(Review completed) [SP] Operation Dawning Hope v.1.0 RC out!

[Wolfrug]

Hello everyone!

Version: 1.0 RC
Type: Single Player
Island: Sahrani
Requirements: ArmA v.1.08 (compatible with 1.09 BETA)
Jonny's Marines v1.5


Link version 1.0: http://files.filefront.com/OperationDawningHopeSararar/;9565303;/fileinfo.html
Mirror version 1.0: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=CAQZL8XU

Version 1.0 Release Candidate is out! RC doesn't really mean anything though, it just means I'd like a review please! Unless someone finds any additonal horrible bugs introduced by my bug-hunting, but I hope not.
Known issues:
-Watch out for vehicles. In fact, avoid getting inside them most of the time. Messes things up. Not that you have many possibilities for commandeering a vehicle.
-You will switchcamera into the seat of the Cobra when it's put under your command. At least you'll know it's alive now (not an issue per say, but yeah, just a word of warning.)
-Laggy in places. Less laggy in Easy simply thanks to fewer enemies.

Version 0.32 hotfix-of-a-hotfix out: Mostly fixed the weirdo vehicle-CTD thing. You should now be able to use all vehicles without any problem. Also added some other minor things.

Version 0.31 "hotfix" out: Look below for version history. Most prominent fixes = fixed SCS Menu spam and re-locked the UAZ. Also added SPON_Status: press 'I' (by default) to get a resource which shows the different squads and their numbers. Useful for quick status checks.

Version 0.3 out! Look below for version history (quite extensive ) and have a good time betatesting it! Especially note the fact that the Squad Control System has been very much reworked and has been given a huge visual and functional upgrade. Hopefully you'll like it.

Also, in this version you have the option to select your difficulty at the start. I suggest using Easy if it's your first time, the other difficulties might be a bit harder. Still, if you find the balance to be off, please suggest what might make "easy" easier and "hard" harder. And if you still pass the mission with Impossible, I applaud you. 

Finally, you will notice in the difficulty selector that there's also a "Cheat Console". Basically you can type in  a cheat here, which ranges from invulnerability, more saves, and actually auto-completing certain objectives. Although this is a beta test, I don't want to give out quite all the cheats yet (although hey, opening up the pbo and taking a look isn't that hard I guess ): one you might want to use as Beta testers though is the Saves cheat (just write "Saves" with the capital S and without the quotes into the console and click Activate): this will give you 999 saves instead of the normal few ones, which might lessen the pain of beta-testing.

Oh, and I put some eastereggs/cheats down in the mission itself too. You can identify them by the brightly coloured traffic cones. They're mostly not very elaborate yet, but hey...there's at least ONE blooper in there someplace.

Enjoy!


EDIT#3: "Hotfixed" version up. Just fixes the overview picture + makes the version numbering proper
EDIT#2: I realized that the version downloadable up there has some slightly mistakes (the overview picture was an old one that didn't have the correct dimensions, and the briefing/mission still says v.0.1). I've corrected these and will put up the hotfix version sometime later. Now, however, friday beer-time 
EDIT: Thanks for the feedback so far! Here's version 0.2, slightly more polished, and VERY much more voiced! Hope you like it.  A BIIIG thank-you to all who've lent their voices to this mission, you all rock. I still need someone to actually finish the mission though before I can say anything else. Find me them bugs! Thankees! 

Version history:

0.1 BETA
-First release

0.2 BETA
-Voices added + some more NPC radio chatter + made some TTS voices sound better
-Added ability to disable enemy artillery also around the base
-Added visible prompt when D-30s are destroyed
-Added weapon selection to briefing
-Correction in intro (Lee)
-Added coloured & numbered dynamically updating markers for waypoints & squads (MrN)
-customized onPlayerKilled.sqs
-Added a new optional objective
-Some additonal work on the SCS
-Minor changes in briefing (DarkAngel)

0.3 BETA
-Completely reworked Squad Control System, now with many more functionalities, waypoint types and even synchronizing!
-Removed addon dependency of g85 editor upgrade & lowfly's editor upgrade 1.02
-hid radio option after engineers are finished
-reversed order of auxiliary 1/auxiliary 2 & added parenthesises after the name to explain their type (so it says Auxiliary 1 (Engineers) now)
-fixed various objectives not ticking off properly
-fixed certain radio sounds playing unnecessarily
-more effects on killing D-30s (smoke - taken from CSL's burning buildings script)
-Made primary objective slightly easier by disabling the D-30s ability to fire outside of the artillery attacks (on Easy and Hard difficulties)
-Made the max amount of Main Barrages 6
-Added more sounds (particularily to the artillery)!
-Added some easter eggs/cheats ^_^
-Added stuckcheck.sqf from LCD to the SCS, which will hopefully make units less likely to get stuck. :-/
-Added difficulty selector: Easy, Hard and Impossible are now selectable at mission start
-Changed to Version 1.5 RC of Jonny's Marines!

