Need some serious help with ArmA

[desertjedi 3]

I recently got ArmA and I'm extremely impressed with a lot of it. IMHO, some parts of it make other combat games look like pinball.

I'm trying to learn the game by playing co-op LAN missions by myself as Team Leader with AI backup. In a couple of weeks, I'll be playing co-op missions with one buddy who just also got the game (and AI backup) but would welcome others. I'm at v1.14 w/o QG.

Most of my missions come down to, "do you want to die in a vehicle from an AT weapon?" or "do you want to get out and then die while prone from small-arms fire?" I'm abandoning my vehicle (BMP, Humvee) before I encounter opfor because they are deathtraps for me. But after I get out, it appears that the enemy is a much better shot at very long range than I am. Plus I've got heavily armed vehicles to deal with. If my AT man dies, i simply abort.

I was hoping to get some answers to the following:

- after being wounded, sometimes I can only crawl. Also, I can't aim at all. Is that correct? Since there are no "healing services" nearby, is suicide the way to go?

- I can man the gun in a Humvee but not a BMP. When I'm in the gunners position in a BMP, the gun does not respond.

- Without a custom mod, am I pretty much stuck with the vanilla weapons that ArmA uses for each "role"? Can I, as Team Leader, somehow use a different gun?

- Is the Team Switch function only for SP?

- How do you switch weapons? I have no key assigned to the Switch Weapons function.

Without sounding too   , I think ArmA is lightyears ahead of most military shooters out there but I'm really struggling with its complexity. I have joined a few co-op servers but haven't found any players on them that wanted to co-operate as a joint force and I think most every server with several people was locked.

Any input would be a huge help...

[The_Captain 0]

-When wounded you're often quite screwed: can't stand and bad at aiming. Suicide or restart is a good idea, if there are no nearby medics or medic tents.

-The BMP gun should work if you're in the gunner position. If you're in commander position you won't have a gun.

-You can sometimes change weapons before a mission starts by going to the "group" tab in the briefing, selecting your name in lue text, and changing weapons in the gear menu that pops up. Alternately you can change a unit's weapons if you edit a mission yourself.

-Teamswitch is only by default in SP, but it can work in MP if it is specifically coded into the mission, but due to bugs it often is not.

-There are keys to switch weapons if you bind one. you can swtch rate of fire/grenades with 'F' by default. The mousewheel menu (also can select actions with '[' or ']' and perform them with 'enter' gives you the option to change from a rifle to a pistol or launcher (lower right of the screen, yellow text). You can exchange weapons with a dead soldier (or use an ammo crate or vehicle) by approaching it and using the 'gear' menu action.

Playing as a team leader with AI backup can be hard. Remember you can always loot their bodies for weapons. It's also very tough to give them commands while in combat, and also try to keep yourself alive. Try experimenting with giving them different commands (change combat mode, engage at will, advance, assign targets, etc) before you enter combat so you don't have to give them order while in combat.

One trick I use sometimes, is to leave a few AI in my vehicle as driver and gunner, and give them the "stay back" command. This means they will stay about 50m behind me and the rest of the team. With the infantry in front, I can spot targets and the vehicle can engage them, and it also prevents the infantry from simply burning to death while still inside the vehicle, while meaning I don't have to abandon it fully.

Good luck.

[walker 0]

Hi DesertJedi

On the matter of leading AI in ArmA. This is the same as in real life, you lead from the rear. Only occasionally do you lead from the front.

In wars in the past the biggest number of deaths is among junior officers. Those that make it through to being Captains and beyond do so by learning to command and plan not by shooting a rifle. Officers are often only armed with a pistol, there is a reason for this. You weapon as an officer is the soldiers under your command not a rifle.

As an officer your job is to be the brains, so make a plan, think ahead. What are your standard operating procedure (SOP)?

Read Dslyecxi's ArmA Tactics Techniques and Procedures. As far as I am concerned they apply to AI as much as human players

http://dslyecxi.com/armattp.html

I play and make a lot of CEX missions so I am used to controlling AI in from fire-team to battalion level.

http://www.flashpoint1985.com/cgi-bin....7673440

Once you learn how to control them you will realise ArmA AI are better than any other game AI.

