Arma 3 - Battle Royale CQC... And A Merry Christmas And Happy New Year!

Although I have not been overly active in posting blog updates, since my last blog post, I have still been doing my ArmA 3 scripting (mainly for A3Wasteland which you can find over on my GitHub account) and some graphic design (behind the scenes).

I have also ventured back to my ArmA 3 Last-Man-Standing 'roots'... sorta. What I mean is... last year in November/December 2015 I was a total newbie at ArmA 3 coding/scripting... and whilst the 'fall-out' with those over at 'Battle Royale', I managed to download the 'Battle Royale - Ghost Hotel' mission files, and have a nosey/dabble inside the code. After messing around with the code, changing it around, 'fixing' things, etc... I sort-of left it as-was back then and didn't touch it again until now (a year later).

What I have basically done is 'fixed', as well as enhanced the 'Battle Royale - Ghost Hotel' mission. I created multiple locations on the map of  Altis, so that every round was no longer at 'Ghost Hotel'. I totally re wrote the timing routine for the circle zones for proper structure and notifications. I totally re did the loot spawn system, so that it is less glitchy and quicker at dispersing loot each round. The loot table was also updated to use 'Vanilla' and the 'APEX' ArmA 3 assets.

All-in-all, my 'Battle Royale - Ghost Hotel' modification to 'Battle Royale - CQC' (Close Quarters Combat) was just for learning purposes on my part, as I was a total newbie at the time. The basic *BRGH code is very hit-n-miss (clunky)... so yeh... I did change a fair bit of it for use with **BRCQC.

 

Some screen shots of in-game **BRCQC below.

There is an "ArmA 3 **BRCQC" server online at the moment (I'm still ironing out bugs, but for the most part, it works great), so if you would like to test it out, search for "Battle Royale CQC" on the mission section or via game mode "Last Man Standing", and it should pop up, be sure to join with NO mods loaded... vanilla only! The rounds consist of 2 minutes of initial 'loot time', until the zoning starts and will consist of 6 zone shifts/shrinks every 4 minutes. Each round can last a minimum of 2 minutes and a maximum of 26 minutes, but players are free to join and wait in the spawn area whilst a round is currently in progress.

I have done a lot of enhancements/changes to the mission for use with **BRCQC. Give me feedback if you so please, report bugs, issues, whatever.

Again, this mission was/is for learning purposes for myself... it's similar (has the base structure of *BRGH, all credits to Lystic) to *BRGH, but now every round is a different location with different loot! Great learning for when my own 100% self-coded Last-Man-Standing mod comes to fruition.

*BRGH = Battle Royale - Ghost Hotel.

**BRCQC = Battle Royale - CQC (Close Quarters Combat).

Also, as it's getting real close to Christmas and 2017 isn't that far off either. I thought I would also say...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2017

Until next time...

-soul.

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Arma 3 Scripting, More A3Wasteland Addons/Enhancements

Over the last year I have learned a lot about Arma 3 coding/scripting and am now able to write code/scripts from scratch... based off my own ideas. Something I never really thought I'd be able to do, but I have learned much more than I originally anticipated... which is a good thing.

In recent weeks, I have written a few new and different scripts for use within A3Wasteland mission... which is the game-mode/mission I tend to favor when it comes to playing Arma 3.

Since my last blog post about my random crate and soldier load out's, I have coded/scripted/released to github...

Notepad++ .sqf coding/scripting

purchaseFuel script, which disables free fuel at all fuel pump across any given map and attaches a cost for vehicles (land or air, including uav). You must have the carried money in order to refuel, and whether a total refuel or partial, you are charged for it. Jerry cans are still able to be filled for free though.

playerJump script, which is a script I wrote and tested quite a while ago, but only recently released. I wanted to see if it was possible to write a jump routine where as the screen did not visually glitch... and I succeeded. It took me a while to correct the jumping routine to as best I could manage within the script and animation bounds of Arma 3. Needless to say, compared to all the other jump scripts available (and the glitchy one in the default A3Wasteland mission), it is a LOT better.

globalChatMessages script, will rotate and display chat messages to each player. The messages are written within the script itself. This is able to be changed to whatever the server owner/admin would like to have displayed to all clients. The script is based purely client side.

titleTextMessages script, will rotate and display title text messages to all connected clients. The messages are written within a server-side script which is able to be changed on-the-fly. Upon server restarts, the script re-reads the server-side file for the current messages to display. This script is preferred over the globalChatMessages due to not needing to repack the mission.pbo each time the messages are changed.

cleanStores script, will locate all the available stores on the map of A3Wasteland, and attach a cleaning loop. This script will clean ALL objects listed in the configuration after a per-item duration (default 2 minutes) in order to keep the floors and immediate surrounding clean of discarded player items/weapons. The radius limit to where the cleaning extends to is also configurable.

