In Game Briefing And Diary Field Manual

In-Game Briefing & Diary Field Manual (briefing.sqf + briefing.html)

Source-verified 2026-06-23 against master f8a76de3. Paths relative to Missions/[55-2hc]warfarev2_073v48co.chernarus/ unless noted. Arma 2 OA 1.64.

This page documents the player-facing documentation surface inside the game — the text players actually read on the map screen and the mission-overview panel. It is distinct from the wiki's own player guides (those are written for readers off-server). Two artifacts make up this surface:

• briefing.sqf — populates the Diary tab on the map screen (Esc → Map → Notes/Diary) with ten records.
• briefing.html — the mission-overview / load text shown in the role-select and mission lobby panel, referenced by the Rsc header.

Because both files are hand-written prose, the economy numbers baked into them are duplicated text that drifts from the live mechanics. See Hardcoded economy numbers — drift watch.

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1. What this is and where it runs

The Diary is built client-side during client init. Init_Client.sqf compiles and runs briefing.sqf once, late in the init sequence (after the commander-update FSM is spawned):

//--- Add the briefing (notes).
[] Call Compile preprocessFile "briefing.sqf";

Client/Init/Init_Client.sqf:675-676. Because it runs player createDiaryRecord against the local player, the Diary is per-client and rebuilt on every JIP/respawn pass through client init. See Mission Entrypoints And Lifecycle for where Init_Client.sqf itself is invoked.

The mission-overview text is supplied by briefing.html, wired through the Rsc header rather than description.ext directly:

//--- Require briefing.html to show up.
onLoadMission = WF_MISSIONNAME;
onLoadMissionTime = false;

Rsc/Header.hpp:8-10, which description.ext pulls in via #include "Rsc\Header.hpp" (description.ext:45). WF_MISSIONNAME is "[55] Warfare V48 Chernarus" (version.sqf.template:11). The mission load image is loadScreen = "loadScreen.jpg" (description.ext:63). Respawn options live alongside the header: respawn = 3; respawnDelay = WF_RESPAWNDELAY; (Rsc/Header.hpp:4-5), with WF_RESPAWNDELAY 2 (version.sqf.template:14).

See also Player UI Workflow Map and New Player Quickstart Guide for the off-server reader equivalents.

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2. Diary records table

Every createDiaryRecord in briefing.sqf, in source order. The form is player createDiaryRecord["Diary", [<title>, <html-body>]]. There are ten records.

#	Title	Summary	Source line
1	Gameplay Summary	Warfare = team MP + RTS; each side led by a commander; two resources — Supply (build/upgrade factories) and Cash (buy units/gear).	briefing.sqf:3
2	Your Task	Three objectives: capture towns from resistance/enemy, destroy enemy base + HQ, defend your own.	briefing.sqf:5
3	Getting Started	WF menu = mouse scroll wheel; must be in a base perimeter or near a factory; factory letter codes (B/LF/HF/AF/SP); build CC for remote buy/artillery/upgrades, AAR to track aircraft and unlock the CBR.	briefing.sqf:7
4	Commander	Commander should be a player; lists commander powers (deploy/relocate HQ, build/sell from Construction Menu, research upgrades, buy WDDM compositions up to 3 per base, issue orders); save supply for CBR + Bank.	briefing.sqf:9
5	Capturing Towns	Take strongpoint bunkers first, then dominate the 50 m depot; strongpoints are respawn points in range; capture grace period (5 min before enemy AI respawn, 3 min for lingering defenders).	briefing.sqf:11
6	Building Bases (As Commander)	One Mobile HQ [MHQ] per side; deploy to build; can add B/LF/HF/AF/CC/AAR/SP; HQ packs/redeploys; multiple bases; defense budget capped per category (scales with barracks level); statics/mines blocked if 3+ enemy ground units in base range.	briefing.sqf:13
7	Experimental Changes	The big "Experital" feature dump — economy start values, Bank, CBR, airfields, capture-to-unlock premium units, patrols/convoys, factory queue, medic truck, classes. Carries most of the hardcoded numbers (see §4).	briefing.sqf:15
8	Experimental: AI & Factions	AI Commander takeover after 5 min with no human commander; GUER as a living third faction that escalates below 20 towns; clean captures (no captured statics from GUER); wildcard events; FPS performance telemetry (diagnostic only).	briefing.sqf:17
9	Mods	Suggests downloading/enabling the mods listed on Discord.	briefing.sqf:18
10	Our Discord	Discord invites (discord.me/warfare, backup discord.gg/knXvYMX), Patreon ask, FPS optimisation guide pointer.	briefing.sqf:20

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3. Formatting conventions

The Diary bodies are Arma structured-text HTML strings. The recurring conventions:

• Highlight color <t color='#F5D363'>…</t> — the gold/amber accent used to flag key terms (resource names, costs, feature names). Example: There are two kinds of resources: <t color='#F5D363'>Supply</t> is used by the commander… (briefing.sqf:3).
• Sub-heading size bump <t size='1.2' color='#F5D363'>…</t> — used as inline section headers inside the long records 7 and 8. Example: <t size='1.2' color='#F5D363'>Economy</t> (briefing.sqf:15).
• Line breaks <br/> and <br/><br/> — paragraph separation; every record body opens with a leading <br/> to pad below the title (briefing.sqf:3-20).

The same #F5D363 gold is reused in briefing.html as a CSS span color (<span style="color:#F5D363">Experital</span>, briefing.html:4), keeping the two surfaces visually consistent.

