I'm certainly not the most experienced commander here. But my commander ranking (according to BF2Tracker) is currently 45,560 which makes it the highest ranking of all my stats.
So I've come up with a list of things I wish for when I'm presiding over a team:
* A good team needs at least two (preferably three) squads, each containing at least four soldiers who stick together. I'll refer to these as the operational squads, because squads smaller than four men are unlikely to succeed when the commander sends them off to distant flags to fight. The operational squads are the squads that will obey orders from the commander, and the efforts of one operational squad are usually worth more than ten headless lone soldiers.
* Only snipers and spec-ops soldiers should be in a squad of less than four men. They are special kits that can be directed to strategic points and still be useful on their own. Other kits are almost useless to a commander when they are wandering the map alone.
* When you join a squad, view the kits of the members in that squad before choosing which kit you spawn as. For instance, there really needs to be at least one anti-tank kit in each squad. So often do I see a good squad wiped out by a single tank because they're not able to defend themselves. And if the squad has no medic, that's a real minus too. A medic or two can keep the squad going all the way to the target. You might have a preferred kit, but it's amazing how well you can do in a different kit as part of a good squad.
* Squad leaders should never accept a commander's order if they cannot follow it, or if they have no intention of following it. It's maddening to see a squad leader accept an order and pass it on to his squad, only to then see him head in exactly the opposite direction. Turning down an order you can't handle right now is fine. The commander will give the order to someone else if available.
* If you're the squad leader of an operational squad, feel free to ask for orders. I don't hurry to issue orders unless I see an emergency or a valuable opportunity, but if you're in a position to take on new objectives the commander will be delighted to tell you where to go. However, please don't ask for orders if you're a loner. It's too hard to manage UAVs and artillery while trying to direct six squads of one or two soldiers. If you want to be helpful, join an operational squad, or invite several more soldiers into your existing squad.
* If you are a squad member, then spawn by your squad leader whenever possible. That's the greatest strength of the squad system, the ability to drop into combat alongside your squad leader. If you don't think much of your squad leader, then join another operational squad.
* Whenever you create a new squad, make sure to click Manage Squad, and then invite at least five other soldiers into your squad. (Not all of them will accept the invitation. Unfortunately, it's not possible to see which soldiers are already members of other squads.) There's little point in creating a new squad and being its only member.
* Please check the minimap when you hear that artillery is being fired. It's incredible how many times you can yell "Artillery! Your area!" and still the squads will wander right into the centre of the barrage circle.
* Understand why the commander is so keen on you defending the team's asset base. This base contains the UAV trailer, the satellite scan, and the artillery guns. If the commander loses these, the team is blind and the enemy has a real advantage. If the team's asset base is captured, it's very important that the team recapture it. Otherwise the commander stands no chance of repairing the assets because an enemy spec-ops will spawn and C4 them within seconds. If there are two asset bases, the most valuable one is the one with easy access to the satellite and the UAV trailer. Artillery is useful, but nowhere near as useful as the overview tools.
* Ask for supplies as soon as you need them. Unless the enemy have swamped the team's asset base and destroyed the commander assets, there are always supply crates sitting ready to be dropped. Make use of them after skirmishes that have depleted your health and ammo.
* Don't be offended if you ask for UAV or artillery and the commander turns you down. Usually the requested asset is recharging. Also, in my experience a squad leader cannot target artillery or UAVs as well as the commander can. The commander uses a satellite scan to see a heat map of the enemy's positions so he can target artillery and drones right over built-up areas.
That's all I can recall right now. No doubt something else will spring to mind next time I'm looking down over a raging skirmish.
So I've come up with a list of things I wish for when I'm presiding over a team:
* A good team needs at least two (preferably three) squads, each containing at least four soldiers who stick together. I'll refer to these as the operational squads, because squads smaller than four men are unlikely to succeed when the commander sends them off to distant flags to fight. The operational squads are the squads that will obey orders from the commander, and the efforts of one operational squad are usually worth more than ten headless lone soldiers.
* Only snipers and spec-ops soldiers should be in a squad of less than four men. They are special kits that can be directed to strategic points and still be useful on their own. Other kits are almost useless to a commander when they are wandering the map alone.
* When you join a squad, view the kits of the members in that squad before choosing which kit you spawn as. For instance, there really needs to be at least one anti-tank kit in each squad. So often do I see a good squad wiped out by a single tank because they're not able to defend themselves. And if the squad has no medic, that's a real minus too. A medic or two can keep the squad going all the way to the target. You might have a preferred kit, but it's amazing how well you can do in a different kit as part of a good squad.
* Squad leaders should never accept a commander's order if they cannot follow it, or if they have no intention of following it. It's maddening to see a squad leader accept an order and pass it on to his squad, only to then see him head in exactly the opposite direction. Turning down an order you can't handle right now is fine. The commander will give the order to someone else if available.
* If you're the squad leader of an operational squad, feel free to ask for orders. I don't hurry to issue orders unless I see an emergency or a valuable opportunity, but if you're in a position to take on new objectives the commander will be delighted to tell you where to go. However, please don't ask for orders if you're a loner. It's too hard to manage UAVs and artillery while trying to direct six squads of one or two soldiers. If you want to be helpful, join an operational squad, or invite several more soldiers into your existing squad.
* If you are a squad member, then spawn by your squad leader whenever possible. That's the greatest strength of the squad system, the ability to drop into combat alongside your squad leader. If you don't think much of your squad leader, then join another operational squad.
* Whenever you create a new squad, make sure to click Manage Squad, and then invite at least five other soldiers into your squad. (Not all of them will accept the invitation. Unfortunately, it's not possible to see which soldiers are already members of other squads.) There's little point in creating a new squad and being its only member.
* Please check the minimap when you hear that artillery is being fired. It's incredible how many times you can yell "Artillery! Your area!" and still the squads will wander right into the centre of the barrage circle.
* Understand why the commander is so keen on you defending the team's asset base. This base contains the UAV trailer, the satellite scan, and the artillery guns. If the commander loses these, the team is blind and the enemy has a real advantage. If the team's asset base is captured, it's very important that the team recapture it. Otherwise the commander stands no chance of repairing the assets because an enemy spec-ops will spawn and C4 them within seconds. If there are two asset bases, the most valuable one is the one with easy access to the satellite and the UAV trailer. Artillery is useful, but nowhere near as useful as the overview tools.
* Ask for supplies as soon as you need them. Unless the enemy have swamped the team's asset base and destroyed the commander assets, there are always supply crates sitting ready to be dropped. Make use of them after skirmishes that have depleted your health and ammo.
* Don't be offended if you ask for UAV or artillery and the commander turns you down. Usually the requested asset is recharging. Also, in my experience a squad leader cannot target artillery or UAVs as well as the commander can. The commander uses a satellite scan to see a heat map of the enemy's positions so he can target artillery and drones right over built-up areas.
That's all I can recall right now. No doubt something else will spring to mind next time I'm looking down over a raging skirmish.