EWAR/ECM in-game via scripting?

[mausAU 10]

Today I have a good question for you all: Is it possible to add effective simulacra of EWAR and ECM into ARMA 3?

Something like...

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* A vehicle with a low capacity for physical defense. As vulnerable as say a Marid or Marshall. Vehicle carries ECM as well as an EWAR delivery system that provides two methods of electronic attack. One aimed, one omnidirectional. It is quick but cannot take a hit, and has several drawbacks that balance its astounding offensive ability. It could run on something like batteries, and could need a support truck to rearm.

* The aimed attack (short-medium range, ~300-500m) could be used against, for this example, a singular airborne enemy attack chopper. A target lock must be achieved and then a period of time must elapse with the target in its sights before it delivers its payload with the chance to:

- Cause instant powerdown for 5 seconds, shutting off the engines;

- Cause total and inescapable self-destruction;

- Take temporary posession of the enemy's motive control, forcing it to autorotate wildly in a tight arc for 10 seconds;

- Force the ejection of either the pilot or gunner/copilot of the vehicle;

- Trigger the ship's electronical weaponry, making it fire off its whole stock of munitions in a random direction requiring it to escape and rearm;

* The omnidirectional attack (medium-medium/mediumlong range, ~500-700m) would be an information denial weapon. Causing enemy GPS, radios, electronic weapon sights - even maps, really, to stop functioning. It could have a chance to:

- Cause enemy units to sporadically commence attacking their own side for a short while;

- Cause an enemy AT/AA launch to detonate in-place;

- Create an enemy artillery/airdrop/support nullzone, or even an inadvertent danger-close style situation;

- Reduce the enemy's skill, maybe by breaking into their eyepieces and Hynotoading them;

* ECM would require the vehicle to deploy with a time limit before it could pack up and escape. Possibly the ECM would need to be directed to a certain area instead of being omnidirectional around the vehicle itself. It could have a minimum operating range from friendly troops, requiring it to remain separated and hidden until it was able to relocate. The vehicle could provide cover for friendly troops in the form of:

- Causing incoming enemy-launched guided missiles to thrust harmlessly away, or causing them to explode mid-air;

- Causing friendly-launched AA to successfully ignore enemy chaff;

- Causing friendly-launched AT weaponry to strike more vulnerable areas on their chosen targets;

- Giving allies a broader view of enemy positions;

- Causing enemy reinforcements to mistakenly arrive in friendly murderhole areas;

- Denying the enemy information on allies' locations;

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Sorry for the length of it all but I tried writing it a three times in several different ways, and this is the shortest and most concise one I could come up with. Personally I think the inclusion of EWAR would add a much more vivid dimension to combat, and as long as the downsides are as strong as the upsides it would be a lot of fun. Like being bitten by a snake, it's a snakebite, yes, but it still counts as a surprise :confused:

Any advice, information, insight, personal anecdotes you, the reader, could offer would be music to my ear-eyes.

Is it possible? Is it feasible? If it is, would you want to see it? If so, how come? If not, why so?

Thanks in advance and cheers :)

[Von Quest 1163]

Wow, that's a lot. I'd start with something small and work your way up from there. You'll get better more more precise help if you narrow your project and work in segments. Anything IS possible in ArmA!

I love 'unique' projects like this. I can't help you with all that but maybe get you started. I have EMP Mines in my system. I have several objects scattered (random) around with Triggers attached (attachTo) to them so when a player walks through the little area... ZAP! You can use ppEffects and/or the built-in Effects of the Trigger. Each of my EMPs may remove 1 peace (or more) of then damaged electronic equipment like NV Googles, Radio, GPS, etc. You could also simulate some odd physical effects or Radiation sickness even. With mine, there is a White Flash, Sound effect, and the screen is a tad wiggy for a second or two. The player is like, "What the.." and continues on. Later they may go to pull up the GPS and... What? It's now gone. Zoiks! EMP Mine!!

Get creative and start small. Work your way up from there. Over & Out. o7

Triggers | attachTo | ppEffects | removeItem | etc.

