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AEGIS IADS v0.8.0 -- Quick Reference

Files

  • aegis-iads.lua -- main script
  • Your setup script (or use test/setup-example.lua)

No MOOSE. No MIST. No desanitization.

ME Triggers

Trigger 1:  ONCE -- TIME MORE (1) -- DO SCRIPT FILE -> aegis-iads.lua
Trigger 2:  ONCE -- TIME MORE (2) -- DO SCRIPT FILE -> your-setup.lua

Naming Your Groups

Everything is auto-discovered by group name. Sector is extracted from the name -- SAM-SA10-NORTH-1 belongs to sector NORTH automatically.

EW-NORTH                       EW radar in sector NORTH
EW-NORTH-2                     Second EW in NORTH (redundancy)
EW-NORTH-DET120                EW with 120 NM detection range cap
SAM-SA10-NORTH-1               SA-10 in sector NORTH (defaults)
SAM-SA6-SOUTH-1-NEZ            SA-6 using No-Escape Zone
SAM-SA6-SOUTH-2-NEZ25          SA-6 with NEZ at 25 NM
SAM-SA2-SOUTH-3-WEZ15          SA-2 with WEZ at 15 NM
SAM-SA2-NORTH-1-ACT35          SA-2, activation at 35 NM
SAM-SA10-SOUTH-2-NEZ25-ACT50   SA-10, NEZ 25 NM, activate at 50 NM
PD-SA15-NORTH-1                Point defense, place within 5 NM of parent
PWR-SA5-SOUTH-1                Power for SAM-SA5-SOUTH-1 (by name match)
PWR-EW-NORTH                   Power for EW-NORTH (by name match)

The SECTOR name links everything. Same sector = same network. Suffixes are order-independent. NEZ-ACT30 = ACT30-NEZ.

Minimal Setup Script

local iads = AEGIS:New("red", { debug = true })
iads:Activate()
iads:AddF10Menu()
iads:StartMapDebug(15)

What Happens

Situation SAM Behavior
EW alive, no contacts DARK -- invisible on RWR
EW sees contact, outside actRange AWARE -- still dark
Contact enters actRange ALERT -- weapons free, tracking
Contact leaves actRange Back to AWARE (next poll)
EW loses all contacts + timeout Back to DARK
EW destroyed EMCON cycling -- intermittent radar
EMCON sweep, target in WEZ EMCON ENGAGED -- weapons free
No EW placed at all EMCON from mission start
Power source killed Linked node permanently DARK
HARM fired at selfProtect SAM (SA-10) STAY_HOT, engages ARM (30s window)
HARM fired at SAM with PD escort LAST_DITCH: PD defends 8-12s, parent GO_DARK, PD stays hot through cooldown
HARM fired at SAM (no SP, no PD) GO_DARK with jittered cooldown (45-90s), PDs activated if available
HARM fired at PD Redirected to parent SAM — full HARM reaction tree
2+ HARMs at same SAM within 15s GO_DARK regardless of capability
PB HARM heading toward SAM (EW alive) Network warns SAM (see below)
PB HARM heading toward SAM (no EW) No warning -- autonomous SAM is on its own
TALD enters activation range SAM treats it as real contact (goes ALERT)
Mk-82 / missiles in flight Filtered out -- no SAM reaction

HARM Reaction

TOO/SP HARMs (locked on a SAM)

SAMs detect HARMs via S_EVENT_SHOT. Reaction depends on SAM capability:

  1. Crew processing delay (8-12s randomized) — SAM continues emitting while crew processes
  2. Decision tree:
  3. selfProtect (SA-10, SA-11, PATRIOT, SA-15, TOR): STAY_HOT — engages ARM (30s window)
  4. Has live PD: LAST_DITCH — PD defends 8-12s, then parent goes dark
  5. Neither: GO_DARK — classic dodge with jittered cooldown (45-90s)
  6. Panic: 15% chance selfProtect crew goes dark anyway
  7. Multi-HARM saturation: 2+ HARMs within 15s forces GO_DARK regardless

PB HARMs (no lock, coordinates only)

S_EVENT_SHOT detects the launch, then 2s later AEGIS polls the weapon for position + velocity and projects the trajectory. SAMs in the path get warned only if their sector has a live EW (the network provides the warning).

