21 replies to this topic

[AzumitH]

Ok, so you've booted up Arma 2, and your in-game. Your first steps are empowering, hearing the sound of your feet hitting the ground makes you feel as though your could take on the world. But wait, the gun in your hands isn't really what you had in mind. A giant pile of crates beckons you seductively, urging you to prise it's lid off and peer inside. You do so with much gusto, but then you are struck down by the question to end all questions...

WHAT GUN SHOULD I USE?

Now now, calm down. It's not the end of the world. Weapon choice can be as simple as tying your shoelaces, or remembering to breath. What I will point out below is a simple series of sub-questions, which should help narrow down your choice. But first, some basic info on what types of weapons may be available.

RIFLES

Rifles are the basic go to gun for most situations. Common fire modes are semi-automatic, burst fire and fully automatic. Caliber and magazine size are also important. The two most common calibers are 5.56 and 7.62. 5.56 is generally more controllable than 7.62 on full auto, but also packs less of a punch. Optics also vary, with ironsights or reflex sights being the optimal choice for close to mid range combat, with ACOGs or similar better for longer range combat. Be aware though that big optics on a small caliber rifle may encourage you to shoot at targets outside your weapons effective range.

MACHINE GUNS

Featuring generous magazine sizes in a variety of calibers, light machine guns (LMGs) bridge the gap between a rifle and tripod mounted crew served weapons. The downsides of LMGs are having to be prone with a deployed bipod to deliver accurate fire, and the weight of the ammunition required to deliver effective suppression. Depending on how much walking you are going to have to do in the mission, you may want to ask someone to carry a box or two of belts for you until you need them.

BATTLE RIFLES, SNIPER RIFLES AND DESIGNATED MARKSMAN RIFLES (DMRs)

These are better suited to more open terrain, where having a range advantage over the enemy is crucial. Battle rifles are similar to regular assault rifles, but are often chambered in larger calibers and may not have a fully automatic fire mode. Sniper rifles and DMRs are used in long range engagements only, which means a secondary weapon is needed if the enemy closes on your position.

So armed with this knowledge, the main things to consider are this:

What is my role in the mission?
If I don't have an assigned role, what role would be beneficial to the team?
If there isn't a particular role that needs filling, what do I want to do?

So that's the first part out of the way. Next time, launchers and secondary weapons!

Any questions, fee free to ask.

[£nfield]

AzumitH, on 02 February 2012 - 01:23 PM, said:

Any questions, fee free to ask.

What gun should I use?

[AzumitH]

Tank=Me.
Smart-asses=You

[deFRAGer]

Very nice write up. The problems I have are with something like a G36 or Bison, short range, very effective, however for distances 300m - 500m which are not long enough for a sniper/dmr etc what gun should I choose? M16/M4/AK's can shoot that far, but they usually are coupled with a red dot/iron sites. I guess you could grab a ACOG but then you are screwed as soon as you get into the town. On a average mission you are expected to shoot up to 500m. BTW who other than MG's would shoot full auto? Useless feature.
Why isn't there a BFG gun that does everything?

[sealquest]

Another new rule: no helicopters hovering pointlessly over base and at LZ's and objectives.

[Telgriff]

deFRAGer, on 02 February 2012 - 03:08 PM, said:

Very nice write up. The problems I have are with something like a G36 or Bison, short range, very effective, however for distances 300m - 500m which are not long enough for a sniper/dmr etc what gun should I choose? M16/M4/AK's can shoot that far, but they usually are coupled with a red dot/iron sites. I guess you could grab a ACOG but then you are screwed as soon as you get into the town. On a average mission you are expected to shoot up to 500m. BTW who other than MG's would shoot full auto? Useless feature.
Why isn't there a BFG gun that does everything?

It comes down to what is needed for the mission and what other people need for the group (like Az said).
You want a medium range rifle, get a 7.62 rifle with a red dot. You are assaulting a town, take something more close quarters and move to engage further out targets. Acog DOES have the fibreoptic sight on top, press / on the numpad to access alternate view modes. You want a do it all rifle? Get a HK416/417 with the three sight options (cant remember which one it is), Optics, Holo and iron.

