Half Life 2 - City 13 FAQ

[Memed]

Will there be weapon drop and other old stuff

no matter what there will and should be a ‘head honcho’ for the rebels. keeping them from rolling into a position of power cemented with offscreen plot and bmd assistance is something we gotta do.

I'm just gonna say this right now within my own opinion that this sucks. If it's something you have to do then i can't do really much of anything about it. I wanted to say why I think it's bad but however i word it just targets someone on the admin team and I'm really trying not to do that, but head honcho's in itself have problems.

 

[EOS]

Will there be weapon drop and other old stuff

I'm just gonna say this right now within my own opinion that this sucks. If it's something you have to do then i can't do really much of anything about it. I wanted to say why I think it's bad but however i word it just targets someone on the admin team and I'm really trying not to do that, but head honcho's in itself have problems.

head honcho doesnt mean what i think u think it means but i could be wrong with assuming. the players at launch r free to set up their rebel activities with whoever they find. whoever does that the most, shows the most initiative, gathers a following is going to naturally be 'head honcho'.

its not some rostered rebel shit

 

[Memed]

head honcho doesnt mean what i think u think it means but i could be wrong with assuming. the players at launch r free to set up their rebel activities with whoever they find. whoever does that the most, shows the most initiative, gathers a following is going to naturally be 'head honcho'.

its not some rostered rebel shit

as long as it isn't an admin head honcho who can't die and can't take consequences. no offense to...whoever. i dont care. these previous iterations took enough out of me.

 

[EOS]

as long as it isn't an admin head honcho who can't die and can't take consequences. no offense to...whoever. i dont care. these previous iterations took enough out of me.

thats the thing

that is where problems arise. when ur head honcho is an admin and going through them or aligning yourself with them becomes the only way of progressing ur char. classic move throughout tnbs half life servers

but an admin in a leadership role isnt always a bad thing. it doesnt have to be what i said above. ik that "AAAB" to some of yall but there have been many good times whipped by the rebel admins in the past.

 

[gungus]

to follow up on EOS' point, the "head honcho" business is a product of environment and not by design, at least usually. personally i think with the new environment players should be more open to taking risks on this server. an oppressive environment broods a desperate resistance to that environment and i really am excited to see what we can do both on the rebel side and the side of cca. both sides are in good hands.

take more risks ans dont be afraid to lose a character this iteration, dont get caught in a gameplay loop of farming credits from rations. you're not a hero destined to save the city, nor are the units some omnipotent villain destined to destroy the resistance. you're all pawns struggling to survive in a dystopia, not living comfortably with good food, or much food at all.

take risks and remember the first rule of fight club: have fun

 

[Rabid]

Admins are usually the ones to take leadership roles in The Resistance because those players who could take charge either have no interest in it or only want to take charge when it comes to violent stuff and invariably end up getting caught and killed via poor decision making.

Hard to have any sort of structured Resistance if your leadership candidates keep getting splattered for doing silly stuff inside the city limits (which is exactly what happened in NA and especially Legacy).

Anyway this looks cool, guys. Feels like a lot of effort is going into it. Good stuff.

 

[popo]

I’m the head honcho and won’t be suffering any consequences

 

[The real freeman]

recent half life roleplays here have seen admin chars or chars around bmd connects becoming ‘head honchos’ because they supply the scripts and the plot moments. which creates the circle a lot of players flock too cuz it’s where they think the progression will come from and that ‘progression’ came in a form of more scripts and railroaded plot

another reason ppl get steamrolled into ‘head honcho’ is cuz shit gets dead then ppl have to attempt to use an admin to push the plot. which then results in that admin being the only walking character with plot power thus making them ‘head honcho’ with whoever they choose to at their side

no matter what there will and should be a ‘head honcho’ for the rebels. keeping them from rolling into a position of power cemented with offscreen plot and bmd assistance is something we gotta do. i think there being less focus on an overarching plot/big events and wanting the rebels to create their own story will help cuz that keeps things in the realm of the player and not adminge lore writer.

