Oceanic Wolf Pack, Group, Graphics and More!

So, what is 'Oceanic Wolf Pack'?

In short... OWP is a PC gaming group/community.

To further explain... It was a general conversation between online gaming friends on multiple occasions that sparked the interest in forming our own group, we threw around ideas and did some brain-storming about wanting something better, more inviting, friendly and mature for our online gaming (mainly Milsim within the game Arma 3).

An then on February 29th 2020, 'Oceanic Wolf Pack' was officially established!

'Oceanic Wolf Pack' (Strength Logo)

I (soulkobk) behind-the-scenes, came up with the group name, and designed our logo without anyone else's knowledge... I thought, why not just create it and see where it takes us. With one of the founders nicknames being 'Wolvren' who was to lead the group and be a front man (wolf), I thought it was rather fitting to name the group 'Wolf Pack', 'Oceanic Wolf Pack' to be exact. The main logo was designed in a way that if we ever expanded the group to other locations of the world, we could do so with ease. Most of us reside in Oceania, but also have regular players from outside of this area.

We created our presence on Discord, set up the channels, roles, etc and had more discussions about the group and the direction we wanted to take it. Quite a few online friends that we played in-game with regularly also wanted to join after hearing about what we were doing, so they were invited in.

Not long after that, came our dedicated server... starting off as a spare PC one of the founders had (gavwiki), myself and gavwiki got together to set it up as dedicated server for the group to use to host gaming servers, and other services that we required. Once the server was set up ready to host, I got to creating/scripting all the files to automate the process of installing, updating, upgrading, launching, scheduling, etc... after some trial and error, we now have a 95% automated dedicated server. After a few months, the dedicated server was given a fairly hefty upgrade.

The services we currently run on the dedicated server are (may expand in the future)...

• Arma 3 Server, KP Liberation (OWP Edit)
  
• Arma 3 Server, OWP Training (Custom Training Ground For OWP)
• Arma 3 Server, Antistasi (OWP Edit)
• Arma 3 Server, Alive
• Arma 3 Server, OWP Special Operations
• Assetto Corsa, Nordschleife - Tourist (Car-Variety)
• Assetto Corsa, Bathurst (V8Supercars)
• Assetto Corsa, Silverstone (GT4)
• TeamSpeak3, Oceanic Wolf Pack TS3
  

All these services run 95% automated, from game updates, to mod updates, to server restarts. We do have to intervene when required due to 'Two Factor Authentication', but it's convenient enough in order to have that extra layer of security for the server and the group. Server O/S updates are also 100% automated and don't require any intervention.

The group is nearly 6 months old already... and has expanded quite a lot in the short time 'OWP' has been established. From word of mouth, to our servers showing up in the game server lists or other friends seeing or asking what servers they were playing on... many have joined us. In that time, we have played casually on our gaming servers and also ran special operations (within Arma 3) to which many have joined or wanted to be a part of.

We have expanded from the original 3 Founders (myself, gavwiki and Wolvren), and a few online gaming friends, to what we have today, which is 5 moderators and 30+ OWP Unit (Arma 3/Milsim) members.

We have also recently expanded in to 'Racing Simulation' on 'Assetto Corsa', which is extremely enjoyable to race around in cars and on tracks from over the world. From casual practicing, to qualifying and grid racing... it's been enjoyable thus far.

From humble beginning, to officially forming the group, to seeing what would follow... we have had nothing but support and great interest in the group from the Oceanic region... but also players from outside of this area, which has been a pleasant surprise. We have worked together using our different skill-sets in making the group run as smooth as possible (with some hiccups along the way), but for the most part, players seem to enjoy themselves.

Oceanic Wolf Pack WWW Page

We have also now created a online web presence (with big thanks to gavwiki), a creation from a collaboration between myself and gavwiki. It was initially created from a basic html/css template, and has expanded in to just-about custom everything. You can check it out at http://www.oceanicwolfpack.com, navigate via the top right menu (still a work-in-progress).

