Eagle-Eye

Personal opinion: I think this reaction is uncalled for, especially since TheScar is not the only one "whining" (I prefer to call it feedback) about I&A3. We mustn't forget that I&A3 is still in its early stages, so I'm sure it's being looked into, and most if not all feedback is useful to them...

Since I've become Spartan, I often try and get on the server to check for weather and time of day. I can't recall how many times I've changed it to clear / early morning. As Zissou said in the othter thread, however, it is somehow automatic, either by Tanoa configuration (which seems to be the case, since AW is not the only community where users complain about this problem) or a "core" server setting. As a result, a Spartan could remove the fog entirely, only to see it come back about 15 - 30 minutes later. Soziop4th (I think) recently tested something related to the Tanoa weather and fog, but no idea what the results were...

At fear of sounding like a whiny negative SOB, here I am again with some feedback. Don't know what got fixed with the .10 update today, so just throwing everything I noticed on or feel about EU2 out here, as per Sozio's recommendation: - As mentioned by Sozio, AO's on EU2 used to be running in a loop, restricted to the Bacon's Mound, Rautake, Dr. Steve Zissou's Aquantic Center and Imuri Island. Yanukka used to be in the mix as well, but I haven't seen it yesterday or today so it could be out already? I'm fairly certain this one got fixed however, so we might finally see AO's heading towards other islands. Artillery / CAS: - While I applauded the arrival of Neophrons initially, I'm starting to feel they're a bit overkill, especially with low server populations. As mentioned before, with AO's close to base, enemy Neophrons will also lay waste to base so often, that you may just as well have someone stay there so he can activate the base defences immediately. Especially the Greyhawks are targeted, which results in helicopters right next to them being damaged / destroyed as well. This, in turn, prevents people from piloting, making the "pilot problem" we're encountering even worse. I'm hopeful this particular problem will sort itself out once the FLOT moves up, though... - I'm not sure if this will still be the case once the FOBs are active, but right now, enemy Neophrons spawn and take-off from what is to become FOB Terminus. - Artillery PRIO missions have become an annoyance, due to the frequency they spawn at. Earlier today, I dropped GBU's on the Sochors there. I saw the bombs hit, and someone else confirmed they were destroyed. I RTB'ed and did a run on another target, but by the time the Greyhawk was rearmed a second time, the PRIO was still in exactly the same place as before. Not quite knowing if it just took that long to register as completed, I sent a Darter to check and found 2 Sochors in perfect condition, so apparently, it had simply spawned right there again already. Silver lining, if you could call it that: After a while, PRIO's become predictable. So much so that a UAV operator can just set a Darter at the locations PRIO missions spawned in earlier. Each time the PRIO pops up, he can quickly switch to that Darter, set the laser marker, divert the Greyhawk, drop a few bombs and go back to the main / side AO. As with the Neophrons, however, I'm hopeful this issue will be less of a problem once AO's start moving all over the map. - Linked to the next item about AI skill: Earlier today, I dropped a guy off with my Ghosthawk and was just airborne when I heard a smoke grenade pop. I was wearing earplugs and could barely hear VON / TS over the sound of my engine, yet I could very clearly hear that popping sound, so it must've been VERY close by. All I was able to do was type "run" in side chat, but with only a few seconds to react, it was too late for the infantry unit I had just brought there. With his death and respawn, he actually beat me back to base, even though the LZ was only 2km out. Maybe AI's a bit too quick on the ball there? AI size and skill: - Amount of enemy units is very problematic for low server populations, even more so than in I&A2 as they seem to have more skill than before. For example, I was flying a Darter approximately 600m out over the sea, almost 300m up, but somehow several enemy infantry units saw it AND hit it with normal assault rifles. I've also seen several encounters where BLUFOR units are noticed without hesitation and one-hit-killed, even at long ranges or in what would normally be an OPFOR's blind spot. On the other hand, however, AI can still be as dumb as a rock and not react to the player running 20m in front of him... - Sozio told me he didn't notice this in his tests, but during my attempts to confirm my Looping AO Theory, I believe to have noticed an extra amount of OPFOR units (2-4 squads, I'd say) spawn in once the RT is destroyed. As such, players could suddenly find themselves surrounded or face to face with enemies again, despite being 'safe' just a few seconds before. Rewards: - Bulb Of Saur noticed that side missions will be rewarded with tanks, e.g. the Kuma. While these are definitely nice to have, they become useless once the AO's move to other islands, since there is no way to take them there, even once we get the vehicle transport Blackfish. (except for Spartans teleporting tanks and their crew across the water) We also got a quick glance at the Tanoa FOBs today. I believe they are not really at the top of the list of things to update yet(?), but if I may, some suggestions to improve them: - FOB Eagle: The way the HEMTT's are currently positioned makes it hard to use them, as aircraft have an extremely large turn radius on ground. In my opinion, they would be better located lined up between and in front of both hangars, alongside the Orca. (picture can be provided to show what I mean) - FOB Bravo: Would advise to relocate the Cheetah from Eagle to Bravo, as it makes more sense to have it there. Given the high elevation, a helipad or service pad (including its own helicopter?) wouldn't look out of place either. - FOB Terminus: Same problem as with Yanukka AO, namely that we had a side mission spawn right next to it which prevented operating from the FOB. Haven't really paid attention to the vehicles that spawn here, so could be they're there by default, but perhaps the mentioned problem of reward tanks could be fixed by spawning them here? - FOB Fin: To me personally, it felt a bit underwhelming, considering the several boat spawns we have scattered across the map by default. Cheers, E²

