forge/docus/content/1.getting-started/7.custom-mission-generators.md

title, description

title	description
Custom Mission Generators	Forge can be used as a complete out-of-box PMC mission framework, or as a foundation that communities build on top of. Custom mission generators should integrate through the same task, CAD, and event surfaces that the built-in mission manager uses.

This guide documents the supported integration path for custom generators, including the provider registry used by CAD/manual generated task requests.

Recommended Architecture

Keep custom generation split into three layers:

Layer	Responsibility
Generator	Select a mission type, position, entities, rewards, timing, and ownership metadata.
Task registration	Create a CAD-visible Forge task catalog entry and BIS map task.
Mission runtime	Own custom win/loss logic, cleanup, and task status transitions.

Use Forge systems for persistence-adjacent state, dispatch visibility, group assignment, notifications, ownership, rewards, and client refresh behavior. Keep mission-specific spawning and objective logic in the mission or community addon.

Disable Built-In Generation

The built-in timer-driven generator is controlled by the server CBA setting:

forge_server_task_enableGenerator = false;

When disabled, Forge does not run timer-based generated missions and CAD hydrates no built-in generated task types.

This does not prevent custom code from creating CAD-visible tasks directly or from serving CAD/manual generated task requests through a registered custom provider.

The mission setup UI does not override this setting. Generated mission enablement for the built-in provider is mission/server policy and stays in CBA settings.

The mission setup UI can capture a generator provider preference:

• builtin for Forge's built-in generated mission provider
• custom for mission/community-owned generated mission providers

That preference is stored in forge_server_task_generatorProvider and mirrored inside forge_server_task_missionSetup_settings. It is intentionally separate from forge_server_task_enableGenerator; the CBA setting only gates Forge's built-in provider. A registered custom provider can still publish generated task types and handle CAD/manual requests when selected.

Framework Mission Setup UI

Forge includes an optional framework-level mission setup UI in arma/client/addons/mission_setup. Enable it with the server CBA setting:

forge_server_task_enableMissionSetup = true;

When enabled, the UI opens for the setup operator before the mission manager starts. By default, the operator is the player whose Eden variable name is ceo. Missions can override the allowed unit variable names before client post-init completes:

missionNamespace setVariable [
    "forge_server_task_missionSetup_allowedUnitVariables",
    ["ceo", "mission_admin"],
    true
];

The UI configures:

• opposing faction
• generator provider preference
• max concurrent generated missions
• mission interval
• location reuse cooldown
• funds, reputation, penalty, and time limit ranges

Applying the UI writes framework-prefixed setup state:

forge_server_task_missionSetup_settings
forge_server_task_missionSetup_settingsApplied

The server also publishes the selected opposing faction and side for generated mission runtime code:

ENEMY_FACTION_STR
ENEMY_SIDE

When settings are applied, Forge emits the EventBus event mission.setup.applied with the applied settings in the event payload.

The mission manager waits until setup settings are applied. There is no timeout fallback. If the operator presses Cancel, X, or Escape, Forge applies default settings from CBA, mission parameters, and CfgMissions, then starts normally.

After setup settings have been applied, the setup UI cannot be reopened. The actor interaction entry is hidden once clients receive the public applied flag, and direct or stale open requests receive a notification explaining that setup has already been applied.

Provider Registry

Custom providers register on the server through the server-side CBA event:

[
    "forge_server_task_registerMissionGeneratorProvider",
    ["custom", _provider]
] call CBA_fnc_serverEvent;

This event is intentionally fire-and-forget. The task module validates provider shape server-side and logs registration failures.

