EXPANDING YOUR ARMA 3 EXPERIENCE WITH MODS - BOATS AND SHIPS | News | Arma 3

INTRODUCTION

Earlier this year, we released a blogpost detailing how new players could expand their Arma 3 experience with mods. After 11 years, Arma 3 has been a major platform for mod developers and content creators, and close to 150,000 mods have been uploaded to the Steam Workshop. This could be a daunting amount for our new recruits to search through - so to help, we compiled a list of longstanding mods we believe greatly enhance and expand the sandbox for limitless hours of immersive milsim action.

We decided to expand on that initial blogpost with a series of themed entries that focus on different types of mods. Written for both new and veteran players alike, these blogposts will hopefully showcase not only mods that you have heard of and have used, but maybe some hidden gems that will give you some new content to try out. The first article in this extended series focused on weapon mods, while the second focused on equipment, the third on aircraft, and the fourth on land vehicles.

Now we are taking to the water with some boat and ship mods!

The mods featured below are purely boat and ship mods. There are many other mods that include boats and ships as an element of their overall content - but they will not be featured here.

This list isn't exhaustive or comprehensive, and we may very well have missed a favorite mod of yours. Even still, what has been curated here will add an exceptional amount of variety of boats and ships to your Arma 3 experience.

USS NIMITZ

First up, we have probably the most popular ship mod available for Arma 3: the USS Nimitz. Before the addition of the USS Freedom (CVN-83) aircraft carrier in Arma 3's 1.70 Platform Update, you would launch your Firewill F-14 or FA-18 Super Hornet by John Spartan & Saul from the deck of the USS Nimitz (CVN-68), which had everything you would ever need to conduct carrier operations. A number of Arma 3 communities still use the Nimitz as their flagship aircraft carrier.

The USS Nimitz mod has the following features:

Full scale USS Nimitz model
Complete walkable flight deck
4x fully functioning aircraft steam catapults
Automatic jet blast deflectors
Landing area with working aircraft arrestor gear
IFLOLS landing indicator
4x side decks for mounted AA
Complete hangar bay below flight deck
Working aircraft elevators
Ammo cart elevators
Aircraft towing using UGV
Functioning refuel, rearm, & repair areas
Full scale island with stairwell access to hangar and bridge
Briefing room with customisable projections and maps
Armory area for personal weapons storage
Color coded AI deck personnel
AI catapult shooter animations
Accessible rear lower deck area
Working zodiac RIB deployment and retrieval area
Deployable static models of Phoenix and MK82 bomb racks
Multiple internal stairwells and pathways to access areas

To learn more about the USS Nimitz mod and its features, you can visit the mod's BI Forums thread here. There are also a series of PDF documents located in the mod's installation folder with detailed information and instructions for the USS Nimitz's systems.

USS IOWA BB-61

To add another mighty US Navy ship to your game, you could download and install the USS Iowa BB-61 mod. Based on the real-world battleship of the same name, this highly detailed and fully drivable ship is 270 meters long and weighs 40,000 tons - making it one of the largest ship mods available outside of aircraft carriers. Originally commissioned just before World War Two, this mod features the 1984-1990 recommissioned version of the ship.

The USS Iowa mod includes:

Fully drivable with PhysX simulation
3x working main turrets each armed with three 16 inch guns
6x working secondary turrets each armed with two 5 inch guns
4x working Phalanx CIWS turrets for protection from aircraft
Main guns can be used for artillery support
Highly detailed bridge interior with working gauges
Animated propellers, rudder and radar
Lights and collision lights
Custom particle FX for main guns
Detailed modelling throughout the ship

HELLENIC ARMED FORCES (HAFM) - NAVY AND SUBMARINES

Although both of these mods are now marked as "discontinued" and no longer receive updates, the Hellenic Armed Forces (HAFM) - NAVY and Hellenic Armed Forces (HAFM) - Submarines mods add an impressive number of naval vessels from multiple countries. Each have a number of unique, detailed features that you won't find in other naval mods available on the Arma 3 Steam Workshop.

Included in the HAFM Navy mod are the American Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer; French FREMM Frigate; Greek Hydra-class MEKO200HN Frigate and Roussen-class Fast Attack Craft; Russian Admiral Grigorovich-class Frigate and BUYAN-M-class Corvette; Turkish Barbaros-class MEKO200TN Frigate; and a generic "replenishment" ship for both BLUFOR and OPFOR sides.

These ships feature:

Active Radar Console
Anti Ship Weapons Console (Torpedoes - CIWS - Missiles)
Anti Missile Defense Console (CIWS - Missiles)
Torpedoes Console (for ships and submarines)
Countermeasures for incoming torpedoes
Cruise Missile Console
Artillery Cannons
Boats for leaving/entering the ships
Custom Helicopter Landing scripting
Custom AI logic
Task Force Radio (TFAR) compatibility
Flags on ships (user can choose default flag texture or add their own through Eden attributes)

The HAFM Submarine mod features the Type 209, Type 214, Virginia-class, and Yasen-class submarines for use in-game. Each sub allows players to man particular stations, from Commander, to Weapons Officer, Sonar Officer, and Driver. These submarines are capable of using torpedoes, harpoon missiles, cruise missiles, and can deploy sound decoys to confuse enemy sonar. Like the HAFM Navy mod's ships, these subs include a number of different features and capabilities, as well as custom AI behaviours and scripts. It is highly recommended that you read the Operations Manual included within the mod's installation folder to fully understand how each submarine's systems work. You can also download the Operations Manual here.

