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Forums > Home› Star Trek Online General Discussion

How do you flank a cube or a sphere?

zedbrightlander1zedbrightlander1 Member Posts: 14,782 Arc User
in Star Trek Online General Discussion
I spent much of the last few days fighting fleets of Borg ships and in the middle of one battle I suddenly noticed that the sphere I was attacking was taking flanking damage. And that's when it hit me. "It's a sphere. It has no flank." No front, no back, no top, no bottom, no sides at all, unless you count the inside and the outside.

I'm not complaining or anything, I'm just observing. I remember those early Borg Episodes where the cubes were described to be as generalized as possible and build with deliberate redundancies.

DATA: The ship is strangely generalised in design. There is no specific bridge, no command center. There is no engineering section. I can identify no living quarters. There is no indication of life.

So with no command center, how can there be a front on a cube or a sphere? Again, I'm happy to be adding flanking damage, but from now on, I'll be grinning as I do it. ;)
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Comments

  • norobladnoroblad Member Posts: 2,624 Arc User
    edited October 2015
    the easy way is to get above it and shoot down at it. this seems to flank it.
    The hard way is to track its front facing which changes and can be seen as a small arrow in the interface.

    As for the concept, its just hitting someone from behind. Even borg can't see 360 around them. Even a sphere moving forward has a "front and back" if it isnt rolling as it goes.
  • fovrelfovrel Member Posts: 1,448 Arc User
    The small arrow in the target hud indicates what is the front, so the other side is aft. I think the whole flanking mechanism in a space combat game is absurd. Why should the ship take more damage at the back than on other sides? The only explanation I can give is, because it has less protection there. So why give a ship at a certain point a weak spot?

    Then, for spheres and cubes it is even more absurd. You make a complete symmetrical ship in all dimensions. Then you give it a front and an aft and a weak spot. Who did the borg assimilate to come up with that idea?
  • angrytargangrytarg Member Posts: 11,009 Arc User
    Logically you can't. That's one of the major traits the Borg uses. But the flanking mechanic is a gameplay element and in-game logic (not logic-logic) a cube has a front, flank and aft since the game mechanic is the same for all ships. The flanking itself is meant to illustrate small, more manoeuvreable ships engaging weakpoints and critical spots on starships, the only way those ships actually do damage in ship-to-ship engagements of large powerful cruisers, but STOs space combat mechanic are rather wonky as the game was originally written so every ship is equal to each other, as in you play the exact same game content with a B'Rel that you play with a Galaxy Class starship and you succeed just as well or even better. This 1on1-simple-balncing concept really screwed with "logic" from day one.​​
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  • yakodymyakodym Member Posts: 363 Arc User
    How do I flank a cube or a sphere, you ask? Well the answer is "Very well, thank you" :-D Don't think too much about it. Otherwise you would also have to ask what's so special about the rear arc, that when the new t6 iconian rider hits you there, it recharges its shields...
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  • thenoname711thenoname711 Member Posts: 204 Arc User
    edited October 2015
    fovrel wrote: »
    The small arrow in the target hud indicates what is the front, so the other side is aft.

    No, the small arrow indicates which shield facing are you currently attacking, which means if you fight borg just circle around the enemy until the arrow points to bottom facing on the target HUD and voila, you are flanking.
    h7BYa2S.png

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  • lordsteve1lordsteve1 Member Posts: 3,492 Arc User
    It's the same with the crystalline entity. You can flank it but it makes no sense as it effectively has no front or back.

    The only way I can explain it for ships is that they are built with facing off against an enemy in mind and by getting behind them you in a position they've not planned for, so have an advantage.
    Of course it still makes no sense given these ships have massive sensor arrays and all sorts of other high tech stuff.
    SulMatuul.png
  • messahlamessahla Member Posts: 1,160 Arc User
    lordsteve1 wrote: »
    It's the same with the crystalline entity. You can flank it but it makes no sense as it effectively has no front or back.

    The only way I can explain it for ships is that they are built with facing off against an enemy in mind and by getting behind them you in a position they've not planned for, so have an advantage.
    Of course it still makes no sense given these ships have massive sensor arrays and all sorts of other high tech stuff.

    and most military vessel would accomidate for a possible flanking by adding armor in those crucial areas so still makes no sense the whole flanking concept.
  • lordsteve1lordsteve1 Member Posts: 3,492 Arc User
    True about the armour I suppose but you still gotta have somewhere for engine thrusters and exhausts etc so the rear is likely to be covered with weaker structures than the front end.
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  • excellentawesome#4589 excellentawesome
    excellentawesome#4589
         Member Posts: 63 Arc User
    I don't think borg see Omni directional or Riker could not have confused the F out of picardborgmode with pretty pretty space lights and took his attention away from the star drive and shuttle
  • warpangelwarpangel Member Posts: 9,427 Arc User
    lordsteve1 wrote: »
    It's the same with the crystalline entity. You can flank it but it makes no sense as it effectively has no front or back.

