[Camp-SP] ArmA CO - Hammer of Thor

[mathias_eichinger 64]

No problem, I understand your point perfectly. Silverspoon calmed down my growing resentment. It ended even before I could enter the base, and it was a rather easy, almost sit-back show of force, like watching an action movie (especially the Apache air raid). A welcome change and a mission on the "fireworks" side.

[nettrucker 142]

Hi Matthias

sorry for my late reply.

Silverspoon

This is the only mission which has quite a realistic mission design, but as a result, ground troops have little to do in this mission. If I would have opted for a realistic design the player would have needed a different character role. Like tank crew . . . or pilot, so I decided to opt for a player centric experience rather than a realistic mission design.

I'm well aware that the campaign doesn't shine for variety in the missions, but normally a grunt isn't tasked with Spec ops tasks and gets to do fancy things. I chose intentionally the player being a grunt.

In any case . . . it's done the way it is . . . I can't change too much without redesigning the whole campaign, voice acting included. It would mean to start over from scratch . . . or nearly and I have no energy to give it a complete overhaul for being honest. What I will do is trying to get rid of the flaws.

Thanks for your feedback.

cheers:)

[mathias_eichinger 64]

Just tried to finish Black Gold without success. It is great until the player ends up on the plains towards objective OMEGA. There, loads of enemies swarm at the squad, totally overwhelming and killing all the members and the player. If the campaign would ever be overhauled (or re-done in Arma3?) I would suggest to send in a CAS helo when it is dire needed, e.g. when my own squad is down to 50% strength.

[nettrucker 142]

Just tried to finish Black Gold without success. It is great until the player ends up on the plains towards objective OMEGA. There, loads of enemies swarm at the squad, totally overwhelming and killing all the members and the player. If the campaign would ever be overhauled (or re-done in Arma3?) I would suggest to send in a CAS helo when it is dire needed, e.g. when my own squad is down to 50% strength.

Hi Mathias

There should be armored support coming in . . . I believe there might be a problem with the sync of the armored units which should support the attack. Gotta look into it.

There won't be any ArmA 3 version. If I ever overhaul it it will be done in the outdated official version of Arma CO 1.62. I can't upgrade further than that. :)

[mathias_eichinger 64]

Oh, what a pity, I would love to play ArmA3 missions with contemporary units. Do you mean you do not even own ArmA3, hence no A3 version?

[nettrucker 142]

Hi Mathias

I do not own ArmA 3, therefore it is impossible to me, to get an ArmA 3 version of the campaign. I have no intentions to buy it in the future. I don't support BI anymore. The main reason is Steam though. I don't make business with companies like Steam due to their license agreement period.

Worst thing is that I'm also unable to update my ArmA CO to the latest patch. There is no 1.63 no Steam patch so that's it. I'm also quite unsure if it's really worth to go through the hassle to improve it further when 1.63 might break some things. I will be stuck with 1.62 patch forever. Bi devs have confirmed that there won't be a patch for non steam users.

Furthermore I very much dislike when things are being shown down my throat . . . like being forced to open a steam account. I know what's the reasoning behind it and I don't care too much for being honest.

One good thing that I see in Steam is that I don't waste my money anymore on games that might be interesting to me. Steam is growing and they are getting bigger and bigger. More and more games require a Steam account which I don't buy. So there is definitely a benefit for me in terms of saving money. LOL;)

Well I'm pretty much done with ArmA. I have still a lot of good games that I never really played due to RL issues and ArmA I guess it's time to dedicate my attention to some other stuff.

In any case thanks for your feedback.

cheers:)

Edited August 2, 2014 by nettrucker

[mathias_eichinger 64]

Oh well,

that does not sound too good :(. I can understand your point though. I am beginning to hate the Steam workshop now because it is such a mess. But ArmA series gameplay is just too tempting for me to quit. Do you still appreciate feedback on your work?

[nettrucker 142]

Hello Mathias

yes of course I still appreciate your feedback. It will be helpful in case I decide to fix all the bugs I introduced in the latest version. I haven't taken a decision though in regards to it.

For the rest I've got a huge amount of unfinished missions on my hard drive. Some are in a pretty advanced state others have only a basic setup.

