NOOB COMMANDER BUT WILLING TO LEARN

[Lumberjack.5976]

Hey ! 

I've been playing a lot WvW lately so I decided to buy the commander status for 300 gold coins, of course knowing my abilities I just create a squad to counter little attacks and siege towers or camps around the map. it's been really fun since people is always nice when there is no commander in the map.

Having said that I want to learn how to be a really good commander, I know is very unpredictable and it depends of the context but... what are your tips or guides to grow as a commander in World vs World ?? 

[Dawdler.8521]

The zerg is like a shoal of salmon. Some want to push up river, some want to jump up and down, but you all win by going together with the flow. If you see a bear then kitten don’t try to eat it.

[Teknomancer.4895]

26 minutes ago, Lumberjack.5976 said:

I want to learn how to be a really good commander

From what I've seen, this alone marks you as a cut above. If you can manage to not spend the majority of your time randomly running around like a chicken with its head cut off, that's already better than most.

[PrinceValentine.9320]

if you will just be commanding pugs, it will help if you use a class that has a lot of self stab and defense skill like a Firebrand. Remember that as a commander you are a priority target. Also avoid using teleport skills unless it's something that can teleport your squad like Portal Entre. 

have a thick skin, people will berate you. learn how to filter constructive criticism from plain insult and do not engage with the arguments. do not lose your cool at any circumstance. take commanding as some kind of a professional job. 

[Chaba.5410]

Do you like herding cats?

Check out Sheff's "Commander Camp" series:

 

[XenesisII.1540]

I'm not a commander, so take this advice however you want from a pugling. Assuming you're just pugging with mostly no voice.

1. Get stability and support bots if you can, at least one per group, it's a boon ball world. Run a tanky class/spec/gear that has it's own stability, not something that just teleports around leaving everyone behind.

2. Movement. Don't stand in red rings all day. Move, use proper positioning, you're the beacon people are following, move like you have a wide load. Your movement is instant but everyone else is 2-10s to react without voice. The moment you stop, is the moment people think they can take a quick break for something, the moment you start moving is when everyone is scrambling to catch up.

3. Keep your eyes open, use your mount sniff to detect enemies in ambush areas, read the map, you can semi predict where defenders are coming to counter you. Think about the opening of fights, are you pushing or are you baiting bombs first, depending on the tools available to you from your group, make sure you can avoid the first stealth push on you.

4. Have a simple plan, go take a camp, then maybe take a tower, then take a camp to resupply, if you have enough try a borderland keep. Have your siege ready by the time you get to the objective to siege. Don't go to a tower that has watchtower, sit under it for 10-30s before you pull out siege, that's enough time for you to be scouted and reinforcements be on the way, unless you're trying to pull a fight there.

5. Learn where to safely siege, out of watch tower range if possible, clear counter siege if you have to. So many times I've seen groups/guilds go to places like northeast tower on alpine, plop down 4 catas for the mid wall, only to not even clear the cannon that has line of sight on them.

6. Learn to assess your enemies and your own strengths, don't blindly feed your followers to enemies over and over, you will just lose them and their trust. If you get to a fight you don't think you can win or the area is bad to fight in, don't wait around 20-30s figuring that out and then just getting demolished cause you decided to run backwards the very moment battle started, instead of doing that in the 20-30s you stood staring at the enemy, figure that out before it happens and reposition or leave the area.

7. Learn some map politics, when to sneak an objective, when to double team a side, how to lure enemies to fight each other.

8. Always keep your enemies in front of you, especially if there's two or more groups of them, don't put your group in a position to be sideswiped pinched, or suddenly surrounded with a double teamed.

9. A ton of tips and tricks to learn, but mostly keep your group safe, movement and positioning, ignore hecklers, learn from mistakes.

Edited January 12 by XenesisII.1540

[CafPow.1542]

Good intention. Start with small grps and clouds but to command really well, best thing is to watch others command first and get a feel for it. Learn from their mistake.

 

also: on our server we sometimes organize a commiswap-evening where „new commanders“ can command a grp for 30 minutes without being flamed. After that, other commanders give them feedback so they can learn. Maybe your server does something similar where you can learn stuff?

[TheGrimm.5624]

3 hours ago, Lumberjack.5976 said:

Hey ! 

I've been playing a lot WvW lately so I decided to buy the commander status for 300 gold coins, of course knowing my abilities I just create a squad to counter little attacks and siege towers or camps around the map. it's been really fun since people is always nice when there is no commander in the map.

Having said that I want to learn how to be a really good commander, I know is very unpredictable and it depends of the context but... what are your tips or guides to grow as a commander in World vs World ?? 