Ah yes, noticed that too. Vehicles don't automatically respawn when they're abandoned at random places. They probably remain too close to players for that, with AO's spawning next to each other? On the other hand, if AO's remain close to base, there's really no need for pilots to be around either... Also, no more liftable service vehicles on EU2, so a damaged Ghosthawk in the helipad area MUST be blown up if there is no repair specialist online (and with low player count, there usually isn't).

The fog-issue was already present in 2.86. While I have the impression it improved in the last versions (M - O), it appears to have made a comeback in IA3. So when I connected last night, I expected to see a lot of fog, but visibility was still well beyond 1.5km, so that can't have been the reason so few people were on.

Longer post than I had anticipated incoming... A few things I noticed in 3.0.0.4 or 3.0.0.5. I'll state where I saw them, though most were spotted on EU2. Some may be present on both servers. No particular order of importance or chronology. - During spawning of a PRIO artillery mission on EU1, Crater informed me that enemy infantry units spawned about 10-15m above the ground, and just fell to their death. Apart from the 2 Sochors, Ammo HEMMT and protective H-barriers, nothing survived spawning in. So far, I haven't seen this on EU2 yet, though I have noticed a few Artillery side missions spawn in with the objective map marker only covering water. (units spawn on the nearest beach, however) - I don't know if I&A 3 has a direct impact, but EU2 activity has taken a hit and went down hard. It was never as crowded as EU1, but on a normal weekday evening, you could still have 20 - 30 players enjoying 2.86, while now, on a Friday evening between 2030-2200Z, there were at most 3 people on. - On EU2, "Take Yanukka" is way too close to base, in my opinion. Squads are patrolling on the street alongside the runway, in the forests just south of base and enemy armour (Tigris / Kamysh / Marid) will drive over the runway every few minutes. Even getting your head out of base may be tricky if your timing is a bit off, so I've seen a lot of people just leave base on foot or in a Prowler, die, respawn, leave base, die, respawn, leave base... As I connected to EU2 a few minutes ago, I noticed that the active AO was still (or again?) at Yanukka. A comment by the only player on there was that he saw a few people join, but leaving soon, probably not liking the odds of this particular AO. - AO activation on EU2 might still be a bit buggy. Last night, for example, AO 1 was completed, and AO 2 spawned in. After a few minutes, however, AO 2 tasks disappeared, and AO 1 was reactivated. Hostile units from both AO's remained active though. - AO's on both servers seem to be filled with a lot more hostile troops now. While this should provide a bigger challenge and longer lasting AO's, it may also result in troops "bunching up" unintentionally. Last night, I've seen a UAV operator drop a single GBU-12 on a crossroad, thereby taking out 2 armoured vehicles, an Ifrit and about 10 infantry units... (won't share AO name to avoid abuse, but staff can request by PM, if they want) - On EU2 (untested on EU1), there is no respawn timer on Greyhawks. With the previous point in mind, the UAV is currently very overpowered, and there's almost no incentive to not crash it into enemy units / radio tower or dodge incoming missiles. - Could be an ArmA bug, but on EU2, I've noticed that a main AO can not be completed, even if all enemy units are taken care off, if a side mission has spawned inside it. The only way to complete main AO is to also complete side mission. - In the event of previous remark, I discovered that the side mission in question (Destroy Ammo Cache, spawned inside Yanukka) was bugged. Nobody could find the ammo cache, so I checked via Zeus interface and discovered it had spawned very deep underground. Had to manually bring it to surface level, but after doing that, there was no option to set charge. Detonating a placed charge didn't do anything either, so I had to destroy and