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Author Topic: (Review Completed) [SP] Village De-Pacification v4.3  (Read 25309 times)

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Offline RKurtzDmitriyev

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Village De-Pacification

Version 4.3

by R. Kurtz Dmitriyev

Mission Description: Command 12-man resistance squad against Soviet occupiers in town of Larche. Option of retreating or fighting against significant reinforcements.



Required Addons

Made for OFP:Resistance version 1.96 with the WGL 5.12 mod. Get the latter at

http://www.ciahome.net/node/265

The official download site of WGL mod was at http://ofpc.de/wargames/ , but as of 6/21/10, that URL seems to lead to nothing.

AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT VOICES:

By default, the WGL mod disables AI radio voices. Tastes differ on whether this is a good decision. If it isn't to your liking, open up the file \@wgl5\bin\config_base.hpp with a text editor. Find the line

//#define ENABLE_AI_VOICES

and delete the two slashes in front of it. Save, and radio voices are re-enabled.

Features: I aimed for a short mission with lots of classic OFP infantry carnage. Several waves of enemy counterattacks need to be fought off to get the "happy" ending. Includes custom sounds.

File size: 1632 KB

Known Bugs: Freezing? (see pages 3ff)

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


CHANGELOG

***WARNING: POTENTIAL SPOILERS!***

1.0--12/7/09
[original]

2.0--12/12/09

Whole mission was rebuilt from ground up to be more "elegant." (I know much more about OFP editing than when I started building 1.0).

--significant changes to enemy forces. Enemy forces in the town have been beefed up, and there's another wave of counterattack, but the counterattacks are staggered out more.
--added more chatter to sideChat.
--ammo crates moved & enemy-occupied town redecorated.
--radio messages re-labelled
--scoring added
--briefing modified to accomodate above changes

2.7--12/18/09

Lots of changes!

--fixed bug that would have prevented the "happy ending" of the mission from triggering (if anyone had actually gotten to it! ;)
--typo that screwed up radio transmissions fixed
--randomness added by adding placement radii for enemy units & their waypoints.
--enemy AI boosted
--new overview picture
--gear selection added & default squad weapons loadout improved
--AI level of some Abel Squad loons boosted.
--briefing touched up for clarity
--ambient bird sounds are deleted after the shooting starts
--player can deactivate alarm by moving near the tents in S part of town.
--sandbags surround southern tents
--skiptime for "bad ending" cutscene reduced (some people found it hard to see)
--beast chatters and reacts if they're detected before attack order is given (not sure if this will ever happen)
--dozens of other, mostly cosmetic tweaks that I can't really remember ;)

2.8--12/22/09

Mostly minor changes.

--Retry update added.
--Player's squad had people with masks in it (wrong WGL unit type).
--Script typo that allowed mission-critical targets to flee was fixed.
--Synchronization of final Soviet attack modified. They should all come barreling into the town at roughly the same time.
--Ending trigger fixed to minimize "hunt the last loon" effect.
--MaxScore in description.ext lowered.
--In final cutscene, player is setpos moved before the dead chopper is (otherwise, it might get moved on top of the player).
--Border added to mission overview.
--More RPG-7VLs added to weapons crates.
--Beast Squad is now on "contact possible" until they get to the outskirts of town. Otherwise, they just move too slow.
--Radio chatter edited slightly.

2.9--12/30/09

Another large batch of changes (I can't control myself sometimes).

--omg omg CUSTOM VOICES!!!!1!!1one! At least in one edition, 2.9cs. For those who prefer a smaller file size, or dislike the sound of my voice, there's also version 2.9sf, identical except without the sound files.
--Enemy AI has more scripts to follow, including:
--If a crafty player attacks the airfield, enemy units there will move in on his group.
--Enemy MGs will be re-occupied if the first gunner is killed.
--Spetsnaz set up an ambush for the player in the forest N of Larche.
--Infantry reinforcements dismount from BMPs via an unassignvehicle command, rather than transport unload. Otherwise, T-72s will stop moving if the BMPs are killed before unloading.
--Helicopters forbidden from fleeing, and they have a cycle waypoint now.
--Markers for machine guns added to briefing.
--Retreat option should no longer be available if Beast goes down.
--Radio dialogue edited to make a little more sense.
--The people chatting in the final cutscene have special animations.
--Once the good ending is begun, all enemy units on the mainland of Malden are killed.
--There's a chance that Beast will be detected if the player waits too long.
--Beast squad AI given a boost.
--More RPK mags in gear selection.
--More ambient sounds added further from the town.
--"Massacre" cutscene now triggered simply by the Abel group leader (i.e., you) leaving the area, if he's alive.
--Lots more little details that I neglected to write down. Fortunately, the only bug seems to be the savegame issue, which is admittedly pretty serious. If anyone has tips, feel free to contact. :(