Bmd role in things is still in discussion

Tbh I wasn't even thinking about admins in this situation. Iirc there were a few players who seemed to get weapons and just take control and almost bully folks into believing they were in charge. To challenge that would have meant your char being labelled a "spy" and in term dying. As I stated, this is ofc an IC issue but at the same time I'd argue it's an ooc issue too. Guess what im trying to say is I hope everyone will get an even chance to demonstrate their own leadership skills and in turn create a less in-fighting and hostile resistance.

I understand admins being taking on a "head-honcho" role too. Without Sky and Flood last iteration driving the story forward in a fixed manner would have meant the resistance stagnating. The only downside to this was everyone was basically sat around waiting for these 2 to come on and push the story forward as it was essentially fixed/being talked about in the admin forums (me ofc at this point being an admin and could see the discussions/get invovled).

Glad to see the BMD role is still being discussed about. Look forward to seeing what you guys come up with.

double post

given there isn’t a starting plot that will last the whole server like “rebels need to accomplish x or x happens” idk if it will be that damaging. do whatever u want, write whatever u wanna possibly do, then hit up someone or the auths

with the focus on smaller dynamic plot lines and day to day stuff it should be hard to step on toes when writing shit on the rebel side. unless ur trying to do some large scale antics or invent something like a tesla grenade

to sum it up best thing that can be done here is communicate. u should be good

This is interesting. I do like the idea of leaving it more or less to the players to generate rp and create events. The only problem I see really is there be little to no knock on effect from these smaller events. Having an over arching storyline does help put into perspective the smaller events and you feel like you're building up to something bigger and more impactful. I dunno I might be looking into things too much at this stage, but im eager either way to see what happens.

Will there be weapon drop and other old stuff

I'm just gonna say this right now within my own opinion that this sucks. If it's something you have to do then i can't do really much of anything about it. I wanted to say why I think it's bad but however i word it just targets someone on the admin team and I'm really trying not to do that, but head honcho's in itself have problems.

I understand fully why admins end up taking these roles. In all honesty it is easier to help drive a story when they're somebody who's actively involved with the development of the story. Granted, a player could do just as much with the assistance of admins overseeing things but that means you'll have to work around someone elses timeframe. It's a 50/50 split to me in those situations.

 

[EOS]

Tbh I wasn't even thinking about admins in this situation. Iirc there were a few players who seemed to get weapons and just take control and almost bully folks into believing they were in charge. To challenge that would have meant your char being labelled a "spy" and in term dying. As I stated, this is ofc an IC issue but at the same time I'd argue it's an ooc issue too. Guess what im trying to say is I hope everyone will get an even chance to demonstrate their own leadership skills and in turn create a less in-fighting and hostile resistance.

I understand admins being taking on a "head-honcho" role too. Without Sky and Flood last iteration driving the story forward in a fixed manner would have meant the resistance stagnating. The only downside to this was everyone was basically sat around waiting for these 2 to come on and push the story forward as it was essentially fixed/being talked about in the admin forums (me ofc at this point being an admin and could see the discussions/get invovled).

Glad to see the BMD role is still being discussed about. Look forward to seeing what you guys come up with.

ye i probably came off like i was gunning it for the admins or admin which i was not. ik the instance ur referring too u just sparked some memories. a lot of that was bmd influenced but i roped it into admin stuff cuz i remember the amount ppl were bugging about it. there r ooc issues with like quantities and whats given but a huge problem there is that we cant stop any player from linking up with a bmd and doing shit with those guns. tbh idk how to handle that oocly and idt u should to be frank

This is interesting. I do like the idea of leaving it more or less to the players to generate rp and create events. The only problem I see really is there be little to no knock on effect from these smaller events. Having an over arching storyline does help put into perspective the smaller events and you feel like you're building up to something bigger and more impactful. I dunno I might be looking into things too much at this stage, but im eager either way to see what happens.

sorry i also suck with wording shit. afaik there will be plot lines, sorry if i came off as saying its all up to yall. im pretty sure members of the team got some written up and planned fitting for the universe u saw in the announcement thread. as for the rebels there is no end goal like how hlna had the spire but yall should have shit to indulge in. some beta themed stuff which im not really familiar with so im not saying shit

there also might be an end goal or over arching plot later in but thats not really in my liberty to say. we also gotta calculate if this server is gonna last past the initial launch month hype. so lets just feel out launch and see how ppl r feeling

and nah ur not overthinking anything. those r legitimate points of concern and i agree with u on some.