SAM State Has PD? Action
Emitting -- Full HARM reaction (same decision tree as TOO/SP)
Dark/EMCON Yes PD goes ALERT to defend, parent stays dark, EMCON suppressed
Dark/EMCON No EMCON suppressed for ETA + 30s (don't pop up while HARM is inbound)
Autonomous (no EW) -- No warning -- nobody watching the sky for this SAM

Contact Filtering

Not everything the radar sees triggers SAM activation: - Aircraft and TALDs → valid contacts (SAMs go ALERT) - Bombs, HARMs, AAMs, SAM missiles → filtered out (ignored)

10 TALDs swarming a site is a valid SEAD tactic. Mk-82s falling through the area won't cause false activations.

Config Tuning

local iads = AEGIS:New("red", {
  -- Core
  ewPollInterval       = 10,
  alertTimeout         = 60,
  defaultZone          = "WEZ",

  -- EMCON timing
  emconOnMin           = 30,
  emconOnMax           = 120,
  emconOffMin          = 15,
  emconOffMax          = 45,
  emconReengageMin     = 10,
  emconReengageMax     = 30,

  -- EMCON jitter
  emconStartupJitter   = 60,
  emconDoubleSweepPct  = 15,
  emconEarlyTermPct    = 20,
  emconThreatScale     = 0.5,
  emconRelaxedScale    = 1.5,
  emconSpookEnabled    = false,

  -- HARM reaction policies
  harmReactionDelayMin = 8,       -- crew processing time min (s)
  harmReactionDelayMax = 12,      -- crew processing time max (s)
  harmCooldownMin      = 45,      -- GO_DARK cooldown min (jittered)
  harmCooldownMax      = 90,      -- GO_DARK cooldown max
  harmStayHotDuration  = 30,      -- selfProtect engagement window (s)
  harmLastDitchMin     = 8,       -- PD defense window min (s)
  harmLastDitchMax     = 12,      -- PD defense window max (s)
  harmPanicPct         = 15,      -- % chance selfProtect crew panics
  harmMultiThreshold   = 2,       -- HARMs in window that force GO_DARK
  harmMultiWindow      = 15,      -- seconds for multi-HARM count
  harmBraveryPct       = 5,       -- % chance any crew stays hot (nat 20)

  -- PB HARM network warning
  pbHarmCheckDelay     = 2,       -- seconds after PB launch to check trajectory
  pbHarmWarnRadius     = 5,       -- NM: SAMs within this of projected path get warned
  pbHarmCooldownMargin = 30,      -- extra seconds added to ETA for suppression timing

  debug                = true,
})

Debugging

  • dcs.log: grep for [AEGIS] -- all state transitions logged
  • F10 map: iads:StartMapDebug(15) -- markers on every SAM/EW
  • F10 menu: iads:AddF10Menu() -- status report on demand
  • HARM events logged with [AEGIS!] prefix (always, even without debug)

Common Issues

Problem Fix
SAM radar on at mission start Normal -- 12s init delay, goes dark after
SAM never goes ALERT Outside actRange or altitude band
SAM goes ALERT but won't shoot DCS AI needs 15-20s to acquire. Increase ACT range.
SAM won't dodge HARMs Must be emitting (ALERT/EMCON_OFF/EMCON_ENGAGED)
SA-10 stays hot after HARM selfProtect=true — it's engaging the ARM. Set harmPanicPct=100 to force GO_DARK
SAM ignores 2nd HARM If already dark from 1st HARM, correct — dark SAM can't detect it
TALDs not fooling SAMs They should -- check EW is alive or SAM is in EMCON sweep
PB HARM not warning SAMs SAM's sector needs a live EW -- autonomous SAMs get no warning
PB HARM warning too sensitive Increase pbHarmWarnRadius (default 5 NM)
PWR group not linking Name must match: PWR-SA5-SOUTH-1 -> SAM-SA5-SOUTH-1