This guidebook acts as an accompaniment for basic Arma concepts. This document used to be the “Familiarisation Guidebook” until the new-player process was overhauled, however, this document still contains some very valuable information that might be useful to new Arma 3 players. This guide may be outdated in some area - if you notice any areas that are outdated, please contact BennySouthSt on discord.
The Beowulf Familiarisation Guidebook was originally created by Killslim but has since been edited and updated by Vallu, Dapper Bear, BennySouthSt, and others over the years.
Advanced Combat Environment 3 or ACE is a modification that aims to improve the realism and authenticity of ArmA 3. ACE adds & improves tons of features to the ArmA 3 experience.
You don't need to learn everything ACE is capable of, but you do need to learn how to use a few of its key features.
If you'd like to learn more about ACE you can visit the mod's website ace3mod.com
Some ACE interactions only affect yourself, the player. When interacting with yourself using ACE you should hold down CTRL+ LEFT WINDOWS KEY.
Self-interaction works the same way as standard ACE interaction. Keep holding down the keys and use your mouse to hover over the interaction you want to complete.
To complete the action simply let go of CTRL+ LEFT WINDOWS KEY.
When using self-interaction a radial menu will appear with a list of the following actions.
Equipment: Allows a player to manage their equipment
Range card: The ACE range card allows you to effectively range your targets using the ACE ballistic system
Explosives: Allows the player to place & detonate explosive devices (Mines, IEDs, C4)
Team Management: Used to assign fireteams and micro-manage ORBATs. This corresponds to the player's icon and colour on the ShackTac HUD
Medical: Used for self-medical treatments. Icons will appear for body parts in shades of red.
Red is severely injured, Yellow is lightly injured and White is normal
Radios: The radio section of self-interaction is linked to the ACRE2 system. Radios are used for distanced communication.
More details about radios can be found in the ACRE2 section of the guidebook
This section will cover the basics of the ACE medical system and tell you how to help yourself and others when injured.
Beowulf uses ACE's advanced medical system to give a more realistic and authentic experience. This means you'll have to make the right decisions to save your life or that of other players.
ACE Interaction & Interaction is another way to treat injuries and wounds. However, it is much more time consuming & finicky than using ACE's medical menu. However, if you want to use this method you need only follow this information:
Self Treatment: To treat your own injuries use ACE SELF INTERACTION
Step 1: Navigate to the Medical tab
Step 2: Navigate to the affected body part
Step 3: Select the method of treatment & release the ACE SELF INTERACTION keys
Treating Others: To treat the injuries of other players use ACE INTERACT
Step 1: Use ACE INTERACT and look at the other player
Step 2: Look at the affected body part
Step 3: Select the method of treatment & release the ACE INTERACTION key
Bandages are used to stop wounds from bleeding. There are several types, but since we do not play with wound reopening enabled, the bandages only differ in their raw wound-closing power.
Always bandage large wounds first, before moving on to smaller ones. Some wounds will require several bandages to fully close.
The bandages in ACE, in order of effectiveness, are:
The combat application tourniquet (CAT) is a device that restricts blood flow to a wounded limb to prevent the patient from bleeding out.
In ArmA, apply tourniquets to injured limbs to give you time to do other tasks, like bandaging wounds to the torso or head, or to continue fighting without spending time bandaging wounds.
When you've finished bandaging a limb with a tourniquet on it, you should take the tourniquet off as it will cause the patient pain if applied too long. (Note that in reality, this is a very bad idea.)
Fluids are needed to treat blood loss. There are three types of IV fluids ---blood, plasma, and saline--- but for the time being, they are identical as far as the game is concerned. They come in three sizes: 250ml, 500ml, and 1000ml bags.
Usually, only medics or some roles with combat lifesaver training can administer IV fluids, but you'll normally be carrying one for the medic to use on you if needed.
If you need to and are able to set an IV, it must be done in a limb without a tourniquet. If the patient is unconscious, provide fluids until the blood loss is only "some" for the best chance to revive the casualty.
Alert: First let the other members of your squad know that a squad member is down. You can do this over the radio or by using local communication.