And on another note... Here is the 'Oceanic Wolf Pack' Unit logo (Milsim/Arma 3)...

'Oceanic Wolf Pack' (Milsim Division)

  And here is the 'Oceanic Wolf Pack' Racing Simulation logo (Motorsport Division)...

'Oceanic Wolf Pack' (Motorsport Division)

And you can check out a heap more OWP themed graphic here!

I'm sure 'OWP' will continue to gain interest, and also gain affiliates (there has already been interest), so let's see where this new journey takes us. It's a lot of work, but it's enjoyable, and I/we have already met a lot of new players with the same interests and expectations in mind.

And as our group slogan says...

OCEANICWOLFPACK

FOR THE STRENGTH OF THE
PACK IS THE WOLF...

AND THE STRENGTH OF THE
WOLF IS THE PACK.

 

Want to get involved in 'OWP' aka 'Oceanic Wolf Pack'?, start by joining our discord at http://discord.oceanicwolfpack.com. We have most of our information, scheduling, tutorials, etc on Discord, which will explain how to get yourself involved.

OWP DISCORD

P.S. If you join, have a read of the 'Code-Of-Conduct' to make sure you understand what we expect from our visitors (and members)... Thanks.

Until next time...

-soulkobk.

 

 

 

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My One And Only Post For 2019!

Hey all... So I haven't posted to my blog since 2018.

Why? I have been rather busy dealing with life, and kinda/sorta lost interest in keeping this blog updated with my goings-on.

From major life changes regarding family life and giving support where it was needed, to working as an on-site IT Support Engineer for two of Australia's largest ICT firms (contracted to different companies), and also stepping in as a Manager for a retail business and getting that business back-on-track (and succeeding) due to previous mismanagement, as well as doing freelance graphic design for a signage/print company part time... and throw in custom web design too (html and css with graphics)... and yup things were (still are) a little busy for me.

I am still around on the interwebs (mainly discord when online), and on my down-time still game, play Arma 3 MilSim on a weekly basis (try to) with two different groups... and for the most part am really enjoying it. Good team mates really make a difference with MilSim special operations.

I still script/code in Arma 3 too, and have pushed some of my new scripts/code to my github as well as a custom MilSim mission I created on the map of Takistan (Operation Enduring Freedom). I have only played it once with a group, and it took us 3 hours to complete... and every aspect of the mission was successfully completed (to my surprise). I have since created another MilSim mission on the map of Livonia (Operation Deception Rescue) and have played it once with a group. It flowed well but were a few glitches at the time (they are all now fixed), although I have since tweaked the mission with more elements and aspects for better game play. I will upload this to my github at some stage also (soon).

I also help out the groups I am associated with with script/code for Arma 3, as well as support others where I can. I still like to script/code Arma 3... I greatly enjoy all aspects of the game whether I am playing casually (I&A), or in a MilSim mission, or creating/scripting/coding... for me, it's still enjoyable (and addictive).

Outside of my family, work, online life... I try to get out and about as much as I can (provided my on-going health issues are minimal... it's very hard to deal with at times).

I own a high performance vehicle (Japanese) and go to car meets/cruises with the club(s) I associate with, I still own a high performance motorcycle (Japanese)... but will probably sell that soon due to my health issues, and My V8 ski boat needs to get back on the water for some well needed fun... being out on the water on warm/hot days is refreshing (fresh water, not sea water).

Soon I may be (probably will be) delving in to a proper server rack (networking) system/solution for my home, as I intend to run multiple servers for storage, hosting (and private game hosting), proper centralized networking with all the bells and whistles (switches, patches, firewall, etc etc)... which will also help me learn and develop more hands-on skills (both hardware and software) which will also help me progress with my ICT employer(s) and career as I will be able to deploy virtual servers, then load and learn the required software (both linux and windows environments) and security practices.

