Large artillery coverage.

[cobrabase]

I've seen in recent missions large areas of artillery coverage... much larger than the standard "call for fire" during a mission.

Someone want to tell me how to make such large areas while designing a mission? I'm missing the technique.

[BlackDeath]

you can call 400X450m maximum as far as i know. ayway, you still can call mutiple arty

[Jester_UK]

Someone want to tell me how to make such large areas while designing a mission? I'm missing the technique.

Chances are the arty calls are built into the design as interlocking areas all controlled with the same condition or trigger.

For example create a region on the map, then create an event that is true if X number of enmy forces are in that region. Once this is done set up the arty barrage areas and set them to trigger if that event is true. Thirty seconds after the event becomes true all those preset arty barrages will hit resulting (from the player's perspective) in a massive single bombardment.

[cobrabase]

Chances are the arty calls are built into the design as interlocking areas all controlled with the same condition or trigger.

For example create a region on the map, then create an event that is true if X number of enmy forces are in that region. Once this is done set up the arty barrage areas and set them to trigger if that event is true. Thirty seconds after the event becomes true all those preset arty barrages will hit resulting (from the player's perspective) in a massive single bombardment.


AH HA! Triggers are not my strong suite but I'm learning.

[DrDevice]

And just so you aren't laming out a player for simply massing his forces in a given region, you can set the condition/event on the arty-using side to be "known enemy units." That way it's not a strike that magically drops from the sky.

At this time, a region with multiple arty strikes programmed by the designer is the only way to show things like the grid-blotting devastation of an MLRS strike.

[ShotMagnet]

Someone want to tell me how to make such large areas while designing a mission? I'm missing the technique.In the mission editor you can place an on-call strike which will impact whenever you see fit, plus 30 seconds. You can change the dimensions of the strike box, as well.

Note, however, that there are only a given number of guns which will come into play for one of these pre-plotted strikes. This will have an influence on the likelihood of which targets in the beaten zone may or may not get hit.

The solution is simple, use more pre-plots if you want to maximize the likelihood of hitting something.


Shot

[cobrabase]

In the mission editor you can place an on-call strike which will impact whenever you see fit, plus 30 seconds. You can change the dimensions of the strike box, as well.

Note, however, that there are only a given number of guns which will come into play for one of these pre-plotted strikes. This will have an influence on the likelihood of which targets in the beaten zone may or may not get hit.

The solution is simple, use more pre-plots if you want to maximize the likelihood of hitting something.


Shot

Walk me through exactly where to go in the editor menu... I'm a moron I guess. Just give it to me step by step dude. Sorry about this.

[Jester_UK]

Right click on the map.

Find the option in the cntext menu that pops up for "New Arty Call"

An AI expression box appears that allows you to set the criteria for the arty call becoming active (looks exactly the same as the route "Embark if.." box.

Set the criteria you want.

Reshape the red box that has now appeared on the map to suit your needs (IIRC you can select whether or not the box will be displayed or not when the player enters the planning screen outside of the mission editor).

Rinse and repeat as necessary.

[cobrabase]

thanks!

[ShotMagnet]

You can also hit the same target area with a repeat of that pre-plot. After setting up the parameters for the first strike, the red impact box will apppear in the F5 view. Click on it.

Sizing points will appear, and if you right-click a menu will appear. One of the options given is 'Repeat', which will allow you to attack that region potentially indefinitely. Note that it will take something like 4 minutes for the strike to repeat itself.


Shot

[DrDevice]

A question for eSim and/or designers who have tested artillery response times:

Does a pre-plot built into the editor reduce the TOT of the player's assigned tubes in the action phase? In other words - if the player has a 3x6 battalion available, and a pre-plot strike is activiated with a trigger, is there a longer wait for the tubes because those guns are firing on the pre-plot? Is the effect the same as calling in multiple strikes by the player? Or is the pre-plot independent of the alloted tubes?

[Jester_UK]

Arty barrages that are preset by the scenario designer are totally independant of the support allotted to the player. They don't effect either number of tubes available nor splash time for arty calls set while playing the scenario.

[DrDevice]

Excellent. Thanks Jester.

That makes the DS, DSR, and other arty missions a bit easier to model, since they are separate.

[Los]

"And just so you aren't laming out a player for simply massing his forces in a given region, you can set the condition/event on the arty-using side to be "known enemy units." That way it's not a strike that magically drops from the sky."

And one can take it a step further using an "AND" condition to ensure that there is still a FIST or other FO vehicle still alive to call in and adjust that strike.

Los