ArmA III: BinnZ's impressions

[PZ]

Dang, your report sounds very encouraging, BinnZ!  This sounds like my kind of game  :-X

I like the idea of starting a tutorial thread where ArmA 3 gamers can get help - goodness knows I need it even on easy game play.

[Binnatics]

 ^-^

I saw you already created one. And I must confess; I haven't read that article you linked to. Maybe it is a very useful guide.
I will try to read it tomorrow. And if I have anything additional, I'll add my own advice to new players below, in the next post ^-^

PZ, this game is AWESOME!!!! Today I've been busy doing side quests around Gori. I didn't do any side quests in the previous hideouts, so I missed a lot of fun. Anyway, knowing that, the game has already some replay value :-D The side quests are best to be compared with taking down an outpost FC2 style. You approach an area where you have do get something, or search for something. Medical supplies, ammo, illegal weapons... and sometimes it IS an outpost or a 'enemy checkpoint'. Usually you have to deal with a couple of resident soldiers and some guys on patrol around or through the area. You can do it totally your way. Sneak in and try to kill them all silently, pick a sniper rifle and keep some distance, or bring your crew and create a proper mayhem >:D
So far, I've dealt with most situations with a sniper-like configuration, but I also tried my luck going in stealthy. I have an assault rifle that has good accuracy up to 300 meters and I have a 12x magn. scope on it. Great view, lovely way of taking out the bastards. I even start to do headshots; usually a one-shot-kill. Can be hard if they wear a helmet; aim for the face then :-()
You can make good use of the environment. You will need cover, or an escape route in case they spot you and try to penetrate you with their counter fire. They are good shots and they aren't static, be warned. There's hills, structures, shacks, rocks, trees, bushes, everything. You just plan your strategy and make sure to save often.
I've had the most fun trying to hunt down a sniper who was hidden somewhere in a factory. But I guess I already told about that. The good thing is that most of the time you will be rewarded by finding special stuff like new scopes, rifles or supplies. The last mission I did was searching for an outpost of illegal weapon dealers. When I found them, I killed the bandits (6 I guess) and went to in check their stash. They had literally hundreds of goodies stashed away. smg's, rifles, pistols, scopes, ammo of all types, assault vests, everything. I had just learnt that you can fill a truck with stuff, so I dragged everything over to an offroad which I also stole from them, and had it all saved back in the base. Now I can give any soldier the loadout of my desire; smg's, launchers, rifles, machine guns... I still only have one proper sniper rifle. It's the one I got from the sniper in the factory. It has a good accuracy up to 1500 meters :o and with a range finder it should be easy calculating the bullet drop etc. I'm dying to test it in the next mission. 8)

Pictures will follow later ;D

[PZ]

Your reports keep getting better, BinnZ!  :-X

I've been busy with power failure (most of yesterday) due to heavy snow fall, the kids visiting for the holidays, and keeping a fire going n the fireplace to keep warm.  Power was returned at about 3am my time.

Hope to get back to a little gaming soon!  ^-^

[Binnatics]

Well, power outage isn't what you call a welcome Christmas present, but at least you have proper snow and winter over there :)
Here all we get is rain, storm, bits of freezing in the morning, more rain, 

[Art Blade]

today everything was white when I got up. Now it's mud.

[PZ]

Bright and sunny but cold today - a high of 22F predicted.  -2F is to be the low tonight.  Have been putting a fire into the fireplace the past couple of days, and I must admit it was fun reading a book by firelight with a snifter of brandy.

[Binnatics]

 :-X ^-^

[fragger]

I can't imagine that here at the moment. It was 38°C (100°F) earlier today, dry and cloudless. Currently 22°C (71°F) at 1:00am.