I think this post has been the most personal yet... but I am a rather private person, so don't expect much more :P

None the less, if you read all of this post, hello, and thanks... and see you around in 2020.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year... make 2020 a great year, and make it the start of great decade!

Goodbye 2019, Hello 2020.

Until next time...

-soul.

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Hi... Life Has Been Extremely Busy!

Hi there to all that check out my blog and are now reading this post... I just thought I'd do a quick update to briefly explain why there hasn't been any posts since July 2018.

The gist of it is that things in/around my life have changed in a rather big way (I won't elaborate at this time), so work life and family life have taken priority.

My scripting/coding has ceased since July 2018, and the projects I that was involved in have ceased to have any development done by myself (specifically RELOADED and A3Wasteland for ArmA 3).

I now work 3 separate part-time jobs (which pretty much make up full-time work), as an ICT Engineer for a big firm, a Graphic Designer for a print/signage business and a Co-Manager of a retail store. It's hectic to say the least and I feel mentally warn out most days dealing with (juggling) everything... but it just needs to be done at this point in time... hence my absence in and around this blog (and being on-line).

You'll still find me around Steam/Discord from time to time when I get the chance to (for those that take notice), or you may catch me online playing my go-to game... ArmA 3 whilst I run around shooting-all-the-things! Although I do not currently use my main gaming handle whilst in-game, but those that know of me should know the gaming handle anyway (and blackSheep).

As for graphic design requests that people have made since July 2018... I have kindly declined any requests... as I just don't have the time. There are plenty of other decent graphic designers out there... you just have to find them (and yes... you get what you pay for!).


Among all the life changes, I still battle with my health (and mental health) due to issues stemming from a severe accident I had over a decade ago now... and to this day it's still draining, and also mentally draining, but I keep on keeping on... taking it day by day and week to week.

November is just about half-way through, and the festive season is creeping up also... this year has certainly gone a lot faster than I expected it to... but I guess that's part to being extremely busy.

If I don't do any blog posts before next year... a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all!

Anyways... thanks for taking the time to read... until next time.

-soul.

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FREE Twitch Graphics Take Two, Banner Labels And Screens

Yes you read right, FREE Twitch graphics... take two!

I had some free time recently and thought I would create another set of 'generic' graphics for use with game streamers, namely Twitch.

This time around whilst I was checking out another graphic designer and his recent attempts at some Twitch graphics... I thought to myself 'how hard would it be to recreate those effects?'... needless to say, I figured it out fairly quick. I adjusted, tweaked, etc... and came up with the final product. All in a nice red tone with blue undertones, and of course a nice red glow.

I have created as many generic banner labels as I could possibly think of, as well as creating a few 1920x1080 'screens', namely 'starting stream', 'be right back', 'intermission', 'ending stream' and 'stream offline'. This time around I have used masks for transparency with the camera windows in the intermission screens rather than a chroma key mask.

Anyway... here are the graphics (free to use, but please include the 'graphics by soulkobk' banner on your page). Whether on a white, grey or black page background the banners look nice and clean.

Stream Banner Labels

 

 

 

You can also see/download them here 

...am I missing any banner labels? or want a custom one added? let me know via social message (twitter/discord/etc)
And here are the screens (please keep the graphics as-is, do not modify them in any way)...

Stream Screens

You can also see/download them here

Please also note that any 'custom' adjustments (color changes, custom additions, text changes, etc) to these screen graphics will incur a small charge to do so. Again... please do NOT modify any of the graphics in any way.
I have also created a Twitter/Twitch banner in the same theme should anyone want one, but this will also incur a small charge. The example is below...

Twitter And Twitch Banner

 Whatever the case, I hope that someone finds these graphics of use, as it would be nice to see them used (be sure to pm/link me if you do use them, so I can check out your stream).

Thanks, and I hope they will be of use.

Until next time.

-soul.

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