Tuchola Feedback - Beta1, being run on anarchic-x servers Options

[logik]

hey guys

i run anarchic-x.com and we're running tuchola beta1 in our current rotation. we have a lot of users and matches that get up to 40+ during peak hours. instead of making all of our users register over here i've set up a feedback thread on our forums. HOWEVER, i have posted the link to this forum in that thread as indicated in the readme. i hope you find any feedback they provide as helpful. they have been directed to post any comments, screenshots, or demos in that thread.

here is the thread link:
http://www.anarchic-x.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8055

thanks alot
-logik


This post has been edited by logik: 04/11/06 3:11pm

[ScrapyardBob]

Sweet, I'll come check on that periodically. Make sure ya'll grab the server-side fix to block the one exploit hole.

http://www.mobclan.com/forums/upload/index...ndpost&p=103745

I'll fix that hole for good in next week's Beta2, but I didn't want to make everyone download the map again this week.

[logik]

good to know, thanks for the timely response

[ScrapyardBob]

Good feedback over there. There are still some map sections that aren't done (non-playable area). As they don't interfere with play, we rolled into beta1 and will touch up the details in later betas.

...

There are (7) paks on the map, one for each base and the Russians get a bonus pak that guards the SE bridge.

G1 pak40 - Currently sitting naked on the hilltop. It will probably get a fortification similar to the G2 pak40. Artillery or snipers can easily wipe out this defensive position. Tough to flank, but I plan on allowing infantry to sneak the S wall from the river to the pak position. I'm still evaluating what all is going to happen around G1.

G2 pak40 - This is a tougher one to silence, but there are quite a few spots where Russians can snipe the gunner. G2 has a wide front to cover, so a simultanous attack from both flanks would allow one team or the other to get a side shot on the gunner. I may add one or two trees to obscure it's coverage area, but that also works against attackers (as the pak40 gunner can fire blindly).

G3 pak40 - Probably the toughest of all. Attacking this pak position head on is suicidal. It should either be softened up with arty, or use snipers to take care of the gunner. I may lower the wall in front of the pak40 slightly to make the pak easier to hit. Infantry scouts can also sneak up the north wall, through the V2 launch area without being seen. This gets you behind the pak position where you can kill the gunner (or a tank in the tank scrape on top of the hill).

The power of G3's pak is balanced by the issue that Germans have a tough time re-taking this hill. Once you drive the Germans off of this hill, you should be able to hold it against German reinforcements. We'll see how it plays out over the next week.

R1 pak45 - A bit naked on the hill above R1. Vulnerable to snipers on Hill 13 or at the radio shack in the Hill 17 area. The Hill 13 mortar position can also be used to drop rounds onto the gunner's head.

R2 pak45 - This gun used to sit on the bunker roof where the mortar now is (it was way overpowered there). Shouldn't be too many complaints about this pak other then it's tough to stay alive while using it. (I may put a wall next to it.) So far, the R2 pak dosn't get a lot of use and may need some assistance.

R3 pak45 - Sniper bait. Also mortar bait if you use the Glacier Trail mortar position (which is specifically designed to hit that pak45 position!).

SE Bridge pak45 - Helps the russian's hold the Southeast Bridge (a worthwhile cause for the Russians). More of a nasty surprise then a defendable position.

...

Of the seven paks, the G3 is probably the worst. The G1 pak will become less effective over time as I detail the area around G1. G3 is pretty much set, other then possibly lowering the hill in front of the pak40.

[ScrapyardBob]

Found an issue with the stock T34. We will be changing the stock T34 into a T34_76 in the next beta (beta2). It can be abused (the issue), but I won't issue a server patch unless folks really start to abuse it badly.

Admins may want to turn off the stock T34 in the meantime.

[ScrapyardBob]

Other notes from observing gameplay today:

- I'm wondering if the rain effect is broken. When it's raining (you hear the rain sound in the background) there should be raindrops dropping from the skybox onto the player's head. I'm not sure that is working properly.

- I'll probably concentrate on fixing up the farm area for beta #2.


I also plan on opening up the area around the North bridge in Beta2. There's a treeline on the west side of the road, that separates the N Road from the fields that I'm going to remove. I also plan on opening up another section of treeline behind the camo-net tank scrape area to allow easier access to the N Road that leads towards G3.

[ScrapyardBob]

Just to make sure folks know where to get a copy of the in-game map. Here's one that links to a 1600x1200 version.



Base Assault map

[logik]

thread still goin over there and goin strong...

just thought you'd like to see this



http://halo.anarchic-x.net/images/screens/shot0075.jpg

##admin edit##
Changed screenshot to url link
In the future please resize or use a URL link

[ScrapyardBob]

20v22? That must've been a madhouse. I'm glad to see that you didn't run into any gamestate issues or other crashes with that many players. How was server performance under that heavy of a load?

MOB's server has been rocking all day, noon until almost 3am. It got quiet around 1am (10 players), then rebounded for an hour or two (15-20 players). I think our peak players was around 25-27, which isn't bad for a first day.

Matches seem even, the new stats package might even give exact win/loss for Tuchola on .76. Saw a bunch of matches today that were over in 8 minutes because one side or the other did a blitz and the other team didn't defend.