There is a lot of material out on youtube as Chaba pointed out. 

There is a lot details in a such a direct question but to give some general high level points:

• Gain trust from those that are going to run with you and take on tasks that meets your groupsize
• Are you running open or closed, open will be more random, closed may mean less trust from the rest of players on a map since you put them at a lose
• Know when to run open and when to run closed
• Are you pugmanding or guild group and with pugs
• Are you using voice or textmading
• Start with tactics that people can follow and consider your medium in communication, consider those limits when you plan movements if you are expecting to follow via sight lines, text or in voice
• Understand the concept of momentum in a fight of when to push when to pull
• Loses are just times to learn
• Stay positive, don't shower your group with flowers but GG them appropriately
• Never blame your group, adjust tactics from what went wrong and plan differently, encourage them to adjust if need be or ask for builds you think you need but if all you get is lemons, make lemonade versus shouting why don't you have steak
• Make sure your build allows you to stay in a fight
• Don't get your people tag dependent, they should know what to without or without tag so the more informed they are the better they are used to following and know what the goal is
• Make sure you encourage your group to know what to do in case you do fall out, voice helps in this but also get them used to not just blind following since it may also make them dependent on a tag versus knowing what to do when a tag is not around
• Understand there will be players that will join squad and others that may hover, consider that when getting into fights
• Understand if you have willing Roamers and Havocs that can be employed for away from squad tasks, learn their movements to best use them or gain their trust
• This next part will become harder as we move into the WR project, but know your server mates and how they play in their styles, so you can use appropriate tactics
• Watch your group's morale, just bashing them up against a target to get defeated time and time again will wear on them, give them victories as you go, or at least inform them that there might be trouble ahead. There are times to win to time to die, know when to do both. 
• Don't run away while in a fight, control withdraws to avoid run away syndrome, this is further impacted by how many are not in group as group think impacts clouds that may be around your squad
• Start to determine and define your own tactics or general rules, the more consistent with your group the better they might know how you move so that they can react faster, but also don't be so consistent against another side that they can predict your movements and goals
• Make sure you and your group are having fun

There's a ton more but those are some simple general points. As stated above I am sure there a ton of content providers out there on youtube that will give lots of tips. Good hunting!

 

[SweetPotato.7456]

7 hours ago, Lumberjack.5976 said:

Hey ! 

I've been playing a lot WvW lately so I decided to buy the commander status for 300 gold coins, of course knowing my abilities I just create a squad to counter little attacks and siege towers or camps around the map. it's been really fun since people is always nice when there is no commander in the map.

Having said that I want to learn how to be a really good commander, I know is very unpredictable and it depends of the context but... what are your tips or guides to grow as a commander in World vs World ?? 

https://discord.com/ 
first requirementt.

[Riba.3271]

Emotions make your leads entertaining (numbers)

Logic and thinking make your leads succesful (skillful players)

You need both. Emotions can be faked and right actions can be learnt, so it isn't like you need to be particularly emotional or smart.

 

I will even give you one specific advice: If there is stronger server on the map, do not go their objectives. They want bags, so they will come near your towers, or meet you at 3rd servers corner. This allows you to take fights you might actually win.

Edited January 13 by Riba.3271

[T G.7496]

The no1 piece of advice I can give you for improving is to find another commander, or more than one if you're lucky, join their raids (maybe even their guilds, if you have the opportunity), and emulate them.

In terms of commanding, your most important job is to make decisions. The decisions you make will get better with experience, but you cannot stop making them. Good or bad.

Communication is the next important thing. Voice is best, so consider using discord if you don't already. And, like decisions, don't shut up. I mean, that's an exaggeration, but the more you can talk freely and meaningfully, without freezing up under pressure, the better. The decision making and the speaking are sort of codependent, and after a while you should find your inhibitions falling away. The more you can loosen up the better both will be.

Then, attitude. Keep a sense of humour. Take responsibility for almost everything, even if it's not your fault. Don't berate your squad. Advise them, if you have the time, knowledge and energy. Try and keep it light, but be assertive and call for focus when you need it. Offer praise when you can, celebrate your wins, and thank people for meeting your requests and following your instructions. Don't take yourself too seriously. Don't be a kitten. But don't tolerate any kitten from others; your house, your rules, no exceptions; don't let anyone poison your well or backseat drive you. But ask for suggestions when you want them, thank contributors, and shut it down assertively until you ask again. Laugh and have fun with people, especially when things go wrong.

Remember people's names.

Stop or pause when you need to.