The best advice I can give, is go to the editor, drop down a few weapon crates try everything, put up a few targets or people, find what fits best for your needs and stick with that or similar for missions. Play some missions, find out what role you naturally fall into (support, air cover, long range, CQB, AT etc), then go from there with weapon options on what you are best at or most comfortable with.

Also Red dots/Holo can and will engage to 400m if you can shoot properly and use 262 rounds. Or get an MG to provide suppresive fire and maneuver around and closer to your target.

sealquest, on 02 February 2012 - 05:31 PM, said:

Another new rule: no helicopters hovering pointlessly over base and at LZ's and objectives.

Orbit at a safe distance or high altitude or land somewhere and wait so we dont lose audio ability and blasted with dust.

[deFRAGer]

Telgriff, on 02 February 2012 - 05:36 PM, said:

Also Red dots/Holo can and will engage to 400m if you can shoot properly and use 262 rounds. Or get an MG to provide suppresive fire and maneuver around and closer to your target.

Not at my resolution.

Telgriff, on 02 February 2012 - 05:36 PM, said:

You want a do it all rifle? Get a HK416/417 with the three sight options (cant remember which one it is), Optics, Holo and iron.

'/' key doesn't work for me have any idea how to fix?

[Telgriff]

deFRAGer, on 02 February 2012 - 06:03 PM, said:

Not at my resolution.

'/' key doesn't work for me have any idea how to fix?

Then find weapons that work for your PC setup. If you cant see past say 2000m then dont be a sniper for example. As far as the / key is concerned, are you using the numpad key (above 8) or the ?/ key? If it still doesnt work, go to ace settings, change the keybinding to something that does work.

Most guns have alternate sights. Some don't. Russian weapons seem to have iron sight options more than the US ones, so work around that. As I said, start the editor, pick weapons see what has what you need, then find a russian/US equivalent for when we play CDF/US missions. Work with that or keep looking for other options that are similar. Most guys here seem to run with the red dot and just get up in the enemies face and give them lead dental work, or my current one is the LMG with a red dot, pick a zone, point and deploy bipod, check for friendlies, if I see shit going down, I open up and hose the area while my guys get into cover or flank.

A while ago, I made a map on Utes, put down a bunch of ammo boxes, targets and various vehicles, armoured and unarmoured, then tried different weapons and AT and different ranges to see what works for situations based on what I might encounter in missions. Out of that I then made a mental list of what weapons I prefer for each type of game mode we usually play and situations where it is of most benefit, mental loadouts if you will. This means I can pick weapons and be up and running very quickly instead of browsing the ammo boxes trying to choose.

[sealquest]

And remember, in life you will need to make many difficult choices, and choosing a weapon in a video game is not one of them.

[Burnt]

sealquest, on 03 February 2012 - 04:34 PM, said:

And remember, in life you will need to make many difficult choices, and choosing a weapon in a video game is not one of them.

As I find choosing a weapon in arma very difficult, I take offense to this post.

[£nfield]

Aircraft Ordnance and You

Nobody kicks ass without CAS. Nobody. But before you clamber into the cockpit of that multi-million dollar gunship, you might want to have a rough idea of which weapon does what and how to employ said weapon in an effective and timely manner. This guide will deal with aircraft ordnance specifically, rather than aircraft avionics, though the majority of ordnance is usually specific to one helicopter.

A few things before we start off:

- Press numpad zero to enter gunner optics in a helicopter
- Numpad plus/minus zooms in and out
- N cycles through FLIR modes, WHOT is the best option
- L activates the laser designator, used to guide missiles and rangefind solutions for the cannon

AGM-114K Hellfire

The laser guided Hellfire, typically found on the AH-1Z Viper and AH-64 Apache. It has a tandem HEAT shaped charge, making it perfect for engaging armoured vehicles, but near useless against infantry. Minimum engagement range is roughly 500m (anything closer than that tends to be *very* inaccurate), maximum range is 8000m. Simply point the reticle at the vehicle, press L and fire. One hit will generally neutralise it, with a second completely destroying it. Do not lase targets behind trees, you must have a clear view of the target in order to successfully hit it.

