(edit by Moderator magge:)

New Guide/Tutorial Thread:

This thread is fairly outdated and just a reference now; a refactored version was created with all available tools and steps under the following link:

[Tutorial] Windowed Fullscreen, Borderless or Fake-Fullscreen for FAF Supreme Commander

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Outdated Guide Below:

(/edit end)

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All of this applies if you have either a single monitor or more than one monitor.

This guide will go over how to setup a fullsreen script that both makes your FA run in windowed full screen (AKA: fake-fullscreen)

There are two versions of the script depending on your monitor setup.

I’ll just give you the baseline and then step by step it so you can meet your needs.

(Single monitor (at any resolution) example first)

• run a test game of FA and go into graphic settings and set the resolution to « windowed » (you may now exit FA)
• download and install AutoHotkey (when it is done installing don't run, there's nothing to run. Just close the installer)
• hit Win+"R"
• type "shell:startup"
• in the folder that opens right click go to "New" -> "AutohotkeyScript" this should create a new ahk file. (You can name it fullscreenScript or something similar)

Open this file with notepad or notepad++ (or equivalent basic text editor)

paste this (this is the script you will have to adapt to suit your needs)

#NoEnv
SendMode Input
SetWorkingDir %A_ScriptDir%
#Persistent
procName := "ForgedAlliance.exe"
SetTimer, CheckProc, 2000
Return


CheckProc:
    If (!ProcessExist(procName))
        Return

    WinGet Style, Style, % "ahk_exe " procName
    If (Style & 0xC40000) 
        {
        WinSet, Style, -0xC40000, % "ahk_exe " procName
        WinMinimize , % "ahk_exe " procName
        WinMaximize, % "ahk_exe " procName
    }
    Return

ProcessExist(exeName)
{
   Process, Exist, %exeName%
   return !!ERRORLEVEL
}
return

• You’re done! you can either restart the computer or double click the file
• (Optional although strongly recommended, especially if you have two monitors) add « UI Party » in the mod vault and enable it by hosting a test game with it (you’ll have to configure UI Party)

(Example with two 1080p monitors that are ordered left to right you’ll need to adapt the pixel sizes if your monitors are a different resolution than 1080p, note that FA is now a window so it can’t stretch it’s bottom border two different amounts, if you have different resolution monitors one of the two monitors will not be completely filled.)

#NoEnv
SendMode Input
SetWorkingDir %A_ScriptDir%
#Persistent


procName := "ForgedAlliance.exe"
SetTimer, CheckProc, 2000
Return

CheckProc:
    If (!ProcessExist(procName))
        Return
      
      
    WinGet Style, Style, % "ahk_exe " procName
    If (Style & 0xC40000) 
    {
        WinSet, Style, -0xC40000, % "ahk_exe " procName ; remove the titlebar and border(s)
        WinMove, % "ahk_exe " procName , , 0, 0, 3840, 1080 ; move the window to 0,0 and resize it to fit across 2 monitors.
        WinMaximize, % "ahk_exe " procName
        WinRestore, % "ahk_exe " procName
    }
    Return

ProcessExist(exeName)
{
   Process, Exist, %exeName%
   return !!ERRORLEVEL
}
return

what’s the Linux step by step

Well the whole core optimisation thing is moot since Linux abstracts away threads and doesn’t « order » them or « start a process on a specific thread ». The overhead and prioritazation are also moot because you’re not emulating a full windows, just the parts you need, and lastly the windowed is moot because the emulation plus whatever DE you have basically kinda result in the same result. There’s only the multiple monitor thing I would be curious to know how to do.

Hope this helps thousands of people!

You need to make sure your audio is configured to stereo 16bit 44100MHz.

first set it to stereo, you do this by opening the old windows audio settings menu (go to configure) :

Now select Stereo :

Then you can set it to 44100 Hz in the "Advanced" tab :

there. you're now in stereo audio but there's a good chance this won't be enough if the first time you installed and ran FA, your computer was configured to use surround sound audio.

to persist these changes into FA, delete your Game.prefs file at (warning you'll loose your FA user config for example what mods are enabled, what settings you set, build templates) :

%LOCALAPPDATA%\Gas Powered Games\Supreme Commander Forged Alliance\Game.prefs

and re-create it by running Forged Alliance from steam and re-creating your username.

Now FA understands that it is in a stereo environment and audio will work.

You can remake your templates, and add your settings and ui mods back.

