***Official Squad Thread***

It's go time, gents!

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Alpha v9.6


Hi Squaddies,
The time has come to hit the streets of Narva! Alpha 9.6 is upon us, and a new map isn't the only thing in store for you! Are you locked and loaded?
Aww, yeah, that's right: squad locking makes its debut in this patch. Not only can you fortify your squad, Riflemen are now capable of deploying sandbags. Everyone else is capable of destroying them... and maybe a few other deployables too. Dig in!
Version 9.6 is now available via Steam. Please always reset your appdata in the game settings on every new build!

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Full Changelog
Gameplay
  • Vehicle claiming can now be done with only 1 person around the vehicle, as long as there are enough people in the squad. This is especially relevant for remote claiming, as players no longer need to send back two people to grab that empty logistics truck that saves your team.
  • Squad now get a vehicle claim unlock at 2/4/6/8 squad members. This combined with the above allows players to make more dedicated vehicle squads. Please make sure you remember to transport the rest of the team with all those APCs!
  • Changed round start-up timers to 3 minutes of preparation time (previously 2 minutes) to help squads get formed and Squad Leaders coordinate before round start.
  • Resupplying or requesting kits from an ammo crate now expends ammo resources from the FOB depending on the kit requested/resupplied. All kits cost 25 ammo points to request or resupply (regardless of missing equipment -- do not spam it unless you need it). Exceptions are as follows: UGL, Raider, and Scout cost 50 to resupply. Light Anti-Tank costs 75 to resupply, and Heavy Anti-Tank costs 100 to resupply.
  • Deployables are now able to be damaged by weapons and thus destroyable. Boom!
    • Sandbags are able to be damaged by all explosives as well as 14.5mm and above.
    • HESCO based deployables are only currently destroyable by the IED. This includes US and RUS MG bunkers made out of HESCO.
    • Ammo boxes are quite fragile and vulnerable to most things besides small arms.
    • HABs from all factions are only currently damageable by IEDs as well as mortars, but only through heavy bombardment of mortars. Useful for disabling spawns from afar.
    • Radios are now damageable by a few select ranged weapons. No ranged weapon is able to quickly destroy the radio avatar of the FOB, but they can hurt it through prolonged fire, thus making it vulnerable if exposed. It is currently vulnerable to the weapons you would use against armored vehicles, HEAT rounds, HMGs, cannons, big explosions, and mortars. Taking down a FOB is still a team effort! Furthermore, Radios now have damage stages so you can keep track of destruction from ranged weapons. You can use your shovels to heal it back up again.
    • Emplaced weapons can also be damaged now. Similar to radios, this will require the type of weapons you normally employ against vehicles.
    • Vehicle repair stations are similarly vulnerable to anti-vehicle weaponry.
    • Razorwire is only destroyable by explosive weapons.
  • Riflemen finally get something the other classes do not! The ability to deploy a single line of sandbags to lightly fortify temporary positions. Each Rifleman can only ever deploy one set of sandbags. (The old one will disappear, similar to IEDs.) Sandbags are still buildable in unlimited numbers by your SL at a FOB. This applies for all Riflemen classes with iron sights and red dot sights.




