DML Dynamic Campaign - Would peps like me to implement it for special Thursday sessions?

[Friar]

This looks interesting as something a bit different?

https://forum.dcs.world/topic/348126-sp-co-op-mp-expansion-a-dynamic-mission-and-sandbox-all-aircraft/

ABOUT EXPANSION
In Expansion, you are part of an ongoing larger battle to conquer the region. You are free to choose your own aircraft and mission (be it close air support, CSAR, combat patrol or similar), and if you choose to help your side's current tactical and strategical goals, that helps a lot. Holding off Red Forces from capturing Nalchik is likely and routinely accomplished by Blue's AI without your help. Expanding Blue's reach to hold half of the map requires moderate player skills. Turning the tables on Red and holding three airfields requires focus and dedication. Winning the scenario is possible, and a true achievement. Expect a full play-through to take some 15 to 20 hours, usually a lot more - this is a dynamic mission after all, and the opposing side will become increasingly aggressive when it loses. Expansion supports "persistence" (see notes) to save and resume your campaign at a later date. Expansion supports (actually: thrives) as multiplayer, so bring your friends. Since it’s a Sandbox dynamic mission, you can leave it running on a server for anyone to join on their own time.

You can win Expansion in single-player, and it is a lot more fun in multiplayer.

Expansion's strategic objective is to capture all four airfields of the region:

• Nalchik
• Beslan
• Mozdok
• Mineralnye Vody

The mission starts with BLUE side holding only one airfield: Nalchik. AI will assign tactical objectives as it sees fit. The battle progresses around you in real-time and responds to your actions. Both side's AI Admirals task their units dynamically and according to their tactical needs - so plan your own flights accordingly. And yes, Red WILL try and re-capture any strategic location that you took. And it will succeed if you don't help.

HELPING YOUR SIDE
The overall battle is controlled by AI Admirals for BLUE and RED that task their troops. They will direct their forces and assign primary and secondary objectives.

Initially, you should focus on supporting your side’s secondary objectives, as they help your side to expand control over the battlefield, and allow your side to secure a steady income that you (the players) then can spend on tactical support.

INCOME
When your side captures strategic locations (for example: the "Gigawatts Power Plant" south of Nalchik), these generate income for your side. The more locations that your side holds, the greater your income.

 

Another source of income is direct enemy attrition: for every enemy unit that a player destroys, your side gains some income - provided that the pilot can land their plane at a player-controlled airfield or FARP.

A third source of income is rescuing downed pilots and returning them to a player-controlled airbase or FARP.

A fourth is successfully inserting troops into enemy locations to capture them.

Your side's income is regularly gathered and added to your side's available funds. Funds are available to all players on the same side. And funds are meant to be spent - "funds are only valuable as long as they are used". Use them wisely. 

SPENDING FUNDS
You spend your side's funds in various ways:

• to directly repair and/or upgrade a location's defenses. For this you must land inside that location and come to a full stop. At that point you can access the menu to repair or upgrade local defenses. Note that all defenses must be repaired before you can upgrade. The cost for upgrades and repairs vary by location.
• to order strategic upgrades / repairs. This transfers funds to your control authority and the AI decides where these funds are invested. The drawback is that you don't know where the funds will be invested. The advantage is that you don't have to be on location.
• to order support in the form of SEAD, CAP or CAS flights for a region.
• to order a strategic insertion force to attempt taking an enemy-held (or neutral) location. Which location to take is a decision made by your command authority.

And remember: there are few things less useful to a pilot than

• altitude above you
• runway behind you
• fuel in the truck
• funds still in the bank

CAPTURING STRATEGIC LOCATIONS
You win Expansion by capturing strategic locations that increase your income, and then by using that income in smart ways to further your campaign. So make capturing locations all over the map your goal. The first step is to wear down defenses: SEAD and CAS the location until it's next to helpless. Be wary that enemy AI can (and will) order repairs and reinforcements, so if possible, loiter near a defenseless location until it's really captured. Once captured, spend funds to beef it up.

If you have helicopter pilots among your players, the easiest way to capture a location is to make sure that there are no enemy units inside the area (check the F10 map), and then place your own units inside the zone. Some Helicopters (Hind, Hip, Huey, Hook) can spawn and transport troops (check Other->Airlift Troops).

If you don't have anyone who can chopper a chopper over the shed, you'll have to tough it out: see which tactical objective the AI is working at, support it, and occasionally transfer funds to order a capture attempt.

RESCUING DOWNED PILOTS
Quickly, the map will be littered with pilots requesting extraction. Some helicopters (Hip, Huey, Hind, Hook and Gazelle) are equipped for CSAR. Land next to the downed pilot (or hover close to them), and then return the pilot to one of your airbases/FARPs. Doing so will give a substantial boost to your available funds.

A NOTE ON ENEMY AI
Initially, enemy strategy AI is almost docile - it is content with holding most of the territory and killing you in a vaguely unfriendly way. This changes with the number of strategic locations that you capture. Once you start closing in on it, Red AI becomes aggressive, and at some point, positively vicious. So, enjoy the time when it just tries to crush you.

