Map profile: Sentry Point
As part of our strategy oriented content, CydeWeys and I have decided we will start doing some profiles of specific maps. These will hopefully discuss in-depth tactics and strategy, and maybe also stimulate discussion on the finer points of each map. So without further ado, here is our first map profile, for the 1v1 ladder map, Sentry Point.
Sentry Point is one of the smaller maps, at 5 x 5 km. There are three starting positions, but only two are occupied in ranked games - the positions marked A and B below. The third starting position is marked C. As one can readily imagine, the dense mass resources and hydrocarbon resource make position C very much worth fighting over. Indeed, it is usually the focal point of early game combat on Sentry Point.
Resources
Sentry Point should probably be classified as a medium resource map. If you manage to secure the unoccupied starting position, you will have enough resources for many factories to pump out tech 1 units early. However, you will simply be unable to get together enough mass for the 10 to 20 factories common on slightly larger maps like Open Palms.
Each starting position is equipped with a hydrocarbon resource, which should be used to build a tech 1 hydrocarbon power plant immediately. This will help fund early unit production, especially air unit production, as well as radar.
Initial strategy
As previously stated, it is very important on this map to secure the third starting position. Allowing your opponent to take the mass there will almost guarantee a loss. You should have a factory sending units in that direction right away, and it may be worthwhile to build a point defense tower there early, if possible. While you may be tempted to build the tower in such a way as to cover the 4 central mass spots, it is probably better to build it closer to the enemy base. Be wary, however, as there are effectively two ways to attack the position for both sides.
Like on any small map, gaining early game air superiority can be very important. While some games may play out with neither player investing much into air power, you should not count on this. Even if you do not intend to attack with bombers, having some interceptors up quickly is important for defense. Unless you are playing Cybran, you cannot rely on ground based defenses to shoot down enemy bombers. If your enemy does gain interceptor superiority, you may find it very difficult to build your own interceptors, since they will probably have groups of several over your base to shoot down any you build. So get interceptors quickly, and don’t waste any on throwaway scouting missions early. Use the much cheaper air scouts for this purpose instead.
Intelligence
Like in any game, intelligence is crucial on Sentry Point. You should build air scouts to send on missions over your enemy’s base. This way, you can see what he is building. In particular, you can look for exploitable weaknesses like a failure to tech up fast enough, or huge arrays of linked mass fabricators and power generators vulnerable to just a few bombers. Speaking of which, don’t build your early game economy in huge arrays. While adjacency bonuses are nice, they do not make up for the extreme vulnerability of having a significant fraction of your economy linked and exposed to a chain-reaction bomber attack.
It is crucial in the first couple minutes of the game to build tech 1 land scouts. These little guys will give you valuable targeting information, as well as give you some insight into what the enemy is up to. It is very easy to pick out unescorted engineers by their slow movement speed, for example.
Once you get a little bit of power coming in, you should build some tech 1 radar. You need to be sure at this point that you always have enough energy coming in, so that you never lose radar. If you have to turn off mass fabricators to pay the power bills, so be it. You do not want to be surprised by tech 1 artillery, and lose point defense towers before you even know what hit you. On this map, you can easily cover both the area around your base and position C with two radar towers.
Gaining the upper hand
If all is going well, you will have secured the third starting position quickly, or at worst be fighting over it and thus denying it to your opponent. If you do secure it, be sure to build factories to pump out units and attack your enemy’s main base from another angle. If you really want to secure it, you can send your commander over. However, a smart opponent will take the opportunity to comm-rush your base. So if you do take this course of action, you may want to hold the line right next to your base, with several (at least 3) point defense towers, and plenty of units. You can afford to lose a few mass points in the area between bases if you gain position C. Also, if the enemy commander does decide to comm rush your base and fails, you can probably overwhelm his base with your commander.
Regardless of the commander situation, you need to tech up quickly to stay ahead on this map. You should have at least 3 or 4 factories pumping out tech 1 units before you go to tech 2. However, once you do start upgrading, you want it to be quick. A good way to help this along is getting some tech 2 mass extractors and surrounding them with mass storage. You should have plenty of engineers assisting your upgrading factory.
