Dangerous Waters Random Mission Generator

[FERdeBOER]

Last update: version 0.2

You can find it in the Downloads section:
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/down...o=file&id=4794

mirror:
https://mega.nz/#!S0pURKxA!D_V3ith4Z...gkjzjnSS_R2qYc

The news are:

- Now you can select sub, air and surface platforms.
- When surface platform selected, you can select the "Alert status" (5, 15 or 30 minutes).
- If you select a sub, you can choose to fight an ASW (Anti Submarine warfare) or ASuW (Anti Surface Warfare)

Here is a screenshot selecting a surface unit:


It's almost completed.
Remain a couple of details, but this is more or less similar to what I wanted to do.
More mission types can be added, but in some areas I'm not good, as, for example, I've played very few times with air platforms, so I not dare to create air vs surf or surf vs surf missions. But if anybody makes one and send it to me, I gladly put it on the program.

You can find it on the first thread here (server down).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Ok, guys, here I come again with another project. I'm pretty excited with this and hope you will like what I'm trying to do.

For work reasons, I needed to create a small program and found one, called Game-Editor, which eases the process A LOT.
Then I started to play a bit more with it... and finally I decided that it would be possible to create random generated missions and even a dynamic campaign for DW.

Don't jump already. One thing is random missions and other very different is a dynamic campaign.
I think I could create a random campaign, but dynamic... for the moment is beyond my abilities (and probably always be, since I don't believe I will learn programming in the next few... decades ). There are, still 2 ways of creating a dynamic campaign:

-1: find somebody who knows programming.
-2: making the player to enter the missions result “manually” so the campaign can continue at that point.

However, as I said, it would be the future.
The present is a random mission generator that I hope could replace the quick missions with better performance.
I've played very few with quick missions, but most of that times the enemy sub was cavitating since the mission start.

I'll paste here the read me:

This is a small project with very high ambitions for Dangerous waters 1.4 with RA mod installed.

It's made by me with a great program called Game Editor version 1.4.

You can find the program on: http://game-editor.com/ (server down for the moment). 

It has a great comunity and pretty clear turorials... and no, you can star without knowing anything about programming (but it helps and is easy to learn the basics with the help of the comunity).

This program is free, you can use it, distribute it, change it... but you CAN'T use it to make money.
And, of course, you have to mention me as the original creator; just for the hours spent, no other ;-)

If you want to contact me you can find me in the subsim.com forums.

Any comment is welcome.

Content:

1- Instructions.
2- What is this program about.
3- Version history.
4- TO DO.
5- The future.
6- Thanks to.

========== 1- INTRUCTIONS ============

------- IMPORTANT! ------
The program generates missions for DW 1.4 with RA mod installed.
Most surelly it will not work well with vanilla or LwAmi mods.
-------------------------

1- Extract the folder where you want.

2- Execute "DW_RM_v01.exe" and select your combat area.

The blue dot is for blue (deep) waters battle.
The brown dot is for brown (shallow) waters battle.

3- As the program asks you to, now execute the file called "missiongen.bat".

If it asks you, select F.

4- Now push the blue button.

That's it! A mission called mission.mu is ready for you.

5- Copy the file called "mission.mu" to the Scenario folder in your Dangerous Waters intallation folder.
Overwrite if asked.

6- Now start your game as usual and, in the single mission menu, you will find a mission called --Random Mission--.
You will see a Victor as controlable unit, but you can select your favourite platform.
 
7- Enjoy!

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======== 2- What is this program about ================

This program is intended to improve the naval sim Dangerous Waters game experience.

One of the lacks of the original game is its poor quick mission generator.

Based on the powerful in-game mission editor, DWRMG (Dangerous Waters 
Random Mission Generator)gives you the option of selecting the battle area.

Then the program will generate randomly the weather conditions and gives you
the mission.

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======= 3- Version history ============================


v0.1 - This is the first version of the program. You can:

- Select battle area between 6 possibilities: 4 deep water, 2 shallow water.
- Generates a mission in the selected area with random enviromental conditions.

-------------------------------------------------------

========= 4- TO DO ====================================

- In this version, you can only select ASW with sub vs sub missions.
Also, the battle will be allways 1vs1.

In next versions I plan to add also surface and air controlable platforms as
well as ASuW.
Maybe also other kind of missions, but I'm not sure about that.

- As is based in RA mod, there's a wide variety of platforms both controllable or not, but at this version you will fight against modern submarines.
In the future there will be the option of selecting "era".

- Fell free to suggest other things.

