Commander

A commander is a military rank.

## Dalmer commanders

In the Dalmer chain of command, in simplified or classical military hierarchy, a commander oversees captains who oversee sergeants who oversee privates.

However, a commander is also used to describe a leadership position in charge of a skirmish mission. Commanders are usually commissioned officers given control of resources and manpower to accomplish objectives, most often defeating an opponent, dalmer or otherwise.

During a skirmish, commanders can use a pool of command points to directly take control of individual units, give special overriding orders or to give clearance.

Commanders can use money earned from battles to improve their units by researching technologies, purchasing new weapons and upgrades, and specialized training for their troops.

### Commander tactics

While dedicated commanders make use of potentials and status effects for victory, most prefer a quicker victory using more mobile units like scouts and troopers close to an enemy position and point blank headshot them for a guaranteed kill, or grenades if they're in cover to flush them out.

This becomes less of an issue over time as weapon accuracy improves and attacking from further away is more reliable, but using multiple commands on scouts and troopers alone remains a pretty viable path to winning, especially if team attacks counteract weak attack power.

### Trooper tactics

Another practical application of troopers is pairing them with penetration weapon technology. Using machined guns while ignoring enemy defense, can quickly take out even the toughest armored targets, albeit only by spending many command points per phase on them.

A commander is given a commission, which entitles them to certain clearances

### Commander clearances

#### Skirmish Command

A commander is given leadership authority clearance over a platoon, which is usually comprised of infantry, cavalry and limited artillery and air support.

Commanders are only cleared for skirmish operations as defined by the Palatin. A skirmish lasts 15 minutes at most, with the commander having access to limited vehicles and units (capped at 20 command points, but usually given less by the Palatin) and no construction or production capabilities (reinforcements can only be warped in from specific areas such as bases, warp gates or relays).

#### Orders

The main role of the commander is to issue orders, but in a more literal sense, commanders are issued command points by the palatin, in accordance to the number of units, command units and the nature of the mission. These command points can be used to requisition reinforcements, supplies or to give orders to subordinates.

#### Skirmishes

Skirmishing are smaller missions that allow the commander to make money by renting out its expertise and units, these missions are cleared by the palatin.

#### Class upgrading

Rather than spending money leveling up individual units, a commander can upgrade a class and every unit of that class, both present and future, benefits from it. This prevents individual units from falling behind everyone else and helps take some of the sting out of high-level units getting killed. Despite this, upgrading individuals will always bring greater individual benefits.

#### Rules of the engagement

Commanders can lead military operations cleared by at least a colonel in agreement with the Palatin. For each mission commanders are given a set of victory conditions to accomplish, known as the rules of the engagement.

#### Ransoming

Downed units can be captured if they aren't rescued in time by a medbay technician, or if an enemy reaches them before a friendly unit can.

### Command perks

#### Command Ship

Advanced ship with an assortment of upgrades and custom parts that make it far superior to standard ships. Most notable is its communications equipment that allows the commander to give orders to its units.

Despite the capabilities of a command ship, its construction and engineering is incredibly complicated and there is currently no way to mass produce it. In addition, the ships' low mobility and high repair cost mean that on many missions that don't explicitly require it to accomplish the mission, it will just stay at the deployment zone for the entire engagement to ensure communications between the commander and its units.

#### Starting pistol

Officer issue handgun. Combines the accuracy of a sniper rifle, the range of a scout rifle, and the damage potential of a carbine.

### Commanders intercom

When selected, a commander can give specific orders to one or several units and even queue several orders. This only works with robotic units however, sentient units will try to achieve the objective, but will adapt to the situation (such as by retreating or holding the position when the objective is currently impossible or suicidal).

### Flee

Technology that allows commanders to give a speed boost to their units in peril. In practice, the ability is most of the time used to get from point A to point B faster.

### RescueMe

A technology destined to allow a unit to carry another, at the cost of halving the carrier's speed. Shrewd commanders use it as a movement tool, allowing units to cross vast distances of the map in a very short time, by combining mounted units' ability to move quickly after rescuing.