ardvarkdb

Thanks for taking the time to put this together. Very handy and much appreciated.

Metal Gear Solid 4 Praying Mantis PMCs By Ardvarkdb & Robert Hammer Version Beta 1.0 12/29/09 Contains units based on the Praying Mantis PMC group from Metal Gear Solid 4. More of a re-imagining than a straight port, these units are much closer to the source material. Units range from no gear to full gear and use Robert Hammer's excellent New custom weapons pack (required!). Additional Images Street Search Sniper Ambush Patrol Did you hear that? Signed Addon for Multiplayer (not tested) Units include 9 soldiers found under Independent\ MGS4 \ Praying Mantis PMCs Brand new Weapons pack contains M14 EBR, M4s in various configurations, and AK102s. 28 weapons total! Special thanks to Jonny for his excellent models and textures which I used as a base for these. Download link Beta 1 PMC Units Mediafire Armaholic ArmedAssault.info Eprison.de RobertHammer's New MGS4 Weapons Pack (required for units to work) Mediafire ArmedAssault.info If you received the internal beta you do not need to download this. Nothing has changed between the versions. Use this addon at your own risk and enjoy!

They are reskins of PMCs, not PMC model reskins. They are reskins of Jonny's Army SF.

This is really great. Thanks for sharing this with everyone.

Operation Wolfhound Complete TF86 recently wrapped up our campaign on Aiaktalik. We continue to offer a rich, dynamic co-op environment that focuses on teamwork and real-world military tactics. Each missions outcome impacts the next mission, so everything that happens matters. This adds much more tension and investment in the outcome of our operations, which really takes things up a notch. If you are wounded and cannot be rescued you may start the next mission as a POW. If a helicopter from our air wing gets shot down the next mission will include the recovery or destruction of the downed vehicle. Continuation Training As TF86 continues to grow we have put a lot of effort into our training programs. These programs ensure that anyone, from a military veteran to a mere enthusiast, is able to fight and hold their own as part of a cohesive team. As new recruits pass selection they are taken through a basic training course that covers essential military concepts such as field craft, fire control orders, formations and battle drills. These serve as a great foundation for those unfamiliar with the concepts and a fun refresher for those with experience under their belt. Once these skills have been acquired more advanced training is held on a weekly basis to give individuals the skills needed to operate in one of the four Task Forces. These patrol skill training sessions include specializations such as Demolitions, Forward Air Controlling, Leadership, Medic and Pilot. In conjunction with Basic and Patrol Skill training we also offer Continuation Training. These training sessions focus on live fire group operations where specific skill sets are trained and tested in the field. These include Close Quarters Battle, Hostage Rescue, HALO and Sniper training to name a few. If you are interested in joining Task Force 86, and joining our next campaign please have a look through our site and forums and drop in an application.

by Ardvarkdb This addon contains units depicting United States Navy SEAL teams. “The U.S. Navy's Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams (commonly known as the Navy SEALs), along with Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen SWCC), compose the Special Operations Forces of the United States Navy, who are employed in direct action and special reconnaissance operations. SEALs are also capable of undertaking unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, hostage rescue, counter-terrorism, and other missions.†V1.2 Changes - Adjusted some textures - Added in ACE config - Optimized a few more models (Click on images for full size. Special thanks to NSX for taking these great shots) Signed Addon for Multiplayer 144 units total 8 camouflage variations for operations in almost every type of environment. The units denoted with (M) after their names were designed for Multiplayer use, but can also be used in single player (when used by the A.I. will choose a random set of headgear to wear). A wide range of headgear (~35) in various camouflages has been added to the Player Profile section under the Glasses menu. If you are using a unit with (M) after it’s name the headgear you choose will show up ingame on this model when you use it. **WARNING** Be sure to delete all previous PBO's, as the new version uses new pbo names. Old PBO files will be named TF86_SealsACU etc. *** READ THE README FOR MORE INFORMATION Credits Ardvarkdb: Models, model edits, textures, texture edits, config etc. etc. etc. SafetyCatch: Plate carrier and backpack textures from the SAS pack and general advice Jackal326: General modeling advice Johnny: Original models and textures for body, and permission to port from ArmA1 to ArmA2. DaSquad: Original models and textures for Mich 01, Surefire and IR Strobe St3rv: IBH base model. Model edits, UV mapping and textures by Ardvarkdb Jennifer/Neph/Retro (Same person, different nicknames): Original night-vision and headmount models and textures. Scubaman3d: Original AOR 1 camouflage swatch. Rocko: Help with model optimization and file size reduction. BIS: Original models and textures for much of the gear. TF86 Squad: BETA Testing / general advice This version contains a separate ACE config for those who wish to use all these units and the headgear with ACE Download Version 1.2 Megaupload Eprison.de Armedassault.info Armaholic.com Arma2base.de Mirror's appreciated