  • FOBs no longer passively generate ammo or construction points. Please keep your logistics trucks safe and be sure to give lots of love to the brave drivers! A freshly deployed FOB still starts with 100 ammo points and 200 construction points.
  • All armored vehicles no longer take splash damage from Heat-Lance type weapons (RPG-7 HEAT, RPG-7 Tandem HEAT, SPG-9 HEAT, RKG-3, M72 LAW, 40mm HEDP). This means that you need to hit a direct hit on the vehicle to damage it. Up until now, hitting the ground next to a vehicle did a significant amount of damage to it - time to make those rockets count! Unarmored vehicles such as trucks and technicals still take splash shrapnel damage from these weapons, but significantly less than from a direct hit.
  • Ammo crates now cost 200 construction points (was 300). TIP: This allows quick rearms in the field for a few soldiers in critical need of bandages or ammo. Left unsupplied, this FOB will not generate any new points, so think about taking the FOB again afterwards to blocking the team or giving away the FOB and associated tickets.
  • The bare M2A1 Browning and NSV Tripods are now 250 construction points (was 350). Their bunker counterparts are now 450 points (was 500).
  • The Dshk emplacement is now 200 points (was 350). TIP: This will enable you to deploy it off of a fresh FOB, but please be cognizant that left unsupplied ,it will only have a limited amount of ammo as well as attract enemies to its location. Remember to take down the FOB when you do these hit and run tactics.
  • Unarmed HESCO bunker has been reduced by 50 construction points.
  • Militia sandbag bunker reduced to 150 construction points (was 350).
  • Ladders reduced to 100 construction points (was 200).
  • Vehicle Repair Stations have been reduced to 1 per FOB.
  • SPG-9 is now limited to 3 per FOB (was previously limited to 2).
  • Added a HESCO equivalent fortification for Insurgents and Militia in the form of a line of empty oil barrels filled with dirt and gravel. Costs 200 construction points and limited to 6 per FOB.
  • Added another magazine to the M110, also brought up the SVD to have the same number of total rounds as the M110.
  • Slightly lowered the G3A3/G3A4's felt recoil.
  • Lowered sway motion on all binocs.
  • Added "mercy bleed" to last flags on AAS.
  • Added additional logistic trucks on medium to large maps that only had one logistics truck.
  • Additional motorbikes have been added to the expanded Al Basrah map. Additionally, some motorbikes are now permanent recurring spawns.

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Effects
  • When throwing a smoke grenade there is a tiny delay before it starts emitting smoke. This means that it no longer marks your exact location as a target when it should be obscuring it.

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UI



  • The wait is over! It is now possible to lock squads. We urge veteran players to not lock themselves away from the community at large, especially during times of influx.
  • You can no longer join a locked squad, and trying to join a full or locked squad will now return you to the role select screen.
  • New Spawn selection list next to the map, which lists all the possible spawns and allows players to easily identify where to spawn.



  • New Player Stance and Vehicle Engine indicator icons, that show what stance your character is adopting (standing, crouching or prone, as well as which way you are leaning), and if you are in a vehicle the indicator would also show whether or not your engine is on.


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Mapping
  • Narva!
    • AAS v1, Invasion v1, and PAAS v1 have been added.
    • Experimental: Invasion v1 has been updated. Defenders can no longer capture flags taken by BLUFOR.
    • Experimental: Due to "mercy bleed" on last flags, additional "end match" flags have been added to the ends of the PAAS lattice.





  • Al Basrah Update
    • All gameplay layers have been changed to new layouts.
    • Experimental: Invasion v1 has been updated. Defenders can no longer capture flags taken by BLUFOR.







    • Additional motorbikes have been added to the expanded Al Basrah map. Additionally, some motorbikes are now permanent recurring spawns.
  • Added "mercy bleed" to last flags on AAS.
  • Added additional logistic trucks on medium to large maps that only had one logistics truck.
  • Removed cardinal directions from Yehorivka flag names.
  • Attack and Defend markers have been removed on Invasion layers to reduce confusion on the Experimental Invasion layers for Al Basrah and Narva. If we decide to move forward with the new Invasion mechanic, additional work will need to be done to code in new attack/defend functionality specifically for Invasion layers.

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Bug Fixes & Optimizations
  • Fixed an issue where the shield on the Dshk machine guns didnt stop bullets. They now stop small arms again, and offer limited protection against heavy calibers.
  • Fixed an issue where all unarmored vehicles were not behaving as intended. They now offer limited protection against small arms for the driver and any other occupants fully enclosed inside the vehicle. You can still shoot out the infantry in there but they will be a bit more resistant to small arms fire.
  • Fixed an issue where the M939 truck was almost bullet proof to small arms fire.
  • Fixed several lean issues on Gorodok Invasion v1.
  • Fixed a lean issue on flag Papanov in Fools Road AAS v3.
  • Fixed RCON bug with Listplayers command
Have fun storming the castle!
Offworld Out.
Join the Discussion >>
 
That compass baring idea is excellent, it should definitely emphasis your current bearing.

For me the biggest thing I want is the last few people using comms to stack up the screen. I think the name of the person on radio flashes off far too quickly, if another person speaks their name should shuffle up with a max of the last 3 people speaking held on screen for 3-5 seconds after they click off the radio. The amount of times I hear "contact 230" and then look at the bottom left to see who said it and the name is gone....nightmare.
 
MookJong said:
That compass baring idea is excellent, it should definitely emphasis your current bearing.