LARGE CIVILIAN SHIP

The Large Civilian Ship mod was designed primarily for Special Operations Forces (SOF) milsim units to simulate maritime boarding and raids. This static cargo ship features a massive upper deck with accessible lower levels throughout the length of the ship model. To acess the lower levels, there are a number of ladders with working hatches between ship decks as well as stairs. The mod also features height adjustable boarding ramps at port and starboard for raiding craft to pull up to, and a ship tower with many rooms - making it a close quarters battle (CQB) hell for players, especially if any custom detailing (beds, tables, chairs, crates) are added. There are also a few different versions of the ship that are configurable in the Eden editor - including a version filled with cargo containers, and a gas tanker variant.

RIGID HULL INFLATABLE COMMANDO CRAFT (RHICC)

You will need an assault craft to reach the Large Civilian Ship. You could use the base game's capable Assault Boat or armed Speedboat, but we suggest you download and give the Rigid Hull Inflatable Commando Craft (RHICC) mod a try.

Armed with 2x M240s, 2x M134 Miniguns, and 1x M2 .50 - all with armored plating protection for weapon operators - the RHICC has major firepower capabilities. The highly mobile boat can move at top speed of 86 KPH, and can transport 17x SOF Operators (Driver, Commander, five gunners, and 10 passengers). Also available are 2x smoke screens for concealment, a FLIR camera in the Commander seat for recon and spotting, and Vehicle-in-Vehicle (ViV) capability to carry a Quadbike or three motorbikes. This makes it the perfect craft for ship boarding, raiding, and quick landings of SOF teams.

LCVP MK5 LANDING CRAFT

The LCVP MK5 Landing Craft mod by RKSL Studios adds even more amphibious landing capabilities to your modern day Arma 3 missions. First entering real-world service in 1996, four of these vessels can transport and land a full Royal Marine company (around 140 personnel) at a beachhead. The LCVP MK5 Landing Craft can also transport combat vehicles for landings.

There are two variants of the LCVP MK5 Landing Craft included in the mod:

Personnel variant - carries 30 passengers, 2x Fire-From-Vehicle (FFV) turrets and two crew slots (Driver and Commander)
Vehicle-in-Vehicle variant - with a load space of 2.7(W) x 6.47(L) allowing the transport of a vehicle up to 12,000 Kg, as well as four passengers and two crew slots (Driver and Commander)

Other features of the LCVP MK5 Landing Craft mod include:

Multiple decal options in Eden Editor attributes:

Royal Navy
Royal Marines
Generic Grey
OPFOR Camo
Civilian Yellow

NV/Thermal camera in Commander's turret
Option to open/close covers in Eden Editor attributes (personnel version only)
De-Beaching option - You will inevitably beach this at some point. In the Driver's position at 0 Kph, you will see a "De-beach" option appear in your ActionMenu. This gives you a short shove backwards. Repeat as necessary until you are afloat again

A FAQ for the LCVP MK5 Landing Craft has been provided by RKSL, and is available here.

LITTLE YACHT AND SAILING MOD

Arma 3 and the Arma Platform in general may be a series of military simulators first and foremost, but the sandbox allows for so much more - and two mods that illustrate that quite well are the Little Yacht mod by Sabre, and the Sailing Mod by Feint. Form a Yacht Club with your friends and circumnavigate the Horizon Islands, Altis and Stratis, or any number of community created island terrains. You could also try your hand at yacht racing! Hopefully both of these mods provide you with a beautiful respite from arduous naval combat - unless you want to try and take on the USS Iowa or USS Nimitz with the yacht and see how it goes...

Feint's Arma 3 Steam Workshop uploads include a few more water-based mods, among others, that are definitely worth checking out. These include:

Feint's Depth Gauge - adds an analog wrist depth gauge for scuba diving
Sharks - Apex Species - adds both a male and female shark to the game with advanced AI behaviours
Paddle Mod - modifies most boats to have a killswitch to kill the engine, and allow players to paddle the boat toward shore

SEABOB MAGNUM WATER SHADOW 730

For those who conduct combat diving operations and want a smaller, quieter and more mobile underwater delivery system compared to the base game's Swimmer Delivery Vehicle (SDV), the Seabob Magnum Water Shadow 730 mod is for you. With the ability to transport two divers at a time, this compact, virtually silent, and emission-free SDV has a high level of versatility for underwater operations, and might become indispensable for both insertion and extraction in your next mission.

CONCLUSION

Though the mods featured above are far from an exhaustive or comprehensive list, we feel they are an excellent starting point for any player, new or old, wishing to expand their Arma 3 experience. We encourage you to look through the close to 1,000 boat mods on the Steam Workshop - there might well be one you have previously overlooked waiting to become a new favorite of yours.

If you feel there are any boat mods that we missed out on and should have included in this list, contact Arma Community Manager LeClair on X, Discord, or our forums. You can also let him know of any suggestions you have for future articles on faction, terrain, function, and total conversion mods.

Thank you for reading!

For more information about Arma 3, please visit www.arma3.com. To keep track of all the latest news, be sure to follow @ArmaPlatform on Facebook, X, YouTube, and Steam.