More ATF questions

[Dr Zaius]

1. Is there no way to select which side you play in a given scenario, or do we always play as US? If so, is it possible to build scenarios where the Soviet player is the default?

2. I used FASCAM in the Death Valley: Task Force Defense scenario. When you shoot these do you get a regular "mine" symbol on the screen? If so, what are the chracteristics of FASCAM? Once deployed is it just like a regular minefield?

3. I don't see any AH-64 Apaches or Cobras in any of the missions. Are they included in any scenarios?

4. I lost the XO and the CO of one of my artillery units. After that I could no longer get them to fire. Is there a way to assign them new leadership or are they out of the game if these lose their leadership?

I'm sure I'll have some more questions soon.

 

[Deltapooh]

You must be really putting this game through it's paces! I haven't played too much, spending alot of time in DVATK trying out new stuff. I've also looked around the scenario editor. (I'd better learn HTML!)

The AH-64A/D Apache is included in the scenario editor. It comes several unit packages along with the OH-58C/D. This is new to the game. Now you don't have to build all your units, you can select a pack and go from there. (Very nice)

I didn't see the AH-1 Cobra either in the unit packs or the vehicles available list. This, along with the UH-60L Blackhawk and few other vehicles will have to wait until the Database editor is released. There are a number of vehicles missing I would like to see. We're gonna have to do some serious equipment modding upon it's release to capitalize on the games complete potential.

As for the unit commanders. I believe the proper COA when you run out of leaders is to take the remaining force and place them under another unit. So if "A" Battery looses all it's commanders, move remaining units to "B" Battery.

Either that or command individually.

 

[Pat Proctor]

1. Is there no way to select which side you play in a given scenario, or do we always play as US? If so, is it possible to build scenarios where the Soviet player is the default?

The only way to play as the REDFOR in the release scenarios is in multiplayer play. The scenario editor will allow you to design scenarios where you play as REDFOR against BLUEFOR (Sorry, no red on red or blue on blue scenarios are possible, yet. The database editor will give you this capability, though).

2. I used FASCAM in the Death Valley: Task Force Defense scenario. When you shoot these do you get a regular "mine" symbol on the screen? If so, what are the chracteristics of FASCAM? Once deployed is it just like a regular minefield?

FASCAM appears identically to regular friendly mines. However, the demo scenarios don't give you ammo carriers, so it is really difficult to build an effective minefield (you have, I think 36 rounds, and it takes at least 50 to do a decent minefield).

3. I don't see any AH-64 Apaches or Cobras in any of the missions. Are they included in any scenarios?

In one of the Iraq scenarios, allied AH-64D's swoop in and save the day (if you last long enough). In the third (I think) and fourth Fulda Gap scenarios, you have AH-64A's and OH-58C's.

Right now, as I said in the interview, we are not sure of the feature set for Air Assault Task Force. But we would very much like for ATF scenarios to remain compatible with the latter game. If this is the case, a lot of these missing vehicles will make it into the game system without modding.

4. I lost the XO and the CO of one of my artillery units. After that I could no longer get them to fire. Is there a way to assign them new leadership or are they out of the game if these lose their leadership?

Artillery batteries are "lead" by FDC's (Fire Direction Centers) not commanders and XO's (This is an abstraction, and thank God! I'm a battery commander!) Fire Direction centers, if you examine the vehicle specs, have the "FDC" vehicle capability. Only another FDC unit can lead the battery and get it back in the fight. Without an FDC, it can't fire.

This is further abstracted by the fact that FDC's are either 'high angle' or 'low angle' (a rough abstraction meant to distinguish between mortar FDC's and artillery FDC's, which are not interchangable).

If an artillery battery looses its FDC, you can drag and drop it's vehicles into another battery, up to the limit of vehicles it can contain (which varies by battery). Those artillery vehicles will then be back in the fight.

 

[Dr Zaius]

Here are a few more questions.

5. Are the maps always oriented with grid north at the top of the map?

6. Is there any way to tell exactly how long a scenario is going to last? The OPORD gives a pretty good idea, but from what I can tell it's only a rough estimate. That may be intential however as the scenario author could easily include this in the OPORD if needed.

7. Does the scenario author's name appear anywhere in the scenario? I guess that could easily be added to the bottom of the OPORD as well, I was just wondering if I missed it. Really great scenario designers usually like to be given proper credit for their work.