Make sure the area is secure: Eliminate any immediate threats or, if necessary, evacuate the casualty to a secure area. Do not attempt to rescue casualties in the open while under fire. Any personnel who are not in immediate need of medical attention should provide security for the medic.
Triage: If there are multiple casualties, prioritise stabilising patients before continuing treatment.
Stabilise the casualty: Stop any bleeding and ensure the patient has a pulse.
Tourniquet: Start by applying a tourniquet on any bleeding limbs.
Bandage: Bandage any head or chest wounds. Prioritise large wounds, especially velocity wounds and avulsions.
Check pulse and blood loss: If the casualty doesn't have a pulse, then perform CPR and recheck the pulse. If no pulse is found after performing CPR, alert the medic.
Heavy blood loss: If the casualty has lost a large amount of blood, CPR may be ineffective until fluids have been administered. Alert the medic.
Assess the situation: Is the area secure? Are there other casualties that need to be stabilised?
Complete treatment: Bandage remaining wounds on limbs and remove tourniquets.
Morphine: Do not administer morphine to unconscious casualties.
Epinephrine: Epinephrine can help wake the patient up, but should primarily be administered by the medic.
Monitor the casualty: Periodically monitor the casualty's pulse and blood pressure. If no pulse is found, perform CPR. If the pulse starts increasing rapidly, the patient is entering cardiac arrest. Alert the medic ASAP.
The purpose of a contact report is to alert other members of your squad to a possible threat.
By alerting them you'll be in a better position to engage and neutralise the threat and limit potential casualties.
To give a contact report take the following steps to communicate the threat to the rest of your squad.
"CONTACT!": Alert the other members of your squad that you've spotted a threat, so they know to listen out for more information.
ORIENTATION: Let your squad know the direction of the threat
If the contact is close & putting squad members in immediate danger let them know "CONTACT! NORTH EAST! CLOSE!"
If the contact is further away be more precise with your direction. Give a compass heading. "CONTACT! BEARING 30 DEGREES!..."
DESCRIBE: Let your squad what the threat is. "CONTACT! BEARING 30 DEGREES! ENEMY APC!..."
EXPAND: Provide more information about the threat to your squad.
If you haven't already given the distance between your squad and the threat. "CONTACT! BEARING 30 DEGREES! ENEMY APC! 400 METERS!"
If the threat is close to a landmark tell your squad to make it easier for them to locate it. "CONTACT! BEARING 30 DEGREES! ENEMY APC! 400 METERS! NEAR THAT CHURCH!"
If the threat is moving let your squad members know what direction it's moving in relative to you. "CONTACT! BEARING 30 DEGREES! ENEMY APC! 400 METERS! NEAR THAT CHURCH! MOVING TOWARDS US!"
If you execute all this correctly your contact reports should sound something like this...
"
CONTACT! BEARING 30 DEGREES! ENEMY APC! 400 METERS! NEAR THAT CHURCH! MOVING TOWARDS US!
Should the situation arise where you need to communicate with another squad you will need to adhere to radio protocol. (This might happen if the Squad Leader and/or Team Leader is killed).
Here's a guide on how to form your radio messages.
IDENTIFICATION: Start each transmission by identifying who your message is meant for, then tell them who you are. "SABRE-1 this is SABRE-2..."
THE MESSAGE: Follow this by letting the recipient know what they need to know as briefly and clearly as possible. "SABRE-1 this is SABRE-2. SABRE-2 is taking heavy fire from a machine gun emplacement to our north and needs urgent support. Over.'"
REMEMBER Try to keep your messages clear and brief. Only one person can transmit over the radio at a time.
RECOMMENDED Try to end your transmissions with over so the recipient knows you've finished your message
ESTABLISH CONTACT: If there's a lot of chatter on the radio frequency you want to send a message on try to establish contact with your recipient first.
To establish contact tell the recipient you have a message for them
"SABRE-0 this is SABRE-2, message, over. "
"SABRE-2 this is SABRE-0, send a message, over. "
"SABRE-2 is taking heavy fire from a machine gun emplacement to our north and needs urgent support. Over.'"
