mach2infinity

RKSL-Rock: all the best with finishing the last 60% of your guide. I downloaded and used your Eurofighter addon a while back and I think it's excellent by the way. Top work. PuFu: by no means am I expecting anyone to give me tutelage on all aspects of mod making. I just wanted someone to point me in the right direction to get started. Thanks for doing so. :) One thing. I've installed "B.I Tools 2" and I was going to look at the tutorial for "Oxygen 2" so I can learn to grasp it. However, you've said not to use it. As a total novice, should I use it anyway or is there a better programme? The only thing though is if a better programme means a consumer/commercial product, it will cost a bit.

Right, I'll address some points. Firstly, where am I in terms of progress? Unfortunately as I've only just started, I don't have any models that I can show. I have installed the 'BI Tools 2' package tonight and so I'll have to be familiar with all of its programmes before I can start. The first thing I intend to do is to create two basic models; one for the alien infantry and one for the drone ship. Don't ask me when they'll be ready as I have no idea. It all depends on how quickly I can grasp BI's development tools. I just want a good visual reference that people can play with and see how it'll work in the game as soon as possible. Secondly, Banderas - I know what I'm doing may sound similar to IceBreakr's project but it will be different. In all due respect to IceBreakr, I'm not seeking to emulate him as he's done and will continue to do a fantastic job with his Duala project. The dynamic that I intend on implementing in my mod will bring some interesting challenges to the game. Ones that as far as I'm aware haven't been explored before. Thirdly, I want to again go back to the core element of my mod. Which is water! The dynamic that should make the mod both challenging and interesting. As the aliens are here for our water, in particular sources of fresh water. They will go as far as they can in order to find and secure these deposits of fresh water. Until now, fighting over water has never been an element in ArmA. As there are numerous lakes, dams and pools of water located all over Chernarus. Many of these not in such obvious locations, people playing as the aliens will have to go and find them. Even though villages, towns and cities will still be important and they'll be contested, water is the key element over which this conflict will be fought. For instance, the pool of water in grid reference 077,039 will suddenly add a new tactical and strategic dimension to the game. As the U.N use UAVs for reconnaissance, so too will the aliens. Of course their entire air force is made of drones so it's unavoidable. The aliens will have different drones for particular tasks. For scouting, they'll have a small, extremely agile and fast scout drone. It's main function will be to locate sources of fresh water for extraction. It'll either be unarmed or so lightly armed that it can only cause very minimal damage. It'll be hard to shoot down if you have cannons due to its agility and speed, but it only be able to take a few shots before being destroyed. Here's a few pictures to illustrate my point: 'Kapyto pool' Chyornaya Bay The above shot is overlooking the village of Prigorodki, which itself has two water pools not far from the Kapyto pool. Here are pictures of the map which shows water locations I've found and possible flashpoint areas: These pictures are to illustrate how obscure areas can become strategic locations in addition to how a battle could be centered in such a location. I want to discuss how the alien units will operate. Their field headquarters will be large command centres that burrow into the ground. They'll often but not always be found in towns or cities where they can hide in amongst the buildings and avoid detection. As soon as they construct an 'drone antenna', they'll be able to manufacture and control drones. So this will be a big weakness. Without this functioning antenna, no air force! I've actually considered putting a greater emphasis on naval combat too. As the aliens will seek to established beacheads along the coast and consolidate their positions. The U.N will clearly seek to stop them by using the greatest mobile firepower at their disposal; warships. This is all concept stuff and I'd have to see how the game would handle this all but it would be awesome to have at least a functioning destroyer, perhaps a submarine! Last of all. I'd like to discuss 'dynamic' base construction for Earth's military. Now, there's already base construction in CTI games. What I'd like to see is the U.N side being able to use bulldozers to clear a certain area, so that it can place a runway for a forward operating base. This would be handy if one wishes to gain more supplies from C130 or C5 aircraft. Maybe a 'prestige' or supply point system can be used. This may not be manageable of course but it's fun to exlore nonetheless!

