The idea of flux shifting as a means for vortigaunts to communicate at long distance has been something I've wanted in HL2RP for years, especially in city settings where the potential for enslaved vortigaunts acting as eyes and ears for the resistance would excel. Of course, there are some very valid criticisms above.
I think one possibility, though it isn't perfect, is to maybe treat it less like a vortigaunt /radio and more like a vortigaunt /event? Make vortigaunts use it as a means to describe information via emotes of vortessence images/visions, set up ground rules for what can and cannot be articulated, etc. Or maybe even just limit the command to admin only, and it's just used as a means for admins to give vortigaunt specific /event prompts.
Definitely some room for improvement on that concept, but I think there are ways to make it work even given what Numbers and ARK said above. The main issue I see overall though is players having to adjust slightly to how they perceive vortigaunts given that this capability will provide a new edge in many situations that I think some players will have trouble adjusting to initially.
One of the ways I’ve interpreted the concept of Vortigaunts sharing and receiving information put out into the vast web of minds they share is through actual, direct visualization. Not necessarily in the sense of visions, but rather a visual, or at least in terms that make sense to someone who cannot possibly see or comprehend it beyond the strictly conceptual, manifestation of information itself. Think along the lines of perceivable, semi-tangible strands of thoughts, weaving and hanging in the air as though vapor trails.
That isn’t the only visual metaphor a Vort writer could use, of course. I think part of the fun of the notion, how individuals perceive the metaphysical environment that the Vortessence allows them to operate in, is that variety. One Vort may have a very orderly and vividly formed “sixth sense,” while another may see it as a myriad of colors and sensations that coil around all things like a gentle miasma.
Difficult to incorporate from a gameplay or mechanical perspective, certainly. But I do think the notion of a faction-specific /event style command would be close. It would need to be moderated so that people don’t use it cheaply or skirt the limitations of the ability though, which would be itself a whole different issue. Because the rebels already have some pretty severe issues with metagaming and I can see this exacerbating it horribly in the wrong hands. But frankly Vorts kinda need some RP/chardev love right now, instead of just being an S2K asset. The idea has potential.
