Vision

This proposal outlines changes to achieve longer, more tactical Arma Reforger matches with clear objectives and team-focused play. It aims to:

• Encourage coordinated action by tying key systems (radio, loadouts) to squad roles.
• Extend match length through additional capture points and supply mechanics.
• Balance advantages by enforcing consistent visual settings and fair resource costs.
• Give server owners simple tools to adjust AI behavior, loadouts, and UI messaging without extra mods.
• Prevent toxic behaviors such as lone‑wolf play and RPG spamming to foster a more team‑oriented environment.

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Bias

I'm biased: I'm currently playing on a server where matches typically last between 4 to 10 hours, which feels like an ideal span. The aim isn't to play the entire duration—life happens—but to maintain a sense of "constant warfare."

In my view, matches could stretch even longer (up to a week), but current mechanics don't allow for that scale.

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Fixes

• to come

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Tweaks

• Consider enhancing armor survivability—for instance, allowing vehicles to endure a single rocket or HE grenade hit without instant destruction, improving battlefield longevity.
• Consider improving view distance—especially for vehicles—to enhance situational awareness and survivability (see Graphic rework request T191610).

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General Conflict improvements

• Designate Montignac as a formal strategic capture point, providing teams with a clear high-value objective and preventing fast-ending games.
• Increase the required number of strategic points to achieve victory on Everon by two, extending match duration and reinforcing the sense of sustained conflict.
• For the planned commander role, introduce functionality allowing the commander to relocate the main operating base to any suitable location—independent of existing strategic points—to promote tactical flexibility and mitigate bad layers.
• Balance the votekick system by limiting both the number of kicks a single player can initiate and the number of votes a player can be subjected to per match, ensuring fair use and preventing abuse. Prevent "votekick wars".
• To spotlight faster-paced gameplay, launch a selection of official servers running the capture‑and‑hold mode, making it more visible to the community and providing an accessible option for players seeking shorter, action‑driven matches.
• XP Persistence explained in : T191351
• Allow custom layers without the needs of dedicated mods. Changing strategic points, victory condition, etc...

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Squad cohesion improvements

Get XP bonus when playing with squad mates (ref XP rework : T191351)

Radio Operators

Currently, one contributor to solo squads is unrestricted map visibility. To encourage true squad communication, radio-dependent markers should work as follows:

• Squad Leader Markers: Shown on the entire map only when the squad leader is within 1 km of a long‑range radio backpack tied to their squad (either carried by any squad member or deployed for the squad).
• Squad Member Visibility: A squad member within 500 m of a long‑range radio tied to the squad can see all friendly players in a 500 m radius around themselves.
• Failure State: If all radios tied to the squad in range are dismantled or their operators are dead/unconscious, both squad leader and squad member markers disappear. However, players can still see other squad leader markers.
• Marker Placement & Visibility: While at least one squad radio is active and in range, players can place both squad and platoon markers. If no squad radio is active, players may only place squad markers—but any platoon markers remain visible (no access to add more).

Branch Specialization System

To foster meaningful roles without over‑constraining players, each participant selects one of three low‑specialization branches at match start. This choice grants access to essential tools for that branch while gently restricting advanced assets from the others:

• Ground Branch: Provides infantry kit (rifles, LMGs, basic AT launcher) and standard transport (cars, trucks, heli). Players cannot spawn dedicated air platforms or heavy armored vehicles (e.g., LAVs, attack helicopters).
• Air Branch: Grants access to aircrafts, along with basic weapons. Restrictions prevent spawning ground‑only vehicles above light transports (no IFVs, tanks, or heavy APCs) and taking specialized weapons (LMGs, ATs, snipers, etc...).
• Vehicles Branch: Unlocks armored vehicles (LAVs, BTRs, BRDM) and vehicle‑mounted weapons. Players cannot equip infantry‑exclusive tools like high‑end AT launchers or specialized aviation munitions.

Common equipment—such as basic transport helicopters, utility vehicles, sidearms, binoculars, and throwables—remains available across all branches to ensure flexibility and maintain engagement.

Once chosen, branch selection is locked for the duration of the match, encouraging teams to recruit a balanced composition and reducing the ability of individual players to multitask between specialized roles.

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Individual combat movements and tactics

To enhance realism and tactical depth, consider the following refinements:

• Combat Inertia: Introduce a movement smoothing curve—approximately 0.5–1 second of gradual acceleration and deceleration when strafing or changing directions—to discourage instantaneous pivots during engagements.
• 3rd-Person Peeking Modes: Provide three distinct additional camera modes, configurable by both the server and individual players or the scenario:
  • First/Third-Person Only: Fully disable third-person perspectives.
  • Vehicle-Only Third-Person: Permit third-person view solely while operating vehicles.
  • Out-of-Combat Third-Person: Allow third-person camera only when the player is not actively in combat (e.g., no nearby enemies or weapon fire).
• Bush Navigation Penalties: Traversing dense foliage incurs a 20% movement speed reduction and a light bleeding effect (10% chance per second of continuous movement). Penalty severity inversely scales with equipment weight—lighter loadouts experience reduced bleed chance and slower speed loss.
• RPG Supply Balancing: Double the in-game supply point cost for rocket and missile ammunition to curb spam and encourage deliberate usage of explosive ordnance.
• Enhanced Stamina Impact: When stamina reaches zero, increase weapon sway by 50% and decrease movement speed by 30%, while maintaining the current stamina recovery rate to penalize overexertion without lengthening downtime.