Learn the shortcut command menu for ArmA squads.

Particularly learn the move, formation and combat mode menus.

When in contact 3 Fire-teams of 4, 4 and 5 is ideal for a squad.

Scout element is told to Advance possibly twice. Any scout element should not include camouflage busting AT/AA

Base of fire is told to stay back again possibly twice.

Think about your moves.

Kind regards walker

[dmarkwick 261]

Cover is the thing, very few people fully understand that. You must always think about cover, be it scenery, vegetation or terrain defilade. I once followed a guy around in OFP after he complained that the AI could always kill him no matter what he was doing. From my vantage point behind a sandbag I watched as he ran into the middle of a field, and then took out a LAW to take on a T-72. Absolutely no thought went into cover, and it was very surprising to me to realise that this guy assumed that he should live through such an event.

My general rule of thumb is this: if you wouldn't do it in real life, don't do it in ArmA.

[walker 0]

Hi all

I agree with you DMarkwick few gamers understand cover or the difference between cover and concealment.

Although ArmA does teach you this with constant death as result of not knowing what cover is.

A bush at best is concealment not cover, no bush on this planet stops bullets and running behind one after you have been spotted is just like that game of peekaboo you played with mom or pop when they hid their face behind a blanky. Eventualy every kiddy works out they must be behind the blanky.

And shooting from a bush and not expecting to get full auto if you miss someone is just plane dumb.

Kind Regards walker

[The_Captain 0]

I'd like to add also that cover and concealment are as important when using vehicles as when running on foot. There was a great post on these boards where someone training with tankers a number of years back described how they took full advantage of cover, hopped in and out of their tanks to look for new concealed positions, etc. If you drive your vehicle straight into a combat zone you'll end up like the aforementioned infantryman who simply ran forward into one.

Taking it slowly, dismounting troops to screen for AT soldiers, and moving between covered positions can help a vehicle survive long enough to deliver its cargo or weapons fire.

[walker 0]

Hi all

True words from The_Captain there.

It is amazing how many gamers will send the Armor out front no matter what the situation, they then wonder why all their armor is dead and there ass is grass.

Armor stays around 300m behind the infantry screen in open country. Closer in closed terrain, such as forest or an urban environment or where view distance is restricted.

Use Helicopters to cover your open flanks.

Of course a full scale combined arms assault is hard to organise but I have seen ArmA AI do it. In fact I have been on the receiving end of it, 3 battalions of it. Helicopters cutting a path through my lines, armor punching through the gap and BMPs disgorging infantry to mop up my disorganised line and hold open the GAP.

you can have a read here

http://www.flashpoint1985.com/cgi-bin....;hl=cex

2nd from bottom post.

Kind regards walker

[desertjedi 3]

I just went home at lunch and learned a few things I should have known.

Quote[/b] ]-When wounded you're often quite screwed

Oops, just realized I've got a med kit.

Is it SOP to have a medic in the squad? I generally don't see one in the missions. I'm playing mostly the CoopPack Multi-Purpose Training mod and the squads are the typical 4-man squad with no medic. I usually play co-op games (e.g. Original Ghost Recon) with one buddy and team- or norespawns make it VERY hard. When I played in bigger squads playing VietCong, Teamrespawn was the rule and it was awesome.

Quote[/b] ]If you're in commander position you won't have a gun.

Are you saying...if I'm Squad Leader then I simply am not allowed to used the big MG on the Striker?

When I move into the gunner's position I see a reticle and I see the MG handles above me but I can not grab them or fire the weapon.

Yeah I will not worry about "teamswitch" at all.

Quote[/b] ]you can always loot their bodies for weapons.

I just figured that out a little while ago too...I was aborting the missions after my AT man was killed.

Quote[/b] ]On the matter of leading AI in ArmA. This is the same as in real life, you lead from the rear. Only occasionally do you lead from the front.

Well...I'm currently leading from the front to be "in the action" and get kills. To be honest, I would prefer to play ArmA co-op with people - not AI backup. But its obvious I need to get "expert" on commanding an AI squad for several good reaons.