The bottom line is Forged Alliance and 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound are incompatible as FA was built before these techs were on the market so you have to choose.

however, in my experience. so long as FA is shut down when you switch your audio back to 5.1 or 7.1 and you switch your audio back to stereo before running FA again, everything works out.

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edit by magge - sorry for hijacking:

Check out this thread as well, if you have sound issues:

https://forum.faforever.com/topic/4084/solutions-for-snd-error-xact-invalid-arg-xact3dapply-failed

Uh... hi!

do you like stats? I do!

Disclaimer : I didn't make ANY of these graphs and charts. The associated text are also mostly direct quotes so "I" in this thread does not mean "tatsu", I'll have a link below each, crediting source. You can check within who was speaking and creating the graphs. a majority of these were made by Sofltes. I don't make stats so I'll just be reposting everything relevant from the previous forum but there are rules for this thread: please only post stats. no debating. use other threads for that (feel free to hotlink a stat from this thread.)

Ideally post using :
https://plot.ly

this allows to continuously have up to date data.

I selected the latest ones and for those that had a plot.ly link I regenerated them. I ran through these and made them dark theme compatible.

this first one is actually from this forum :

Note: A "player" is defined as a person that plays at least a single game during said month using the client's services. Every data point is a month during that year.

Source : https://forum.faforever.com/topic/287/is-faf-growing

Here's what I wanna do, categorize the difficulties of AIs so that hopefully one day we have a simple non-confusing drop down for AIs including not only all AI mods but all AI mods sorted by difficulty and not only that, but an auto-matchmake AI option.

AND NOT ONLY THAT, but that same auto-matchmake AI (which is basically vs AI from starcraft where it ramps up or down the difficulty depending on your win or losses against it and you start against the easiest ((it's really really really well done in starcraft)) )
...would be used for the first 15 (or 20?) placement matches in matchmaking.

thereby providing at long last a potential solution to the "bar of entry" problem that newer players face with matchmaking AKA ladder.

with good metrics about what AIs are worth we would replace the current :

A seesaw of randomness during fifteen matches where first match you get placed vs Keyser, second match vs some -600, third match you're against Blackheart and that's about when you decide you've had enough.

with this:

first match is vs and AI easy, You actually loose so you get matched vs it again. you win this time, third match is vs an AI normal, you loose, you get placed vs it again, you win....

(at the end of this process the ladder rates you at about 300. insert obligatory "not great, not terrible")

but the experience and end result is clearly way better.

now.
I admit that even vs a uveso AIx (3.0 cheat modifier) most ladder players would do fine and that wont teach useful things to new ladder players but that's the keyword here NEW.

I don't think at the level of ladder I'm currently playing at (750), that any of my opponents could beat an uveso AIx (3.0 cheat modifier).

this serves the NEW players first and foremost who need this. And [us thousand plus played games] we're not about to go through placement matches right now, so we should focus on what the experience should be like for NEW players, that we want to see stay in the community and get better at the game.

I'm pretty sure that there are very good value lessons that this kind of AI is dishing out already without being too much of a detriment to fun or too much of a challenge.

To this end I'm asking for your help to categorize AIs, this won't take up much of your time

there are six AI mods worth downloading to my knowledge :

• "AI-Uveso" (a common mod for all AI mods)
• "AI-Swarm"
• "Nutcracker AI"
• "Dilli AI"
• "RNG AI"
• "micro AI"

add these and enable them in lobby (yes, they are inter-compatible)

test at least four of the 44 (yeah...) AI choices you'll have as a result and draft down your observations here :

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1GRkWb0x0PcvwdN5kgaXOl83qEOZ5EmUvvAc8Zrttwp0/edit#gid=0

thanks you all! It takes groundwork like this for years later a good mod to emerge. let's make history!

@BlackYps said in Graphic Artist Wanted:

We plan to show small icons in the matchmaking tab, so they should be 20 pixels high and no more than 40 pixels wide. five tiers with five subdivisions (I-V) each and then one top tier that has no subdivisions.

T1 :

T2 :

T3 :

T4 :

T5 :

Final Tier :

rejected ideas :

We also want to show a big version in a new leaderboard tab. The design there is not finished yet, but I estimate that there will be around 150-200 pixels of height available. You can see a first idea for the new leaderboard below. The big division graphic goes where the empty rectangle is.

big version pending approval of small version...

