Updated 18/4/08.
Just a quick note to confirm that this mission will work with the expansion pack and
April 08 patch, as long as you have ALL required skins, terrain etc installed.
A Mission For First Eagles.
Bucky's Quick Mission No.5. Rene Fonck: 'Ace Of Aces'. Parts 1 & 2.
Released: 09/05/07... The 89th anniversary of the action depicted in this mission.
============================================================
Introduction:
Ask any student of the first air war to name their top ten WW1 fighter pilots and all the usual
names will crop up, plus maybe, a few lesser knowns. Chances are though, the name Rene
Fonck won't be among them... He's been largely forgotten... Even in his own country.
A true case of criminal neglect IMHO, because Rene Fonck was probably THE greatest fighter
pilot of WW1. The only problem is/was, Fonck knew how good he was and wouldn't let anyone
forget it...He was regarded as a boastful, boorish, braggart, and generally not well liked by
his comrades.
But when you talk the talk, you've got to be able to walk the walk...Fonck could and did!
This mission, which comes in two parts, depicts the events of Thursday, May 9th, 1918. This
was the date that Sous-Lt Rene Fonck of escadrille SPA103, shot down six German aircraft
in a single day...An outstanding feat in itself , but amazingly, he was to repeat it again on
September 26th!
In fact, he brought down two or more enemy planes in one day, an incredible eighteen times
in one year!
His marksmanship was of olympic gold medal standard. He usually expended very little
ammunition when bringing down enemy aircraft. About nine rounds on average.
His official end of war total was 75 confirmed victories, but in his book 'Ace Of Aces', he gave
all the dates for a further 52 unconfirmed victories, which would give him an actual score
of 127.
============================================================
To set the scene:
On May 9th, Fonck didn't even begin flying until 3:45pm because of bad weather, but soon
after crossing the allied lines with his two wingmen, he spotted three enemy two-seaters. He
shot down all three in a fight that lasted just 45 seconds...They all crashed within 400 metres
of each other!
After landing to refuel, he took off again at 5:30pm. It was very cloudy and eventually Fonck
became separated from his two wingmen. He emerged from a dense cloud and immediately
came across another German two-seater and shot that down.
Continuing his patrol, he spotted a flight of four Fokker D.VII's, escorted by five Albatros
D.V's flying slightly above, and ahead of the D.VII's. Weighing up the odds and feeling brave,
Fonck put his SPAD into a dive, positioned himself amongst the nine enemy planes and shot
down the rearmost D.VII.
Alerted by the machine gun noise, the remaining E/A attempted to turn and bring their guns
to bear on Fonck, but this manoeuvre slowed them down, and his momentum allowed him to
pass between them. He then shot down the leader of the patrol and bolted for home, with
seven enemy planes in hot pursuit!
============================================================
Mission guidelines:
As already stated, this mission comes in two parts to more accurately depict the events,
weather and timing of Thursday, May 9th, 1918.
PART 1.
You'll join the action at about 7500 feet, having just crossed the allied lines at 4:15pm. The
weather, which has kept you grounded for most of the day has cleared nicely, Although it's
still quite cloudy.
You're accompanied by your two able wingmen; Lt Fontaine and Cpt Battle. Suddenly, you
spot three specks in the distance...Bosche two-seaters!... Manouevre yourself into a
favourable position and dive into the fray!
Fonck managed to shoot down all three German two-seaters himself...Can you do the same?
Having achieved the mission goal, feel free to press 'ALT+N' to fast forward to your
aerodrome...You can then land, and wait while your ground crew refuel and re-arm your
SPAD...You may want to grab yourself a coffee and a croissant while you wait...
PART 2.
We join the action at 12,500 feet. It's 6:10pm, and you've been in the air for 40 minutes. It's
very cloudy and you've lost your two wingmen, and the light is fading...
You emerge from a dense cloud to find a German reconnaisance plane very close by...Once
you send him down, prepare yourself to dive into the midst of the Fokker D.VII's and
Albatros D.V's!
Fonck shot down two Fokker D.VII's before making a break for home, but do feel free to try
and better him if you think you can!
If you survive, you can navigate your way back to Villers Bretonneaux airfield (or press
ALT+N like I always do!) and land to a rapturous reception from your comrades...Just as
Fonck did.
============================================================
Compromises and game limitations:
1. During the spring and summer of 1918 the German offensive had pushed the allies back
much further than the actual front line depicted in the game. Also, the FE map is very sparsely
populated around the Montdidier area where these combats actually took place. This means
that I've not been able to place the action as accurately on the map as I would've liked.
