Please note I’m not in charge of anything or suggesting we change anything, this is purely gathering info to see if people might be interested.
The Foothold server has been a great opportunity for us as a community to get together and do some flying. Who fly’s when, and who they fly with has been pretty diverse. I fly a lot solo as my preferred time is apparently off the schedule of a lot of other people on any continent represented here. Doesn’t bother me at all, but I know some people prefer to be on when other people are on.
I am curious if people would be interested in maybe a monthly or bi-weekly “mission” that is more “focused” in addition to the more freeform Foothold server. Sort of like the “operations” we’ve had on the Foothold server. Hop on for an hour or two, use some teamwork as chaos ensues, meet back up to do it again in a couple weeks.
I think @BeachAV8R did an awesome job of storytelling for the last two Foothold objectives, adding in units, creating intel photos etc. However, if you’re just solo on the server, you’re pretty much required to approach it in the same way we did the other 60+ objectives. Having that same setup with 2 weeks to plan out the mission, come up with an operation name and logo, etc I think would be good fun for all who chose to be involved.
I am absolutely not trying to create work for @BeachAV8R or anyone else here at MS. I claim to be no wizards in the mission editor in DCS, but I am more than willing to try to do more than just drop units on the map. Would anyone be interested in a separate “Mission” multiplayer experience?
Yes, though I must add that I do like the larger context the foothold “paint the map blue” game gave to the proceedings is a major part of what made those team efforts shine.
If I am available at mission time then I’m definitely in. My work schedule can be somewhat fluid though, so I can’t be counted on for anything critical.
I would definitely like to see the Foothold missions continue though. It has been great jumping on for a quick sortie when time has allowed.
I’m for any expansion that brings us together. I’ll just voice what caught fire with me with the Foothold concept. Truth be told, I like “multiplayer” as as a selfish solo effort enjoyed on an evolving battlefield every bit as much as real-time co-op with other live players. Foothold has given me the freedom to sandbox exactly as I wish. On Cyprus I was listening to Mudspikers fight over Syria while I was reacquainting myself with the F4 over Cyprus. I was “there” but really not. I’ve enjoyed being on the server all alone, drinking 4 Roses while picking up downed aviators. I really enjoyed the coordinated attack on the SA site with @Derbysieger, @BeachAV8R and I host of others. And I especially enjoyed flying with @TheAlmightySnark earlier today. There are so many ways to participate and progress without getting overly formal about it.
I would also be very enthusiastic about a curated mission where a knowledgeable dungeon master of sorts manages the experience and helps plan our success. But I tend to work weekends and commit to odd scheduled interruptions to my day. So this might not be something I would do often.
I don’t know how it would work but a group warbirds WWII joint mission would be fun (hilarious?) for a change sometimes. I have a few of them and always forget, but nice as not too much switchology to remember etc.
So some sort of retro night one off mission protecting some bombers etc could be good.
From what I know, CPU speed and SSD speed if you want to offer Tacview. I run the 86th TFW Phantom Squadrons server, though I no longer participate in the training. It’s a Linux box (Ubuntu 22.04 LTS) with DCS running in a docker container. The base is an Intel Core i7 i7700 and some regular SSD. Due to space constraints I tried to run (test) server off the HDD, but it stutters a lot when Tacview writes data. Without Tacview the experience was ok, for the two users of it…
I doubt that the missions usually run on that box are taxing the system as much as Foothold will, with a zillion of units on map… I tried Foothold Germany on a test server and it worked fine, but no idea if the system would cope with 5-10 folks connected at the same time.
Whatever @BeachAV8R is hosting with runs fine, including a delayed TacView. The most I personally have seen of us on was six. There have been periods of long, low FPS, but I’ve only experienced them on the server solo. Someone, Snark I believe, was complaining about it while we were the only two on but I was smooth.