3.3--1/21/10

Okay, I made a multiplayer coop conversion based on 2.9 which went through several reincarnations of its own. This singleplayer version was derived from version 3.2MP. There are just too many changes to list conveniently, but I'll try to detail the biggest ones here:

--Order of enemy reinforcements changed
--Player's squad has more heavy weapons to start with
--Alarm deactivated with an addAction command, rather than trigger
--Number and skill level of enemy units in Larche significantly reduced
--Number of bird sounds reduced
--Spetsnaz squads blocking the retreat routes removed
--Many global variables cut (I'm not sure if that's what was causing the bug earlier. It seems to have gone away now, though).
--This version only comes with custom sounds. No one should mind the file size if they're up for a singleplayer mission.

3.35--1/24/10

D'oh!

--Overview was AWOL
--Typo in briefing
--Ending trigger conditions fixed (probably would not have mattered anyway, I didn't notice it until just now)

3.36--1/26/10

Gah!

--Savegame after initial cutscene added (why did I not think of this before?)
--A few civilian vehicles added for decoration
--eliminated @ command that checked whether crew was inside BMP before letting them engage at will, function replaced with extra waypoint.

4.0--6/20/10

Took a long break away from this mission. I've eased the difficulty in most respects. It can't be too difficult anymore (I know this, because I've actually completed my mission ;) ).

Changes:

--Spetsnaz squad that dismounts from Ural removed (way too much difficulty)
--Two out of three Mi24 choppers removed, remaining chopper made stupider
--Time between waves increased (to give plenty of time for retreat)
--Player now has sniper rifle in gear selection
--PG7VLs in gear selection replaced with plain PG7s
--So that the lone Mi24 can pose any threat at all, strelas in weapons cache reduced to one
--RPO anti-infantry weapons added to cache
--Mines added to cache
--Ending conditions: all members of the second armored wave and the heli-dropped VDV squad must be dead or fleeing (and player alive). Chopper does not need to be destroyed, it will fly away of its own accord when the land forces are dead or fleeing.
--Ending cutscene only shows chopper if it was disabled before mission end
--Voice files edited to reflect changes
--Briefing updated with more credits
--Other, hopefully minor edits that I can't remember or be bothered to write down ;)

4.1--7/4/10

Put on some finishing touches and fixed/improved some things I noticed...actually, more things than I would care to admit. :P

--Ammo crates re-organized, separated, and ruck mags removed (nobody has the patience to struggle with those ruck things in this mission anyway).
--Radio save added (can only be used once).
--Beast retreat radio changed from 2 channel to 4 channel to reduce the possibility of accidentally pressing it.
--Beast death trigger reworked (changed from a looping subsection of one script to a trigger that can take account of more possibilities).
--Now beast automatically attacks if and when they are spotted by the "spoiler" patrol.
--Removed confusing radio options that can be picked up from a dead Soviet radio operator.
--Fixed: Sound of dead bodies (used as props) falling was just barely audible at the beginning of the "happy" ending.
--Ending conditions: less than 3 enemies must be alive in Larche. Modified so that players can't "win" by somehow killing off the second wave without ever dealing with the enemies in the town. Unlikely this would happen in any case.
--Sometimes the recon post never reports the chopper. Should be fixed.
--Fixed: Big enemy patrol was stuck and never actually went on its loop.
--Fixed: Chopper didn't want to retreat like it was supposed to.

I've kinda given up saying "these are the finishing touches" by now. ;)

Version 4.2 9/18/10

--"good" ending reworked with new voice over, should make it less confusing
--added automatic AI ruck mag script
--added custom squad names
--added team joining
--gear selection modified to take account of ruck mag script
--bandages added to gear
--briefing re-organized with new "gear notes" section
--chopper eventually gives up pursuit when retreating if you're still alive
--patrol marker has the word "patrol" on it
--setcaptive after retreat completed, just in case
--eliminated chatter during cutscenes with enableRadio. durr, I never knew about that one

4.3--11/24/10
Gotta have the mags, man.
--Forgot to include regular and ruck mags for AKS-74U
--Modified ruck script to use AKS-74U (confusing class names, grrr)
« Last Edit: 21 Dec 2010, 17:01:43 by Walter_E_Kurtz »
The OFP Editing Center wishes to remind you that the faithful COMREF will never threaten to stab you and, in fact, cannot speak.
However, in the event that it does speak, you are encouraged to heed its advice. ;)

Offline Krieg

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #1 on: 10 Dec 2009, 15:23:48 »
Will test it ;)!
Downloading WGL mod right now.
And also, :welcome: to OFPEC!