AGM-114L Longbow Hellfire

Found only on the AH-64D Apache Longbow. Same warhead as the AGM-114K, different guidance system; this Hellfire takes advantage of the Longbow radar. Range is limited only by what your radar in the top left corner can see, with a minimum distance of about 300m. Simply press TAB and fire. As it is a fire and forget missile with INS backup guidance, you can pop up over a treeline, get a shot off and then bug out, making it very useful in neutralising AAA without excessive loiter times. Do not attempt to fire it without confirming the target in thermal though, otherwise, you've may have just wasted a very valuable missile on a UAZ. Which brings me onto my next point.

M197 20mm/M230 30mm/YakB 12.7mm

The best weapon for use against infantry, soft vehicle targets and danger close situations: cannons. As with the AGM-114K Hellfire, simply aim at the target, press L and fire, the computer will automatically range your shots, though you'll start to lose accuracy at ranges greater than 1.5km. Don't use cannons on anything bigger than a UAZ or any other sort of jeep, although they can be quite useful for popping tyres off BTRs and other wheeled APCs.

AT-2 Falanga/AT-9 Ataka

The ATGMs loaded on the Mi-24 Hind. Within the limits of ArmA, it functions in pretty much the same manner as the AGM-114K, requiring designation of targets with L (even though it's a radio guided missile), except that you can not, under any circumstance, engage targets closer than 500m. Doing so will result in the missile spiralling out of control and landing short of the target. Only shoot when the cyrillic ПР is displayed in the gunsight while lasing. Range to target on the Mi-24 is given in kilometers, so a range value of 0.5 is 500m, and so on. Piss poor off-boresight capabilities, so make sure the pilot has placed the target on the nose before launch.

AIM-9X Sidewinder

TAB lock guidance. When acquiring a target, you will hear a low-pitched growling sound, which then changes to a high pitched buzzing tone as the quality of the lock increases. Only fire when you hear the high pitched tone, otherwise, you've wasted a missile.

Folding Fin Aerial Rockets

Unguided rockets, found on most helicopters. Rockets tend to carry HE warheads, making them suitable for attacks on infantry clusters. Very rarely can they be used against armoured targets with success; they may make a large explosion, but they do fuck all unless you score a direct hit on the target. In this case, you need to be exceptionally close to the target, and that usually takes an exceptional pilot.

[AzumitH]

Good write up. If anyone else wants to do a how-to guide, either on something specific or maybe just general play tips feel free to do so.

inb4 25 page sniper essay.

[Mihajlo Pavlovic]

How to use guns

First you have to push the 'f' key to switch the safety off.

It's probably best if you shoot slightly behind formation of your squad and to shoot from the hip, this is because the gun has no sway when hip firing and you're less likely to hit a team mate if you're right behind them because you can always see them.

[Telgriff]

Sniper Rifles

Everyone wants to be the sniper, you get the big gun, you run around and you shoot stuff from far away while wearing a Ghillie(Girly) Suit. But this is not what this class is about. This class is about observation, squad support and long range engagement while concealed.


I’m also using ACEX Version 1.11 for this (as it is what we are mainly using)

Basic Rifle information
Shift + Space – Deploy Bipod/rest weapon – Use this for ensuring the most stable firing platform. If your weapon does not have a bipod, a backpack, Sandbag, fence railing or other player (sort of works) will work for a stable position

Shift + K – Basic information on wind direction and speed:
Yellow - is weak wind and will only effect bullet trajectory slightly, at longer ranges it will shift half a mil to a mil either side of the target depending on the direction of the wind.
Orange – Moderate wind – This will make a noticeable shift in trajectory, usually requiring a substantial adjustment to your target, hold off 2-3 mil dots based on wind.
Red – High wind, high deflection. This makes shots past a few hundred meters very difficult and in most cases it is better to wait for the wind to ease slightly before taking a shot.

Shift + V – Sight adjustment menu: Each sniper rifle has its own range table (accessed by clicking on range table when you bring up the Shift V menu. With adjustment tables to accommodate for drop at longer ranges. You can also adjust windage in here, but as wind in Arma varies wildly, I recommend ‘holding off’ target to account for the wind.

Range Finder: Vector 21 – Be sure to take a Vector 21 battery. Bring up the rangefinder, press R to load a battery which should then display a direction on your display, then press the left mouse button to fire the laser which should bring up a range in a few moments.

