Armchair Aces 1915 by Ojcar Readme and Installation notes. Welcome WWI buffs! This is the first chapter in a series covering the (mostly) complete air war in Western Front in WWI. Next chapters coming in the standard two weeks! The entire war is divided in mini-campaigns of a month-10 missions. I'm using the two stock maps plus the Vogesen map. This first chapter starts in August 1915, so until end of 1915 you'll have 50 missions per pilot! (and be in mind this is the shortest chapter) The beauty of this approach is that you can follow your fav unit throught all maps, or you can simulate unit transfers for your pilot. You can start as a two seater pilot (as most Germans did), and then be "transferred" to a fighter unit. You can start as a RNAS pilot, and be in the RAF at the proper time, you can start in Escadrille 124 (the La Fayette escadrille) in French Army and end the war ir a USAS unit......A lot of possibilities. This mod is intended for FE2, because in 1917 and 1918 you'll need the different Albatros, Strutters, SPADS et al with different engines that FE2 has. FE1 pilots will need to edit the campaigns to fly them, for example changing the name of the planes like AlbatrosD5_180 to AlbatrosD5....Please, don't ask me for a FE1 version. I'm doing 117 campaigns for the entire series and it's a lot of work!!!! Nevertheless, if someone want to make an FE1 version it has my agreement (if it's free for the people, of course). So, be ready for a downloading fest. Before installing this mod you'll need a lot of files: Added terrains: From CombatAce (Terrains) -Vogesen by Gepard Added Misc: from Combat Ace (Hangar, Menu Screens): WWI Alternative Medals Pack for FE -July 2010 update - by Capitaine Vengeur (Required: Includes instructions to add RNAS as a nation, including changes to Nations.ini, new medals, ranks, new decals, etc. Follow carefully the instructions) Belgian Medal Pack - by Hermann the Hun (For 1916 and later missions) Added Aircraft: Well, you'll need all these planes plus the Peter01 FMs for them: there are not only FMs in these packages. They have also some tweaks for weapons, objects, etc (even more plane versions). They are available in CombatAce (add on Aircrafts). Install the needed Peter01 files after installing the planes and objects. Make every stock plane flyable! (I'll give instructions to make the Strutters flyable in next releases) from Combat Ace (Add-On Aircraft): Farman 2 pack - by Bortdafarm (uploaded by Bwf ) (need Farman MF11c) FokkerB1 - by Bortdafarm (uploaded by Bwf ) Fokker E.I Eindecker - by Laton (need Fokker EI) Fokker E.III - by Laton Pfalz E.I - by Laton Pfalz E.III Pack - by Laton (need Pfalz EIII O) Morane-Saulnier Type L Pack - by Laton (need Type LO & Type L) Morane-Saulnier N "Bullet" - by p10ppy Nieuport 10 - by Stephen1918 Nieuport 12 - by Stephen1918 Voisin LAS 2 pack - by Stephen1918 (need 120 & 150) Voisin Type V with 37mm Cannon - by Stephen1918 Vickers FB5 - by Stephen1918 from Skunkworks (http://cplengineeringllc.com/SFP1/ password required): Aviatik C.I - by A Team Royal Aircraft Factory B.e.2c - by A Team Bristol Scout C - by A Team Added Skins (some skins are created for different planes, for example Aviatik CII and CI or all Moranne Parasol skins are interchangeable between models, so if you want the markings showing, some edit in the Decals.ini of each skin is needed): I'm sure there are a lot of more historically correct skins for each Squadron, but this mod is based on my own install and these are the extra skins I have. Be free to add any skin to your installs to improve the quality. from Combat Ace (Skins): RAF R.A.J.Warnford - by von Deutschmark (For MSTypeLO) Aviatik CII skins, by gambit168 here http://combatace.com/files/file/4955-aviatikcii-skins/ (for Aviatik CI, and in 1916 for the AviatikCII) Added Ground Objects: from Geo (http://www.geos-aircraft.com/SFObjects.htm) WWI Ground Objects f rom Skunkworks (http://cplengineeringllc.com/SFP1/ password required): Simply grab any groud object you find there from CombatAce (First Eagles object mods): Armored cars by Stephen1918 (no need for the Russian or Italian car here) Infantry Units, by Stephen1918 (only French, German, British and American really needed, but you can install Belgian and Australian if you like). A lot of different downloads, isn't it? Don't worry this is the base package. Next releases only will need aircraft and skins, and I'm sure all you have most of these things installed allready... Well, install all these things and THEN install the folders in this package, overwritting when asked. There are 5 folders: -Campaigns: Self explanatory... -Flight: adding this requires you to have extracted your Soundlist.ini. If you have installed Stephen1918 infantry you have this done. Add the text included to your Soundlist (same way you have done with the Stephen package) and you'll have a new sound for your rifles (by me...well, really extracted from a soundmod