(Review Completed) [SP] Tour de Force

[Kronzky]

This is a mission that was pretty much completed over a year ago, but then I never got around to releasing it.

I've done some more fine-tuning to it now, added a few little bells & whistles, and this time it'll definitely get submitted (that is, once the testing is done).

The missions consists of three objectives, all of them having to do with releasing some POWs.
The first two targets are stationary camps, the third one is a convoy that has to be ambushed. (If you screw up the ambush you have a second chance of taking over their final camp.)

My main target in this mission was to make it as unpredictable as possible, so that no two plays are alike. Lots of random units, locations & paths, just to keep you on your toes.
Also, since you have lots of friendlies mixed up with the opponent, you will have to be pretty exact with your attacks. No Rambo-go-in-and-kill-em-all methods here. You need surgical precision (especially in the convoy attack), otherwise you're out...
I would say it is on the difficult end of the scale, but then again, perhaps there are some players who will just fly through this one.

The missions has an extensive briefing, and features an intro,cutscene and custom sounds.

It requires Resistance, and has been tested under V1.91.
The only unique add-on that is needed (apart from a couple of standard BIS ones), is 'Reallights', and it is included in the zip file.


To download the mission go to: http://www.contrex-us.com/games/ofp
Pick 'Single Player' - 'Tour de Force', and check the version occasionally. I may have posted an update since you lasted looked.

Edit: This mission has been reviewed and is available from the Missions Depot.

[Kronzky]

There was a minor bug in the last objective, in that if too many of the POWs were killed they wouldn't flee at the end.
That has been fixed now (V 1.31)

Also, I activated the debug mode that gives you lots of little goodies, if you just want to fool around with the mission (captive mode, teleport around, etc). Details on how to start and use it are in the readme file.

[zsa_zsa_rasputin]

Sounds good - just downloading it now...
Will come back shortly and let you know

Just read through the readme - debug options sound handy...
Just about to load it up... Give it a few plays.
Back soon
Dan ;D

[zsa_zsa_rasputin]

OK - just watched the intro
I liked it up to the point where they had to get out of the truck

Good atmospheric choice of music - dynamic camera use (I think the view of them getting into the truck from the window could be better but it's still good)

The only problem is once the get out of the truck and start to flee in the forest, the camera goes mental! :/
You start hearing the heavy breathing as if it was 1st person, and the camera starts shaking and flicking form target to target - it's very disorienting...
The only other thing is I dont think we need to see all those civvies being shot...
I mean they're unarmed... I think after one or two go down?

Good so far though - just going into the breifing now

Dan ;D

(PS. I can record some voice for you if you like rather than the current ones you have for the civvies?)

[Kronzky]

The only problem is once the get out of the truck and start to flee in the forest, the camera goes mental! :/
You start hearing the heavy breathing as if it was 1st person, and the camera starts shaking and flicking form target to target - it's very disorienting...

Well, actually, that's what it's supposed to be...
It is like some reporter following them with a hand-held camera, shaking and panting and getting confused. A bit different from the regular OFP camera views, that are always big and slow, and look like we're still stuck in 1950's cinema...  

But keep on playing - perhaps you'll like the rest better

[The Avon Lady]

So last year's 2.5 outta 3 stars MOM review did let you sleep at night, Kronzky?

[zsa_zsa_rasputin]

OK...
Finished Well - it's a nice long(ish) mission at least!

Well now for all the things I wrote down during play (I will continue to play it over a couple more times and may edit this post as I notice things)

The first couple of things I noticed were in the briefing;

a1> HQ allows you to choose whether to exectute the mission at night, but wont allow you choice of weapons?? Seems a little harsh And Why have some your men got binoculars, but not all of them?

a2> But asides from that - the breifing, though a little brief (Sorry) was ok - could've been MUCH more detailed though (ie. "You will dropped close" to the camp - how close? What direction?)

a3> I think you should explain the "Crew disembarkation code" in the breifing - it's not clear how to go about getting the crew to disembark, etc.  :-\

OK The briefing over - time to go into the game

b1> I notice there is a wierd mix of special forces and regular GIs in the group - I think it would be better if you chose all the group from either regulars or special units and armed them accordingly

b2> I don't like the computer generated voices - but fair enough

b3> As soon as we ejected one of my group immediately called in "wounded"... But I couldn't heal ANYONE throughout the WHOLE mission... Either myself or other group members - either by using the medic or MASH tents or anything...  :-\

b4> Sometimes the enemy patrols I came across on the way to the PoW camp were completely unresponsive - I would snipe a nearby colleague and they would just saunter past... La dee da dee da... Tum tee tum...!   Maybe a few more switch triggers or guard waypoints called for...?