Package

Readme is there, and it does it's job. You might want to put a link to this thread in it.

Overview

Does the job correctly.

Intro

None.

Briefing

I liked it. Not too simple, not too sophisticated.

Mission

You did it pretty well for your first mission.
I ordered squad to follow me, and ordered Beast squad to roll in.
After short time of fighting (and getting wounded), I managed to sieze the village.
I was informed that T72's and BMP's are headed my way, and had very little time to prepare for their assault. I barely managed to scavenge a corpse of Soviet RPG soldier, and my men started reporting enemy tanks. I hid myself in a house and switched my new RPG. T72 rolled by the house, and I fired the RPG. I missed because scoped-HUD fooled me. I quickly took cover against the tank, and then BMP stopped next to house. I reloaded, shot my last RPG, and disabled it. I got most of my men KIA, so I decided that unless I retreat immediately I will get surrounded and killed very soon. I ordered my remaining men to retreat towards north route, since that one did not have armored vehicle in it. Then, just in case someone from Beast squad was alive, I switched to my map and just as I pressed Bravo, I got shot by the tank (I think).

Outro

Is there one? I did not reach it :).

Overall

Excellent job for your first mission. It is classic BIS-ish mission that are nor too hard nor too easy.
But there are few things I would like to get your attention to:

Enemy counter-attack

In order for player to have better chance of preparing himself for attack, you should delay enemy unit's arrival.
And it is a bit too hard to start with (at least as much as I counted) 1 T72 and 2 BMP's? Maybe you should start with few infantry squads, then go on light armor (BMP's only), and then start throwing in mixed armor/infantry units?

Enemy-occupied town

I think you should incorporate some enemy defenses, like sandbags and machineguns, ammo crates, maybe even a guard tower (for guard tower search for Editor Upgrade 103 by Mikero, an addon that allows you place more units and objects).

Patrols

It would be realistic if you included some two-soldier or even entire-squad patrols patrolling the perimeter around the town.

Radio

You should change Alpha to "Beast - Attack" (or similar), Bravo to "Beast - Retreat". You can do that using "Text" field in trigger editor. Also, Bravo radio message should not be available at very beginning. Create an "init.sqs" file and write in following:
Code: [Select]
2 setRadioMsg "Null"
and  in beastcomms.sqs add:
Code: [Select]
2 setRadioMsg "Beast - Retreat"
« Last Edit: 10 Dec 2009, 16:53:36 by Krieg »
If you see a light at the end of the tunnel, then it's probably an enemy tank.

Offline RKurtzDmitriyev

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #2 on: 10 Dec 2009, 19:42:18 »
Quote
Will test it Wink!

Downloading WGL mod right now.
And also, Welcome to OFPEC!

Thank you for your time. It means a lot.  :)

Quote
Package

Readme is there, and it does it's job. You might want to put a link to this thread in it.

Good idea! Of course, what happened is that I wrote it before I posted the thread.

Quote
Overview

Does the job correctly.

Intro

None.

Briefing

I liked it. Not too simple, not too sophisticated.

Mission

You did it pretty well for your first mission.
I ordered squad to follow me, and ordered Beast squad to roll in.
After short time of fighting (and getting wounded), I managed to sieze the village.
I was informed that T72's and BMP's are headed my way, and had very little time to prepare for their assault. I barely managed to scavenge a corpse of Soviet RPG soldier, and my men started reporting enemy tanks. I hid myself in a house and switched my new RPG. T72 rolled by the house, and I fired the RPG. I missed because scoped-HUD fooled me. I quickly took cover against the tank, and then BMP stopped next to house. I reloaded, shot my last RPG, and disabled it. I got most of my men KIA, so I decided that unless I retreat immediately I will get surrounded and killed very soon. I ordered my remaining men to retreat towards north route, since that one did not have armored vehicle in it. Then, just in case someone from Beast squad was alive, I switched to my map and just as I pressed Bravo, I got shot by the tank (I think).

Cool. An Mi-24 helicopter full of infantry came in, too, didn't it? It should.

Also, those WGL RPG sights are very tricky. ;)

Quote
Outro

Is there one? I did not reach it Smiley.

There is not what the OFP engine considers an "outro." But there are cutscenes that should occur between either possible ending and the briefing.