0.31 BETA
-Added SPON_Status to the mission! By default use 'I' to bring it up.
-Quickfix on UAZ-CTD bug (UAZ locked again)
-Fixed SCS-action spam (oops from my side).
-Changed: The harder the difficulty, the later in the day it is, which leaves you less time to complete the mission (Easy: 2h, Hard: 1,5h, Impossible: 1h)

0.32 BETA
-Minor fixes with SPON Status and quitting/resuming games
-Found the cause for the UAZ/any vehicle CTD bug! Consequently fixed it (in stuckcheck.sqf)
-Added another cheat, and as an extra bonus you'll get a list of the cheats if you finish the mission ^_^
-In ArmA 1.09 BETA, the M136 missile has been made less effective, requiring two hits to take down the short-range comms. This has been incorporated so that in Easy difficulty, the radars will already be slightly damaged (necessitating only one shots, as in 1.08), whereas in Hard and Impossible they still need two shots minimum.

1.0 RC
- Fixed some minor niggles with calling the artillery (LeeHunt)
- Fixed November 1 being called correctly (hopefully)
- Added another magazine to November 1's cannon, to encourage teamswitching & gunning
- Added another cheat
- Changed this readme a bit to reflect the current state of the mission.

A little about the mission:

It's set at the same time frame as mission #6 in the official ArmA campaign (Dawn of Hope). For those of you who have played the campaign, this is the point when you are to repell the attack on the airport, and then an amphibious landing while waiting for the USMC's arrival with air support. During this mission however you'll take part in a Marine Corps platoon's landing in the South-Western part of the island, with the objective of taking out some artillery units that, if used, will surely spell doom for the airport's defenders. Added to this are a number of side objectives which the player is at leave to decide whether he wants to complete or not.

As the "gimmick" of the mission, there's a squad-control system in place (I suck at dialogs, so pardon the ugliness of it) which is further described in the briefing. This system has basically divided your part of the platoon into three fire teams : Blue (you), Red and Green, to which you can give orders, waypoints and the like to. Also I have experimentally included TeamSwitch, but keep in mind it's not what the system was designed around, so expect a certain amount of buggyness if you use it.

Additionally there's player-usable CAS and artillery (both subject to availability), Kronzky's UPS (very usable in out-of-urban areas as well, makes the AI rather scary sometimes), and a chunk of randomness (mostly enemy placements and the like) which hopefully make the mission fun on a second playthrough as well. Also, I've used some Text-To-Speech programs to make the enemy radio chatter audible.

Addons used:

Jonny's Marines v.1.5 RC (look above for link)

Hints and tips:
- In the beginning, you can write in cheats in the appropriate line below the difficulty choice (note: write in cheats -before- picking your difficulty). Once you've completed the mission once, you'll get a list of all the cheats available, but here are two that might help you to start (minus the quotes, case sensitive): 'Saves' (gives you 1000 saves) and 'Bodyarmor' (improves survivability of friendly soldiers). There are also some easter-eggs here and there that will work like some of the cheats, if the going is getting hard
- Don't go for Hard or Impossible from the start, unless you want a special challenge.
- The enemy artillery is very dangerous! Consider destroying the short-range comm stations -before- getting spotted (even if it means taking a longer way around)!
- You're on a time limit! If USS Poseidon gives you a warning, it means you haven't got much time left! The time limit is different depending on difficulty. Once you've completed your main objective (the D-30s), there's no more time limit.
- You don't have to complete the objectives in the given order. If the obvious approach is too hard, try an alternative. Remember you don't have to attack all objectives with all your units - that's what the SCS is for!

Good luck!



Thank you!

Wolfrug out.

[LeeHunt]

Wow!  This is quite a sophisticated and awesome mission so far.  I'm in the midst of testing this and a couple others, but I wanted to get something up on the board because this one is definitely worth checking out.  Here is a brief youtube video of gameplay (low res, new PC coming in a month!).  Project Beta definitely got people motivated to create some really good content, there's gonna be a lot of good missions to play (I'm guessing ArmA 2 won't REALLY be out for like 3 years given past press releases)...
This video is actually kind of funny because you can hear what happens to my squad while i'm checking the map...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhZTEqjl8Es

Overview

Minor type Infrantry instead of Infantry
The sentence here is a bit of a run-on, could be more concise.