When the new stuff I am working on is at a point where it's presentable I'll start a new thread. Hope you enjoyed the SEALs.

SEALs won't be updated anymore. They work well enough in OA as they are right now. Working on new stuff atm. Thanks for the interest though.

Hi everyone, here is this month's Task Force 86 update. Operations Task Force 86 has recently started up the second chapter of our unique dynamic campaign. Personnel have been deployed to the Aiaktalik Mountains region of Eastern Takistan in an effort to locate and capture the elusive HVT codenamed BOMBAY. Operation WOLFHOUND began on August 1st, 2010 with TF86 personnel inserting via HALO drop to secure and later establish a base of operations on an abandoned Russian airfield in northern Aiaktalik region. With MSS Atlas established, TF86 operators have been able to launch several successful operations into the territorial Wahhabi tribesmen regions. Operations have uncovered that many individuals with links to the Takistani branch of Al Qaeda (AQT) appear to be operating in the Aiaktalik Mountain region and appear to be helping TOMCAT elude capture. Several AQT training camps have been identified and neutralized, providing vital intelligence to enemy tactics and strength. Currently several more operations are planned in the Aiaktalik region, although intelligence points to a growing AQT threat in the Takistan region with possible links to the Takistani Army leadership. As more intelligence is gathered over the coming weeks, TF86 personnel are preparing for OBUA centric operations in the near future. Addons Task Force 86 has recently switched over to using the excellent ACRE radio system with our TeamSpeak 3 server. This adds a new dimension of immersion and realism to our operations, and allows for a much more dynamic and exciting gaming environment. Along with ACRE, TF86 has moved on to Operation Arrowhead and continues to develop custom addons for use within the squad, including weapons, vehicles, units and custom head proxies for our dedicated members. Training Our goal at Task Force 86 continues to be a professional, fun and exciting gaming environment. In order to ensure that everyone is at their best and can function as a group, regular (but not required) training and live fire exercises are held each week for practice before our operations every other Sunday. These training and live fire exercises cover everything from basic to advance military tactics and procedures, and help those unfamiliar with proper military tactics build a solid foundation to function as a true soldier. If you are interested in learning proper military tactics, working with a group of professionally trained soldiers and dedicated gamers in a realistic but laid back and positive environment check us out. If you are interested in joining Task Force 86, and joining our next campaign please have a look through our site and forums and drop in an application. http://www.taskforce86.org

The body is the TF86 Navy SEAL pack. The head is a custom face for a TF86 member. @Sabre...really liking the Iraqi SF

@713th FireBird: Doubtful. The upcoming update will just add OA features and configs and not much else. I"m working on a new project now. @Verde13: I believe the only difference between Arma 2 ACE and OA ACE are the weapons included, so it is just a matter of choosing the right weapons that fit in both. This way there will only need to be one ACE config. Everyone kits up with new gear when they start anyway and I never play single player so I'm not terribly concerned with the weapons the AI have.

With multiple configs you will get units that use each games default weapons. For example, the OA config will probably utilize OA weapons, Arma 2 config would use Arma 2 weapons and an ACE config would use Ace weapons. That would be the only way to ensure comparability across the board for people who may or may not have one game or the other. It's not about which weapon is the best, it's about which weapons are compatible with each version of the game.

That is one of the issues I plan to fix. It's a rather easy fix too, so even better.

