Ideas and storylines for Helicopter / Tank campaign

[Snake Man]

I made the foolish thing to promise a helicopter and tank missions for PMC First Fight, but things developed and it was discussed that I should rather keep it infantry only and do new campaigns (check here).

So what kind of helicopter and tank campaign that might be, just one campaign with both units in use, or individual campaigns for both unit types?

Any ideas for storyline?

I'm thinking of keeping it addon free, but feel free to suggest addons.

[T_Rex]

Well, Fulda Gap always comes to mind.

Red strategy uses overwhelming number of tanks.

Blue strategy is to use fewer tanks, with greater range/accuracy, and helos to reduce the numeric advantage.

Red counter-strategy is to use helos to attack blue helos and integrate MANPADs to take out blue helos. And build more tanks.

Storyline could be something based on the Sov tanks rolling into Czechoslovakia in 1968. Or the speed-bump defenses along the Korean Peninsula. Political instability on one side of the border offers an opportunity for a massive mech invasion by the other.

[Snake Man]

All right for the helo campaign we at least pour huge amounts of BMP's and T72's to shoot, dunno if same works for tank campaign... even if we have a lot of helo support in tank campaign, can the friendly M1A1's hold their ground on massive red assault... dunno.

But at least I'll try to use that as basis in the helo campaign. Perhaps use scripts to create more tanks so we don't get too much slowdowns, nothing more lamer than mission with 300 tanks and your helo opposing them.

If I don't come up with other storylines, its just a story to clean up whole Sahrani starting from Rahmadi airstrip, fly to mainland and blast all enemy tanks.

[T_Rex]

hehe

Hate to bring up "dynamic" but how about something where certain (random) cities spawn more tanks or have heavier defenses?

[Snake Man]

Well yeah the replay ability factor, however its not high (or at all) in my priority list, I would be totally happy with just a nice layout of the OPFOR defenses.

Sure I have the scripts ready to go from my PMC Real War campaign, but I don't know... doesn't feel like it would provide anything useful in this campaign. I'd estimate that user plays this campaign through once and that's it.

For the helo campaign now I just see it starting as standoff shooting into the mainland and then perhaps there would be some more precise hunting of OPFOR leadership (infantry) or something like this. I'm still thinking about the strelas / manpads, I mean those are kind of ON/OFF for players survivability, if one is shot at you, you are toast, you get zero warning, zero chances of countermeasures etc. Its kind of like Russian roulette, if one is out there... its your time to go. Maybe the mission difficulty or thrill would come from ZSU's.

As for tank campaign, no ideas together yet. Well OK one idea, to link up the missions, ie even mission making side to cheat a a bit, do one mission but separate it for tank and helo campaign just by changing Playable setting from helo to a tank and editing briefing hehe. Well OK that would be somewhat lame mission editing wise, but it would be sort of nice to have 2 PMC campaigns... which actually are the same, but just portraying a same war/missions from different roles (helo and tank). Dunno.

[Snake Man]

Aw come on now, someone must have some ideas of storylines or mission design / styles. Even if you have small things or stupid ideas... please post them here, we have pretty much none now so we really would appreciate some.

Please join in with idea, it will surely help.

[T_Rex]

I think the fundamental tension with tanks and helos as weapons platforms is that they both still fundamentally rely on the 3000 year old idea of infantry. Tanks have speed and armor, but sacrifice the ability to be aware of their surroundings. Helos have MORE speed and the advantage of height, but can't actually occupy territory and have a hard time picking out dismounted targets.

An infantry platoon with anti-air/anti-tank missiles can make a very dangerous environment for them.

Maybe look at doing something that emphasizes the need for infantry.

Like, for tanks, let's say a group of tanks got too far ahead of their supporting infantry and was actually fighting to get BACK to their lines?

[Snake Man]

I'm now in the process of creating the missions for the Helo campaign. There is no storyline which is common now in our ArmA campaigns, in the campaign start you are provided with map of Sahrani which has 6 sectors in it, you can then choose which sector you want to clear first. When you have chosen, the first mission begins in that sector. When the mission ends, you are provided with the map again and now you have 5 sectors to choose as you just cleared one. After all the sectors have been cleared, campaign ends.

Not anything fancy, but just something to fool around maybe next time playing it, so its not that tunnel vision hard code scripted. I had some additional ideas to enhance this interactivity, but I frankly don't have the passion to do it, I mean this campaign is done just because I was foolish loudmouth back in the ArmA early days and promised helo and tank campaign missions, well now you got helo campaign (tank one is still todo, sigh).