Intro

"Oh and rescue" instead of "oh and rescuing" stryker brigade

UAV images are a great idea.  That's setting the bar higher for all of us!     Maybe include them in the briefing for further scanning? 

Briefing

Outstanding.  Very well done.  Very thorough and this makes me realize I need to sit back, crack open a beer and spend a few minutes studying the mission before diving into the action. Only suggestion here is to add UAV images and maybe shorten the briefing a tad. 

Mission

At first its overwhelming (though believe me readers this is pretty cool)-- there' a lot of radio chatter and interface options.  Perhaps the player could start in the boat and work his way up to the landing, learning the keys early on?  I was a bit confused by the squad camera and when its on and off, got stuck at one point and wasn't sure why.  Realized it was the camera, but that could be simplified.  Voiceovers for the radio chatter are a must. The lightning storm in the background is great.  I moved my squad to the west and into the woods rather than directly on the first objective. 

I didnt know what all the radio commands were and the Aux 2 wasn't clear as radio command 6.  I think you have to dumb things down a bit.

When i died i got this error mesage "_killer = _this select 1" for what its worth.

As i got started and fiddled with the waypoints i realized further how cool and extensive this mission will be, and I want to savor it and enjoy it. So i wanted to give you an early beta report but then spend a few days playing and enjoying the mission rather than rushing through just for a report.  But to answer your main question, this is definitely worth working on further and its pretty fun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhZTEqjl8Es

[Wolfrug]

  Thanks a lot Lee! That means much to me, I've been working on it for an awfully long time (on and off, though). And I agree : voice overs are definately needed, that's why I've got the thread going (hint hint ^^).

The "_killer = _this select 1" comes from the trigger that runs the default onplayerkilled.sqs script if aP (Bravo squad leader, the "original" player) is killed: this basically prevents you from being able to, if your diary-writing protagonist is killed, just teamswitch and continue on. To fix that I probably simply need to write a custom onplayerkilled.sqs.

Also, I realised I had forgotten to add a weapons selection to the briefing >_< My bad. Now your character talks about bringing satchels without actually having the ability to do so, d'oh. Also I know some people can't stand the ACOG-scoped weapons, so giving some other alternatives might be a good idea.  Would be nice to get some more bug-comments before that though, so that I can put them all in at once.

Thanks again, Lee!

Edit 2.9.2007

I've received quite a lot of voices already from my excellent friends (Cheetah, LCD, Johnnyboy, still waiting for some more ) which I've put into the mission and tested, so now I just need the last couple and the mission will be fully voiced!  Otherwise I've also added some new things here and there and generally put some work into it (including weapon selection at start), but I still desperately need some beta reports that can tell me what is too hard and what is too easy!

I'm guessing the reason for the lack of beta reports is that you're all getting ass kicked  C'mon, at least admit to it (hint: when you see the flash of enemy artillery, it's already getting a bit too late )

Wolfrug out.

Wolfrug out.

[MrN]

Overview:Intro:
Bloody marvellous, simple and to the point. Loved the satellite cam.

Briefing:Mission:

And

_k # dowatch [_x,_y,5000] comes back a couple of times.

Kills:
N/A
Outro:
N/A

Conclusion.

[Wolfrug]

  Thanks for the feedback MrN, I guess some things do indeed need explanation.

1st: Did you read the briefing? It's extensive, I know, but it does give you the necessary information (the template was borrowed from some CoC OFP missions). But here're some facts which are, I suppose, counterintuitive to the "normal" OFP/ArmA gamer:

The MAIN OBJECTIVE of the day is to take out those D-30s, this is why it's marked as "objective 1". The two other objectives are SIDE objectives: it's -not- necessary to complete these to complete the mission (in principle). However, they're both steps on the way to completing the main objective successfully (each give access to forms of support that make the final assault easier - hopefully). The objectives are listed in ORDER OF IMPORTANCE, not necessary order of completion.

Alpha lands at Estrella, Bravo lands south of St. Peregrino. Alpha's first task is to clear a beachhead for the rest of the MEU, whereas Bravo's first task is to CAPTURE (it's stated several times in the readme, capture, not destroy) the main enemy radar tower. This is done simply by moving the Engineers (Auxiliary 7) close enough to the radar tower. Of course, before doing that you need to clear it of enemy forces.

