[WIP] bCombat infantry AI Mod [SP]

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bCombat AI Mod v0.14



Community Base addons A3

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[sixt 26]

does this work on a server?

[serjames 357]

It does seem to work. I know it's not supported but it is functioning. AI do seem tougher more unexpected than with just our ASR_AI running.

More testing is needed before it releasable on our pubbie

SJ

[fabrizio_t 58]

It does seem to work. I know it's not supported but it is functioning. AI do seem tougher more unexpected than with just our ASR_AI running.

More testing is needed before it releasable on our pubbie

SJ

Let me know your findings.

While currently unsupported, i'd like to to what degree it's working.

---------- Post added at 14:29 ---------- Previous post was at 13:51 ----------

Hey Fabrizio here are my most important findings/feedback concerning the mod,

With bcombat often my AI comrades stay 60Meters behind me and stay in combat mode ,

searching cover instead of like i tell them to do just be aware and go into formation

they are stubborn and dont want to get to formation.

Thank you for your feedback.

This is very likely to be a side-effect fo the increased spotting distance featured by bCombat.

The higher the distance, the more AI units stay locked to far targets, hence refusing to go out of combat mode.

You may wish to revert spotting distance (SpotDistance) to default value by tweaking it within "\userconfig\bcombat_config.hpp" (all vanilla settings are commented at top).

This way you'll lessen the problem, but you'll lose some situational awareness as well. It's a tradeoff.

Alternatively, may i suggest playing different?

I know, as leaders, we led our men in formation for over a decade, but this was not probably the best choice, most of the time.

The problem was we just couldn't rely on them moving alone and without micromanagement.

In real world it's usually preferable to order some units or team to move to some nearby spot for recon / scouting instead of just leading an entire group.

This is especially true with bCombat, which was designed to be played this way.

Given the adaptive stance and better awareness, units are generally able to better survive and as long as they keep in line-of-sight with remaining units you may expect the latters providing covering fire whenever needed.

This tactical leapfrogging is often satisfying and rewarding for a leader.

Just remember 2 crucial things when playing bCombat:

* Units ordered to move play different compared to vanilla: unless attacked or put in "RED" combat mode, they prioritize movement over fire, meaning they try to move to destination as fast as possible ignoring targets of opportunity. Sure they still return fire if needed, but don't over expose them with long runs and always keep then in line of sight with your base of fire.

* Depending on skill, any unengaged units from a group are likely to lay suppressive fire in order to cover other threatened ones (such as the moving ones). This is especially true for machinegunners, so place them into a good position in order to cover your scouts and they'll do this job quite fine.

Could you please make it that they should seek cover in dangerous places

but won´t stay more than 10 meters away from the formation

at any given moment except when i(the teamleader) am not moving so much

and engage multiple enemies with the group.

This is how formation already works by default in ArmA engine (except for the 10 meters).

Modders currently lack the ability to further tweak this, since it's engine enforced (fsmFormation).

Another important thing.

They are very good at flanking in CQC

BUT when they come around the corner they dont have the weapon ready.

They should be in combat pace walking-mode and have the gun barrel already pointed into my direction

when they go around the corner.

What you write is true indeed.

bCombat relies on core AI events in order to achieve a better behaviour, but these are still extremely inconsistent in CQB.

That said v0.15 will bring further improvements through some workarounds and more will come later.

Additionally i found out that many AI enemies run past me without even pointing their gun at me.

...

A bug that i often also see is that even tough their barrel is not pointed at me yet shoot their rifle into the most illogical directions.

Again, this is often caused by suppressFor scripting command issues.

Usually this plagues the most lowly skilled units. No easy way around.

You can get rid of most of these problems by disabling suppressive fire altogether within config.sqf, just change to:

bcombat_allow_suppressive_fire = false

They also sometimes just crawl on thein ground and just crawl into the opposite direction without firing at me.

With bCombat units do get scared, fear is modeled.

By design the mod addresses AI both ways, to be better as well as worse depending on circumstances.

The more units are shaken, the more they may just resort to crawl away, look for cover or stick into cover.

For instance: sometimes you can even make a fleeing unit surrender, if you manage to surprise it from close distance with a spray of bullets over its head.