Just to give you an idea about some unfinished campaigns which are WIP

1.) Dark Ages - 17 mission campaign

Terrain - Quesh Kibrul

Addons used - DAC - Quesh Kibrul

status: 80% done

2.) Silent Corps - 16 missions

Terrain - Tora Bora

Addons used - DAC - BAF

status: 70 % done

3.) Valley of death - over 28 missions

Terrain - Namalsk

Addons used - can't recall at the moment would have to take a look - Namalsk

Status: 50% done

4.) Operation Starlite - 8 missions RWO project

Terrain - Razoreniya

Addons used - UNSUNG MOD - Razoreniya

Status : 40% done

5.) SP Mission pack - 10 missions

Terrain - All UNSUNG terrains

Addons used. UNSUNG Mod

Status : 50% done

6) Campaign with no name - 8 missions

Terrain - Thirsk Winter

Addons used - Kuki's winter camo - Kutznetsov and some others I can't recall right now.

There are over 50 basic single missions all WIP.

These are just the results from me fooling around in the editor since ArmA 2 has been released. Who knows I might be that crazy to finish some of them especially the more advanced ones. LOL

cheers :)

[tom3kb 15]

So many unfinished, not released campaíns :(

I hope you will try to release some of them. I would choose something from the big ones-1st three from your list.

Edited August 2, 2014 by tom3kb

[nettrucker 142]

So many unfinished, not released campaíns :(

I hope you will try to release some of them. I would choose something from the big ones-1st three from your list.

Hi tom

yeah I have a lot of missions and unfinished campaigns. unfortunately they are not finished and therefore they are not fit for release. For being honest there is little to no stimulus, to finish them and moreover I can only edit them with the 1.62 patch which is completely outdated. I still refuse to open a steam account as I said above and it's most unlikely that I finish them soon.

cheers

[tom3kb 15]

Its not a problem that you use 1.62, im staying with this patch to. And look on armaholic, bi forum, arma2base or other arma sites you dont see any updates for missions/campaigns or mods for patch 1.63 ;) (yes i know most of players play now A3)

So if you ever will plan to finish something for A2 its not a problem that you use 1.62.

99.99% of stuff is and will be made on this patch.

[nettrucker 142]

Well let's see what will happen. Right now I'll be of to my holidays and I'll be without Internet access for the next 2 weeks. No computer no Internet . . . I will just relax.

All the best

[tom3kb 15]

Enjoy your free time. :)

And i dont want to force you to make some missions ;)

I was only thinking "campaíns finished in 70-80% it would be bad if all the work you put in to them now go to trash".

Ps. One of my PC's is broken so im cut off from computer from ~5 weeks, its difficult days for me ;)

Edited August 3, 2014 by tom3kb

[mathias_eichinger 64]

Wow, nettrucker, that is a huge amount of missions that would absolutely be good to see the light of the day. Anyway, your holiday comes first. ;).

On with the next Hammer of Thor mission, Boom:

Contrary to many other missions, this is a long range firefight, where I learned how to use my MG as a sniper weapon. Pretty straight forward direct assault mission, no bugs, save for the 2 Apaches that only arrive when the fight is over. Nothing bad about this mission.

[doveman 7]

You can download a 1.63 beta patch from the web or with pws. OK, not the most recent 1.63 stable but maybe it's enough if you want to test compatability of your missions.

[savedbygrace 2]

Okay, I attempted to play this campaign this evening but didn't get very far. Arma 2 CO version 1.63125548 with the 3 official DLCs and no addons active.

During the Intro, as soon as the narrator introduces himself "My name is Vincent Vega..." The next three lines double printed and blended and then random lines would do the same after that. The sound allowed me to follow along so I kept at it. I noticed the convoy was not staying together at all. The 2 trucks stopped at the dismount point, both groups got out but the squad of the other truck lay prone and didn't move, nor did the truck. My squad got out and we began running across the desert. Shortly after, our truck began flanking us but the other squad and their truck stayed put. About 1500 meters into the run with still 2000 plus to go, I look back and see the Humvee escorts pulling up to the dismount point. By now, we have closed within range of that oil rig operation and begin hearing muzzle cracks. Within 3 minutes, all but three of our squad are wounded and disabled with the medic turtle roll while two stand straight up, engaging and advancing toward the danger. Now, I recall reading where you stated that this is unconventional warfare tactics and the experience is centered on the player. But something tells me that this was not your intended mission design. If anything could go wrong, it seemed to right then. I waited and those 3 units were able to revive 2 more of us between their dance of bravado. An enemy nade truck had made its way toward us but was disabled at around 100 meters out. Another sped past us toward the oil rig and I jumped up and sprinted to that abandoned truck to use it for cover. We were somehow surrounded with no escorts in sight. After being disabled again, I just had to abort.

