[CAMP] Lions of Kandahar

[HackerSlasher 1]

As for the Red Desert mission, I'm not sure what about the mission you didn't like, it sounds like you don't prefer the island itself much? Either way, as you seem to have noticed-- it's part of the book, it was something Rusty and his team had to do in order to divert the attention of the Taliban from the larger Canadian ground force. Many times, the convoy got bogged down, vehicles would need to be dug out, etc. While I didn't include this, I wanted to include a little bit of a sense that you're tangling with the elements, especially when you have to scan that huge area for the supply drop (Hint: search for it from atop the hill near Checkpoint 15 for the best vantage point).

Speaking of Mission 3-- in the intro and outro, are the vehicles taking a little too long to enter the frame or do they show up after 5 or so

Me? I've no problem with the mission at all or any of the others in the campaign for that matter. I'm just not a huge fan of of any desert based scenario but as this is set in Afghanistan it's pretty hard to avoid here ;). Island!?

I know nothing about the book either, sorry, but thanks for the info regarding some of it. The last thing I read that was even remotely similar, only because there were desert missions in Kuwait, Iraq and Syria, were probably Bravo Two Zero and a couple of Chris Ryan's ones many moons a go.

Re the supply drop - as you say, easily spotted from the hill. Again no problems at all there.

[tom3kb 15]

Just finished first 3 missions and I can say only: WOW :D

All is great: missions, loadingscreens, overview,briefings,story, music, cutscenes and voice acting. I like that there are many conversations and radio messages in missions. Nice that we dont play only as US soldier.

Ps: 1 small "bug" in M3: Red desert wenn we cleared Checkpoint14 marker (red circle) don't change colour to green.

[kapitanbasa 1]

I've started playing after days of downloading through uber-slow connections...

those who haven't read the book, you must...if only to appreciate the detail headup put in here. im am mighty proud of you sir. oh, and that tiring run...i thought it was going to be boring but your writing added depth and color to the experience. im so going to be busy this Christmas vacation.

[Kommiekat 11]

This branching of versions would need to be done after a few updates to ensure maximum stability, but if enough people express interest in it, that is something I could do (I'd opt for it myself). What I'm not as familiar with is ACE. Still, it isn't off the table as an option further down the line.

You may have noticed other mission makers like say, Sick1, who makes a Non-ACE version and ACE version.

You could also consider just going as you are going with the mods now, get it done, leave that version up for downloading, and come back later with all those other mods to add later, that way, you have two versions for downloading.....just a thought

[jefferspang 2]

Just FYI .... the real Lions of Kandahar (this is the author himself)

http://threewise.webs.com/kand.jpg (103 kB)

[Kommiekat 11]

Just FYI .... the real Lions of Kandahar (this is the author himself)

What's that thing on his left arm? Some sort of writing tab or solar thingy?

[h34dup 148]

What's that thing on his left arm? Some sort of writing tab or solar thingy?

It's an admin wrist pouch with the map I'm pretty sure

Just FYI .... the real Lions of Kandahar (this is the author himself)

http://threewise.webs.com/kand.jpg (103 kB)

I think I got pretty close with my choice of cfgIdentities for Rusty, Tier One Operators happens to have some dead-on faces for these grizzled soldiers.

I'm about 1/3rd of the way through the updates, the rest will get done tonight and likely submitted too, so stay tuned. The Camp should be mostly stable with this update.

[down8 30]

Great campaign so far.

I'm on the sixth mission, and I have enjoyed much the fifth mission. The IED secondary objective is awesome!

The placement of the snipers and the bomb guy inside the buidings and the balconies

forced me to deep recon with binocs, and carefully sneak to complete the mission alive. I recommend all people to complete this secondary task.

Congratulations for the good work.

Edited December 18, 2012 by Down8

[Wiki 1558]

in M6 The Voice of Death:

-you should add a GPS to the Canadian guy

-you should write a dialog when we call CAS

anyway, no major bug till here.

congrats again for this release!

[SavageCDN 231]

What I'm not as familiar with is ACE. Still, it isn't off the table as an option further down the line.

Just let me know if you need help with ACE or ACE configs

[h34dup 148]

in M6 The Voice of Death:

-you should add a GPS to the Canadian guy

-you should write a dialog when we call CAS

anyway, no major bug till here.

congrats again for this release!

There actually is a dialogue-- but when I was experimenting with things and foolishly tried using enableRadio false and enableRadio true to fix something the wrong way, it got deactivated. This will be fixed with the update I plan on finishing and releasing within the next 24 hrs or so. As for the GPS, I'll look into it and add one.