-------------------------------------------------------

====== 5- The future ===============================

- Honestly, DWRMG is noy my objetive. My real aim is set on creating a Campaign as more dynamic as possible, but I have no idea of programming and not much time, so I will do what I can. Bu I think I can Achieve my goal with the knowledge I've adquired, so I will try to do it.
Of course, thanks to Game-Editor, which makes a lot of work for you.

- I see this campaign very similar to the still great "Red Storm Rising" ones:
the player will move around the scenario and will find objetives, and receive missions.

A very early version is already in progress.

-------------------------------------------------------

For now the interface is very ugly, but it does what it has to do. I t will be improved if the program has success.



You can find the program on commanders-academy:
It's at the end of the post.


Please I beg you to give as more ideas as you can and, if you want to participate, even better.

The program idea is pretty simple:
- 1st I've created one (yes, only one) mission sub vs sub for blue waters and another for brown waters.
Each mission has a dynamic group for the enemy subs and one for civilians and all of them have random boxes.

- Then I used that mission as base for creating the others. Let's continue with the blue waters mission. The mission file is a simple txt file, so it can be read an modified. The lat and long positions on that file are only for the center of the map, so it's easy to change it.
Besides, the positions of the platforms are relative to that center, so, when you change lat and long, the rest continues at their relative positions on the original mission.
With this one must be careful because if not, your submarine can appear inland (it happened me on one test ).

- The program I've created asks you to select one area (and changes the lat and long values).
This makes easy porting blue water missions from area to area because there's little risk of grounding objects, but is risky on shallow waters or near to land.
But this can be solved creating more specific mission for that areas.
The program also randomize the environmental conditions: time, weather, clouds... so, even if you select always the same area, there will be pretty different conditions, both environmental and about enemies and neutral platforms.

For now, as said on the read me, there are only 1vs1 sub missions and only with the modern ones.
But it's not hard to add other missions and eras, only is a bit time-consuming.

Once this part is finished and the method controlled, I then would like to try to create a campaign generator.
I was thinking on creating a one similar to RSR... wait, I said similar: you select your submarine and wander around the map and receive mission orders. As I said before, it would be hard to make a very dynamic campaign to that level.
But with your help... who knows, maybe we can do it...

What do you think about it? Am I doing a good thing or wasting my time? Somebody wants to help?

[Molon Labe]

I think it's a great idea. And I wouldn't be discouraged by having to manually enter some data. After all, right now if we want to do something like this it is 100% manual.

Quick question though... what can we expect from campaigns created like this? Right now it seems like it would be a campaign like we already have in DW--single player and consisting of scenarios strung together in a storyline. I'd love to find a way to generate DW missions as part of a multiplayer campaign without a scripted storyline. Is anything like that on your radar?

[FERdeBOER]

Originally Posted by Molon Labe

I think it's a great idea. And I wouldn't be discouraged by having to manually enter some data. After all, right now if we want to do something like this it is 100% manual.

Thanks, I also think like you.

Quick question though... what can we expect from campaigns created like this? Right now it seems like it would be a campaign like we already have in DW--single player and consisting of scenarios strung together in a storyline. I'd love to find a way to generate DW missions as part of a multiplayer campaign without a scripted storyline. Is anything like that on your radar?

Mi intention about a campaign is like you say. No storyline, no scripting, just an introduction and missions created based on previous results and random.
It can be done for multiplayer without problems. Well, probably would be a little tricky, but nothing unbearable.

What I've though is this:
Let's think about two sides. Both of them start equal, 50%.
Of course when one side wins a battle, gains points and the loser loss points.
The sides are more or less aggressive depending on if they are winning or losing.
To make it "dynamic" I thought on creating a list of the most important platforms (cruisers, Naval bases, SSN and specially CVs and SSBN...). Destroying them makes them out of the campaign.
For doing so, once played the mission and restarted the campaign generator, we should go to "uncheck" the killed platform and so the program won't use it again.
The "lesser" platforms and civil shipping should be considered "expendable", so destroying them gives you points but the platform may appear again in the future.
Of course this is not magical. First one must decide the sides and the platforms involved and give that data to the program. But once done, it will be easier.

What kind of campaign are you thinking about? Let's make a little brainstorming

[Captain Sub]

I think it's a great idea,

do you think it would be possible to click anywhere on the map instea of being constrained to points?

Also it would be great if once an area is selected the computer would select randomly a mission out of a mission pool.

[FERdeBOER]

Originally Posted by Captain Sub

do you think it would be possible to click anywhere on the map instea of being constrained to points?