Hello there. Such an endeavour as this would be very useful for me. As I'm about to make a mod for the first time and it is a bit overwhelming. I have no experience in modelling, coding, texturing and very basic scripting knowledge. Which material/resource should I consult first to get started?

Great shot there IceBreakr! Close encounters of the first (and last) kind. :D The "Battle: Duala" co-op campaign. Will it feature just infantry combat or will there be an armoured/aerial engagement side to it too?

I've uploaded a new video, it's the same footage but with sound effects. I hope you like it. I shall answer queries later when I have time!

Perhaps we should work together at some point for 'combined operations'. ;) I'm guessing you'll be using your fantastic Zetaborn aliens?

Thank you very much Laqueesha! Mr. RoundenBrown I presume? ;). Yes they do appear slow and I suppose they could've been faster in certain scenes, I'll certainly look into it. However, I think it's worth noting that in the film, they did fall to the Earth quite slowly, or certainly before 'impact' where they release their landing pods. Unfortunately I don't think I can re-create that effect, unless I use some serious scripting. Still, I should investigate further. I always look to improve my content, thanks very much mate for your comments and fixing my link. Stuntman; may I congratulate you on a most thoroughly excellent video! Simply stunning. How did you get such rich details without getting any reduction in performance? Please tell me your system specs and settings! Thanks for entertaining me and making me mildly jealous. ;)

Hello PuFu, If by "proof of concept" you mean that it's only a prospective showreel, then yes. As I said in the original post. I haven't actually create any 'original' content or addons for the mod. It really is at the most basic level of development. Which is why I'm actively seeking help in regards to modelling, texturing, scripting etc. I'd like to start with making one of the infantry models and see how I can implement them in the mod. There's a few things, which conceptually I'd like to expand on. The reason why the aliens are here is because they want our water. So clearly, coastal regions will always be a priority for them when establishing and later securing a landing zone/beachead. Of course, there are bodies of water in-land; such as the Topolka Dam in Chernarus (grid ref. 102,116). The aliens have these water extractors which apparently can grow in size and intelligently control themselves. Their air units are powerful, but require an operational command centre to operate. So it would make for an interesting battle strategy say in a multiplayer 'CTI' game. Going back to water harvesting, the aliens would need to proceed further in-land for 'better' quality water. Otherwise they'd just cling to the coastlines and you'd have a static battlefield. Perhaps freshwater resources are far more valuable, greater purity etc. So this will be the incentive for the aliens to push further inwards. These water pockets they're after would of course be small but very valuable. So one would need to scout possible incursion zone if you were the U.N side. If one were playing as the aliens, one would also need to scout for harvesting regions. I think it can make for a very interesting dynamic in-game. For me, I always find a conflict involving differently composed sides to be the most fascinating. This isn't a simple BLUFOR AND OPFOR clash where they're fighting with very similar weaponry but an interstellar conflict! Main battle tanks against hovercraft with a mounted multi-purpose weapon (1) for example. I hope this isn't boring to read. I just think such a mod can make an already fascinating game become even more thrilling to play. I agree too. We do really need more science fiction content! 1. This advanced weapon, known as the Multi-Purpose Weapon, is a highly destructive weapon capable of causing small and minimal but severe damage to enemies and buildings around it. It is a long, large weapon that is very useful to the Blaa. Utilizing three different weapons, including one chain gun, one artillery gun and one rocket/missile launcher; this weapon is extremely effective in carrying out all kinds of tasks and taking on all kinds of enemies, including infantry, vehicles and other buildings. These advanced, capable, powerful weapons are mounted onto the Hovercraft, and they use them to their advantage. Reference: BLAA Wikia

Thanks guys. Yes I really wanted to add some sound effects and touch up other things. It just takes up quite a bit of time and I have other commitments. Hence why I'm looking for help! I actually used Sony Vegas to make the video so that's good. Is there any good resource site for audio effects?

