Campaigns

[_AH_Bear]

~S~
I love mission building and would like to try a campaign...
Id like some input on whats required, how many missions, plane set, axis or allies as i notice we seem to fly mostly allied a/c, maps that are good and ones that aren't so good and why. Themes, realistic to history or fictitious?
Thanks in advance
~S~ Bear

[_AH_DarkWolf]

Hmm, that's a pretty wide ranging question.

I would say a campaign should be at least 15 missions. Less than that I guess you could call it a mini-campaign. I would say the absolute max would be 35-40. That's alot of work and alot of time to run when you add in off-weeks.

The vast majority of campaigns we fly we do so on the allied side. There have been some axis ones but not many. I think that's just a product of the fact that most of us are american or canadian so there is that preference for western allied stuff. Does'nt have to be though, depends on what exactly you want to do.

Again most campaigns are historical in nature whether it's representing a particular battle, military campaign or the exploits of a particular unit. Usually with the help of a good book and\or other reseach on the topic. The missions don't have to always represent specific engagements that happened but could be more of a microcosm of the types of mission that were being flown during that period. That being said, we have done a couple that have been alternate history or just completely made up too.

I don't know if there are any good or bad maps. Some maps due to their scale (ie they are freaking huge) could cause problems with mission length. Some of that can be negated with airstarts and what not, it really depends on the map. Ideally you want to use the map with the area we are supposed to be flying in but of course IL-2 still has some geographical gaps which may require you find something else that is close to what you wanted. I suppose another thing to watch for is the density of the buildings in the cities. There are a few maps where the builders really went overboard with this and they cause some huge fps hits. Testing is always good for finding those issues.

Other things to remember would be that campaigns are the one thing we do where we operate as squadrons and HQ Flight. So if there are different aircraft types you need to make sure to provide enough for a squadron with 6 or 7 guys online.

We also have a tendancy to dispense with friendly AI aircraft in campaigns so we usually give them 0% or very little fuel so they don't get in our way.

Remember that a campaign mission will usually just be run once and then shelved, until perhaps some future re-running of the campaign. It's not like a regular COOP where you might run it several times a year and be able to keep tweaking it. You gotta do your best to make it right the first time, the best way to do this is lots of testing and double checking. Errors and problems are always gonna slip through but some diligence will help minimize that alot.

Last but not least if you commit to doing a campaign, please be sure to see it through to the end. I say that as CO and as an AH pilot, we've been left hanging a couple times by guys who did not finish what they started. It is a signifigant responsibility to build and administer an AH Campaign, so don't go into it half hearted.

DW

[_AH_taldrg]

~S~
   Just a suggestion for a campaign would be the return to the Phillippines. I have the whole history of that liberation but just Marine Air Bases and missions....and a little bit about a guy named MacArther.

[_AH_Bear]

Is that something you can email me TD??

[_AH_gatlingun]

~S~
I would probably fly most any campaign,with one exception,I will not fly any foreign plane against an American,that is one of the main reasons I don't usually fly fnf. I also am not a mission builder but would suggest we fly a Solomon Island campaign using mostly corsairs/hellcats. I made a promise to myself that I would not suggest anything else on here but I did. This will be the last one.

[_AH_taldrg]

~S~
   Yep Bear. I could e=mail you each page of the mission account. There is quite a lot and you could pick the missions you want. Will that work for ya'?

[_AH_Lippy]

I would like to se a camp on the Russian front against 109 or the other way. Some may not want this and if that is the case we can scrub the idea no worries.

[_AH_Bear]

TD.. email to badbear1@telus.net
any ideas are welcome.. again.. thanks in advance
~S~ Bear

[_AH_taldrg]

~S~
    Bear...I e-mailed page 1 for the Layte Gulf campaign. 'cause I really don't know what I am doing I hope it gets to ya.
  TD

[_AH_Bear]

~S~ TD.. yes sir i got it ..!!

[_AH_DarkWolf]

I will not fly any foreign plane against an American,that is one of the main reasons I don't usually fly fnf.

Like I said above I think most of us have a preference for flying allied stuff, in the case of an FnF someone has to fly the other side. To do so does'nt mean you are somehow how supporting naziism or what have you or being disrespectful to your own country or the allies etc.

I also am not a mission builder but would suggest we fly a Solomon Island campaign using mostly corsairs/hellcats. I made a promise to myself that I would not suggest anything else on here but I did. This will be the last one.

We have some very nice Solomons maps for different time periods. Due to it's size, this is one of those maps where you will battle with mission length. In 2008 we flew Moggy's Slot Campaign and even with airstarts alot of those flights were 2 hours.

I would like to se a camp on the Russian front against 109 or the other way.

It would be interesting to explore some early eastern front stuff using those little I-16s and I-153s and so on. Don't know much about it myself.

DW

[_AH_kawilder]

An axis campaign would be a nice change of pace, kinda get away from the same old same old a little bit.
This is a game right, or is it real? :thinking-008:

[_AH_taldrg]

~S~
   It is very close to being real. For flying it is close only you don't feel the gee's. For dieing...you don't feel the pain.

   TD

[_AH_gatlingun]

~S~
After a mission if I am shot down or crash or don't get any kills I am disgusted with myself and my wife is always telling me it is just a game. I know that but these flt. sims are designed in a way so that we are able to immerse ourselves in the game as much as possible. When I am flying a mission I have the sense that it is real and the enemy plane that I am shooting at is real with a real person inside and one of us is going to die. That is the simple reason I don't like to fly anything other than American planes. Maybe I'm being overly patriotic but that is the way it is.

[_AH_taldrg]

~S~
   In the USA that we live in today nothing wrong with being  overly patriotic . As to the diff. in the planes we fly I can tell you this that the diff. btwn. the Kitty Cat...Wild Cat and Corsair in this game are very close to real. Each in real life were diff. and the way thay are programed in this game are very close to real life.
Respectfully:
      TD