b5> There seems to little to NO cover on the western side of the PoW camp in the forest or it's borders... Unfortunately - this is a handy sniping area - having a PERFECT view of the camp below. From here I was able to pick off almost ALL enemy forces - including those at the castle and church...  

b6> I liked the positioning of your snipers - but they seemed to out in the open - once you'd spotted them they were dead  :-\ But the best sniper (killed me a coupla times) was on the Northern side of the camp ina spot of bushes and trees... I know you're trying for re-playability by placing your patrols somewhat randomly - but you could tell your snipers to seek out the nearest cover to hide behind

b7> There also seems to be a bug where the player is killed; He stays standing at you can keep firing and looking around until the (You are dead) screen - where it shows the player standing upright

b8> I was pleased to see some of the enemy using the buildings - but most of them seemed to facing away from the windows - so I could walk up to them and kill 'em

b9> I liked the rescuing of the PoWs cutscene - but the voice seemed extremely echoey - maybe something to do with EAX...? But good - I liked it - not too long or short  - to the point

b10> I especially like the satellite tracking of the convoy on the map

b11> I thought any remaining units in the convoy might start firing on the escaping prisoners...? I mean they were killing unarmed civilians in the intro  :-\

b12> Shame there was no ending outro yet

I will continue playing and will gladly volunteer any help you want with it
Overall I like this mission though
(Maybe 6/7-10)

Dan ;D

[Kronzky]

So last year's 2.5 outta 3 stars MOM review did let you sleep at night, Kronzky?

Hey - I didn't even know it was ever submitted to your site!
I thought I had to submit it myself, and since I never really finished it up I never even thought about doing it.
But I guess 2.5 for a beta mission isn't too bad...

Perhaps I'l reach the 3 with the final version!

[Kronzky]

Hi rasputin,

thanks for the detailed feedback.
I'll try to reply to all the issues you brought up...

HQ allows you to choose whether to exectute the mission at night, but wont allow you choice of weapons?? Seems a little harsh And Why have some your men got binoculars, but not all of them?

Since the weapons issued cover pretty much anything you'd want, you'd have to switch them around between your troop if you personally want a different one.
I didn't give you a big stockpile of weapons, because just equipping everyone with a sniper rifle for example would make it a bit too easy. (Is there any particular weapon you're looking for?)

But asides from that - the breifing, though a little brief (Sorry) was ok - could've been MUCH more detailed though (ie. "You will dropped close" to the camp - how close? What direction?)

I could give you those instructions, but since the drop-off is happening unexpectedly early (because of the Shilka fire), it would only be misleading. I am trying to simulate the chaos of unexpected fire and an emergency drop-off in the entry phase.

I think you should explain the "Crew disembarkation code" in the breifing - it's not clear how to go about getting the crew to disembark, etc.

You shouldn't have to issue a disembarkation order for the crew. They bail themselves. If you do want to eject earlier, it's the standard OFP order via the command menu.

I notice there is a wierd mix of special forces and regular GIs in the group - I think it would be better if you chose all the group from either regulars or special units and armed them accordingly.

The reason for that is on one hand to force you to use different tactics, depending who's left standing, and, on the other hand, to give you the opportunity to try different methods of attack (stealthy silent, from a distance via snipers, brute force via RPGs, etd.).

As soon as we ejected one of my group immediately called in "wounded"... But I couldn't heal ANYONE throughout the WHOLE mission... Either myself or other group members - either by using the medic or MASH tents or anything...

That, unfortunately, is an issue I haven't been able to solve so far. The men are ok actually, even if they claim at one point they're injured. In the entry scene (helicopter drop), they used to get injured too often during the ejection, so I kept resetting their health. But, for some reason, the visible status of them is never updated. If you ask them all to report their status, it'll show up ok. But if you (or someone else) knows how to do this via a script I might be able to circumvent this problem somehow.

Sometimes the enemy patrols I came across on the way to the PoW camp were completely unresponsive - I would snipe a nearby colleague and they would just saunter past... La dee da dee da... Tum tee tum...! Maybe a few more switch triggers or guard waypoints called for...?

I leave that kind of behaviour to the OFP engine.
Yes, sometimes, if you're very stealthy neighboring troops aren't alerted if someone next to them gets killed. But that can happen in any mission, and is part of OFP.

