Add On Compilation for more Realism and Immersion

[the.d 0]

Thanks, 1in1class, you are right - it'd be a <s>major</s> convenience.

We thought of it at first but gave this idea a miss after the complexity and user-subjective "usefulness" of the files grew and grew.

The uncompressed size of all the add ons in question sums up to roughly 1.8GB.

Since there's not too much effort involved in clicking on separate download links and only downloading files one really would like to use, it's preferable to have them separated in the list with descriptions included.

If one starts from a fresh ArmA 1.09b one should be able to completely modify the game as suggested by the list's compilation in less than 10 minutes. (Not including download times)

[MEDICUS 0]

MEDICUS: You will have Skavens weapons in Singleplayer but in Multiplayer you'll get the default BIS ones (or RH's replacements [recommended for realistic feel =) ] if you use them )

Thx!

The MP-thing was my intention to ask.

MfG Medicus

[Yeb 0]

Excellent idea for a thread and may be stick.

Anyway, i'm using the RH aks replacement and i noticed bis ak74 are replaced by ak47, is it voluntary?

Anyway, if you are interested in, i've modified your replacement file to match with vanilla aks used by SLA (ak74 are replaced RH's ak74, not ak47): link.

My link is removable anyway .

[the.d 0]

What the.. thanks for the info, mate! I thought I upgraded the download link to RH's AK pack v1.5?

The config.cpp should go like this:

<table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td>Code Sample </td></tr><tr><td id="CODE">};

class cfgWeapons {

class Default; // External class reference

class RifleCore; // External class reference

class Rifle : RifleCore {

};

class AK74 : Rifle {

model = "\RH_aks\RH_ak74.p3d";

};

class AK74GL : AK74 {

model = "\RH_aks\RH_ak74gl.p3d";

};

class AKS74U : AK74 {

model = "\RH_aks\RH_aks74u.p3d";

};

class AKS74UN : AK74 {

model = "\RH_aks\RH_aks74usd.p3d";

};

class AKS74PSO : AK74 {

model = "\RH_aks\RH_aks74sp.p3d";

};

class SVD : Rifle {

model = "\RH_aks\RH_svd.p3d";

};

};

Where did you download the pack from? Maybe it was an old version? There's definitely AK74's in there, I just checked (Links from the first post, under section 2.1) - Custom V-War! "Infantry Weapon Replacements"). Did I forget to update one of the links?

[Yeb 0]

Yup, my mistake, i downloaded from armaholic and i've just noticed it was not the latest version.

Really sorry for my mistake.

[Enixj7 0]

A nice thread you've put together but theres a quick question; with RHS Russians is it possible that they use the RH 1.5 AK pack?

[cole 0]

A nice thread you've put together but theres a quick question; with RHS Russians is it possible that they use the RH 1.5 AK pack?

It should be (as I was doing it), however I'm not sure how the hell I managed to do it.. Give me a few minutes I'll try to figure out where did I got the replacement pack

EDIT: Boom. This should be it. (Afaik, this one was made for RHS 1.0 but works with 2.00 also)

[the.d 0]

We are currently trying to find a way to implement the ingenious scripts of <a href="http://www.ecsteam.online.fr/index.php?watch=downloads

" target="_blank">ECS</a> into the mod compilation.

ECS is very well designed but it has some major flaws that other add ons could easily make up for.

So far we were not able to find a satisfying combination or "add on loading order".

Sadly ECS rifle fire sounds in particular are atrociously unrealistic; we would very much like to see Chammy's or AACF's sound combination to be used instead. Personally, I also find Maddmatt's "Effects Mod" to be much more to the point of Armed Assault, for instance.

The sheer complexity of the ECS mod won't allow for a simple client-side solution so we would be happy to find a way to isolate single features, such as tracers, radio chatter and ambient sounds and implement them into the existing list as needed.

Their site seems currently disabled.

If one of the ECS guys reads this, we'd be happy to get into contact with you! Thanks for a great mod, you guys rocked OFP!

Edit: Check out the link below and try ECS for yourselves - it's great! Thank you for the link, ofpdeadeye!

[Deadeye 1]

We are currently trying to find a way to implement the ingenious scripts of <a href="http://www.ecsteam.online.fr/index.php?watch=downloads

" target="_blank">ECS</a> into the mod compilation.

