Dawn of the Tiberium Age (DTA) is a stand-alone mod that combines Tiberian Dawn (C&C 95) and Red Alert. While classic mode gets as close to the original game-play and balance as possible, Enhanced mode provides improved game balance and a lot of fun new stuff. DTA features many customization options for Skirmish and multiplayer (where you can play as GDI, Nod, Allies and Soviet on over 200 maps), challenging original singleplayer missions, as well as co-op missions. Since this is a stand-alone mod, you don't require anything but the mod itself to be able to play: the original game is not required.
The last update added the Gatling Tank for the Soviets. It has a Gatling cannon that's primarily effective against light vehicles and infantry, as well as 4 ZSU-23 barrels to take down aircraft.
The Gatling Tank is available right after building a War Factory and is Soviet's answer to early-game recon units and air-raids (especially aircraft needed a counter since Soviet didn't have any way to defend tanks against them until after they'd build a Tech Center to get access to Mammoth Tanks).
"I have many bullets to spare!" :P
That's gonna be super handy while rushing that tech center, thanks for this!
Yuri called.
He wants his blueprints back!
We don't actually have Yuri's blueprints; this was not inspired by Yuri's unit but by the Shilka, a real-life Soviet cold war AA vehicle. Naming it the Gatling Tank instead of Shilka just made sense for gameplay purposes as that's how most things in TD/RA are named (Light Tank, Medium Tank, Tesla Tank, Flame Tank etc.).
Could've just called AA Tank (Even it's a SPAAG not a tank)
The SPAAG only refers to its AA weapon, so just because it _has_ a SPAAG that doesn't mean it's not also a tank (in fact, a tank doesn't even need to have a weapon to be called a tank).
And I actually did consider AA Tank after we ran out of good names to consider for it, but that wouldn't have been very catchy and also would've taken away from the fact that it's meant to counter more than just aircraft (it's the Soviet's best early-game counter against scouts and infantry after all).
It looks like Chinese Gattling Tank from Generals
Generals: Gun on top of a tall, narrow, turret mounted on the rear of the vehicle.
DTA: Two sets of guns in a short, wide turret mounted centrally.
Does it, though?
Why does the tank have so strange weapon? It has fixed range and often fires behind enemies that actively engage them. Wouldn't a simple M60/flamer/grenade launcher do the trick?
BTW, GDI and Allied arsenals seem to be somewhat modest in comparison to Soviet and Nod ones. They have neither dedicated fire support like Soviets nor harrasment units like Nod. Also, they have no advanced infantry.
Nevermind about the weapon, it works perfectly fine against enemy units. It goes nuts just when force-firing on the ground or allied (soviet) units.
If with fire support you mean long range units, GDI has the Rocket Launcher for that, while Allies have the Artillery. Both factions can also use aircraft for harassment, although GDI's A10 clearly excels the most (and to some extent the Allied Light Tanks can be used for harassment, since they're slightly faster than all other tanks).
Advanced infantry are indeed lacking for them (is there really anything truly fitting they'd actually need?), but it's not like Nod's Chem Warriors really make a difference either.
I mean stuff like TTNKs, STNKs, bikes, termites, etc. They have no stuff do deal with harvesters except for aircraft, that are very expensive, micro intensive, unable to work under shroud and have limited ammunition capacity.
TTNKs are another story, but they are useful in supporting 3TNKs. Their range is decent and they are universal when it comes to warhead.
GDI and Allies feel like they are stripped to essentials.
BTW, infantry is somewhat useless in late game. Two arties can kill quite large teams. So there could be no chem warriors at all. Nor shockies.
EDIT: I think about "infantry killer" units like FTNKs that have short range and slow speed, but are well armored and have splash damage. It could be 1TNK with MG (2TNK to tier 1, StuG to monster tank), IFV (look - Red Dawn) or HAPC with flamer (MO). Arty would be restricted to the sole purpose of punishing turtling.
EDIT 2: A10s are very late tier, have limited prodution, splash napalm damage (not very good to fight harvies). And they are very pricey (1700 + runway). I could buy two MSAMs to kill it and the runway from distance for that cost.
1TNKs are still very slow (excluding a few of multiplayer matches and skirmishes). The speed buff gives only two advantages:
-If the enemy messes up, you can chase his tanks down
-If you mess up (more likely, because of poor armour), you can run and escape if he has no faster units (like TTNKs or bikes)
I'd take MRV from Nod and give it to Allies (classic included). With AM MECH's quotes.
EDIT 3: Freshly from the proving ground - 3 A10s reducted one harvester's durability to sightly less than half after two runs.
Allies can harass harvesters with light tanks. They're not as great as bikes for it, but the speed bonus they have over regular MBTs is significant. Light tanks have poor armor, but they also fire faster than other MBTs and so have relatively high damage. Combined with their speed, this means that they can be used to quickly take out bases if you manage to surprise an unprepared opponent, while regular tanks would take longer to do their job, giving the opponent more time to build rocket infantry and such as a counter.
