ATTN NOOBIES! - New to ArmA II or OA - Here's the place for your questions

[Gunter Severloh 3949]

As I did say in my previous post about your target line this is basically how it should look:

-nosplash -world=empty -mod=@CBA;@CBA_A2;@ACE

and what Carl had pointed out too, you dont need the v1.3.0.373

for @ace in there, the Ace version is already that, and you will see that on your menu.

CBA always has to be loaded first.

Here are the parameters for CBA based on the game:

For Combined Operations (ArmA II and Arrowhead installed together):

-mod=@CBA

For a standalone Operation Arrowhead:

-mod=@CBA;@CBA_OA

For ArmA II only (people without Arrowhead):

-mod=@CBA;@CBA_A2

[applyforce 10]

Hello!

I bought A2:CO digital copy but got 2 donwload links for arma 2 and A2:OA, so now I have both.. Is there a way to merge them?

*edit*

I read this http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=101214

And I think I only have to download _runA2CO_nonSteamOA.zip

and do this?

*non-STEAM users:

use _runA2CO_nonSteamOA.cmd from _runA2CO_nonSteamOA.zip

Edited November 17, 2010 by applyforce

[applyforce 10]

I read here:

http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=101214

And I think I only have to download _runA2CO_nonSteamOA.zip and do this?

non-STEAM users:

use _runA2CO_nonSteamOA.cmd from _runA2CO_nonSteamOA.zip

[Noraf 0]

@ applyforce : if you don't have steam, you should just have to install arma2, run it once, then install operation arrowhead, it should then, on istallment of oa, ask if you want them merged or not.

Merg them, and you got co

[applyforce 10]

k thanks!

Edited November 17, 2010 by applyforce

[Carl_D 10]

As I did say in my previous post about

Oh b*gger! Apologies for bumping into your posts. This is one of the threads I have to load in linear or I don't see any posts at all; I didn't page back far enough :(

Firefox doesn't seem to like something in the scripts, bit weird because it doesn't seem to correlate well with the length of a thread.

Ciao

Carl

[Zillion 0]

Hi, 3 questions...

How do I get up a ladder... I see the symbol and press forward but I cant get on...

Training mission 05 Night Ops... it says at start, move to the waypoint. But I don't see a waypoint?

In the missions when getting directions like move to 12o clock.. sometimes I saw a little clock appear in the right bottom of the screen (not the watch of the gear). How to get that, it's not allways clear to me which direction is meant.

[Gunter Severloh 3949]

Nah Carl I wasn't referring to you I was talking about MadMuppet006, I posted what he should

have in his target line and he either didn't read what I posted, or missed the post and got his target line messed up again.

No worries its all good.

[pipscouse 10]

Hi, 3 questions...

How do I get up a ladder... I see the symbol and press forward but I cant get on...

Training mission 05 Night Ops... it says at start, move to the waypoint. But I don't see a waypoint?

In the missions when getting directions like move to 12o clock.. sometimes I saw a little clock appear in the right bottom of the screen (not the watch of the gear). How to get that, it's not allways clear to me which direction is meant.

Q1. Scroll your mousewheel and select climb ladder, then your forward (default W) key

Q2. Waypoint should show on map screen (I think)

Q3. The clock is usually used to call out the direction of targets "Enemy man at 2 o'clock" etc.

If you are being told to move to 12 o'clock are you sure it's not something like "Move to house at 12 o'clock?" Follow the direction pointed at by the clock. Bear in mind 12 o'clock is the to the FRONT of the player doing the shouting

[applyforce 10]

I was wondering, what is @CBA? And is it necessary?

[Carl_D 10]

I was wondering, what is @CBA? And is it necessary?

Well, the search engine pulled out about 500 threads (!) of which # 3 was

http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=103871

.. but that won't tell you what you need to know until you've read around a bit more. So:

"CBA" stands for "Community Base Addons". This provides a common set of extensions, extended event handlers and the like that mod and addon makers can use to plug their developments into ArmA games more easily & with, AIUI, reduced likelihood of conflicts. The CBA project is hosted on dev-heaven:

www.dev-heaven.net

where you can read about that & other major projects like ACE. Here's the Wiki link:

http://dev-heaven.net/projects/cca/wiki

You do not need CBA unless & until you decide to use a mod or addon that requires it; the makers of a mod, addon or mission will always list any additional addons required.

The "@" in front of "CBA" refers specifically to the modfolder containg CBA. An explanation of modfolders and how to set them up is in the BI Wiki; you can also find it here:

http://www.armaholic.com/plug.php?e=faq&q=18

which if you haven't found the site already, will enable you to book mark the indispensible Armaholic :)

Ciao

Carl

[rok 0]

Training mission 05 Night Ops... it says at start, move to the waypoint. But I don't see a waypoint?

There's a bug in the mission.

The waypoint should be about 50 meters front of the humvee.

There's a big ammo box on the side of the street where you should go.