All this obviously applies more to lowly trained units and less to elite units.

---------- Post added at 14:53 ---------- Previous post was at 14:29 ----------

Played the campaign with this, speed of sound and blastcore. Wow is all I can say. I died 3 times in the very first engagement after discovering the rolled car. Very good, this is shaping up amazingly.

In the woods? Happened to me too, and climbing that hill was hard as well.

Damn frustrating. ;)

---------- Post added at 15:10 ---------- Previous post was at 14:53 ----------

Poll added, in order to evaluate users' first impression.

Please vote, thank you.

Edited December 26, 2013 by fabrizio_T

[kremator 1064]

Voted ... guess what I put ;) Of course VERY GOOD mate ! Looking forward to testing 0.15 for you, Santa !

[jake_krieger 10]

What is really unrealistic and which you can´t change in the config file ,

is the too fast reaction of going around the corning shooting at the enemy and getting the backfire in 1 second.

They should need some time realising that im shooting at them ,

where im shooting from and then getting ready to shoot me ,

it should at least take 2-3 seconds,if not more.

[kremator 1064]

^^ Are you kidding .. you go around a corner and someone fires ... you IMMEDIATELY fire back then ask questions !

[sidekilla09 11]

OH MY GOD THIS IS AMAZING!!!!

you have done a great job with the A.I, Bi-studios needs to hire you for A.I department lol

thank you for this amazing ai mod

[chondo999 1]

Will this work in a coop mission if all members in the arma3 server had the mod?

[fabrizio_t 58]

What is really unrealistic and which you can´t change in the config file ,

is the too fast reaction of going around the corning shooting at the enemy and getting the backfire in 1 second.

They should need some time realising that im shooting at them ,

where im shooting from and then getting ready to shoot me ,

it should at least take 2-3 seconds,if not more.

We're in ALPHA state, sure things have to be further balanced and more settings will come into config.sqf.

However there's already a lot of checking involved before some unit is allowed returning fire.

For instance, unless unit is fired upon from VERY close distance (< 25m.): enemy should be clearly visible, within unit's field of view (-75° to + 75°) and enemy approximate position should be known with an acceptable precision.

Unit skill and morale level matter too.

Consider that every time you shoot you alert any enemy units around (up to 250-350m. depending on weapon) and you're progressively giving out your position.

So when you peek around a corner and open fire on enemy it may already know you're somewhere there.

Edited December 26, 2013 by fabrizio_T

[Wiki 1558]

hey buddy! congrats on that releae, it's impressive!

you should ask for a job to BIS in AI dpt.

[sidekilla09 11]

Is there a way to remove the Debug menu and the dots from atop soldiers heads? i tried giving it a go at the config file but ended up messing something up to the point i had to re-download and replace can someone please paste the necessary info from the config file so i can just copy and paste thanks.

[fabrizio_t 58]

Is there a way to remove the Debug menu and the dots from atop soldiers heads? i tried giving it a go at the config file but ended up messing something up to the point i had to re-download and replace can someone please paste the necessary info from the config file so i can just copy and paste thanks.

Just open config.sqf and comment out everything below "bCombat MISC CALLS", at the bottom of the file.

Then it should look like this:

// -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
// bCombat MISC CALLS
// -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

// [] spawn bcombat_fnc_debug_text; // Uncomment this line to activare bCombat debug text overlays (as alternative to bcombat_fnc_debug_balloons or bcombat_fnc_fps)
// call bcombat_fnc_debug_balloons; // Uncomment this line to activare bCombat debug balloons (as alternative to bcombat_fnc_debug_text or bcombat_fnc_fps)

// call bdetect_fnc_benchmark; // Uncomment this line to activate bDetect live stats panel (as alternative to bcombat_fnc_fps)
// [] spawn bcombat_fnc_fps; // Uncomment this line to activate FPS stats panel (as alternative to bdetect_fnc_benchmark;)

// OnMapSingleClick "player setpos _pos"; // Uncomment this line to make player able to instantly move to any position by single clicking the map

[KeyCat 131]

Thanks for making and sharing fabrizio! I haven't had time to test it yet but by judging from your videos this looks awesome, let's hope BIS takes notes ;)

/KC

[jake_krieger 10]

Another problem: During the Showcase mission "Vehicles" when you approach the camp ,

even if you are proned and way out of their line of sight , the camp is triggering the alarm .

