GHPC Early Access has been updated to version 20231208.
This is a regular update, introducing new features, adjustments, and bug fixes.
New feature: smoke systems
The most notable change included here is a brand-new feature: smoke systems. Vehicles equipped with smoke grenade launchers or engine smokescreen generation now have those systems available in-game. The smoke will blind non-thermal optics (including AI units without thermals) and create an obstruction for laser rangefinders.
A new control has been added to the Vehicle category for quick smoke grenade launch (default key: G), and the rest of the controls can be found in the Q menu. AI vehicles under severe threat are able to launch smoke salvos as well, provided that the relevant crew members are still able to operate the controls.
It's worth mentioning briefly that the smoke systems on Soviet designed vehicles are quite different from their NATO counterparts: unlike the short-range curtain of white smoke grenades used in US vehicles, the standard 3D6 smoke grenades are fired hundreds of meters forward. They are intended as a versatile tactical tool, able to block sight lines and clear space to maneuver in. The East German tanks and BMPs in GHPC have a set of these grenades loaded.
Meanwhile, the Abrams and other US vehicles have a fairly straightforward smoke setup: firing a salvo will blanket the frontal arc of the vehicle in a thick airburst of smoke. In the 1980s, this smoke was not multispectral, meaning thermal optics could see through it fairly well. As a result, some US vehicles are in the unique position of being able to pop smoke and continue to spot and engage targets from behind the cloud. But when using this strategy, be careful - your laser rangefinder will bounce off the smoke and prevent you from getting a firing solution the easy way. Set your range manually or lase ahead of time if you want to fight effectively through smoke.
A note on HEAT rounds
For a very long time, the M456 HEAT-FS-T round fired by US tanks in GHPC has displayed a glaring flaw: due to its fuzing mechanism requiring a good strike on the nose probe, it is easily thwarted by highly angled surfaces. Unlucky shots on the most severe angles of a BMP or BTR hull would often produce unfavorable impacts, crushing the round before it could properly form a penetrative metal jet. This was a frequent source of frustration and even bug reports.
After additional research, we've concluded that in 1985 the US did have a quantity of the successor round in inventory: the M456A2 HEAT-FS-T. The main innovation was - you guessed it - the addition of a shoulder fuze to account for shallow angle impacts. Owing to this fact, we've outfitted all 105mm US tanks with the M456A2 as their standard second slot round, and the M456 is now relegated to reserve supply, which can come into play when logistics are suffering in campaign mode.
Engagements against Pact APCs and IFVs using this new round should involve a substantially higher proportion of first-hit kills, and we think NATO enjoyers will be pleased with the results.
We've got plenty more in the works for GHPC! As always, you can get additional info by visiting our Discord server and YouTube channel. Links are on the GHPC website.
Changelog
- Added smoke grenades to vehicles that equip smoke grenade launchers (activated from Q menu or using G key by default)
- Added engine smokescreen generation to some vehicles (activated from Q menu)
- Added ability for AI units to use smoke grenades in certain situations
- Added "instant swap" feature: hold the unit swap key and look at a nearby friendly unit, then let go of the key to take control
- Added M456A2 HEAT-FS-T shell (with shoulder fuze) as new default for all US tanks
- Added logistics conditions to replace M456A2 with M456 in campaign
- Added cloud shadows
- Moved 9K111 missile emplacement in tank range to a position from which it can see targets
- Reworked a large number of muzzle blast effects
- Revised ammo loadout of T-55, including setting APFSDS to the first slot like in all other tanks
- Changed BR-412D to a reserve round only used when Pact forces are suffering severe logistics issues in campaign
- Adjusted armor properties for Kvartz composite (used in T-72M1 turret)
- Reduced armor ratings on trucks
- Slightly improved gain on night vision optics
- Changed delta-D control to a toggle and made it start enabled by default
- Fixed multiple issues in missions that led to stuck units
- Fixed an audio issue that led to choppy or distorted sounds when AI fired machine guns
- Fixed AI refusing to fire bursts and using entire belts of ammo in one go
- Fixed composite armor being disabled in T-64A
- Fixed a bug that could lead to the player's view being locked into an auxiliary sight optic
- Fixed issues with map overlay sizing on certain screen resolutions
- Fixed weapons being able to keep firing by themselves when a menu was opened while firing
- Fixed a rare bug that led to infinite machine gun audio after the weapon stopped firing
- Fixed commander voice calling for wrong ammo type
- Fixed gunner voice spamming "on the way" when using machine guns
- Fixed erroneous reporting of optics damage in HUD
- Fixed flames not displaying correctly when T-64A was set on fire
- Fixed T-64A continuing to fight while on fire
Thanks for playing!