Let's talk STRATEGY — Capture the Flag Blitz — Why You Shouldn't Just Defend

First of all, I know the event's almost over. I'm not giving advice about it, but I do want to share my opinions about it — specifically, a playstyle I keep seeing.
And another thing — I'm really opinionated about this whole thing, so I might end up offending someone. I just want to make clear that I'm not trying to. I'm sorry if something I say does offend you — I'd be happy to have a conversation about what I've written so I can see things from other perspectives.
Oh, and one other thing — my Gear score is around 4000, and I'm at Captain Level 31. I don't know if this is happening all over the place, or if it's just around my Level.

I don't know about you, but I've really enjoyed this event. I play Speeder normally, so this was perfect for me. The whole Capture-the-Flag system is really well done. But in between the fun, competitive games, I find myself shouting at faraway teammates: "What are you doing?" "No! You can't Nitro with the flag!" "Can someone help me Capture?".
(For the record, I don't usually shout at my teammates. I'm doing it quite often with this event.)

I would say that there there are two things you can do in this event:

1. You can Capture the enemy Flag. It's your job to run into the enemy Base and get back to your own Base with the enemy Flag.
2. You can defend your Flag. When an enemy comes to take it, it's your job to tear them apart and return the Flag to your Base.

It seems to me like most people are doing #2 a lot more than #1. And that makes sense — it's much easier for those who use Shooter and Defender (a good portion of players) to attack than it is for them to run around Capturing Flags. But in this event, that doesn't work. Oftentimes, I find about three people on each team defending their Flag and one person trying to Capture by themself. And I'll admit that having three people defending means it should be near-impossible to to take your flag. But when both teams have three people defending, the game becomes a ridiculous stalemate. The Capturer says "Capture! Together!", gets no response from their teammates, and is forced to run alone into enemy territory in a desperate attempt to grab their Flag. The three enemies tear him apart in seconds, and the Flag — if the Capturer even manages to pick it up — is returned to the Base.

I, as a Capture-oriented Speeder, am usually the one being ripped apart by enemies trying to Capture, and it's becoming quite frustrating.
Sometimes I'll make it a good halfway to my base (usually if some of the enemies have wised up and are Capturing together) only to be taken down by one or two enemies who wanted to defend. If one of my teammates tries to help, they often:

• arrive too late.
• go too far to one side, so they pass the flag instead of picking it up.
• are at such low health that they are destroyed a second later.
• Nitro a moment after picking it up. (I can only be so mad about this one — I'm guilty of it too.)

This means that Solo-Capturing is near impossible. It takes good circumstances — such as no enemies defending — to Capture by yourself.

So, fine. You want to sit in our Base and beat up an enemy even though one or two people are doing the same thing. At least you're helping.
But take this battle: https://replay.battlebay.net/KBHJKCLZ#GDHYNGJQ
Imagine my disbelief when my teammates can't take out the one Shooter who's Capturing. It's unbelieveable! If you're going to defend, at the very least be good at it!

I'll admit this isn't always the case. I've had some fantastic games, with amazing displays of teamwork. But it still frustrates me when I see this defensive playstyle over and over again.
Sure — in ranked matches, sometimes it's enough to just battle it out. But this event is called Capture-the-Flag. The focus is on Capturing, not on defending or attacking.

Of course, it's important to have balance. Four people capturing is NOT a good idea. But neither is three defending.
Here's what I suggest — do what's needed. If an enemy Defender is driving towards your flag and none of your teammates are in sight, take the Defender out. But if you've got teammates guarding, and you think they can deal with the Defender, go Capture.

I assure you — just because you primarily use Shooter doesn't mean you can't Capture. You'll get a chance to use those Cannons as you run away with the flag. So please don't think that defending is all you're good for.
And PLEASE help out that Speeder when he says, "Capture! Together!".

Anyway, those are my thoughts about this.
Please share yours with me. I'd like to see the perspective of people who prefer defending, or the perspective of people who disagree with me.
And finally — thanks for reading!

 

I think CTF is evolving well. Almost everyone was charging to capture the flag in the beginning cuz carrying the flag is so rewarding. Now that returning the flag gives you decent coins, there is a lot defending especially on brawl park. If you are the only yellow boat in your team, it's gonna be a tough game for you unless team mates are ready to assist you. It is really hard to find an opening alone if 3 enemies are defending the flag. So someone needs to sacrifice one life or two to drag them out. Hopefully there will be more adaptive players in the next event.

If Rovio is smart enough to find an algorithm to reward assisting/escorting players, CTF will go next level. They need to encourage more action rather than rewarding only one or two roles way too much. There needs to be more captures than these boring-repeating-long draws.

I'm pretty optimistic about the next event.

 

Anyone can capture lol. Pay attention to the positions of both flags and be ready to pick it up if the carrier is at low health. Far too many times I've died right in the middle of my entire team and they just drove away from the flag I dropped RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THEM, which then gets returned by a super slow defender. PAY ATTENTION. Damage is virtually meaningless in CTF if you aren't making an effort to capture.

 

Use a speeder, go towards your capture zone, and when you about to die, drop it right on top of a defender so they can't refuse.