GDI indeed doesn't have a fast unit to harass harvesters with and they don't have a lot of mid-game options, but their arsenal overall is well-rounded. They don't have any major weaknesses; their units are fairly strong (only behind Soviet), fast (both their tanks and rocket launchers move at regular MBT speed), and deal decent damage.
Allies get more options late-game with Chrono tanks and Tanya. The same applies to GDI with Mammoth tanks, XO and A-10s.
While you can use A-10s against Harvesters, Harvesters really aren't their main target. The napalm AoE bombs can quickly reduce even larger armies to ash (especially larger armies of light-armored units like artillery and Tesla tanks), and 3 of them can destroy any signicant base structure in the game, including the Construction Yard.
Nod and Soviets simply have more. QTNK, DTRK, Behemoth, Termites, MWAVEs, 4TNKs, SSMs, Cyborgs, Hijackers - they simply have more. Just look at the faction units overview and count the units.
OK, maybe 1TNK is possible to be used for harrassment (faster than TTNK), but Nod still has much better stuff for that.
OK, maybe A-10 is an useful asset, but it is very late game, expensive and limited in production.
HTNK is useless against Microwave tanks. And if Nod has SSMs and AA... that is not going to end well.
XO is just a strong tank, nothing interesting. Why is it there?
CTNK is the same, just worse to fight infantry, and with one way ticket into the battle. What's the point of this thing?
Termite seems to be much better:
-Productable en-masse
-Reusable
-Good against infantry
-Doesn't disappear after one shot in improper mode
-Can escape from dire situations
GDI universality is two edged sword - they can't fight Soviets (and Nod with MWAVE) in the open, they can't be deceptive against Allies and Nod. Also, what do you mean by decent damage? Try to kill an SAM site with "good damage" MSAM. MTNK, as you said, is worse at damage-dealing and slower than 1TNK. 3TNK is slower, but also has better DPM. MSAM can't escape the Bike or 1TNK grasp anyway. HTNK is very slow, XO is only average. Nod has MWAVE that is very powerful fire support (and great harrassment, TTNK is also good at boosting DPM, Allies have specific MBT... What does GDI have?
SSM is more survivable than CTNK or XO, because it is a long-range unit with a centrain purpose - counter-battery fire. It can kill multiple MSAMs without risk and run. XO can get magnetroned by MWAVE and slaughtered.
Similiar rule applies to TNKD as to SSM.
Behemoth is very good vehicle, also good at counter-battery fire, resistant to counter-battery fire, good against buildings, infantry, even aircraft.
BTW, what is the point of APC2? It's so slow. I never paid much attention to infantry due to frightening effectivency of the artillery. What is the point of this thing?
It's clear you haven't really played against other human players, or even AI with optimal tactics.
The Allies have demo trucks too.
Microwave tanks are relatively fragile, so they can be taken out with rocket launchers and even massed tanks (or A-10s). Not to mention they're useless against infantry, which is actually used unless the enemy has a large bunch of artillery. If you manage to kill the Microwave tanks, Nod is at a big disadvantage in direct combat against a GDI army.
Lategame Nod is indeed strong with the SSM, but the Nod technology tree is also the most expensive of all factions. Other factions only have 3 tech tiers, while Nod has 4; they need to get the Radar, Research Lab and the Temple of Nod to get that SSM. That's a couple extra thousand that the other sides can spend on units. The SSM is easily dealt with by a single A-10 unless it's protected by bikes, which lose in direct combat against GDI Medium and Mammoth tanks (against Hum-vees it's a fairly close fight too), which opens you up to a direct attack by GDI.
Also, while the Nod arsenal is very versatile and effective in theory, their lack of power in direct combat makes them very micromanagement-heavy compared to the other factions, which makes them hard to play effectively. In a typical late-game fight you need to manage the SSM, the Cyborg, microwave tanks, bikes, buggies, and possibly light tanks and even artillery. That's a lot of control groups and too much for most people to handle.
The XO is stat-wise the most powerful unit in the game. It has a lot of HP, very high damage against everything and the railgun that can multiply its damage in many situations. It's pretty far from just "a strong tank".
Termites are a risky investment. They're useful for surprise attacks, but they're also very fragile in mobile mode and cost a lot compared to their stats. In most games against skilled players they're too expensive to be used often. It's also relatively easy to defend against them by using sensor arrays so you can detect them in time and then move in units to destroy them once they pop up.
In comparison to Termites, you simply cannot detect Chrono tanks in advance as they teleport into your base, deploy and undeploy in a few seconds and proceed to destroy your Construction Yard or a refinery. Countless high-level online games have been decided by Chrono tanks attacking refineries and destroying the opponent's economy. An alternative use for Chrono tanks is using them for fire support similarly to the Tesla tank; their range is slightly higher than that of standard MBTs, and they hit hard. They're not particularly terrible against infantry either, as they take only two shots to kill most infantry.
