Dispatcher, operator, coordinator – this job has many names, and the idea’s simple – look at your fellow teammates from above, provide them with valuable info and get them out of trouble. But how exactly do we do that? That’s what this guide’s all about!
Before we begin
If you are a complete rookie and have no work experience, I would probably suggest you to go with your teammates first. It is very important to understand, how The Complexes look from inside, how they sound and smell, how far can you see there. I’m not asking you to become a pro-looter, who can identify any threat purely by it’s steps (even though this skill/knowledge is extremely valuable). Just get a general idea of what it feels to work there
Alright, you think you’re ready to take a role of a Dispatcher? Well, let us begin!
The Basics
As you probably already know, dispatchers almost never use a monitor, we use The Terminal. In order to use it as a monitor, after landing on a planet interact with it and use command view monitor. Terminal’s screen will turn into a monitor, that only you can see.
Here players are shown as blue dots with a cemicircle: every loot piece is a yellow-ish triangle; monsters are red circles of different sizes.
Controls
Your monitor (as well as the Terminal) can show you only one player at a time. To switch between players, use command switch. It acts exactly the same as white button on the monitor.
In order to switch to a specific player, use command switch (PlayerName).
Note: even dead teammates can be observed and switched to. They usually look completely stationary(unless beeing draged by monsters).
Interactions
Interactions are the reason we use Terminal instead of a monitor. Every map has a number of slide doors, mines and turrets. Dispatcher is the only one who can open/close and deactivate them. For you they will appear as bright green and red rectangles with a simple code in them (like A5, J1, K3 – every code consists of one letter and one digit).
To interact with them, simply use their code as a terminal command:
- This will make a closed (red) door open (green) and vice versa.
- This will temporarily deactivate a turret or a mine. (A green (active) rectangle will switch to red (deactiveted) with a depleting horizontal bar, resembling it’s cooldown until it goes active again)
Note: doing so will not only help your teammates traverse The Complex faster and safer. You should allways try cutting off enemies, especially when your teammate is being chased. Experienced crews may even attempt luring enemies behing slide-doors and traping them. This requires a decent level of game knowledge, as well as fast and efficient coordination, so clear comms are essential here.
Personal Skills
Your job may seem easy at first, but don’t get too relaxed – at any moment situation in The Complex can go from chill to bad to worse and your team will need the best of you. Here I’ve gathered some usefull skills that you should focus on, as they would defenitely help you bring your team back alive.
Clear Comms
This is a general rule of thumb for any team-based game, and Lethal Company is no different. Jokes are good for moral as long as the situation is good. When times get desperate, you need to cut down any unnecessary flood (vocal garbage).
Make your communication as efficient as possible. Stay calm, assist those who need you. Listen to your team, give them simple and effective instructions and directions. Warn them of any danger you see – wether it’s an enemy, a turret or a mine. More often than not you should deactivate what you can, and/or lead your teammate to exit.
Eventually you should develop a feeling/understanding how fast different enemies move and how big they appear as a red dot.
Mental Map
As soon the first player enters The Complex, memorize it’s layout. Many players (including myself) regularly get lost in those repetitive corridors, especially under stress, panic, pressure. As a Dispatcher who remembers the entire map (or at least a path of how-we-got-here) you should be able to lead your lost teammates back to exit, even when they lost any orientation.
Psychology
Your teammates will get lost, they will become stressed, they will panic and they will make mistakes. As a Dispatcher, you should become their bridge to safety, a calm and confident voice that would bring them back alive and looted. Talk to your teammates, reassure them, provide them with information they need to know; everything else should be discussed once the shift is over.
Make sure your team trusts you, make sure they can rely on you.