Working on a small update to add some OA features to the SEALs. This will add proper thermal textures and backpacks for OA. Right now the units work fine for me in Arrowhead, but I also have Arma 2 installed, so I do not know if they work with just OA. The update will fix that issue, probably with multiple configuration files, one for Arma 2, one for ACE Arma 2 and one for OA. Not sure on the time frame, but it will be out sooner or later.

It's amazing how minor changes and quality new textures can really bring the default units to life. Excellent work as always Sabre.

BIS, Would it be possible to release a new mlod of the head proxy? The new heads look much better and it would help with headgear creation and new face testing for updating old units. Thanks! Ardvarkdb

You are correct, you do not need the mlod, but it is a pain to have to place a proxy and then a piece of headgear, load bulldozer, see where it clips or doesn't fit, guess on where exactly you need to make an adjustment, rinse, repeat over and over when a simple mlod of the head could allow you to get the placement and size right in one simple step. It would also allow for new soldier models to have proper neck layouts to match the head proxies.

I think the Dude hit the nail on the head here and with that I will say this once, stop posting about the blurry texture issue. I already said I was looking into it and as I and later Scubaman pointed out, it is probably caused by the normal map. I'm working on it, but I do this in my free time and I have a full time job that takes priority so try having some patience. I don't care who can do better textures, I don't care if my ACU texture isn't quite right, I care that my units are fun to use and that people enjoy using them. I'm not going to cater to everyone in the community so deal with it and learn to appreciate what you get. ***If you want to discuss texturing techniques and causes feel free to start another thread and I will be happy to join in the discussion there, but find another thread.

As I stated before I don't have a high end system so I've never run into these problems. Anyway, to close off this sub-topic, Fox why don't you send me one of your textures and I will compare it to mine and see what is different and see if there is a way to fix the blurriness you are seeing. Cheers, Ardvarkdb

I see what you mean in your screens and I think the reason you see such a difference is because 1.) I use Jonny's based player model for the SEAL body, so it is a lower poly model compared to the Arma 2 models in each of those screens and 2.) the normal maps I use are rougher than the Arma 2 ones, which are quite smooth. In the end, I still think the SEALs look good and work. Don't think of them as blurry, think of them as "lived in" :-) Thanks for the feedback though, I will take it into consideration in the future.

@Enad: I'm not sure what you mean when you say they are blurry, they look pretty sharp to me in game, but I think your computer is much higher spec than mine, as I only run the game at medium-highish settings. I've not really heard any complaints from my mates that run the game at ultra settings, and they look fine in screenshots they've taken so maybe it's a settings issue? I'm more than pleased with how they have turned out and I think they fit really well into the game. As far as I am concerned they work pretty well like the real camouflages would and help the units blend into the environments and that's what matters to me. Ultra-sharp super crisp so they look good in screenshots is not what I was after. I don't plan on redoing any of the textures or updating the models much more so you'll just have to get your sharper texture addon fix somewhere else I guess. @Fox: Feel free to make something better bud. The only way the community will keep moving forward is if people keep making stuff, so load up that O2 and Photoshop and get cracking. I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

@artek3333 try reading the previous post in this thread, everything you need is here already. Maybe throw in a please or thank you next time as well so you seem like a proper gentleman.

Unfortunately the merging of the configs led to the main classname issue, so there wasn't much I could do about it. Optimization won over consistency in this case. As stated, it can easily be fixed by modifying your mission.sqm. If you can't get it working pm me and I will help you fix it. I went through and updated all of the TF86 missions and operations that we use for our campaign and training this way and they all work fine without any issues.

Thanks to all for the mirrors! Really appreciate it. Updated the first post. If you have old missions that use version 1.0 SEALs and you want to update them to use version 1.2 all you need to do is go into your mission.sqm file and make sure the addon name is Ard_ACU_INF1 or Ard_ACU_INF1_ACE. This should replace all previous labels (for example: Ard_WDL_INF1, Ard_MCP_INF1, Ard_DCU_INF1, etc.) and your mission will work fine.

Version 1.2 Released! See first post for download link