ECS is very well designed but it has some major flaws that other add ons could easily make up for.

So far we were not able to find a satisfying combination or "add on loading order".

Sadly ECS rifle fire sounds in particular are atrociously unrealistic; we would very much like to see Chammy's or AACF's sound combination to be used instead. Personally, I also find Maddmatt's "Effects Mod" to be much more to the point of Armed Assault, for instance.

The sheer complexity of the ECS mod won't allow for a simple client-side solution so we would be happy to find a way to isolate single features, such as tracers, radio chatter and ambient sounds and implement them into the existing list as needed.

Their site seems currently disabled.

If one of the ECS guys reads this, we'd be happy to get into contact with you! Thanks for a great mod, you guys rocked OFP!

Thanks to MattRochelle who informed us, ArmedAssault.info was able to Mirror the ECS Mod addonpacks before the site went down.

You can get them from here :

http://www.armedassault.info/index.php?cat=news&id=630

[william1 0]

wow , ECS mod looks good ! a little vid of one of its fx effects: burning crew

http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=G6xmTi2EueE

[Rocco 0]

great work man, thx alot or that, i´m just wondering, wasn´t there a sun fix with sakura-chans mod?

[cole 0]

=- @ Mar. 14 2008,02:15)]great work man, thx alot or that, i´m just wondering, wasn´t there a sun fix with sakura-chans mod?

Yep, there was. However looks like Proper Mod team doesn't wan't to use it as it would basically be cheating in Multiplayer games

[the.d 0]

Updated the Custom V-War! "Infantry Weapon Replacements" to the latest version. M16A4 ACOG GL is now replaced as well!

[the.d 0]

Guide on How To Use ECS with the Add On Compilation

[updated version moved to front page - please refer to chapter 3.2]

If you are anxious to use ECS (and I highly recommend you do) but don't want to miss out on the add ons listed here, please read it.

ECS is a great enhancement to Armed Assault but it's still an early, apparently unofficial release.

Naturally, there are some conflicts with existing add ons.

<span style='color:red'>So far we still lack the ability to implement SIX CRDS <s>(and NWD Ballistics?)</s> Any help with this is greatly appreciated!</span>

[dwringer 45]

I just wanted to say, this thread is a GREAT resource. I've been playing ArmA for over a year, and I already had dozens of mods, but after following the advice from the first post it's as though I've got a brand new game. Firefights with the AI actually make me feel like I'm in danger of being shot at now, even if they do still have a tendency to lie down while being sniped in the open. I guess if your CO orders you to hold your position though, what else can you do? And I guess when they "panic" they do run around sometimes, so whatever

Kudos to all the mod makers who made this possible... I feel really as though ArmA had never surpassed OFP in terms of true gameplay (even though it was more fun in a lot of ways) until I got these mods on here, and now I feel like I was a fool for underestimating the addon community ArmA is VASTLY superior to OFP now, IMO (though I still never played OFP with any mods, so I guess I can shut up with that point)

[mrcash2009 0]

For the love of god, MAKE THIS A STICKY!

Its the best overall resource for mods, which matches that to the performance thread in troubleshooting.

[NoRailgunner 0]

Another nice AI improvements:

DMarkwick

- SmokeGrenadeVB AI gets blind via viewblock Link DM SmokegrenadeVB

Victor Farbau

- VFAI Equipment AI independently equip themselves with weapons and ammo from dead bodys

- VFAI_Smokeshell will cause units to throw smokeshells whenever they're hit. Link VFAI Extension

[the.d 0]

We already considered to implement these files. However, there were some compatibility issues with SIX' (formerly Truemods') "long range" ai scripts and now, above all, ECS is messing with both add ons. I tested it again after reading your post but to no avail, no matter how I set or configure modfolders.

ECS should hopefully cover the smoke grenades (I'm not 100% sure yet) and Victor Farbau's add ons are incompatible with the rest of the AI enhancements (ai would run into the line of fire just to pick up a clip of ammo and ECS and/or SIX ai willt then make it go prone and stay there, for instance) - both authors did an excellent job on those add ons and it's a shame we can't put them in here, but it's just the way it is - for now.