Once you hit tech 2, you should build several t2 engineers immediately. Depending on if your enemy is tech 2 also (scout his base!) you may want to build t2 point defense towards his base right away, or wait and go for a t2 power generator. If you do build a power generator, you should be sure to make use of that power with mass fabricators. You can also take the opportunity to build some tech 2 AA as necessary, or perhaps do something sneaky with a tactical missile launcher. In any event, don’t stay at tech 2 long! Basically as soon as you get some t2 engineers, it is usually to your advantage to immediately start the upgrade to tech 3 and siege bots. If you are under severe pressure, you can build some t2 tanks or mobile missile launchers, however.
As you are upgrading your t3 factory, you should be building some t2 point defenses towards your enemy base. It is a good idea to build them in range of enemy resourcing or factories, if possible. Don’t build them very far in front of your line, however, or you risk losing your t2 engineering capability while you upgrade to t3. Also, don’t forget to build some tactical missile defense. It is both cheap and effective, especially as Aeon.
Winning the battle
Once you hit tech 3, you should begin building siege bots immediately. A few t3 mobile artillery pieces may also be in order, depending on how strong the enemy point-defenses are. If you have time, you should try to build up as many siege bots as you can before attacking, but don’t let the enemy get siege bots of his own while you wait. You should have plenty (easily 10 or 20) tech 1 and 2 engineers assisting your t3 factory at this point, and you probably should also have quite a few t2 mass extractors.
Competitive games rarely last much longer on this map. If you have the resource advantage and you hit tech 3 quickly, you should be able to overrun your opponent with siege bots. Be very wary of having your commander on the front lines in the latter part of the game, since siege bots can take him down pretty quickly. You should be sure to send some siege bots around the probably less defended side of his base near position C, if you can spare some. Note that it is important that you continue to invest in economy, which means upgrading mass extractors and building t2 power plants. If you have a bit of a power surplus, you can quickly build a few t3 engineers and a t3 mass fabricator or two, but it is probably not a good idea to try to build t3 power on this map, unless the game appears to be entering into a stalemate.
That about wraps up our Sentry Point map profile. Stay tuned for info on other maps, and feel free to discuss (argue) in the comments below!
April 2nd, 2007 at 10:29 pm
Interesting… I have a question though, one that possibly pertains to many of the maps. What do players think about the center (nuetral/enemy) base? To me it seems like a rose with thorns - a great position but requiring a bit of resources to overtake. Would the center of the map not be a great place for artillery, missles, radar, and a central location to send out attack waves? It just seems like a resource that is widely ignored. Seton’s Clutch is different due to the placement, but neutral points are left as only blips on the radar.
Any ideas?
April 2nd, 2007 at 11:13 pm
It’s definitely worth taking over the neutral bases. All it takes is a single siege bot (maybe two, depending on the map). Neutral bases are never defended with anything more powerful than T1 PDs, which are trivial to destroy. And, like you point out, once you get the neutral base, you get the resources and good map position out of it.
April 3rd, 2007 at 2:00 am
well personaly ive only seen this map a few times get to T2 and only once get to T3
i think ive only plaid it 10-15 times all ranked of course….
and the few times its got to T3 ive died cuz i stayed in T2 to long playing atry2 wars
so play and play well in T1 as the game normaly doesnt get past there (least not @ rank 1000ish where i am)
April 3rd, 2007 at 5:26 am
This is one of those maps that feature a low framerate from the start. Really peculiar.
April 3rd, 2007 at 9:02 am
Hmm, I kind of forgot about the neutral base in the center when I was writing. I haven’t played around with it much to know if it is worth taking. You will need a fairly sizable T1 force to take it. By the time you hit T3, where it will be easy, it may not be worth it.