delete it as Zeus to complete the mission. - (Side) Missions on EU2 seem to take very long before they are recognised as complete. For example, after destroying 2 Sochors of the PRIO artillery, it took at least 5 minutes until the mission was validated as successful. - In some AO's, both on EU1 and EU2, Neophrons spawn. In general, I like that change, as they move more than the Orca / Kajman (obviously) yet are a bit less lethal than the Xi'an, but the way they're implemented would benefit from some revision. The biggest issue at this moment is that you can't really do anything about them. If you shoot one down, another will spawn no more than 2 minutes later. As such, people don't seem to bother shooting it down, and just seem to accept the airstrike hitting them, even if there are 3 flying over the AO (experienced on EU1). - With initial AO's close to base, Neophrons tend to leave AO and use base for target practice quite a lot. I've seen it more than once now that a Neophron seems to have forgotten all about the AO and is fully dedicated on destroying the base, until it was shot down or diverted by Zeus. - With I&A 3 being so new, I expect a lot of updates will be released in the upcoming days, weeks, maybe months. This requires a server reset, which in I&A 2 had practically zero impact, but in I&A3, a lot of progress can be lost because of this. Hence, I would suggest that for the time being (until update frequency slows down), the admin checks the active AO before doing a reset, and after restart manually "fast forwards" to a similar point to keep the players motivated and not have them play inside the same 5km around base all the time. My two cents, Eagle-Eye

May I be so free to ask what you would consider a "constructive reply" then? If I now reread your opening post, you seem to be expressing your disappointment about the way 1 or more (new) Spartans handle things. The discussion that follows helps (new) Zeus operators see where they went wrong, so they can learn from their mistakes by sharing experiences, tips and tricks, feedback from several people on what they expect from and as a Zeus, and most importantly, a clear-cut list of Do's and Don'ts provided by the staff. To that effect, I see plenty of useful and constructive replies, and I can not see clearly how we are missing the point of the opening post, unless you had a totally different direction for this topic in mind? This I don't get. I could be (very) wrong, but all the things you say are giving me the impression that you want I&A to be a walk in the park on a sunny day, and in your eyes, the only purpose of Zeus's presence is to pester you by putting a small stone in your shoe again and again, no matter how many times you take it out. The way I understand it, you are open to the concept, albeit hesitantly and if you had any say in it, you would actually prefer to see Zeus removed from public I&A? That being said, the examples of Zeus interaction you provided might indeed be over the top, but in reality, as said before, no sensible opposing force would just let you stroll through an AO they control, or have you decimate it from kilometres away without retaliation, or have their VIP / officer taken prisoner / questioned just like that, or ... As such, wouldn't "various ways of being stopped in your effort" be a normal thing to expect, and thus be an integral and basic part of your plan and mission execution? Obviously, you shouldn't expect a full-on assault force at all ranges, but within 2km from objective, it doesn't seem too far-fetched that you would switch to tactical mode and expect a few patrols, forward observers, checkpoints, ... The unfortunate truth, however, is that ArmA AI is often too stupid or the AO resources too limited to do what would be realistic, which is why all of the above works, so sometimes Zeus has to take their hand to send them on their way of being a worthy opponent. Although, based on the short time I spent on I&A3 today, I feel like Zeus might actually need to tune down AI a bit now. (not saying I will, just noticed AI is A LOT more lethal nowadays)