I understand the dismount, only because the guy in the middle cursed for some unseen reason. It dawned on me later that he had spotted those oil derricks, but no mention of them were conveyed. To approach in trucks would be suicide. However, to approach without cover within 300 meters was not much smarter. To have that truck speed out to our flank, baffled me as well, since we all know that large vehicles generate a larger radar profile and that truck was probably what gave our presence away. I have to presume that the truck moving out beside us was also unintended, otherwise we're just easy targets. It may be safe to say that 1.63 has certainly wrecked your valiant efforts of mission editing. Please don't consider this hate feedback, you know me better than that pal.

A personal note: I was a hater of Steam for the longest of times. I enjoyed having my hard copies of proof. The only reason I ever installed Steam was for Americas Army 2 and it is free. Once it was announced that Arma3 would only be released via Steam, I felt chained as if my freedom of choice was being removed. Once I started using Steam more often, I fell absolutely in love with it. It became apparent that Steam is the smarter choice. It stores everything for you...your install keys, play time, statistics, you name it. You know when your friends are playing, what they are playing the most and can chat with them in real time when they are logged in. Another benefit is that you can have me as a Steam friend! I know, right?!

You never have to keep up with your discs. Steam offers discounts deals weekly on more games than you could imagine and there are some great games out there with superior quality that are free, not to mention the small devs who are struggling to get their own stuff out there and Steam offers them the ability to bypass those costly production costs and just focus on the code, with you being the tester. You can also vote on which games should be given a chance. Updates can be automatic if you choose(why would you not?) and there is never a fuss over which version to install before which version.

Most games I have ever owned, I have repurchased through Steam at discounts and when I pass on, all that data can be passed on to my kids or anyone I give the username and password to. I just don't see a negative to it any longer. With this said, Its worth it to install Steam and update your projects. You don't have to move on to Arma 3. Frankly, I rarely play it. I still play Arma2 and OFP more(through Steam now). But it's not worth investing so much time in those projects, only to have them playable by a select few people who refuse to update past 1.62. Don't you want future players to be able to experience Hammer of Thor and those others you're slowly building?

I'm not trying to sell you on Steam(well, yes I am). I just don't want you to be left behind with all that great content that none of your fans can play. Obviously, your choice, but install it, try it out for a couple of months and if you're not sold on it, just remove it. You won't have to update your Arma2 until you've decided.

Oh and why have you never asked me to help with voice?!!! :raisebrow:

[mathias_eichinger 64]

Well, I am sticking with ArmA2 1.62 as well, since I probably don't do a whole load of A2 missions in the future.

On with Last Obstacle, which is a solid mission featuring both long range combat and house to house clearing in a believeable setting of US overwhelming force. No bugs spotted and fun to play.

[nettrucker 142]

Hi guys.

I'm back from my holidays. Thanks for all your feedback.

@dovemann

I need to research what was the last non steam beta patch I have no clue which one it was.

@ Mathias

Thanks for your constant feedback. It helped me to understand where the missions need to be checked. There is still a huge amount of work to be done.

@ sbg

Hello my friend. First of all I have to apologize to you, for not having you contacted for the voice acting. During the update OFPEC was down and I wasn't sure if you had the time to do voice overs. My bad and I'm really sorry for that.

I assumed you were too busy . . . wrong assumption on my side. I should have contacted you but I can't give you a valid explanation why I did not.

If you are willing to help with some other missions of mine that would be great.

I did some damage during the last update. Especially the overlaying text. That was introduced in 1.3. I can't explain what went wrong there. My rpt doesn't give any clues in regards. I'm using normally the description ext for all text messages but after the update some of them didn't work and never showed on my screen so I found a workaround.

It is obvious that this problem was something on my side because the overlaying text is the proof. I gotta look into that.

1st mission

Well definitely something is not working here. The order to disembark is given when the convoy spots the first enemy units. There should be two tacticals to the North of your position and there should be an Infantry squad closing from the North as well. Revealing those units will trigger some more radio communications and your mission status will be updated to defeat the enemy attack.

