Zeus Missions

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Lynche
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Zeus Missions

Post by Lynche »

So a while back we had that zeus mission that was done somewhat on the fly. Many people liked the idea of it, but the mission itself was ultimately too chaotic and in its form it was just not going to be a regular thing.
The subject popped into my head the other night and I had a few ideas on how it might be done.

Firstly I think the GM/Zeus would need a clear idea of what the mission was. Set an objective, an AO and even the number of enemy/allied forces in the area. Once the mission starts these would become set in stone.
It might also be an idea for the GM to have a 'script' of sorts to have structure, make sure the mission makes sense and all that.

Zeus missions give the opportunity to do things that just can be done in a scripted mission. The tension we felt when approaching the two crashed cars on the road for example cant be felt in a scripted mission. That said, I can imagine zeusing a whole mission would be quite taxing for whoever found themselves pulling the strings so I accept they wouldn't become an everyday occurrence.


This is just me having a bit of a ramble, throwing ideas out there. I'm wondering if anyone else has any thoughts on it?

Black Mamba
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Re: Zeus Missions

Post by Black Mamba »

I had a quick chat with Wolf a few days ago, and he made me consider maybe giving A3 another go sometime. Funny enough, it turns out this resulted in me thinking about how I could create a decent Zeus mission. After all, this is a pet peeve of mine, as back in the old days of A2, I was already trying (unsuccessfully, though) to set up missions pitting a Game master (or two) against the bulk of FA players.

I still need more thinking about it, and then it would need actually being created, but here is basically the result of my reflexion:

- The game master/mission designer would indeed need a basic "script". Zeus would give him the opportunity to tailor quite precisely the experience he wants to provide, and in my opinion, improvising completely would be a waste of potential.

- For the same reasons, and also to save time during the session, the mission should actually be crafted in advance: Briefings, map markers, some objects on the map, some part of the AI units already placed... Just as any other mission made for FA with F3.

In general, I feel like Zeus is a fantastic tool, but while complete improvisation can be useful for training sessions and workshops, it shouldn't replace mission-making, rather complement it. It would bring a more interesting way to move for the AI, and the ability to react easily to the players going off-script (which, as mission-makers know all too well, is quite often an issue).
It would, this way, allow for more "open" missions: You, as a mission maker, can predict multiple ways for the players to react to events during the mission, without having to overload or overscript the mission to deal with all of those. And when they surprise you anyway, you can still keep on entertaining them without the "You reached the border of the map" feel.
And then, there are all the goodies: ability to roplay a civie here, to directly control that one ai there, and so on.

So basically, pre-planning that mission a lot would seem necessary, so that while you can still have a lot of room for an interesting scenario and plot twists, your mission doesn't drag on and on or loose its interest halfway through, either because you lost focus or were too busy dealing with how and where to spawn AI and stuff.

In any case, I have been starting to develop a script and ideas for such a mission, and I'll gladly share that with anybody wanting to either give it a try, or simply get some ideas and thoughts while building his own.

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wolfenswan
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Re: Zeus Missions

Post by wolfenswan »

As BM has already said, ZEUS missions without any pre-placed elements will have too much down-time for the troops. I think the best path of action for now would be to create missions with a very basic concept (e.g. defend, move convoy to X, patrol) and only designate the AO, place ambient elements and AI crucial to the mission. The rest would up to the curator to add on the fly. It would relieve the curator from having to think of an entire concept, without railroading it too much.

I'd also encourage mission-makers to ZEUS the missions they have made themselves, ideally together with a second curator. We need more people who are comfortable with being ZEUS for 20-40 people and I think it's beneficial when you've made the mission and thus already have an idea of how things could play out.
In any case, I have been starting to develop a script and ideas for such a mission, and I'll gladly share that with anybody wanting to either give it a try, or simply get some ideas and thoughts while building his own.
Just come back, we miss you :zoidberg:

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fer
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Re: Zeus Missions

Post by fer »

Lynche wrote:Firstly I think the GM/Zeus would need a clear idea of what the mission was. Set an objective, an AO and even the number of enemy/allied forces in the area. Once the mission starts these would become set in stone.
Session hosts (or their nominated assistants) will always need the option to tweak a standard mission via Zeus. The most common rationale is script/AI-failure; much more occasionally it might be necessary for the host to introduce an additional challenge because the spirit of the mission is being ignored (for example: placing an ad hoc patrol to engage a platoon that has wondered outside the mission AO). In either case, the intervention is measured and in keeping with the spirit of the mission.

However, Lynche's point about 'enemy forces within the AO' for a Zeus-driven mission is a very good one.

Despite our love of missions where everyone dies, I would not like to see Zeus used to bring in additional AI enemies simply because the platoon is 'doing too well', particularly if this creates a challenge the players are not equipped to deal with. An example would be the sudden appearance of MBTs when the platoon has no/low RPGs supplies and no MAT attachment (as oppposed to the use of Zeus to bring MBTs already placed in reserve to the fight as an AI QRF).

Players, and COs in particular, can't always expect the briefing to tell them about every threat they will face - but even 'surprises' should feel organic to the overall mission experience. Remember that the Zeus curator(s) is there to create an engaging - and immersive - experience for the players, not to beat them.

We might look at ways in which writers of even standard missions can provide specific guidance about QRFs for the Zeus operator. That way the session host still has scope for interesting interventions, whilst remaining faithful to the original vision of the mission maker.

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Raesor
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Re: Zeus Missions

Post by Raesor »

I think Zeus missions allow for a platform that can give much more of a solid narrative. You can have a HVT that needs to get captured, then once you capture him extract him to a location and they reveal some information that then you would act on and have to plan on the fly, kinda like an organic mission. I kinda see Zeus as a Dungeon Master in Dungeons and Dragons (nerd colours about to show,) which can be a lot of fun and very rewarding. It's not necessarily Zeus vs. Everyone. As Fer said, It's Zeus providing a better narrative for everyone. It also lets you do things that are (what I would assume) hard to script. Like groups of AI reacting accordingly to player positions, and adjusting their focus and assets accordingly, like a real opposing force would.

I've done a few Zeus missions with rando's in public servers, as well as played some too. Mind you not for 20-30 people but it could be really fun.

I think it also gives Zeus the opportunity to ramp up or down the difficulty. Are they powering through everything that's on the map? Okay, well now here comes a transport helicopter with reinforcements. Are they getting completely pinned down by 3 guys in some rocks somewhere? Okay, one of those guys suddenly develops acute death, and the other two seem to fumble around a bit.

I think Zeus missions, due to the difficulty and mental taxation, shouldn't take over as the exclusive platform, but I think they can augment already created missions wonderfully.

Also, 2 Zeus' would be a good idea, I think. That way you can split up the tasks and work together. Zeus A deals with the Opfor for these two Bluefor squads and Zeus B deals with the Opfor for those two Bluefor squads while constantly talking and updating each other on what is happening on their end.

Like I said, it could be a lot of fun, and add a lot of little nuances that you can't get with a purely scripted mission.

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