Owm_e8hIAp8 It's a new mod I'm working on.

This ties in to what I'm looking for. I hope you don't mind me posing my question. I simply want a building to explode. How can I do this with the in-game editor?

I've put the this setVelocity [(vectorDir this select 0)*25,(vectorDir this select 1)*25,(vectorDir this select 2)*25]; command in the init of some helicopters. It has only worked once for some reason. Is it incompatible with certain commands?

Hello all, My scenario involves two squadrons of helicopters. I want them to follow the coastline of Chernogorsk for a short while, before banking right at the first waypoint and then flying over Chernogorsk towards the second waypoint in-land. For some reason, whenever they get to the first waypoint. They simply circle it and ignore the second waypoint. On the map, I had quite a few hostile AA units firing at them. I got rid of them in the editor and tried again. A few manage to carry on towards their next waypoint but the majority continue to circle the waypoint. I tried setting their behaviour to "careless" in the waypoint box, but it made no difference. Any suggestions as to what I may be doing wrong?

I created a init.sqf file and put it in the mission folder. I created a marker in the editor and named it meteor and I made sure the marker was named meteor in the init.sqf. As for the "vehicle". I un-pbo'd the asteroid pbo and looked in the config.bin file and found its class name; ice_flying_asteroid (there's a second one - ice_flying_asteroid2). I input ice_flying_asteroid in the init.sqf and I loaded the mission. There it was, hanging in the sky haha. Thank you very much Neokika. However, before I can rejoice fully. I wanted to see if I could make it fall from the sky. So I changed _veh enableSimulation false; to _veh enableSimulation true;. It hasn't made a difference and it still hangs there. Furthermore, is there a way to trigger the vehicle spawn? I tried to synchronise a trigger but it wouldn't connect.

By "calling another scene", do you mean a line of code in one of the script files or something in the in-game mission editor? No other scene is played after the news report, it just cuts off abruptly.

Koni, I put the following code into my scene.sqs file: ; intro music playMusic "EP1_Track03"; titleCut [" ", "BLACK IN", 5] _camera = "camera" camCreate [0,0,0] _camera cameraEffect ["internal", "back"] ~5 ; Simulate reporting ["""This is Tits McGee reporting from Zargabad""",0,.84,5,1] spawn bis_fnc_dynamictext ;=== Camera viewing girl _camera camPrepareTarget [2881.44,-95771.59,-41.58] _camera camPreparePos [4005.77,4219.06,1.70] _camera camPrepareFOV 0.700 _camera camCommitPrepared 0 @camCommitted _camera [] exec "initintro.sqf"; ; Start her animations. girl playMove "CwmnPerc_diskuse8"; ~7 The mission in Zargabad starts with a shot of the desert, then goes to the AAN news overlay. However, the overlay only lasts for a few short seconds. Is that correct?

You were helpful, although your response seemed a little curt. I'm usually patient but as I'm editing a video, which will be the first proper trailer for a mod I want to do. Time is of the essence for me. I'd appreciate if you or anyone would tell me how I can implement a script/code to do it. To refresh, I want flying objects, in my case meteors (you'll see when my video is done!) to spawn when activated by a trigger. Do I write a script with a line such as this one? _veh = createVehicle ["A10",getMarkerPos "marker1",["marker2","marker3"], 0, "FLY"] Regards, [Topgun]

Thanks Buliwyf, for actually being helpful. :)

I'm creating a video where I want to spawn a few meteors with a trigger. Do I need to write a script or do I write something in the condition/on act boxes of a trigger?

I too want to do something similar to the original poster. I want to spawn in some flying objects once the trigger's been activated. Do I need a script to do this or do I input a line of code in the init box of a trigger from the in-game editor?

It looks to be a great tool. Just a few questions. Is there a way for me to select which unit to follow? Such as from a list? I've managed to play the demo mission in the editor, but it's only available on the 'desert' island. Do I need to download something else in order to use Gcam on the other islands? Which powerful text/script editor do you recommend?