I think the AI detects me from 30 Meters

even tough there is no line of sight at all ,

and im moving very slowly and silently.

Edited December 26, 2013 by Jake_Krieger

[fabrizio_t 58]

Another problem: During the Showcase mission "Vehicles" when you approach the map ,

even if you are proned and way out of their line of sight , the camp is triggering the alarm .

I think the AI detects me from 30 Meters

even tough there is no line of sight at all ,

and im moving very slowly and silently.

I've done some extensive testing and i'll say 2 just things:

1) you're right AI has got back its 6th sense

2) it's not bCombat fault, but a vanilla bug which is clearly noticeable and reproduceable with v1.08 stable.

See screenshot below, taken from a test with vanilla ArmA3 v1.08 (no bCombat).

Basically the enemy unit (skill=0.4) was able to see / hear the player which was slowly moving behind his back, at about 26 meters.

This should be a recent regression, i think.

EDIT: i think it's hearing being broken, since the same test at night gives the exact same result.

Basically an enemy is able to detect another one behind its back at about 25-30m. if standing, 20-25m. if prone, 10-15m. if crawling.

That's almost twice what i would consider realistic (except for crawling).

EDIT2: i think that lowering "spotDistance" settings into bcombat_config.hpp does help.

I'd suggest:

spotDistance[] = {0,0.1,1,0.5};

(Base value is halved, compared to vanilla CfgAISkill)

Edited December 26, 2013 by fabrizio_T

[jake_krieger 10]

Hey Fabrizio again thank you , for your reply.

Are you gonna change the config values

in the next iterations of bCombat,

regarding the tweaks you´ve mentioned

for the various problems we talked about ?

Also this was something i wanted to know early on,

what kind of settings should we have in the Game Difficulty options ?

,regarding skill and precision and the other misc options,

to make things as realistic but fair.

Could you explain the difference between the two paragraphs in the bcombat_config.hpp file ?

Does your file override the vanilla ArmA III settings regarding the AI ?

Sorry for my long posts but , is it posible to deactivate the hint when bCombat is being activated ?

Edited December 26, 2013 by Jake_Krieger

[serjames 357]

Ok so been testing Takistan ALIVE insurgency r2 on our dedicated private with a mixed group of up to 10 players at once.

We're running ASR_ai with our own configuration in the User config see below.

/*
ASR AI settings
this file must be found in <game folder>\userconfig\asr_ai\
for most settings, 0 = disabled, 1 = enabled

All config entries are turned into global variables following a standard naming scheme. For example:
asr_ai_sys_airearming_feature = getNumber (configFile >> "asr_ai" >> "sys_airearming" >> "feature")
Mission makers can control these features by setting these global variables in init.sqf or by setting
a similar class in description.ext
*/

class asr_ai {

class sys_airearming {
	feature = 1;        // All the other settings of this class matter only if we have 1 here
	run = 1;            // Enable rearming at mission start
	radius = 40;        // Rearming search radius - how far will AI go to grab stuff
	civ = 0;            // Civilians will try to arm themselves
	binocs = 1;         // Units will take binoculars

	//NOT USED// List of secondary weapons that any unit may take. Other launchers not in this list will only be picked by specialists
	launchers[] = {
		"launch_NLAW_F","launch_RPG32_F","launch_B_Titan_F","launch_I_Titan_F","launch_O_Titan_F","launch_Titan_F","launch_B_Titan_short_F","launch_I_Titan_short_F","launch_O_Titan_short_F","launch_Titan_short_F"
	};
	// List of frag grenades that units will look for
	grenades[] = {
		"HandGrenade","MiniGrenade"
	};
	// List of smoke grenades that units will look for
	smokes[] = {
		"SmokeShell","SmokeShellYellow","SmokeShellRed","SmokeShellGreen","SmokeShellPurple","SmokeShellBlue","SmokeShellOrange"
	};
};

