HETMAN - Artificial Leader [NR6 Edition]

[NinjaRider600 328]

Just now, oneisdown said:

just a quick question here. I am trying to get an rhq to change via trigger. I have one squad who's leaders name is  lead1. in the init file i have excluded him from Hal. I have     RydHQ_Excluded = [lead1];    which works great.   the problem i am having is what to place in the triggers activation field to turn the rhq to      RydHQ_Excluded = [];      via a trigger activation. Its gotta be some wonky syntax issue i am missing, 

In your activation init, write RydHQ_Excluded = []; as you said and also add the group to the included ones so RydHQ_Included = [(group lead1)]; or if you already have stuff in the Included array use RydHQ_Included pushback (group lead1);

[NinjaRider600 328]

HAL 1.22.7 is nearing release as I've added new features including a tweaked cargo system where AI manage their own vehicles themselves making things smoother and new stuff for player tasks where assigned tasks become completed or cancelled (if impossible or denied) instead of just disappearing. Also made a few fixes to those tasks and problems with rest/withdrawal orders.

 

Also prepared a vanilla demo mission for the upcoming NR6 pack which features all of the scripts from the pack including HAL, Sites, Reinforcements, both modes of Air reinforcements (some as CAS aircraft from outside of the map as well as helicopters parked at camps) and the caching system with various methods I use to set missions up which can be observed and reverse engineered in the editor.

[Mack. 59]

Looking forward to the next release.

 

By the way Ive come across a transport bug with helicopters. It appears sometimes when picking up they can get stuck in landing mode and wont takeoff again even with other waypoints active. Ive made them airborne again using Zeus but they still land. Im trying to figure out a reliable repro and hopefully a workaround solution. Its probably an Arma problem but I suspect it will never be fixed now so maybe a workaround can be implemented.

 

Ive noticed a couple of other snags, I will get around to writing them up properly soon.

[NinjaRider600 328]

Just now, Mack. said:

Looking forward to the next release.

 

By the way Ive come across a transport bug with helicopters. It appears sometimes when picking up they can get stuck in landing mode and wont takeoff again even with other waypoints active. Ive made them airborne again using Zeus but they still land. Im trying to figure out a reliable repro and hopefully a workaround solution. Its probably an Arma problem but I suspect it will never be fixed now so maybe a workaround can be implemented.

 

Ive noticed a couple of other snags, I will get around to writing them up properly soon.

No need to repro, I'm working on it. I still don't know what causes it but I might just add a workaround in the code. The waypoint and everything is assigned but for some reason the helicopter is stuck. I have some ideas of what it could be and will try to patch it up before release. Thanks for advising though, I was scared I had introduced it in 1.22.7 but I'm glad to see it was already there.

 

They still seem to follow other cargo orders once their timer is up so it's something about a wait function making them stay in "LAND" mode and not completing properly.

 

UPDATE: Just looked at the code and It's indeed Arma related. The land "LAND" command never completes and the helicopter keeps trying to land even after having done so therefore refusing all other orders. Added an override after the group disembarked and added one after the helicopter is done with its mission to make sure this doesn't happen when assigned something new as well.

 

UPDATE 2: Tested it with the demo mission and it seems to work as intended. Ghost Hawks RTB as soon as they drop their guys and respond actively to new tasks.

[Mack. 59]

Great news! really looking forward to the new version.

 

EDIT:

 

I forgot to mention I have also seen this bug when choppers pick up troops, again Im not sure of the exact reasons behind it. My mission (https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1545528619) repro's it reasonably consistently.

 

Select the Zeus slot and let the mission run for about 30-40 minutes. Take a look around and you can usually find a couple of Orca's on the ground, loaded with troops, showing the bug symptoms. Sometimes it appears the AI is switched off completely: if they are dragged into the air with zeus they just crash.

 

Hope this information is of some use.

Edited November 15, 2018 by Mack.
Additional comment added

[NinjaRider600 328]

2 hours ago, Mack. said:

Great news! really looking forward to the new version.

 

EDIT:

 

I forgot to mention I have also seen this bug when choppers pick up troops, again Im not sure of the exact reasons behind it. My mission (https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1545528619) repro's it reasonably consistently.

 

Select the Zeus slot and let the mission run for about 30-40 minutes. Take a look around and you can usually find a couple of Orca's on the ground, loaded with troops, showing the bug symptoms. Sometimes it appears the AI is switched off completely: if they are dragged into the air with zeus they just crash.