The provider is a hashMap/hashMapObject with two required methods:

Method	Arguments	Return
getGeneratedTaskTypes	none	Array of hashMaps with value and label
requestMissionTask	_taskType, _metadata, _requesterUid	Result hashMap

The request result should include:

Key	Type	Notes
success	Boolean	true when a task was generated
message	String	User-facing CAD response
taskID	String	Created task ID, or empty on failure
taskType	String	Resolved generated task type

Example provider:

private _provider = createHashMapObject [[
    ["#type", "CommunityMissionGeneratorProvider"],
    ["getGeneratedTaskTypes", {
        [
            createHashMapFromArray [["value", "pvp_hold"], ["label", "PvP Hold Area"]],
            createHashMapFromArray [["value", "supply_drop"], ["label", "Supply Drop"]]
        ]
    }],
    ["requestMissionTask", {
        params ["_taskType", "_metadata", "_requesterUid"];

        private _taskID = format ["custom_%1_%2", _taskType, floor random 100000];

        // Create/spawn the mission here, then publish it through Forge's task
        // catalog/status contract so CAD can assign and track it.

        createHashMapFromArray [
            ["success", true],
            ["message", format ["Generated custom %1 task %2.", _taskType, _taskID]],
            ["taskID", _taskID],
            ["taskType", _taskType]
        ]
    }]
]];

[
    "forge_server_task_registerMissionGeneratorProvider",
    ["custom", _provider]
] call CBA_fnc_serverEvent;

When the setup UI provider toggle is set to custom, CAD hydrates task types from the registered custom provider and CAD/manual requests call that provider's requestMissionTask method. If no custom provider is registered, Forge logs a warning and falls back to the built-in provider.

CAD-Visible Task Contract

CAD reads assignable contracts from TaskStore.getActiveTaskCatalog. A custom task appears in CAD when it has:

• a task catalog entry
• a task status of available, assigned, or active
• a stable taskID or taskId
• display fields such as title, description, type, and position

The easiest supported path is to call forge_server_task_fnc_startTask from server-side mission code:

[
    "attack",
    "custom_attack_01",
    getMarkerPos "custom_attack_area",
    "Raid the Checkpoint",
    "Clear the checkpoint and secure the site.",
    createHashMapFromArray [
        ["targets", [target_1, target_2, target_3]]
    ],
    createHashMapFromArray [
        ["limitSuccess", 3],
        ["limitFail", 0],
        ["funds", 25000],
        ["ratingSuccess", 10],
        ["ratingFail", -5],
        ["timeLimit", 1200]
    ],
    0,
    "",
    "custom_generator"
] call forge_server_task_fnc_startTask;

startTask registers entities, creates the BIS task, upserts the Forge task catalog entry, sets the initial task status, and dispatches the matching Forge task flow.

Custom Runtime Tasks

If a community generator has its own objective logic and does not use a built-in Forge task flow, register the catalog entry and status directly:

private _taskID = "pvp_supply_drop_01";
private _entry = createHashMapFromArray [
    ["taskID", _taskID],
    ["taskId", _taskID],
    ["type", "pvp_supply_drop"],
    ["taskType", "custom"],
    ["title", "Contest the Supply Drop"],
    ["description", "Secure the marked drop zone before the opposing team."],
    ["position", getMarkerPos "supply_drop_zone"],
    ["accepted", false],
    ["requesterUid", ""],
    ["orgID", "default"],
    ["source", "custom_generator"]
];

"forge_server" callExtension ["task:catalog:upsert", [
    _taskID,
    toJSON _entry
]];

"forge_server" callExtension ["task:status:set", [
    _taskID,
    "available"
]];

Create a BIS task separately if players should see it in the vanilla map task tab:

[
    west,
    _taskID,
    ["Secure the supply drop.", "Supply Drop", "custom"],
    getMarkerPos "supply_drop_zone",
    "CREATED",
    1,
    true,
    "container"
] call BIS_fnc_taskCreate;

When custom objective logic completes, set the task status:

"forge_server" callExtension ["task:status:set", [_taskID, "succeeded"]];
// or
"forge_server" callExtension ["task:status:set", [_taskID, "failed"]];

Use task:clear or task:catalog:delete when the custom runtime fully owns cleanup and the contract should leave CAD.

CAD Assignment Lifecycle

CAD assignment and task execution are intentionally separate.

