Red Alert Ettiquitte
I've seen lots of Red Alert Ettiquitte on other Red Alert Pages, so I just have to tell my own veiws on the subject (I never fail to do that, don't I? :)
Use a Decent Handle- Names make up first impressions over the Internet. If you're going to use a profanity in your name, chances are is that people will think you're an immature stupid person. People always tend to automatically despise profantiy namers right from the start. Also, using a bunch of useless symbols in your name will give away that you're a lamer. (Ex: >**"LAMER###^!!!!) Unless you're part of a team or clan, don't use them. You look like an obvious moron with useless symbols in your name (The only exception is to clarify names. For example, If there are four people using the name Vipor and you still want the name, fine. Just add an * or a _ to the name. Vipor*,Vipor_,Vipor-,etc.) Its always hard to remember the names of symbol users. Its pure hell trying to msg them in kchat when you're looking all over your keyboard for those stupid symbols. Its also hard pinging them.
Don't be Annoying- In the lobby, many players get annoying. They type in a bunch of garbage and they repeat it over and over. If people tell you to shut up, please do. It means you're annoying everyone else. Even if you don't mean to be annoying, sometimes you are. Also, don't beg for games. Some people beg over and over saying, 'PLEASE let me in the game!'. That's really annoying. Usually when someone starts to say that, I say, 'Heck no!'. They then beg even more! Most people don't like playing with beggers, so don't demand that you be in the game.
Don't Leave- This is the biggest annoyance I know of. When some people start to lose, they leave. There is nothing wrong with surrenduring, but leaving is out of the question! Sometimes if you've been in a long and hard game with someone, and once you break through their defenses they leave. Many people, like me, still want to finish the game since its taken so much time already. Once the player leaves, the computer takes over. Should be easier, right? Not really. The computer is so boring to beat. Also, the computer does lots of strange stuff. It takes a long to hunt down all the computer's infantry on the map so he can finally die. Also, don't leave prematurly. Meaning if you lose a warfactory or an ore refinery, there's no reason to quit. In team games, you can help your teamate better alive then dead. Meaning, you'll still have the player's attention. I was in a four player game where my teamate was starting to die because the person was placing teslas inside his base. The other opponent was holding me off, but I was gradually breaking through his defenses. Seemed hopeless for us. But I was able to do a turret run (making flame turrets within their base) and soon their bases just callopsed. Without the powerplants, the teslas weren't working and my teamate was saved. My tanks and my two opponent's tanks were even in number, but when my teamate built back up, his tanks is what won us the game. If he had quit when the teslas started entering his base, I would've died for sure since 2 would be attacking me then. In other words, don't quit unless your teamate is dead as well.
Don't Waste Time- Many Red Alert players go by the motto, 'I never surrendur'.Translated, that means, 'I waste your time.' In one on one games, if your opponent has destroyed half your base, took all the ore, and you're out of money, but only a large group of teslas prevents him from doing a massive tank attack on you, surrendur. If there is no possible way for you to win, and all you can do is delay the inevitable, then please surrendur. If you don't, you drag out the game and waste everyone's time. What I really hate is once the opponent's base is destroyed and they have nothing left but ore trucks, they make me go chase them down (This is ten times worse if one of those ore trucks got the 'speed up' crate.) Usually most games end up with a couple of ore trucks driving away with 100 tanks following them. Also if you're playing on crates, don't go searching for MCVs in crates, especially in one player games. Again, you're wasting time and annoying your opponent. Don't do these things unless you have a teamate who's counting on you to survive.
Don't be Cocky- This is what happens to good Red Alert players. Usually they hardly lose, so they think that makes them a grand leader or something. They start to tell people what to do. Such as in team games they'll message you over and over telling you to do something. 'Build 6 construction yards....' or 'Build more tanks.' Its really annoying playing with them in team games. 'Make teslas...' Heck, I don't want to make tesla coils. Perhaps that's the way they might play but I play diffferently. Also, I know more about my current situation then he does. Usually everytime I do something a 'cocky player' tells me to do, its bad advice. For example my ally said, 'Go in' which meant 'Tank rush them and destroy every freaking thing possible!' The result? My tank army died and did very little damage to the enemy. Since I had no defenses, my opponent easily destroyed my base. Now whenever a cocky player gives me advice, I say, 'Hell no!'. (This baffles them because usually EVERYONE does what they say) If you find youself being a cocky player, quit acting like an @sshole. Sure you might be good at RA, but that doesn't give you the right to boss other people around.
No Garbage in the Lobby- The Lobby is a place for you to set up RA games. Its also a place to talk about a game you and your opponent(s) have just played. Many people (Lamers) sit in the lobby and put in garbage. Its impossible to be in a conversation with someone because the Lamer is typing one word or letter at a time and pressing enter. Please, no trash in the lobby.
Don't Kill Newbies- That's really low. The newbies I'm talking about are the ones who are new to multiplayer gaming. Some people like to hang out on the RA server and just kill newbies because they think that mean they're good or something. Let's take Honorless as an example....
