Devastation: mission pack. Team vs Team.

Prepare for more:

Project status:

• Jan 24 - Current version is beta 0.7 - do not play older versions since performance has significantly changed, bugs fixed and made compatible with Arma 2 patch 1.03.
  
• Game mode engine is at beta development stage to finalise all intended functionality.
  
• Next version will be either v0.8 or v2.0.
  
• Allow more time for this opening post to be updated properly once the manual is updated.
  

Downloads:

Ver 0.7 (Devastation0xxbeta.7z) is available for beta testers and game mode supporters.

• Beta v0.7 on DevHeaven. Includes: Issues Tracking, WIKI, latest files.
  
• Beta v0.6 on Armaholic
  

Documentation: PDF Manual and WIKI.

• PDF not available yet. Still being reworked and formatted. A lot of the original notes in this post from the Arma 1 version is still applicable.
  
• WIKI. Some notes and map screenshots exist in the DevHeaven WIKI.
  

Quick preview notes and WIP screenshots:

• Scoring - Brand new teamwork scoring system. Gone are the days where you are measured by your "number of kills".
  
• Armaments dialog - Limits special kits. Gone are the days where your vehicle will be challenged by a squad of 8 AT soldiers.
  
• Popup menu - Provides extra comm's abilities.
  
• Respawn dialog - Allows base deployment and respawning to: base, outposts, FOB's, (to do: rally points), mobile respawn vehicles.
  
• Cargo airlift monitoring MFD - makes airlifting a lot easier.
  
• Cargo transport - cargo (eg: static weapons, fuel, tents, etc) and FOB containers can now be transported by trucks, pick-ups and heavy helicopters.
  
• FOB's - Bunkers are now called FOB's. They are the deployable spawn points. They are packed in containers for transport, then unpacked on site.
  
• Team Management dialog - allows you to choose which squads to buddy up with and who should be squad (fire team) leader
  

Introduction:

I'm constantly reading about how players want more complex Team vs Team missions and are even asking for the Project Reality mod concept and there are not enough people doing full featured TvT missions which are suitable for public servers, so this game mode (AAS and sub-components combined) has been designed and created to incorporate the fundamental concepts of Project Reality along with many improvements and extra features to create a unique game mode experience for Arma 2.

Game mode description:

The Devastation/AAS v2 is a competitive team versus team MP game mode suitable for public servers. It uses the basis of Sector Control with the added extensions of grouped zones, linked sectors and sequenced capture order to provide a battlefront concept which still works well for fewer players (20-50). It does not work well for too few players (eg: 6v6).

AAS Core Engine:

The Devastation game mode is built on top of the AAS v2 Engine, which was developed by ArMoGaDoN (aka: [WWS]WarWolf). The AAS2 Engine essentially controls the objectives for the mission. Devastation only uses less than half of the engine's full capabilities, which we'll hopefully rectify in future. Other 3rd party scripts are listed in the readme file. The Arma 2 version was ported over from ArmA.

Minimum Players Required:

As a guide, each mission requires approximately half of the maximum allowed. So a 48 (24v24) player mission would require around 24 (12v12) players for the game mode to function properly. This affects things like dedicated pilots/crewmen, FOB deployment, etc.

Requests, Feedback and Reported Problems:

• Issues can now be reported and viewed on DevHeaven: Issues Tracking, (requires log in).
  

Our clan and regulars on our server would be very very interested in that gameplay. As the majority of our ArmA guys are ex-PR guys who got fed up with the limitations of the BF2 engine and the way the game went after 0.8 we would love to return to playing the PR style game with the added realism, immersion and flexibility of the ArmA 2 engine.

If you need any support or resources I and my clan will do our best to help you, I can promise that most of our clans ArmA 2 contingent would love to help, with beta testing, suggestions, bug finding etc. Also if you need servers to test on i can put the missions on our servers.

Looks amazing, looking forward to more updates

Cannt wait, sounds excellent. We will host this on our server for sure :bounce3:

(Some replies apply to the posts in the other thread.)

@scottp:

- Rally Points: This was absent in the Arma 1 version since it seemed too easy to use and so I replaced it with Mobile Respawn Vehicles. But now I'm using better 'FOB deployment' rules which can also then apply to the Rally Points for infantry use, which makes it more fair. So now I'm trying to quickly add the RP deployment ability in for the initial beta.

- Ticket system: That has just begun. It may not yet be utilised fully (by applying deductions for penalties for lost assets, objectives, etc and resource usage), but you'll see that further developed in the coming weeks along with a list of all applicable cases for further expansion.

It should also count backwards down to zero. Plus later it may be restricted to just show your side's score. You'll have to gauge the opposition's score manually.

- Help coding: Not sure how to handle that, unless you just mean bug fixing and expansion. I am hoping the game mode will be played by the community, in which case perhaps the project should become a community project too, like others projects are becoming. Not sure how that works yet.

Once this core scripting is done, creating derivative missions is really easy (since I've removed even more of the editor created triggers and markers and automated those). I want to set up guidelines for doing this too.

My biggest hurdle is actually just the design aspects of getting the rules (resource values, scoring, ROE, distances, assisting players, counts, durations, etc) correct and balanced plus having a complete list. Then doing the documentation for it.

So I guess I'm looking for players who know the rules of these sort of game modes fairly well, to advise and help complete these lists and rules. I'll have to provide the lists I've got so far soon, to make that easier.