On your left is the oil rig which is covered by some static MG positions. Lot's of insurgents in fixed and mobile positions. 4 other tacticals which will attack from western direction. A frontal approach is bound to failure as long as the static MG gun positions are intact.

I wanted the player to be confronted in an area without any cover available, a situation where you have little to no choice. The Humvees are staying a bit back first covering the rear and advancing slowly North until they reach the convoy. Now BLUFOR is facing the risk to get caught in a deadly crossfire.

In order to avoid losing the trucks they will move Southwest behind a small ridge after your squad disembarks. It is the only position which gives you cover from the oil rig and the Northern incoming units.

Priority are the mobile enemy units on the tacticals. Here the contribution of the player has a crucial role in taking out the crews of the attacking tacticals otherwise they are going to wreck havoc. Once the tacticals have been neutralized your group will slowly move in southwestern direction towards the trucks. The ridge will give you cover.

Once the enemy attack from the north has been defeated your squad is supposed to flank the oilrig on the left. Meanwhile second squad and the Humvees will engage in a frontal assault.

The role of the player in the oilrig attack is of crucial importance. He must find a good firing position and take out the static mg positions and delivering suppressive fire to the advancing troops.

Once the oil rig has been taken you will be transported to the FOB by truck mission end.

At least that's how the mission was intended to play out.

Unfortunately the campaign is flawed need still a lot of work and fixing.

Concerning steam I don't want to go into that. It is not an issue to me. I've made up my mind and it won't change. . . I don't buy from companies with that kind of license agreement. That's it.

I just don't want you to be left behind with all that great content that none of your fans can play.

It is my own choice. There are so many things that can still be done in ArmA 2. So many great mods no one ever created missions for. UNSUNG 2.6 has just been released. Would like to do maybe a single player mission pack. The basics are already laid. I drop you a PM soon.

all the best :D

[domokun 515]

IIRC the last non-steam beta patch was Build_112555.zip

http://www.arma2.com/downloads/update/beta/ARMA2_OA_Build_112555.zip

[nettrucker 142]

IIRC the last non-steam beta patch was Build_112555.zip

http://www.arma2.com/downloads/update/beta/ARMA2_OA_Build_112555.zip

Thanks for the link domokun that saved me really a lot of sweat. Might have gone crazy to figure the right one.

Thanks a bunch mate.

cheers

[mathias_eichinger 64]

Ok, on with Warpig on 1.62 patch version.

This is a very hectic and challenging mission, but unfortunately, it does not end. Upon reaching the last known position, my squad leader just stands there doing nothing. I skipped the mission after 10 minutes of waiting.

[nettrucker 142]

Ok, on with Warpig on 1.62 patch version.

This is a very hectic and challenging mission, but unfortunately, it does not end. Upon reaching the last known position, my squad leader just stands there doing nothing. I skipped the mission after 10 minutes of waiting.

The missions ends when the player is close up to the tank . . . say 5 meters. I need to increase the radius of the end trigger.

cheers

[mathias_eichinger 64]

Done, it ended the campaign with Last Stand! The ambiance of this mission is just unbelieveable, with all this carnage, burnt out wrecks and dead civilians appearing from the floating dust. The outro is also well made. There is another point of criticism, however: Right before I enter the palace, I am told to blow up some tanks, albeit this objective has already been ticked off, and all I can find around the palace are burnt-out tank wrecks. However, the mission does end when I discover the general.

Campaign verdict: It has its rough edges, but man, this is one of the better campaigns out there, especially if you consider the amount of work and details that went into this one.

[nettrucker 142]

Hi Mathias

thank you for having played Hammer of Thor and all the valuable feedback you have given. Yeah the tank thingy is a bad trigger setup something I did wrong here.

I hope it wasn't too painful to play through. I'm sorry for all the bugs I introduced in the last update. I had just a burnout during editing that time around and my only desire was to get it done and release it. I was forcing it which in the end resulted plain wrong.

I did more harm than good at least in the missions. I'm quite satisfied with all the cut-scenes . . . the missions need an overhaul and I know where I have to change things to improve it. I just need to do it. That's the difficult part. LOL:crazy_o:

Once again thanks buddy. I surely appreciated your feedback.

all the best. :)