There seems to little to NO cover on the western side of the PoW camp in the forest or it's borders... Unfortunately - this is a handy sniping area - having a PERFECT view of the camp below. From here I was able to pick off almost ALL enemy forces - including those at the castle and church...

Well, I gotta give you some chance of winning, no?
And don't forget, this is just the first phase of the mission. You'll still need plenty of troops to finish the next objective...

I liked the positioning of your snipers - but they seemed to out in the open - once you'd spotted them they were dead  But the best sniper (killed me a coupla times) was on the Northern side of the camp ina spot of bushes and trees... I know you're trying for re-playability by placing your patrols somewhat randomly - but you could tell your snipers to seek out the nearest cover to hide behind

I could hide them better, but do you really think the first objective is too easy the way it is? Even I, knowing all the possible positions, get killed on a regular basis playing it. (But then again, perhaps I just suck...)

There also seems to be a bug where the player is killed; He stays standing at you can keep firing and looking around until the (You are dead) screen - where it shows the player standing upright

That problem seemed to have gone for a while, and now it  pops up again occasionally. Do you remember, when and where this happened? (Which objectives were completed, and in which area did you get killed?)

I was pleased to see some of the enemy using the buildings - but most of them seemed to facing away from the windows - so I could walk up to them and kill 'em

If they'd face the window,you could just enter the house, and then shoot'em in the back...
But that goes back to my previous question - do you think OBJ1 is too easy?

I liked the rescuing of the PoWs cutscene - but the voice seemed extremely echoey - maybe something to do with EAX...? But good - I liked it - not too long or short  - to the point

It sounds ok on my machine. Anybody else have this problem?

I thought any remaining units in the convoy might start firing on the escaping prisoners...? I mean they were killing unarmed civilians in the intro

Yes, that would've been more realistic; but I had to find a balance between realism and playability here.
I didn't want to make to hunt for the very last soldier in order to complete the objective (I hate that in a lot of other missions), but, on the other hand, if there are still remaining soldiers, they might still shoot the POWS. (But then again, they might not, as at that point there will only be a couple of guys left on their side, and their main concern would be their own survival). But perhaps I'll just make'em run away (or surrender) when you reached this point. That would make the whole situation a bit more realistic.

Shame there was no ending outro yet

I doubt there ever will be one...
To make it continuous with the mission, I'd need so many different ones (as there can be a lot of different endings) that I'd spend as much time on the outro as on the whole mission.
And if I'd just take some standard outro (chopper comes in, picks'em up, flies away, blah, blah, blah) I don't really see the added value in that...

I will continue playing and will gladly volunteer any help you want with it

The two things I have a problem with are the troops' health status and you're own 'living death' scenes. If you have any ideas regarding that, that would be great. (If you want the source code to the mission, just let me know, and I'll email it to you.)

Thanks again for the feedback!

[zsa_zsa_rasputin]

a> Particular weapon (I like the XMS )

b> Yeah - I get the fact about the shilka fire bein unexpected, and the entry phase going wrong, but I still think the briefing could be better... I mean - think "City of the dead" - INCREDIBLY detailed breifing, but realism means most of it is wrong

c> The disembarkation code is something that is mentioned in your briefing - I found it one of the buildings - (Right in front of the shilka I'd just destroyed (Quite unlikely you'd get it, but then as the shilka is placed randomly I guess maybe another time you played you might get there...)) But I just think you should explain whether you need to call it from the radio console or it's automatica or whatever

d> Good point, but I completed the mission without losing a single man* - I think you could either have a lot of men but not much flexibility or not many but a choice
*(Besides the odd time when the OFP engine went wierd - like the time one of my men was boarding the chopper near the end, when he suddenly teleported a hundred feet in the air and fell to his death??? )

e> I'm afriad my scripting prowess is somewhat limited... I will think about it though... You have any idea WHY it does this? How are you getting the men to eject? (I cant remember if I had to order an eject or they followed me out or I got kicked out or what)

f> Fair enough. Shame though

g> I think at least maybe one or two roving patrols though :/

h> I think if I had really not bothered about my men and just stormed the place and wasnt playing it so slowly to review it properly... Yeah I think it wouldve been fairly easy (Objective-wise... I doubt I'd have killed every enemy though)

i> as far as I can remember whenever I died and no matter what objectives had been completed I died standing up LIKE A MAN

j> see h

k> Ill try it again with EAX switched off

l> yeah I getcha... I think surrendering would be best... Maybe returning with reinforcements if you don't get to the choppers quick enough I think you should escort them home though (those reinforcements breathing down your necks... )

Also - Why IS there a (rather handy for the choppers! ) US repair truck in the town??