[Zillion 0]

Thx 4 the help :)

[pooroldspike 128]

I'm still relatively new to OA, i've created a few single-player missions which work okay but it's frustrating when a crackle of enemy gunfire suddenly rings out of nowhere followed by the message "you were killed".

Is there a "film replay" option of some sort which I can study, as it'd be nice to know where the fatal shots came from?

[mic1402 10]

if you wait abit on the death screen the camera will zoom out and focus on the person that shot you.

[pooroldspike 128]

if you wait abit on the death screen the camera will zoom out and focus on the person that shot you.

No it's not working for me mate, the screen blanks out when I get killed and the options come up- "Restart" and "End", so i've still got no idea where the shots came from.

I really need a "playback" movie file of some sort so I can analyse what happened.

[MadMuppet006 10]

thanks for all the help .. Im playing arma2 with the ace mod and oa in the mail ..

[NinjaKirby 10]

Warning: I guess there are very minor spoilers in my post, if you haven't played the campaign then I suppose one shouldn't read this.

Hello again folks,

Been playing a few days now, despite some frustrations I'm getting into it.

Can I just confirm AI Tank drivers are terrible at driving Tanks? They are continuously speeding up/down, if I man the Wheel myself I can zoom ahead much more efficiently but end up leaving the others behind. Also, on Mission 3 of the Campaign, my Tank and the other Vehicles are constantly playing pinball for some reason and bumping into each other when I tell them to move. If it doesn't incur any vehicle damage, then I guess it's not a biggy, but does look a bit silly; armoured vehicles acting like bumper cars. (On a side note, I can run on foot and keep up with there movement, they are that clumsy at times) Never mind, another thread I read confirms the AI Drivers are "morons".

Also, I spent like 15 minutes traveling from the Plane crash site to one of the possible Hostage locations, and within moments of visibility of a town up ahead, my Tank was nuked by an incoming Shell from an Enemy Tank. In about 30 seconds 3 of my 4 vehicles was trashed and I ordered everyone to abandon vehicles and regroup on foot. Then I died in about 10 additional seconds to presumably Machine Gun fire from the Tank (Should have went prone, I guess).

So I ask, do I just suck at "Regular" difficulty mode? Do I need to think more tactically? i.e. Dismounting my tank once in a while and using Binoculars to scout ahead? I guess there is a UAV callout to use, but I think I can only use it once. I need to complete that UAV bootcamp still.

And acting as a Commander for this mission, how constructive are my fellow men supposed to be? If I haven't issued any commands, they will take action by themselves right, rather then hang about like sitting ducks? I suppose I should consider giving them Colours or whatever, to quickly select groups of men for tasks, if they aren't going to help themselves at all -_-

Beyond these problems though, everything else is making some sense. Apart from one exception actually, I played an edited mission and realised you could pilot Aircraft vehicles (Referring to Planes, not Choppers), and noted there wasn't a Bootcamp mission to teach you Aeroplane control and operation? This game is nice and difficult XD

Thanks for any feedback on my above issues, like I said before, maybe I'm used to the regular amount of "Hand holding" in games, so this is seeming a bit steep.

To me, this appears to be one of those games where it's vast enough that it's not fully documented or something. At least, the Bootcamp tutorials aren't that indepth, because it doesn't even seem to address all the controls. The manual and stuff supplied in the Gamebox isn't overly thorough either... is there a fully documented, official online version perhaps?

Edited November 19, 2010 by NinjaKirby
Typo's and stuff

[broadsword56 10]

My challenges right now are in using High Command. Tips appreciated.

I'm comfortable with the basic SHIFT + LMB to get the High Command unit bar, placing waypoints on the map, and in getting the detailed command window to come up for high command using Backspace. But the orders available to me seem pretty limited (waypoints or general combat modes). How, for example, do I make a team (not my team) in High Command board a vehicle? I've tried setting a waypoint for it that's over a vehicle, right-clicking on the waypoint, and then under "type" setting it to "load" or "embark" but it seems to do nothing. Do I have to team-switch into another team to command it, and then use the regular command menu to do those sorts of things?

Also: I want to make a battle plan using waypoints for all my high command units - synchronizing their advance. In editor, it's possible to laterally link waypoints for different units so one unit will wait until the other unit has reached its waypoint. That allows you to create "phase lines" for an operation. But in-game, I don't think this function exists as a map command. So what's the best way to get all your units moving intelligently so you don't habe to micro-manage?

[Carl_D 10]

Warning: I guess there are very minor spoilers in my post, if you haven't played the campaign then I suppose one shouldn't read this.

Erm, read the rules on posting spoilers quickly or W0lle or another moderator will rightly be after you with a 2x4 inch cluestick :eek:

The last entry in the row of icons just above the Reply message box says 'spoiler'. Click on that before entering anything that refers to any mission or campaign revealing plot/events, etc. Also useful for hiding lots of text that most people don't want to have to scroll through, such as .rpt files.

