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ATAG_Bliss
Jan-23-2012, 01:19
Mission Statement:

ATAG is a group of friends with a passion for flight simming and having a good time together. We offer a couple IL2COD servers for everyone's entertainment along with a TS3 server that everyone is free to use. We have a different philosophy than most servers in that we feel that a server surrounded by a like minded community, admins itself fairly well.

Our main goal is to provide a fun environment for those with similar interests. We encourage everyone to get TS3 and hop into the action. It's hard to beat the immersion of working as a team to complete a common goal - whether that be engaging a fighter/bomber group or going after defined targets as a group. Getting a taste of this teamwork really brings into the addiction of flight simming in general. We've seen many new faces on TS3 everyday, and we encourage everyone to give it a try.

In saying that, we host a TS3 server that has virtually an unlimited amount of connections available, all connected to a 10gbps connection. You're not going to hurt our bandwidth or come close to using up 1% of what we have available. We feel our TS3 server is just as much ATAG's as the community using it. It's there for everyone's use, regardless of what game you play. So if you or your squad would like to have a private or public section setup however you like in TS3, just drop us a line. There's no reason to pay for your own when we have this available for you. Many people, including many of us, play more games than just flight sims. That's why you'll notice different games listed in TS3. Again, this is for everyone's use. We have several people that join that don't even own any flight sims. So if there's a game you have that we don't have a channel for, and you'd like to gather some friends up and get on coms with, just drop us a line, and we'll add it.

Server Rules:

I think it's best to start off with what is allowed than what is not allowed to understand our server rules. Again, our philosophy is much different regarding our servers than most other providers.

With that said, here's what you CAN do on our servers:

-Vulching is allowed. That means that any enemy plane regardless of it's position (in the air / on the ground) is a legitimate target. Whether you want to drop bombs on a particular target or strafe a particular enemy target, if it's on the enemy side of the lines (not attacking your own team) it is fair game. We setup our missions so that if you want to get directly into the action, the forward air fields are there to allow you to do so. But with spawning in on the front lines, be expected to spawn into your airfield possibly being attacked. War is hell, and this sort of thing happened in real life all the time.

-Perching is allowed. This means that you can fly cap over an enemy airfield to try and take out any unsuspecting enemy planes taking off from there. Again, you must tactically think about the situation (where you've spawned at, how long the mission has been running, talk to those on TS3 etc., and get a good idea how to combat this) As always, there will be airfields you can spawn at away from the front lines that will be free of enemies. Getting perched/vulched or avoiding it, still lies within the player's decision on where to spawn. It still comes down to your own tactical choice.

-Talking in chat is allowed. I've heard some comments about other servers saying that typing in chat will result in a kick/ban, even something as simple as saying check666. Strange but true. But in the other aspect of this, if you have a server/mission suggestion, leave it for the forums. For all the work we do, believe it or not, there's sometimes that we actually like to fly and just have fun as well. The least you could do for us is make a post that clearly defines what you would like to see, or the problems you are having. In game chat is for general chat to chat about the on-going mission. It is not a complaint board. So if you're getting ignored while in chat by doing so, you should easily understand why.

On our servers, we try to allow people to fly how they want to fly. Just because some people want to fly a certain way doesn't mean that those that don't should be frowned upon. If you want to take off in a Tiger Moth and tour London - have fun! If you feel like flying around aimlessly or just doing a visual tour and staying away from combat - feel free to do it. Heck, if you feel like trying to fit a fully loaded Ju88 through the hangers at Hawkinge, good luck :) We are not gonna frown on any way you fly and encourage you to do what you want to have fun in your own way.

What isn't allowed on our servers:

-No intentional team killing Lets face it, stray friendly bullets will hit other friendly planes from time to time. Identifying targets in IL2COD isn't easy. I know I've shot down a few BR20m's in a 109 before from miss ID. Stuff like that happens. Shoulder shooting is an easy mistake when your view is severely hindered of other planes while stuck in the 1st person cockpit position. So please take stuff like this with a grain of salt. But what won't be allowed is someone spawning in just for their whole intent to shoot down friendly planes. This will get you a vacation from the server very swiftly.

