pooroldspike

Yes I agree with the guys who say the hotfix has only partially fixed the heli 3rd-person view. It's an improvement over what it was like a couple of days ago but the camera still tends to loosely follow wherever the helis nose is pointing like a dog on a lead instead of staying rigidly fixed horizontal to the horizon like in dear old pre-1.70.

Another thing that muddies the issue is that some servers tweak various settings etc, so the way something works in the Editor might not be the way it works in the servers, I'd better hold off on skalpel tests. BTW guys, can I just plug an idea of mine, namely shall we start a multiplayer server of our own? I know zilch about how to do it, so if anybody's interested drop me a mail..:) pooroldspike (at) aol (dotcom)

What, the Titan AA or AT? Personally I can just about live with the Titan AT at the moment even though the wide/narrow optics readout hasn't worked since update 1.68, but the Titan AA needs some improvement (see my starter post). Or am I doing something wrong? If you know how to use it better, please let us know..:)

Thanks, i'll run some Skalpel tests in the editor later.

Thanks that's good news, and yes the armed Blackfish is a tough hombre as it orbits the objective at high altitude hammering it like a Nam Hercules gunship. However it's only found in a couple of the dozen or so KOTH servers, so we can choose a server that doesn't have it. Anyway if more people packed Titan AA launchers we could soon bring it down with volleys of SAM fire, I rarely go into battle without an AA or AT launcher because I'd feel naked without one. The un-armed Blackfish on the other hand is found in most KOTH servers and is very popular for fast troop transport and it climbs like a rocket, you haven't lived til you've done a HALO parachute jump, or jumped out on a highspeed low pass at 520 knots..:) As regards the 1st-person vs 3rd-person debate, there was a thread about it somewhere a while back, personally I only play 3rd-person..:)

I play 6 hours a day on the KOTH servers and the skies used to always have Blackfish VTOLs buzzing around, but since 1.70's new rigid 3rd-person camera view the skies are almost empty of them because nobody will spend hard-earned game-cash on something they can't fly.

At a guess I'd say the intermittent loss of a solid lock is another "realism factor" they've decide to incorporate into the game because it happens in real life too as the targets radar/sensor profile changes as it manoeuvres around. As usual I suppose we'll just have to try to get used to these changes (sniffle) PS- I play mostly on the KOTH servers where the skies used to always have at least a couple of Blackfish VTOLS buzzing around, but since the 1.70 introduction of fiddly new Bfish control key combos coupled with the disastrous new rigid 3rd person camera view, they've become almost unflyable and the skies are now almost empty of them because nobody wants to spend oodles of hard-earned game-cash buying something they can't fly. The last Bfish I saw in KOTH was hung up on telephone wires, the poor slob who bought it learnt his lesson the hard way.

There are feedback posts about 1.70 scattered over several threads, I wish the moderators would collect them into one thread so we can all post them there. For example I did Titan AA screenshots and tests in this thread- https://forums.bistudio.com/forums/topic/205020-update-170-feedback/

Another other major thing with 1.70 is that the helicopter and Blackfish external camera view (3rd-person) is now rigidly fixed to point in the same direction that the nose is pointing, and it makes flying very difficult (people have also complained about it in other threads). For example when flaring with nose high for landing, all we see is sky and we lose sight of the ground. The old view was better because the camera always stayed pointing horizontal no matter what gyrations the aircraft was doing.

Try hitting the 'Autodetect' tab at the bottom of each of the video option screens to see if your system knows what's best for it.

For example the new 1.70 Titan AA launcher lockon routine is a crock, I just did these sensational test screenshots to show what I mean, shall I start yet another new thread and put them in there or what, or perhaps you could move them there by the awesome powers invested in you as a Mod? 1- On paper the routine sounds fine; you simply point the launcher at the target and it automatically puts a broken outline diamond round it, accompanied by an exciting beeping sound- 2- And after a few seconds (IF you've panned the launcher around to keep the narrow sensor cone pointing at the moving target), the diamond becomes a solid unbroken diamond, and a small white dot appears in the centre to signify a solid lock, and the beeping stops to be replaced by an ominous silence which is our launch cue- 3- BUT in the heat of combat things don't always go as smoothly as that for several reasons- Firstly there might be a glaring white haze or clouds around (as below) which mask the solid lockon diamond and white dot, making you unsure whether you've got a solid lock. Secondly, when the beeping stops and silence ensues, it's no guarantee that you've got a solid lock; it might simply mean you've allowed the target to slip slightly out of the narrow sensor cone. Thirdly if there are battle sounds going on all around you, it's sometimes difficult to tell if the beeps have stopped. Lastly, if the target is moving fast at high angular velocity (notably jets), it's almost impossible to pan around smoothly and quickly enough to keep it in the sensor cone, resulting in the beeping constantly stopping and starting as you struggle to hold it in the cone- Suggestions- Widen the sensor cone to make it easier to hold the moving target inside it. Replace the lock-on silence with a steady high-pitched whine as the launch cue. Reduce the time it takes for a lock to become solid so that we have a chance to launch at a jet before it vanishes over the horizon.