Dan ;D

[Knut Erik]

About the die bug...

Sounds like you have a trigger that makes the player alive once he has been killed...

getDammage Player > 0
Player setDammage 0

That doesn't work with the player unit. The game does not react fast enough, and the game fuckes itself up untill the "You are dead" screen show up...

To make the player invincible, try this  

Player addEventHandler ["Hit" , "Player setDammage 0"] ;
Player addEventHandler ["Killed" , "Player setDammage 0"]


See ??  

[Kronzky]

To make the player invincible, try this
Player addEventHandler ["Hit" , "Player setDammage 0"] ;
Player addEventHandler ["Killed" , "Player setDammage 0"]

Thanks, I'll give it a shot.
Perhaps it'll even take care of the other units' status bug.

[Kronzky]

Well, I finally found a solution to those two pesky bugs (the incorrect health status and those 'living death' scenes).

The health status I was able to fix (with toadlife's) help, by first unjoining and then rejoining the group. Somehow that sets the health icon to the correct status.

The 'living death' scenes were caused by one lonely 'player setdammage 0' that was issued in the beginning of the mission. (That was the only one - no other health resets anywhere - but for some reason it caused the death scenes to be screwed up.)

I'm still not sure about the difficulty level of the mission though. I personally find it rather hard, and so did a few other people that played it. Rasputin OTOH says he finished it with all men alive (but he also said that, 'whenever he died, he died standing up', so there must've been a few casualties even for him ...)

[raistlin_kell]

Kronzky
I'll give the MP version a good going over this weekend for you. Let you know how the MP version plays. Should be 7 players this weekend so we'll give it a good thrashing for you.

RK

[zsa_zsa_rasputin]

I mean that whnever anyone died it was me!
I'm not the kind of officer who sends his men forward to cover his own ass! ;D
Anyway - I didn't find it easy - I just did it very slowly and carefully in order to review it as best I could for you
I think overall it's medium-hard difficulty

Dan ;D

[Kronzky]

I'll give the MP version a good going over this weekend for you. Let you know how the MP version plays. Should be 7 players this weekend so we'll give it a good thrashing for you.

Thanks!
Be aware though that there's a severe penalty in the game if you die. Well, not as bad as some missions, where you are actually out of the game once you die, but you do get trown back to some previously covered waypoint, so it may take you a few minutes running (or driving) to catch up with your team. I wanted to find a way of really discouraging some run-and-gun style of play, without OTOH being overly severe and killing you outright. After all, it's a long mission, and you'd be dead for a long time...
Some site who reviewed it absolutely hated that feature, and totally ripped the mission to pieces because of that....

[Kronzky]

I think overall it's medium-hard difficulty

Well, that I can live with...
I don't want to make it sadistically hard, so that only 1% of the players can finish it.
So medium-hard is ok.


I'd be interested in hearing some game reports from you guys.

• How did you approach the objectives?
• What tactics did you use?
• Did you take out the convoy en route or at the destination?
• Which parts did you find especially hard (or easy) (or fun)?
• How long did the whole mission take?

BTW - the latest version has the bug-fixes implemented, the start position has changed (not Loukov anymore), and, on customer demand, you now have a wider arsenal of weapons to choose from.

[LCD]

i didnt have taam 2 play it all but i started 2 try it (just captured da medic thingy nddidnt meetny soldierafter bout 200Ms from dere)

1) if deres option 2 attack @ night da HQ wil giveus NVGs from da start u never send ppl somwerenot equiped right
2) da russian shud send som men (4-5 ppl) 2 investigate da choper crash location
3) after i attacked da medical thingy da medic run away but he didnt call reinforcments 2 help him
4) dere were 2 crew membrs runin around 2 da east of da medic thingy (killed em after i captured it)

ill continue playing laterz

all da comments above r 4 ur own judge - if its not ur style 2 follow em - dont

LCD OUT

[Kronzky]

if deres option 2 attack @ night da HQ wil giveus NVGs from da start u never send ppl somwerenot equiped right

HQ doesn't really send you into a night mission (after all, you start at 9am). But when you take over the field hospital, you will discover NV equipment there. That means you could now play the mission at night, but, of course you have to inform HQ about this change of plans...

da russian shud send som men (4-5 ppl) 2 investigate da choper crash location

Come on, you just want some easy cannon fodder.
If you saw a chopper going down, and another dropping a bunch of men (who are obviously up to something), would you send out your men to just look at the wreck? I didn't think so...
You would probably make sure that your main interest (the POWs) are secured, rather than sending out guys that you have much better use for elsewhere.

after i attacked da medical thingy da medic run away but he didnt call reinforcments 2 help him

These are medics - give them a break. They see a horde of enemies dropping in on them, and all they can think of is - RUN...
And again - your opponent is not too concerned about you stealing medical equipment at the field hospital. They will keep the men where they need'em the most.

dere were 2 crew membrs runin around 2 da east of da medic thingy (killed em after i captured it)

That was probably the crew of the Shilka that attacked you. Two, sometimes three, will survive, and then play along in the battle.


