Question about shield fighting

[sopranosfan]

If another RTS game about Dune shall be made, how would you represent the concept of 'shield fighting' as depicted in the books?

Will it be similar to the shield the Protoss units use in Starcraft or the Ordos vehicles in E:BFD? Or shall it be showcased in a radically different way?

In other words, how can it be faithfully close to the book?

[MrFlibble]

Holzmann shields prevented the use of firearms and affected the style of hand-to-hand combat. I guess that would mean that there would be no ranged units in the game at all.

[sopranosfan]

Hmmm... That would be true for most of the fighting depicted in the book, but I have trouble picturing infantry going hand-to-hand against a shielded building. :P Dune is perhaps the exception to this rule, the only place in the universe where shield fighting isn't applicable. And that is why Harkonnen and Sardaukar were caught offguard against the Fremen. If they were given time to adapt, well...

I would like to see close-to-the-book alternatives to shield fighting as well as shield fighting itself, which means armored warfare must be limited to a minimum. Which leaves only infantry warfare backed by air support of all kind. And some special cases, such as wormriding Fremen.

Base defenses would be mostly composed of traps such as pitfalls, vinetraps, etc.

[MrFlibble]

That would be true for most of the fighting depicted in the book, but I have trouble picturing infantry going hand-to-hand against a shielded building.

Hey, I'd have trouble picturing infantry going hand-to-hand against any kind of building (Warcraft-type games being an exception). If we're going for realism, infantry should enter a building and then engage in skirmishes against the building's garrison. I'm not sure about large shields being penetrable for humans though...

[sopranosfan]

If we're going for realism, infantry should enter a building and then engage in skirmishes against the building's garrison.

Populous : the Beginning is the only RTS game I know where this concept is showcased. Apart from that, nada. Perhaps the "Total Wars" and the "Lord of the Realm" series...

[nemafakei]

"Populous : the Beginning is the only RTS game I know where this concept is showcased"

Dune II, but you couldn't do it with certain structures like barracks.

[MrFlibble]

Well, Dune infantry do not actually "fight" for a building. They enter it and BAM! - its HP get decreased.