buryDeadBody script, is a script to bury dead bodies at a cost (default $5000). I have seen other similar script(s), but thought I would write my own which functioned the way I would like (and hopefully others would like). To bury a dead body (eg, an enemy you just killed), you will need to have $5000 carried money to begin the process. A random timer between 30 and 60 seconds will commence in which is how long it will take to bury said body. Upon a successful bury, the body and all immediate surrounding objects/weapons will be removed/despawned. This script is useful for looting and disposing of the left-overs so that the enemy can not retrieve any of their gear.

afkTimer script, is a script to check for players that have gone AFK. I have noticed that some A3Wasteland servers have turned of food and drink, and some players take advantage of that and spawn in as BLUFOR or OPFOR, then hide and go AFK in order to farm money. This script puts an end to that, as if a player is AFK for longer than a duration (default 10 minutes), it will kick them back to the lobby.

cleanUpMissionObjects script, is a script that is to be used within A3Wasteland missions. This script will time and then remove all unlocked mission items after a time period once a mission is successfully completed. The script checks for players within the vicinity of said mission. If players exist within the mission area, the script will not delete/remove any object until there are no players around. The script also checks for locked objects and will not delete those that are locked.

fixTownStreetLamps script, is a script for turning lamps back to the on state. Many times I have noticed servers with a long night-time duration, and that players tend to shoot out town lamps in order to get complete darkness. This script will time loop and for all lamps that have been shot out, it will restore them to the on state in order to brighten the area back up. The lamps when turning back on have a somewhat realistic flicker effect (for player immersion).

outOfBounds script, is a script for checking that any player is within the bounds of the playable area for the map/mission. If a player is outside of the playable area which is marked visually on map by a blue circle/ellipse or is above a certain altitude, then an audible and visual warning with a count-down timer will appear on the players screen. If the count-down timer reaches 0 seconds aka player is still out-of-bounds, the player and any vehicle the player is in will be killed/destroyed. *NOTE, this was coded/scripted due to reading on a forum post that a player decided to go so far out-of-bounds, that Arma 3 crashed, but the A3Wasteland mission saved the players location, so upon returning to said server, the player would respawn on their last (out-of-bounds) location and Arma 3 would instantly crash again... *facepalm*

spawnBeaconDetector script, is for tracking down player spawn beacons. I was not happy with what was currently available for A3Wasteland, so I decided to write my own version from scratch. A player must have a mine-detector carried on them as well as being on foot in order to track spawn beacons. The sound effects emitted are in the 3D environment (not silent for all but the operator), which can reveal the players location should enemy be within the 100 meter range. Want to track beacons? There is a risk of giving away your position now... so track them down quick! The audible beeps for all to hear make a lot more sense to me rather than just an operator beep that no one else can hear... it is a detector after all, right?

All-in-all, I enjoy a challenge, and enjoy coding/scripting to enhance a game mode/mission that I enjoy to play, as well as giving the opportunity to other A3Wasteland administrators to use my scripts in their own mission(s).

I still intend on creating new content when the need arise and posting (some of) it on my github account.

Want something custom coded/scripted? Hit me up for a discussion on any of my social media links. You can also find me on discord at... soulkobk#3450, as that is currently my preferred method of contact.

Until next time!

-soul.

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ArmA 3 Scripting, Random Crate And Soldier Load Outs

So I've been scripting in notepad++ again, this time writing a couple of randomization scripts for missions for use within A3Wasteland.

Within the vanilla A3Wasteland... it got rather boring doing the same missions over and over, approaching the same AI, being rewarded with the same crate load outs (which were never really any good to begin with), so I decided to totally randomize things.

The first script I wrote was for crate load out randomization. I began by pulling all the class names from the ArmA 3 config file for wearables, weapons, throwables, etc then compiling them in to a list (per array). I then set out to do a total randomization on what was selected, number of items/magazines/grenades/etc, how many loops per, etc. After coding it (I knew it would work in theory), I jumped in-game to the test environment... and well, it worked as expected, so I was very pleased. I ran the same script over-and-over on the same crate, and it randomized the load-out each and every time... so no two load-outs would every be the same!

Look at...

...all the...

...goodies!

Once tested, I merged it in to my A3Wasteland DEV build (my highly customized 1.Xx build) and made sure it worked... and it did, on all missions everything was random within the mission crates. The script now resides on my github account which you can find here. *See the script header information on how to implement it in to your own A3Wasteland mission.

Once I coded that script, I thought... now for the mission AI, as they all had the same basic gear on... which was never really any good for 'looting'. I set out to do a similar thing in regards to the crate load out, but for actual AI units... so the coding was slightly different.