Apart from an hour of playtime during the event launch, I haven't had the pleasure of starting ArmA the past days, so can't really comment on the new I&A just yet, but am following this topic. I noticed nobody really mentions whether his feedback here is about EU1 or 2, however, so I would advise that everyone adds that bit of information to his posts. This will probably make the dev team's job a bit easier. Separate threads for each server is also an option, maybe even better?

Did some digging and came up with the following list of military aviation callsigns, if anyone's interested. Some remarks first: - I wrote down all types and roles available in ArmA I could think of. Because of this, it's an extensive list, probably longer than it should be already. If I forgot something, please let me know, so I can look it up and add it to the list. - Callsigns are realistic for the role and aircraft type (except for drones) though they may not always have been used by the indicated aircraft example. - - Small drones generally don't have their own callsigns, as far as I could find, since they are usually deployed in the field and you would address the unit operating them. Also, some drones available in ArmA are not yet operational in real life. Nevertheless, I've given different callsigns (code words may probably be a better term) based on reconnaissance aircraft callsigns to all drones, to better indicate what is requested by or assisting players in the AO, without giving that information away over radios. - Though there is no logic behind the choice of letter, I tried to make it a tiny bit easier to remember the callsigns by having each role start with a different one. Doesn't mean you can't mix them up, of course. Now, for the list: Cheers, Eagle-Eye

Question: I can imagine that quite a lot of people will want to try this at event start (maybe even more than the 120 that EU1/2 combined can gather?), so when all try to connect simultaneously when you say 'server is up', I'm pretty sure things could go (very) wrong with or on the server. As such, how will access to the server be regulated? Is there a special picking order, other than the normal AW hierarchy, or will it be first-come first-served?

Valid points, Liru, hence why Zeus should aim to include as many as possible and the must to inform applicants properly. It's also a matter of knowing your player base, of course. I know I said "hardcore mil-sim", but I think we all know and agree we won't find many players like that in EU 1 / 2, definitely not enough to fill an event, and creating an event mainly for EU 3 / 6 players isn't a smart move (or possible, AFAIK) for the new Spartans.

I'd say it depends on the mission... 1) When enhancing an AO, either by controlling AI or by using "sub-missions", Zeus should completely fold to players, in order to enhance their experience and/or help them complete the AO. 2) When stand-alone missions are created on EU #1 and #2, I think they should ideally meet somewhere in the middle, though leaning more towards the players. As Zeus, you should be able to estimate what your audience is capable of and create your mission accordingly, while as player, you should be aware that most Zeus-missions require a bit more teamwork and/or finesse than a regular AO... 3) During special Zeus events, e.g. on EU4, Zeus should aim to include as many as possible, but should also have the option to make the mission the way he wants it. Difficulty could range from "rookie hour on EU #1" to "hardcore mil-sim", but his event announcement must properly inform what is expected from the players that join up. As for the reward, aside from a good time (which I hope they have, but is very subjective), it is the only way Zeus can show appreciation for joining his mission and bringing up the extra effort that was (likely) required. On EU #1 and #2, it could also be used to "balance" the former side mission rewards (e.g. if Zeus has been online for a while, and noticed mainly pilots have received rewards from previous side missions, he can give something that better benefits ground troops, or vice versa). In my opinion, Zeus should also apply finesse to his rewards, blend them in the story of his mission or his feel to how the AO progresses. For example: - An enemy helicopter over the main AO is a PITA to many players over an extended period of time. When it's finally shot down, Zeus can create a scenario where instead of it being destroyed, it was able to crash-land somewhere, and if players can secure it before the enemy retrieves the pilots and blows up the heli, they can recover it for personal use. - An attack on an enemy installation, or just disabling a vehicle until units leave instead of destroying it could provide a map or folder with some intel on a current or future AO. - If players are having a tough time with an AO, Zeus could leave 1 or more damaged or "abandoned" enemy vehicles at random places in the AO, where they may or may not be found.