For me the biggest thing I want is the last few people using comms to stack up the screen. I think the name of the person on radio flashes off far too quickly, if another person speaks their name should shuffle up with a max of the last 3 people speaking held on screen for 3-5 seconds after they click off the radio. The amount of times I hear "contact 230" and then look at the bottom left to see who said it and the name is gone....nightmare.
Click to expand...

This is another good idea, and something I find too! Someone shouts "Enemy contact on my position!" then stops transmitting,, you glance down, the name has disappeared and you don't know who needs help or where they are :D Would be nice if the name faded out slowly rather just vanishing as soon as they stop transmitting.

@Xcept1 - is there a suggestions forum or similar for Squad? I might post these there if you don't mind.
Also, excellent news on the update - now I have to spend the rest of the afternoon at work itching to get home :p
 
That's just bad comms to be honest. Solution is to use local or communicate relative to an objective / landmark. I.e: Two nerds spotted 100m southeast of hemp. Compass bearings are better used using local comms.

In my opinion we should not be designing features around the lowest common denominator. Players just need to learn how to communicate better using Squad and Local voice chat.
 
Conscript said:
This is another good idea, and something I find too! Someone shouts "Enemy contact on my position!" then stops transmitting,, you glance down, the name has disappeared and you don't know who needs help or where they are :D Would be nice if the name faded out slowly rather just vanishing as soon as they stop transmitting.

@Xcept1 - is there a suggestions forum or similar for Squad? I might post these there if you don't mind.
Also, excellent news on the update - now I have to spend the rest of the afternoon at work itching to get home :p
Click to expand...
There certainly is - http://forums.joinsquad.com/forum/16-feedback-suggestions/
 
1kiwi said:
That's just bad comms to be honest. Solution is to use local or communicate relative to an objective / landmark. I.e: Two nerds spotted 100m southeast of hemp. Compass bearings are better used using local comms.

In my opinion we should not be designing features around the lowest common denominator. Players just need to learn how to communicate better using Squad and Local voice chat.
Click to expand...

I don't think making it easier to recognise who's saying something is necessarily catering for the lowest common denominator.
It's not just useful tactically - sometimes it's just nice to be able to know who has just spoken. In real life, you are likely to recognise your squad mates by the sound of their voice alone; in a game where squads are formed by public players, this is less likely. So it would be handy to know who had just said something, whatever the situation, in my opinion.
 
Regarding your compass bearing idea vs using local: https://www.reddit.com/r/joinsquad/comments/6nt5kf/for_the_love_of_god_stop_calling_out_compass/

TDLR: Compass bearings are only relevant when someone is sitting next to you and it doesn't really matter who that is - could be a squad team mate or a blueberry. Enemy movements should be called out on squad channel based on bearings relative to an objective or landmark. In both situations I don't think it's relevant who called it out - just that it's easy to understand. A good squad leader will typically mark it on the map for everyone to see at that point.

In my experience great squads don't use squad vop too heavily. It should be a channel which is reserved for orders from SL and relevant squad level information. This also helps the SL coordinate with other SL's if the squad properly uses vop

/rant
 
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silversurfer said:
I've not really played since before they added any vehicles. Ive seen some transport trucks but this looks nifty now. If I read about a UE4 update, does that filter into squad or its not that simple




Yep or possibly a grid marked on the map

https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/blog/squad-development-kit-now-available-on-launcher
Click to expand...

We're currently getting Squad onto UE4 v4.16 and probably going to stay there.

Any UE4 updates that come in the future that we think are worthwhile can then be taken and integrated.
 
Patch notes and Modding Recap

Alpha 9.7 Hotfix Release

Hi Squaddies,

we are releasing a small hotfix today to address a few of the issues introduced in 9.6 that you brought to our attention. Here are the changes:

  • Fixed collisions on several buildings on Narva and Basrah to prevent glitching
  • Fixed "Gamma" flag zone collision and time to cap on Narva Invasion v1
  • Reduced bleed on "Alpha" and "Bravo" flags on Narva Invasion v1
  • Temporary Militia logistics truck spawn on Narva Invasion v1 moved back
  • Added temporary spawn for Insurgents on Al Basrah AAS v1
  • Fixed Sumari missing/displaced static meshes
  • Fixed incorrect mortar damage issue on HABs
  • Fixed destruction effects on INS and Militia HABs
  • Fixed SL hex menu not being centered on mouse position
  • Flipped stance indicators horizontally

The Wrench June
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Hi Squaddies,
Welcome to the June Edition of The Wrench! In this edition, we are sharing (and showing off!) some fresh projects and progress with the community that modders have been hard at work creating. Additionally, we have a special Q&A session with a fellow mapper from the community, offering a deeper insight into what the people creating mods are spending their time on.
Join us on the Community Modding Discord where you can join discussions and meet the modding community. It's a great place to share your ideas and passion with like-minded people that will be happy to help you along the way. Let's go!