Quote
Overall

Excellent job for your first mission. It is classic BIS-ish mission that are nor too hard nor too easy.
But there are few things I would like to get your attention to:

Enemy counter-attack

In order for player to have better chance of preparing himself for attack, you should delay enemy unit's arrival.
And it is a bit too hard to start with (at least as much as I counted) 1 T72 and 2 BMP's? Maybe you should start with few infantry squads, then go on light armor (BMP's only), and then start throwing in mixed armor/infantry units?

Actually there are TWO T-72s in that little column. There should also be infantry inside of the BMPs. It was reasonably easy to kill them all for me, but I have complete foreknowledge of the mission.

Did you happen to notice that there are ammo crates in one of the tents?

I will consider a larger time delay. (There already is a roughly two-minute one).

Quote
Enemy-occupied town

I think you should incorporate some enemy defenses, like sandbags and machineguns, ammo crates, maybe even a guard tower (for guard tower search for Editor Upgrade 103 by Mikero, an addon that allows you place more units and objects).

When I first made the mission, there were MGs, but I cut them because I thought it was making it too hard. I'll have another go at it, though. Sandbags are a good idea. At least a Soviet flag would hit the spot. ;)

Quote
Patrols

It would be realistic if you included some two-soldier or even entire-squad patrols patrolling the perimeter around the town.

There already is an 8-man squad walking around the town, but maybe you didn't see it because it starts out on the other side, in view of Beast squad.

It sounds like I should basically beef up defenses in and around the town somewhat, and stagger out the counter-attacks a little more.

Quote
Radio

You should change Alpha to "Beast - Attack" (or similar), Bravo to "Beast - Retreat". You can do that using "Text" field in trigger editor. Also, Bravo radio message should not be available at very beginning. Create an "init.sqs" file and write in following:
Code:

2 setRadioMsg "Null"


and  in beastcomms.sqs add:
Code:

2 setRadioMsg "Beast - Retreat"

Thank you, will be implemented when I find the time.
« Last Edit: 10 Dec 2009, 19:44:44 by RKurtzDmitriyev »
The OFP Editing Center wishes to remind you that the faithful COMREF will never threaten to stab you and, in fact, cannot speak.
However, in the event that it does speak, you are encouraged to heed its advice. ;)

Offline Krieg

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #3 on: 10 Dec 2009, 20:08:22 »
Quote
Thank you for your time. It means a lot.   :)

Glad I could help!

Quote
Cool. An Mi-24 helicopter full of infantry came in, too, didn't it? It should.

Also, those WGL RPG sights are very tricky.  ;)

Yep, it did. I probably forgot to mention it because I did not target it (except some small-arms fire). I did not want to waste RPG ammo which was precious at the time. I am already loving WGL mod!

Quote
There is not what the OFP engine considers an "outro." But there are cutscenes that should occur between either possible ending and the briefing.

Ahh, I get it now :)!

Quote
Actually there are TWO T-72s in that little column. There should also be infantry inside of the BMPs. It was reasonably easy to kill them all for me, but I have complete foreknowledge of the mission.

Did you happen to notice that there are ammo crates in one of the tents?

I will consider a larger time delay. (There already is a roughly two-minute one).

I guess I over-seed one of them. And I am now little noobish in infantry warfare, since I spent a lot of time in T80, when creating and editing my mission, "The Red Grinder". And, no I did not see that ammo crate. I guess I was in kind of hurry.

Is the 2-min delay triggered immediately after alarm is being rised, or after player seizes the town?

Quote
There already is an 8-man squad walking around the town, but maybe you didn't see it because it starts out on the other side, in view of Beast squad.

It sounds like I should basically beef up defenses in and around the town somewhat, and stagger out the counter-attacks a little more.

I guess that's the case, since Beast reported seeing a patrol.
And yes, all you need to do is get the defenses a bit higher.

Nice mission and work here, RKurtzDmitriyev!
If you see a light at the end of the tunnel, then it's probably an enemy tank.

Offline RKurtzDmitriyev

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #4 on: 10 Dec 2009, 22:19:45 »
Quote from: Krieg
I am already loving WGL mod!

I'm glad to hear it. You should come play on the CiA co-op server (http://www.ciahome.net/). We play WGL missions every Sunday at 19:00 GMT. Actually, the last few weeks we've had people sign up for pre-planned missions, and had around 20 players show up each time. Great fun. You'll need to install team-speak and request a password, but it's worth it in my opinion.

Sorry, just proselytizing for my favorite server. But WGL is the favorite there.

Quote
Is the 2-min delay triggered immediately after alarm is being rised, or after player seizes the town?