another thing. not directed to u freeman. i wouldn't be too surprised if yall saw a rebel player showing initiative get bumped to admin. its just how it goes sometimes it is needed. it makes shit easier for admins too if they're having to constant oversee something that person wants to do today

 

[Nap]

Will muggings be the primary way anti civil players acquire equipment? And if so how will this policed?
We had issues before where muggings were practically happening all the time because people wanted a gun or some sort of CP equipment. I believe admins had to step in and issue a statement, could be wrong but wondering how we'll avoid it coming to something like that.

Ideally it'd be great in practice to try and have BMD's more prominent over mugging units for their gear, but it's impossible to say that muggings won't ever happen. Factors come up in unit muggings that will have to be dealt with case-by-case. Is someone mugging a unit in the plaza for their gear? That'd fall under play stupid games and win stupid prizes imo if they're (likely) caught during it. Overall CCA is there to help enforce the setting and the goal isn't to just solely kill characters off. But just putting it out there - if scripts are what you're after mugging a unit in broad daylight isn't the brightest idea. That's just one scenario. If a unit decides to wander off into D2 by themselves they're putting themselves at risk because the buddy system is generally promoted/enforced at times for that sole reason and will likely be dealt with icly for losing their gear. Really all of it just depends on the situation and we'll generally hand muggings how we do normally.

For the Combine - How will Civil Protection be managed this time round? Will we be seeing multiple squads as before or just one big squad?

Ultimately Civil Protection will reflect a lot of what it did in HLNA. My goal in leading it is to provide a good amount of wiggle room for units to be able to develop their own stories mostly as they see fit rather than railroad anything at the very start, however someone takes that is up to their own interpretation. Whether they play a cop solely devoted to the Combine or one who has their own motivations at hand, I'd like to see every bit of it and see the roleplay develop from one's actions amongst their squad and leadership. Generally I think identity in squads and a bit of rivalry is some of the best CCA roleplay one can get. We're going to really try and keep the squads even with active players so that we can avoid where one squad is always the lesser.

I'd like to generally strike a balance between having an active presence of interactions between citizens/rebels and CCA to drive character stories onward, though a lot of that is up to the individual players themselves. Though the goal is to not be overbearing and oppress roleplay itself from actually happening.

Aside from that, there is going to be two squads at the start. More threads will be rolling out soon with some information.

How will their jurisdiction be handled? Will we have an outlined map in which cops can and cannot venture to as a standard or will it be down to each patrol to decide how far they (within reason).

Just like previous iterations, the districts will be broken up between maps like they always have. The general area surrounding the nexus and plaza will be known as something like D1, the areas further outside of that (using i17 as an example, the grotto and that area around it is part of D2 as well as the construction site area.) will be known as another district. Then of course you have your sewers and other individual areas per map. Generally units that aren't recruits have free range over D1 and likely do not need a partner to patrol with them unless stated otherwise. As for D2, it generally isn't recommended to patrol the area by yourself and sometimes will be required to have a partner with you. Such things will be treated as an IC punishment generally unless you're straight up just leaving the city without authorization, that would move to an OOC issue. We'll have status levels such as Green, yellow, or red to signify the dangers of the city at the given time. Yellow or red would require partners or patrol teams to generally patrol any area.

Progression within the CCA can and has been a difficult thing to overcome in the pass. Has there been any thought into how this can be managed? I know ideally players shouldn't be coming into the roll expecting to lead it but dedication should be rewarded.