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Q&A with Xander
Xander has been hard at work for the past couple of months working on his map that started as a test for village placement and lighting. This map features an awesome landscape with lots of foliage variation and clever asset placement to give the environment an authentic look and feel. Below you can see a video and some images of the map as well as a brief Question and Answers session to provide a little more insight into the process.
Q: Thank you for taking the time to talk to us! Could you give us a brief introduction of yourself and your previous experience in modding if you have any?I am a hobby modder that started with landscape design almost 3 years ago. I first started using CryEngine, but quickly got a hold of Unreal after getting tired of paying for the CE SDK. I have not modded much before, only done some landscapes and stuff for my own use.



Q: How did you get started with modding in the Squad SDK? This is a common question amongst new starters and there is a lot to choose from. Did you start with reading documentation, watching tutorials or did you take a hands-on approach and just dive in?I started using Unreal Engine 4 before the Squad SDK, so I had some experience before. I still had to watch many YouTube tutorials and read some documentation to get started importing heightmaps, and setting up the materials... But more or less I just dove into it.
Q: You have posted quite a few images and videos of your Squad map! Do you have a name for it yet and what is your overall direction with this map? Do you aim to change the gameplay style through different map design or are you aiming to push the visuals in Squad?It was more or less a small test to get an idea for village layouts, and lighting setup. And also some foliage testing. But I will probably do more with this one when there is time for it. For now I am happy with the progression and will look into gameplay setup when the modding implementation is complete. Maybe there will be a small player based gameplay release at one point near the Steam Workshop release, with some capture zones.
Q: Do you use references when creating your maps, from images to videos and even real life? How do you manage to get such a "grounded" and realistic feeling in your map?To be honest what I do mostly comes straight out of my head. When doing trees I have looked a lot into how treelines form in real forest locations based on Google Earth images. But also from playing other games I have compared the density of foliage in different games, and then just gone with the flow to suit Squad more.
Q: Can you give us a brief overview of your workflow for creating a map? Where do you start, do you lay down your roads first? After you have a terrain?I start off with a heightmap and basically work from there. I try to use the flat areas and draw some roads, then I just place assets from there.
Q: Optimisation is a big one for mappers. Maps can be beautiful, but they also need to run well. How do you handle this aspect?The optimisation for my level is actually okay. I work with draw distances for trees to make them draw less triangles from a decent distance. Also having some open areas that don't have too much foliage helps on framerates.


Q: If you could do one thing differently when you started making a map in the Squad SDK with the knowledge you have now, what would it be?I think I would start off setting up my folders and that stuff first... Then maybe get a Google Maps/Earth satellite image to use as reference. Then I use that as a base layer to paint the roads and areas on. That way you could do real locations and get the roads and tree lines accurate and to scale.
Q: Finally, have you got any advice for players that might be interested in modding, and tips for current modders?Get some nice textures, and even a landscape material. That helps a lot! Then just spend some time outdoors gathering some inspiration for your maps. I have a lot of farm and wood areas around me, so I guess that's why I mostly do these types of maps.

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British Prop Asset Pack by Baby_James
The British are coming! We may not know when exactly, but we have seen enough glimpses of their development over the last few months that we know they are underway! Baby_James is preparing for the inevitable by working on some environmental props, with more to come. Looking great, now just get some tea and biscuits ready!




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Samland Peninsula by Legion_X
While the Samland Peninsula isn't entirely sure if it's a peninsula or an island, it is no stranger to conflict. The Russian territory borders the Baltic Sea and is otherwise surrounded by lagoons. The historic battleground, reaching back to the Teutonic Knights, through the Soviet offensive during World War 2, is now being updated by Legion_X for a more modern take on warfare. Will history repeat itself? There's no tellin', but it's going to be beautiful way to find out!