8. How effective is HE artillery against armored vehicles? So far I have no had a lot of luck inflicting serious casualties with my artillery, although I have lost numerous M1's and Bradley's to enemy artillery. What's the best type of artillery to use against heavy armor? FASCAM?

9. Are there any MLRS units included in the game?

 

[Deltapooh]

All Vehicles listed in Database

1. 2A45 (125mm Towed w/ truck-I think a truck)
   2B11 (120mm Mortar)
   2S1 (120mm Mortar)
   2S19 152mm SP Howitzer
   2S3 152mm SP Howitzer
   2S5 Giatsint-S 152mm SP
   2S6M Tunguska
   A-10
   ACRV (ML-LBu 1V13)
   AH-64A Apache
   AH-64D Longbow
   AT-5 Team
   BM-21 122mm MRL
   BMP-2 IFV
   Bradley Stinger FV
   BRDM-2 w. ATGM
   BTR-60PB APC
   COLT Team
   Dragon Team
   DRT Team
   Enemy Fire Team
   Enemy M728 CEV
   Enemy M9 ACE
   Fire Team
   Javelin Team
   M1025 Scout HMMWV
   M1059A3 Smoke Generator
   M106 107mm Mortar Carrier
   M1064A3 120mm Mortar Carrier
   M1068 Fire Direction Center
   M109A3 155mm SPH
   M109A6 155mm SPH
   M113A3 AOC
   M113A3 w. MCLiC
   M131 MOPM Team
   M139 Volcano on M985 HEMTT
   M1A1 Abrams MBT
   M1A1 Abrams w. mine plow
   M1A2 MBT
   M1A2 MBT w. mine plow
   M2A1 Bradley IFV
   M2A2 Bradley IFV
   M3A1 Bradley CFV
   M3A2 Bradley CFV
   M548 Cargo Carrier
   M6 Bradley Bradley Linebacker
   M60 ALVB
   M60A3 MBT
   M9 ACE
   M981 FIST-V
   M992 FASV
   Mi-24 HIND-E Attack Helicopter
   OH-58C Kiowa
   OH-58D Kiowa Warrior
   SA-19 Team
   SA-9 Gaskin
   Stinger Team
   Su-25BM Frogfoot
   T-72S MBT
   T-72S MBT w. Plow
   T-80B MBT
   T-80B MBT w. plow
   T-80U MBT
   T-80U MBT w. Plow
   ZSU-23-4 Shilka 23mm AA[/list=1]

 

[Pat Proctor]

I was perusing the forum again and noticed I had missed some good questions:

5. Are the maps always oriented with grid north at the top of the map?

Yes.

6. Is there any way to tell exactly how long a scenario is going to last? The OPORD gives a pretty good idea, but from what I can tell it's only a rough estimate. That may be intential however as the scenario author could easily include this in the OPORD if needed.

Defense scenarios have "Defend beyond" times specified in them. These are times, beyond which, the "NOPEN" line must be defended. Second Gulf War 3 has a time limit to eliminate the iraqi threat because it effects the entire III corps attack if you are late. The remaining scenarios have no time restrictions.

7. Does the scenario author's name appear anywhere in the scenario? I guess that could easily be added to the bottom of the OPORD as well, I was just wondering if I missed it. Really great scenario designers usually like to be given proper credit for their work.

All of the scenarios that ship with the game were a group effort, built by the entire ATF development team (we don't have a dedicated scenario builder staff). Your scenarios certainly may contain a little "love me bullet" in the OPORD or in the short description which appears in the start dialog, but there is no other place to add your name.

8. How effective is HE artillery against armored vehicles? So far I have no had a lot of luck inflicting serious casualties with my artillery, although I have lost numerous M1's and Bradley's to enemy artillery. What's the best type of artillery to use against heavy armor? FASCAM?

Rightly or wrongly, ATF pK values are based on MILES SAWE II numbers (those used at the U.S. Training centers). The long and short of it is it takes about 50 HE rounds to, statistically, probably kill a BMP, while it takes 18 DPICM rounds. The actual model is a pK, so you might get lucky with the first shot, or it may take twice this amount. But, this ratio holds true for just about every target type. DPICM (and BBDPICM) is more lethal than HE (and HERAP). If it has to be killed with the first shot, set up a copperhead shot (with a laser observer, like a FIST team, at most 5k away).

9. Are there any MLRS units included in the game?

Not in the current database, though there is no reason it can't be added with the database editor (which we're hard at work on
:dead: ). Frankly, though, MLRS is kind of beyond the scale of this game