Phase	Task status	Owner
Created and visible	available	No group reservation yet.
Dispatcher assigns	assigned	CAD reserves the task for a group.
Group leader acknowledges	active	Task ownership is accepted for the acknowledging player/org.
Runtime finishes	succeeded or failed	CAD refreshes and removes completed active contracts.

Custom task logic should account for this lifecycle. If the task should not start until the assigned group leader accepts it, wait for active status:

waitUntil {
    sleep 2;
    private _statusResult = "forge_server" callExtension ["task:status:get", [_taskID]];
    private _status = fromJSON (_statusResult select 0);
    _status isEqualTo "active"
};

If a group declines the assignment, CAD returns the task to available.

EventBus Integration

The server EventBus is an in-process SQF event system. Initialize it if needed:

if (isNil "forge_server_common_EventBus") then {
    call forge_server_common_fnc_eventBus;
};

Subscribe to CAD and task lifecycle events:

private _token = forge_server_common_EventBus call ["on", [
    "cad.assignment.acknowledged",
    {
        params ["_event"];
        private _taskID = _event getOrDefault ["taskID", ""];
        private _assignment = _event getOrDefault ["assignment", createHashMap];
        diag_log format [
            "[CustomGenerator] Task %1 acknowledged by group %2",
            _taskID,
            _assignment getOrDefault ["groupId", ""]
        ];
    },
    "custom_generator.assignment"
]];

Remove a listener when it is no longer needed:

forge_server_common_EventBus call ["off", [_token]];

Useful CAD events:

Event	When it fires
cad.assignment.assigned	Dispatcher assigns a task or order.
cad.assignment.acknowledged	Group leader accepts an assignment.
cad.assignment.declined	Group leader declines an assignment.
cad.assignment.closed	Dispatch order is closed.
cad.request.submitted	Support request is submitted.
cad.request.closed	Support request is closed.
cad.group.updated	Group status or role changes.

Useful task events:

Event	When it fires
task.created	Task catalog entry is registered through TaskStore.
task.started	Task status transitions to active/started.
task.completed	Task succeeds.
task.failed	Task fails.
task.cleared	Task state is cleared.
task.reward.applied	Task reward mutation succeeds.
task.rating.applied	Rating/earnings outcome succeeds.
task.notification.requested	Task participant notification is requested.

CAD already listens to task and CAD events and globally invalidates CAD state when relevant changes occur. Custom generators usually only need to emit task status changes through TaskStore or extension commands; CAD refresh follows from the existing listeners.

Generated Task Provider Behavior

CAD hydrates generated task types and requests generated tasks through the task provider registry. The selected provider comes from forge_server_task_generatorProvider, defaulting to builtin.

Use one of these supported patterns:

1. Register a custom provider so CAD/manual generated task requests route to community code.
2. Run custom generators from mission/server code and create CAD-visible tasks directly.
3. Use CAD support requests or dispatch orders to let players request custom work, then have mission code convert approved requests into tasks.
4. Keep the built-in generator enabled only if the community intentionally wants the framework dropdown and request handler.

Provider Extension Details

The implemented provider shape is intentionally small:

• built-in Forge provider remains the default out-of-box behavior
• mission/community providers can supply their own generatedTaskTypes
• mission/community providers can handle generated-task requests
• disabling the built-in provider does not disable custom providers
• mission designers or developers can select or toggle the active provider from the framework mission setup UI when a mission includes custom generators

Validation Checklist

For each custom generator:

1. Disable the built-in generator if it should not run.
2. Generate or place task entities on the server.
3. Register a task catalog entry with stable taskID and display fields.
4. Set task status to available.
5. Confirm the task appears in CAD.
6. Assign it to a group from CAD.
7. Acknowledge and decline from the group leader UI.
8. Confirm custom logic waits for active if needed.
9. Set succeeded or failed when the objective resolves.
10. Confirm CAD refreshes and rewards or cleanup behave as expected.