Our goal this time around is to include more people in the loop of Field Command. I realize that most people here are getting older. Either in college or working a job at this point and time isn't always going to be as free as one wants. I'd like to drop the trope of needing to no-life it just to hold a role or be rewarded for one. Obviously if you're wanting to be field command you're going to need to be on a decent amount since you're involved in larger decision making. But with a larger group of field command at hand it should be easier on the individual. Expect a smaller group at launch and then as time moves on more will be inducted. Dedication to cca roleplay will 100% be awarded though. As for being Field Command and to have things not be stagnant the entire length of the server, Field Command will have to be smart in their IC actions as we will likely be returning the rule that a genuine, roleplayed death would be a PK for the AdJ/SqL. That makes it so they have to lead with their brain if they decide to dive into a Patrol Team head on. Obviously it'll be dealt with case by case, but if someone just walks up with a gun and shoots a SqL in the back of the head on the nexus steps with 0 motivation, that isn't going to be treated as a PK. Some people may not like it, but I believe having that responsibility over Field Command's heads will make roleplay a tad more intense/real. It also creates a balance that rebels have over the CCA as we have usually plenty over them if a rebel gets captured.

 

[Desrat456]

So, a question I've been stewing on.

What sort of Synths are we going to be seeing on server, and how available are they going to be to the players to play as? I figure they'll fall into that same role as Overwatch properly does, (RP Pieces that further the stories of those around them, rather than tell their own stories) but I can't help but wonder about their role in more specifics, if they'll be seen even more than, or less than, Overwatch.

Also, Stalkers. During the last few iterations of HL2, I can count the IC sightings of Stalkers, across both my time as a rebel and a CCA player, on 1 hand, for atleast 2 iterations. Are we going to be seeing more of these creatures, as I feel, they perfectly sell the setting depending on your character, IE, "This abomination is why I resist." or "This is what happens if I step out of line." It will be good to know if these disturbing, if utterly important entities, will be around this time.

 

[Rabid]

Generally I think identity in squads and a bit of rivalry is some of the best CCA roleplay one can get.

I think to make the best of this you need a genuine effort from day one by whoever ends up in FC to all have the same angle for their particular squads.

The JUDGE drama of D47 was a fantastic example because from day one they made an effort to stand out and be corrupt in ways that the other squads just weren't. There were clashes there that lasted for months off of the back of that. In fact I'd say it was the best out of almost all of the examples I can think of.

WARD being the more 'police-esque' squad and BEAR being the violent criminals was another cool clash but that sorta hit its peak and fizzled eventually.

Really I think the 'fizzling' becomes the main issue to overcome and that squads slowly lose their identities over time. Not sure how to counter it, but food for thought.

 

[HardHat]

What sort of Synths are we going to be seeing on server, and how available are they going to be to the players to play as? I figure they'll fall into that same role as Overwatch properly does, (RP Pieces that further the stories of those around them, rather than tell their own stories) but I can't help but wonder about their role in more specifics, if they'll be seen even more than, or less than, Overwatch.

Synths are gonna be seen on server especially something common like the cremator, besides that the rest of the synths will be quite rare considering they're all combat oriented.

What are your intentions for this faction? I wasn't thrilled with Erkors vision of making Overwatch be some kind of progressive and developing character/entity. They're an RP tool which should be used as such in effective and engaging ways that benefit people involved and enhance the story.

What kind of deployment system will be in place for Overwatch?

How do you intended on kitting out Overwatch and what sort of generational system will be in place? Personally I'd just like to see Overwatch be at the level we see in HL2.

They'll be as you said, an RP tool used for dynamic and interesting scenarios or there to kick someone's ass. A deployment system will be made once the server is live though COTA wont be as common as they were in HLNA. As for kitting and how they'll generally be, that'll be revealed once the overwatch threads go up.

 

[The real freeman]

ye i probably came off like i was gunning it for the admins or admin which i was not. ik the instance ur referring too u just sparked some memories. a lot of that was bmd influenced but i roped it into admin stuff cuz i remember the amount ppl were bugging about it. there r ooc issues with like quantities and whats given but a huge problem there is that we cant stop any player from linking up with a bmd and doing shit with those guns. tbh idk how to handle that oocly and idt u should to be frank


sorry i also suck with wording shit. afaik there will be plot lines, sorry if i came off as saying its all up to yall. im pretty sure members of the team got some written up and planned fitting for the universe u saw in the announcement thread. as for the rebels there is no end goal like how hlna had the spire but yall should have shit to indulge in. some beta themed stuff which im not really familiar with so im not saying shit

there also might be an end goal or over arching plot later in but thats not really in my liberty to say. we also gotta calculate if this server is gonna last past the initial launch month hype. so lets just feel out launch and see how ppl r feeling

and nah ur not overthinking anything. those r legitimate points of concern and i agree with u on some.

