AI Flight control

[Geskes]

I was checking out this awesome awesome video:

 

 

Time and time again....

 

And I thought wow that 9-line stuff is all in the game, having played the game you can understand the communication of the pilots really well.

 

So then I figured well lets make a scenario in DCS A10 where you are the AFAC and control wingman and AI flights like in that video.

 

For wingman and second flight element you can do it.

 

But not for AI flights as far as I can figure out. You can set radio triggers so player has some control but you can only have them attack on radio trigger activation at a predetermined point or area, predetermined group or engage at will. How nice would it be if there was a trigger option in the mission editor to have them engage targets at player SPI.

 

This would make it possible to put the player in a scenario where he has multiple assets, like flight of apaches, flight of f16 and a B1 and the player must decide based on what he sees happening on the ground which assets he wants to spend where exactly as in video. Also you could anchor them somewhere and with continuous triggers you could keep controlling them.

 

So does anyone think this should be possible with the Do Command > script option for lua script in the editor? Because I reason, if wingmen can receive your SPI it must be out there somewhere in the lua magic :) and then maybe the flightpath of the AI is not written in stone but can be altered by a Do Command. I for one, don't have a clue :joystick:

 

Maybe someday we can do it with the SADL :)

 

Sorry for taking your time, was just drooling about some of the possibilities we might see someday :music_whistling:

Edited October 23, 2010 by Geskes

[Grimes]

Ehhhhh yes and no. While the do command >script might work for pinpointing precise target areas, I think we can have relatively accurate commands via radio menu and "attack units in zone" commands. The trick is creating all the needed triggers and radio menu GUI to accommodate such commands. I've already got a wip trigger logic for radio menu/sub-menu format allowing for quick switching between related fields. I'm kinda leary on creating tricky trigger systems during the beta as I don't know if certain features will become broken or fixed. Not to mention 99% of what I build is intended for online play, if MP isn't technically supported in the current beta release or some features just don't work in MP, it just doesn't make sense to build stuff that won't work.

 

I hope some insight can be given regarding what Do Command> Script is capable of.

[Geskes]

The current commands like attack units in zone are accurate indeed, but it misses the dynamics of the player deciding where and what plane will attack. You'd always have to design every zone up front. I did a solution with 4 zones north east south and west and then have them skip to corresponding waypoint and "engage targets in zone" settings. Then give player the four zones as choice for each aircraft with different user flags. But I was just now thinking that maybe you can set as many engage target zones on one waypoint with different user flag conditions. Might be interesting. Then once they have cleared the zone, switch waypoint back to orbit waypoint and have a continuous radio trigger so you can keep control. I am going to see if that works :)

 

So you are into submenus already, wow, I wasnt that far into radio triggers yet. What do you mean by "quick switching between related fields?". Fully with you regarding not building complicated stuff. It might never work again the day after you made it..

 

Insight in script yes, the manual says with the script command you can make as complex a command as you wish haha. So lets wait and see.

[StrongHarm]

I was checking out this awesome awesome video:

 

Here's the manual that outlines SOP for operations such as those in the video.

[Grimes]

So you are into submenus already, wow, I wasnt that far into radio triggers yet. What do you mean by "quick switching between related fields?".

.

 

Basically I have several triggers.... Load Main, Unload Main, Load Sub1, Unload Sub1. Its setup to emulate the radio menu already in the game. So if you hit back it loads the previous menu. Still working out the kinks and I'm not even sure if it will work online. Afterall who would have the control? Just the first person to activate the radio menu. Sadly that system would be open to griefing. But I do hope it works online, that way we can have some super useful information be displayed when and only when players want it. Previously in FC2 I had to rely on an automated mission status update message. Most of the time players either didn't realize that the info was up there before they could read and process it, or they were annoyed because they already knew the info.

 

I think there is power to allowing the player to determine alot on the battlefield, however it should be said that a "player isnt the center of the universe" approach makes sense within a flight sim. A pilot isn't going to get every request they make, nor if they do, they might not be the top priority of the request.

[Geskes]

Here's the manual that outlines SOP for operations such as those in the video.

 

Many thanks for this great link. You truly are the master of manuals :)

 

Grimes, interesting menu you made. So everyone in multiplayer could access it? Would be bad in public servers I guess yes.

 

And indeed, player is not center of the universe, pilots aren't god, but when A-10 is in AFAC role it is bound to have control over some flights.

[Grimes]

Grimes, interesting menu you made. So everyone in multiplayer could access it? Would be bad in public servers I guess yes.

 

 

 

Probably yes. I intended on testing it in a mission tonight, however it relied on my old jerryrigged AFAC trigger script I made in FC2. Basically any of group enters moving zone attached to a Predator and Random variable to account of non-instant detection > send coords via text and/or procedural voice message. Since we can't have AI with waypoints online in the current beta build it sorta broke the system. Wish we could just build a custom radio menu that interacts via script that functions independently. As far as I can tell when someone changes a menu via triggers, it will be changed for all.

 

While it would be cool to add radio buttons to specific aircraft, coalitions, or countries, I'm not to worried about everyone given access to the commands. Mostly because 70% of what I plan to use them for are related to displaying information rather than performing a specific action. However that 30% will likely be highly controlled commands. What does worry me are the extra battlefield commander roles. A highly scripted mission could be destroyed by some smuck telling the main battle tank force to go to the ice cream store 40nm from where they are supposed to be. SooOOOOooooOoooo much griefing could accomplished as an artillery commander. All of the battlefield command roles ought to be password protected online.

 

We might see some cool usage of that stuff in private games, but the general public might become dissuaded from playing online if all the games are password protected.