class sys_aiskill {
	feature = 1;                   // All the other settings of this class matter only if we have 1 here
	civ = 0;                       // Enable advanced skills for civilians
	radionet = 1;                  // AI groups share known enemy locations over radio
	radiorange = 1000;             // Maximum range for AI radios
	nightspotting = 0.5;           // Spotting range night reduction coefficient for AI
	gunshothearing = 1;            // Gunshot hearing range coefficient (applied to shooter's weapon sound range; 0 will disable the feature)
	buildingSearching = 0.8;       // Chance the AI group will search nearby buildings when in combat mode (0 to 1 values, 0 will disable the feature)
	throwsmoke = 0.2;              // AI throws smoke when hit (set 0 to disable or a number up to 1 to enable, higher number means better chance to do it)
	join_loners = 1;               // Groups left with only one unit merge with nearest group of the same side or faction (1-enabled, 0-disabled)
	join_loners_sameFaction = 1;   // Single units will only join groups of the same faction, if join_loners = 1 above (1-faction, 0-side)
	serverdvd = 1;                 // Dynamic dedicated server viewdistance adjustment
	setskills = 1;                 // Configure AI skills based on their unit type (faction, training etc.)
	split_legged = 300;            // Units unable to walk for this time will separate from their group to prevent slowing it down (time in seconds, set 0 to disable)
	reactions[] = {1,1,1};         // Infantry groups will randomly react with basic, scripted, random actions, to detecting the enemy or being shot at; format: {enableAttack,enableDefend,enableSupport}

	radionet_debug = 0;            // Log info sharing to RPT (1-enabled, 0-disabled)
	setskills_debug = 0;           // Log skill assignments to RPT (1-enabled, 0-disabled)
	gunshothearing_debug = 0;      // Gunshot hearing debug: shows a hint with max range the AI will detect the shots fired by player (1-enabled, 0-disabled)

	/*
	Units are classified into skill sets between 1 and 10
	By default, a lower level number means a better skilled unit
	Levels 8-10 are special:
	 - 8-9 are for pilots, very good by default, but some of their skills are now automatically reduced when they leave the aircraft (accuracy, courage)
	 - 10 is for trained snipers
	*/
	class sets {
		// only classes of arrays under this
		class level_0 { // super-AI (only used for testing)
			aiming[]   = {1.00, 0.00};
			spotting[] = {1.00, 0.00};
			general[]  = {1.00, 0.00};
			units[] = { // add class names to this to override their default (or inherited) skill set
			};
		};
		class level_1 { // sf 1
			aiming[]   = {0.70, 0.20}; // skilltype = {<min value>, <random value added to min>};
			spotting[] = {0.70, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.80, 0.20};
			units[] = {
			};
		};
		class level_2 { // sf 2
			aiming[]   = {0.38, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.50, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.60, 0.20};
			units[] = {
				"O_recon_F","O_recon_M_F","O_recon_LAT_F","O_recon_medic_F","O_recon_exp_F","O_recon_JTAC_F","O_recon_TL_F","O_mas_afr_rusadv1_F","O_mas_afr_rusadv2_F","O_mas_afr_rusadv3_F"
			};
		};
		class level_3 { // regular 1
			aiming[]   = {0.40, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.50, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.55, 0.20};
			units[] = {
				"I_Soldier_M_F","I_Spotter_F","O_soldier_M_F","O_spotter_F"
			};
		};
		class level_4 { // regular 2
			aiming[]   = {0.30, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.40, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.55, 0.20};
			units[] = {
				"I_Soldier_F","I_soldier_exp_F","I_Soldier_GL_F","I_soldier_repair_F","I_Soldier_LAT_F","I_Soldier_AR_F","I_Soldier_lite_F","I_Soldier_A_F","I_Soldier_SL_F","I_Soldier_TL_F","I_Soldier_AT_F","I_Soldier_AA_F","I_medic_F","I_engineer_F","I_crew_F","I_officer_F","I_diver_F","I_diver_exp_F","I_diver_TL_F","I_Soldier_AAR_F","I_Soldier_AAT_F","I_Soldier_AAA_F","O_Soldier_F","O_Soldier_lite_F","O_Soldier_GL_F","O_Soldier_AR_F","O_Soldier_SL_F","O_Soldier_TL_F","O_Soldier_LAT_F","O_medic_F","O_soldier_repair_F","O_soldier_exp_F","O_diver_F","O_diver_TL_F","O_diver_exp_F","O_Soldier_A_F","O_Soldier_AT_F","O_Soldier_AA_F","O_engineer_F","O_crew_F","O_officer_F","O_Soldier_AAR_F","O_Soldier_AAT_F","O_Soldier_AAA_F","I_mas_afr_recon_F","I_mas_afr_recon_AR_F","I_mas_afr_recon_LAT_F","I_mas_afr_recon_LAA_F","I_mas_afr_recon_exp_F","I_mas_afr_recon_medic_F","I_mas_afr_recon_TL_F","I_mas_afr_recon_M_F","I_mas_afr_recon_JTAC_F"