@SG_Smokintodd:

- Smaller beta mission: You'll see one of those within a week of the first beta version. It'll probably be a 16v16 on Utes or 12v12 town mission at Chernogorsk or 16v16 infantry forest mission.

@[RIP] Alan.rio:

- Any help that you guys can provide would be appreciated. All those suggestions are applicable. Beta testing for starters followed by suggestions would be great. The quicker it's done, the sooner it can be used.

Beta for testing should be in 1 or 2 days at the most, even if minor issues exist.

Outstanding. Our clan is looking forward to the Beta and so is our server.

Will the mission(s) have JIP?

Wow. Looks incredibly complex, and equally lovely! Looking forward to 'em!

This looks like a REAL alternative to Domination and Evolution! Can't wait to play it. There looks like an amazing amount of functionality !

Congrats !

Excellent, just tell me what you need. Might I suggest however that we stop referring to devastation as a game mode based on a certain BF2 mod? Aforementioned mod is now a private company and this would be a direct challenge to their market share, they may cause trouble. Just a thought from a conversation with our clan leader.

These were exceptional missions in ArmA 1 - good to see them coming to ArmA 2

This looks like a REAL alternative to Domination and Evolution! Can't wait to play it. There looks like an amazing amount of functionality !

Congrats !

You should check a bit the AAS missions, they already are "alternative" :)

Anyway, great to hear about this maps coming for A2, and wish they'll get a huge audience.

Very much looking forward to it.

For a public PvP (also clan vs clan) missions this is the list of most important aspects

in my experience:

• Avoid abusive gameplay
  
  • spawn killing
    
  • kill empty vehicles
    

  [*]Tweak playability

  • both sides have chances to be successful
    
  • weapon selection (no scoped, only sniper and non scoped)
    
  • guided rocket weapons removed (javelin, stringer, guided weapons of vehicles)
    
  • meaningful respawn system (no respawn and dead in a matter of seconds - always reasonable alternatives be available)
    
  • promote infantry (missing forward spawn/too long distances)
    
  • no rearm in the field (only via teamplay)
    
  • avoid massing of "uber-weapons" (remove specific weapons on kill)
    
  • limit the usefulness of weapon locking as much as possible
    

  [*]Promote teamplay

  • voip
    
  • player names of friendly at close distance
    
  • meaningful class system
    
  • not too many helping systems (enemy positions on the map, unit count in zones)
    

Only after that come features in my experience.

• Mobile respawn
  
• Revive
  
• Transport of vehicles/weapons
  

However having only tested the A1 in the editor, gaming experience of

Devastation needs to show if the first three items are responsibly sorted.

I don't understand why you want to limit certain weapons to increase playability. ACOGs allow infantry to see a little better what they're shooting at and make it so in long range maps there's actually a (beneficial) reason to take non-sniper weapons. Guided rockets give infantry and light vehicles a chance against the heavier stuff, and aren't really an unfair advantage. Heck people would often prefer 3XSMAW over javelin.

along with avoiding massing uber weapons is limiting the heavy vehicles availability

Feel free to open a new topic, if you want to discuss gameplay.

Dr Eyeball's thread is not the place. :)

Feel free to open a new topic, if you want to discuss gameplay.

Dr Eyeball's thread is not the place. :)

My gameplay discussion is in my sig ;)

What exactly are "Uber weapons"? I might be naive, but no weapon in the game is unrealistically overpowered, at least not if you play properly with crosshairs turned off.

its not about uber weapons, its about limiting weapons so that one squad doesnt have 6 AT soldiers each with 50 cal snipers (such as you would see in sandbox missions such as domo). irl a squad will only have 1 AT soldier if any, and while we are playing a game when it comes to pvp blasting each other with an infinite array of heavy weapons gets boring quick and turns into quakewars. theres many reasons why PR is so popular and one of them is its kit limiting.

Very nice! I hoped that someone will bring some PR feeling to ArmA2. Keep going...

its not about uber weapons, its about limiting weapons so that one squad doesnt have 6 AT soldiers each with 50 cal snipers (such as you would see in sandbox missions such as domo). irl a squad will only have 1 AT soldier if any, and while we are playing a game when it comes to pvp blasting each other with an infinite array of heavy weapons gets boring quick and turns into quakewars. theres many reasons why PR is so popular and one of them is its kit limiting.

IRL you would also be assigned with a mission that's appropriate for a squad that is equipped with normal squad gear. If you had a mission that required destroying a large number of vehicles, you would be provided with the tools to do it. If you were sent on a mission that involved ONLY long range shooting (over 500m), you'd be provided with snipers (or heavier vehicles that can handle those ranges). You don't send a squad with mostly M16s to attack heavy or even light armor, or engage enemies at long distances.

You can't make an unrealistic mission and then using realism as an argument for limiting the weapons.

That's what i've waited so long, I could kiss you ! :D

I lOVE YOU! :mwah:

---------- Post added at 05:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:22 PM ----------

[*]meaningful respawn system (no respawn and dead in a matter of seconds - always reasonable alternatives be available)

a good idea is 30 second 1st respawn and +10 seconds every time you death

ex:

30" 1st respawn

40" 2nd respawn

50" 3th respawn

etc...

this looks damn awesome......great work..

cant wait:yay:

Well one problem of a respawn system is getting killed shortly after respawn.

Very frustrating. This can be avoided or largely reduced by design.

AS Soon as you release these, Ill put them up on the ATOW server. This is the stuff I have been waiting for since ARMA first came out!!