"SABRE-0 copies, we're sending SABRE-1 to reinforce your position. Over. "
FALLBACK: If you forget the correct radio protocol try to use plain, simple English to convey your message.
Correct movement techniques are critical to a successful mission. Knowing how to move through a variety of environments in combat will keep you and your squad members alive.
Although a lot of movement techniques come through experience and training here are some essential techniques to get you started:
DON'T BUNCH UP: Keep a 5m spacing from your squad members at a minimum. 10m is much better.
Pay special attention not to bunch up when:
An ally is down. Let one person help get an ally up while others provide security
There's limited cover. If there's not enough cover for everyone try to reduce your profile by changing your stance
DOORS, WINDOWS & CORNERS: Take extra care when moving past these as they can expose you to new firing positions.
Make sure to clear doors, windows and corners when you're moving through an urban environment.
USE COVER & CONCEALMENT: Use hardcover as much as possible when moving. Use concealment when no cover is available.
Make use of smoke grenades to provide concealment when you need to cross open areas
CHECK ON YOUR BUDDIES: Before moving to a new position check to see if your allies are all up and uninjured.
DON'T LEAVE UNCONSCIOUS OR INJURED SQUAD MEMBERS BEHIND
LOWER YOUR WEAPON WHEN NOT IN CONTACT: Preserve your stamina by lowering your weapon while moving. To lower your weapon DOUBLE TAP CTRL
KEEP TRACK OF FRIENDLIES: Maintain situational awareness and keep track of your friendlies to avoid friendly fire incidents.
Formations are typically employed by fireteams to maximise their effectiveness in different environments and situations. They decide upon the distance between soldiers, sections of fire & security responsibilities.
Formations can be utilised on different levels, Fireteam level and Squad level. They also offer different advantages and disadvantages that must be taken into account when choosing a formation.
Effective use of formations is determined by arranging soldiers correctly bearing in mind the current situation and terrain.
As previously mentioned, a fireteam formation is utilised to maximise the effectiveness of a fireteam. At Beowulf, we make use of several different formation types but we mostly make use of files (columns), lines & wedges.
In this section of the guide, we'll go over these formations, when they're employed and what they're utilised for.
The first and most common formation used in Beowulf sessions is the fireteam file/column. Usually, these are employed when moving over long distances when not in contact.
If a fireteam is attacked from the side it is easy to instantly switch to a fireteam line to fend off aggressors. However, it is not effective when attacking the front or the rear of the formation.
A fireteam file is also useful for navigating close terrain and dense vegetation or any time that visibility conditions are limited.
The fireteam line is most effective when engaging enemies to the front. When using a line the fireteam is usually stationary and may utilise terrain or objects as cover or to steady aim.
Line formation can also be used to carefully move through an area. This can be used when searching for hazards such as landmines. However, when moving in a line it may be difficult to keep track of your other squad members as they will be at the limits of your peripheral vision.
The fireteam wedge offers good all-around security for members of the fireteam and also allows the squad to move and engage targets simultaneously. The wedge is used most effectively when attacking an enemy position as it offers good visibility to the front and flanks to effectively engage targets.
Formation Type
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fireteam File/Column
Controllable, fast & offers secure flanks
Weak fire superiority to the front, clears a limited area & offers a good target for air attacks and machine gun zones
Fireteam Line
Good front-facing fire, clears a large area, transitions well to other formations
Difficult to control in restricted visibility and close terrain, vulnerable flanks & slow to move
Fireteam Wedge
Controllable, secures the flanks, transitions well to other formations
Members of the fireteam have to clear their own path and is a difficult formation to maintain in close terrain
Try and keep in mind these formations when you play in your first session. There may be other formations and advanced movement techniques used but if you have a question you can always ask a more experienced squad member for help.
You can find the latest information about our sessions in the Announcements tab in Discord.
Greatly reduces the patient's heart rate. Used to treat early symptoms of cardiac arrest, where the heart rate will spike, up to and exceeding 200 bpm. Rarely needed.
Increases the patient's heart rate and increases the chance of an unconscious patient waking up.
Relieves pain and slightly reduces the patient's heart rate. Usually, the only injector given to non-medics. It takes a while to kick in, so don't take/give more than one.