Just let me know if you need help with ACE or ACE configs

Yeah, I think it is really more so a matter of having experience with ACE and the plethora of additional functionality-- it seems that the biggest differences that come from converting non-ACE to ACE or just playing a non-ACE mission with ACE active are the toughest to observe and pick up on because of their subtlety. Still, if there is enough demand for an ACE-version, I may be down to take that plunge further down the road.

[h34dup 148]

Working on submitting v0.6 to Armaholic. Unfortunately, as I version the Camp, it will get "reset" upon installing it. Of course, you can always go back and finish it in the previous version if you leave the v0.5 .pbo in there.

Lots of fixes, pretty much everything in the known issues list:

Mission 1 -

* Minor fixes to outro - misnamed fire GL's

Mission 2 -

* Added map icons to IED site and taliban compound

* Adjusted conversation with civi #2

Mission 3 -

* Fixed mis-named groups in section III of briefing

* Added hint for player to use an IED from the explosives stash in the tent to clear checkpoint 14

Mission 4 -

* Increased volume of Jared's voice during initial briefing

Mission 5-

* Moved 'initializing scripts' message to beginning of mission 5 intro, instead of mission where it is no longer being loaded

* Added random patrols between objectives

Mission 6-

* Fixed radioEnabled false error that disables much of the dialogue from the beginning

* Removed NVG's once at OP Caroline and sun is up

Mission 7-

* Gave Bill's group a name (to replace standard number jargon in radio)

* Removed unused IED variable from IED script or use more simplified IED method

* Corrected Talon 30's group ID with a space

Mission 8-

* Added a hint when near the mortar tripod to aim at it while carrying a mortar backpack and use the "Assemble M252 81mm Mortar" action to progress the mission

* Remove unused IED variable from IED script or use more simplified IED method

* Fixed radioEnabled false error that disables some dialogue toward the end

* Checked/tweaked outro where camera seems to glitch

Mission 9-

* Adjusted school chat with proper timing

* Fixed missing fire GL variable names

* Decreased chance of spawn in enemy forces on Sperwan Ghar (objective Delta)

* Tried to make the dogs act or sound a little more vicious

* Added 'advanced' first aid modules, kept Simple First Aid

Mission 10-

* Removed unused IED variable from IED script or use more simplified IED method

* Adjusted 'hey Jude' chat with proper timing

* Added vehicle transports bringing in enemy reinforcements, decreased spawn chance of foot mobiles, and an RPG7V

Mission 11-

* Added a hint to the init and revise briefing advising the player to use AC-130 support using the satellite phone sitting on the hood of the GMV next to Ron

* Adjusted player's starting position

Mission 12-

* Adjusted 'god-fearin' chat with proper timing

* Fixed Zangabar Ghar trigger, which activated prematurely

* Fixed radioEnabled false error that disables some dialogue related to Zangabar Ghar objective and can disable end-mission radio dialogue

* Added a medical tent or replenish the player's health and set their unit pos to UP when teleporting after an objective is completed

Mission 13-

* Wounded Bruce, he appeared to be un-hurt, but in reality was hit

* Removed the nuke sign that appeared where players place the marker for fire missions

* Fixed chat subtitle citing Ben vs JT

* Investigated (and hopefully fixed) campaign description.ext-related error after completing the mission but before the outro - does not seem to affect the Campaign otherwise.

Will update all the download links soon hopefully, along with a news item on Armaholic...then that should do it for the holidays. Looking forward to a little break, although I can't deny I've been poking around in the editor with other...ideas.

Edited December 19, 2012 by h34dup

[jefferspang 2]

You came pretty close? Don't you mean you got it absolutely spot on? :P You're right, the Tier-1 units are perfect for SFs around this time period. This looks incredibly well researched and I'm currently 2 weeks from being able to play the campaign (away from PC!!:( )

I would also like to point out to everyone here that medic Sgt. 1st Class Riley was KIA in Wardak about 2 months ago (28th of Sept) if you didn't know. This campaign is truly a great tribute to those who continue to pay the ultimate price for Afghanistan's freedom, thank you :)

[slayer14 1]

@h34dup: Very well done man. I am a Canadian soldier and spent 8 months in Panjway and specifically at FOB Masum Ghar and the horn of Panjway. This is a lot of fun and I'm glad you've payed respect where it was due. I very much like the detail you've put in to this Campaign. Just a quick observation (I'm only on mission 4) I have not read Lions of Kandahar so I'm not sure if this is how he wrote it in his book, but the desert in mission 3 is actually called the Reg Desert short for Registan Desert, at least thats how it was written on all our maps (and wikipedia) But other than that attention to detail has been very good.

I've also noticed that you're thinking of making an update about Charles company during their big offensive. If you need any help you should read "No lack of Courage: Operation Medusa" (I wanted to post the link to it, but this is my first post so I can't) it is a Canadian book and goes in detail about Operation Medusa and goes as so far as talking about the Taliban defensive positions, which I feel would be good for your SP mission.

Anyways just my two cents, I will probably add more when I finish the campaign, but job well done!

[h34dup 148]

You came pretty close? Don't you mean you got it absolutely spot on? :P You're right, the Tier-1 units are perfect for SFs around this time period. This looks incredibly well researched and I'm currently 2 weeks from being able to play the campaign (away from PC!!:( )

I would also like to point out to everyone here that medic Sgt. 1st Class Riley was KIA in Wardak about 2 months ago (28th of Sept) if you didn't know. This campaign is truly a great tribute to those who continue to pay the ultimate price for Afghanistan's freedom, thank you :)

Yes, this Campaign is dedicated to the memory of both Riley and Bill, who both gave their lives fighting in Afghanistan. Rusty says, it wasn't they way they wanted to go, but it's the way God intended. The kind of selflessness these men exhibited is rare, and entirely worthy of retelling, I hope my efforts come close to accomplishing this, though no words (certainly no game) could really come close.

@h34dup: Very well done man. I am a Canadian soldier and spent 8 months in Panjway and specifically at FOB Masum Ghar and the horn of Panjway. This is a lot of fun and I'm glad you've payed respect where it was due. I very much like the detail you've put in to this Campaign. Just a quick observation (I'm only on mission 4) I have not read Lions of Kandahar so I'm not sure if this is how he wrote it in his book, but the desert in mission 3 is actually called the Reg Desert short for Registan Desert, at least thats how it was written on all our maps (and wikipedia) But other than that attention to detail has been very good.

I've also noticed that you're thinking of making an update about Charles company during their big offensive. If you need any help you should read "No lack of Courage: Operation Medusa" (I wanted to post the link to it, but this is my first post so I can't) it is a Canadian book and goes in detail about Operation Medusa and goes as so far as talking about the Taliban defensive positions, which I feel would be good for your SP mission.

Anyways just my two cents, I will probably add more when I finish the campaign, but job well done!

Slayer -- wow, really glad you are enjoying the Campaign so far, and as a soldier who served in the very area this Camp takes place you deserve our thanks for your bravery. I'd be highly interested in hearing your thoughts on the rest of the Camp, especially Mission 6, which takes place on a fictional Masum Ghar. (Though you may want to consider waiting for v0.6 to be released on Armaholic today or tomorrow, 99% of the bugs have been patched in it, but you have to restart).

In fact, in the Epilogue mission I plan to release, I already created renditions of FOB's Sperwan Ghar and Masum Ghar based on the *very* limited bit of photo intel I could find. Of course, I had to alter a number of things based on the constraints of the game and my limited perspective, but that is an inevitable result of adapting something like a book. I plan to make the Epilogue a sort of treasure hunt where the player can travel to placed like these FOBs (and visit other scenes from earlier in the Camp) and see some sights.

Anyway, thanks again for playing and for your service, I hope you will continue to share your insight here in this thread. Anything you can offer is appreciated-- about either FOB Masum Ghar, or about the initial assault of Op. Medusa (I'll definitely check that book out, I really wish I could have recorded some of the sound bytes from that Nat'l Geographic Documentary about Charles Co.-- I remember a callsign 'Fang' was being used a lot), I don't have much definition around what happened or how to structure the mission at this point, so anything helps.

EDIT: Heh, reading this No Lack of Courage book, I can already see where my Camp was inaccurate in Mission 6-- looks like Masum Ghar was already under ANP control when Medusa kicked off, but even still, it's fitting for a game to go in and clear it out... I'll have to be sure to stick to the facts with this Charles Co. bonus scenario...

Edited December 19, 2012 by h34dup

[Harzach 2517]

...Just a quick observation (I'm only on mission 4) I have not read Lions of Kandahar so I'm not sure if this is how he wrote it in his book, but the desert in mission 3 is actually called the Reg Desert short for Registan Desert, at least thats how it was written on all our maps (and wikipedia)...

In Lions, it is generally referred to as the "Red Desert" (probably due to its appearance?), but also as the Registan on a few occasions.

Just went to grab No Lack of Courage but it seems it is unavailable. I'll keep trying!

[Wiki 1558]

in mission 10, after the hmmwv SOV gets hit by the IED, it's still intact and satying in the middle of the road.

[h34dup 148]

in mission 10, after the hmmwv SOV gets hit by the IED, it's still intact and satying in the middle of the road.

