Hi Nym.
Have you tried using bots in the boats? My experience is that they can glitch very badly on moving objects.
Nestor,
Yes I have tested bots in limited numbers, they seem to "ride" in the boat ok but I have no pylons on this map yet and the model we tested with does not have a functioning ramp so I can't guarantee they will get off the boat once it reaches the beach. The collision on this particular model was not ideal either as it allowed the bots to get into the MG positions on the rear of the boat and caused them to get stuck. Another issue we are playing with is what to do with the spawn point while the boats are approaching the beach.
After talking with PsychoPigeon about how he implemented something similar on Kita Jima, he suggested that the players spawn directly into the LCVP because on his map, the players and bots started in the LST and then had to get into the LVT-4. The bots would not reliably "load up" into the LVT-4 and would simply be left behind on the Larger Ship when the landing craft moved out.
So what we planned so far is:
- First Spawn Wave spawns directly into the LCVP's
- After the round actually begins, the LCVP begins to move and approach the beach on a fixed route that will be randomly chosen in Kismet from several possible routes, to keep things less predictable.
- Once the boats reach the shore, the ramps drop and these boats will remain on the shore to provide cover for subsequent spawns.
- We will likely add a few static mesh LCVPs that are burning or smoking for additional cover near coast line.
Now we have two different approaches to spawning after the first round spawn.
Option 1.
Only have one initial spawn. As soon as the LCVP begins to move, the spawn closes and there is now a delay for however long the trip to the shore takes until any new players can spawn in. (This would likely be accomplished with a trigger volume) This prevents anyone from spawning into open ocean once the boats begin to move and also keeps anyone from spawning directly onto the beach before the initial landing boats have made it there. This option can be accomplished with no custom coding and done completely in kismet.
Option 2.
Have multiple spawns into the LCVP's until the first beach objective is taken. This would take a little more work as we would need to spawn a new boat in the spawn zone each time one drives off to the beach to prevent anyone from spawning into the ocean and dying. We would also need to worry about boats stacking up on the shore after the players disembark. The downside of this I also see is that capturing the beach will probably be challenging enough, having to ride in the LCVP each time you spawn until the beach is capped, could be a downer. I haven't spoke to Shepard yet, but spawning a new InterpActor LCVP into the level at fixed intervals might require some custom coding of the Actor Factory.
At this point, I am heavily leaning towards Option 1 as I am hoping to have this map done in the next 2 -3 weeks and would like to get it pushed out so I can get on the Market Garden project. Also, with the option to spawn on SL, having multiple LCVP spawns would be optional for anyone who wanted to just spawn onto the beach with the SL spawn. Also, Unlike many typical D Day maps in modern FPS, this map will be about 30% Beach and 70% village / farmland fighting in Viereville so I feel like there is not a need to make the LCVP landings too big of a part of the map development, although I know this is what most players would likely anticipate / expect.
I would appreciate any thoughts, experiences, or feedback on any of this. Sorry for the HUGE post, but wanted to make sure I was clear in what we had planned.