[Art Blade]

yep, welcome to the flip side (of the world)  :-D

[Binnatics]

Today I did a first 'sniping mission'. Well, that's not exactly true. I dealt with a side quest with my sniper rifle. I went to the Northernmost Side quest called 'Crashed Gunship'. I figured it would be an excellent mission to test my new sniper rifle, the Gepard GM6 Lynch (12.1mm) with its SOS optics (x18 - x75 magn)!!!
The rifle is known to be accurate for ranges up 1500 meters and the area where the gunship had crashed is a hilly terrain. No mountains, but sloping hills like massive ripples. I saw some high spots that might be perfect to overlook the entire area. It was still dark, but not too dark. My SOS optics has incredible magnification but it has only default vision. No night- or thermal vision options. I equipped a somewhat heavy pistol, the Zubr .45 ACP, which is so far the only pistol that has a simple red-dot sight for aim assistance. It has a six-round revolver and the muzzle is located in the lowest chamber for more precision and less sway due to recoil; the reverted power of the explosion is drawn more into the fist than over it. (I just sort of copy-pasted this info from the field manual, don't think I'm the expert talking )
With the pistol for life insurance once the area seemed clear and the rifle for the long distance attack, I drove off and found a perfect sniping location which, indeed, overlooked the entire area of let's say 700x900 meters. Using my night goggles I soon found out the location of the wreck. Around it, through the woods and slopes, there were two teams of 4 soldiers patrolling the immediate surroundings. The stupid buggers used flashlights to view their surroundings, which made it easy for me to find them looking through my optics.

In the following picture you can see the smoke of the wreck a little left of the centre, and a flashlight lighting up farther to the right. That is the closest patrol group. The other group is not visible here.
[smg id=7602]

I laid myself down and started checking the range. Turned out that one group was around 650 meters away, the other was about 800 meters away, sort of behind the first one, from my point of view. This is what you see through the range finder. It has an incredible zoom functionality. even better than binoculars:
[smg id=7605]

Here you see the situation on the map. Me is the little blue dot to the left. The red dot is the last known location of a soldier that was in my view shortly before. He was roughly 700 meters away then. He was actually the last man standing after I killed the other 7, but I couldn't get a visual on him.
[smg id=7606]

I found out that sniping in Arma 3 isn't that easy. Of course you have to deal with weapon swaying, but being prone and holding breath helps a lot steadying your aim. If you're not out of breath you will have no problem aiming. Calculating the bullet drop is something else. It is not the exact same with all guns and a little practice isn't superfluous. You can deal with the bullet drop both my 'zeroing' your scope (using page up and page down) which will set the rifle to auto zoom on a fixed distance of 300 / 400 / 500 etc. meters. You can also use the knots in your scope vision to adjust a bit more, because finding the range and zeroing will take time. When you shoot moving targets you may not have the time to quickly adjust your zeroing from 600 to 700 very precisely. So you aim a bit up or down, depending whether your victim is approaching or receding.
Something else to deal with, and now it gets really realistic, is the fact that your bullet needs some time to travel from leaving the chamber to the point of impact. In my case, the bullet took almost a second to hit its target 700 meters away. So you have to aim in front of your moving target if you want to hit it.
I had some trouble taking out my guys, but with some practice and a little extra saving ( :-D ) I managed to make every bullet count.
[smg id=7603]

Here you can see the flashlight on a tree, indicating an upcoming soldier:
[smg id=7604]

Finally I managed to get to the crash site:
[smg id=7607]

Sniping in Arma 3 reminds me a lot of Sniper Elite. The only thing they didn't add was the effect wind has on a bullet. There is an option in the game menu to enable the effect wind has on flight dynamics, but I am not able to enable it. Maybe it only has effect on flying choppers and thus will only be unlocked when buying the DLC's, but maybe there's another reason why it can't be changed. I tried to put the difficulty to expert, but that didn't make any difference.
So sniping here is like the excellent sniping in Elite, but now on real distant enemies. I hit some guys who were over 700 meters away this time, but with this same rifle I should be able to do the double. And there's even another sniper rifle that will be accurate up to 2000 meters!!!!

Love this game ^-^

[PZ]

Nice story, BnnZ  :-X

I had a little trouble with the darkness of some of the images on my PC, but could see well enough.

