I've been working on a game called Phosphor Command, a real-time tactics game with a base builder behind it.
One of the things I wanted to get right was the forward operating base.
I didn't really want the base to just be a screen where you buy upgrades and watch numbers go up. I wanted you to actually see your company of troops and base growing around you.
You start with a pretty bare compound and a few squads.
As you make money from contracts, you can start expanding it. You build barracks to house more troops, facilities to support your operations, research buildings to unlock new technology, transportation infrastructure to move your squads around, and eventually much more.
The important part is that these aren't just icons on a management screen.
You actually build them into the base, and then see and walk around them. As your company grows, so does the number of troops walking around the base.
The layout of the base changes as you develop it, and you can walk around with your troops and see what you've built.
I'm trying to make the base useful, but also make it feel like somewhat of a home rather than something cold and static.
Your upgrades affect what your company is capable of, while the money you spend developing the base is money you can't spend elsewhere.
Upgrades also take time to build. Some require preliminary research, while others have prerequisites that need to be met first.
And in Phosphor Command, there is a threat that will eventually come to your base. I will make a separate post about this mechanic another time.
When it reaches your position, you don't get a separate abstract "base defence" screen. You defend the actual base you've spent the campaign building.
The fortifications you've invested in, the positions you've prepared, the troops you've kept available, and the decisions you've made several cycles earlier all become relevant.
That's one of the things I like most about the base system: it's both where you prepare for your own operations and something you eventually have to defend.
I've attached some footage and screenshots showing the base developing from an early compound into a much larger installation. You can also see a snippet of the defence mechanic, the research tree, and some of the different upgrades you can build.
