Helicopter doesn't attack ground units

[yoannis1995 10]

Hi everyone !

I don't know why but IA helos don't attack ground units anymore... I placed a group of CSAT soldier on the ground and a blackfoot with a seek and destroy waypoint nearby CSATs (with combat mode to combat and engage at will) but the helicopter doesn't attack any enemis... Same with a little bird...

I tried with the support module and the helicopter attack module and that works, but not with the waypoint anymore. It worked last time I tried it though... Any ideas ?

[Grumpy Old Man 3546]

Name the squadleader and the chopper,

then put this in a trigger of your choice:

{
choppername reveal [_x,1]
} foreach units group squadleadername

[yoannis1995 10]

It still doesn't work...

[Grumpy Old Man 3546]

working fine here, how did you use this script snippet?

[yoannis1995 10]

ok now it's working. I reloaded the editor and change the location of the units and it's fine now. Weird... Thanks anyway :)

[haleks 8212]

Name the squadleader and the chopper,

then put this in a trigger of your choice:

{
choppername reveal [_x,1]
} foreach units group squadleadername

Sorry but I don't understand how this can improve their behaviour.

You're just revealing squad members to each other? Being part of the same group, they should already "know" about each other, shouldn't they?

[Grumpy Old Man 3546]

Sorry but I don't understand how this can improve their behaviour.

You're just revealing squad members to each other? Being part of the same group, they should already "know" about each other, shouldn't they?

The script snippet reveals every single squad unit to the chopper.

The "_x" simply refers to the "foreach units group".

Read it again ;)

[weparo 10]

The script snippet reveals every single squad unit to the chopper.

The "_x" simply refers to the "foreach units group".

Read it again ;)

Ahh, but don't you need atleast 1.5 for the chopper to know the side of the units? better use

{
choppername reveal [_x,4]
} foreach units group squadleadername

as 4 is the maximum value, hence letting the chopper know everything about the units.

Weparo

[haleks 8212]

Doh! Silly me : I thought the squadLeader was part of the chopper crew... ^^'

How about increasing the spot distance & time skills for the chopper crew? It would allow them to be more efficient, and not just focus on one squad.

It would also feel more natural since the chopper wouldn't know about enemies before having them on sight.

[Grumpy Old Man 3546]

Ahh, but don't you need atleast 1.5 for the chopper to know the side of the units?

This depends on overcast, daytime, and if the unit that gets to know about the targets has NVGs on.

Unfortunately even a number of 4 will not be enough if it's night with full overcast, the chopper crew will only know that there are targets, not that they're hostile when the chopper is a bit further away.

If it's bright daylight, no overcast and the squad is out in the open a 1 should be enough.

@Pepe Hal

Go and try sitting in the kajmans cargo seats and have it fly over a blufor squad out in the open, the kajman will immediately fire on the squad.

Now go back to the editor, move yourself out of the cargo and observe the kajman flying over the squad without having you as player in the cargo or group.

Nothing will happen, the kajman will continue with his waypoints without engaging.

There has to be a big impact on AI increasing their skills when a player is in their group/same vehicle, I even checked the difficulty skill slider, was the same for friendly and hostile AI.

Something fishy going on here...

[haleks 8212]

Yep, looks like it's the same problem since Arma 2... :(

[f2k sel 164]

I know in A2 I found spawning a lazertarget on the units and revealing that usually got there attention of certain aircraft.

The other method is to quickly spawn an invisible unit grouped to the chopper and if he sees infantry he alerts them, the chopper attacks even when knowsabout is quit low.

Reveal seems to have no effect at distance even though the choppers knowsabout value registers 4.

What we really need is a threat command you shouldn't have to resort to silly trickery to do something that should be simple.

Edited March 28, 2014 by F2k Sel

[barbolani 198]

Hi,

My experience is, when you use an attack chopper, on vehicles will be a reliable target and they will destroy them effectively. To see infantry attacked, I've seen only the transport choppers with gatling guns are effectively attacking, and the situation needs lots of targets to have a constant effect.

I suppose attack pathfinding is not very accurate in choppers against infantry.

[yoannis1995 10]

How can I do so the script reveals all CSAT units who are in an area instead of just the units of one group ?

[barbolani 198]

Create a trigger, condition CSAT present, on act, {

choppername reveal [_x,1]

} foreach thislist

[yoannis1995 10]

Create a trigger, condition CSAT present, on act, {

choppername reveal [_x,1]

} foreach thislist

OK thanks!

But still doesn't work if you place a helicopter like a hellcat or a littlebird and the enemy is not completly out of cover (like in a town or in a forest). He won't engage any targets... Even with the maximum level of knowledge of the enemy and max skills of the chopper... Any ideas how we could fix that ?

[f2k sel 164]

As mentioned before they are not a threat so aren't engaged, have you tried as well as revealing the units assigning them as targets.

 {
choppername reveal [_x,1]
; choppername dotarget _x} foreach thislist

[haleks 8212]

How about attaching a "Destroy" waypoint with a small radius on one of the target units?

[yoannis1995 10]

Yes I tried both with the "doTarget" and the destroy waypoint but it still doesn't work. It doesn't seem to be a problem of targets but more of terrain. It works if we put it units on an airfield.

[f2k sel 164]

I must admit I'm not having much of a problem so it could be a placement issue.

Perhaps you could post a simple example, I've also known missions to become corrupt especially with choppers where units wouldn't land but on a fresh map they would.

[alky_lee 279]

I think that this is probably an AI problem like not engaging tanks with AT. When the Altis terrain first came out in the Beta, helicopters were quite happy to engage infantry with no scripting required. Unfortunately, in trying to improve the AI, BIS seems to have made them worse. If the AI get fixed, this problem may resolve itself.

[haleks 8212]

Let's hope! Until then AI choppers are pretty much useless in SP... :(

[alky_lee 279]

Let's hope! Until then AI choppers are pretty much useless in SP... :(

I have just tried out setting a helicopter to attack infantry and it is working perfectly OK. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiMosTRtLh0

This was just a Blackfoot with a seek & destroy waypoint against a squad of CSAT infantry with a move waypoint on 1.14 stable branch. It must be the AI issue that crops up from time to time.

[haleks 8212]

Damn, I never thought about trying the SAD waypoint on helos... Silly me.

Is it the vanilla AI on your vid?

[yoannis1995 10]

I have just tried out setting a helicopter to attack infantry and it is working perfectly OK. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiMosTRtLh0

This was just a Blackfoot with a seek & destroy waypoint against a squad of CSAT infantry with a move waypoint on 1.14 stable branch. It must be the AI issue that crops up from time to time.

I tried with seek and destroy waypoint as well as using scripting commands and yeah it works with the blackfoot or the kajman because they have a mouvable canon but it doesn't work with other helicopters like the littlebird. But I know it worked before...

Also as I said before it works in an empty space like in your video but try to do the same with some houses around and you'll see it won't work even with a blackfoot. :/