What DCS's mission editor needs to make more fufilling campaigns!(on top of bugfixin)

[Drexx]

This writeup showed up in our 16agr.com squadron forums when I asked what scripts/mission updates would I need to make the -=16agr=- US East server more fun and fullfilling and Pickle wrote up a long paragraph on Falcon BMS and DCS should implement from of its features

 

In DCS, what you have when you enter the aircraft is what you get. In Falcon, you plan your route, go into Recon and see your target and plot your target steerpoints, look at the other flights in the ATO (and in your package if you are in one), set your loadout and if you use Weapon Delivery Planner you also have full control over just about anything and everything to do with the DTC. This means you have a much better understanding of the flight you're about to undertake, and it means you aren't stuck doing what the mission designed intended for you to do as it is in DCS.

 

Dynamic Functionality: in DCS, we know aircraft will be coming and typically we can count the number of aircraft and can also determine which airbase they originate from. This makes flying CAP or doing a fighter sweep boring and utterly predictable. Further, enemy aircraft are infinite. In Falcon, you and your enemies have a definite number of aircraft (minus resupply but that doesn't happen often) which means that if they start with 18 and you kill 9 of them, 9 remain to be used in that squadron. It makes doing CAP/sweep worthwhile because not only are you taking down their limited number of airframes, but you are preserving your limited number of airframes. Everything also has a purpose and is not random, like Jester said. That means packages are fragged based on priority and PAK settings that are determined by you or HQ. That means, for instance, on Balkans ground forces won't consolidate in Vicenza and then roll hard down to Gioia because they were scripted to.

 

Extended Strategic Goals: In DCS, you pretty much are limited to flying CAP, SEAD/DEAD or ground attack. You also have the end goal of taking FARPs/airfields, but this is still severely simplistic compared to Falcon. In Falcon, you have politic targets (cities), CCC, infrastructure, war production et cetera. These all contribute to the overall power, if you will, of you and your enemies. Vehicles and aircraft need fuel. Therefore, you need to take out POL facilities. Your forces are behind a major river. Therefore, you bomb the bridges crossing the river and prevent them from crossing and attacking your forces. Aircraft and vehicles require munitions to be useful. Therefore, you attack munitions factories. You get the idea. There's so much more to be done than simply hop in the pit, shoot down 30 F-15s and call it a night. It also encourages coordination and using strategy to reach the greater end goal.

 

Better flight AI: I'll talk about packages here and why they're so important. If you wait about 3 hours into a campaign and check out the ATO, you'll see a lot of RECCE, HAVCAP, CCC/ABCCC, SEAD/DEAD, ECM SUPPORT, AI, CAS/PREPLANNED CAS, AFAC and many others that I can't think of right off hand. More specifically, you won't see an AWACS flying without HAVCAP. You'll see bombers flying with HAVCAP/ESCORT and SEAD. You'll see AFAC flying with strikers. Very few flights will be non package flights. In DCS, most people go it alone without support or coordination. You'll see A-10s attacking SAM sites without ECM or SEAD support. In my opinion, this hampers the experience significantly.

 

I could keep going on. I hope this was at least semi-coherent and that you can get some useful ideas out of it.

 

- [16AGR]-Pickle

 

I am working with many scripts to try to make this stuff happen and make the missions more fun. If you have any suggestions leave them here, or pop on our server and let us know

 

-=16AGR=- US EAST , currently running Mazdok VS Vaziani map - lots of people like the dynamics of the convoys, takable bases + Farps, + AI + CTLD with real sling loading.

[ESAc_matador]

Something I miss is individual briefings.

 

Many of the things this guy wants are present, but you have to do it. And that is a problem. Not everyone has the skills.

 

You can make the aircrafts accountable, taking off from different airports airports, you can do lots lots of things, but! The concept is different. What we don't have in dcs is the grand scale, something dynamic.that makes you want to live above all.

The best of DCS is that you can put "situations".

 

What I miss the most is the EW enviroment. And good servers, where 100% of the pilots work as a team.

 

I am really excited with what Mbot will release soon.

[Drexx]

Something I miss is individual briefings.

 

Many of the things this guy wants are present, but you have to do it. And that is a problem. Not everyone has the skills.

 

You can make the aircrafts accountable, taking off from different airports airports, you can do lots lots of things, but! The concept is different. What we don't have in dcs is the grand scale, something dynamic.that makes you want to live above all.

The best of DCS is that you can put "situations".

 

What I miss the most is the EW enviroment. And good servers, where 100% of the pilots work as a team.

 

I am really excited with what Mbot will release soon.

 

It seems Mbot is working on more a of a single player dynamic campaign engine, I am more interested in the multiplayer aspect, both sides fighting and affecting each other by their actions. That is what Mazdov_VS_Vaziani is all about. Our group has been working more and more as a team, fight back the enemy CAP so that SEAD and CAS can happen. If the enemy needs to re-enforce they can by the slingloading aspect. and both sides have constant convoys pushing there respective fronts. (I coded it using MOOSE, MIST, CTLD and EWRS scripts + my own stuff, I modified and elaborated on my own, wish blue flag and others wouldnt obfuscate there code, making us other scripters start from scratch at times writing the same code over and over.....)

Edited September 28, 2016 by Drexx

[ESAc_matador]

In your server is there IA flights? Accountable? Air balancer from MOOSE seems very good for that.

[Drexx]

The air balancer enables ALL of your slots, since I put all the airplanes in the mission to make it fun, the air balancer will crate that many planes, you'll have 100+ AI in the skys lol

 

I use the spawn template randomizer, there is a lot of code behind it, many scripts. Each farp and base is takeable, it will turn on and off the slots depending on who owns it. cap and rnd plane spawns, heli AI spawns, convoys heading to each other - lots going on, makes it fun - ctld on top of it modified to include more items to deploy