 

Mission AI got some decent gear!

More dead mission AI units with custom gear.

Again, I coded it and was sure it would work in theory... tested it, then implemented it in to my A3Wasteland DEV build, and waited for a mission to spawn. I put myself as a friendly unit to the mission AI and went and had a look... yup, all custom load-outs per AI unit. You can also find the script on my github account here.

So now each A3Wasteland mission has random load-outs for AI units (wearables, primary weapon, throwables, etc) as well as upon mission completion... randomized weapon crate load outs (worthy of actually completing missions now!). *Thermal scopes can be negated from load-outs.

At the time of this post, the only two servers (that I know of) to currently run these load-out scripts are [TAG] and [FRAC] A3Wasteland servers.

I hope more A3Wasteland servers implement these scripts in to their mission, as it gives the player(s) a better and more random reward each and every completed mission (no two crates will ever be the same).

Randomization FTW!

-soul.

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ArmA 3 Comic Strip, For The Lulz

I thought I'd do a quick blog post for the latest creative streak I have had... and that is an "ArmA 3 Comic Strip".

For the past few months, I've watched numerous creative twitch streamer create comic strips, and I had the thought that I could do something similar (hopefully)... and since there are so many 'moments' within ArmA 3's game play, I tried doing some comic strips myself.

All of the comics strips I (will) create are of funny moments, humorous game-play, face-palm moments, etc... all 'taking-the-piss' or 'in-jest' for a bit of a laugh (yes, even at myself).

You can check out all my comic strips at the top left of my blog page, right next to the HOME button. In time, I will add more, so be sure to check back regular. I will also post each comic strip to my twitter account www.twitter.com/soulkobk as they are created and published.

The latest comic strip I have created (at the time of this blog post), was of myself whilst driving a pickup-truck in [TAG] A3Wasteland. Poking a bit of fun at my driving 'skills'. I 'almost' rolled it down a hill, then about a minute later ended up smashing head on into a tree at high speed... myself and my passenger were incapacitated... oops. :P You can see it below (or at the link at the top left of my blog page). The screen shots were of actual game play (thanks plays.tv) of the moment.

I intend on creating at least one comic strip per month from now on... as there always seems to be creative context from my game-play within ArmA 3.


-soul.

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Atomatron, Mobile Game Graphics

In the recent weeks, I have collaborated with AurynSky with his new mobile game named 'ATOMATRON'.

I offered to help out with the GUI (Graphic User Interface), since the original one he was using looked... mediocre/unappealing. I started designing and based it on the shape within the main world he used, which was triangles.

After a few revisions and color changes, AurynSky was happy with the look, and put them into the game. You can see the example icons I created below.

Final revision of the 'ATOMATRON' game icons and text logo.

Final revision of power and health icons, various others not used.

The final look of the game all-fits-together as it should, simplistic but appealing to the eye (as seen in the screen shot below).

The final 'look' of the mobile game 'ATOMATRON' by AurynSky

This was a nice little project to work on, so I thank AurynSky for allowing me to contribute to his work (which is my first GUI for a mobile game)... and something to add to my portfolio.

ATOMATRON a fun 'endless' mobile game to get addicted to, whilst you navigate each small world, collecting atomic power to level up whilst avoiding the asteroids that rotate around each world and ones that also impact from outside. What level can you get up to...?

You can also check out AurynSky's other games on the Google Play Store as well as the iOS Store (sorry, I don't have the link for iOS).

AurynSky is also an avid twitch.tv streamer where you can check out his game development work, whether live or via one of his vod's. Check him out at http://twitch.tv/aurynsky (you'll find me lurking in the background at times also).

Until next time...

-soul.

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soulkobk, Identity And Graphic Design

After all this time, I thought it might be nice to actually design up some graphics for myself, my social media and of course... this blog, as I needed a proper identity.

Starting off with a default blog theme which I have had for the last ~year, it definitely needed a well-deserved update.

The old color scheme was of grey, grey and grey... which was 'ok' for me at the time, but now... since I am more active in graphic design again, I wanted everything to be themed for more visual appeal, and with my favorite color being blue, well, as-you-can-see, that's what I went with.

The revamped soulkobk blog

Along with the revamp of my blog, first up I had to redo all my graphics. I went on a font-hunting spree and found one that I liked. I designed a simple text based logo to represent myself and my work, as well as created a simple logo which I have already been using for a while. I liked the blue/grey/white color scheme, so that's what I ended up with. Not half bad if I do say so myself ;P

soulkobk logo

Along with my new blog graphics and theme done, I have also updated my twitter, youtube, twitch, github, etc etc etc... aka everywhere possible.