- Disregard -

I don't think there's a smooth weather changer (if there is, can someone point me to where to find it?) so, it's always a sudden change. Time could be accelerated to provide a smoother transition, but that doesn't help the NVG-issue. Not sure if we are able to give NVG's to players through the Zeus menu? (don't think so)

Finding a good mission balance is #1 PRIO on the to-do list. Being fair is a matter of perspective (unfortunately). What is normal to the spider, is chaos for the fly... I remember Luetin also had a lot conflicts about whether or not it was okay to engage a unit. Personally, I'm a sucker for realism, so each time I do something as Zeus, I run through a mental checklist if it would be realistic for a certain unit to behave like that. I try not to have my knowledge as Zeus impact that, and I sincerely hope it doesn't. Like Amentes says, however, if "a player exposes himself in a royally stupid way", I don't think it's unreasonable to fire at him, even if Zeus has to do it himself due to AI limitations. As for the GH, I don't see how taking the driver position and have AI shoot is better, or keeps Zeus's hands clean? It's still Zeus taking control over a situation where AI is too stupid on its own... In fact, the end result would be the same, or worse. Once AI does have his eye on you, he will always shoot to kill, in which case the GH would most definitely be destroyed. If Zeus takes the gunner position, at least he can choose to fire on the unit directly (kill), his projected LZ if he's still in the air (possibly disable or kill), or just close to him (possibly damage). This, in my opinion, is a bit twofold. Real life equipment nowadays has the ability to engage beyond 1km. For that reason, I don't think you should impose artificial crutches like limited view distance settings on players using them. Fog could theoretically be used in some situations, but in most, it wouldn't be realistic at all. On the other hand, however, I've noticed many people park a Marshall or Slammer at very long ranges, and then send dozens of tracer rounds towards the enemy before hitting anything. On the receiving end of those rounds, AI won't react AT ALL, except maybe walk around a bit with their gun held up, while obviously, in real life, they would flee for cover, locate the source and set up a counter attack. Same for intercepting a squad with small arms fire. Kill one from 100-200m out and his teammates will become "suspicious". If you just take cover, however, they'll become "safe" again after a few minutes and resume their normal routine. This animated video of Skyrim's stealth attack shows it brilliantly. In my opinion, operating like that is merely taking advantage of the AI limitations, and I feel it's Zeus's job to raise the AI skill level just a bit above a headless chicken (the level of a trained monkey would already be a dream come true for some AI, so let's save that for later). Thank you.

Okay. Something worth mentioning that I wasn't aware of (and many with me, I think) before I got Zeus's all-seeing eye, is how often units will be spawned far outside the AO circle by default, especially the sniper - spotter duo (which makes sense, I guess). In rare cases, units also don't despawn like they should after AO completion, so it doesn't hurt to be vigilant at all times, as even without Zeus interference, you may be surprised by units where you wouldn't normally expect them. A few weeks ago, for example, I had a side mission where none of the units even entered the indicated AO...