 

Hope this information is of some use.

That was precisely the issue I've fixed now.

Last new feature added now before release: Tasks are now displayed for all members of HAL controlled squad groups (instead of just the leader) even if the leader of the squad is an AI. This should give more immersion to player squads and to people who play as subordinates in AI squads.

Also made BB only go in defensive mode if it suffered heavy losses or if all objectives are captured as the system sometimes lost interest in the enemy and would go into defense despite having objectives left to capture.

[NinjaRider600 328]

HAL NR6 1.22.7 RELEASED

 

At last, the big update is here. I'll release the other addons soon alongside the NR6 Pack and a sample mission for the pack.

[NinjaRider600 328]

NR6 PACK 1.00 RELEASED

Gonna update the other addons soon but this contains it all.

[Guest]

The Armaholic mirror has been updated with the new version:

 

HETMAN - Artificial Leader [NR6 Edition] v1.22.7

[john111 76]

How do I install this?  I can`t rename it @ and where should it go?  Would it install if I add it to a file it auto add to the mods?

 

The demo misson .Will this go in SP or MP?

[NinjaRider600 328]

Just now, john1 said:

How do I install this?  I can`t rename it @ and where should it go?  Would it install if I add it to a file it auto add to the mods?

 

The demo misson .Will this go in SP or MP?

As explained in the main post, it's a script so it goes in a mission's directory and is for use by mission creators mostly, similarly to Alive. The demo mission here is pretty outdated so I'd recommend using the one from the NR6 Pack which contains tons of extra expansions. That one can be used both in SP or MP as you wish. I'd recommend opening it in the editor first to see the way it works. It also has zeus enabled so you can look around how the system works.

[NinjaRider600 328]

HAL 1.22.7.1 coming soon after some testing. Will contain hotfixes for BB Garrison, BB Def markers and various little things mostly pertaining to player tasking. 

[Mack. 59]

Spent a few hours testing the helicopter transport system in 1.22.7. The bugs appear to be reduced, this is what I found:

 

Headless clients:

Appears to be locality based. If the troops getting into the helicopter are not local to the server often they wont then get out of the helicopter. The helicopter continues and picks up other troops until it is full. Helicopter still responds to movement commands now. With troops on the server but the helicopter on the headless client I have also seen troops getting back into the helicopter straight after being dropped off.

 

Dedicated server with no headless clients:

Unfortunately Ive seen the dreaded unresponsive helicopter bug when it insists on landing even if dragged back into the air again. This appears to happen when something happens to the troops before they manage to board the helicopter. Hopefully I can make a solid repro.

 

Hope this helps

 

Mack

 

[NinjaRider600 328]

Just now, Mack. said:

Spent a few hours testing the helicopter transport system in 1.22.7. The bugs appear to be reduced, this is what I found:

 

Headless clients:

Appears to be locality based. If the troops getting into the helicopter are not local to the server often they wont then get out of the helicopter. The helicopter continues and picks up other troops until it is full. Helicopter still responds to movement commands now. With troops on the server but the helicopter on the headless client I have also seen troops getting back into the helicopter straight after being dropped off.

 

Dedicated server with no headless clients:

Unfortunately Ive seen the dreaded unresponsive helicopter bug when it insists on landing even if dragged back into the air again. This appears to happen when something happens to the troops before they manage to board the helicopter. Hopefully I can make a solid repro.

 

Hope this helps

 

Mack

 

 

That's very odd. I just finished some extra work on the cargo system for 1.22.7.1 where AI will wait for the helicopter to be fully stopped to disembark. Now when the helicopter gets stuck, does it have its troops on board? Or do they stay out?

 

EDIT: I might've found the culprit. Do you know which kind of tasks cause this? My guess is that Flanking and resting tasks might be the problem since I just found out they varied slightly from the usual code structure.

 

I'll apply the fixes I hope will change something in 1.22.7.1.

 

EDIT 2: Fixing something else I think might be the problem. I corrected the code that makes the helicopter wait until its troops boarded to constantly update the status of the troops to make sure it does not expect dead people to embark their helicopter. I think this was the error as the function did not cover that possibility. All in all the other modifications I made still make the cargo system more bulletproof so they aren't a waste either.