Fight and move into space. Take and exploit high ground. Don't stand in one place too long, unless you're confident, cleaving or regrouping. But don't move too fast or erratically for your squad to follow. Be clear and concise in your commands. Don't be afraid to repeat yourself, often several times, when giving an instruction. If you have time, outline your immediate plan in advance, including your escape or regroup idea.

Use map markers as soon as you can accommodate it in your cognitive load; even just one mapped to a fast mouse button can help your squad immensely, especially when calling for a regroup.

Find opportunities for a 3-4 second regroup whenever you can; break contact, LOS the enemy, use a disengage veil, or just kite away and drop a line behind. Your squad will thank you for these moments, and it helps you to regroup your own thoughts.

There's a huge amount of advice and videos available from others in this thread and on YouTube etc. But to begin with it will really help you most to try and define what sort of commander you want to be. Voice or chatmander. Small scale, mid scale, blob. Fight or ppt. And what sort of style do you want to develop. Which brings us full circle.

Good luck and have fun!

We need more commanders. Good for you!

[ArgothCZ.6420]

Hi, love all the feedback here, it helps me too!

I'm in a bit of a similar position. I thought about trying to command for a while. I got dropped into it when the commander left and no one was willing to tag up after I mentioned having a tag but no experience.

What helped me was not taking it seriously. It was a disaster because we had two large blobs against us and a few smaller ones. All of them better organised (guilds) and larger than us. The tip about not blaming your group...seriously don't. They know even less than you probably 😄 I was glad people didn't flame me (much) when I led them into a few ambushes...yeah, my mistakes and I would deserve it fully. Which leads me to...

Knowing the map is pretty important. This one was stacked against me. It was desert borderland and I was not familiar with that one. I roamed alpine, ebg, but I just don't like desert. Well now I know it a little better.

Having a siege blueprints prepared is mandatory. I was throwing around things I had, but you need to buy/craft (I understand now why people are bitching when you drop basic siege). Drops are nearly not enough. Not having any at the start is not an option (unless you want to stick with taking camps and doing ambushes I guess).

Know when to stop. I don't know how long I was running with that small group, but you'll probably learn to feel it. I was already exhausted and my head started to hurt a bit. Worse, my group was probably exhausted too already, since we got absolutely annihilated when we were outnumbering the other group 2:1. (At least for me) Commanding is on a completely different level of mental strain. I could roam ebg for 8 hours straight and still have fun, but commanding is about searching for meaningful things to do, things to avoid,... You are playing a completely different game. It's no longer about you, it's about your group. If you're good, they'll happily follow you to hell and back.

And I really try to work on communication. I tried to do my best, but it was nearly not enough. As someone before me said - You need to make decisions. You'll make mistakes, but you need to decide and act. Most players won't mind a mistake here and there, so don't be afraid of making a mistake. It's much worse than doing nothing.

All in all, I liked it. Probably because no one really tried to flame me. I got some words of encouragement when I tagged down. Nothing beats the feeling of power when you lead a large group of players around 😄 And then there are the bad moments when your group goes wild with bloodlust and they run into a much larger blob and there is nothing much you can do about it...

Good luck and hope you'll have fun with commanding

Edited January 15 by ArgothCZ.6420

[Thomas.2564]

On 1/12/2024 at 3:15 PM, Lumberjack.5976 said:

Hey ! 

I've been playing a lot WvW lately so I decided to buy the commander status for 300 gold coins, of course knowing my abilities I just create a squad to counter little attacks and siege towers or camps around the map. it's been really fun since people is always nice when there is no commander in the map.

Having said that I want to learn how to be a really good commander, I know is very unpredictable and it depends of the context but... what are your tips or guides to grow as a commander in World vs World ?? 

Best way to learn, is by doing. That's what I did 8 years ago. But talking or even following other commanders can ofc help a lot too. Just be careful about who u talk too or choose to follow and try to copy. 

Also, if u are TRUELY serious about commanding, u gotta use discord for proper coms. There are to many half arsed coms around these days, who half kitten everything about commanding. Ppl tend to think as soon as a tag ask's them to come on voice, that they just wanna boss em around, and yell at them. But being on discord makes ALL the difference in the world, TRUST ME! 😉

Plus its good way to make new players use to the fact, that they need to be on discord for a better exp, for them, and for u, the commander.  Also, telling players what to play is a big part of commanding. Again, this will annoy a lot of players, but it will be better for them and for u in the long run. 

Ur obvisouly new to commanding, so everything i just wrote can seem a bit overwhelming ofc. It's just some handy guidelines to keep in mind. But they will make all the difference, in how ur commanding development will progress. So please take them to heart.

Gl out there, and remember to have fun commanding aswell 👍