Dev Diary #22: Off-map Abilities
We briefly mentioned off-map abilities in Dev Diary #8 previously. This week, we want to look a bit closer at these potentially decisive abilities that can turn the tide of battle:
What are off-map abilities?
Off-map Abilities are powerful abilities that do not originate from units on the tactical battlefield. In almost all cases, they have a limited number of uses, and most will have a delay between requesting them and their effect on the battlefield.
This could be a distant artillery emplacement or a missile shot down from the strike cruiser hovering over the battlefield. Planning ahead is definitely required as the situation on the battlefield is very dynamic: Units are changing positions, new threats emerge, and your troops might have taken out a position before the off-map strike hits.
Most off-map abilities have a single use. They can be activated from the tactical combat UI. In many cases, the player selects an ability and then determines a location where it will be effective. After that, a timer counts down until the ability actually arrives on the battlefield.
It is essential to note that enemy units will not be aware of incoming off-map abilities and therefore will not actively avoid them.
[...]