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4. Hardcoded economy numbers — drift watch

Records 7 (briefing.sqf:15) and 8 (briefing.sqf:17) hardcode live economy values as prose. These are duplicated text, not reads of the real constants, so they can — and already do — drift. Treat this whole section as a drift surface: verify against the authoritative pages before trusting any number here.

Value (as written in briefing)	briefing.sqf cite	Where the real mechanic/constant lives
Start: $11,600 cash, 7,400 supply (both sides)	briefing.sqf:15	Economy Authority First Cut, Economy Towns And Supply
Bank build cost 9,500 supply, at least 800 m from HQ/base area	briefing.sqf:15	Bank Reserve And Artillery Radar Structures
Bank payout $6,000 total / 5 min split among living members	briefing.sqf:15	Bank Reserve And Artillery Radar Structures
Bank destroy bounty +10,000 side supply, $25,000 to killer	briefing.sqf:15	Bank Reserve And Artillery Radar Structures
CBR build cost 2,400 supply, mark for 75 s, requires AAR alive	briefing.sqf:15	Counter Battery Radar System
CBR Radar upgrade radii 750 → 1,500 → 2,000 m; airfield grants permanent 2,000 m CBR	briefing.sqf:15	Counter Battery Radar System
Airfields max 40 SV; resets to 10 on capture	briefing.sqf:15	Economy Towns And Supply
Krasnostav unlock: T-72, Heavy Factory level 4, $7,000	briefing.sqf:15	unit price tables / Player UI Workflow Map
NW Airfield unlock: RM-70, Light Factory level 4, $6,800	briefing.sqf:15	unit price tables / Player UI Workflow Map
Patrols upgrade supply cost 300 / 1,600 / 2,400 / 3,200 (4 levels), max 3 active, Convoy pays $750 split per town stop	briefing.sqf:15	Economy Towns And Supply
Factory queue caps (floors): Barracks 10, Light Factory 5, Heavy/Aircraft 3; cancel refund capped at 50% with discount	briefing.sqf:15	Factory Queue Counter Token Cleanup
Medic truck activates ≥500 m from any non-friendly town	briefing.sqf:15	Player UI Workflow Map
AI Commander takeover after 5 min with no human commander	briefing.sqf:17	Commander HQ Lifecycle Atlas
GUER escalates to BRDM-2 + 2nd patrol once below 20 towns	briefing.sqf:17	GUER Insurgent Player Economy
Capture grace: 5 min AI-respawn delay, 3 min lingering-defender clear	briefing.sqf:11	Respawn And Death Lifecycle Atlas

July 2026 reconciliation: PR #126 updates briefing.html to match the source-truth Bank values: $6,000 pool per 5 minutes, +10,000 side supply, and $25,000 to the killer. Keep treating this section as a drift surface when future economy values change.

This page intentionally does not re-verify every downstream constant; the cross-links above are the authoritative sources. The point is to mark that these numbers are mirrored prose and to give the maintainer the single-edit checklist when a mechanic value changes (update the constant and both briefing texts).

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5. briefing.html — mission-overview text

briefing.html is the mission-overview / lobby text, surfaced through onLoadMission = WF_MISSIONNAME in the Rsc header (Rsc/Header.hpp:9). It is a small standalone HTML document (<html><head><title>…</title></head><body>…) titled "WASP Warfare Experital — Mission Briefing" (briefing.html:2-4).

Content is a condensed mirror of the Diary's experimental-changes block, organized under HTML headings:

• Title + intro — "WASP Warfare Experital — Chernarus", capture/build/destroy summary (briefing.html:4-6).
• Resources — Cash $11,600, Supply 7,400 start values (briefing.html:8-10).
• Capturing Towns — strongpoints, 50 m depot, grace period 5 min / 3 min (briefing.html:12-14).
• Experital — Headline Changes — Bank (9,500 supply, at least 800 m, $6,000 pool/5 min, +10,000 side supply / $25,000 killer destroy bounty, briefing.html:18-19), CBR (2,400 supply, 75 s, radii 750/1,500/2,000 m, briefing.html:21-22), Airfields (briefing.html:24-25), Capture-to-Unlock units (T-72 $7,000, RM-70 $6,800, briefing.html:27-30), Patrols/Convoys (300/1,600/2,400/3,200, max 3, $750, briefing.html:32-35), Factory Queue (briefing.html:37-38), Medic truck (briefing.html:40-41), Classes (briefing.html:43-44).
• Other Changes — a bullet list not present in the Diary: EASA loadout [AA]/[AG]/[MR] tags, proportional rearm cost (10% floor, artillery exempt), WDDM cap of 3 per base, defense budget caps, engineer-crewed armour/APCs, earplugs fading radio/voice (briefing.html:46-54).
• Discord — invites + pinned guide pointer (briefing.html:56-58).

Because it duplicates the same economy figures, briefing.html is part of the same drift surface as section 4 and should be updated alongside briefing.sqf, the wiki, and release notes whenever a mechanic value changes.

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See also

• Mission Entrypoints And Lifecycle — where Init_Client.sqf (and thus briefing.sqf) runs.
• Player UI Workflow Map — the live WF-menu / buy-menu flow the Diary describes.
• New Player Quickstart Guide — off-server reader equivalent.
• Economy Authority First Cut / Bank Reserve And Artillery Radar Structures / Counter Battery Radar System — authoritative numbers behind §4.