Too hard, but it can be "open" to areas. and make it more flexible. However, remains the problem of creating objetcs too close to land, where more precise missions are needed.
This random mission generator is somewhat like the quick mission generator, which is similar in concept: you choose the area amongst the ones prefixed.

Originally Posted by Molon Labe

What I would really like to have in a dynamic campaign engine for DW is something that can keep an account of the platforms present in a campaign (and their status--loadout, fuel, damage, etc.), account for their movements that take place before/after a match is played, determines when/where a DW match is to take place, and can generate DW missions based on all of the information its been tracking. Something along the lines of the "2d world" in Falcon 4, if you're familiar with that. Or, imagine a server running Fleet Command, with Dangerous Waters players logging into it to control the playable platforms in the FC game.

Never played Falcon 4, but I liked very much EF2000 campaign (very old, I know). I suppose is something similar.
Status, loadout, fuel... too complex, at least for now. But the other things are what I was thinking about.
I will be hard to simulate an AI, but it can be done.

I expect that a full-blown professional campaign engine like F4's is beyond the limits of game-editor. But, if it can do most of the things I've listed above--even if a lot of the data is entered manually b/c it doesn't know how to interpret the results of a DW battle, it's still accomplishing a lot.

I have very little skill as programmer. I fear it will be far more simple, at least at the beginning. Many things should be entered manually, at least on the first steps to create the campaign (players, sides...).

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

Isn't there a results file created when you end a mission. Could your generator read that and interpret the results?

yes, it's called debrief.txt
As far as I know, it will be possible to interact with it, but at the moment I don't know how. I'm afraid I must to keep with the manual solution.

BTW Definitely needs LWAMI compatibility with Pacific and Persian Gulf AOs...

Yeah, I really love LWAMI mod, but I have little time (in fact I shouldn't even be doing this on these days ). RA mod is what I have installed right now and, since there's not an easy way to install the last version, it will have to wait.

[Molon Labe]

What I would really like to have in a dynamic campaign engine for DW is something that can keep an account of the platforms present in a campaign (and their status--loadout, fuel, damage, etc.), account for their movements that take place before/after a match is played, determines when/where a DW match is to take place, and can generate DW missions based on all of the information its been tracking. Something along the lines of the "2d world" in Falcon 4, if you're familiar with that. Or, imagine a server running Fleet Command, with Dangerous Waters players logging into it to control the playable platforms in the FC game.

I expect that a full-blown professional campaign engine like F4's is beyond the limits of game-editor. But, if it can do most of the things I've listed above--even if a lot of the data is entered manually b/c it doesn't know how to interpret the results of a DW battle, it's still accomplishing a lot.

[TLAM Strike]

Isn't there a results file created when you end a mission. Could your generator read that and interpret the results?

BTW Definitely needs LWAMI compatibility with Pacific and Persian Gulf AOs...

[Molon Labe]

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

Isn't there a results file created when you end a mission. Could your generator read that and interpret the results?

BTW Definitely needs LWAMI compatibility with Pacific and Persian Gulf AOs...

Even if you could read the debrief file, a lot of times the information there is incorrect or missing. Plus there's no accounting of expended weapons/cms or damage.

[FERdeBOER]

Originally Posted by FERdeBOER

Last update: version 0.2

Program update. Look the first post.

[FERdeBOER]

Originally Posted by UncleBoomer

Is this program still available somewhere? All the links posted are either dead or the file has been deleted. Im not ready for DW to die yet....

Sorry for the late answer. I have not my backup hard disk with me. If nobody can send you the program, you will need to wait one month. I've put this on my To-do list.

Ps: I'm not ready for it to die either.

[swampy]

Does it work with the RA-mod?

[FERdeBOER]

It only works with RA mod (readme in the first post), but I've not tested it with the last versions. Should work anyway.

[UncleBoomer]

Awesome, Thanks for the reply FERdeBOER. I look forward to seeing your work.

[Zander]

Originally Posted by UncleBoomer

Awesome, Thanks for the reply FERdeBOER. I look forward to seeing your work.

I have the file and would send it asap if i could figure out how to upload it somewhere as Subsim's policy does not allow this type (a zipped-exe...) file and for good reason. The file is 1147kb large. FERdeBOER will get it to you soon.

[FERdeBOER]

Here is the link to the file.
https://mega.co.nz/#!6ggHwRqT!_xNeCS...gjEUvE2VC5HSAA

Is the first time I upload something to Mega, so I'm not sure if I've made it right.
It shouldn't have virus/trojan/spyware. But is always good to check

Many thanks to Zander for sending me the file.

As always, any feedback is more than welcome.