How to Change Difficulty on Your Arma 3 Server

Difficulty settings control the gameplay experience including HUD elements, crosshairs, third-person view, and AI behavior. Arma 3 offers preset difficulties and fully customizable options.

Difficulty Presets

Setting Default Difficulty

Per-Mission Difficulty

Set difficulty in your server.cfg mission rotation:

class Missions {
    class Mission1 {
        template = "your_mission.Altis";
        difficulty = "regular";
    };
};

Difficulty Options

difficulty = "recruit";
difficulty = "regular";
difficulty = "veteran";
difficulty = "custom";

Configuring Custom Difficulty

When using difficulty = "custom", the server reads settings from the .Arma3Profile file.

Custom Difficulty Settings

Create or edit the server's Arma3Profile to include:

class DifficultyPresets {
    class CustomDifficulty {
        class Options {
            // Simulation
            reducedDamage = 0;

            // Situational awareness
            groupIndicators = 0;
            friendlyTags = 0;
            enemyTags = 0;
            detectedMines = 0;
            commands = 1;
            waypoints = 1;
            tacticalPing = 1;

            // Personal awareness
            weaponInfo = 2;
            stanceIndicator = 2;
            staminaBar = 1;
            weaponCrosshair = 0;
            visionAid = 0;

            // View
            thirdPersonView = 0;
            cameraShake = 1;

            // Multiplayer
            scoreTable = 1;
            deathMessages = 1;
            vonID = 1;

            // Misc
            mapContentFriendly = 1;
            mapContentEnemy = 0;
            mapContentMines = 0;
            autoReport = 0;
            multipleSaves = 0;
        };

        // AI Settings
        aiLevelPreset = 3;

        class CustomAILevel {
            skillAI = 0.5;
            precisionAI = 0.5;
        };
    };
};

Key Custom Settings

View Options

Awareness Options

AI Skill

Tips

• Recruit is ideal for new players learning the game
• Regular provides a balanced experience for most players
• Veteran creates a challenging, realistic experience
• Custom allows fine-tuned control for specific playstyles