[NinjaRider600 328]

I've reviewed the code and I can officially say HAL is NOT headless client compatible if you are using the cargo system because of the way troops are assigned to disembark leading to the bug mentioned above.

[Mack. 59]

Thanks for looking into this NinjaRider.

 

The stuck helicopter had no troops on board. The get in waypoint disappeared, I’m not sure if it’s because the squad was wiped out or the waypoint was changed. 

 

In terms of headless client compatibility is fix or workaround possible? Is it possible to reassign the squad back to the server upon a transport order and then assign back to the headless client after? It would make a big difference to my mission.

 

Best Regards

 

Mack

[NinjaRider600 328]

Just now, Mack. said:

Thanks for looking into this NinjaRider.

 

The stuck helicopter had no troops on board. The get in waypoint disappeared, I’m not sure if it’s because the squad was wiped out or the waypoint was changed. 

 

In terms of headless client compatibility is fix or workaround possible? Is it possible to reassign the squad back to the server upon a transport order and then assign back to the headless client after? It would make a big difference to my mission.

 

Best Regards

 

Mack

Considering the way the system works, it would be difficult to do so. Best way to workaround it is not to use the cargo system at all if you are going to use a headless client. I will look into it but not sure of the end result.

 

As for the get in waypoint, this info helps. I'll look into it and will see why this is happening. Normally the helicopter should unstuck itself after 5 full minutes of the boarding squad not moving.

[Mack. 59]

Thanks again NinjaRider, work permitting Im happy to test any changes and provide feedback. 

 

 

[NinjaRider600 328]

Just now, Mack. said:

Thanks again NinjaRider, work permitting Im happy to test any changes and provide feedback. 

 

 

 

@Mack.

 

I just posted 1.22.7.1 BETA if you wanna test it. Did some work for the cargo system but I'd like to make sure we get results before I post the stable version.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1B-V2m6EeXGWVZrcLou4_lATyA21Iigwm

 

Gonna do some testing on my own but I rarely get the issue unfortunately.

Keep in mind i didn't work on the headless compatibility yet so don't bother testing for that.

[Mack. 59]

Im running it on a dedicated server without headless client, will let you know how it goes.

[NinjaRider600 328]

That beta is pretty messed up so I'll reupload another one as 1.22.7.2 which contains lighter fixes that I believe should make things better. As for headless clients, the only thing I can do is to set ownership of the group to the server for the time it is needed but for that whichever mod or system you are using to transfer ownership must take it in account and that's the problem. I'll put it in my eventual fixes to be implemented but it will be complicated.

[NinjaRider600 328]

Here's 1.22.7.2 BETA.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1lL0RM5mZN1Ke-oaXNrsN17GLdkeiF3KJ

 

Should fix BB garrison problems, def markers spam, troops not boarding some of their transports and helicopter not taking off after troops boarded if they lost someone.

[Mack. 59]

Ive been testing 1.22.7.1 and the transport fix appears to be working very smoothly, no stuck helicopters so far! Thanks, this fix has made a huge difference. Unfortunately I missed your message announcing 1.22.7.2,  I will be able to test it in a few days time.

 

With regards to the headless clients is there any other way to get the troops to leave the helicopter? Execute the command on the headless client for example? If i can get some time I will do some experiments.

 

 

[NinjaRider600 328]

Just now, Mack. said:

Ive been testing 1.22.7.1 and the transport fix appears to be working very smoothly, no stuck helicopters so far! Thanks, this fix has made a huge difference. Unfortunately I missed your message announcing 1.22.7.2,  I will be able to test it in a few days time.

 

With regards to the headless clients is there any other way to get the troops to leave the helicopter? Execute the command on the headless client for example? If i can get some time I will do some experiments.

 

 

Im glad to hear. 1.22.7.2 should behave in a similar fashion so I'm not worried. As for the headless client I'll try to think of a way to make it work. The reason it stalls is because the script does not use a Get Out waypoint but rather coded behavior which does not translate globally. Even if I fix it here, I fear that many other problems will occur around as various commands won't run. I'll see what I can do.

[NinjaRider600 328]

Here's 1.22.7.2 BETA with the HC experimental fix to make at least cargo work with HC.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Obt26qUW1MgEjr3TjPPuwjnhwjJqoDZY

 

Hopefully this improves HAL's compat with HC but I doubt I will integrate it to the main branch unless it proves stable.