Sorry I just don't have the time mate, the ticket procedure is too longwinded, techy and overcomplex for me. I'm very busy being a moderator at Mission4Today, a reviewer for Matrix Games and a playtester/developer for other games and sims.

What does "log a ticket" mean? Where? How?

Is this the thread for discussing ALL the new 1.70 glitches? If so, here's another one- Titan AT missiles are now invisible after firing! Previously you could see the glowing rocket motor exhaust in the crosshairs as it flew towards the target, but now NOTHING!

Right, and new update 1.70 has just buggered up another truckload of things, why the hell can't BIS stop messing AA3 about? No sooner do we get familiar with things than they bring out an update and we have to re-learn everything all over again. The situation is so bad that I'm on the point of abandoning AA3 and switching to other games.

I've put in 1500 hours on multiplayer servers over the past year, mostly KOTH, and am almost certain there's something funny going on because enemy humans almost always spot me and toast me before I spot them. For example I'm in cover and ambush a fast-moving vehicle with a Navid MG, it veers off damaged and the survivors jump out and begin shooting at me from 100 metres or more with less than a couple of seconds delay and I'm dead, even if I've dropped prone and gone quiet in thick grass. With 360 degrees to choose from, why do they instantly face my exact position? What do you think, have cheaters/hackers put a big sign above my head saying "HE'S HERE" that only they can see? Or have they somehow made all trees, bushes and grass invisible to their eyes only so that their enemies are on a naked battlefield?

We hard men have got our shit wired tight and are too good to cheat..:) Waddya say to the girly cheats Sergeant? "Be men and stop cheating! TAKE THE PAIN!"

I have and the Blackfish is now almost impossible to fly with the new fiddly key combos and vectoring procedure, and also I can't get the flaps to work. There was nothing wrong with the Blackfish before 1.70, so why change it? Plus the Blackfish external camera view is now messed up same as the helicopters view because the camera stays pointing in the direction the nose is pointing, which means we lose sight of the ground when flaring for landing etc. Edit- For good measure I'll mention that since 1.68 the Blackfish in multiplayer doesn't sit on the ground properly before takeoff and after landing.It slides slowly around as if its on ice, bumping into things even when the engines are off and nobody's aboard, what happened to the brakes?

I've just been in the Editor tweaking every graphic setting in sight to try to thin out grass and shrubs but it can't be done. So sadly it looks like some multiplayer cheaters have found a way to do it which gives them a tremendous advantage over us poor slobs who can't, because it means they can see us but we can't see them..:)

No need to do tests..:) I've logged 1500 hours in online servers over the past year and find the easiest way to trash wheeled vehicles with all kinds of small arms and MG's is to shoot at their tyres to immobilise them. Then when the driver and passengers jump out just hose them down..:) PS- Grenades and rifle-grenades will also blow out tyres, you don't need to get a direct hit as a nearby ground-burst will riddle the tyres with shrapnel.

Hi, I'm embarrassed to admit that after a short layoff I've forgotten how to make the Arma3 AI tank gunner fire the main gun when I'm the tank commander! I lay the Commanders crosshairs on a target vehicle and hit 'T' to designate it, and the gunner then swings the main gun to point at it and begins engaging with his co-axial MG instead of the main gun! Is he nuts or is it me?

Which APC's and which weapons?

1.68 also broke the big VTOL Blackfish respawn in the King of the Hill servers. When you buy one it appears okay at the respawn point but slowly slides backwards and forwards hitting things and squashing any poor slobs trying to board it, and the brakes have no effect. Also when you land the thing and come to a stop, it begins sliding backwards and forwards again. PS- 1.68 has also affected the Titan AA launcher, it now takes ages to get a solid lock on helos and planes by which time they've usually buggered off out of effective range or ducked behind a hill etc.

Hi, I used to do lots of mission building in Arma3 over a year ago, but now I've just tried to do it again but everything's changed! When I select 'Editor' on the opening screen I'm taken to 'Eden', and I'm trying to re-learn a bunch of new keys and interfaces etc and keep getting stuck, for example my tanks won't engage the enemy, are they asleep? Do I have to use Eden? How did it get on my system anyway? Is there any way I can go back to the dear old editor that I know like the back of my hand?

Thanks for the keys guys, I just ran tests with them and realise now that although we (as Commander) can designate targets for the AI gunner, we still have to give him the actual order to fire at each individual target, otherwise he won't fire at all. I suppose that mirrors real life, but I was hoping to find a way to let him keep engaging targets on his own initiative without waiting for the Fire order from us. We need something like a 'Fire at will" order, but Arma3 seems to contain no such order. The only way round it seems to be to create scenarios with ourself as Driver, and the gunner will then engage at will. PS- I seem to vaguely remember there was an Arma 2 mod which allowed the gunner to fire at will when we're commander, I'll have a look round to see if such a mod exists for Arma3..:)