The tanks start driving from the airport about two or three minutes after the alarm is raised. Of course, it still takes them at least about three minutes to get to Larche. The idea is that the enemy isn't just going to wait for every last one of their soldiers to die before sending reinforcements. The chopper (which takes off a minute after the alert) is an immediate response, and the tanks are assembled for a big counter-attack. But it looks like a delay of more like about 5 or 7 minutes is more appropriate.
The OFP Editing Center wishes to remind you that the faithful COMREF will never threaten to stab you and, in fact, cannot speak.
However, in the event that it does speak, you are encouraged to heed its advice. ;)

Offline Zulu1

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #5 on: 12 Dec 2009, 05:32:51 »
Hey Kurtz,

I didn't know you were into making missions. I've downloaded it and gave it a bit of a spin. Seems to be pretty well thought out.
Intro cut scene
Good Briefing
More notes than briefing :)
AI squad does well against enemy
Had to add tinkiling bell music?...haha

When I have more time I'll give it a serious play through.

Watchout Zwobot and Marto, you may have some competition here... :whistle:

Offline RKurtzDmitriyev

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #6 on: 12 Dec 2009, 18:38:51 »
Thanks you Zulu.  :)

New version uploaded! Changes described above. Enjoy. :cool2:
The OFP Editing Center wishes to remind you that the faithful COMREF will never threaten to stab you and, in fact, cannot speak.
However, in the event that it does speak, you are encouraged to heed its advice. ;)

Offline Krieg

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #7 on: 12 Dec 2009, 21:11:34 »
OK, here it goes...

Mission

I ordered Beast squad to move in, and when enemy was distracted and hit them from behind. Soon, I captured the city. Hind moved in as usual, but did not do too much damage. This time I was more then prepared for counter-attack. Enemy units came in, and I managed to destroy BMP2. Infantry started making push into the town. I was looking for suitable place to make my last stand (and find that ammo Beast was talking about). On my way I encountered enemy soldier while holding RPG in my hands. I had a choice. Try to switch to AK-47 and hope he does not hit me, or use my last RPG and kill him. I decided to use the second option. Killed him, switched to AK-47. This was good, because I encountered another soldier while passing between several buildings. I killed him too. Then I found that ammo and picked up 2 RPG rounds. I started searching for T72 to send him to same place I sent that BMP2 (hell, pretty much), and then Hind came above my squad and killed 3 of my guys. I got annoyed by it, and decided to use RPG and take that Hind down. I waited it to pass above me again to shoot. So it did, I shot the RPG and hit it right in the center. That was one of my luckiest shots. But, this indirectly got me killed. Hind managed to shoot me with it's cannons while falling down. Boom. I got white out. Next thing I know I am dead.

Suggestions:

-Sandbags. Add them so both enemy and player have more defensive options.

-Randomness & Strategy. Add more troops with less than 100% possibility of presence. And then also add maybe two options for Beast: To attack the town directly, or to try to lure most of town's infantry to woods so remaining resistance fighters would kill them there. Each options has it's advantage:
-Attack will mean that there will be more friendly units with you during counter-attack but it also means that you will have much more enemies to fight.
-Luring enemy will mean that you will have less enemies to fight during initial attack, but less troops with you during enemy counter-attack.

-Smarter enemy. Make enemies skill a bit higher so they would be more of a challenge. Make BMP in town less exposed to attacks. It was too easy to take out.

Nice mission by the way :good:!
If you see a light at the end of the tunnel, then it's probably an enemy tank.

Walter_E_Kurtz

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #8 on: 14 Dec 2009, 16:07:33 »
Bleedin' typical. Just when I was planning on moving away from being addressed as Walter or, God help me, Walt and instead being referred to with civility as Mister Kurtz, or maybe even Colonel Kurtz - my originally desired nom de guerre ...

(And there's no relation with Walter_E._Kurtz!).
I can only echo this as being true to my knowledge. Although I don't know how old you are; perhaps I met your mother?


Readme: Fine.

Overview: OK, but sneak closer to take the screenshot for the picture. The WGL Mod allows plenty of space for the overview to be displayed in.

Briefing:
   - markers work fine
   - needs a weapon selection. It doesn't have to be big, but otherwise it's a pain if I want to swap weapons with one of my team-mates. I'd say three each of AK-74s, Grenade Launchers, RPKs and PKs should be fine.
   - improve the skill of some of my team-mates: make at least a couple Veterans.
   - the objectives could better divided: the first one seems to check off as soon as the attack begins and the third shouldn't be joined. I'd suggest:
         1. Attack and eliminate the garrison.
         3. Hold the town against counter-attack.
     You may have to reconfigure the triggers for this as "alive _x" count ... for the various groups involved.