Out of curiosity: why not? (provided Zeus sticks to the AO area of course) While I agree with what you say, I think you can see how it's easier to scale a mission for <10 units than it is for 30+ players, as you can impose hardware restrictions and set up a few basic guidelines to better suit your operation? I've built a few Zeus missions from scratch now, and like Chuck says, the hardest decisions I had to make were: do I have enough or too many units? Should I add more armour, maybe AA, or actually take some away? It doesn't help that it's a public server .. If there are 20 players on the server now, I check the mission and it looks perfect to me, that may all change when a few minutes later, a few guys leave and the mission is suddenly too hard. Likewise, if more people join or someone rolls into the AO with a tank, it's far too easy. Personally, I'm against just spawning or deleting units to accommodate the current number of players, because I would not be able to do anything else if that were the case. There is one rule I like to discuss a bit more, as it is the most controversial one... Killing players as Zeus: Do or don't? (maybe worthy of its own topic, if there isn't one already?) In my opinion, as said before, I don't see the harm in it IF done fairly... The way I see it, first shots should always be harmless (smoke, or missing shots very wide). It's main purpose is really to make the player aware he was spotted, and in case of direct fire maybe to highlight the Zeus position, to give the player a fighting chance. After the warning, wide shots should begin closing in. If the player still doesn't run away or look for (sensible) cover, I see no harm in aiming to injure / kill. Most likely, regardless of age or skill level, next time that player takes a shot, he'll duck... There are exceptions to the above, however. If players make stupid decisions, Zeus should be allowed to punish them, because that's just how combat works... Even in real air combat training, the "aggressors" are often meant to be nothing more than an opposing force (note: not threat) to be "shot down", but they can and will abuse every single mistake a rookie pilot makes. If that gets the rookie pilot "killed", he can use the debriefing and experience to avoid making the same mistake the next time, which may save his life some day. Coming back on the example I used above, which did really happen just the other day.. A Ghosthawk pilot needs to pick up a few units and lands his helicopter on the beach, completely oblivious to the Ifrit GMG that is standing just 100m further, even though it was still firing at the units requesting pick up. If, for whatever reason, the AI is too stupid to notice or do anything about the big black metal bird coming down into his line of sight (which was the case), why wouldn't Zeus be allowed to step in and do it himself?

As background for those who don't know: earlier this week, 4 guys (incl. myself) have been accepted as Spartans, and thus given Zeus powers on the AW servers. This is why you will probably see a bit more Zeus presence in the upcoming weeks. As for my personal background and goals as Spartan, if anyone's interested: First of all, I should say that before Wednesday, I had zero experience with Zeus in multiplayer. What I DO have, is a lot of time spent in the editor and a vivid imagination. :) As such, expect a few crazy ideas and hick-ups here and there while I discover what I can and cannot do with my new powers. As of 2012, however, I've been responsible for flight ops, training and creating realistic missions for a mil-sim F-16 squadron in BMS, so I should know a thing or two about setting a scenario. My initial aim as Spartan is to discover the functionalities and possibilities by enhancing AI to a more realistic level. What this could mean is that I will put in more defences to protect a VIP or strategic location(s); place units in overwatch or forward observing positions; have OPFOR scout, flank or pincer a position where they would realistically suspect or know BLUFOR units to be located etc. Once I get the hang of things, and find a proper balance, I will probably start creating separate events. While I am Zeus, I will take positive control of AI that does not do what I think a real person would do (opinions will undoubtedly vary on this matter), in which case, I will from time to time actively engage BLUFOR. Though I usually give a warning about my presence when I'm remotely controlling a unit (e.g. popping a smoke grenade, missing the first shots intentionally), BLUFOR units may get hit and/or killed by my fire occasionally. If someone gets killed, the way how and reason why he died will decide my further actions. After a stray hit, I'll apologize, heal / revive you if I can, or teleport you back after you respawn. Land a Ghosthawk in clear line of sight of an Ifrit GMG, however, and remorse won't strike me as much... Aside from the mission enhancing/creating. I will do what you say a Zeus should do: assist wherever I can, while keeping an eye out for any questionable actions. Have a question or need help? Ask, and I'll give you the answer if I know it. Destroy BLUFOR assets (players and vehicles alike), and I will call you out on it. If it has an impact on the AO's progress (e.g. crashing a UAV or heli into the Radio Tower to destroy it), I will act accordingly. This may include the "Wrath of Zeus", so to speak. All that being said, I am aware I will have to find a balance between what I aim to do and intervening too much. I try to be firm, but fair. If you feel that is not the case, please call me out on it (in-game chat, Teamspeak or PM here) so we can discuss and I can learn. I think, though I can not be certain of course, that this is true for the others as well, and things should settle soon enough.

