User Guide

Delta Force Task Force Dagger - Mission Editor Manual - 06/11/02
Page 24
Section 10: Design Guidelines
Now that you know the mechanics of making a mission, you must consider how to put the pieces
together in a way that will be fun for the player and fit with the style and design of the existing
missions.
Difficulty
Any mission you create will be difficult for other people. No matter how easily you can complete
your mission, believe anyone that tells you they have trouble. There are a number of ways you
can adjust the difficulty with good mission design.
Good ways to reduce mission difficulty:
1. Lower enemy accuracy
2. Reduce the number of enemies that can see the player at one time
3. Set fewer enemies to prone and more to standing.
4. Set some enemies as cowards, or trigger them to run away from the player.
Bad ways to reduce mission difficulty:
1. Blind or deafen the enemy
2. Don’t give the enemy any weapons
Pacing
Missions need to have a certain flow to them. The opening view of the mission should be
pleasant, and the first few moments of the mission should allow the player to get used to the
terrain. The player should not be in immediate danger, and should have a good vantage point to
figure out what they’ll be doing. Once the player begins moving in, they should encounter patrols,
sentries, or points of interest (like small villages). After this, they should come upon the main
objective and be given opportunity to look it over before attacking it. Completing the primary
objectives should be the height of action in the mission. If the mission requires extraction, there
should be one more encounter on the way there.
Listed below are some general guidelines. Not all missions will run like this, but they are good
guides.
A. Opening
1. Pleasant opening view
2. No immediate threats
3. Chance to survey area
B. Approach
1. Minor action or scenery to keep player interested
2. Chance to survey target
C. Target
1. Action should ramp up and get more intense
a. A trickle of enemies is better than a flood, don’t have the player get hit by
everything at once.
2. Avoid having to “hunt down the last guy”, make necessary enemies come to the
player or exclude far flung enemies from the win conditions.
D. Withdrawal
1. Minor action or scenery to keep the player interested
2. Extraction area should be obvious (landmarks are good)