There's a person called Honorless who hangs around on the Red Alert Server. In the lobby he'll make a game and just sit there until someone, anyone, joins. As soon as he hears the 'beep' of someone entering, he starts the game. It doesn't matter who, it could be me, Roger Wong, the Westwood people, or Jay Cotton. He either does that or he'll sit in the lobby and say 'I'm god of Red Alert. I can beat anyone'. Usually people get angry at his babbling so they play him one on one and they die due to his tank rushing. Honorless loves to kill newbies. When I first started playing RA over kali, I played with Honorless and died due to a simple tank rush I died. Later on, I played him again. He did around 4 tank rushes on me (which I stopped) then I started to attack one of his war factories (he had eighteen). He then leaves the game! If Honorless thinks he's going to lose, he'll leave the game. Once he leaves he changes his name and he'll sit in the lobbyi. He doesn't want to admit defeat. (Honorless is the world's biggest Leaver there is. He always leaves games if he's not winning. On any Leaver List on RA websites across the web, you will see Honorless's name up on it :) One thing you have to give Honorless credit for is that he picked the perfect name for himself. He truly has no honor.
Hosting a game- When people join a game (that has been created) they should ask something like, 'Is this game open?' You don't nessesarily have to ask that though. If the game creator doesn't want you there, you'll find out soon enough :) Listen to the game host. If he says something like, 'Sorry, closed game.' Then leave. Go join another game or create your own. Don't just sit there and expect him to 'let' you play with him. If they 'Reject' you by using the button, then take that as a sign that he doesn't want you in his game. Being rejected does not mean you should join his game again! And once you're rejected yet again, that doesn't mean you're supposed to join that game yet AGAIN! Quit joining that game over and over. RA players get really annoyed by that.
This should be the 'proper' game settings:
Bases- ON (Duh. The game would really suck if there was no bases :)
Ore Regenerates- ON (The ore regenerating is really no big deal. And besides, the ore only regenerates on ore feilds that are getting harvest. And with all the low ore maps on the Red Alert CD, each ore feild usually doesn't last that long for it to regenerate much. So this is no big deal so leave it on.)
Crates- OFF They should always be off in one on one games. Players don't like to lose because their opponent was 'lucky' and got a money crate or found an MCV in a box. I like to use crates in team games. For example, if one player dies he can come back if he finds an MCV in a crate (providing that his teamate can hold off two for a while)
Shroud Regenerates- OFF Allied players love turning this on just because it doesn't affect them. That's pretty low to try to get an advantage like that. Unless the other player agrees, the shroud generator should always be off.
Capture the Flag- OFF (Unless you and your opponent really want to play capture the flag, this should definetly be off.
The other options:
Units- 0-1 (Starting with no units is the best way to start a new RA game. Many players like to start with one unit, an infantry, just so they can use it to scout around to find a good spot for the MCV. There are several bad things about starting with lots of units. If one player is soviet, the other is allied and both start out with 12 units, if the soviet player immediatly attacks the other player, who do you think will win? The soviet player of course, since the soviet tanks are better then the allied tanks. Also, starting with lots of units can produce 'cheap kills'. The soviet player can just lead his V-2 Rocket Launcher right to your base and fire one shot at your small powerplant. It'll paralyze you long enough for him to build up and kill you. The allies can do something similiar. If they start out with an APC, they can stuff 5 engineers within it. Then the APC goes on its joyride to the opponent's base, unloads, and captures the contruction yard. Simple as that.)
Money- $10,000 (Please don't do stupid stuff and start us out with $3000, which is barely enough to build an ore refinery. Upon building an ore refinery, we have only $10 left. The game gets such a slow start that it takes forever for us to build up in money. So leaave the money amount at $10,000..)
TechLevel-10 (Some people like to put it on 9, which then prohibits the building of A-bombs. Whatever tech level you put is fine only if your opponent agrees to it.)
AI Players-0 (If you want to show someone a map, set the AI to 1. The person then should surrendur so they can see the map.)
Rejecting people- Thank Westwood that the Game Host can reject people (throw them back into the lobby) with a simple button. Rejecting people is an art really, and its quite fun to do :) These are perfectly good reasons for rejecting ('kicking') people back into the lobby:
They whine- Whiners should always get the boot. No exceptions.
They beg- People begging to play one map or 'begging' someone to be on their team should get kicked as well.
They don't know what an ore truck is- Sorry newbies. We like to play with people who know what oretrucks are.
They are cocky- Playing with cocky people sucks! Just kick them so you won't have to listen to their 'orders'.
If you know they're gonna be using cheat codes- People have gotton my cheat codes and the cheating has spread out. I've heard a lot of people on Westwood Chat are cheating with the cheat codes! :) If you think someone is going to cheat, don't kick them. Just use the cheat codes back and it'll disable the cheat. :)
People with stupid names such as 'Sh*thead'or >>**Igor)))):)*>> (Names with a bunch of stupid symbols)- Usually if they're going by a stupid name, that means they are A type Lamer material.
ultRA players or anyone else with a rules.ini or similiar file in their RA directory- It means that your game will be out of sync no matter what you do. Kick them.
They are annoying- If they start to talk lots of smack once they join, kick them
They demand treaties- Tell them to go make one of their treaties with the computer in a one player game, then BOOT them :)
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