With regards to Meddish’s comment, it is certainly true that this map can be decided at T1, especially if there is heavy comm rushing. However, it does happen fairly frequently to me that I hit T3 on this map, and it always pays to be prepared. Instead of playing with artillery, you should probably be upgrading to T3!
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:17 am
At first great map profile!
But ( ;) ) i think we have to discuss the problems of the map.
In my point of view and even in view of a lineal*g* the Length between A-C is smaller then the lentgh between B-C. So i think you have advantages when starting at A.
My “normal” play on this map is to hold the A-B side at first with the com and rush C as fast as possible… But mostly i am too late when I’m at B. so i have to build the Defense-lines outside the starting point perhaps in range of the third hydrocarbon powerplant…
Am i right? Perhaps it is just a feeling….. And when i’m right how to tread this disadvantage?
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:33 am
This map is so painful on my machine that it’s not playable. I assumed it was the large amounts of trees.
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:43 am
Hrmm, I never thought about it because the trees don’t give me performance problems, but I suppose you could be right. (Of course, trees would give me performance problems if you filled a 20×20 map with them, but GPG is a merciful God.)
It shouldn’t be too hard at all to make tree-free versions of the standard maps and put them up for download, so even those with slow computers would be able to experience (most) of the gameplay.
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:57 am
Does reclamation play a large part in competitive games? I use it a lot, mostly for mass, but the auto-reclaim is so slow and doing it manually is so micromanagementy.
I’ve been having problems getting replays to work, and have only watched one decent game.
April 3rd, 2007 at 12:02 pm
You do tend to see reclaim patrols being used frequently in multiplayer matches, especially in the huge FFAs on Roanake Abyss and such. Unconquerable usually sends out about four engineers to reclaim patrol the trees off his island within a few minutes of the game beginning. I’m not quite sure why. The mass gain doesn’t seem to be very significant (although I could be wrong, I don’t know any other way to see the mass gain other than by extrapolating off the total income figure). It could be as simple as an unspoken agreement to reduce lag by clearing all the trees off the map as soon as possible.
April 3rd, 2007 at 12:11 pm
You get +5 mass per tree. The huge packs of trees give you a solid income for a short bit. Also it helps speed up late game building if you don’t have to worry about your engineers/SCUs having to reclaim the area before they can build a structure.
April 3rd, 2007 at 12:17 pm
Yeah, I was thinking the main impetus for clearing away the trees early was just so that you don’t have to do it later on a case-by-case basis, but 5 mass per tree isn’t an insignificant bonus, especially because engineers can, I think, reclaim more than one tree per second.
Offhand, do you know how much mass pebbles (like those on Syrtis Minor) give when reclaimed?
I kind of miss Total Annihilation, which had a tooltip telling you how much mass and energy the object to be reclaimed was worth. SupCom doesn’t seem to have this information visible anywhere, and I don’t know why.
April 3rd, 2007 at 1:02 pm
I didn’t even realize that trees gave you mass in SupCom. I assumed they were like TAs trees that only gave you energy, except for the Oglok trees that were E250M50.
Are you sure trees give you mass? My engs don’t reclaim them unless I’m low on energy, I think. Maybe I just haven’t been paying close enough attention to my eng patrols. I’m on my laptop, so I can’t go check.
April 4th, 2007 at 7:38 am
Will the engineers simply reclaim all the trees if you put them on patrol? And when people send in engineers after siege bot wrecks do they click them manually or do they put them on patrol?
April 8th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
I’ve found air superiority to be a fickle thing on this map since it’s so easy and quick to get to your opponent’s base on the ground. I tried out, as Aeon vs. UEF, to go for an air factory second with plans to send interceptors over his base before he’d even built an air factory (UEF AA sucks about as much as Aeon). However, doing this allowed him to expand towards my base very easily, and I was quickly overrun and lost my initial base due to a lack of T1 ground units to counter him. I did manage to hole up at the other spawn point for 25 minutes or so, but by then he had so much of the map under control that I had no chance. My fate was sealed as soon as he got into my base, and that was probably only a few minutes in.