Dynamic mission generator - idea

[swift]

Just thinking out loud. I've been fiddling around with the mission generator and it's great, it'll be a stellar feature (brilliant stuff Nikolay). One of the best things of it is that all the code, as far as I know, is coded in Lua. Therefore that code could be called externally and generate missions, in theory. The point is, that you could code a slick mission script that based on the success or failure of the current mission and the events of it, generates a new mission with the mission generator Lua code and load it. The process would involve toying with this function parameters in MissionEditor\modules\me_generator.lua

 

function generate(playerParams, runningFromEditor, theatreOfWar, nodesIds, redTemplId, blueTemplId)

It's not the Dynamic Campaign Valhalla, but it could be an interesting way of generate random missions, with some relation with the previous mission. Think about the possibilities of a multiplayer server generating dynamically linked missions. If somehow, a droll like me, can think about coding this, what can't be done by inside coders? DC?

[aceflier]

This is already possible without using anything but the editor. Problem I have is after X mission ends and Y mission starts in multiplayer mission starts paused got to find away around that to continue the story/campaign.

 

Got my server setup to reload the next mission very possible to do a flag to start x or y mission with either failed or success results.

 

Somthing like this.

 

Once/if unit dead(red side)/set flag 1/Text/sound to coalition Mission success

Once/if flag1 true/load mission Y

Once/if unit dead(blue side/set flag2/Text/sound to coalition Mission failure

Once/if flag2 true/load mission X

 

Or say you want to do a terrorist type scenario....

 

Once/unit insize zone(unit1)a/explode unit2

once/unit2 dead/set flag1

once/flag1 true/text to coalition(Troops we have failed in our mission better luck next time)

once/time since flag1(30)/load mission X

 

 

Just play around with it some. I'm still learning daily(Grimes is my Hero!) but alot you can do.

Edited November 23, 2010 by aceflier

[swift]

The point is generate missions instead of loading missions already made. In fact the scenario would be similar to the one you said but before loading the mission it would evaluate the events of the current/previous missions and create a new one with the mission generator functions.

 

As mission designer you loose control of the exact situation, everything is driven by templates and nodes now, but you gain a great deal of randomness and the missions have some relation with the previous ones. With the new scripting capabilities inside missions, you can even create your own logs of the mission and save it to files. Those logs could be used to generate more missions based on the previous results.

[Ripcord]

I have also been giving this some thought and I am very intrigued with this mission generator tool.

 

In fact I thought I would use the generator to create a few dozen missions with front battleline action set in one general area, and edit them a little, and that would be one level of the campaign. And then build/generate a few dozen more with the front lines having shifted etc. Save them, put them in a folder, and keep generating for each level of the campaign. Each one can get maybe just a few minutes of 'personal touch' if the user chooses, or just a few of them, maybe, but for the most part they are 'assembly line production' missions -- no different than making your own campaign by hand, just automating the production process if you will.

 

But from what I can see, the mission generator gives you just a basic 'go bomb bad guys' mission template, with out specific tactical goals. It's cool, it creates a fun environment to fly/fight in, gives you a set of waypoints, but that is about it. Looking at the missions in the ME, really I don't see even how it scores the outcome -- there do not appear to be any winners or losers.

 

So I am wondering if the actual template of the mission generator can be altered to include a little more, say some triggers and actions and goals, etc?

 

Can there be more than one of these templates? For example, can we have a BAI missoin template, can we have a CSAR mission template, can we have a CAS (defending some friendly units on the move)...., so that we aren't essentially flying the same mission each time, in a different location with different participants?

 

I realize this is very different from what you are describing, which would be even more cool. But even with what we have now, I thinking maybe this generator thing might have a lot of utility if this can be accomplished.

 

Ripcord

Edited November 24, 2010 by Ripcord

[swift]

Every time you kill an entire group it'll give you score points, check the triggers section of the generated mission. As you said right now it only provides a very basic battleground with a couple of waypoints and defensive/offensive moving troops. The type of mission templates that you described would be great, including others easier to implement like strike, interdiction, SEAD, etc. I hope that eventually we'll have them all.

 

I guess that the mission generator is a work in progress, maybe not completed before the release of the A10C module. But when is the software 'completed'? :renske:

[Ripcord]

Every time you kill an entire group it'll give you score points, check the triggers section of the generated mission. As you said right now it only provides a very basic battleground with a couple of waypoints and defensive/offensive moving troops. The type of mission templates that you described would be great, including others easier to implement like strike, interdiction, SEAD, etc. I hope that eventually we'll have them all.

 

I guess that the mission generator is a work in progress, maybe not completed before the release of the A10C module. But when is the software 'completed'? :renske:

 

Sorry to resurrect this old thread but during the last week or two, I have really been spending more time try to better understand this MG tool.

 

I still do not see that it allows the user score points in its current form, it only gives little 'messages' when points are scored. The goals sections are still empty for both the blue side and the red side.

 

But that is OK, I can see that this tool is not completed yet. I would like to hear more about the plans for this MG tool and what form it will take when released.

 

Ripcord