Quick question...

[Sup]

There's no theoretical limit on gr1 map size, is there? I know about the size limit on the command map, but aside from performance issues nothing's to stop someone from making a stupidly large map, right?

(Just checking to see if a stupidly far-fethced idea of mine is actually possible)

[element11]

A map can be as big as you want, just past 400*400 the command map is not accurate, and you will find yourself off the map sometimes. Its been done in mods, i think it was No easy day was the one i remember, you start a mission off the command map.

[Sup]

A map can be as big as you want, just past 400*400 the command map is not accurate, and you will find yourself off the map sometimes. Its been done in mods, i think it was No easy day was the one i remember, you start a mission off the command map.

This means, in theory, we can do GRAW style insertions, right? Insert in heli over the overall (whole campaign) mission area to a specific 400*400 part your mission takes place in, then move on through each location mission by mission? (Y'know, each map being a specific 'walled off' part of the campaign sized map, with the other areas and major landmarks visible outside of it's borders)

[Dannik]

I'm pretty sure Harntrox (and others, likely) have missions that had insertions well off the command map, and even had encounters outside of the 'normal' boundaries of the playable map. The plantation map from IT, for example, had a helo insertion that had you trying to take out a radio tower off the NNE boundary of the map.

[Sup]

Excellent. Assuming I can (or can find someone to) make a map that large and script multiple connected missions within it my idea ought to work pretty well, as long as the map can be made to run well enough.

[sleeper]

The way I see it, with clipping and LOD models, a larger than usual map might not be as much of a resource hog as one might think. I imagine that you could try using LOD models with very long switch distances for objects. This would involve making things like buildings,mountains, rocks and such as dynamic objects but it shouldn't really be all that much more work. Use your imagination, there's plenty more that can be done with GR maps still.

[The Worm]

Ya pple have been talking about this for the longest time.

My idea I'm exploring now is we get rid of the Command Map function altogether, and in it's place we put a "refrence" map that covers the entire playable area.

Example:

1) Make a Map, say 2000 m across. The maps has to have some very "obvious" land-marks like roads, river, bridges, hills etc.

2) Make a "Paper map" RSB drawing of the entire 2000 m Map, complete with details of the obvious land-marks. The roads, villages etc will be labelled with names that correspond to sign-boards on the physical Map.

3) Now, scale the your paper map RSB to fit into the Command Map panel witout cropping: The entire 2000 m of playable Map is now shown in the Command panel.

4) Now it gets tricky: the Command Map is Totally off-scale, so my idea was:-

a) Alpha-channel away all the usual Command Map icons like Team A, B, C, the Red/Green diamonds, vehicles etc.

b) "offset" the Command Map so far away from the real Map that the setting-waypoints function won't work.

c) Objectives? Draw them directly onto the Command Map RSB as if some intel weenie scrawled on your map with a red marker-pen. So a "virgin" Command Map must be on file, and every mission might have a altered Command Map with fresh directions scrawled in.

d) Finding your way around? Map & compass time, the old fashioned way. Binos come with distance measurements, right? The Command Map comes with a Scale and grids. Work it out.

e) Performance? I've made 2000 m test-maps before and filled it with rocks: works fine... as long as you pull every trick in the book to keep performance up e.g. no big forests, LOD's, forget glass windows etc

Inother words, theCommand Map, which nowshows the entire playable area, is For Reference Only, like OFP iirc.

Problems:

1) Moving around: In co-op, there'sno problem. Might need team-speak to stay co-ordinated.

In SP, you'll have to walk the Teams individually. I guess a lot of ppl won't like that.

2) Scripting: The scriptor will have to turn-off the command map and script by "blue-lines" alone, like RS or OFP guys used to do. Not easy, but do-able.

All you need is some guys to get together and try the whole thing out.

[Sup]

The way I see it, with clipping and LOD models, a larger than usual map might not be as much of a resource hog as one might think. I imagine that you could try using LOD models with very long switch distances for objects. This would involve making things like buildings,mountains, rocks and such as dynamic objects but it shouldn't really be all that much more work. Use your imagination, there's plenty more that can be done with GR maps still.

Yeah, definitely, it's not at all hard to get a good landscape running at gr1 spec. Especially if each mission has a specifically optimized version of the overall map with all of the detail focused inside of it's borders.