-Keep shoulder shooting to a minimum We all know how easy it is to shoulder shoot. You have an enemy in your sights and another friendly is in front of you trying to do the same. But please resist temptation to do so. If you know anything about IL2COD, one of it's strong points is the fact that all damages on all planes is recorded from all the pilots doing the damage. There is no more of this 1 pilot does all the work and runs out of ammo while the 2nd pilot comes in and fires a few rounds to get the kill. Whoever does the most damage regardless of who fires the last shots will get credited with w/e percentage of damage they did. There is no reason to shoulder shoot in IL2COD other than by doing it on accident. So please keep it at a minimum.

-Harassment in chat will not be tolerated This should be a no brainer, but try to be civil. 99% of the players online are there to have fun and most of the people I've met have fun regardless if they get shot down, get vulched, get perched, or just flat out - out flown. Tempers will flair occasionally. People will have bad days. This is all understandable and the facts of being human. But if you make it a habit to bring others down on a constant basis, or just flat out bitch and complain all the time, you will find yourself with a vacation from the server. Other people in the game that are trying to have fun don't want to hear it. We at ATAG don't want to hear it either. If you have gripes or complaints about the mission, we have forums for that. If you have gripes or complaints about the game, 1C has forums for that. The chat bar does not need to be filled with constant bitches, gripes or complaints! Also, the last thing we will tolerate in chat is personal attacks against ATAG. This will leave you with an immediate vacation. We've invested countless hours of our own free time and our own money trying to make a fun place to fly. The last thing we deserve or will tolerate is mocking us on our own server. I think most can easily differentiate between banter and downright hateful remarks.

-Cheating and explotation of the game will not be tolerated in any form This one pretty much speaks for itself. If you are found to be hacking into the game to modify files to give yourself some sort of advantage over the other players on the server you will be removed permanently. This is a game. If you die you can simply respawn and do it all over again. Changing of flight models, warping yourself purposefully, or any other sort of cheat/exploit will not be tolerated in any shape or form. The server uses steam VAC, an anticheat tool that collect information over a period of time against your game files comparing them to official game files. If we don't get you VAC will. If you recieve a VAC ban, this will make all of your steam games virtually useless. So take a real hard thought before you attempt to heximally decide that you want an edge over someone else. If we don't catch you, rest assured VAC most certainly will in the future.

-Nicks with propaganda, disrespectful or that might be found offensive Please do not use nicks that would rise other fellow player's eyebrows or that contain propaganda like web links etc.

With all that said, I don't think you'll find a more laid back type atmosphere to fly in. We don't ask much and hope you will respect what little rules we have. But above all, we hope you have an enjoyable time. We do this because we want you to have fun. We have many ideas for the future (when the game gets fixed). There isn't a provider out there that has remotely close to the hardware/bandwidth we use, and with that we truly expect some great things to happen in the coming months/years.

I would like to thank everyone for their support. It's always nice to read the comments of people having a good time. It makes all the time we spend working on this, worth it. We'd also like to thank those who help keep the server's running. The total costs for the 2 servers alone is well over $300/month. I'm astounded that the goal of $250/month has been reached every single month we at ATAG have had the server up. I pay $70/month if the goal has been reached, every single month. If the goal hasn't been reached then I obviously have to cover the additional costs. But I have no problem doing this. I feel that it's a small amount to pay to enjoy a hobby that is, well, a heck of a bunch cheaper than say, some fast car :)

Anyhow, We hope you're having a good time and hope you keep providing us all the feedback you can to help us improve upon what we are doing.

The rules can change and be updated at anytime. Please check back from time to time.

Thanks and :salute:


Forum rules.

Be polite and respectful to everyone.

Anyone throwing insults around will be banned without question.

If responding to mission concerns, please be precise and leave feedback as to why you like or don't like something. This shouldn't have to be said, but we will not tolerate anyone insulting anyone in ATAG by saying their missions are crap, terrible, bad, or w/e term you want to use. That will not be tolerated here. Feedback to why (which 99% of the posting population understands) is what to do.

ATAG_Snapper
Jan-23-2012, 01:43
Great post, Bliss! Lays it out clearly! :dthumb:

Dutch
Jan-23-2012, 05:42
Excellent. :dthumb:

ATAG_Knuckles
Jan-23-2012, 09:43
Excellent" as usual very well done


Knucks

Doc
Jan-23-2012, 11:32
Well done!