Mission:
   - only given it one try so far - didn't look after my squad and got taken out by the second wave.
   - you have a rogue line-break in recon.sqs preventing me from hearing later messages
Code: (recon.sqs) [Select]
#
loop2
   - since the WGL Mod mutes the radio messages, your mission really could do with some sounds (consider ripping Tasmanian Devil from the Resistance campaign - I thought there was a list of all dialogue from official missions somewhere, but I can't find it currently).
Quote
And did I put in too many ambient sounds (birds chirping, etc)?
   - if you name them, I think you can deleteVehicle them once the shooting starts.

Offline RKurtzDmitriyev

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #9 on: 14 Dec 2009, 20:07:37 »
Thanks for testing, Kurtz. Sorry about having a similar nickname. It wasn't intentional, I promise. I came up with "R. Kurtz Dmitriyev" as a funky pseudonym years ago.

Overview: OK, but sneak closer to take the screenshot for the picture. The WGL Mod allows plenty of space for the overview to be displayed in.

Roger.

Briefing:
   - markers work fine
   - needs a weapon selection. It doesn't have to be big, but otherwise it's a pain if I want to swap weapons with one of my team-mates. I'd say three each of AK-74s, Grenade Launchers, RPKs and PKs should be fine.

Roger. The reason I didn't add one to start with was that I wasn't sure how to balance it all. Gear screen will be improved, though.

- improve the skill of some of my team-mates: make at least a couple Veterans.

Hmmm...wouldn't want to make the mission too easy, but I can see your point as low-skill loons can be hard to work with. They're already at 50% skill. I'll give them more variety, at least. (some veterans, some rookies).

  - the objectives could better divided: the first one seems to check off as soon as the attack begins and the third shouldn't be joined. I'd suggest:
         1. Attack and eliminate the garrison.
         3. Hold the town against counter-attack.
     You may have to reconfigure the triggers for this as "alive _x" count ... for the various groups involved.

I'm not sure what you mean by the "the third shouldn't be joined." But I'll re-word the objectives.

Mission:
   - only given it one try so far - didn't look after my squad and got taken out by the second wave.
   - you have a rogue line-break in recon.sqs preventing me from hearing later messages
Code: (recon.sqs) [Select]
#
loop2

Thank you, will be fixed.  :)


  - since the WGL Mod mutes the radio messages, your mission really could do with some sounds (consider ripping Tasmanian Devil from the Resistance campaign - I thought there was a list of all dialogue from official missions somewhere, but I can't find it currently).

I'll see what I can do.  ;)

Quote
And did I put in too many ambient sounds (birds chirping, etc)?
  - if you name them, I think you can deleteVehicle them once the shooting starts.

Excellent idea, will be implemented.  :)

Thanks again!

EDIT: apparently I'm not allowed to double post, so here's feedback to Krieg as well.

-Sandbags. Add them so both enemy and player have more defensive options.

I'll add some more, but I was trying to portray the town garrison as somewhat ill-prepared (because they underestimated the resistance). So I don't want it to look like a hardened fortress. But a few more will hit the spot.  ;)

-Randomness & Strategy. Add more troops with less than 100% possibility of presence.

I'll consider it--I'll at least fiddle around with placement radii. (omg latin!!1)

And then also add maybe two options for Beast: To attack the town directly, or to try to lure most of town's infantry to woods so remaining resistance fighters would kill them there. Each options has it's advantage:
-Attack will mean that there will be more friendly units with you during counter-attack but it also means that you will have much more enemies to fight.
-Luring enemy will mean that you will have less enemies to fight during initial attack, but less troops with you during enemy counter-attack.

Interesting idea, I'll think about it.

-Smarter enemy. Make enemies skill a bit higher so they would be more of a challenge.

Will be implemented.

Make BMP in town less exposed to attacks. It was too easy to take out.

Eh, I'm not sure. The problem is that they'll be plenty more BMPs arriving in the counter-attacks, so it doesn't seem really necessary to make it hard to kill this one. I can't help but notice that no one so far has reported surviving all the counter-attacks.  :P

Nice mission by the way :good:!

Thank you, hope you'll play the next update too.
« Last Edit: 14 Dec 2009, 20:19:26 by RKurtzDmitriyev »
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Walter_E_Kurtz

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #10 on: 14 Dec 2009, 21:16:34 »
Just quickly.