2nd: What is not, I admit, described in quite as much detail is how to prevent the D-30 artillery from pounding you to hell. Basically, you're supposed to read the briefing and figure it out yourself, but I'll just spoil it for you here:

(SPOILER!!)
The enemy artillery gets its coordinates via short-range comms, such as for instance that radio tower. There are two other instances of such short-range communications in this mission, destroying each will disable the artillery in that area. Any unit that spots any of your units is capable of calling in artillery and will also do so with deadly accuracy: therefore it's a priority to take out the short-range comms units/buildings ASAP if you wish to survive.
Also, once you've captured the long-range comm station, you will be able to listen in on enemy communications, INCLUDING messages that tell you that the enemy has received coordinates for the artillery (which might give you a head start to moving your troops the hell away). Also: the first short-range comms station is used to call in reinforcements to the radar tower if not destroyed soon enough. Once again something that probably merits more mention in the briefing.
(/SPOILER)

Suggestions:

Marker with leaders: Of course  I'll get right on it. I think I can also add some kind of dynamic, moving markers which mark where the other units' waypoints are (and change colour depending on if they're gone through or not).

Clicking map instead: You did read the readme of the SCS (under "Signals - Special"), right? You can add new waypoints by shift-clicking anywhere on the map.

Control of squad on action menu: You mean getting up the dialog screen? Problem is, to "select" a waypoint you need to move it a little bit (until a hit pops up telling you it's selected), and you can't do that unless you're in the map anyway. However, I could probably make it so that it by default selects the "current" waypoint of the squad, so that you can change behaviours etc much faster. 

Error messages: They seem to be from Mr.Murray's artillery script (which is the script used in this mission). Probably for some reason the unit which was supposed to be the target wasn't properly transmitted to the script. Hm. I'll see what I can do. Right now they don't really affect the mission though.

Thanks for trying anyway, MrN : expect a new version within days, once I get the final voice files from firecontrol and Lee -> then you can get splatted repeatedly while listening to real voice acting! 

Also, I'll think about pulling the Squad Control System from the mission and giving it its own little 'training mission' for people to practice on

Wolfrug out.

[MrN]

I admit to having come across as a grumpy old git, sorry mate. 

I had 2 hours free time and saw that your mission has had few tests compared to the amount that you've done and thought I'd "dip in",  have a quick play and write up a mission in that time. What I hadn't taken on board was how complex your mission is.

I did read the briefing, which is very extensive and informative but also a bit long.

You can add new waypoints by shift-clicking anywhere on the map.

Er...now you mention it I do seem to remember reading that. 

then you can get splatted repeatedly while listening to real voice acting!

I'll look forward to it. I'll also give it a proper try.

Cheers
 

[LeeHunt]

hey Wolfrug,

Back in action.  Got a bit further, on to Estrella.  My other two squads are unresponsive at the radio tower unfortunately, and i'm not sure how to get them moving again.  Couldn't figure it out, again another vote for a simplified command system, though obviously this is on the right track for sure! 

Great idea on the OPFOR radio conversations. Very cool and makes the mission more exciting.  I am still loving this one and really recommend people on the forum check it out.

There could be a - "we got the new waypoint order, moving on" message from your fellow squads to confirm things.  But everything else is really great. Difficulty level up to Estrella is good, i like the counterattack ( i wiped it out with one M136 round heh heh heh  ).  Will post more later...

[Wolfrug]

My other two squads are unresponsive at the radio tower unfortunately, and i'm not sure how to get them moving again.  Couldn't figure it out, again another vote for a simplified command system, though obviously this is on the right track for sure!

Two potential reasons:
1) They simply have run out of waypoints  Shift-click on the map when they're selected to give them some more!
2) ArmA AI  I see this intermittently during the mission, I really still have no idea why it happens. Some possible solutions:
- try moving their current waypoint a little bit, until you hear the guy order his men again to "move to that position"
- check the status of the unit: they're all set to speedmode "medium" (I think I'll try to stick on a speedmode-selector to the dialog. Phoie. I suck at dialogs >_<), which means they'll wait for their teammates before moving on. Sometimes the whole squad will be stuck because one teammate is stuck -> try to untangle him
- Team Switch! Team-switched, you're the player, which apparently unlocks a lot of the AI-stupidity of ArmA. Ordering people around actually works then, so a quick teamswitch with some "Return to formation!" commands and movement SHOULD solve the problem. 