Quote[/b] ]Read Dslyecxi's ArmA Tactics Techniques and Procedures

Another coincidence - just found that a little while ago too. Wow, that'll keep me busy.

Quote[/b] ]Learn the shortcut command menu for ArmA squads.

For sure!

Quote[/b] ]Cover is the thing, very few people fully understand that.

Just found that out at lunch too. I was getting annhilated in "open-field" combat and finally realized that I desperately needed to use cover...religiously. As soon as I did that, I went from "joke" status to a 13/2 kill/death ratio (before quitting). And just like you said, I thought about what was key in my "success" and it was to play this game as if it was real "life or death". So many things we do in games we'd never do in RL. I'm just so used to playing games that are nothing like ArmA (Vegas 2 for example).

Thanks for all the awesome info! I know there's a big learning curve here to be successful. But before my 13/2 go-round, I was actually starting to think the game was simply too hard for me.

[The_Captain 0]

Hopefully the game is a bit easier for you now.

On the subject of vehicles & weapons, you need to 'turn in' to use most of the weapons. For example, the BMP-2 and Stryker guns must be used from inside the vehicle. Use your "go prone" and "stand up" keys to hop in and out of the hatch.

[gsleighter 0]

Quote[/b] ]Most of my missions come down to, "do you want to die in a vehicle from an AT weapon?" or "do you want to get out and then die while prone from small-arms fire?" I'm abandoning my vehicle (BMP, Humvee) before I encounter opfor because they are deathtraps for me. But after I get out, it appears that the enemy is a much better shot at very long range than I am. Plus I've got heavily armed vehicles to deal with. If my AT man dies, i simply abort.

Open your My Documents folder, and browse the folder called Arma. Inside, there's an ArmaProfile file, open it with Notepad. Browsing down, you'll find something that looks like:

Quote[/b] ]

class Difficulties

{

class regular

{

class Flags

{

Armor=1;

FriendlyTag=1;

EnemyTag=0;

HUD=1;

HUDPerm=1;

HUDWp=1;

HUDWpPerm=1;

AutoSpot=1;

Map=1;

WeaponCursor=1;

AutoGuideAT=1;

ClockIndicator=1;

3rdPersonView=1;

Tracers=1;

UltraAI=0;

AutoAim=0;

UnlimitedSaves=1;

DeathMessages=1;

NetStats=1;

VonID=1;

};

skillFriendly=1.000000;

skillEnemy=1.000000;

precisionFriendly=0.700000;

precisionEnemy=0.500000;

};

class veteran

{

class Flags

{

HUD=1;

HUDWp=1;

HUDWpPerm=1;

WeaponCursor=1;

ClockIndicator=1;

3rdPersonView=1;

Tracers=1;

UltraAI=0;

DeathMessages=1;

NetStats=1;

VonID=1;

};

skillFriendly=1.000000;

skillEnemy=1.000000;

precisionFriendly=0.700000;

precisionEnemy=0.500000;

};

};

Note the two sections for veteran and cadet difficulty. If you use notepad to manually set the skill and precision settings for your game, you'll note a large difference in how the AI engages, and their accuracy. In short, I've configured the AI skill at the max setting, to allow the AI to make decisions more intelligently and accurately, and maximize spotting distance. The precision setting sets how precise AI is at shooting, so the settings I've put it mean there's a greater impression of suppressing fire, and much more missed shots in general. It's not perfect, and an AT-5 from a BMP will still guide in on your tank no matter what the precision setting, but it helps a lot with infantry combat.

Quote[/b] ]- after being wounded, sometimes I can only crawl. Also, I can't aim at all. Is that correct? Since there are no "healing services" nearby, is suicide the way to go?

Unfortunately, not every mission has a medic, and sometimes I find myself screwed in prone with kilometers to go. When you're in the editor, try placing a couple medics in a squad with a support waypoint over the squad leader, they'll only move to support injured friendly units, without moving forward to engage enemies and getting themselves killed.

Quote[/b] ]- I can man the gun in a Humvee but not a BMP. When I'm in the gunners position in a BMP, the gun does not respond.