Squad composition
   - would be fine for multiplayer where humans can pick up weapons from fallen comrades and drop extra ammo without being told.
   - I'd like a second RPG soldier in the squad, so I've less need of micro-managing their rearming.

Quote
I'm not sure what you mean by the "the third shouldn't be joined."
Simply that, relative to the briefing, the two tasks listed under that objective aren't connected. In other words, fighting off counter-attacks is meant to be optional.


It's a fair bit of work - adding to description.ext and placing extra units - but I'm interested to see what happens if I add a 60mm mortar base + tube to my squad. Will report back later...

Offline RKurtzDmitriyev

  • Former Staff
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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #11 on: 14 Dec 2009, 21:33:54 »
Just quickly.

Squad composition
   - would be fine for multiplayer where humans can pick up weapons from fallen comrades and drop extra ammo without being told.
   - I'd like a second RPG soldier in the squad, so I've less need of micro-managing their rearming.

This is a good point.

Quote
I'm not sure what you mean by the "the third shouldn't be joined."
Simply that, relative to the briefing, the two tasks listed under that objective aren't connected. In other words, fighting off counter-attacks is meant to be optional.

Ah, I get it now. Yes, I see what you mean.

Now, actually, eliminating the garrison is, in principle, optional, too--in fact, you can retreat right from the beginning and get the same ending as if you wiped them out and then fled the counterattacks. I'm just assuming that the player probably won't just retreat till he's at least shot some people. Now that I think of it, maybe I should change that, too--add a third "really bad" ending if you just flee the battlefield.

It's a fair bit of work - adding to description.ext and placing extra units - but I'm interested to see what happens if I add a 60mm mortar base + tube to my squad. Will report back later...

Thank you. I tried setting up WGL mortars a while back, but couldn't figure out how to make it work.

Thanks for the feedback. :)
The OFP Editing Center wishes to remind you that the faithful COMREF will never threaten to stab you and, in fact, cannot speak.
However, in the event that it does speak, you are encouraged to heed its advice. ;)

Walter_E_Kurtz

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Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #12 on: 15 Dec 2009, 16:40:40 »
Again showing callous disregard for my men, I made the attack. I took out the first wave armour and, having lost my entire squad, retreated West. Having ordered Beast to attack earlier, I now told them to retreat also. I don't think they did, because I later received a message that they were still moving into the town. Anyway, I got the bad ending but it was too dark to make out who was doing what to whom: a lot of blackness with a pale light in the centre, some zooming in, some figures seated around a fire, then more blackness and a firefight with tracers in the dark; impossible to tell what it was all about.


Mortars

I think most people will be relieved to discover that adding mortars is a lot easier in WGL5 than it was in earlier versions. The WGL 4 Technical Manual (page 70) explains how to make use of one in the field, but now it's safe to ignore most of how it describes adding one to a mission. You need to:

1. Place a (Side:) Game Logic ---> #WGL_Logics ---> Enable Mortars   game logic

2. Close by, place ONE mortar as a substitute for every one that will be available in the mission. In this case BLUFOR ---> Crewed Vehicles ---> M224 60mm Mortar

3. Add the following to description.ext
Code: (description.ext) [Select]
class Weapons
{
   class WGL_Mortar60WProxy
   {
   count = 1;
   };
   class WGL_Mortar60WTripodProxy
   {
   count = 1;
   };
};

class Magazines
{
   class WGL_Mortar60W_PDM
   {
   count = 4;
   };
   class WGL_Mortar60WP_PDM
   {
   count = 4;
   };
};
This makes available the 60mm tripod base and mortar tube, along with four rounds each of High Explosive and White Phosphorus, in the weapons selection.

Beware: I'm not sure why it is, but once you have assigned someone to carry the base or tube, the HE rounds will be LOST PERMANENTLY from the magazines available. So, FIRST give the HE rounds to yourself (easiest) BEFORE making someone ELSE carry the base and tube.


Example of use
Having noted the above problem, I take 4 HE rounds myself, assign the base to Number 6 (#6) and the tube to Number 7 (#7), who also gets the four WP rounds. Then I return the HE rounds to the pool and give them instead to #6.

Starting the game, I move the squad West to the edge of the wood and tell everyone to hold position. I instruct #6 to move to a position of my choice and use his action menu F6 - 6 - 1 (Deploy Base). #7 is told to move near to this position and mount the tube F7 - 6 - 2 (Mount Tube on Base).

Take a vague bearing on Larche from the mortar position. In Mils (the outer ring of the WGL compass) this is about 2700. As part of deploying the base, #6 drops his HE rounds on the floor so he has to be told to pick them up again.