I haven't been on EU3 yet (it's on the to-do list ) but I have a booklet lying around somewhere with call signs used in real life (valid around 2009 - 2010, iirc) for almost any type of aircraft or helicopter, for various air forces. If you want, I can try and find it for you? EDIT: Found it. If anyone's interested, let me know what aircraft / heli are used on EU3, and I'll look up a few call signs.

Maybe too advanced for EU1 and 2, but AFAIK, upon arrival at a downed unit, you would first use the FAK carried by the wounded soldier before using your own equipment. I think most, if not all, take FAK with them anyway, so technically, a medic would not even need to carry a single FAK himself, thus solving the issue of encumbrance. Of course, for contingency, having a few doesn't hurt ... As such, my suggestion would be: 1) Healing: When infantry is healed by medic, the wounded unit loses a FAK, just like when he would heal himself. Only if he does not carry one, would the medic employ a FAK of his own... Because of more knowledge and/or experience, a medic would be able to heal better than you can yourself. (e.g. own heal = health from 30 to 50%; medic heal = from 30 to 70%) As for equipment: No FAK available in unit / medic inventory = no healing. No medkit available = no problem. 2) When infantry needs a "big heal" (read: revive), the medic will use a FAK from the wounded unit or himself (for bandaging etc) + his medkit (special tools). No FAK = No revive, or as a second option, very low health with remaining injuries. No Medkit = no revive at all.

How ironic that it is a manual on how to work with Dropbox.

After the mission is completed, it can take up to a few minutes for all hostile units to despawn. If you just dropped some guys at an LZ and are on your way back to base when the mission is completed, immediately turn around and head for the biggest concentration of infantry, 9/10 you're back at the old AO before it's 100% safe.

At the moment, I was too busy flying like a boss.

Found myself in the same situation quite a few times, where enemy AI hadn't despawned yet when I got to the evac point, or people fired their gun at the helo so I would notice them (as if the bright orange smoke grenade didn't already do that). Either way, regardless if it's during ingress or evac, if you hear fire and think it's aimed at you, you either bug out and re-assess the LZ, or you put it down really quick. In the end, you're the pilot and thus boss of your helicopter. Basic rule is always: if you don't feel comfortable doing it, don't do it... So if you think you can put it down safely, go for it. If you can't, wave off. In my opinion, doing an "improvised landing" is tricky, and should be avoided as much as possible. 1) You're usually not prepared to land where you eventually end up, and may end in a crash-landing and a bent heli, or a big ball of fire. This also makes you slightly slower (trying to gauge the new aimpoint, estimating your clearance with nearby objects, ...) and may still get you shot because of it. 2) You may land some distance away from the intended LZ or Evac marker where infantry is gathering (which will also get you yelled at, because poor guys with a sore finger after the slightly longer virtual run to AO / heli ). 3) You usually don't know where the fire is coming from. For all you know, you may be landing right in the middle of enemy infantry. In my experience, bugging out is respected by most (or at least they don't want to make a fuss about it) but it may get you yelled at from time to time. I remember this one time I was on short final to an LZ when a Tigris took notice of our helo. Immediately, I took a hard defensive turn, started jinking up, down, left and right to avoid the spray of bullets, but a guy in the back kept verbally yelling over vehicle chat... "No, fly lower, faster. Lower, goddamnit. Okay, put us down here (probably looking at a tiny patch of clearing in the middle of a forest right below us while I was travelling +150km/h), come on, put us down, GOD F*KING DAMNIT PUT US DOWN NOW"). Then, when I did land after about a minute or so, 300m further from AO than intended LZ, I got another mouthful. Wasn't too bothered by it then, but as I still remember it so vividly, maybe it left a bigger mark than I thought.

Since you're relatively new you probably didn't know, but with the latest update, helicopters have become a lot more responsive, and number of crashes has increased a lot because of it. Even for seasoned pilots, it takes a bit of time to adjust to the new sensitivity, especially with the Hummingbird.