(two options, I could either redraw them in 400 x 200 beat for beat or I could start fresh on a 400 x 200 canvas, preserve the colors, but replace the numbers with icons and try to find something that works to communicate that subdivision )

I can't say it better than it's already been said by all the people in this thread, but here goes

I like the scale in particular,

from the outside looking in, the scale is daunting and then, once you try it and become accustomed to it, it's hard to imagine being without.

the immersion is another big one.

a majority of our awareness of the simulation happens subconsciously, it's something appreciated as a whole rather than as one particular interaction to point to, and yet pointing to the single interaction is the only way you can show someone else it's there, but the reason it matters is for the general feel.

The amount of situational turnaround in a typical game, the variety in gameplay and the sheer quantity of emergent gameplay and strategy.

I've been pulling back from the forum (forums are usually someplace I'm quite active) recently because the level of constant vitriol just drains my motivation to do so.

The discord? forget it. I'm with nine on this, this has to stop.

I'm trying to get people to come onto FAF. I keep recommending the forum and the discord, but there's always this nagging thought in the back of my head that it's a bad recommendation.

I hate that. I wish I could just recommend both with a clear head and no lingering thoughts of doubt.

I keep reminiscing about the GPG days and early to mid FAF days. I remember back then my experience of the online community made me think : "wow! people here have really built something special, where you can feel like a community!"

I legitimately thought there were very few if any nicer gamer communities on earth.

...

I understand that there's a realistic level we can aspire to today and that level isn't the early FAF days.

But we've got to start doing something.

We've got to have Some standards. rather than the none that we have right now.

In no other gaming community would it be acceptable for representatives of said community to be odious, vitriolic or use ad hominem attacks on a constant basis ....why is it tolerated on FAF?

This should not be the appearance we/FAF give off.

I made a recap of the differences on arqade, dunno how helpful it is : https://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/130147/how-does-a-forged-alliance-player-learn-to-play-fa-forever/353014#353014

@DrWrongpipes

Is there a Discord for people to learn? Where higher level players could coach newbies to learn and chat? Because our only option is watching Gyle's casts which just covers the first two factories built by COMS and then hops round the map watching fights. There's barely any info out there on eco, base setup or unit composition that isn't being played or run through by someone at Heaven's level of speed and modded UI, which is almost impossible to follow.

That's a good question! this discord channel of the official FAF server serves this exact purpose : https://discord.gg/eUQdmppkMp

this guide is also quite useful : https://docs.google.com/document/d/13S4nBDfcBK4WmFtykXGKNmvIPe9L2nbiriISpHNgE4U/edit

The "Tutorials" Tab of FAF is utterly amazing.

playing through the four missions (and trying each mission's many choices) is absolutely vital.

And yeah Heaven is great once you actually start understanding what he's talking about.

but before you get to him :

The Dualist is a recently 1100 rated (so pretty low-to-average) player and his videos are quite educational : https://youtu.be/NK-LvGL9HKc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAMIaYfSEBg

Decent is 500 and (so really much much more educational for newer players) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWWRgX6BCIM&list=PLF2T-nFgLhNAcMlujh4oqKsTqhTTpLhd3

Recently Brnk started making tutorials as well and they're top-notch IMO : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvMnSDvHV-U&list=PL8njGw0L9GCMmWuVXUix1t_0rQ5phYRU1

Gyle does a series where he learns to play the game with pros : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NHG6xs7DuA&list=PLghkifCs4DHOOSdrpE6yNjCcYLkh-gixM

and Medicraze really high production-values tutorials : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZymQ--z-lzo&list=PLfoxTfv2F6On8zyb7IvN-_xEQTjHmXvoj

Speed made and excellent tutorial playlist of his own : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uPjOxCTEng&list=PLTEDjzjPnGIoh43j6c2jNIYINPxgJnzoh&index=2

Somewhat outdated in terms of balance but most thorough and great for noobs TheForgedAllianceColonel's tutorials : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QhM7oC-t7U&list=PLWe0mYs3ObwL36zemynMh5G4b-3s5vol0

I personally find Jagged Appliance highly educational to watch, his commentary is a bit higher level but honestly not the technical level Heaven is on, he's really clear and I feel like he's easy to understand and it really helps that he really really knows what he's talking about : https://www.youtube.com/c/JaggedAppliance/videos

On another note I have an idea to maybe help combat the effect of players feeling outmatched. I posted about it before :

https://forum.faforever.com/topic/309/ai-megathread

The idea is that Starcraft 2 allows players to gradually ease themselves into ladder by having a vs AI mode that functions like a ladder.

where loosing a couple matches will place you against an AI that doesn't leave it's base as much and that is worse in economy and build order but the more you win the tougher (and more resemblent to a human) the AI gets. sometimes going as far as employing cheese strat rushes.

