Alright, I like some features and others I am definitely against.
Clan/Regiment page
The clan/regiment page is like an advanced version of a steam group. Clans can post news and announce events there. It is possible to easily browse the clan’s players, to take a look at their ranks and stats (including activity). The regiment page could also be used to communicate with each other. It has a small built in chat which saves the last messages, so players can view messages which were written a few days or weeks ago. This can possibly be expanded upon when we receive the appropriate feedback and support.
I quite like this. A more intricate steam page would be extremely useful.
Joining a clan
Players can join and leave a clan as they wish. When joining a clan they have to fill out an application the founder will have created when creating the Regiment. The application is then automatically sent to the Regiment founder, the administrators and moderators. Admins, founders or moderators then just have to accept or deny the application.
This is good, and I'm all for this because it's basically how the steam groups work right now. If a member leaves the regiment, then they can leave the steam group.
Ranks
The Regiment page also has a built-in ranking system. Ranks are displayed in-game and in the player overview of the clan. Administrators and founders of the clan can promote or demote players in the clan at will. However, promoting someone to an officer is only possible by the founder, because officers are not not necessarily administrators. Newly recruited players will automatically get the “recruit” rank assigned.
Ingame tag system
When joining the game as a member of a Regiment, the game will represent the regiments tags + the current rank tags. For example: Clan tag: 882nd; Rank: Private; Name: Hans
Ingame name: 882nd Pvt. Hans
Forced ranks should definitely be thrown out. I have read opinions and developer responses but this is definitely a trademark of the community, be able to "form" your regiment. (forming=Name, ranks, tags, etc) I agree with Coconut when he says that regiments like the 00th, Rddt, and SaDragoons (as well as any regiment that is created) shouldn't have to submit themselves into the system. That's part of what makes the community such a great thing. There is so much diversity and creativity involved in forming and running a regiment, and if regiment
OWNERS want to change the ranks, then by god, they should be able to. We shouldn't be limited to what FSE gives us in terms of community. I'm not being hostile here, only stating my opinion.
I also think that the forums, FSE forums, should still be a major part of operating a regiment and organizing events, etc. I didn't see any implications that it was going to change, so we're all good there. I think we can all agree that it is basically a common standard to have a thread on the forums if you own a regiment. I'm sure that will continue into BCoF as several threads exist there now, anyway.
As for the ingame tags: I like the idea of having auto-tags. But since we shouldn't do the forced ranks thing, here is a suggestion. A regiment page should have a place where the founder/owner can put there tag (similar to the Planetside 2 outfit tags) and then list the ranks and their abbreviations, that way, the community can maintain the diversity and uniqueness. This works because when a person joins a regiment, they are added to the regiment page, and that will automatically give them the tags in game, because it's already set for them in the regiment page. Promotions should work regimentally, where the regiment owner/officers can go to a member list, find who needs to be moved up a rank, and then tag them as the new rank, therefore changing their tag ingame. (Please give some feedback on this idea, as I think it would be a happy medium for everyone)
Medals
Every player, no matter if he is in a Regiment or not can receive medals for playing.
There will be special medals for special acts. For example, you could get a medal for defending a position against a majority of enemies or for playing the game for a certain time. When getting killed by an enemy, you will be able to see his rank, name, regiment, and his medals. Medals are faction specific, players are not able to get Southern medals when playing the Union and vice versa.
I like the idea of medals, but I also have a suggestion.
Medals however, in my opinion, should definitely be universal. That way all players know what a person did if he is wearing a certain medal. In addition to the medals players can receive while playing in public servers, medals should also be an option for regiment owners to adjust. Similar to my rank tags idea, the regiment owner could set what medals are available, and then the owner/officers could award medals to members as well.
Also, I think there should be a way to transfer ownership of a regiment page to another person. Regiments like the 1stEPI have had several changes in command, and ownership of the regiment page should definitely transferable. I'm sure you guys had that in mind, though.
Competitive Play
We very much plan to support competitive Regiment play. We are not completely sure how it is best supported, but for now we plan to have an overall Regiment ranking list, where all regiments are shown with their overall score and victories. Regiment competitions will be organised by Regiments where they will choose a specific engagement (or part of an engagement depending on play count) and fight it out. The winner will receive a point/s which will add on to their total ranking.
I'm a bit confused about this. Are you referencing 1v1's? Will this be a certain option that will be select-able in the admin menu? That way after the battle concludes it will go on the regiment's score, therefore raising/lowing the regiment name on the regiment ranking list?
Do you think it would be possible to let regiments create their own uniforms for their ingame unit? Stick a crapload of different and historically accurate coats, belts, pants, hats, etc. etc. into a unit editor, and each clan-regiment will be able to make a unique uniform for their ingame unit that they could display and show off on the "Regiments" tab. This would make the clan system even more personalized and intimate, as you won't look anything like the other hundreds of clans in the game. People could look at you and say, "Oh! He has those large silver buckles on the grey belt! He's from the 57th New Jersey!" or something of the like.
I think this is also something to consider. This could be another thing that would be customizable for the regiment owner, for his regiment. He could select from a small variety of relating uniforms and whatnot, that way his members can be identifiable ingame. It's kind of similar to the banners we use in NW, just more realistic. However, this could also be a problem as well, that's why I said "small variety of relating uniforms", to prevent extremely strange looking combinations and whatnot.
I imagine that the regiment pages will have similar steam tools, such as announcements and shizz. I'm sure you're already all over that, though.
Anyway, I hope to hear a response on the above suggestions. Thanks for reading.