Edited March 21, 2014 by Goblin

[IndeedPete 1038]

These are pretty cool ideas. In my opinion, Arma 3 is not really futuristic. Yes, the units now have fancy eyepieces and some electronics on their vests but sadly there's no particular use of these things. They're just looking pretty. Huge opportunity wasted. Also cars seem to still solely run on petrol and not (at least partly) on power. Satellites, surveillance tech and hacking have no role in Arma 3 whatsoever, not in the Campaign nor anywhere else (apart from one or two little drone rides). It's a little bit sad, that BIS hasn't used this huge opportunity (yet). The game is set in 2035 but the gameplay is still back in 1985.

To sum it up: It would be awesome to have some of the features you've described!

[rtek 10]

What about using the laser designator to target with, and have to have a certain vehicle near by to act as the ECM system. Make it so you target/lase say an IFRIT, use either an addaction or radio call, the result being the vehicle loses all fuel and engine gets turned off. Maybe an electrical sound effect too.

I know simulated EMP works. I used to do it back in my dayz server for no fly zones over bases. Heli enters area, engine shuts off and fuel goes to zero. heli falls out of sky.

[chortles 263]

but the gameplay is still back in 1985.

Right where some vocal Arma players want it. :rolleyes:

Back when an EA-6B Prowler mod was being talked up, I had the idea of simulating EWAR/ECM in the form of "jammers" causing in false "radar" returns, as one possible route... :D

[IndeedPete 1038]

Right where some vocal Arma players want it. :rolleyes:

True. But don't get me wrong, I like this OFP / Resistance setting. It allows mission makers to set up hidden camp sites in forests etc. With modern tech like satellites, thermal visioning, drones and NSA-surveillance software on every device that's little more than a calculus I would imagine life as guerilla like in Resistance would be really tough. On the other hand they've managed to somehow lose a whole airplane full of people so what do I know?^^

[chortles 263]

True. But don't get me wrong, I like this OFP / Resistance setting. It allows mission makers to set up hidden camp sites in forests etc. With modern tech like satellites, thermal visioning, drones and NSA-surveillance software on every device that's little more than a calculus I would imagine life as guerilla like in Resistance would be really tough. On the other hand they've managed to somehow lose a whole airplane full of people so what do I know?^^

What gets me more is that BI didn't "use the 2035 setting" to its full potential... unlike, for example, this guy:

http://i.imgur.com/v77Y1zn.jpg (129 kB)

Correspondingly, one would think that "messing with these things" would be something that Arma 3-period EWAR/ECM might involve, especially with incidents like the US losing a RQ-170 over Iran...

[IndeedPete 1038]

True again. That's my point: they've decided to use a future setting - good idea so far - but the gameplay is like 2014, just with fancy new glasses. It would probably have been smarter to pick some time not 20 but just 5 to 10 years in the future. That way they could have brought in new equipment without the pressure of inventing too much future tech. From a story point of view it would be tough to explain the sudden rise of a force like CSAT though.

They've ported the "Armaverse" a huge step forward in time but forgot to adjust the game mechanics acordingly. That's one thing the community has to fill with projects like this I'm afraid.

And drones should really have more impact in Arma. But it's hard to script a really "unmanned" one as every vehicle needs a driver...

[Von Quest 1163]

Hit the nail-on-head. Keen observations. I agree. And the Maps are all barren and

have this... old... apocalyptic feel to them. Too run-down.

But, back to topic. I would LOVE to have other "futuristic" elements in the Game

like Grids, Hacking, EWAR, ECM, Surveillance, Bugs, Motion-Tripwires, etc.

[LoneGhostOne 10]

i would like to see an ECM variant of the light vehicles like hunters, Hemits etc. for all sides. i feel that this would be balanced because it would prevent an organized military force from being able to dominate a guerrilla force by having a single jet in the air. as it is now if a guerrilla force tries to go up against all the advanced lock-on weapons that an organized force will have they cannot being any vehicles to the battle limiting their ability to move around the map. if there were an unarmed version of say the hunter or something with ECM then a guerrilla force could be a small fast-moving force like it should.

now for what the ECM should do? i would say one or more of these options:

-prevent lock on of the vehicle with guided weapons (perhaps maybe just at long range?)

-cause a large chance for guided weapons to miss, with the chance to miss increasing with range

-cause UAVs and UVGs to not be able to clearly target them as hostiles

not only will this allow guerrilla forces to effectively combat an organized force, this should also allow the infantry of a large organized force to be a more effective fighting force. (ie not getting wiped out before getting within their range)