Same thing as said before, make sure you're turned in and actually in the gunner's seat, and not the commanders seat. The animation in Arma isn't sophisticated enough for your avatar to actually reach up and grab the handles on the weapons, unfortunately.

Quote[/b] ]- Without a custom mod, am I pretty much stuck with the vanilla weapons that ArmA uses for each "role"? Can I, as Team Leader, somehow use a different gun?

This is because with the exception of special forces type units, line soldiers in the Army are issued a weapon, and that's that. They do have some leeway to add equipment to it, depending on the unit (I had a bipod for my M-16 that clipped onto the bayonet mount), but I am sure this is more the exception than the rule.

Quote[/b] ]- How do you switch weapons? I have no key assigned to the Switch Weapons function.

Use the action menu, usually your scroll wheel on the mouse does it, and if you have an AT/AA weapon or sidearm, you can select it there.

I'm glad I read The_Captain's response, I'm barely aware of cover when I'm in a tank in arma, usually I'm just driving like an idiot waiting to get nailed by that first AT-5 from an out-of-sight BMP.

[mr_centipede 31]

Unfortunately, not every mission has a medic, and sometimes I find myself screwed in prone with kilometers to go. When you're in the editor, try placing a couple medics in a squad with a support waypoint over the squad leader, they'll only move to support injured friendly units, without moving forward to engage enemies and getting themselves killed.

Care to elaborate on that? English isn't my first language, so I might misunderstood some.

Here's what I understand, in the editor:

1. Create a squad and you're in it.

2. Create a Medic(s) but not in the same group as (1) and create a support WP to the squad leader in (1). As in he will go to the sqd leader.

Is that correct?

Right now I just put the support WP anywhere but behind the front line. But they still fights as line troopers if encounter enemy, instead of healing troopers.

This usually happens when front line troops getting hit and medic start to mingle in the fight. Guess they just 'defending' themselves...

[Casimir 0]

hmmm try setting them to "safe" or "careless" or if you wish... remove there weapon.. or give them a pistol.

[max power 21]

DesertJedi:

Always use the advantages of whatever weapon or vehicle you're using. Vehicles with good optics are stable firing platforms and usually have heavy armament. The bmp2, for instance, can out range any at-4, can see better and outrun any soldier, and it can swim. This gives you a lot of opportunity to engage on your terms. Never play the game of whomever you're fighting against.

Other vehicles may have other advantages, such as the stryker can shoot when no part of the vehicle other than the weapon is exposed. The same can be said for the m113, to a lesser extent. Peeking over terrain features or stone/brick walls while keeping the body of the vehicle covered works well.

Infantry are pretty sneaky, but once they are seen, what have they got left? As an infantry soldier you need to surprise whenever possible, terminate anything you can very fast, and run (or crawl) away from anything you can't. Use the ground and other features as much as you can. Familiarize yourself with the concepts of enfilade and defilade. Never get caught in enfilade.

[The-Tim 0]

Desert Jedi,

If you want we play some coop mission some day and i learn the things you need to know in COOP. Give me a PM or repley here.

[Jex =TE= 0]

In a couple of weeks, I'll be playing co-op missions with one buddy who just also got the game (and AI backup) but would welcome others. I'm at v1.14 w/o QG.

If you're looking for some coop play with a good group of players, check out www.tacticalgamer.com. You don't need any experience, just look for the PW on the server and join in - coop, team orientated players only though

[gsleighter 0]

That TacticalGamer server is awesome, many good nights on that one.

[desertjedi 3]

Quote[/b] ]i learn the things you need to know in COOP.

If you're looking for some coop play with a good group of players, check out www.tacticalgamer.com.

Thanks Tim and Jex - greatly appreciated.

@gsleighter, I'm gonna take a look at the default settings for precision and skill and compare them to what you have there in your "config" file. I would agree that skillz should be high but accuracy should be..."realistic" meaning that in real combat many, many shots are exchanged but few find their mark. That's what makes for great battles in video games. You "earn" the right to make an easy kill by using good strategy and tactics - if you get my drift.

It was actually a pleasure to be involved in a firefight where shots were missed on both sides.