I've been working on a system to confirm having reached a waypoint etc, but it's a bit complicated for a number of reasons. First, your waypoints might be "hold" waypoints or "search&destroy", which means I can't use the waypoints "on activation" field (they won't be activated until the waypoint is passed). Second, they can be moved around freely and added to freely, which means that if I want to use triggers, they'd have to be created dynamically and moved dynamically. Finally, you have the "cycle" waypoint as an option, which basically means you can "Reuse" old waypoints, so the triggers should somehow be able to spot that as well. But I'll work on it. I think adding a simple "waypoint passed, moving on" should be easy enough. 

Also: Thought you'd be interested in this (Version changelog). I'll put it on the first post once I've finished 0.2, and keep it updated from there. 

0.1 BETA
-First release

0.2 BETA
-Voices added + some more NPC radio chatter
-Added ability to disable enemy artillery also around the base
-Added visible prompt when D-30s are destroyed
-Added weapon selection to briefing
-Correction in intro (Lee)
-Added coloured & numbered dynamically updating markers for waypoints & squads (MrN)
-customized onPlayerKilled.sqs

Wolfrug out.

[johnnyboy]

Hey Wolf, just downloaded the mission, and look forward to trying it out (may take me a few days to get the time though).

I have one suggestion though, and that is to reduce the # of addons.  I think many people won't bother downloading a mission if there is too many addons.

I believe all the objects in the Editor Addons you can add to the mission WITHOUT using the addons, by either replacing a standard object using createVehicle, or editing the mission.sqm after they have been placed.  See this thread where I describe one of these techniques to Lee:

http://www.ofpec.com/forum/index.php?topic=30189.0

But, if you already have a zillion of these objects in your mission, it might not be worth the effort to you, in which case just keep it mind for your next project.

[Wolfrug]

  I know, I know. Especially since I made the mistake of having TWO editor addons in a mission that really doesn't necessarily need either one.  (seeing as there are other, addon-free methods of achieving the same). This is certainly something for future considerations!

However, I included both of the (very small) editor upgrades in the .rar, so all you REALLY need to download is Johnny's marines. They're really necessary though, since, like, we're playing the USMC here. 

Thanks for volunteering to Beta-test! Once I get the last voices I'll release version 0.2 with a bunch of minor changes like detailed above (+ more). I'm working on this all the time - I can still use all the feedback you have to give on this version though!

Wolfrug out.

[DarkAngel]

Hey Wolfrug, have just given this one a spin. Command system worked fine for me but I wondered - could there possibly be markers for squad positions? It'd just be good to know where all my squads are when planning an assault, without needing to cycle through them all. No biggie, just thought I'd mention it. My only actual problem with the mission was that I couldn't work out how to move the engineer unit up to the radio tower to blow it...which kind of put a dampener on the whole thing. They don't seem to respond to waypoint changes (ie I can't shift-click them new WPs) and you can't teamswitch into them either. Having read the previous posts I realise that some bad guy or other has probably got a satchel I can borrow, but haven't tried this yet.

Otherwise looks great. I really like your intro and it'll be even better with custom sound.

Small point re briefing - in the "Intel" section you use the phrase "strenuous at best" when I think what you mean is "tenuous at best".

This has huge potential! 

[megz]

ohh sounds good, gonna give it a try tomorrow mornin, after i've finished the other one.

 

P.S if you need another voice actor (british northern accent) i can do.

You can hear my voice in this http://files-upload.com/files/483312/revenge intro.Sara.zip

I am liam, and the UN driver, and the wife (dont ask)

[Wolfrug]

Thanks for the feedback folks! 

You can expect a (nearly) fully voiced version 0.2 later today, which also includes the markers for unit positions that people have been wanting. It's nowhere near completion yet, but at least it LOOKS and SOUNDS a bit better (I think!).

I'll also update the first post then with a changelog + new links.

@DarkAngel

The basis of the SCS is actually that you can MOVE the waypoints themselves (like you can in the editor). Just pick the visible waypoints up and move them anywhere you want. This also works for the auxiliary units : you can order them around by moving their one active waypoint around (in this case the Hold waypoint for the Engineers). 

This is because you don't really need the same amount of control over the engineers as over your regular squads, just enough to tell them to hold back and to move up. 

Anyway! New version coming soon!

Wolfrug out.

[DarkAngel]

Ah right, I get it. Think I had it more or less down with my squads but clearly I didn't try actually moving the sappers' waypoints. Will try again with the new version later then.

[Hawkins]

New version doesn't have the editor addons in the package, at least I didn't notice them. Downloaded the old verison and got them from there though. Will give this mission a spin.