I'm having problems with activating a unit-specific trigger. What I've done is implement a trigger to initiate simultaneous explosions for these small fuel tanks when I enter the trigger area. I've typed the "unitname in thislist;" command in the trigger's condition field. However it hasn't worked. I named my unit and put that unit's name instead of "unitname". Additional -- I've fixed it now, a lack of observation on my part hah.

You're right PROTOTYPE 001 I should've clarified originally, I've amended my post. The reasons why I showed the pictures are a) because we can glimpse what the aliens look like in a game; b) because I have no experience in texturing/modelling and would like some help with it! The aliens are interesting. *Spoilers*In the film they are bio-mechanical, they have a projectile firing weapon for an arm. This makes it interesting if one were to have A.T munitions alongside 'bullet' type ammunition. SigintArmA, it's no joke. Sorry to disappoint, son. ;). On a serious note, if the idea of it intrigues you then let me know. I'll inform you more by P.M.

I apologise for the rather poor quality of the poster but I only had MS paint to use. If anyone has PaintshopPro or another image editing software and would be willing to 'professionalise' the poster for me! I'd deeply appreciate it. Here's a teaser video: The following pictures are from the "Battle: Los Angeles" game developed by Saber Interactive and published by Konami; they're not rendered within "ArmA 2"/Operation Arrowhead"! You can see a picture of a drone ship here: Drone I must extend a huge thank you to SFC.ITZHAK for his Operation unknown - USMC CH-53D Super Stallion and CH-46E Sea Knight addons. In addition, I would like to thank dcal and IceBreakr in whose mighty virtual company I gained inspiration to pursue this project of mine. If anyone is interested in pursuing this sort of mod then please let me know. Before I go, I will attempt to re-produce in "ArmA 2: OA" a superb segment from the film, which you can see here: [Topgun]

I saw the film last night and I was thoroughly entertained by it. I thought it offered a fresh approach in regards to the alien invasion genre and I thought Aaron Eckhart was very convincing in his role. I think some characters could've done with a bit more expostion, the "PTSD" guy being one example. The weakest element of the film is the screenplay. The dialogue; whilst it isn't woeful it is a little sparse and I thought the pacing slipped a little in the last third when before it, there was quite a frenetic pace to the proceedings. I liked the visceral look of the film, the hand-held camera shots and the cinematography especially. I really like how they didn't shy away from showing human casualties. I particularly liked the moment when the marine found a dead woman in a car/pick-up, she was severely burned and it just showed how merciless and ruthless the aliens were. I think it took a while for myself to care about characters. Because it's only when you see what they've experienced do you begin to care about them. The swimming pool bit was a great moment and I thought it was a shame the Private Lenihan character was killed off, although I understand the "rookie gets it" is part of war films clichés. The water explanation is only a hypothesis although when it's reported the world's ocean level has decreased, one has to assume it's due to the aliens using it so much. I had no problem with water being the reason why they chose Earth. Water ice can be found in comets, the rings of Saturns and moons such as Europa, sure. However, a large volume of liquid water on a habitable planet is a far more attractive option then chasing comets. Besides, they wanted to colonise Earth, maybe 'terraform' it a little to their exact needs and they wanted to knock us out so we wouldn't be a threat to them in the future. The one thing that left me puzzled. I understand their drones destroyed all the F.O.Bs due to tracking their radio signals and thus wiping out all the aircraft. However, how come fighter aircraft couldn't fly in and take out the drones? I don't think this was adequately explained. The music was good but not exceptional, it seemed to be ubiquitous without highlighting any particular scene except when something dramatic occurred. I thought the visual effects were superbly done and blended in seamlessly with the real-world setting. The sound effects were also nicely done and just made you feel as if you were right in the battle. On the whole, a very entertaining film but could've done with some sharpening. 3.5/5.