I enjoy doing graphic design, and will be continuing this as much as possible. Do you like what you see? Want some graphics designed for yourself or your company? Hit me up on one of my social media links (twitter) and we can chat. :)

BTW, Let me know what you think of the new ;soulkobk' design.

-soul.

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Total Annihilation Gaming, Identity And Graphics

Due to some recent changes within a part of the gaming world that I participate in... a new oceanic gaming group was formed, and with any new group you need a presence, something to represent the group from the base... and that being a logo.

The group name was made known to me as "Total Annihilation Gaming", and it was made known that a color scheme of "green and yellow" was required for the base colors and logo. I was also asked "can we put a skull in the logo somewhere?" to which I replied "anything is possible" :P

After a run-down on the basics I got to designing once again (I won't bore you with the in-betweens), and after a few iterations and layout changes, the below logo graphic is what was finalized as the new group logo...

[TAG] Logo, No Shadow

[TAG] Logo, Shadow

Along with the new logo, I have also done all of the graphics for their new web site which you can check it out at the link www.tagaming.net.au.

 

[TAG] operate a dedicated server in 'Sydney, Australia' that hosts 'ArmA 3 A3Wasteland' servers, one on the map Stratis (very custom mission file, and new town/building layouts/additions created by yours truly), and one on the new APEX map Tanoa. Along side the ArmA 3 servers, they also run a Squad server, and I'm sure other gaming servers will follow.

If anyone from the Oceanic region is interested in a friendly (no bs) gaming group, then check out [TAG] on their web site www.tagaming.net.au, and/or join their team speak server at ts3server://27.50.70.178?port=10184.

Like what you see? Got any graphic requests? Feel free to contact me on any of my social links.

-soul.

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TheCorpseGrinder, Twitch Channel Graphics

Yup, more graphics, this time for a new up-coming streamer named TheCorpseGrinder who will be streaming 'pc gaming' as well as 'cooking' (he is a Sous-Chef).

I was given a basic style type of how the graphics wanted to be visually (death metal'ish) and color scheme, I then did some research on styling to get some guidance and inspiration.

The following screens are examples (lower resolution) of how the final product turned out (after about 5 significant iterations). Grungy, death metal style (but easy enough to read), dark tones with translucent highlights and a blood coloring bleed in the background, as well as a blue/grey background tone.

Screen shots of TheCorpseGrinder's Twitch channel can be seen below (with FrankerFaceZ dark theme applied). The styling of each graphical component brings it all together.

Along side the main screens came the usual smaller banners that streamers use (as seen in the first screen shot immediately above). Everything was stylized off of the main screen (and text logo I created). The banners made are shown below (two different variants)...

and...

As you can see via his Twitch channel, the second variant was preferred and used.

Along with the main Twitch graphic screens, two versions of an overlay (check out his stream to see it) were created, follower/donator alerts also created (check out his stream to see it), and a Twitter profile banner was created in-line with the graphical theme which you can see here.

All-in-all, another great set of custom graphics which the end user is extremely happy with.

Want custom graphics? Feel free to contact me via any of my social links.

-soul.

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Stickofish, Twitch Channel Graphics

Yup, more graphics...

This time it's for a friend named 'stickofish', an avid gamer and twitch streamer. From Pokemon to Payday 2 to ArmA 3... and last but not least World Of Tanks... he plays them all.

I was asked 'if I could do some graphics' for him/his channel, as the current 'generic' graphics he was using was just that... 'generic'. Stick'o provided me with a theme/color theme of a Pokeball, and I ran with it.
This is what I threw together for his Twitch banners (as well as creating a small logo for him)...

 

 

 

 

 

They look good on any shade of background, whether it's the stock 'white' from Twitch, or if you run the dark themes of BetterTTv, or FrankerFaceZ... it all looks great.

Oh, and here's the 'stickofish' logo...

The logo is simple yet bold... and there's a pokeball too. ;P

I also did a 'Be Right Back' screen that was wanted also (a static and an animated one). You can see the static version below.

I also found the nice wallpaper background from a google search (unsure of the original artist, but it looks damn great and fits the theme of things), I did some small modifications to coloring and fade, put the borders on, added the logo and text and that was that (you can check out the animated version on his Twitch stream).

Here are some new static screen designs that I have done since my original post was made...
 

*All credit given to the original artist of the background wallpaper image used.

I enjoy doing graphic art/design work, it gets my creativeness flowing... and it's a break from coding (which I definitely need from time to time).

Stick'o was pleased, and put them up on his stream straight away... another happy customer... although these were done free-of-charge. :)

Got any graphic requests? Feel free to hit me up via one of my social media connections for a chat.

-soul.

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