I like how you laid out the mission with details and pertinent images - reminds me of the stories some of us did in FC2.

Can you create some sort of sniper range to do practice?  I think that might be very helpful.

[Binnatics]

Thank you PZ! I like writing about the missions. They are so intense and the liberty of approach makes it worth it going through your strategy again while posting ^-^
Well, there is a shooting range at the hideout. I used it to experiment with bullet drop and various zeroing settings. But with these long range rifles it will probably not be very helpful. The range in the base is like 25 meters, but you can check the point of impact with different zeroing settings. That is helpful. If you want to test and play with the heavier sniper rifles I suggest going on a mission like this and save just before you try to shoot a guy. Or moving to any high spot where you have a clear view on a distant wall will do. You can see the point of impact of your bullet, so you will know if you aimed too high or too low. The range finder will tell you exactly what distance the wall is at. In the dark picture above, it indicates that the enemy soldier is 645 meters away. So I put the zeroing at 600 meters and aimed slightly above his head. With this rifle btw, it doesn't matter where you hit your target; any shot will kill instantly as far as I can see. Even a hit in the leg is deadly.  >:D
Later I did another 700 meter distance mission. Went smooth. Looking forward to test it on a longer range. But even making every bullet count I spent 20 bullets in these two missions, and now I have left only 30 rounds for the rifle. It's ammo is scarce :-D

I wonder what the virtual training environment can do for you setting up a shooting range. I saw you had equiped a sniper like mine in one of your screenies inside the program, so maybe you can test it out there, if you choose to equip a range finder as well.  ;)

[Art Blade]

a night really is dark there, isn't it  ???

[PZ]

The virtual reality training area is good, but limited - no real chance to play.

I'm thinking a trip to the editor to see how it works might be in order.  I can see creating a mod where you place targets at various ranges, load the area with all sniper rifles and unlimited ammo, plus range finder of course.  Just a simple play area where you experiment with sniper rifles.

This might even extend to playing with other weapons and vehicles.

[Binnatics]

I think that would be a good idea! I haven't tried anything yet in the editor. But that would be the best way to test things. If it acts like the editor in FC3, with simple 'in-game testing' it would be possible to do such testing 8)

[PZ]

I went in to the editor the other day, and did not find it intuitive.  Of course, it was only about 10 minutes, but usually after that amount of time I can at least get the gist of how to do things.

I've done editing in the past, and have continually added functions/items to the file - was quite fun, and gave me much needed experience with weapon systems and vehicles.

[Binnatics]

It's been almost 3 days ago since I last wrote about my experiences. That doesn't mean I haven't played, or that I lost interest. Even the contrary! I've been playing a lot and am becoming more and more addicted to it. I am still learning and practising, but now's the time to share my recent adventures again with you guys ^-^

After the self-created sniper mission, I decided to do another one. And another. In fact, since I found out about how great sniping is in this game, I did all the rest of the side missions with the sniper approach. Not every time with the high range snipers; sometimes I pick one that has a maximum range of 900 meters, but with bigger magazine size; 10 or 20 rounds.
Only once I went in with my crew, just to test how side missions w@&k when a crew is brought in. Nice! I took them with me on a trip to a small village where some spec ops were hiding, killing our patrolling men in the area. They gave me proper backup, but I like it most doing these quests on my own. More liberty of movements and more kills for myself >:D
So I went in sniping the living daylight out of another helicopter crash site. This time I was about a thousand meters away from the enemy activity. Here's some screenies to give you an idea:

Using the range finder to check the distance:
[smg id=7615]

Changing to sniper view, ready to fire:
[smg id=7616]

With a few reloads I managed to take out all of the foes. From this distance, bullet-traveling-time is the hardest part to predefine: when they were fast moving from left to right in my view I had to aim something like 3 meters in front of them to hit them!
Here's some pictures to give you an impression of the distance:

On the map:
[smg id=7620]