    You can even flank immobile objects that literally have no front and back, not even in the sense of which direction it's going.
  • zedbrightlander1zedbrightlander1 Member Posts: 14,782 Arc User
    noroblad wrote: »
    the easy way is to get above it and shoot down at it. this seems to flank it.
    The hard way is to track its front facing which changes and can be seen as a small arrow in the interface.

    As for the concept, its just hitting someone from behind. Even borg can't see 360 around them. Even a sphere moving forward has a "front and back" if it isnt rolling as it goes.

    Now that would be fun to see. A ship that rolls as it moves across space. Or a cube ship that spins like a top.
    enterprise+vs+cube.jpg
    Yup. Good old Trek fun. :smiley:


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  • rattler2rattler2 Member, Star Trek Online Moderator Posts: 58,687 Community Moderator
    How do you flank a Cube or Sphere?

    Slap a Flank Steak on it. :D
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  • warpangelwarpangel Member Posts: 9,427 Arc User
    zedbrightlander1 wrote: »
    noroblad wrote: »
    the easy way is to get above it and shoot down at it. this seems to flank it.
    The hard way is to track its front facing which changes and can be seen as a small arrow in the interface.

    As for the concept, its just hitting someone from behind. Even borg can't see 360 around them. Even a sphere moving forward has a "front and back" if it isnt rolling as it goes.

    Now that would be fun to see. A ship that rolls as it moves across space. Or a cube ship that spins like a top.

    In Voyager a cube did spin while fighting an Undine ship, presumably to bring more weapons to bear on it. At warp speed no less.
  • zedbrightlander1zedbrightlander1 Member Posts: 14,782 Arc User
    rattler2 wrote: »
    How do you flank a Cube or Sphere?

    Slap a Flank Steak on it. :D

    Here I was thinkin' that maybe we needed to put a ring on it.
    Single-Ladies-Put-A-Ring-On-It-Music-Video-beyonce-19652163-854-480.jpg
    Maybe on that borgified hand.


    f5cc65bc8f3b91f963e328314df7c48d.jpg
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  • UnknownUnknown
    edited October 2015
    This content has been removed.
  • davideightdavideight Member Posts: 461 Arc User
    maybe i can offer a different view on "flanking". though its described as "hitting from the rear arc/from behind"

    lets ask what it really "means"


    hitting someone from behind basically means, hitting him, where he cannot see and react.


    now, while borgships may not have a front/rear arc, they still have a focus on one target, and may be distracted, so they dont "realize" or "assume" your attack from an opposing arc.

    so basically flanking is: hitting someone from an unexpected direction (usually backside)


    maybe that helps your logical dilemma.
  • lianthelialianthelia Member Posts: 7,897 Arc User
    messahla wrote: »
    lordsteve1 wrote: »
    It's the same with the crystalline entity. You can flank it but it makes no sense as it effectively has no front or back.

    The only way I can explain it for ships is that they are built with facing off against an enemy in mind and by getting behind them you in a position they've not planned for, so have an advantage.
    Of course it still makes no sense given these ships have massive sensor arrays and all sorts of other high tech stuff.

    and most military vessel would accomidate for a possible flanking by adding armor in those crucial areas so still makes no sense the whole flanking concept.

    Lot of things in STO that make no sense...
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  • elric071elric071 Member Posts: 159 Arc User
    rattler2 wrote: »
    How do you flank a Cube or Sphere?

    Slap a Flank Steak on it. :D

    As a meat cutter by trade, I appreciate this comment...LOL!


    thenoname711 wrote: »
    fovrel wrote: »
    The small arrow in the target hud indicates what is the front, so the other side is aft.

    No, the small arrow indicates which shield facing are you currently attacking, which means if you fight borg just circle around the enemy until the arrow points to bottom facing on the target HUD and voila, you are flanking.
    h7BYa2S.png

    vbNveRa.png



    Nicely illustrated :)
    As to the OP, I never thought too much about the why, just that I could...willing suspension of disbelief and all.... ;)

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