I have not decide of the name yet, closest candidate was "Red Harvest" what I had in mind, then by miracle I can around the ArmA 2 campaign files and uh oh, its campaign name is "Harvest Red" hehe how lame would it be to have our campaign named as close as that. Scrap one campaign name suggestion...

Just an small update.

[T_Rex]

For the campaign name, how about something like "Red Dare" - it is a sound-alike for "Red Air."

[Taconic]

My suggestions:

Does it have to be a gunship campaign? I've always thought that a transport campaign could be interesting if done right. The player could pilot a Blackhawk or Hip (or even a Littlebird.) His job would be to insert/extract spec ops. Night missions with lots of low level flying and tricky insertions (steep valleys, forest clearings, etc.) Enemy contact should be avoided entirely if the player is good.

I found extraction missions tough to balance in OFP, but a few of those could be fun if done right. It's just a matter of getting friendly units to cover the LZ while you load up so that you aren't immediately toasted.

If you want to do a gunship campaign, I'd suggest an SLA Ka-50 campaign that plays to the strengths of a gunship rather than just being about "fly here and blow everything up." Missions where nape of the earth flying is required with last minute popups to take out a specific target would be a big change of pace from the typical OFP/Arma chopper mission. No taking out whole bases--the player should be totally outgunned and have to fly intelligently to survive. Even taking out one or two targets should feel satisfying.

Either way, I think a downed pilot mission would be good in either. One of my favorite OFP missions started out with your chopper down and you had to get back behind friendly lines on Nogova. It was a pretty intense mission. You could just put a trigger across the front line to end the mission.


As for an armor campaign... Why not do a Shilka campaign? Nobody has ever done that (though i did plan one back in the OFP days.) Rather than just having boring missions where you sit around a base waiting for choppers, the player could be a part of an AA unit integrated into larger missions. Providing AA/fire support for an infantry/armor assault on a target, for example. Or providing air defense for a convoy. Aircraft don't even need to be a part of every mission because the Shilka's also a hell of a direct fire platform.

It'd be something different.

[Snake Man]

I have now completed the 6 missions for the helo campaign. When the campaign starts, Sahrani is in six sectors, player need to use radio to choose which sector he attacks first.

After the first mission is done, then player is again provided with selection of sectors except that this time the campaign remembers which sector he has already completed. Campaign ends when all six sectors have been completed.

Its a shoot 'em up, go there and blow everything up.

When I tested the first mission, it was kind of cool with 5km viewdistance to approach Sahrani coastline and start to let off some Hellfires, but after some gunfights when hellfires and FFARs were expended it started to get boring. I felt that now that the bulk of the enemy defenses (read, T72's and perhaps BMP's) are down, it would be very interesting and cool to change the mission focus by sending in friendly invasion forces by Blackhawks which would insert infantry to the coastline, they would then proceed to clear and capture the actual targets.

But oh man... do we get into the mess of AI screwing themselves up and non activating triggers and everything if we bring them into the play. I would really want to see that setup when it would work perfectly... but its a big big can of worms which I wouldn't want to touch at all

After all... we have to remember that this whole campaign exists because I'm a freak who rather does brand new campaign than lives with the knowledge that he promised something he never (tried) to deliver

So I think the bulk of the campaign is now done, I'll add some fine touches for the briefing and look if I can squeeze in some opening and ending cutscenes, but don't expect anything special.

[Snake Man]

Now the TANK campaign two first missions are ready. Technically speaking, now I have accomplished what I wanted; I promised Helo & Tank campaign and I delivered... of course the tank campaign would be "bit weak" if I leave it like that, but all that matters is that no snapperhead in the net can come to say I'm hyping and bullshitting

So the campaigns are now ready for initial testing, most problems would come from play balance, I think the helo campaign with my PMC_config is just matter of being thorough and rearm and come back to waste more enemies, but the tank campaign is unforgiving, then you encounter T72 platoon out there, its going to be a tough fight... All my experiences in M1A1 abrams platoon since OFP has been that it is very very deadly game. So the tank campaign would need some serious play testing to see if its winnable and enjoyable. I'm open to all suggestions regarding this.

Any suggestions and feedback is more than welcome for both of the campaigns, in fact its essential to produce better versions out of them for final releases.

I won't be putting these campaigns yet for any other forums or news sites because I'd want to have initial feedback from here as most likely there has to be some (dramatic) changes to them. I think its wishful thinking that anyone would play these, not to mention posting feedback, but hey you can't blame me for trying.

Enuff said, lets get on with it.

Download Unnamed_campaigns-01.rar - 55kb.