			};
		};
		class level_5 { // militia or trained insurgents, former regulars
			aiming[]   = {0.22, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.40, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.50, 0.20};
			units[] = {
"I_mas_afr_Soldier_F","I_mas_afr_Soldier_GL_F","I_mas_afr_soldier_AR_F","I_mas_afr_soldier_MG_F","I_mas_afr_Soldier_lite_F","I_mas_afr_Soldier_off_F","I_mas_afr_Soldier_off_Fn","I_mas_afr_Soldier_SL_F","I_mas_afr_Soldier_TL_F","I_mas_afr_soldier_M_F","I_mas_afr_soldier_LAT_F","I_mas_afr_soldier_LAA_F","I_mas_afr_medic_F","I_mas_afr_soldier_repair_F","I_mas_afr_soldier_exp_F","O_mas_afr_Soldier_F","O_mas_afr_Soldier_GL_F","O_mas_afr_soldier_AR_F","O_mas_afr_soldier_MG_F","O_mas_afr_Soldier_lite_F","O_mas_afr_Soldier_off_F","O_mas_afr_Soldier_SL_F","O_mas_afr_Soldier_TL_Fn","O_mas_afr_soldier_M_F","O_mas_afr_soldier_LAT_F","O_mas_afr_soldier_LAA_F","O_mas_afr_medic_F","O_mas_afr_soldier_repair_F","O_mas_afr_soldier_exp_F","O_mas_afr_recon_F","O_mas_afr_recon_LAT_F","O_mas_afr_recon_LAA_F","O_mas_afr_recon_exp_F","O_mas_afr_recon_medic_F","O_mas_afr_recon_TL_F","O_mas_afr_recon_AR_F","O_mas_afr_recon_M_F","O_mas_afr_recon_JTAC_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel1_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel2_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel3_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel4_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel5_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel6_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel6a_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel7_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel8_F","O_mas_afr_Rebel8a_F"
			};
		};
		class level_6 { // civilians with some military training
			aiming[]   = {0.20, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.20, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.50, 0.20};
			units[] = {
			};
		};
		class level_7 { // civilians without military training
			aiming[]   = {0.10, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.25, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.40, 0.20};
			units[] = {
			};
		};
		class level_8 { // pilot 1
			aiming[]   = {0.60, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.60, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.60, 0.20};
			units[] = {
			};
		};
		class level_9 { // pilot 2
			aiming[]   = {0.25, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.40, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.50, 0.20};
			units[] = {
				"I_helipilot_F","I_helicrew_F","O_helipilot_F"
			};
		};
		class level_10 { // sniper
			aiming[]   = {0.50, 0.20};
			spotting[] = {0.60, 0.20};
			general[]  = {0.60, 0.20};
			units[] = {
				"I_Sniper_F","O_sniper_F"
			};
		};
	};//sets