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PC's advantages

To ensure fair play and maintain visual consistency, consider these server‑configurable options—or alternatively, directly disable or remove client‑side graphics adjustment controls for PC players:

• Enforce Minimum Graphics Settings: Allow server administrators to set baseline values for key parameters—such as shadow distance, view distance, grass density, and terrain detail. Players joining the server are auto‑notified of these requirements and cannot lower settings below the minimum until they disconnect.
• Direct Removal of Client Controls: Provide a server‑pushed client profile that hides or locks UI sliders and menus related to gamma, brightness, texture quality, and post-processing effects to guarantee uniform visual conditions across all players.
• Night‑Time Visibility Controls:
  • Gamma/Brightness Lock: Restrict in‑game gamma and brightness adjustments during night operations. Servers can specify a maximum allowable brightness level to prevent unfair dark‑vision advantages.
  • Enhanced Illumination Tools: Increase the luminosity and duration of night‑flares, mortar‑deployed illumination rounds, by a configurable multiplier, balancing visibility while amplifying tactical light usage.

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Quality of Life 

Presets

All kits include a Default Survival Kit: map, compass, binoculars, 2×bandages, 1×morphine, 1×tourniquet, and a short range radio. It would need a small adjustment of the UI to handle more kits.

Below is a recommended table of specialized server‑provided kits using Arma Reforger’s vanilla arsenal:

Server owners and players can export any kit from the in‑game arsenal as JSON/XML—then aggregate all preset definitions into a master file that the server pushes to clients on spawn. Players may choose these specialized presets at respawn if an arsenal is present; otherwise, they fall back to the default kit or their own saved loadout.

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Server message

Enable a customisable server join message with the following features, a mod allows this, but this feature is too good to be reserved for modded servers. :

• Basic Markdown Support: Allow server owners to write messages using Markdown syntax (headings, bold/italic text, and hyperlinks) for rules, welcome notes, and important links.
• Single Message, Multiple Sections: Permit multiple Markdown headers (e.g., # Welcome, ## Rules, ### Links) within a single join message file.
• One-Time Display + Accessible Replay: Show the message automatically once when a player joins. After joining, players can reopen it via a “Server Message” button beneath the Respawn menu (Escape ▶️ Server Message).
• Link Integration: Support clickable URLs for Discord invites, websites, or other resources. Pressing F opens a specified link. (usually the Discord server invite)
• Configurable via Markdown File: Expose a simple Markdown file (e.g., server_message.md) in the server’s config directory. Editing this file instantly updates the in-game join message without restarting the server.

Server queues & mods

To minimize downtime and streamline the player experience, consider the following enhancements:

• Concurrent Queue & Gameplay: When a player joins a popular server queue (e.g., 20+ slots), allow them to launch a local solo session—such as the Game Master mode or a private vanilla scenario—while remaining in line. Upon match readiness, provide an in-game notification and seamless transition back into the queued server without losing local progress. Allow players to join a secondary server queue by connecting to one server and simultaneously queuing for another—mirroring the approach used in Squads.
• Background Mod Synchronization: Enable simultaneous downloading or updating of server-required mods while the player is actively in-game on another server or in solo mode. Separate the mod management subsystem from the live gameplay thread, ensuring that mod downloads run in the background without impacting frame rates or causing connectivity hiccups.
• Architectural Decoupling: Split the core client operations into three independent processes—Matchmaking/Queues, Mod Download/Sync, and Real-Time Play—allowing users to queue for servers, download necessary content, and play uninterrupted in parallel.

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NPC squads and kit customization

• NPC squads customization in Living Quarters: Enable server owners to fully define and edit AI spawn groups and cost within living quarters through the same JSON/XML kit export system used for player loadouts.

• Default FIA Squad Customization: Allow administrators to adjust the default AI (FIA) squads that spawn on the map, including squad sizes, composition, and individual loadouts. This empowers scenario designers to field specialized enemy teams (e.g., recon squads with silencers) or stick to vanilla FIA gear without requiring additional mods.

Editing both living-quarters groups and global FIA squads via JSON/XML grants extensive control over mission flavor—letting server owners create anything from heavily equipped special forces encounters to standard militia spawns, all while staying within a fully vanilla asset set.