Laser Designator: Can range find but will overheat. If used as a designator for air support, the snipers role becomes very powerful.

Kestrel: Accessed in the ace menu and scroll menu. Bring up the kestrel, press Calibrate (middle button) then the left side button to calculate wind. More accurate than Shift K but takes longer.

Spotting Scope: Useful for two man sniper/spotter teams. Confirm targets and also provide security for the shooter. Use the range finder to range targets for the shooter. Wind seems to be client based so Kestrel is of no use (needs to be confirmed if this has been changed)

Bullet types: SD – Heavily reduced range, often over half the range of standard ammunition. This is useful for closer engagements (100-300m) where you need to remain concealed. Obviously you need an SD rifle to make the most out of this projectile.
Standard Ammunition – Most common. Best for all round engagements at medium to long range.
Tracer Ammunition – Same ballistics as Standard Ammunition with ability to see the bullet in flight, unknown if the AI in game react to the tracer or not (seems to mainly sound detection).

Caliber: 7.62x51/54 – US and Russian/CDF ammunition types. Good out to about 800m if your shot is well placed, otherwise effective to around 600m – The SVD is a good all rounder for this role but does not come with a bipod (though there is a model with one in the ACE weapon list)

50 cal – Extremely long range shots, reduced wind drift, higher hit power, massive recoil. Good out to 1.2km depending on the wind. Downside is that the weapon and ammunition is heavy, the sound is huge and heard by everyone, including hearing damage to the shooter/spotter without earplugs, unless using SD ammunition which tends to gimp its abilities. There is also the variant of .50 cal projectiles for the M107 which fires Anti-vehicle projectiles which will damage/destroy light armoured vehicles and its occupants. Note this will also disable a vehicle requiring another unit to destroy the vehicle.

.338 Lapua – Used in BAF Sniper rifle. Extreme long range, 1.6km if you adjust for wind, very reduced wind effect, less drop, high damage. No bipod on current weapons in the box so take a pack or a sandbag!


Being a sniper: Usually a paradrop to a high point location, overseeing the objective and remaining concealed. Provides intel to assault teams and inbound friendly units. In some game modes, has access to Arty making them a very effective force multiplier. In most situations a Sniper’s role should be to provide support and intel to the assault teams while avoid direct combat wherever possible.

[deFRAGer]

I liked spoons one better.

[deFRAGer]

Not Pissing people off

Everyone wants to be a team player, you have fun, you run around and you shoot stuff. However, for some people this is very difficult as you piss people off to much. This guide should give you some hints of things I have learnt the hard way.

Basic Un-pissing off guide.

A6 Intruder- Don't mention zombies.

Azumith- generally can take quite a lot and never rage quits. Gets slightly annoyed if being a dick.

Enfield - don't take any air vehicle in game. Don't say he is wrong. Don't team kill. Don't play the game.

Burnt- Acts like he is all ways pissed off so do whatever. DON'T take LAV. EVER.

Hooves - Fucking angry American who wanks off over modding planes in arma. Don't diss high ping.

Hans - LOLSORANDUM XD faget who sits around in ts posting links all day and playing shitty autistic games made last century. Leave alone. + he is not GAY???!!!

Hick - Pretend you have watched aliens.

Driftit - Don't 'hack' terraria. Better still don't play. ACRE

Midge - Same as Azumith just not so calm. ACRE.

Ordeal - Don't ask questions. He will mute you.

Sealquest- The teamkilling. The questions. ACRE.

Spoon - Penis jokes keep him happy.

Telgriff - Don't diss girly suits. ACRE.

Willow - Generally happy.

Edited by deFRAGer, 08 February 2012 - 06:46 PM.
Spelled my name wrong, wtf bro.

[Spoon]

I hate people that Ninja edit posts... :-p

[Man In Tights]

Ha ha deFRAGer

[Midge]

you left out Hooves and Hans!

[Burnt]

Hooves: Fucking angry American who wanks off over modding planes in arma.
Hans: LOLSORANDUM XD faget who sits around in ts posting links all day and playing shitty autistic games made last century.

..oh wait, it was meant to be how to not piss someone off.