	// apply skill coefficient by faction to the skills the units would get based on their skill levels and settings above
	// if a faction is missing the coefficient is assumed to be 1
	class factions {

		class BLU_F { // BLUFOR A3A
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class OPF_F { // OPFOR A3A
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class IND_F { // A3 Guerrilla
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class IND_G_F { // Greek Army ?
			coef = 0.95;
		};
		class mas_afr_rebl_o { // Massi african Conflict units
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class OPF_mas_afr_F_o { // African Rebel Forces
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class Infantry_mas_afr_o { // Rebel Liberation Army
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class Recon_mas_afr_o { // Rebel Foreign Fighters
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class OPF_mas_afr_InfAdvisors_o { // Spetsnaz Advisors Team
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class USMC { // US Marine Corps
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class CDF { // Chernarussian Defence Forces
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class RU { // Russia
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class INS { // Chedaki Insurgents
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class GUE { // NAPA Guerilla
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class BIS_TK { // Takistani Army
			coef = 0.9;
		};
		class BIS_TK_INS { // Takistani Insurgents
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class BIS_US { // US Army
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class BIS_CZ { // Czech
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class BIS_GER { // Germany
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class BIS_TK_GUE { // Takistani Guerilla
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class BIS_UN { // UNO
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class PMC_BAF { // Private military
			coef = 1.0;
		};
		class BIS_BAF { // UK
			coef = 1.0;
		};

	};//factions

};//sys_aiskill

version = 9; // will increment this when structure changes

 /// CHANGES ///

/// v9 ///
/// - removed recoilmod and staylow options (features were removed from the mod)
/// v8 ///
/// - simplified skill set definitions by grouping skills into 3 categories: aiming, spotting and general

};

Based on these settings AI will engage within 600m and agressive within 400m - if you allow them to get a section close to you it's VERY challenging to out manouveur them without following proper fire and movment drills. EXACTLY what we want.

Loving it.

It's difficult enough that I might consider tweaking down the AI values on Spec ops slightly, they're quite deadly now.

Just as a point of interest. We're only running bcombat on the server, seems to run fine - not needed as clients. Much in the same way that ASR_ai Works it would seem.

SJ

[bravo409 13]

Fab ....I just watched some of the KAI advanced Ai mod and notice that the pathfinding for that Ai has no problems..Not to mention they think for them selves and avoid huge conflicts if they dont have resources to do so. So just wonder do you have any idea how they might have bypassed the pathfinding problem here are some videos to show you ....How did they pull this of if the Ai has such hard time with mods that are out...?I would be cool if we could get the Ai to work in groups of two or three...............................................................Anyway I'm sure 0.15 will be epic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76QFB4IXJGE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfaLEuSafeg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZFFyjPBM0s

[fabrizio_t 58]

Are you gonna change the config values

in the next iterations of bCombat,

regarding the tweaks you´ve mentioned

for the various problems we talked about ?

Yes, but you will still be able to tweak them on your own from within bcombat_config.hpp (game restarting needed).

Also this was something i wanted to know early on,

what kind of settings should we have in the Game Difficulty options ?

,regarding skill and precision and the other misc options,

to make things as realistic but fair.

Beware, here i express just an opinion, since is matter is extremely subjective.

bDetect is designed to cope well vith vanilla ArmA3 settings, with no further adjustment needed.

For instance "Regular" settings are quite fair, while "veteran" are a tad less forgiving, but still enjoyable.

Then your mileage may vary.

Could you explain the difference between the two paragraphs in the bcombat_config.hpp file ?

Does your file override the vanilla ArmA III settings regarding the AI ?

First paragraph is commented and non-functional: t's just a copy of vanilla original CfgAISkill settings, for reference.

Below you find actual bCombat settings, which do override original ones.

Sorry for my long posts but , is it posible to deactivate the hint when bCombat is being activated ?

Sure, paste the following at the very bottom of your config.sqf:

bdetect_startup_hint = false;
bcombat_startup_hint = false;

---------- Post added at 09:35 ---------- Previous post was at 09:30 ----------

Ok so been testing Takistan ALIVE insurgency r2 on our dedicated private with a mixed group of up to 10 players at once.

...

Based on these settings AI will engage within 600m and agressive within 400m - if you allow them to get a section close to you it's VERY challenging to out manouveur them without following proper fire and movment drills. EXACTLY what we want.

Loving it.

It's difficult enough that I might consider tweaking down the AI values on Spec ops slightly, they're quite deadly now.

Just as a point of interest. We're only running bcombat on the server, seems to run fine - not needed as clients. Much in the same way that ASR_ai Works it would seem.

SJ

Thank you for feedback, nice to know you find it challenging.