GDI's well-roundedness is indeed a double-edged sword. They have a hard time fighting Soviet directly, but still have faster units that makes map control and hit-and-run attacks easier for them. They also indeed can't be exactly deceptive against Allies and Nod, but they have a raw power advantage against those factions and A-10 strikes and Carryall'ing the XO in the enemy base to quickly blow up structures with the railgun are still often effective tactics. Also, the MSAM isn't effective against SAM sites as it's a heavily armored single-cell building, but it kills lighter units and can kite tanks. It can't escape 1TNKs or bikes, but that's why it should be protected by Medium or Mammoth tanks.
The Heavy APC is indeed rarely used, but it has been used in online games before to do Shock trooper and Rocket infantry attacks. It's slower than a regular APC, but has more HP and can carry 8 infantry instead of 5. It can be used for moving infantry more conveniently and safely over longer distances. Maybe it could get a price decrease however.
1. That's right. I've been playing RTS not since yesterday, but I have played little against other players. DTA, TI, TS, TD, RA - campaigns or skirmishes. But not multiplayer. AIs in these games didn't teach much tactics, mostly tank spam (or in DTA and TI cases, tank + arty spam, when I was trying other tactics it was just toying, none is feasible.
-aircrafts are useless in attack by lots of AA, and cost-ineffective in defense due to limited ammunition they have;
-harrassing harvies doesn't pay off or is just too easy (no replacements);
-rapid come-ins by DTRKs, CTNKs or APCs and their likes are met with fire by masses of defences and units scattered around;
-flanking bases is not possible, defences everywhere
On the other hand, AI is too stupid to:
-mass units to make a rush like players do
-not send its units into the enemy with heavy firepower advantage one by one
-avoid centrain unit types with its own units (not send militants at flame tanks, or titans at rocket infantry)
-wait until base defences are softened up by artillery
-keep units under cover of mobile AA
-retreat and retry after suffering heavy casualities
2. Full health MWAVE can take 3 V2 shots to the face and survive. TTNK blows up after taking one. And SPGs brutally slaughter any sort of infantry before any contact. FTNKs fry the meat nicely, and BGGIes are also an option.
3. All above about SSM is right. Except for one thing:
As long as MWAVEs live, HTNKs and MTNKs are out of order.
If their guns (or rather targeting hardware) bikes can freely kill them.
4.YR Yuri faction prototype?
5.Ah, a dizzie on steroids for fast refinery demolishing. And with not bad self defence (just a very strong tank). But it goes down when it is struck by MWAVE.
6. Can't termites be used as an escort for camping SPGs? Also, a stray shell or infantryman can phase out CTNK as well, so the risk is a case for both. Only advantage is detection and if your base is long, or the enemies has not enough fast tanks/arty... Shouldn't termites work?
CTNKs fire slowly, are not numberous, and have no splash damage. TTNKs are better for anti-infantry deterrent...
But indeed, their DPM is high.
7. So, the only GDI mid-game advantage is super-artillery?
Also, as long as MWAVEs live, GDI has firepower DISadvantage against Nod.
8. So, it is mostly for preventing tiberium sickness?
Wouldn't troop trucks work more quickly and cheaply?
What's the point of infantry anyway? Doesn't they just get fruitlessly shelled by artilleries into oblivion?
9. Freshly from tests - 1TNK has barely any firepower advantage over 2TNK for my taste. Warheads are the same, so there was no need to swap targets.
Freshly from calculator - one 1TNK has about 8.(3)% better DPM to one 2TNK/MTNK. After calculating unit costs in, the firepower-to-cost ratio in betweeen 1NTK and MTNK is about 1.24 to 1.
10. Tech levels are shared with TD, but I think it should be changed, since there is going to be no arty to punish campers on some levels. Look at CrpDstr mission 3, unit selection there varies from TLs but in my opinion is more fair.
11. Is it possible to make an unit deploy, upgrade it and undeploy as diffrent unit? (Without upgrade undeploys into the same unit as it was before). Because I have an idea about minelayers.
12. Do you think lack of specialist AA defence is good for GDI?
I think perhaps the reason way you think this game needs so much changing is not because it is bad as is, but because you don't know how to play it properly. Perhaps you should ask someone to teach you how. For instance, A-10s are not supposed to be used to harass harvesters, but to destroy buildings (three A-10s can destroy any building on one load of bombs) and to harass armies (their massive splash damage ensures that many of the units are at least half destroyed). They also make up for the GDI missile launcher's lack of range, easily destroying a group of artillery that is out of range behind a tank wall.
1. It has been already explained that A10s are not much for harvies. They do decent damage to light armourtype.
But can't one just deny that big advantage by supplying his forces with AA? Gatlings, bikes, mflaks - are they hard to manage and keep up?
2. The game is not bad, but the good can become the better.
3. As I wrote - playing AI and others is as different as recon bikes and mammoth tanks are.
"I love the smell of gunpowder!" :D
"Gun barrel spinning!"