One of my big goals is to get my co-op buddy "adjusted" to the soldier and weapons mechanics of ArmA. It's always a big challenge for both of us - and often involves a lot of bitchin' and moaning. Coming from other games, ArmA feels awkward. The soldier feels a bit fat, a bit slow and a little drunk but that's from comparing it to games like Vegas 2 where you are set up for total ownage. My friend is a Vegas 2 freak so wish me luck with getting him used to ArmA. At first, I thought ArmA had dropped the ball on this game aspect but it all feels very natural and "realistic" to me. I wish I could scurry behind cover faster while prone but oh well. BTW, I have zeroed out the Float Zone - I could not stand that.

[desertjedi 3]

Quote[/b] ]For example, the BMP-2 and Stryker guns must be used from inside the vehicle.

I don't understand what that means. How can you shoot at targets when you can't see anything?

[celery 8]

Quote[/b] ]For example, the BMP-2 and Stryker guns must be used from inside the vehicle.

I don't understand what that means. How can you shoot at targets when you can't see anything?

If you mean a weaker field of vision, that's how it's supposed to be. In the case of Stryker, you have to press the sights button first to see the machine gun camera.

[Kirby 2]

Everyone else has already said anything I can add. Except that if you run out of ammo and need a faster close defence weapon than a reload, semi-colon (;) switches to sidearm, if you have one, and is faster than the action menu.

And use optics/sights more =P

[BeerHunter 0]

Also to enhance game play and make controlling the AI a whole lot easier , get hold of a voice command program (I'm using VAC System).

For example if I want the squad to go prone , using keys it's "`" , "7" and "8". Using VAC all I do is say "Squad - hit the dirt".

Engage at will with keys = "`" , "3" then "5". Using VAC it's simply "Squad- fire at will".

Can also easily select squad members (or fire teams) and issue commands to only them.

BTW - you can assign any key commands , reload say "loading" etc.

Really gives the game much more immersion, it's more enjoyable and easier to play. Give it a go.

[desertjedi 3]

Quote[/b] ]If you mean a weaker field of vision, that's how it's supposed to be. In the case of Stryker, you have to press the sights button first to see the machine gun camera.

I'm sorry but what is the sights button? I think I need to get back in the Striker, get into the gunner position and start "banging on keys".

A little irony but I'm editing user-made co-op missions to increase squad size, add medics, add ammo boxes, and fill Striker ammo-cargo but I can't figure out what's going on inside a Striker!

Can I use the VAC system at the same time that I'm using Arma's built-in voice comms to talk to my friends?

[BeerHunter 0]

Can I use the VAC system at the same time that I'm using Arma's built-in voice comms to talk to my friends?

I haven't tried it but see no reason why you shouldn't be able to as long as your VAC activation key isn't the same as your VOIP key.

All it does is take your vocal commands and send the keystrokes you've programmed it to use to the program.

[ShrubMiK 0]

>I'm sorry but what is the sights button?

I think you'll find it in your key bindings listed as "Optics".

[desertjedi 3]

I got control of the Striker's gun. It was a combination of "turn in" and 3rd person view. It worked fine but the next day I manned the gun while out on a mission and the aiming reticle did not respond correctly. It was like stuck only pointing near the Striker - hard to explain. I will play with it more. Being the AI's team leader, I may not make a habit of manning that gun - especially since sometimes the AI can't drive their way out of a paper bag. But when my buddy finally gets his rig working and ArmA installed, I'd like to have the option of one of us manning that gun - even tho the AI seems to do pretty well with it.

What has me stumped is how easy it is for my Striker to be blown up. I will see these little explosions at the tail of my Striker and then it blows up and burns and there is no tank anywhere. I'm pretty sure my Striker was destroyed by a UAZ. I would have thought that the armor on a Striker would stand up to anything but an AT round or a tank shell but it appears not.

Likewise, I think I wasted a BMP2 while manning the gun on a Striker. Shouldn't the armor on a BMP2 be able to deal with my Striker's main gun? Aren't all these units (Striker, UAZ, BMP) just shooting .50 cal bullets at each other? And if so, shouldn't the armor on a BMP or Striker handle that?