...

Not entirely sure what to do about vehicles stuck in terrain. Getting stuck in rocks, I probably won't fix, unless it's a rock in the middle of a bottleneck (such as the rocks in the river on the SE corner of the farm area). Getting stuck in normal looking terrain, I will take a shot at fixing.

The jeep shot where you stuck inbetween the two bits of stone fence, I'll simply extend the vehicle clip on the stone walls to eliminate getting a jeep in there. (The downside is that it makes it harder to kill infantry at that spot by running them over.) I saw someone get stuck there on the MOB server as well.

Still working on map edges. Probably not a priority in beta #2 for next week.

That patch of road near the Hill 17 Radio Shack is a thorn in my side. It's one of the alpha blend patches that doesn't like to blend properly (there are a few spots in the HIll 17 trail network too). So I ripped out the blend that wasn't working and will hopefully remember to replace it sometime.

I'm pretty sure that Sigma (posted at 12:18am) ran into the invisible wall that is the fix for the map exploit. (If ya'll have that installed.) That invis wall was added just southwest of the German spawn, along the road that exits the spawn on the South side. The exploit fixer only lets me do rectangular regions, but the broken bit of treeline was odd-shaped. So I added a bit of a buffer to make sure you can't get inside that wall at all.

The barb-wire in the middle of the road is interesting. It likes to stick to players like burrs on a dog's fur. I'll simply move it a bit farther west so that you can't touch it without setting off the minefield.

...

I am hoping to hit that balance between infantry and tanks. Where tanks have a chance of getting across a map, but they'll do it faster and safer if infantry clear the way. I also want infantry to have about 50-50 odds of evading if they meet a tank.

Sgt Thomas and I created a lot of havoc tonight, on foot, in the South Forest. We would setup in cross-fire positions with our anti-tank ammo and wait for Russian tanks to come rolling across the Southeast Bridge into the South Forest. As soon as they got into the killzone, one or both of us would fire at their rear panel and take them out.

Infantry can do a lot of damage if they play smart and know where the hiding spots are. A lot of times, tank drivers won't be able to identify which direction the shot came from. Especially if you use weapons like the mortar.

[ScrapyardBob]

Did I mention how much fun I had today, watching everyone explore the map and commit mayhem upon each other? ('twas pure chaos at times)

Biggest complaints were the usual... map size (it's only 10% larger then Barbarossa, but feels larger due to unfamilarity) and the 35 minute time limit on rounds.

There was some good commentary about the width of some of the passes (some vehicle passages are too narrow / constricted). I'll be addressing that in beta2 (found a few more spots that I hadn't mentioned before).

[Mr.Scruff]

i think as i get to know the map alot better, i wont care as much about the map size but it is pretty big.

i found this SICK secret passway to the russian base 3 and im not sure if its a glitch, it sure didnt look like one but i just want to say that it was amazing

[Lt. Buttfish]

We'll I've learned most of the map, and it feels smaller than Barbarossa (even though it's bigger).

Well, anyway, I had a blast playing on it last night. I may not play Barb ever again

[ScrapyardBob]

If you look closely at the map, you will see that there are 2 paths marked in the treeline between R2 and R3. The one is a 4-way path in the very middle of the treeline, but there is also a Y-shaped path in the eastern section of treeline.

That Y-shaped path was added specifically to give Russians an alternate route to reinforce R3.

...

When reinforcing R3, Russians have (3) paths...

1) Vehicles can run the road or they can swing a bit farther east and run up through that small depression east of the road. It's not an ideal situation, but not hopeless either.

2) Infantry can cut through the east section of that treeline. There's one entrance on the south side, but two exits on the north side. Plus a bit of foliage on the north side to keep defenders guessing which exit was used. I may need to add a rock / stone wall along there.

3) Infantry can also cut farther west through the path in the very center of the treeline. That often brings them out behind any Germans who are at R3. If they really want to get behind the germans, you could even go farther west and sneak up the Lazy-S shaped dirt road.

[logik]

there didn't seem to be any gamestate issues.

there were 1 or 2 people complaining about massive lag but in all honesty i am POSITIVE it was a problem on their end. we have an active teamspeak server and i asked about 15 people on my team if they were experiencing any lag and didn't hear anything from anyone.

as far as the tanks, well i can't help you there. we run anarchicmod so our tank settings are different (ie. T34 is scaled up to the actual speed at which they drove making them MUCH faster than stock, etc.)

i did upload the patch fix for the exploit so it is possible that is what sigma ran into...

btw, sorry about the huge image. i usually resize them but just forgot out of excitement.

[ScrapyardBob]

I watched some folks run around last night... what I suspect they're seeing as lag is lighting lag due to my not having a final VCLOG file for the map yet. We used to see those lag hitches when you entered the middle farm area for the first time. Without the VCLOG coverage, the client has to calculate lighting for all of the new models that suddenly came into view.

I'll try to get more VCLOG data built-in to the map for beta2. I only VCLOG'd about 10% of the map and that's from a few weeks ago (so the area around G3 isn't VCLOG'd at all). It's a pain to do, but it gives me an excuse to walk the map and look for problem spots.