Also, for those who found the mission too easy, I've added a few tougher and smarter opponents in veteran mode, in both the first and third objective. You will also have to hurry up a bit now when you take over the convoy. If the convoy stops for whatever reason (attack, breakdown, whatever), some reinforcements will come in from Mokropsy. Not very fast, but they will come...

[LCD]

HQ doesn't really send you into a night mission (after all, you start at 9am). But when you take over the field hospital, you will discover NV equipment there. That means you could now play the mission at night, but, of course you have to inform HQ about this change of plans...

not exactly - dey tell u dat u can make it night mision from da start so dey shud also give ya option 2 have nightmision - but u can do somin else remove damention in da breifing nd den have conversition between u nd 1 of da BOs after we find da stash nd den daplayer can radio HQ

If you saw a chopper going down, and another dropping a bunch of men (who are obviously up to something), would you send out your men to just look at the wreck? I didn't think so...

as much as i know its alwayz wise 2 send som1 2 look around if not da enemy can just dig up in da place nd start 2 get reinforcments nd things like dat - after all da enemyz do want us dead right ?

your opponent is not too concerned about you stealing medical equipment at the field hospital. They will keep the men where they need'em the most.

st0pid enemies  

:cheers:

LCD OUT

[zsa_zsa_rasputin]

Trust ol' LCD for some good ideas

'Fraid I have to agree with the crash idea - at least a small force (3 man patrol?) to investigate :/

Dan ;D

[LCD]

k 2 more comments

1) da AI reaction on 1st base isnt good  :-X  :-\ (POWs) dey stay in da place waitin 4 me - instead of tryin 2 kil me  

2) dere were POWs outside deir cage nd soldiers near em - nd dey didint try 2 do nythin 2 em  

den i got cought in som nasty thing

i didint finish da 1st obj nd went 2 clear da way (da church) 2 save taam 4 da last obj but i rescued da man in da church (nd didint have da objective 4 it yet  ) nd den i got da ast obj b4 i did da last 1  

so im putin it on da end of ma list end movin on

LCD OUT

[Kronzky]

Ok, LCD, you now got free NVGs from the start already.
The gimmick of making them breakable, so that you can't just throw a grenade into the farm, or otherwise they'd be unusable, would've only been funny the first time around anyway; so it didn't really add much to the mission's challenge.

I have also added a patrolling chopper on the East side, which will check out the crash site soon after the helicopter goes down. So you now have to find some cover quickly, otherwise you'll get into trouble with him...

Which guards at Varta did you have a problem with? The ones in the POW cage? They're supposed to stay where they are. Or did you mean they didn't shoot back?

The problem with the 'escaping' POWs I solved a few minor versions ago. It should be ok now.

As far as the sequence of the objectives are concerned - I don't want to make it too strict, in that you can only solve them in one particular order. The storyline of course has a sequence, and will only present them one at a time. Solving one objective will trigger the next one therefore, so that means that you might end up with two open objectives. But other than a bit of time pressure, this doesn't affect the the mission at all. As long as you solve them all at one point, the mission will be completed. (I would suggest though, to take out the convoy while it's on the road. It is a lot easier than waiting until it reaches its destination.)

[LCD]

Which guards at Varta did you have a problem with? The ones in the POW cage? They're supposed to stay where they are. Or did you mean they didn't shoot back?

they stand in place - da prob is dat den its mofoin easy 2 handle em

LCD OUT

[The Avon Lady]

Latest version's PBO file size is about 1350K, around half of what it was previously. What did you remove to reduce the file size so drastically?

[Kronzky]

Latest version's PBO file size is about 1350K, around half of what it was previously. What did you remove to reduce the file size so drastically?

Oh, well - since OFP's compiler was so inefficient I ended up writing my own, and that normally took off about 50% off the final file sizes.

Unfortunately, even though I would like to very much, for legal reasons, I am not allowed to publish this compiler.