Fortunately I don't think you've revealed very much, not even clear what game you have. But good to hear you're getting into it :)

On your other points

Vanilla AI drivers: terrible :( Better with certain mods, but still not great.

In ArmA you must think tactically & plan ahead, e.g., already have worked out what the best approach routes and best withdrawal routes would be; note the use of plurals!

Use the map in advance of an attack to plan both your approach and escape routes. Having alternate escape routes planned (whenever possible) is insurance against the unexpected arrival of enemy reinforcements or armour.

A recent post with some very useful tips on map use by CarlGustaffa is #2 in the thread:

http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=109860

For a good & relatively short guide to tactics, look in the BI Wiki ("Biki" for short):

http://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Category:Hints_%26_Tips

http://community.bistudio.com/wiki/ArmA_II_Hints_and_Tips

For the real deal on everything about tactics, there's the "ArmA Bible", Dslyecxi's unique "ArmA2 Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures Guide"

http://ttp2.dslyecxi.com/

On difficulty, you might want to stay on regular but drop the AI slider to 0.5 or so til you get more experience (whiich is hard to get when you're dead - I speak from experience. Of being dead a lot, that is).

Commanding the squad is a key skill; Do look at Baz's excellent video guides "Comprehensive and In-Depth guide to commanding your AI squad":

http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=12120

Before you hit the download link, be sure to visit the link just above it (ehow.com) for details of how to avoid the 72 MB limit of the download site

Here are two threads with useful tips on how to get your team out of trouble (as well as how to avoid getting caught like that in ther first place):

http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=9179

http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=98062

The post http://forums.bistudio.com/showpost.php?p=1696097&postcount=4

in the second thread also addresses the issue of medics acting so slowly that injured team members - or you - die (thanks, NkEnNy!).

On team use:

The BI Wiki cited above is just one resource that explains how to set up teams, how to select different types of units for different purposes, and how to use them in different ways whether assaulting, or tactically withdrawing, and so on. Highly recommended; see for example the pages on how to compose and use teams when breaking contact:

http://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Break_Contact

More detailed information can of course be found in Dslyecxi's guide.

Also read the the excellent BI thread by rotkeps on squad and team command:

http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=81123

Can't comment on the plane query as I don't like flight sims.

To me, this appears to be one of those games where it's vast enough that it's not fully documented or something. At least, the Bootcamp tutorials aren't that indepth, because it doesn't even seem to address all the controls. The manual and stuff supplied in the Gamebox isn't overly thorough either... is there a fully documented, official online version perhaps?

It is vast, & that's one of the great things about it (another being the extraordinary support BIS gives to the community, & yet another being the very talented mod, addon & mission makers). A manual to cover just the basics would probably weigh over a kilo... it is a steep learning curve, I'm still on the lower slopes! Be warned however - it's highly addictive :)

Cheers

Carl

Edited November 19, 2010 by Carl_D
Updating a link

[applyforce 10]

Some servers cant be entered with @ACE and @CBA?

Problems joining.

"@ACE\addons\dac_sounds.pbo etc etc are not signed by a key accepted by this server"

"to play on this server remove listed files or install additional accepted keys"

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA 2\arma2oa.exe" -noSplash -noFilePatching -showScriptErrors "-mod=;@CBA;@ACE;@ACEX_SM;@ACEX;@ACEX_USNavy;@ACEX_RU"

*ANSWERED*

Edited November 21, 2010 by applyforce

[broadsword56 10]

Team command question:

Sometimes I get ahead or behind my squad (not in visual contact) and when I order them to a map point or to return to formation, they reply "Where are you?"

How do I respond with my location? I can't find a command that reports where I am. What do I do to get them to move to me or to the point? They just stay in place and seem lost or pinned down. I want them to move to me because I've found a good covered flanking position. If I pop up and try to go back to them, I expose myself to more fire.

[Psycho78 10]

Team command question:

Sometimes I get ahead or behind my squad (not in visual contact) and when I order them to a map point or to return to formation, they reply "Where are you?"

How do I respond with my location? I can't find a command that reports where I am. What do I do to get them to move to me or to the point? They just stay in place and seem lost or pinned down. I want them to move to me because I've found a good covered flanking position. If I pop up and try to go back to them, I expose myself to more fire.

I don't think there is an answer you can give them. They should phrase it differently. I usually just tell them to go to a specific spot on the map or in my immediate area when that happens, that will give them specific coordinates.

[broadsword56 10]

But then when I tell them the spot, they do nothing.

[Psycho78 10]

But then when I tell them the spot, they do nothing.

They might be in the presence of enemy units and are still in Danger mode. In that case they move carefully and self-preservation outweighs your movement commands. Another game I've played has a Move Quickly command and that works a lot better.

Tell them No Target, Safe, and set their formation for compact column (somebody correct me if I'm wrong on this.) That usually helps.