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French Foreign Legion Mod: OPEX SERVAL by SquadFrance.fr
The French-speaking community is coming together to build something special. SquadFrance.fr is working toward getting the French Foreign Legion into Squad, including vehicles, uniforms, and even fixed weapons! Picking an active, modern theater of operations, they are fortunate enough to have a combat veteran that served in Mali to ensure accuracy. At its core, the strength of Opex Serval is that all the developers are Squad players first and foremost!

Their team is just getting started, so now's the perfect time to provide your feedback. If you'd like to know more about Opex Serval, head over to the Squad Mod Francais site, complete with development blogs. Bon travail!

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And that brings us to the end of another Wrench. There's no shortage of amazing projects happening right now, and no shortage of modders to help out. If you would like to be featured in The Wrench, don't forget to drop by Discord!
Squad Modding Hub Management Team Out.
 
It's been a while!

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Modding Recap
The Wrench July
16-Aug-2017
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Hi Squaddies,
In the summer time, not only the weather is fine, but also the modding community is striving. Maybe it's simply too hot out there (We're sorry everyone in the Southern Hemisphere.), but there was a lot of great work done in July, and we're happy to show you the projects and progress of our great community.
Join us on the Community Modding Discord where you can join discussions and meet the modding community. It's a great place to share your ideas and passion with like-minded people that will be happy to help you along the way. Let's roll!

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WASP carrier and LCAC by Legochiel

Legochiel picked quite a project. He is getting a jumpstart on naval assets with a WASP-class carrier vessel and already has made great progress on the mesh. We're looking forward to seeing more of it, especially when it gets some paint applied to its hull. It seems like he likes to stick to a theme though with his recent work on the LCAC (fancy military name for a hovercraft), which also already looks very promising.



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Substance Painter Reskin Mask Sets by Stom
Stom is working on giving the community a quick and easy way to do reskins of player models without the tedious work of masking parts of the texture and applying the camo in the right places. He is setting up Substance Painter files where everyone can load the right texture in and it gets applied automatically!


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Bocage by bestpony

Set in a fictional location, bestpony tries to capture the style of terrain mostly known from Normandy in France. Known from World War 2 as "Hedgerow Hell," fierce fighting between US and Russian forces will surely take place in farms, towns, winding roads and impenetrable hedgerows.



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French Foreign Legion Mod by squadfrance.fr

Already an instant community favourite, the French Foreign Legion Mod team is regularly swamped with question and requests for information about their mod on our Discord server. With a now really impressive team size, work is progressing well and we can see new assets and screenshots being released regularly. They will soon be sharing progress on their website. People who can understand French (or are very nifty with Google Translate) can already track their recent progress via their blogposts.


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Squad Faction Tutorial by r0tzbua
If you saw r0tzbua's Photoshop Template to quickly give the US models a new look by changing the camo on the texture, you may have the itch to experiment with a faction inside the Squad SDK. In his new 35 minute tutorial he tries to share what he has found out about setting up factions and will make it easy for you to understand the inner workings of them and their roles inside Squad, at least once you get over his Austrian accent.



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Khe Sanh Combat Base by Socrates

Socrates has become involved with some Vietnam War modders and started to work on a map featuring the Khe Sanh Combat Base, a U.S. Marines outpost south of the Vietnamese DMZ throughout the war. He began a few days ago and fellow modders are already working on assets for it. It is planned to be a 4x4km map ultimately focused on helicopter and ground vehicle warfare.

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CACTF (Combined Arms Collective Training Facility) by wunda

CACTF may sound like a very fancy tea, but it's actually just another military acronym that you will have to try to remember. Nevertheless, wunda is working on a 6x6km AAS map that tries to capture a fictitious training simulation between US and Russian forces in a large US based training facility. It already features 18 new buildings built out of concrete or re-purposed shipping containers and simulates a Middle-Eastern environment.



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Skorpo by Zeno

After first being showcased in the April edition of The Wrench, Skorpo has undergone a big expansion, with most of the playable mainland area being sketched out and worked upon (6x6km). Focused on bringing an authentic Norwegian environment to life, Zeno has put careful attention to layout realism and together with new true-to-life buildings in the works, the only thing missing for the player will be the smell of seawater and the cold breeze of the Atlantic ocean.



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How Did This Get Here I am Not Good At Computer by fresh leeks


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Squad Modding Hub Management Team Out.

Oh, I dug this up too ;)

 
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