A NOTE ON PERSISTENCE (SAVING THE MISSION)
Expansion automatically saves the state of the mission every 5 minutes, so should you wish to end and later continue the mission, the maximum you lose are 5 minutes. All typical restrictions to DCS mission saving apply:

[wingflyr]

I love this kind of scenario.

I have been hosting a on going Expanded Syria Foothold PERSISTENCE mission for a couple of weeks now, and the guys and myself are having a blast with it. We capture and defend resupply airfields while advancing. Mission gets more challenging as we go. When successful at killing a Aircraft or Sam Sites, survive and land back at base, you accumulate credit points and can put them toward a planned strategy. Dead or Sead strikes, Tomahawk Strikes, Recon or what ever strategic move is required. Missions are saved as is every ! minute. Next time the mission is put up it resumes at the same state we left it. Very cool and excellent way to work together not take chances and get home and survive. Working together and protecting one another is key. Its a major undertaking to create one of these missions My hat is of to you Colin.

[Friar]

This is all cfrag's work WF, I have just downloaded it. I may need to tweak it a bit for our use, but can not take the credit.

[wingflyr]

You also could use the Expanded Syria Foothold mission which cfrag recommends. It has everything plus you can add any module you need. Players can split up into groups to do various mission in different zones, at the same time working all for the same common goal.

[Friar]

@wingflyr Thanks for that, I will take a look and download.

[Friar]

@wingflyr - I have downloaded Foothold Syria and have tried running it on my machine (as a multiplayer mission) and every time I select my plane (apache) DCS crashes.

Other than copy the mission file to the directory, did you have to do anything else?

I have NOT enabled persistence yet.

Also did you leave the Russian helicopters under the Blue side?

Any advice would be welcome.

[DD_Fenrir]

Have to say this looks right up my allley - I'm in!

 

[wingflyr]

Yes Colin I left everything as is. The helicopters can be swapped for  to what ever needed and more accurate but the group names must remain the same. The mission its self is Hugh and running it under a host PC may be to much or some mod we use is causing the crash. Best to try with no mods and work from there also best to run it under the dogz server. I been hosting it with no problems. Thou sometimes it has shuddered on me in VR with a compete reboot required. Pancake should be fine.

[Friar]

@wingflyr - myself and Fruitbat are planning to have a bimble around this evening (friday) from around 20:00 / 20:30 hours

Any chance you could drop in for a quick chat about the how the mission runs? I am a bit confused by it from what I have seen?

Airfields listing units but when you select them it says not available but you get a mission to defend them at all costs?

I am wondering if something is not right with my download / version?

[wingflyr]

I can try for a bit Col

Beautiful day

wife is off from work

Equals frickin yard work lol

[wingflyr]

OH ALMOST FROGOT

HERE IS A GITHUB MANUAL FOR THE MISSION only printable from there Im afraid

Here you go I will try to get on for a few minutes

 

GitHub - Dzsek/pretense

[DD_Fenrir]

How’d the testing go last night? I joined at around 2230 but no one was around.

[Crash]

Any chance of running on a Sunday?

[Friar]

@Crash - I can not do Sundays, so "it would be a no from me". A Tuesday could be an option for one of the sessions. The beauty of this campaign is that it saves the position at the end so we could run on different days and any players not being able to make the previous session would be able to pick up the fight at the next stage. I think GBS is picking up some momentum for Sundays so also would not want to detract from that. 

@DD_Fenrir - we did not do any testing, I just had a chat to Wigflyr about the mission. I have now made a DDZ version with the F15 added plus removed the russian helicopters from blue side. Might be ready for a test on Monday.

[fruitbat]

Tuesday is fine with me.

Or whenever...

[DD_Fenrir]

How about once a month we have a DCS Tuesday event for this? We can run it by the rest of the Dogz if need be; hopefully no one would be so intractable as to refuse us one Tuesday every four weeks….

[wingflyr]

I'm in 

[Friar]

Had a good test last night (monday) and it looks like this formula is going to be a winner. The time just flew by (no pun intended) and it was midnight before we realised it.

There were a couple of hiccups with performance. It got a bit stuttery at the start when there were lots of objects on the map. I am goin to try and address this by removing items outside the area of operations.

There are two contenders for this scenario, the one which we ran last night which is in Syria and one developed by the guy who developed the thing I keep going on about DML, which uses the Caucuses map. 

The plan is to run the Syria version again on Thursday so the likes of @BluBear , @PapaBear  and @delta7 can experience it to give their feed back. @wingflyr played last night and has he along with the other Canadians (plus some antipodeans'  ) are already running a campaign and was able to pass on some valuable tips. Thank you.

To play you will need the Hercules mod (there is the option to fly in supplies to a newly captured airfield, "its really cool" (as the youff say).

You can get the latest version here;

https://forum.dcs.world/topic/252075-dcs-super-hercules-mod-by-anubis/#comment-4472291

 

[Friar]

@FoolTrottel - Sorry sir, I forgot about you! how could I! I shall punish myself accordingly

 

[Friar]

@Eshark for you