another thing. not directed to u freeman. i wouldn't be too surprised if yall saw a rebel player showing initiative get bumped to admin. its just how it goes sometimes it is needed. it makes shit easier for admins too if they're having to constant oversee something that person wants to do today

Nono, not at all mate! I didn't get the feeling you were pushing the idea of an admin being in that position at all.
I get you, it is just one of those things which may inevitably happen and probably requires some admins spawning in guns for progression, or players having legit worked for it so I get you wholeheartedly.

Oh right ok I get you now. Well that's just as good so I am looking forward to seeing whats in store for everyone!
Yeah I understand you want to focus on a more realistic timeframe right now as you quite rightly mention, the server may not go the distance.

Ok good, I get carried away sometimes with the early game stuff. Get's me excited haha.

Yeah absolutely, I mean if someones grafting hard enough and show they're more than capable of managing things and actually carry out shit correctly making them admin is beneficial for everyone without a doubt!

Ideally it'd be great in practice to try and have BMD's more prominent over mugging units for their gear, but it's impossible to say that muggings won't ever happen. Factors come up in unit muggings that will have to be dealt with case-by-case. Is someone mugging a unit in the plaza for their gear? That'd fall under play stupid games and win stupid prizes imo if they're (likely) caught during it. Overall CCA is there to help enforce the setting and the goal isn't to just solely kill characters off. But just putting it out there - if scripts are what you're after mugging a unit in broad daylight isn't the brightest idea. That's just one scenario. If a unit decides to wander off into D2 by themselves they're putting themselves at risk because the buddy system is generally promoted/enforced at times for that sole reason and will likely be dealt with icly for losing their gear. Really all of it just depends on the situation and we'll generally hand muggings how we do normally.




Ultimately Civil Protection will reflect a lot of what it did in HLNA. My goal in leading it is to provide a good amount of wiggle room for units to be able to develop their own stories mostly as they see fit rather than railroad anything at the very start, however someone takes that is up to their own interpretation. Whether they play a cop solely devoted to the Combine or one who has their own motivations at hand, I'd like to see every bit of it and see the roleplay develop from one's actions amongst their squad and leadership. Generally I think identity in squads and a bit of rivalry is some of the best CCA roleplay one can get. We're going to really try and keep the squads even with active players so that we can avoid where one squad is always the lesser.

I'd like to generally strike a balance between having an active presence of interactions between citizens/rebels and CCA to drive character stories onward, though a lot of that is up to the individual players themselves. Though the goal is to not be overbearing and oppress roleplay itself from actually happening.

Aside from that, there is going to be two squads at the start. More threads will be rolling out soon with some information.



Just like previous iterations, the districts will be broken up between maps like they always have. The general area surrounding the nexus and plaza will be known as something like D1, the areas further outside of that (using i17 as an example, the grotto and that area around it is part of D2 as well as the construction site area.) will be known as another district. Then of course you have your sewers and other individual areas per map. Generally units that aren't recruits have free range over D1 and likely do not need a partner to patrol with them unless stated otherwise. As for D2, it generally isn't recommended to patrol the area by yourself and sometimes will be required to have a partner with you. Such things will be treated as an IC punishment generally unless you're straight up just leaving the city without authorization, that would move to an OOC issue. We'll have status levels such as Green, yellow, or red to signify the dangers of the city at the given time. Yellow or red would require partners or patrol teams to generally patrol any area.