But - if you ever need to drastically reduce your PBO sizes, try this little trick: Remove all unneccessary files from your sounds folder (.wav files, unused .ogg files, etc.). That may cause your file size to shrink to half its original size.
 

[Kronzky]

I've added a hint section to the latest version.
It may give you some ideas of what to do (and what not to do...)
Here it is - read it at your own risk.
.
.
.
==================================
Insertion:
• Try exiting the chopper before it starts, to see if you can utilize anything in the camp. Stay away from the church though! (Generally sound advice...)
• The crew of the shilka that attacks you (and gets blows up in the confrontation) often survives, and will persue you after a while.
• Shortly after your landing an enemy chopper will come in to survey the situation. Better find cover before he comes in.
• There *is* a way of gaining control of this fully armed chopper. But that's all I can say...
Varta:
• If you get detected while attacking the Varta camp, watch your surroundings - several units will try to sneak up on you.
• If you order the crew of the shilka to disembark, it's easiest to kill them as soon as they exit the vehicle.
• An AA-weapon is stored at the control center.
Ferry:
• When trying to get hold of the ferry, don't attack it before the crew has exited. If you get spotted, the ferry may never dock.
Convoy:
• If you get detected when setting up your convoy ambush, the convoy will take a detour (this might also happen randomly).
• Occasionally the convoy will travel much faster than normally (you will be informed of this), which means you will probably have to attack them in Mokropsy. They will also increase their speed the moment the convoy sees you.
• The prisoners are assigned randomly to one of the trucks.
• Try blocking the road to make the ambush easier.
Mokropsy:
• If you fail to stop the convoy, bring some anti-tank weapons along (LAWs or Satchel Packs).
• When the convoy reaches Mokropsy, the escort BMPs will be abandonded, and can be taken over.
• There are two patrol units positioned randomly at a distance to the camp. Watch you back when you attack.
Escape:
• To get to the escape island you can utilize one of the boats in the junkyard at Fc40. Use a car to push it into the water.
==================================

Also, I needed to add another add-on (so that I would not have western MASH tents in eastern camps). It's very small, and included in the zip file.

[The Avon Lady]

Oh, well - since OFP's compiler was so inefficient I ended up writing my own, and that normally took off about 50% off the final file sizes.

This BIS forum thread,  on the subject of PBO compression, might be of interest to you.

[Kronzky]

Oh, sorry, if my smilies weren't clear enough -
but I was just kidding about the compiler.
I wrote nothing of that kind...

All I did to reduce the size was to get rid of some unneccessary crap in the sounds folder.


But now to the really important question - any recommendations regarding the mission? Your original review sounded like you found it rather hard already; but now, with the feedback from here, I made it even harder (at least in Veteran mode). You think it's too much now?
I've also tried to incorporate some of the recommendations you made when you last tested it (unlimited saves, more consistent storyline in intro). Anthing else you can think of?
I am getting to release it now, and I want to make sure I haven't overlooked anything.

Thanks in advance.

[The Avon Lady]

There is a certain truth to it being overly difficult. My biggest problem is with the enemy snipers. The problem is two-fold:

1. They are accurate.

2. They are diffuclt to find but they find me easily. This is in part due to Resistance's foliage not blocking the AI's line of site. So they're finding me even when Ive taken cover.

[Kronzky]

There is a certain truth to it being overly difficult. My biggest problem is with the enemy snipers.

Yeah, they can be a pain, but since they can only have certain pre-assigned spots, and are static, you can spot them if you look hard enough.

But have you played any of the latest versions (V1.35+) in Veteran mode recently?
What gives me the biggest headaches right now (when I play it myself) are the patrols in Varta, that sneak up you when you get spotted (they come from the sides and the rear) . They're stealthy, they got Bizons, and they keep wiping out half my squad before we realize what's happening. And since their startpoints are random, and they're reacting to what you're doing, it's impossible to predict where they're coming from.
I have to resort of all kinds of weird tactics - circling back, setting up diversions and traps, and breaking up my group in two in order to survive them.
They only show up in Veteran mode, but they're nasty...
(They aren't 'cheating' though in order to track you down. They do have a real base camp, and they only use the information they get from other units that spotted you. So you can somehow outsmart them. But they are a real PITA ... )

[The Avon Lady]

But have you played any of the latest versions (V1.35+)

Yes, the latest.

in Veteran mode recently?

I only play in VETERAN mode.


Edit: This mission has been reviewed and is available from the Missions Depot.