#6 and #7 will be the ones using the mortar, so everyone else is moved out of the way. #6 needs to equip the mortar round before he can load them. From his action menu select "Reload 60mm HE Mortar". Once he has done that, he can put it in the tube - "Load Mortar HE". You should hear the noise of the mortar being loaded. These two steps will need to be repeated for each shot.

Switch to Map view. We can now order #6 to use the mortar, so press F6 - 6 - 1 (Fire Control). A box should appear at the top of the map screen, but to make best use of it we need some configuration.

Click on the G box and, as instructed, click on the map to mark the Mortar's position. Now click on the box marked T and then on the map on your intended target. Close the Dialogue box and exit the map screen.

Position yourself somewhere with a good view of the target and the rest of the squad, except #6 and #7, ready to assault.

My map reading is certainly not military grade, and yours' is probably just as bad. Order #6 to bring up the dialogue again F6 - 6 -1 (Fire Control). Click on the box marked Azimuth and enter the bearing we took earlier: 2700 Mils. You can calculate the necessary elevation if you want, I tend to guesstimate: 1525 Mils should drop them about 300 metres away. Having entered this info, click on the Target box. You may hear the mortar adjusting itself.

Once it's done, click Fire, then close the Dialogue box. Be prepared to wait; the flight time is approximately 26 seconds. Make use of this time by getting another round in the tube: order #6 to "Reload 60mm HE Mortar" and then to "Load Mortar HE".

You should hear the sound of the incoming mortar before it impacts on target. It's always good to start with a bang :)

Offline RKurtzDmitriyev

  • Former Staff
  • ****
Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification
« Reply #13 on: 16 Dec 2009, 19:24:47 »
Thanks for testing again, Kurtz. :)

Again showing callous disregard for my men, I made the attack. I took out the first wave armour and, having lost my entire squad, retreated West. Having ordered Beast to attack earlier, I now told them to retreat also. I don't think they did, because I later received a message that they were still moving into the town.

??? No idea why they wouldn't be retreating. On radio bravo, beastsquad is given a "move" command to position of object 18396 (next to the lighthouse in southwestern peninsula). They're definitely getting this move order when I play in the mission editor. Perhaps they fled, and moved backwards into the town. Did you get a transmission from them screaming that they need to pull out? If their group flees, then you should have.

I'm having them move to a different location in the next version, hopefully that will clear any problems up. :confused:

Anyway, I got the bad ending but it was too dark to make out who was doing what to whom: a lot of blackness with a pale light in the centre, some zooming in, some figures seated around a fire, then more blackness and a firefight with tracers in the dark; impossible to tell what it was all about.

My computer monitor must be set brighter than yours, because I could see the scene rather clearly. A bunch of Soviet VDV airborne men massacre a group of civilians lined up, and then the camera zooms in on the woman you saw in the opening cutscene. I'll reduce the skiptime so that the scene is easier to see.  :)

Thanks for the information about the mortars. I don't think I'll incorporate them into this mission, but maybe some other one.  ;)

EDIT: New version, check it out!!!  :D
« Last Edit: 18 Dec 2009, 20:45:58 by RKurtzDmitriyev »
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Offline Krieg

  • Mission Maker
  • Members
  • *
  • Who dares wins.
Re: [SP] Village De-Pacification (v. 2.7 ready for test!)
« Reply #14 on: 20 Dec 2009, 09:54:36 »
Tested version 2.7.

Package

As always, does it's job!

Overview

Good pic, but you might consider adding border to it.

Intro

Although there is no thing in this mission that is intro by engine, non-engine intro does it's job pretty well!

Briefing

Does it's job nicely.

Mission

I definitely noticed boosted enemy AI. It makes things a lot harder. I managed to seize the town, but paratroopers got me, as well as all of my men. It was pretty fun, actually. One thing I noticed is that mission lagged a bit at beginning of the firefight. But it was more than playable to me!

Outro

Did not reach it.

Overall

Good improvement with AI! Lag was increased to me, so try not to add too many new friends/enemies.

Suggestions

Beast squad

I have no idea when they are KIA. Perhaps add a script that detects if beast squad is KIA. If they are, add this radio chat thingy (edit it so it suits your needs):

Code: [Select]
beast sideChat "Abel! We are being overwhelmed! We need to... arghhh!!!"
~3
player sideChat "Beast! Beast! Beast do you copy?"
~3
player groupChat "Dammit! Beast is down!"

« Last Edit: 20 Dec 2009, 11:45:20 by Krieg »
If you see a light at the end of the tunnel, then it's probably an enemy tank.