for the game Steel Panthers WWII, I don't know who is the author) -Sounds: (the Rifle sound I was talking about) -Terrains: a new Vogesen_targets.ini. I'ts extracted for the must-have Quack74 campaign Battle of Caporetto, but I have changed the Entente airfields (there are only a handful), so they all can be used by 12 units. -Objects: I have moddified the Enfield and Mauser rifles to use the new rifle sound. Furthermore, there are moddified FMs for the Nieuport 10 and 12 and the Fokker BI. Now, the Nieuports are somewhat harder to destroy (I think it was way too easy to make them burn) and the Fokker BI is armed now only by a Mauser rifle for the observer! Limitations: This mod use the two stock maps plus the Vogesen map. We have most of Western Front covered, but we are lacking a proper Marne region map, so I have added all the Marne sector units to the Verdun campaigns, so Verdun is really Verdun+Marne I'm not an expert in ground war for campaigns, so ground units are fighting same combats once and again (not a great issue in Western Front WWI I think), so someone will notice inaccuracies in frontlines, etc, but the main objetive of having offensives at proper times and having CAS missions is achieved this way. Not a lot of ground action in 1915, you have only the French offensive in September. Things are a lot hotter in 1916. Same for Airfields. I used the Western Front Patch from RedBaron 3D as a base and inspiration for the campaign. Most airfields are not the same in RedBaron and FE maps, so the units are placed.....Well, at least they are in France and Belgium, and in their proper region of the Front. There are not historical aces. They can be funny, but think about that: August 1915, you fight Max Immelmann and shot him down, after that, September 1915, you fight Max Immelmann and shoot him down, after that, October 1915, you fight Max Immelmann and shoot him down, after that.....You get the picture. Annoying. Its' Max Immelmann, not Freddy Krueger!!!!! Each sub-campaign will generate their aleatory, generic aces to fight you. I like this way more. We are lacking some two seaters, so there are placeholders in some units. This is more noticeable in German campaigns. We start before the Aviatik CI is introduced, so we needed some kind of B class aircraft. I would have put some Aviatik or Albatros B, or some Taube, but We have only the Fokker BI and the Pfalz Parasol, so I Have equiped all bavarian units with the Pfalz, and the rest with the Fokker (The Fokker was used, but in very small number, mainly as a trainer, but...). After that, all German units have the Aviatik, because we don't have early LVGs, Albatros, etc. Nevetheless all these planes are more or less the same thing. As French you don't have the Caudron, but you have the Voisin instead in the Caudron units. It works well In WWI was pretty common to have various plane models in same unit. Not in FE, so I gave the units the plane I think was more common for each unit/time. True fighter units were not available at this time (with a very few exceptions, as the 11 Squadron RFC). Entente created dedicated fighter units in early 1916 followed by Germans (at first with the Ad Hoc KEKs and Fokker Staffels and after that with true Jastas). The usual practice in 1915 was to have a two seaters unit with one or two fighters attached to the unit . This is no good for the limitations in the game engine, so I have created the dedicated units much more earlier. All units have 12 planes and pilots. Not historically correct, but better for gameplay I have tried to make the typical missions for this stage of the war, so don't spect fighter sweeps from Fokkers, nor fighter escort for two seaters The texts may be offensive for some people. Words like Huns, Froggies, Tommies, etc are there only reflecting soldiers language, not my personal thinking about the wonderful people of all these countries. So, a BIG MANY THANKS to this community, for giving us all these wonderful mods! -All People from Geo's Aircraft -All People from CombatAce -All the A-Team from Skunkworks Capun, Gramps, Charles, Kesselbrut & The Wrench, Bortdafarm and Bwf, Gepard, Capitaine Vengeur, Hermann the Hun, Peter01, Laton, p10ppy, von Deutschmark, gambit1968, quack74, Sinbad, and the rest of the modders (I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot of them. Forgive me if that's the case)....People, all of You rock and make this game better! Whoever created the most immersive sim ever: The Good ol' RedBaron series and the SWWISA people who created the Western Front Patch, for inspiration. TK, who created this truly great sim: the Strike Fighters/First Eagles series. Special thanks to Stephen1918, for its friendship, wonderful models, all the betatesting and translation of my Spanish texts Of course, this package is free and cannot be repackaged nor distribute in any sort of payware. Respect the modders work, please! Good flying, Armchair pilots! Ojcar.