ATAG_Colander
Jan-23-2012, 12:38
:dthumb:

ATAG_Septic
Jan-23-2012, 15:10
Well said Bliss.

Where do you find the time Old Chap?

335th_GRAthos
Jan-23-2012, 15:55
:dthumb:


~S~


PS. I very much appreciate that you invested so much (time and money) to make an excellent environement for playing this particularly tricky game!

ATAG_WatchMan
Jan-23-2012, 21:34
Most appreciated Bliss, it's nice to have a concise set of guidelines regarding our server. Hopefully people will get the spirit of why it is you started this server in the first place and why it's important not to forget.

Thanks Again.
WatchMan.

Jugdriver
Jan-26-2012, 17:44
Thanks Bliss,

Much appreciated!


JD
AKA_MattE

Avatar
Jan-26-2012, 23:11
Good show and simple to follow! Thanks.

Rexavian
Jan-31-2012, 22:59
Greetings, Bliss

Are you the same Bliss involved in running the Syndicate server a couple of years ago? If so, I recall chatting and enjoying a few flights with you there at that time.

Anyway, I think your ATAG server rules are GREAT, and look forward to flying here once I've taken the plunge and installed Cliffs of Dover on my rig - hopefully soon.

Until then, thanks for setting up the ATAG server, which I discovered only today.

Cheers

Rexavian

ATAG_Snapper
Feb-01-2012, 12:30
Welcome to ATAG, Rexavian! Bliss is away for a few days, so I'm handling a few forum duties on his behalf. Yes, it was very likely the same Bliss you met in Syndicate. He and a Chosen Few are doing some wonderful things with this server and are looking forward to the next update on Cliffs of Dover to implement 'em.

Hope to see you soon on the ATAG server. We're a pretty laid back bunch, between bouts of shooting each other down. LOL. If you can, look into downloading the free communication utility, Teamspeak 3. It's easy to use, we have a bunch of pre-assigned channels set up for you, and it will really enhance your online flying experience!

Here's to good flying!

Snapper

ATAG_Snapper
Jun-10-2013, 10:46
Just a bump of this thread. We've had almost 2,000 new forum members join us here :stunned: since Bliss first posted this, so it wouldn't hurt to put ATAG's Mission Statement up front 'n center again for new and longtime members to review.

And it has nothing to do with a new player shoulder shooting past me and nailing the 109 I was squirting away at. Honest! :D

Snapper

Dutch
Jun-10-2013, 20:14
And it has nothing to do with a new player shoulder shooting past me and nailing the 109 I was squirting away at. Honest! :D

That was me. Oops! :D

ATAG_Lolsav
Oct-22-2013, 12:33
With so many new ppl on board this thread deserves a "bump".

Snapper refers 2000 members on forum back then, when he made the post, we alredy doubled that :)

ATAG_Lewis
Oct-22-2013, 14:18
Good Call....

VII.Racetrack
May-08-2014, 02:54
Shoulder Shot is the most unrealistics thing I ever seen on Flight Sim Servers..
Love the way that the servers rulez try to minimize it.

ATAG_Snapper
May-08-2014, 17:06
Thanks, Racetrack. :D

We keep the rules to a minimum for a number of reasons. If it could happen in Real Life, it likely can happen on this server, too. (And vice versa). There are other servers, including those for other sims & games that are just rife with rules. You can feel so hidebound with rules up to your yingyang that it's easy to forget that you're supposed to be having fun! Finally, and selfishly, we at ATAG would rather be playing on the Server than reviewing endless submitted game tracks and game logs every night! LOL

We do make the exception for team killing (including deliberate bombing of self-side objectives to turn a map), and obscene or abusive language on server chat or ATAG Teamspeak. It's worked very well overall.

But I hate shoulder shooters, too!

:)

ATAG_Snapper
Feb-03-2015, 08:50
Hi everyone,

It's hard to believe that it's been three years since Bliss first posted this. I refer to it regularly in the course of my admin duties, but it makes for a good read for both longtime players on the ATAG Server and newcomers alike.

Cheers and salute!

Snapper :salute: