Speedboat Extraction

[rtek 10]

I am working on a mission involving a SEAL team. I got the initial insertion to work via a Transport Unload. However, I'm trying to get so that when I complete my main objective trigger, a Speedboat is waiting for me at the extraction point I have on a beach just north of Camp Tempest. Except I don't see a Select Type for a Transport Load. I know I can just have one sitting there, but if I get there before it, I want to see it coming.

I saw a video just now showing how to get a extraction via helicopter when smoke is deployed. That's cool, except I want a Speedboat to pick me and it be triggered when I complete my objective. Is this possible, and does anyone know how to do it?

I guess just Load works. Trying it out now with a SEAL team see if it works.

Edited June 14, 2013 by RTEK

[Freebie 10]

Sure it can be done but getting an AI driven boat to pick you up is a pain as either it beaches itself or you have to have it stop meters off shore and then swim out to it.

I messed around with moving the load waypoint all around trying to get it to work but kept doing as above. So I switched to using a helicopter lol.

[Magirot 14]

Give the speedboat an extra WP that just moves it a bit from its starting location, and synchronise (is it F5 or F6?) it to the trigger that checks when the objective is completed. That way it moves past that waypoint only after the trigger is activated.

I don't think Load works, however. At least the wiki says that it only affects members of the group that the waypoint is assigned to. Also, because of what Freebie said, you need a script to unbeach the dumb AI's vessel.

How I've done it is:

1) Create at least three waypoints for the boat: The extra one I described before, the one that moves it to the shore (MOVE is fine for that as well) and one that moves it away from the island.

2) (Make sure that the player's group is defined; add "playergroup = group this;" to the player's init)

3) Create a new trigger that (at least) checks that the whole player group is in the boat, so the condition is (remember to change boatname):

{_x in boatname} count units playergroup == count units playergroup

4) Add this as the trigger's On Act to make the boat reverse (modify the direction values depending on what direction the boat has to reverse towards; 30, 30 would be northeast, -30, -30 southwest, etc. Since you were talking of Camp Tempest you probably want West, so -30, 0. Or if you want a generic but a little more complicated reverse script, see here)

boatname setVelocity [-30, 0, 0];

5) Synchronise the trigger to the landing WP, so the AI doesn't try to move to the last WP before the player group is in, and the boat is guaranteed to be unbeached.

[rtek 10]

Load works if I'm by myself. The speedboat goes to next wavpoint after i board. However, when i tell my team to board, the dumb AI decides to make a B line for the shore. Either it beaches itself, or it goes straight for the rocks. It's amusing the first couple times watching the AI struggle. Boat hits the rocks, and the AI Diver team decide to go rock climbing till they glitch off into the water and board. The few random times it worked, the AI boat is stuck on the beach. Apparently the AI don't understand how to use the reverse function on the boat. They say with the pedal to the metal going straight into the shore.

I've tried setting all the wavpoints to far enough away from the shore that the boat has enough time to stop, and stops far enough away that it can turn around. Problem there is when I tell my team to board, the boat heads to the shore to pick them up, even though they are right next to the boat.

It's become too much of a pain to mess with so I've stuck with having a few empty enemy boats to steal, and/or the boat I used in my insertion in the beginning. Hopefully BIS fixes some of the AI pathfinding issues associated with boats, beaches, and rocks. I also hope BIS tweak the physics of the speedboats ability to maneuver.

I'll try out the reverse script. Thanks.