WIP PVP/TVT Competitive Missions

[Tom_Anger 0]

Some of you may recall my Poll on PVP gametypes

http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=86649

Before the heavy read I wanted to recognize [sBS]mac in all the work he has done, time, pain, and suffering to make this all come to fruition. Kudos brother.

With the data gathered I went and produced my PVP pack v1.02. I am nearing the completion of v1.03 and wanted to not only give readers a preview of what's to come, but if there are any thoughts to discuss them here in case anything seems significant enough to follow through with. Anyone who has played my v1.02 will see many facelifts to the designs and v1.03 will include 3 or 4 new mission designs as well. Other than the gametypes mentioned below I am still working on some AAS missions. These that I list are for short round, smaller scaled tactical gameplay.

With my background in Ghost Recon, Rainbox Six, Battlefield, COD, and others I wanted to try and give some type of similar look & feel that you may get in those other games. What I mean is the types of objectives and consistency on how the game is played. This way players could focus on similar skills just on different parts of the islands. I know we can never mimic the other completely and ARMA is a tactical sim, but this is still quite the fun game to enjoy similar gametypes in.

Each mission gametype will have a very detailed NOTES section starting with the Gametype description, both team's Objectives, and other hints and contact information for requests and to give feedback.

Each mission gametype will have 3 spectator slots which are for admins to check in and see what is happening during the games. It can be used to identify hackers, cheaters, etc., and is a feature to also allow leagues to watch a match to determine if a potential dispute can be avoided.

Each Mission gametype will have in the download file, a suggested rule set for organized practices, scrimmages, and matches. If a league decides to honor any of these gametypes they can use the ruleset as a guide to create a league.

Once v1.03 is released I will be looking to compile a list of groups who may be interested in running some sessions and try to find a way to get some events going as some of these may be extremly fun to game in.

Here is the summary:

• Each mission gametype will have server sided features to
  
• Change the round timer
  
• Turn Team Killing on or off. The player who TK'ed is temporarily blinded and receives the TK warning message as the player who was killed is immediately revivied at the place he/she was killed.
  
• Change grass settings (default as normal-high and can be changed to various heights)
  
• Change Terrain View Distance (default to 600 meters since the missions are not much more than that for the gameplay areas). Can be changed to various distances
  
• Change the Time Of Day
  

Depending on the gametype there wil be an additional server sided option to limit the # of Player Lives. This is to allow the element of eliminating players from the game which places them in a viewing spectator script to watch the living team mates until the round expires. This TEAM ELIMINATION element is for organized teamplay events (i.e. practices, scrimmages, matches, etc) and only exists in gametypes that it should be optional for. Yes for TDM this is a huge asset.

So based on the Poll results and other player feedback I put alot of time into this. Here are the gametypes that will be released soon (look for the USER MISSION update).

• 16 & 32 player Attack & Defend: (One simple objective and NO RESPAWNS): 20 minute rounds (unless changed by the server admin) where BLUFOR readys-at the ammo box and must decide what route(s) they will spread out in in an attempt to capture the Siege Area. The Siege area is approximately 300-400 meters from their start location. OPFOR starts at the Siege Area, readys-up and must move into positions to defend it. 2 ways to win (either eliminate all players or capture/defend the zone withint the 20 minutes). The idea is to not make this too complex and structure it so that players coordinate on movements, positions, and ways to take out the other team or focus more on the Siege Area. I am comtemplating giving BLUFOR a blackhawk for air scouting and possibly transport vehicles loaded with weapons to help them move into other remote areas to attack from. In one mission there is a boat house that can be used for boat extraction. No borders like you see in CTF or TDM games giving free roam to go where you need to in order to focus on the objective with no boundaries.
  
• 16 & 32 player Capture & Hold (Team King Of The Hill): Both teams start on opposite sides of the mission and the focus is capturing the 1 ZONE in the mission and fighting for it during the defaulted 30 minute round. Points are only awarded when a team owns the zone AND has at least 1 player in it. This opens the element of protecting the player(s) who are in the zone by setting up perimiters to keep it owned and to dominate the round. Consistent strategies and fighting takes place in this. No borders like you see in CTF or TDM games giving free roam to go where you need to since the focus to win is to focus on the 1 ZONE.
  
• 16 & 32 player Team Death Match with Player/Team knock-out options: Your basic TDM where both teams start off in a head to head combat. Spawn camping is allowed and has random respawn points at each team base. This concept of allowing spawn camping with random spawn points makes it difficult & challenging. Various areas were designed so that gamers could find favored spots to camp from, move to, etc. Teams can try to knock out players as the round goes on and a team can win if they knock everyone out or has the most points when the round timer expires. By default the # of Lives is infinite. Persistent scoring exists so if you leave, lose your connection, etc the score is unchanged.
  
• 16 & 32 player Death Match with Player knock-out options: Just like TDM only it is you against everyone else. This has an onscreen leaderboard which will help you identify who the leader is at all times and how many kills they have. There is also an added server sided option to reduce camping if a player sits in 1 spot for an extended period of time. This can be turned on or off based on the server admin. How this works is an invisible floating marker follows your player around at a slow rate. You can camp for a while, but this marker will eventually catch up to you and warn you that you are going to be tagged if you don't move soon. If you remain at your spot the gamertag shows above your player and can be seen by other players. Move and the tag goes away, but if you move only a few meters the marker will catch up to you and repeat the process. A good technique here is to dash 50-100 meters to a favored area and camp some more. Then it takes the marker a longer time to catch up to you. Anyway it is there as an option to keep the game entertaining and very active. There are ways to tactically use the marker to your advantage by knowing the map terrain well and places you can dash to and camp from. Persistent scoring exists so if you leave, lose your connection, etc the score is unchanged.
  
• 16 & 32 player Capture The Flag: You basic CTF where points are awarded for flag touches and captures. If you camp with the flag for an extended period of time a marker on the map will show your position and update every 30 seconds or so.

There is the preview. I hope the time and dedication that was put into the scripts, numerous tests, and mission designs pays off in the long run. Take care and happy gaming all...

[Taxman 10]

I for one am waiting for this matey,, would love to see the KOH and the DM knockouts...

[Tom_Anger 0]

Just for reference the KOH I have is team vs team using the gametype HOLD so the label is really TKOTH for Team King Of The Hill, lol. I can't wait either.

My desire/passion is to see groups actually compete in Siege. I used to game in old Ghost Recon and this was one of the most popular gametypes where teams would enjoy practicing and competing in this slow paced tactical game where folks could find great hiding spots, great areas to move in, communicate when they are in position, scanning areas, then at the right time moving in for the attack.

With helis and transport vehicles holding weapons the element of gameplay just grows from there. What it will take is a consistent group to game in A&D Team Siege. I have to go add some vehicles and take some pictures/video and I may be ready for the release. Hopefully soon though.

Edited December 3, 2009 by Tom_Anger

[galzohar 31]

I've been trying some A&Ds with the Zeus community, and so far my experience shows that equally sized team will give defenders a major advantage even if you give attackers an MH-60S. Hoping to get to try it with attackers also having smoke artillery on call to see if it balances things out without making the teams uneven.

[Tom_Anger 0]

Balancing a mission takes trial and error so I would speak to the mission designer and see if they can help.

In my missions NOTES section I include my contact info so if that is the case when I release my missions I would hope someone contact me. I am going to be keeping a close eye on the progress of mine because the expectation is that tournaments or group sessions will host them.