous position to flank in a highly guarded death corner will do anything but result in massive casualties for little to no gain. This isn’t a blank cheque to go ignore orders and flanks, but there’s more to getting cooperation from your teammates than simply insisting upon it.

I would also like to add that I believe it is easier to stomach and follow the orders of groundside soldiers than those of shipside personnel. There are several reasons for this, two major ones being immediacy and personality.
Immediacy has to do with the order-giver’s proximity to the situation and ability to make judgement calls in relation to it. Your aSL may be some PFC who didn’t die in the first 45 minutes, but he or she has a much better understanding of the current tactical reality on the ground than the SO who demands that you just go retake comms with no support for the fifth consecutive attempt.
Personality has to do with the kinds of players you get in certain roles. In my experience with this game, and honestly most online platforms in general, the people who seek out higher ranks or positions of more authority tend to be the ones least worth trusting with them–climbers is a word I like to use. Not all high authority positions are occupied by climbers, but you will see them far more often playing SO and XO than you will PFC. These are best taken on a case-by-case basis: not every SO is a climber and not every PFC is guaranteed not to be one, but you certainly know them when you see them. And in my experience they are often not worth trusting in the realm of judgement calls. Personality may also be affected by the way players conduct themselves in a round, but it is important to remember that this is a game that encourages silly things at its core so one should not use player conduct as a cast iron excuse to defy orders every time. Most poor or silly conduct is not representative of a player’s trustworthiness and should not be taken as such, though repeat offenders tend to establish patterns worth noting for future interactions.

4 Likes
30

Once again i rescind my previous comment.

The only thing that can make me follow squad orders is if someone comes up to me and physically yanks my walkman off me, otherwise i ignore what everyone says because my music is loud and not doing so would obviously be failrp

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31

I got you homie:

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32

I’m cooperative with most SLs. Just as long as they say something, and don’t run alone into the arms of a carrier, I’ll follow them fine.

BUT COMMUNICATION IS VERY IMPORTANT.

SLs should be screaming at me to do stuff.

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33

SLs who spam “GET ON ME!!” all the time but never tell you where they are so you need to play a guessing game looking at your tracker if you’re not next to them.

Also SLs who refuse to use OB and firesupport, I kind of just see them as fraggers. Especially when front stalls, and even moreso when CIC sends announcements going “Get me OB coords x here”

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