Guide to Online Etiquette

Being a fantastic, unique game, the ArmA2 community is understandably awash with new players. While this is truly awesome for the health of the community, it also brings a few issues with inexperienced players rubbing shoulders with us 'old hacks' online.

So new guys, whenever you join a public server, please observe the following to ensure you are always invited back:

ALWAYS:
- Read the mission briefing before you start playing, otherwise you will be running about like a blue-arsed fly getting in everyone's way. Worse, you may waste mission-critical resources, ruining everybody's day.

- Take time to orient yourself on the map immediately after you spawn. Work out who's who, what's where; double-check which team you are actually on by pressing P and also check what the good-guys' uniforms look like ;)

- Apologise if you accidentally kill/wound a team-mate (press / to talk, use < or > to switch to global or side channel, or press + hold caps lock for voice chat).

- Ask permission to board somebody else's vehicle as crew (esp. driver or gunner). Some players will gladly let you on board, others prefer to crew vehicles alone and it is not up to you to prevent them from doing so. Remember, respect other players' right to enjoy their game too!

- Reply when you are spoken to on chat/voice comms. It is very bad form to just blank teammates and can really screw up the mission (it's also rude). If you don't understand because you don't speak the language of the server, just reply briefly in your own language; that way you've acknowledged your team-mates and they will understand what the problem is :)

- Say thanks when somebody heals or help you. Goes without saying, it's just good manners.

- Give teammates a lift in your vehicle if they will otherwise be stranded on foot. C'mon, nobody likes a long, long walk to the party (we've all been there).

NEVER:
- 'Test' your weapon by firing near the feet/head of a team-mate. Grrr.

- Move somebody else's vehicle without asking them - especially if they are firing from it. Imagine, they just spent 10 mins manoevering their lovely .50 cal Hummer into the PERFECT spot to cover that enemy-held village, then you jumped in and drove out in front of the T90 hiding around the corner...

- In Co-op or Team games, never use mission-critical assets without first asking, especially choppers, planes or mobile spawn vehicles. The use of these should always be agreed and co-ordinated with your team-mates (nothing upsets people more than inexperienced players foolishly destroying MHQs or choppers).

- Refuse to heal/revive a fallen team-mate if you are in a position to do so (i.e. unless it is very likely you will get killed doing so).

- Flood the chat with irrelevant messages, use abusive language against players you don't know very well, or persistently use languages which are not permitted by the server rules.

- Kill/wound team-mates. If you're not sure if they're enemy, hold fire, check map, even ask them via chat! (I'm serious).

- Kill/wound team-mates to steal their vehicles. The height of selfish lameness. You will be banned.

- Kill/wound team-mates who annoyed you by not giving you a lift last time. Maybe they didn't see you or were full, ever think of that? You will be banned.

- Kill/wound team-mates or destroy friendly resources 'as a joke' right before you disconnect. It's SO not funny. Oh, and you will be banned.

Added by ]TG[Flightster (06/08/09):

- Fly an aircraft online if you have never done so before, practice in the editor untill you're sure you will be able to survive for more than 5 minutes on an ACTIVE battlefield.

- Use vehicles (air or ground) as your own personal transport.

- Take off in a chopper without waiting for others to get in (not personal transport).

- Leave vehicles in the middle of no where.

- Place an MHQ in enemy territory.

- Drive off in an MHQ WITHOUT loading the Ammo Box (there is nothing worse than running out of ammo in the middle of a battle, and not being able to reload).

- Use wreck choppers for transport, if there are any on the server you play on, they are a ONE PURPOSE ONLY vehicle (retrieving wrecks).

- Fire the gun on an MHQ when you're nearing enemy territory, unless the driver says you can. (there's nothing worse than trying to get an MHQ into a good / close / safe spot while an idiot is firing the gun and giving away your position in the process)

- Be disrespectful to the ones in charge of a server.. You are a VISITOR, not an OWNER and what the admin / clan says is what goes (like I said to many people on my clans server, "This is our backyard you're playing in, and you don't piss on another mans lawn).

That's it, unless people can suggest new stuff to go in the list. Apart from this just go have a real blast online, IMO this is where Arma2 totally outshines every other game ever made. This post is not meant to be at all negative/moany, it's just a common-sense check-list for those of you who maybe haven't played online games before (and for some of you who have ;) ).
Cheers
Mandrake.