USS Saratoga CV3 campaign released!

[Shadow Wolf 07]

I am on the downhill portion of my mission building for this campaign re-do. I have completed 37 out of the 52 possible missions. The player will fly 19. I am incorporating Wolfi's new Avenger and a lot of new ships from Stuart377 and Maxstuka. The player will fly a random choice of fighters (F4F-3, F6F-3 and later, F6F-5), divebombers (SBD-3 and SBD-5) or Avengers. In the divebomber and Avenger choices, the player may fly as flight leader or as a wingman - also a random selection.

This is a semi-historical campaign. The first mission set is a "what if" Wake Island relief with Brewster Buffalos. After that, the task force ship names and types are historical but the actual ship formations in the TF, many of the strike make-ups and the exact launch positions are best guess.

The campaign will contain alternate .dps for some of the ships (taken from Pen32Win's alternate ship dps download). I also include an alternate .cfg for the VN Saratoga, which will enable the player to start further back on the flight deck for takeoff. Where takeoff is difficult, I will add a 15 knot headwind to the mission - zero to five hundred feet - which will also be there over target and on landing.

I am currently working on the strikes on Engebi. Then I move into the Indian Ocean, where the Sara cooperated with a British TF in strikes on Sumatra and Java.

Screenshots will follow soon as will progress updates...

[msfossey]

Looking forward to this Shadow Wolf.

Thank you,

msfossey

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Having a few problems with the "FDG2 F4F-4_Wildcat_VMF-221" in getting it to load in missions. I will Iron those out. The Maxstuka HIJMS Chitose class Aircraft Carrier was too heavy in FLAK and shot me down easily. I substituted Stuart277's IJN_ChitoseSPC_LOD for it and got in to release my torpedo (before getting shot down at 700 yards range.=). I took these shots though:

I have 7 missions to go, then cleanup and testing and creating the .cmg campaign file.

[Rami]

SW 07,

It looks like they're really coming along, you're doing a great job!

[Shadow Wolf 07]

SW 07,

It looks like they're really coming along, you're doing a great job!

Yes Rami. I have to rebuild the Sumatra (Sabang) and Java (Surebaya) missions - 7 missions in all and check all the missions and add wind where needed. Then the .cmg file must be redone and final campaign testing. Lastly, I'll do the readmes for the campaign, installation instructions and downloads. It will all take about a week or less.

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Four missions to go!! They center around the raid on Sabang, Sumatra with the British carrier HMS Illustrious. The old missions are corrupted so I have to rebuild them from scratch. It should take a few days.

Meanwhile, here's a screenshot of Wolfi's new Avenger in one of the missions I tested:

[Shadow Wolf 07]

I'm trying to use the FDG2_F6f-5N_VMF-541 for some of the night missions (see screenshot 1). But there is a problem with the plane. I selected the armament to be "rockets" but when the mission starts she is loaded with stock 1000 pound bombs! I went back to Mission Builder, re-selected rockets and saved the mission under a different name. Starting the mission, I got the same result - 1000 lb bombs (see screenshot 2). Also, the dp shows more payloads (15) than the drop-down menu in MB shows (only 8).

Does anyone have a fix for this? I would like to use this plane in strike missions, rather than the FDG2_F6f5_VF12. In the night CAP missions with "guns only" it are alright. Is the problem a dp or air file or some other error?

I'm almost finished with the campaign. I am test flying each mission to work out glitches. I had to totally rewrite some of the missions and as I go through them, I hope the need for total rewrite doesn't come up again.

[Captain Kurt]

A biased response? Use the FDG2 F6F-5N for the night missions but use Allen F6F-5 with one of my skins instead of the FDG2 VF-12 for your day missions.

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Yes Captain. I only use the FDG2_F6f-5N_VMF-541 in night missions - 4 out of 5 of them.

[Rami]

Greg,

Here you go, but it comes with a big caveat; it is incomplete. I have the payloads straightened out and hijacked the contact points from the other FDG Hellcat so that the weapons are properly mounted and not buried in the fuselage, but they still don't fire properly, they just disappear when you attempt to release / fire. Someone else with more .dp knowledge than me will have to clean up my mess, but I thought I'd give it a shot.

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Rami: I swapped in the dp from the FDG2_F6f5_VF12. It has the same payloads and works fine in the parent plane. I will test the F6F 5N with it later and post my results.

[Rami]

Greg,

I started with that too, but there's a problem when you do that; the F6F-5N had a different gun set than the "standard" Hellcat. The -5N had two fifties in each with with four hundred rounds per gun, but the -5N also had one 20mm Hispano-Suiza cannon in each wing with 220 RPG. If you do a straight swap, you lose that feature.

[miamieagle]

I am looking forward to them!

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Greg,

I started with that too, but there's a problem when you do that; the F6F-5N had a different gun set than the "standard" Hellcat. The -5N had two fifties in each with with four hundred rounds per gun, but the -5N also had one 20mm Hispano-Suiza cannon in each wing with 220 RPG. If you do a straight swap, you lose that feature.

Yes, but for building sake I'm going to use the other dp until a fix is found. Note: the F6F-5 vF12 dp shows 3 guns per wing, 2 with 350 rounds and one with 200.

[bearcat241]

I dunno how to fix that MB vs. payloads bug, but you can have my -5N dp config for what its worth. I reconstructed the original from the dp of the 1% F6F-5.

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Thank you Bearcat241. I'll give it a try.

[Shadow Wolf 07]

I am looking for a good replacement for the stock/OH version of the F6F-3 that I'm using in some of the missions. It will be used in CAP, intercept and strike roles, both player and AI driven. Any suggestions? Why?

Thanks:

SW07

[bearcat241]

Are there any other options besides the FDG2, stock and stock/OH versions? I believe these are all that the CFS2 community have to work with.

[Captain Kurt]

Allen's OH update to F6F-3 w/ rear quarter window.

[Allen]

I know I haven't been around but I'm still alive. I should still have the F6F with and and with out rear quarter windows on my XP as gmax files so I could be able to edit one of them if you all need me too.

Must replace my Avatar image. Been gone that long....

[Shadow Wolf 07]

I know I haven't been around but I'm still alive. I should still have the F6F with and and with out rear quarter windows on my XP as gmax files so I could be able to edit one of them if you all need me too.

Must replace my Avatar image. Been gone that long....

If it is the F6F-3 variant, I'd love to use her. Thanks Allen!

[Captain Kurt]

http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforum...id=52&id=20788

http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforum...id=52&id=20787

http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforum...id=52&id=20786

http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforum...id=52&id=20728

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Thanks much Captain! Now I can finish up the Buka and Rabaul missions.

[Allen]

If it is the F6F-3 variant, I'd love to use her. Thanks Allen!

Already did the F6F-3 with the rear windows. I can make a night fighter for you of needed.

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Already did the F6F-3 with the rear windows. I can make a night fighter for you of needed.

No thanks, I'm already using the FDG version of the F6F-6N.