THIS FEATURE IS A WIP, AND SO IS THIS DOCUMENTATION

THIS SYSTEM DOES NOT CURRENTLY REPLACE THE DEFAULT ARTILLERY SYSTEM

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Overview

A new artillery system is under ongoing development, drastically altering the state of artillery and fire support in ArmA2. Firing, targetting and loading all now realistically mirror real life procedures and operations.

The days of point-and-click are over; you are now required to calculate fire solutions, target guns realistically on aiming points, and prepare different munitions types for charges, fuze times and types of detonation.

Lastly, actual round effects have been drastically modified or new ones created for different types of munitions types. This includes ballistics and actual detoations. This currently includes:

Base Ejecting rounds (Smoke/DPICM)
Airburst/timed detonation/proximity rounds (HE)
Re-worked smoke for more effective smoke while greatly reducing smoke lag
Re-worked illumination effects for more realistic coverage

M119 Procedures

The new artillery system consists of a much more detailed and realistic series of actions which must happen in order to properly fire a gun. Over are the days of point-and-click on the map. Although, modern computation systems are practically this easy - there are still manual steps which must be taken in order to prepare the gun, align it on the correct firing arc for the target, and actually firing.

Roles in a Artillery Element

FDC

Gunner

Loader

Ammo Man

Preparing Firing Solutions

TODO

Preparing rounds and Loading the Gun

Once the firing solution has been prepared by the FDC, the person performing the calculations should now know a number of things which pertain to the actual munitions which need to be used for the fire mission. This information consists, usually, of:

- Round Type -

This is the actual munition being fired. The solution should have called for something like HE, DPICM, Smoke, etc.

- Charge Number -

This is the number of powder bags which are going to go into the round for firing. Basically - this number directly correlates to how much velocity the round is being fired with. The general idea is more charges = faster out of the barrel - more distance. The solution calculated by the FDC should also have this number.

- Fuze Type -

Aside from charge number, this is where the majority of the rest of the magic happens. The actual fuze type used is largely dependant on two things: What kind of fire the FDC wants, and the actual solution made on the target. The following fuze types currently exist:

Time Fuze -This is the most complicated, and also most effective, fuze type to utilize with more advanced munitions. It is strictly a timer set for when the round should detonate. With smoke, Illuminition and DPICM rounds, this fuze determines when the round actually begins its base ejection. E.g. for DPICM, when the air-burst begins and begins spreaading its submunitions; or with smoke, when the smoke rounds get ejected from the base shell. And lastly, with illuminition, when the actual flare round ejects from the shell.

Proximity Fuze - The proximity fuze uses radar technology to detonate ~10 above the ground. This is mainly considered a simpler version of airburst munitions. The round will explode above the ground in the air, rather than on impact with a target.

Point Detonation Fuze -This fuze is as simple has it sounds. This is mainly only used for HE rounds, and means that the shell is set to explode once it hits the ground.

Delay - This fuze acts like the point detonation fuze with one change. After it hits something it continues on for 0.05 seconds before exploding. This allows it to penetrate light structures, as well as the canopy of trees. It should be used against targets under cover. There are no additional settings for this fuze.

Preparing the Round

Now, on to the actual guts of what your doing as an ammo man preparing the rounds. Now that you know the above information and what it peratains to, you can effectively prepare rounds. Generally, your FDC will give you all the information required to prepare a round - you just need to actually perform the actions. In a nutshell, preparing a round is as follows:

1. Go up to the appropriate ammo box for that type of round, and hit your "ACE Interaction" key. Select "Prepare Arty Rounds"

2. A preperation dialog should come up. Select the appropriate round type, charge, fuze type, and fuze setting as per the firing solution.

3. Click "Prep Round". Your controls will lock for ~2 seconds, and you will receive a progress bar on preparing the round. After it is completed, the round will spawn behind you and the dialog will reset.

4. Rinse and repeat for the number of rounds for the fire mission

Now remmember - the job of the ammo man is to perform the preparations and get the rounds ready for the loader.

Carrying the Round

Carrying artillery rounds is simple. While looking at a round, use the ACE Interaction key to select "Carry Round". To drop a round use the ACE Self Interaction key to select "Drop Round".

Loading the Round

To load a round into the M119, approach the gun while carrying a round. Use the ACE Interaction key and select load gun. You are able to unload the gun in the same manner. If you unload while you are the gunner of the M119 the unloaded round will be placed next to the gun, otherwise you will be carrying the unloaded round.