Thanks for the suggestion, NoRailgunner!

Edit: By the way, we are currently still looking for help with a proper SIX CRDS implementation. The widescreen bug of ECS' hit effects (red flash while hit by a greande's shock wave) also remains. And, as several users reported now, "PROPER_Gameplay_No_AT_Use_Vs_Men_By_AI.pbo" causes issues, too! Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't! (Thanks to eSkwaad for testing this further)

[acadiancrusader 0]

how about DMHide

imho, it's a good add-on that simulates camouflage and concealment. it's also a great work-around for the AI having the stupid ability to see you in the dark.

[456820 0]

The Extended Even Handler version of the ECS_core doesnt seem to work for me. When I run it, I always get an error message as a mission starts and then ECS fails to initialise.

Also a good suggestion would be DSAI which makes AI soldiers speak to each other out loud. Only problem is I have had problems trying to get it to work with all these addons.

[mrcash2009 0]

What event handler do you have? Its ok with 1.3 and also the new 1.7.

I'm using it with all the mods listed here and it initializes no problem. Make sure you have latest even handler, and put only one instance of it in the highest priority mod folder (last in the mod list) then give another try.

It will be to do with your mod order or something along those lines as it does work a treat.

[456820 0]

Hmmm nope, still not working. I havea mod folder with the DSAI addons and the event handler 1.7 version in running at the very end of my mod folder list and I still dont get any voices.

[the.d 0]

Yes, use XEH version 1.3 or the latest 1.7 (beta, recommended), both of which work well!

And, at the risk of this sounding seemingly too trivial, I will repeat what mrcash2009 already said: make sure you are indeed only using one "Extended_xxxxx".pbo! Can't stress that often enough. ;)

As for DSAI: ECS is taking good care of that and it might conflict, especially in multiplayer games. Although it should be mentioned in the compilation - DSAI is amazing! - it does not yet cover more "stealth"-like approaches, such as ECS managed to implement (for instance a whispered "I'm right behind you" while in a CQB)

As for DMHide: Thanks for the idea, but it does look kinda weird to the player and doesn't always make sense.

It's a great add on for certain maps but we decided to stick with whatever visual cover the landscape itself has to offer. This will also keep terrain tactics during coops/PvP matches more demanding.

Anyways, thanks for the suggestions, always appreciated! :-)

[acadiancrusader 0]

Yes, use XEH version 1.3 or the latest 1.7 (beta, recommended), both of which work well!

And, at the risk of this sounding seemingly too trivial, I will repeat what mrcash2009 already said: make sure you are indeed only using one "Extended_xxxxx".pbo! Can't stress that often enough.

As for DSAI: ECS is taking good care of that and it might conflict, especially in multiplayer games. Although it should be mentioned in the compilation - DSAI is amazing! - it does not yet cover more "stealth"-like approaches, such as ECS managed to implement (for instance a whispered "I'm right behind you" while in a CQB)

As for DMHide: Thanks for the idea, but it does look kinda weird to the player and doesn't always make sense.

It's a great add on for certain maps but we decided to stick with whatever visual cover the landscape itself has to offer. This will also keep terrain tactics during coops/PvP matches more demanding.

Anyways, thanks for the suggestions, always appreciated! :-)

i completely see what you are saying and i do agree with you. if i may suggest something else... how about adding another 2 folders

@PvE (SP & CoOp)

and

@PvP

here, the user can use either folder depending on the mission they are playing. you can have sets of addons that are proven to augment the gameplay of either pvp or pve and avoid conflicts.

[the.d 0]

That is surely a good idea in general but it would deviate too much from this particular thread's intention: Enhancing realism as a total. This selectivity doesn't distinguish PvE from PvP, but only (well, mostly) characteristics discussed on the front page.

For instance, a well-designed Coop mission is as much fun with high(est) realism settings as is any Capture&Hold or CTF map. It forces players to think and employ a combat strategy and tactics, absolutely eliminating "Battlefield 2"-like behaviour.

It would be a good idea to start a "PvE/PvP Add On Guide" thread that also includes all those excellent add ons that didn't make it in here, because replacements or compatibility/mission integration is inapplicable or insufficient!