I will post more extensively tomorrow but right now i feel this idea would actully be detrimental to outlands, it seems shoe-horned in even to include OTA in a less than efficient way
The problem i see with this idea is that it makes Outlands into basically a rural version of City. While City doesn't have bad RP we go to outlands specifically for a DIFFERENT kind of RP, we shouldn't be trying to make it more like City, we should be trying to make it less like city.That said i also feel like the whole "drones flying about" thing (along with your comment of total obliteration) are exaggerated honestly. The combine have control of the world but you have to take in mind that means there will be resistance ALL over the world, they can't take control of ALL the tech there is and even then they are dealing with limited resources too because they themselves are trying to avoid such resources from existing in the first place. While OTA certainely has more resources and advantages i feel like they shouldn't be the unstopabble force they are at the moment (I'd argue that they should never have been so in the first place)There are many, much more interesting ways to create RP for the combine side in the outlands, and while it does involve taking away some "advantages" the OTA have so that their involvement/threat is more constant, it also means that there would be much more things to do in outlands for rebels/ota (not that there's a lack of that right now either way, but it could certainely be worked out better)
I can just see, overwatch guards on one side, resistance guards on the other to protect their brothers, and a bunch of people in the middle working. Just thinking about the tension that can come up is getting me hyped.