Is the HMMWV damaged or undamaged? It's supposed to stay where it is and become a wreck-- I am also trying to use deleteVehicle to delete the gunner and driver (I use a little setPos magic trick to swap in the wounded bodies of Greg and Steve), but the driver seems to just wanna stay there dead in the driver's seat. Something to try and address as I continue to work on the Camp.

Also, the latest updated version (v0.6) is now live on Armaholic!

Download from Armaholic: http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=18194

Alternate Mirror #1: http://www.armaholic.net/colombia/scenarios/campaigns/LionsOfKandahar-v06.rar

Alternate Mirror #2: http://www.h34dup.com/uploads/arma/LionsOfKandahar-v06.rar

Remember, this is a new "version" of the Campaign, so it will be essentially like resetting, although this .pbo will not replace the previous version. Still, this version has tons of bugs fixed and is going to be the only update for a little while-- I'm still very interested in hearing feedback and bug reports, by no means is the Camp perfect yet. Now comes work on the bonus content, which may even be interspersed with other smaller releases...

I have been meaning to do an update to Battle of Tora Bora, and I've already started playing with making a research-backed Night Raid SP Scenario that uses the SOAR MH-47E's and possibly Tarin Kot, although it seems like this awesome island is still in-development.

[Wiki 1558]

well, just after the explosion, if can just use the "setdamae 0.8" for the hmmwv, and to delete the bodies inside the hmmwv, use this command:

{deleteVehicle _x} foreach crew name-of-your-hmmwv;

or use this command:

deleteVehicle name-of-the-driver; deleteVehicle name-of-the-gunner;

that way, after the hmmwv gets hit, the guys onside will disappear

[domokun 515]

Same error for me, solution:

- open the folder "@SGW_Afghan" inside ArmA 2 main directory

- check if inside there is a folder called "Addons", mine was missing so I just created it and I moved all the ".pbo" and ".bisign" files in it.

I experienced exactly the same problem and this solution worked perfectly. Thanks.

I'm surprised that this mod would be released using such unfamiliar syntax.

Otherwise, having a great time.

The dialogue is great, the voice-overs are hilarious and the atmosphere feels nice and gritty.

[h34dup 148]

well, just after the explosion, if can just use the "setdamae 0.8" for the hmmwv, and to delete the bodies inside the hmmwv, use this command:

{deleteVehicle _x} foreach crew name-of-your-hmmwv;

or use this command:

deleteVehicle name-of-the-driver; deleteVehicle name-of-the-gunner;

that way, after the hmmwv gets hit, the guys onside will disappear

Yeah, I tried deleteVehicle for each individual driver, perhaps {deleteVehicle _x} foreach guy would be better. So the HMMWV in your experience did get damaged though right?

[Fogu 10]

really nice h34dup, thx for creating this Campaign.

[Wiki 1558]

Yes, in my experience, the humvee is damaged.

Try this command and tell me if it works:

{deleteVehicle _x} foreach crew name-of-your-hmmwv;

[ericfr 0]

Great campaign.

Chapter XI V0.6

Can't zoom in the AC130 and die for no reason after some minutes.

[h34dup 148]

Great campaign.

Chapter XI V0.6

Can't zoom in the AC130 and die for no reason after some minutes.

Hey Eric, glad you're enjoying it! Before dying, do you get a radio message from Hodge that the Talibs are on the hill, get the AC130 over or they're gonna be "up shit's creek?" If so, get eyes on the hill ASAP and take out any guys without strobes-- if OPFOR breaches the perimeter of BLUFOR's defenses, you are killed instantly. Otherwise, I'm not sure, being hit by your own AC-130 fire is really the only other way unless you get hit by chance at some wierd angle. Zooming varies depending on the active weapon of the AC-130 too, so if you use #3- the big bomb, your zoom will be most limited. There is a Help menu you can access while using the AC-130, I admit I found all the nuances to be a little confusing myself, and I don't really explain how to use LDL's masterful AC-130/UAV scripts. Even still, I gave a slight spolier hint in the "Editor's Notes" section of the briefing. Check here for a strategy tip:

Call the AC-130 in right on top of your position, so you will always have eyes on Sperwan Ghar (the area you have to defend) if you need to divert your fire that way. The mission will start out with a ton of enemy heading your way, so it's best to hold off on trying to destroy the other objectives (unless convenient) until the combat dies down on the foot of the hill. Ishfaaq will be a primary rally point for the Talibs, so try to ensure that there isn't any movement whenever possible. Once all the groups on the attack have been put down, you can shift to focusing on the rally points.