[SandTrout]

I'll make a refference to another MMOG, DAoC.

Sure, a Heal can't do as much damage as a Hero can, but "if the shit hits the fan", he can still pull out a hamer and get some whacks in.

In that game's RvR combat, you generaly need a set of specialists to take a keep from an enemy. However, a bunch of melee fighters(if you had enough) could take a keep all on their own.

A hacker in this game will be like a battering ram in DAoC. Sure, you could open the door without one, but it takes longer, and your group is getting picked off as you're trying to take down the door. Even though you don't acctualy "need" a ram to take a keep, it its generaly considered a nessesity because you take fewer losses outside the base, and thus can take a base with fewer people.

The same goes for the hacking certs. You don't "need" a hacker to take a base, but it makes it 20x as easy if you do. They may be considered a necesity because they alow your team to use the equipment and medical terminals while they are waiting that 15 minutes to take control of the base. This means less of a burden on medics and engeneers to keep you alive, as well as keeping them supplied well so they can continue to keep you alive. You also have a fairly unlimited supply of ammo so you can keep fighting.

I'm with Warborn on this one. Forceing everyone to have a cert to compleat the most basic objective of the game would not help, and would even hinder the game. Instead of haveing a lot of different specialists such as pilots, tank drivers, and assault infantry, you have a bunch of Advanced Hackers that only have the basic skills in other fields. This is the exact opposite of what the people who want "specialists" are trying to achieve.

From a story point of view, you could say that every infantryman is trained in the basic software of a base and use of a REK to open doors, but hackers know how to do it fast, more efficiently, and better.