Raid Missions

[Archeyef]

Anyone remember Raid missions? ...No? Well that's fine, they weren't especially fun. Quick, though.

 

I've had an idea percolating for a while now and felt like I would share it here. I don't spend much time in this forum though, so I'll try to get to the point.

 

I thought it would be kinda cool to bring back Raid missions as a counterpart to Survival missions. We're always hearing about the "lone Tenno operative" hunting for supplies on the ship while we cause the distraction. Well, I think if we had Raid missions work off the same concept but from the point of view of the infiltrator, it'd provide a perfect opportunity for a stealth mission. Maybe even an endless one.

 

I mean think about it. The ship is on high alert. There's a squad of Tenno massacring the crew, and all available soldiers are needed to put them down. Meanwhile, you are there, sneaking through this ship, which is swarming with enemies all rushing to the defense. If they see you, it could be game over. They'll realize it's a distraction, run to a console, and lock down all the vaults with impenetrable defenses, failing the mission. Unless you kill them, of course. But with all the enemies running through, do you really think you can kill them all before one of them gets to a console to initiate the lockdown?

 

Ideally, the loot you raid will be high value, to make up for the lack of kill XP. Maybe give it a high bonus XP for completing the mission successfully.

 

I know something like this has probably been suggested before, but I wanted to share my concept of it. What do you guys think?

[Dalimir]

Seems cool, just might be the mini-event they need to introduce stealth 2.0

 

You have my upvote!

[Implodingbanana]

sounds interesting and i wouldn't mind playing it after DE makes a decent stealth system

[[DE]Saske]

Raid missions were essentially the same as capture missions.

Edited September 18, 2014 by Saske92

[Archeyef]

Raid missions were essentially the same as capture missions.

 

Yep.

[Vastaren]

Indeed, this would be a great way to reintroduce stealth into the game. Certainly all the thematic elements are there.

My main concern would be the apparent lack of teamwork in this mission type. Having to stay silent isn't something that comes naturally to Warframe combat in general, nor does it really lend itself to being done in a team setting outside friendship groups. It'll be interesting to see what ideas we have for that aspect ;)

[Archeyef]

Indeed, this would be a great way to reintroduce stealth into the game. Certainly all the thematic elements are there.

My main concern would be the apparent lack of teamwork in this mission type. Having to stay silent isn't something that comes naturally to Warframe combat in general, nor does it really lend itself to being done in a team setting outside friendship groups. It'll be interesting to see what ideas we have for that aspect ;)

 

Well, I admit that combat doesn't lend itself to silence, but this game mode would kinda... discourage combat by it's very nature. That's just kinda how stealth is, and this'd be for people who like stealth. I kindof see it as maybe an alternative to survivals and defense, with the danger coming not from losing oxygen but from being spotted. The idea is very clearly (not trying to be hostile) to NOT engage in combat. In fact, the way it's set up, engaging in combat would probably lead to mission failure every time unless you're really lucky.

 

It also does foster teamwork beyond "stay close." It encourages players to actively communicate and cooperate to complete the objective. The teamwork is just in a different mode from the usual. Maybe VoIP would get more use from this. But yeah, friend groups would probably get the most out of this, if you're doing it in a group.

 

I admit it's not for everyone, but my concept was made with stealth players in mind. People like myself who enjoy the challenge of stealth every now and then.

[Vastaren]

- snip -

My fault, I should have clarified that I was referring to gameplay as a status quo thing. Common gameplay is fast and fluid, and having a mission like this would be a great counterpoint to that, I feel.

Teamwork... is a hard thing to predict. I don't necessarily agree it will actively promote teamwork like Excavation did, because the difference I see is that there are no tangibly solid objectives which require different roles to be filled by members of the team, as abstract as that sounds. In Excavation, there were clear roles people picked up on - defend the excavators, run power to the scanner, and staying as a group was heavily encouraged because of the threat of enemy scaling. Sadly, I'm just not convinced these stealth missions won't run like any other solar map mission - a single role everyone can fill with a Loki or something like that doesn't really sound like the level of teamwork we're capable of, but I'll admit, I don't doubt the stealth aspect will certainly contribute to a certain extent.

That said, I'd play this mode :)

[Archeyef]

-snip-

 

Well yes, it would be a counterpoint. I acknowledged that in the OP. In my mind we'd be filling the role of the "lone Tenno operative" during a survival mission. Whether you want to be restrictively true to the lore and have this be forced singleplayer... well that's up for debate, and would remove the problems of being in a team.

 

But teamwork, that depends. Of course certain frames like loki and ash would be better suited to these missions than others. But I think there are a few roles that people can adopt. Scout would be one of them. While anyone with a Loki could do it to a degree, I think those that are more observant would be best in that role. Someone who can go around and keep track of enemies' positions, while staying out of sight. Perhaps it's not ALWAYS enemies running to the defense. Perhaps you come across rooms where enemies have turtled up, and you need to take them out silently in order to progress (for whatever reason). And that's where you could have teamwork. Banshee, Loki, Ash, they'd all have applications here. One team mate, probably a Loki, can go around and take note of enemy routes. He can then mark those enemies for one of the others to take out. A Banshee player, if they're good at keeping from being detected, would be useful with Sonar, not only for the weakspot detection but for the enemy locations too. And if they are detected, maybe here is a room where some of the stealth can be partially abandoned, momentarily, until the enemy is dead. It might be prudent to have a DPSer along for these occasions, or a good CCer. The point is, the gamemode can definitely be set up such that there are different roles that can be adopted, and different frames can be brought along to fill those roles. It need not be Loki only.

 

Also, this game mode would certainly need it's own tiles. I'm thinking it would have a lot of alternate routes, lots of concealed passages. Make it feel like an actual infiltration. Perhaps even have some enemies patrolling these out of the way passages that would need to be taken out silently, or else avoided. That's another case where a scout could be useful.

 

Additionally, this gamemode would require some forethought going into the loadout. You'd need to make sure to bring good stealth weapons, ones that have high, single-shot damage ideally for quick takedowns. And silence mods would be very useful, if not invaluable. The point is that the mission would take serious loadout planning.

 

Some of this also depends on what obstacles are present in the mission. Those two-man doors in areas where enemies have entrenched themselves would probably necessitate either patient observance of enemy routes for a time when nobody has line of sight on them, or else methodical, silent takedown of the enemies in the area before moving on.