Normal view:
[smg id=7617]

Using SOS scope, x28 zoom:
[smg id=7618]

Using SOS scope, x75 zoom:
[smg id=7619]

After completing all side quests I went on doing story missions. The first I did was a mission where we had to get in contact with a renegade. He would provide priceless intel and would make it possible for us to deal an important strike to the enemy forces. I could choose between raiding a repair depot or blowing op air support (helicopter). I chose to blow the helo. Great mission, with a lot of freedom of choice. You had to secure an area and have the renegade call in support. Then blow it. I managed to do this mission with only 4 reverts. I'm getting good at it
Here I'm ordering my crew to board an Ifris troop transport. It's a great vehicle, but unfortunately it is not yet available in free roam mode. I think they don't want to make things too easy, because any vehicle you bring back to base during free roam / scouting, will be your default crew-vehicle if you want to take your crew with you on patrol. Having an Ifris is a great advantage, because it's fast, reliable and not easily detected. If you find one in free roam, it's simply inaccessible :-\\
[smg id=7621]

PZ, I tried to help you out on the testing thingy, and I found out that the game provides a great way of 'field testing' any given item or weapon. I haven't gotten farther than selecting my current loadout and making a screeny of it, but it's definitely the way to test certain weapons without having to go through the stroll of half a campaign before you discover them :-()
[smg id=7623]

This is what bad weather looks like:
[smg id=7624]

It's on the next story mission. It's a great mission actually. Miller has word of one of our friends being held captive on Stratis, the other Island, and it may be a good opportunity to free him. So we move back to Stratis in an attempt to free him. My task it so create Chaos in the South together with a small team. The goals is to attract enough attention to draw the main forces South, giving Miller and his crew the opportunity to free our man.
First I have to make my way to the excavation point on Altis, on my own. It's crawling with enemies and have have to act fast to make it in time. It's doable though, and actually great fun! Here I reach the excavation point, at the coast. Miller is waiting for me with his boats:
[smg id=7626]

We've just disembarked on Stratis. It is foggy, but climbing the hill makes the view clearer. You can see the fog in the valley, and the lighthouse on top:
[smg id=7627]

You are going to die my friend:
[smg id=7628]

Creating Chaos in the south wasn't that hard for me. We had to attack multiple small enemy outposts, like roadblocks, air support spots, repair facility and, last but not least, an ammo depot. The hardest part was to escape after our jobs were done. The main forces of Stratis were rushing in on our position and my men were following me inside the ammo depot (I had to check all these crates for nice rifles, scopes, ammo and more ) Time after time we were late, and ended up being cannon food for the enemy troops. Finally I re-attacked the last depot and ordered my men to move over to the extraction point already, while I made sure to secure those precious sniper scopes and ammo. I did good business down there >:D
We made it just in time, and me being alone I could easily avoid the troops. Nice score:
[smg id=7629]

The best reward I got down there was the "nightstalker". A special optics with 4 different views and built-in range finder. Here you see normal view:
[smg id=7630]

Night vision:
[smg id=7631]

Black thermal view:
[smg id=7632]

White thermal view:
[smg id=7633]

max scoped: x25:
[smg id=7634]

This cope has become my standard equipment for whatever mission I start. If needed, I bring a High Range Scope as well, like the SOS for super magnification up to x75. When I completed this Startis mission our base camp was moved to a new location. With 3 new side quests. They looked promising: 2 of them were involving secret ammo stash >:D
And YESS!!!! I found the precious, 2000m range rifle called the M320 LRR, based on the real time, record holding Cheyenne Tactical M-200 Intervention (click for details @ imfdb)
[smg id=7635]

I tried to empty my weapons cache a bit, to free some space. To no avail: All the weapons I threw on the ground reappeared inside the crate again when I came back from the next mission ::)
[smg id=7636]

On my last patrol I went to an island where there had to be a weapon stash hidden. I had to have a boat, so I wrecked havoc on an enemy naval base.
[smg id=7638]