As long as AI is local to server (players vs AI) it should work with the mod running just on it. You'll miss some animations and i'm not sure about CQB grenade throwing.

Problem will arise for player led groups and AI units changing locality (e.g. Player taking command of group after AI leader death).

---------- Post added at 10:10 ---------- Previous post was at 09:35 ----------

Fab ....I just watched some of the KAI advanced Ai mod and notice that the pathfinding for that Ai has no problems..Not to mention they think for them selves and avoid huge conflicts if they dont have resources to do so. So just wonder do you have any idea how they might have bypassed the pathfinding problem here are some videos to show you ....How did they pull this of if the Ai has such hard time with mods that are out...?

Beware the following is just my opinion.

I highly doubt any mod is avoiding pathfinding problems.

What i see in these videos is not meaningful, no actual combat involved and you can do plenty of graceful / fancy stuff as long as engagement behaviour is not kicking in.

Then it usually breaks your logic down to (tiny) pieces, that's the problem. A partial way around would be override fsmFormation, but coding formation behaviour by scripting would be nonsense for many reasons.

I'm curious to see how that AI would behave in actual combat, i've some doubts this kind of behaviour can be consistent, useful and not just hit&miss.

Decision-making would be interesting, but if done right is likely to break most existing missions (this is the reason decision-making is out of the scope of bCombat and ideally postponed to bCommand), hence limiting the potentiality of the mod.

Let's see.

I would be cool if we could get the Ai to work in groups of two or three

This is something ArmA3 is capable to do just straight out-of-the-box, what it lacks is coordination between them.

bCombat just tries to fill the gap by through overwatch behaviour and mutual covering logic.

---------- Post added at 10:31 ---------- Previous post was at 10:10 ----------

Time for some "amusing" video.

Our poor (BLUFOR) AI guy was cornered.

His comrade was shot. He was wounded and fearful (yellow balloon).

He thought moving away was a smart idea.

A hail of bullets welcomed him when about to corner the building. Panic firing.

What to do now?

This building! AI doesn't get into buildings, i'll be safe there ...

Edited December 27, 2013 by fabrizio_T

[kremator 1064]

Had the same scenario on Stratis airbase. A whole rifle squad massacred outside the office complex at airport, so the only remaining BLUFOR runs inside to escape, only to meet 4 OPFOR and a hil of bullets !

Looking forward to 0.15

[rome 0]

Time for some "amusing" video.

Our poor (BLUFOR) AI guy was cornered.

His comrade was shot. He was wounded and fearful (yellow balloon).

He thought moving away was a smart idea.

A hail of bullets welcomed him when about to corner the building. Panic firing.

What to do now?

This building! AI doesn't get into buildings, i'll be safe there ...

That video made me laugh and come a the same time... I feel strange now..

Thx Fabrizio, ill start working on my mod now.

[fabrizio_t 58]

Small update

I'm proceeding with v0.15 development, which will come with some new features, as per-request:

* smoke grenade throwing for concealment (optional feature)

* improved CQB reactivity (optional feature)

The latter feature is proving to be useful, especially for cornering.

I'm currently testing it and profiling its performance, in order to measure its overhead.

---------- Post added at 23:55 ---------- Previous post was at 22:33 ----------

Urban CQB video coming, featuring Combat v0.15.

About 3:30 minutes of footage, 854x480px.

It's being uploaded now, looks like it will take about 1 hour from now to get it online. Sorry, digital divide :(

I'll let it go, time to sleep for me. Thanks for your patience.

Video Information: Player is following some units engaged into urban CQB. You may see many of the features, such as smoke grenade throwing (00:20-00.35), grenade throwing (1:11, 1:22, 1:58), navigation through buildings (2:10-2:40), surrendering (2:24), improved cornering reactivity (1:25, 3:17). Player was set "captive", not to unbalance things.

Edited December 27, 2013 by fabrizio_T

[kremator 1064]

Wow ... they look pretty amazing ! Good stuff mate. It actually looks like human players now.

[bravo409 13]

This video shows some of smoothest cornering I have seen yet and using grenades at right time and smoke,and oh and cant forget moving through buildings. looks great can't wait to test it when can we expect it Fab ....question where did you learn to code and is hard to learn it......?