Home » MODDING HQ 1.13 » Flugente's Magika Workshop » New feature: enemy helicopters
cloud107.png  New feature: enemy helicopters[message #343707] Sat, 09 January 2016 21:05 Go to previous message
Flugente

 
Messages:3507
Registered:April 2009
Location: Germany
 One of the most powerful assets the player side has in a campaign is Skyrider's helicopter. While it lacks armament, it can rapidly move a squad on the map with unrivalled speed. The queen herself is wary of its capabilities. Given the queen's vast monetary reserves, it is incomprehensible why she never acquires helicopters herself.
As you've likely guessed by now, this is going to change.
The first new feature under ASD control, the queen now has a way of acquiring helicopters, with which she can deploy soldiers across the map as well.
Helicopters are 'unlocked' once the AI is aware of the player using Skyrider's helicopter (indicated by a cutscene), it can then purchase some for itself.
http://i.imgur.com/V2jmR2i.png
Just like Skyrider, they can then fly a small squad around on the map and deploy them. Helicopters have to be fuelled and repaired, which consumes AI resources.

http://i.imgur.com/WvVRMvg.png
The player can shoot down helis via SAM batteries, and infantry-based MANPADS. Due to engine limitations, this cannot be done manually.
Every time an enemy helicopter moves and is known to the player, his air defense will try to shoot the heli down.
There are two kinds of anti-air-defenses:



  • SAM sites cover a large amount of the map and can fire in any of 'their' sectors (see SamSites.xml).
    They require control of the sector. They can be rendered inactive by damaging their control computer.
    http://i.imgur.com/2mKIG4q.png
    It is now possible for the player to repair SAM sites he controls.
    Damaged SAM sites can be repaired by the player in the strategic map.
    They uncover any enemy heli in their sectors, but will only fire if staff (militia or mercs) is present.
    CTH depends on quality of the staff and range to the target.
  • MAn-Portable-Air-Defense-Systems are infantry based missile launchers. They can only be used by mercs.
    They can only be used on targets in the same or adjacent sectors.
    CTH depends on weapon status, range and the user's cth with launchers.
    The launchers have to be armed in the inventory, it is not required to have them in the hands.
    The MANPADS in the trunk is the Strela-2, items #1736 & #1737. It currently uses placeholder pictures, until someone is willing to provide better ones.

A new background tag (<SAM_cth>) can modify a merc's cth (both with SAM and MANPAD). By default it is +25% for pilots and +75% for Bob (he is a decorated F16-pilot after all. If anyone in Arulco knows how air defense works, its him).

For balance reasons (there should to be an incentive to use MANPADS over SAMs), default MANPADS damage is a lot higher than SAM damage.
http://i.imgur.com/wEwjEdM.png
If a helicopter was downed, there is a chance that the pilot survived and can be killed or captured by the player (downed pilots are counted as officers with regards to Prisoner Interrogation).

http://i.imgur.com/zuWoVej.png
http://i.imgur.com/gPSMEct.png
Provided the sector has the correct tilesets, it is also possible to destroy enemy helicopters on the ground if they are parking in their home base. For vanilla maps, I did this by adding the correct tileset to the Meduna airfield (Ja2set.dat.xml, entry 48). This also requires USE_XML_TILESETS to be TRUE.

Enemy helicopter raids target strategically important targets to the player (towns, mines, inactive SAMs, roads, farms if MILITIA_VOLUNTEER_POOL is on) that are lightly defended and reachable without too much hostile SAM exposure.

The AI can have up to 2 helicopters, each carrying up to 6 elites. Travel time per sector is 10 minutes.

http://i.imgur.com/V9lPhlf.png
This feature is definetely not recommended for new players. The AI will target lightly defended sectors that are away from the frontline. Leaving Flo alone at Tony if you have no air defense is not a good idea if this feature is on.

For JA2_Options.ini values and additional info, see section [Enemy Helicopter Settings]. For obvious reasons, this feature is closely related to ASD and requires it to be active.

This feature is savegame-compatible.

This was added to the trunk in r8015 & GameDir r2279. Using this feature without the proper gamedata will get you chosen as Ted cruz' running mate.

[Updated on: Sat, 09 January 2016 21:45]



I know now that it could never work between us, as much as we wanted to, it could never be! Not because you're a rabbit, but because you're black.

If you want, you can donate to me. This will not affect how and what I code, and I will not code specific features in return. I will be thankful though.

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