Our goal this time around is to include more people in the loop of Field Command. I realize that most people here are getting older. Either in college or working a job at this point and time isn't always going to be as free as one wants. I'd like to drop the trope of needing to no-life it just to hold a role or be rewarded for one. Obviously if you're wanting to be field command you're going to need to be on a decent amount since you're involved in larger decision making. But with a larger group of field command at hand it should be easier on the individual. Expect a smaller group at launch and then as time moves on more will be inducted. Dedication to cca roleplay will 100% be awarded though. As for being Field Command and to have things not be stagnant the entire length of the server, Field Command will have to be smart in their IC actions as we will likely be returning the rule that a genuine, roleplayed death would be a PK for the AdJ/SqL. That makes it so they have to lead with their brain if they decide to dive into a Patrol Team head on. Obviously it'll be dealt with case by case, but if someone just walks up with a gun and shoots a SqL in the back of the head on the nexus steps with 0 motivation, that isn't going to be treated as a PK. Some people may not like it, but I believe having that responsibility over Field Command's heads will make roleplay a tad more intense/real. It also creates a balance that rebels have over the CCA as we have usually plenty over them if a rebel gets captured.

Oh dont get me wrong, I'm not saying muggings shouldn't be a thing. Quite the opposite as it can create some great interactions. My biggest concern as I mentioned before is the over-saturation of muggings occurring. Quite rightly, this will depend on the circumstances, and im sure cracking down on people pulling stupid shit in the plaza over thought out and engaging rp with an ambush in D2 will prevail.

Firstly, congrats on taking on the mantle of running the CCA.
I'm glad we're continuing the multiple squad formula. I know in the past folks have said they'd prefer a singular massive squad and it just doesn't sit right with me.
It sounds like you've got a decent idea on how the squads will be managed so I look forward to seeing how folks progress within the faction :)
Same for how we manage the map and allow CPS to navigate around the area. No point fixing what aint broke right?

I'm quite happy with you mentioning how you'll be looping more people into FC. I feel that this is probably one of the biggest reasons why stagnation occurs so giving more players an opportunity to be in this role should help keep things flowing. I like the idea of FC members being more in the line of fire when it comes to TKs/PKs. And not just cause they were caught out by rebels. I love the idea of higher ups like Dvls, cracking down on incompetance/failure of doing their duty correctly.

Synths are gonna be seen on server especially something common like the cremator, besides that the rest of the synths will be quite rare considering they're all combat oriented.

They'll be as you said, an RP tool used for dynamic and interesting scenarios or there to kick someone's ass. A deployment system will be made once the server is live though COTA wont be as common as they were in HLNA. As for kitting and how they'll generally be, that'll be revealed once the overwatch threads go up.

That's great to hear. I'll keep my eyes peeled for more info as it becomes available then :)

Apologies for shitty format response. Couldn't be bothered to seperate the quotes out haha

 

[Scouser]

If anything regular players who end up in the top spots in the resistance (or the CCA) tend to get made admins more often than an admin imposing themselves

 

[Rabid]

Idk what was dumb about agreeing that squad drama was great for the CCA but pointing out that squads gotta start off strong and keep their identities for that to happen, fellas.

 

[The Watchman]

What would the transport methods used in the evacuation of North America be? I'm eager to get some IC writing down for my lone human survivor of the fall of 107. Yeah, yeah, returning character, hate me if you must but his story was never finished and was a new try for me with HLNA.
Train (Seems a bit illogical to have a train across the Atlantic tbh), aircraft (dropship or conventional though conventional would probably be weird considering the NAZ expansion), boat? IDK what kind of xenian horror lurks in the Atlantic but it still feels the safest.

 

[Johnston]

What would the transport methods used in the evacuation of North America be? I'm eager to get some IC writing down for my lone human survivor of the fall of 107. Yeah, yeah, returning character, hate me if you must but his story was never finished and was a new try for me with HLNA.
Train (Seems a bit illogical to have a train across the Atlantic tbh), aircraft (dropship or conventional though conventional would probably be weird considering the NAZ expansion), boat? IDK what kind of xenian horror lurks in the Atlantic but it still feels the safest.

Trains (there is in fact a rail line going across the receding Atlantic) and ocean vessels are the two primary methods of evacuation.

 

[The Watchman]

Trains (there is in fact a rail line going across the receding oceans) and ocean vessels are the two primary methods of evacuation.

Thank ya! I want to get some wirings to consolidate the characters initial direction on server and this will help me a lot!

 

[Henry Ryan]

Trains (there is in fact a rail line going across the receding Atlantic) and ocean vessels are the two primary methods of evacuation.

Boat event?