The actual port, with two gunboats to my avail:
[smg id=7639]

Great boats, with heavy fire power. Both a cannon for the commander and a gattling gun at the back side of the ship.
[smg id=7640]

Me, steering the thing towards another naval base:
[smg id=7641]

Indeed, why just raid one naval base? Lets raid two of them! With my thermal scope and sniper power it's easy to get the job done. Rushing in with the gunboats was not so successful though. I prefer the silent approach; medium range sniper rifle with that nightstalker thing, and a good suppressor to avoid being detected. They all sleep with the fishes before they even know what happened
In this next picture you see a submarine transport device. It can transport two men under water, as long as they provide their own air support, and act like a mini submarine complete with diving abilities and periscope functions. Really cool device. I had used it once on a mission, but it's much cooler to have it to your avail during free roam. It was dark but I spotted sharks in the ocean 8)
[smg id=7637]

Here we go! 3rd person view using the submarine:
[smg id=7643]

Here you see it from the side. You can dive with it, and of course switch to 1st person view. But 1st person is hard to get a good view of your surroundings. Nice for cinematic purposes, but I prefer the broader view ;)
[smg id=7645]

Finally, here's the mission I'm about to start. We finally attack the main airport. Miller should be able to talk NATO forces into helping us and raiding the airport from the ?North. We go in south. I discovered that before the mission actually starts, in this briefing screen, you can call up all your men's invetory and pick all the gear you want them to carry with them. Then it comes in handy if you have more than one sniper rifles, suppressors, scopes, etc. For this task I armed all my men with powerful scopes and suppressors,. We're going to strike hard, precise and from a safe distance. Will be great!!!!! :-() :-() :-()
[smg id=7647]

[PZ]

Dang, BinnZ, that's better than any other review I have read on the 'net  :-X
Really gives me a sense of what you are doing in the ArmA 3 world.  I really like those sniper rifles, and their accessories.  I recll doing a CheyTac mod in ArmA 2, and it was an amazing weapon.

Looking forward to being able to spend some time gaming.  :-X

[Art Blade]

nice scope with black or white thermal view, perfect for creating contrasts  :-X

[Binnatics]

I don't know why you are given the option between white and black thermal view. Sometimes the black view is shown with grey background, instead of orange, but if you already have the thermal view showing the targets white, why bother giving another option and make them contrary ????

[Binnatics]

PZ, I checked; the virtual arsenal is working like I expected. You can load weapons and attachments of your choice and test them in a virtual reality situation. You will see yourself in a variety of colours and you can thus practice shooting from distance if you want.
I also checked the editor, it looks quite complicated but it seems you can design an entire mission with various objectives and everything. I only managed to introduce myself to Stratis airport together with an enemy, and in the preview mode I was able to shoot the bugger :-D

[Art Blade]

Binnatics, if you have a camouflaged target (white suit) in a snowy environment, the whit thermal view won't help so you switch to black thermal view. If you have to find a target at night, black thermal won't help much so you switch to white. :)

[Binnatics]

I get your point, but it doesn't really w@&k that way. Even at night, the rest of the environment is shown opposite to the colour used for the body warmth. Generally speaking; everything is orange, medium obscure, and the thermal presence is either light or dark, depending your choice.  ????

[PZ]

PZ, I checked; the virtual arsenal is working like I expected. You can load weapons and attachments of your choice and test them in a virtual reality situation. You will see yourself in a variety of colours and you can thus practice shooting from distance if you want.
I also checked the editor, it looks quite complicated but it seems you can design an entire mission with various objectives and everything. I only managed to introduce myself to Stratis airport together with an enemy, and in the preview mode I was able to shoot the bugger :-D

Sounds promising!  :-X

[Art Blade]

Well.. The only reason to use black or white, in that case, is to keep your eyes adapted. At night, if everything is dark and your pupils are open, a full white image will blind you when you look at it and makes you lose your night vision when you put the rifle down. Kind of the same the other way round with the white image at daylight.