Doing something like this in for FAF would really help cushion the giant pit of spikes of doom that is switching from playing Forged Alliance/SupCom AI-Bash or FAF survival maps / co-op campaign to trying out PVP in any form on FAF.

Most people don't know what they're doing and a lot of that comes from forming terrible habits of "waiting while I build up" with the frankly not revolutionary SsupCom & FA campaigns. (although on the plus side apparently the Seraphim Campaign and the Nomads campaign took a turn for the better in that regard.)

But even the AI in FA specifically encourages turtling for newer players.

Now I'm not saying that skill gap is the only problem, but I certainly believe that helping bridging the gap will help newer players face less animosity.

As for the lobby antics (greys, pings, rating, game count) these sort of things just don't matter when you just click queue for TMM (Team Match Maker).

you play, you win or you loose, who cares it's gg's all round anyways. and it's then the FAF matchmaking bot's job to balance you so you don't have to worry about how good or bad you are, it'll eventually place you with players like you and you'll be able to progress.

Which is why I humbly believe that if we sorted AIs by difficulty and created an "AI competitive ladder" that could serve as a stepping stone for getting to TMM, this would remove a lot of the fear.

Also we need to make nomads campaign native. it shouldn't have to be installed separately.

So yeah newer players, head on to here: https://forum.faforever.com/topic/309/ai-megathread and rate the AI. yes, we want your appreciation of them. it would really help. (the AI mods not the vanilla AI.)

@humanpotatoe said in Why would you have left FAF?:

the only way to rank up for my new account was to play endless toxic gap games

the ... ONLY ... way?

how?
You can host your own games.

and when you do you can pick any other map.

and when you do, trust you me, it'll fill. not in a billionth of a second... ok... but it'll fill... at worst in a minute, on average in 25 seconds.

I'm just trying to help here.

We think gap is a plague, you think gap is a plague. good. let's get you out of there.

@archsimkat Thanks so much! can we do 2v2 as well?

I know it's a recurring topic and that we don't really know what to do there but it does kinda suck that the more time passes the more FAF simply becomes DualGap.

like the DualGap desktop client.

for some that's ok. For others (me), there's a wealth of riches being smothered out there.

where's all the Phantoms? the Nomads? the King of The Hill? The Zone Control? the Crazy Rush? the Risk Map? the Protect the Objective? the Waves of Death? the Survival?

Heck just old classics like Pizza, Badlands and open palms? or those newer and better maps made by mappers? Anchor? Rainmakers? Kaali?

Heck where did that auto-mapgen host go? that was a super good idea.

Ok the plot thickens.

after launching it on steam once and also changing the keyboard layout to and back the same feature I saw on steam happens on FAF and the circumflex gets correctly captured.

So for now I can no longer reproduce the crash.

I checked with iczero, it's not due to the game.prefs file, there already was one.
I don't know what provoked this change in behavior. my guess is running the game once in steam generated some other added files more than just game.prefs

@Wainan said in Call for an Icon artist:

Why not just use this mod? The icons are easier to read too

https://wiki.faforever.com/index.php?title=Advanced_Strategic_Icons

I hhhate that mod.

It's the same issue indeed. The error in the patch is taking some time to revert but it should be fixed Soon TM.

In the meantime you can install uveso ai and swarm ai and try 6 humans vs 6 swarm AI.

Fuuuck I'd love to do something like that but for lower braket players. I can't compete with the likes of ZLO, archsimkat and Tagada.

I see @lilSidlil , I upvote.

@Bhaal and if they were, then what?

This is a 14 year old game, and an abandonware at that, I think it's well outside the scope of support. We need to fix these things ourselves, unfortunately.

fine, sign me up. 900 global, 800 1v1

@Azraeel said in AI MEGATHREAD:

You didn't use Uveso-AI with Swarm-AI which is required. Its also Required for RNG-AI, so ur swarm games are completely in-accurate.

makes sense.

I was getting the impression from the youtube vids that it should be doing much better

I'll redo those.

EDIT : I've redone those and updated the sheet to match with reorder.
with uveso on swarm was indeed hardest. it's also the best non-cheating.