Guild Wars 2

I just got a commander tag after saving for a while, and was wondering how best to effectively lead. For example, I recall reading that commanders tend to be best as characters capable of surviving inside the enemy WvW/NPC zerg, so their allies can have a point to rally towards. While I would not have come up with this myself, it makes perfect sense. Are there other useful tips to commanding that wouldn’t be initially obvious?

1. Know your strengths and weaknesses(personality wise), understanding yourself will help you fit a specific role if need be. Do you have aggressive tendencies or are you the patient kind? These kind of things can help determine what kind of squad you will lead.

2. Ask experienced commanders for tips, they’ve been commanding a lot longer than you, follow them around(tag off). Take note of any strategies they employ.

3. Build a name for yourself first & learn the ropes(reference to #2), people are more likely to follow your commands if they know who you are and what you can do. You can start by leading a squad with friends or guildmates.

1. Follow another commander, observing him from the shadows.

2. When the time is right, turn on your tag and steal his zerg.

3. Laugh like a maniac.

… dont give me that look, its effective!

Don’t get too complicated. The more that can go wrong with your plan the more that will go wrong.

Dawdler.8521:

1. Follow another commander, observing him from the shadows.

2. When the time is right, turn on your tag and steal his zerg.

3. Laugh like a maniac.

… dont give me that look, its effective!

I only agree on the first part lol.
Follow other commanders, and watch them as you learn from their actions. Once you feel like you can do it, put it on and lead, while improving whatever you felt lacking.

Pick your first few battles wisely.A new commander who takes their troops into no win situations and defeat will soon be running around alone.I have seen that happen way to often.

Once you have a few victories under your belt with them,they will be more likely to stick around longer during the tougher battles.You need to earn those players respect by showing them that you know what you are doing.

Do not rage quit after a loss.When a commander does that,I do not feel I want to rush in by their side with as much gusto as I did before they did that.

Always leave on a victory and not a loss.Leave feeling good.

White Raven.4368:

Do not rage quit after a loss.When a commander does that,I do not feel I want to rush in by their side with as much gusto as I did before they did that.

Always leave on a victory and not a loss.Leave feeling good.

^

So true. I’ve seen so many commanders leaving after a lost battle… It’s really frustrating and annoying for all of those who followed you.

This is just my opinion but I don’t really like when commanders leave a map because “We have more people on X”. Most of the times they just leave without saying anything, so all of a sudden you find yourself in the middle of an enemy zerg without any idea of what to do.

Strange but usually one of my last things i do when commanding for the night is take on some silly challenge or task with little chance of success. I guess it’s down to you as a person, if people have fun with you then they’re more likely ignore the (stupid)wipes(coz it happens to everyone, like running smack into a blob while having the map open).
You don’t need to have that defesive a char if those around you can help, a commander will get a lot of the focus when engaging the enemy because if the leader is dead most groups fall apart(wise strategy). Although if you can still command from being dead/across the map that is what sets you apart from average commanders.
The biggest tip i can give i think is to always remain polite, say please and ty when asking people to do things(guild raids are different). Friendlies are just that, they play for the fun they don’t want/need to be shouted at.

1. Stick to a few commanders for a couple of weeks, and get to know the basics. Like how to communicate using chat, where it’s best to place siege at each tower, learning the flow of picking up supply and attacking, predicting possible outcomes of a battle or where foes will attack next, knowing when to leave an attack to go defend a tower, how to best move and attack with a zerg, and so on…
2. Make sure your build can handle some damage. You’re going to be the first man running into battle in most cases, meaning you’ll get focus fired a lot. Do your best to be the last man standing.
3. When you start out, don’t get frustrated if not everyone around you follows. Do what you can, with what you got, and more players will come to you, once you start doing well.
4. Listen to players around you. You’re a commander, not a commando. It’s about communication, so don’t think you always knows what’s best.
5. Do your best to achieve successful encounters. That might sound obvious, but if you get into a losing streak, people will stop following you. Don’t bite over more then you can chew.

I found this to be a pretty good guide and it does echo a lot of what others have said.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ooTfxO2ZJ6vO0KB9nLT31OnipVV_3yqWNigjl8wIwBM/edit?usp=sharing

Use /say chat for general commands, not map/team chat! So important