Smoke this...

[Kingfish]

Happy freakin' Friday to all,

Over the last couple of months I've read numerous posts about people wanting more control over the number of smoke rounds AFVs fire. Because the unit will continue firing until it hits the target it will not only burn thru its limited supply quickly, but also overdo the screen (i.e. lob 6 rounds where 1 or 2 would've sufficed). After some thought i think i came up with a solution. I must admit i didn't do a thorough search on the subject, so someone else might have suggested this before. Even so, tell me what you think...

I suggest that when you order a unit to fire smoke the command generates a smoke "marker" to place, the same way an ambush marker appears for that command. The unit will then have a much larger area to hit, and with a greater chance of hitting the target comes a lesser chance of overdoing the mission. As soon as the target is hit the marker disappears.

The way i see it, if your whole point is to mask as large an area as possible then there is no need to have these tiny smoke targets we use now. In our current system if an AFV's smoke round is 5 feet off target it will fire another, when we all know that a smoke screen that close is good enough.

So, tell me what you think...Good, bad, WGAF, let me know

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The dead know only one thing - it is better to be alive

[Mark IV]

Might work, but it's kind've smoke-specific. Also, the new improved smoke takes a little while before the smoke starts emanating (good), so you could still overkill the marker before the cloud forms. Other possibilities:

1) Specify the exact number of rounds to fire (that would be cool).

2) Timed fire ("shoot smoke for 15 seconds"- sounds easy, anyway).

[Iron Duke]

How about targeting with your smoke but using the "pause" command to that they dont actually begin to fire say 30 to 45 seconds into the turn so that when the next turn comes around you can "cancel target"?

(...hmmmm, IM going to try that out)

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One shot...One Kill

[dalem]

I would indeed like it if the 'Pause' command worked for fire as well as movement, but that might be too fine a level of control.

And as for smoke, well, in my opinion, I'd rather be firing live shells, so it doesn't bug me the way it works now.

-dale

[Kingfish]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>but it's kind've smoke-specific.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yes, that's what i had in mind.

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Also, the new improved smoke takes a little while before the smoke starts emanating (good), so you could still overkill the marker before the cloud forms.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

As far as i know, the current system stops firing once it hits the target, not when the smoke appears. The new system should work the same, but with a bigger target to hit.

I agree, the "fire only this number of smoke rounds" command would be the answer, but it would require (IMO) a much greater coding change. I can't think of any time during the game where one could command the actual number of rounds fired, so it would require all new coding just for the smoke.

[David Aitken]

Kingfish wrote:

> I can't think of any time during the game where one could command the actual number of rounds fired, so it would require all new coding just for the smoke.

I agree! (easy thing to do =) ) I think when people are asking for modifications to the game, they reckon just because something can be imagined easily, it can also be programmed easily. I know from experience - I used to be a web programmer, and EVERYONE thought X change would be easy, just because it LOOKED easy - they didn't understand that it basically meant redoing the whole webpage.

I don't think CM counts the number of rounds fired in any situation. I think it is simply a "fire/don't fire" situation, and the unit in question will fire off as many rounds as it can in the time allocated. The number of rounds fired will depend on the unit's rate of fire, so you can't simply tell it to fire X number of rounds.

David

[Mark IV]

Originally posted by David Aitken: I think when people are asking for modifications to the game, they reckon just because something can be imagined easily, it can also be programmed easily.

I just knew I would get another scolding for suggesting again. I really try to sit at my desk quietly with my hands folded like the rest of the class, but I just can't seem to do it.

I don't think CM counts the number of rounds fired in any situation.

Well, it does subtract them from the ammo load, one at a time, doesn't it?

And it seems to count time well enough, as in the "Pause 15, 30, 45 seconds" commands.

Kingfish's substantive point (that the unit quits firing when it hits his suggested target) is well-taken. I was thinking in terms of the marker being obscured by the smoke, rather than observing a specific hit.

As for being smoke-specific, I was secretly lobbying for something more generally useful, which might also address ammo conservation and (ahem) excessive area fire.

I know- I keep forgetting that this isn't an arcade game (my floppy drive is overflowing with quarters), and that new code isn't pasted in with yellow digital sticky notes, etc., etc.

Version 1.03 is FINAL. And no talking in the hallways!!!

[David Aitken]

Mark IV wrote:

> Well, it does subtract them from the ammo load, one at a time, doesn't it?

> And it seems to count time well enough, as in the "Pause 15, 30, 45 seconds" commands.

Yeah, I know it counts time, that's what I'm saying. Say your tank is firing for 60 seconds. The game doesn't tell the tank to fire off X number of rounds - it tells the tank to start firing. The tank then fires off rounds at its rate of fire, and keeps a note of how many rounds it's got left, until it's told to stop firing.

You might say "well, a bazooka usually only fires a single round at a tank". (Then again you might not, but bear with me. =) ) The bazooka will fire at its maximum rate as long as the tank is within range. However, very often the tank will move out of range, or the bazooka will be suppressed before it has time to fire again. But for as long as the tank is a feasible target, that bazooka is 'switched on'. It is 'firing' even when it's not actually launching a projectile.

What I'm saying is, when telling units what to do, the game isn't interested in individual rounds - it's a case of a unit being 'on' or 'off' - firing or not. The unit keeps track of its rounds, but this is only with hindsight. Say it's coming to the end of the 60 seconds. The loader slams a shell into the breech, and the commander is just about to shout "fire" - but oops, time's up, so they immediately 'switch off'. Time is the instruction they're given, and ammuntion is the result they note down afterwards.

By the way Mark, I think my time as a web programmer has left an impression on me - I just know how soul-destroying it is when people come back to you asking for this to be changed and that to be redone. In fact, it's the same for my current line of work (illustration).

That said, I'd make a very good politician - not always inclined to actually do anything, but do always have a lot to say on the subject!

David

should be in bed cause it's bloody 5am

[Guest Michael emrys]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Mark IV:

1) Specify the exact number of rounds to fire (that would be cool).<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Best solution, IMO.

Michael

[Guest Michael emrys]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Iron Duke:

How about targeting with your smoke but using the "pause" command to that they dont actually begin to fire say 30 to 45 seconds into the turn so that when the next turn comes around you can "cancel target"?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Thought of that. Problem is, what if you want the smoke early in the turn (as most likely I would if somebody is already shooting at me)?

Michael