schurem
3022
Really looking forward at having a go!
Have you found out how to include sound bits into your missions?
Me too - I spent a lot of time practising against B17s on a F4 :o)
In theory, altough havenāt tested yet.
At this point we have an active WW2 battlefield, tons of juicy targets and gameplay loop/structure taking into account scoring and goals.
This weekend I hope to flesh out with some more infrastructure / targets (based on other missions I looked at ~600 units is reasonable as long is late activation is judiciously used), put in a few easter eggs and then finalize the script. Also Iād like to see what I can do with some randomization. This is possible on a limited bases with the use of flags, etc.
Since A.I. as a character will be involved (lol) the hardest part will be to record all the dialogue, filter it, and then set it up with triggers. Iāll see if I canāt get my daughter involved to do a Shodan-esque performance. The good news, is that since Time Pilot is solo in this mission (not later ones), I donāt have to worry about JTAC, coordinated strikes, and the associated radio triggers. Iād say doing those, and getting them realistic is the real trick for a traditional mission.
So far, and most importantly, itās really fun to build and play.
@midnight.mangler Normandy is awesome (need the WW2 assets!). Even if Time Pilot ends up sucking, as no doubt it will, the investment is solid. Spit is also fun. Nobody does fidelity like DCS and having such an iconic plane with that kind of cockpit and flight model is well worth it.
@Fishbreath You are going to cost me more money! Of COURSE the other side needs a go, and the Ka-50 in particular would be perfect for this. Iām thinking of something like āTime Pilot: Red-emptionā.
No worries - I am absolutely sure that even in the unlikely event that āTime Pilot: Nostradamus Strike Squadronā does not meet my lofty expectations I will get my moneyās worth out of the spit and Normandy. ;)
schurem
3026
ED should take note. @Anklebiter, you are selling spitfires left and right like you are Mr Roberts selling spaceships :P
schurem
3027
In this weekās beta update the hornet gained the AIM-9X thuper sidewinder that can make insane bat turns and blast fokkers in positions that no ordinary sidewinder could.
Also most of the AMRAAM functionality is in now, except the RWS mode. We now get a count down telling us when you can break lock as the missile has gone active.
Thereās some sweet updates to the RWS (radar warning system) that allows you to put RWS info on the HUD.
These guys are running full bore on their baby, and thatās while also releasing and patching a civvy plane (the YaK-52) and doing bugfixes to the general sim.
I have been priveleged to be able to see what @anklebiter is working on. Yāall are in for a treat!
Alright! School started this week for the kids, but we still found the time to finish audio for the first Time-Pilot mission, āA Day at the Beachā. This one puts you in an F-5E in the Normandy map killing lots of Naziās with a backdrop of lovely B-17 bombing raids and a story pulled straight from the annals of military history.
@Schurem was kind enough to test early versions; I hope we were able to address most of the performance issues he flagged. It should still be considered āBetaā (also known as sucky), but hopefully is fun. I really wanted to get it into the hands of anybody who might be interested. You can download it here along with reading a more detailed description. https://forums.mudspike.com/t/dcs-mission-submission-a-day-at-the-beach/6743
The end is a bit abrupt, as we havenāt tied it into the rest of the campaign, but the guts and most of the skin is there. Go git dem Nazis!!
I donāt know if youāve mentioned this at all at the main DCS forums, but if you do, please link the thread so I can bask in the indignant nerdrage itās sure to attract there.
Now, if only I had Normadyā¦
Iād buy it for you if I could. Itās a great map. The detail in the towns is just unreal for a flight sim.
We are debating posting on the official forums. Not super interested in exposing the kids to the type of hostility Iāve seen over the years in the simming world, but they do moderate pretty tightly there. See how it goes on Mudspike and here firstā¦
In the meantime, working on the next missions. A-10C and Hornet (depending on how well you do in this one). So much fun!
If your kids are involved, skipping the official forums is the right move, unless youāre looking to demonstrate that old men on the Internet are nitpicky jerks.
Tim_N
3032
So starting September 5 DCS will have the pack of 4 helicopters on sale for $70:
If you already own some of the helicopters you wonāt be getting any discount if you buy the pack, but apparently you can gift specific modules to another account.
If anyone wants to go splitsies with me when the sale starts let me know. Iām not fussy on which ones I end up with, but I think getting all 4 myself is a bit overkill since I donāt even know how I will enjoy helis relative to planes.
Editer
3033
I have all the helicopters except the Gazelle, so Iād be happy to go in $18 to get that if folks want to split a pack. :)
I believe the preferred term is āmilitary aviation enthusiastsā :)
schurem
3035
If anything ever justified the expense, @Anklebiterās work does.
Tim_N
3036
Iāll be keen to do that with you, unless thereās someone who wants to split it 2/2. Iāll PM you when the sale starts!
On a related note, anyone have recommendations on which heli module is best for a beginner??
schurem
3037
UH-1H as it is iconic, has little gizmoās to speak of and will teach you proper whirlybirding.
Ka-50 is weird, odd and alien. Once you get the hang of it itās a remarkably easy to fly and fight machine. This machine has almost the most diverse mission set of the bunch. Blackshark is by far the most powerful of these four. Itās also due for a cockpit overhaul to all the new 2.5 graphics shinyness.
Mi-8 is the most challenging to fly of these machines. Empty it has plenty power, but will easily get you in a deadly vortex ring state or have you settling with power like the overfed babushka it is. On the other hand it can bring the boom as well as do transport stuff, so a very diverse mission set here too.
Gazelle is the one chopper I donāt own. Its small and superbly agile. I do want one, in due time.
If I were you, get the huey. because of this:
The Huey is the best general trainer. I disagree that the Mi-8 is hard to flyāI found it the second-easiest, after the Ka-50.
There are a lot of Ka-50-specific skills you need to fly the Ka-50, mostly relating to the autopilot and trim system, but there are some good guides, including one I wrote. (I also did a one-page avionics cheat sheet.)
The Gazelle is tiny and twitchy, and there are some who suspect that the flight modeling isnāt quite up to the same standard as the others. I donāt have enough experience with it or with real small helicopters to say, but it definitely doesnāt have anything like the same momentum the other helos do.
Q. How can you shoot women and children?
This made me do a spit take. Then I thought about itā¦looked back at some of my game forum/BGG postsā¦felt reassured and kept laughingā¦
Hilarious, Fishbreath.
The hilarious thing about that scene is that it was filmed in the Norfolk Broads, which sit in the Kansas of England, basically.