2. FE won't allow multiple 'named wingmen' in the players flight. This means the game will
recognise only the players plane. consequently, there will be no record of your wingmen's
actions in the 'stats' screen at end of mission. It also means you can't issue orders via the
'tab' button.
The good news is; this doesn't stop your wingmen from participating in the action, although
for this mission you won't want any help anyway!
3. In Fonck's second patrol, about 45 minutes passed between him shooting down the
two-seater and the dogfight with the flight of German fighters...Here, I've condensed the
action to save you flying around aimlessly for the best part of an hour.
4. Again, in the second patrol, Fonck was able to dive into the German fighter formation
undetected before causing havoc...As far as I can tell, the AI in First Eagles is 'all seeing'...
This makes it impossible (I think!) to sneak up on 'em! You'll just have to take your chances
mixing it with 'em I'm afraid!
============================================================
Mission requirements:
To fly this mission as intended, you'll need:
Flanders terrain.
By Edward.
To be found in the Combat Ace, Downloads, 'Maps/Terrains' section.
Rene Fonck SPAD XIII skin.
By HerGr.
To be found in the Combat Ace, Downloads, 'WW1 Aircraft Skins' section
Many thanks to all the above artists for their most excellent contributions to this great game.
For maximum realism, the mission should be played with all gameplay settings set to 'Hard'.
============================================================
Installation instructions:
Install the mission by unzipping the downloaded file to the following path:
C:/Program Files/Thirdwire/WW1/Missions
Alternatively, you can drag and drop the unzipped MSN file directly into your 'Missions' folder.
============================================================
I hope you enjoy flying this mission and find it both challenging and enjoyable enough to play
it more than once...I've tried to make it as historically accurate and authentic as the game
will allow.
Feel free to change any of the parameters as you wish.
I would welcome any suggestions or general feedback, good, bad or indifferent, via any one
of the FE forums.
Bon chance!
Bucky.
9/5/07
This mod contains the Airfield AA MG mod only. It does include the airfield mod for the Cambrai terrain.
Unzip to a separate folder and read the Readme for installation instructions.
RESTRICTIONS apply to the redistribution of certain files in this mod. Again read the Readme for clarification.
Hope you enjoy,
Tailspin
This is the Expansion Pack version. It also includes a combined Bridges & Airfield AAMG mod as an option.
Unzip to a separate folder and read the Readme for installation instructions.
There are RESTRICTIONS on the redistribution of certain files in this mod...again see the Readme for clarification.
Hope you enjoy,
Tailspin
Julius Arigi (1895-1981) was the second highest scoring ace in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Unlike most aces, Arigi was an NCO. On August 22, 1916, enemy aircraft were reported to be approaching the Flik 6 airfield. Arigi sought permission to take off and attack them. Because there were no officers available, to fly with him as observers, permission was denied. Acting against direct orders, Arigi took off with another NCO in his in his Hansa-Brandenburg C.I and shot down 5 enemy Farmans in less than one half hour. He survived the war, as the most highly decorated NCO in the Austrian Army Air Service, with 32 confirmed victories. No Hanroit HD-1s were among them.
My time machine is no longer operational. These skins are interpretations, well-grounded interpretations, but certainly a mix of accuracy and flaws. I am aware of two variations from the photos and other sources. The rudder depicted is round at the trailing edge, rather than the straight. Both rounded and straight rudders were used on Alb D.III’s, but I would have preferred to use the straight edge type because there are photos of this plane which clearly show the straight edged rudder. Available models do not offer the straight rudder. Some Alb DIII OEF were filed modified by removal of the prop spinner, because some came loose in flight. Again the available models do not offer this variation. Modifications of this magnitude beyond my present skill. If you can do it, please contact me.
Many sources were consulted in the preparation of these skins, including: Dr. Martin O'Connor, Air Aces of the Austro-Hungarian Empire 1914-1918, Austro-Hungarian Aces of World War 1 by Chris Chant, Mark Rolfe (Illustrator) / Paperback / Osprey Publishing (February 2002), Above the War Fronts by Norman L. R. Franks, Russell Guest, Gregory Alegi / Hardcover / Grub Street (September 1997), Windsock Datafile #19 Albatros D.III (Oef)/ Grosz/Colours & Markings by Ray Rimmel , The Aerodrome Forum, R.N. Pearson profiles and other material on line.
Just drop the folder in your Albatros_D3OAW folder and select Julius Arigi, in the loadout screen. There is no need to edit the ini.
This skins is made available only for your personal use. Please no distribution or republication of any part of these files. I’d appreciate any comments, especially with links to source material. Have fun.
sinbad © 2008
Bridges and Airfield AA MG defenses to the Verdun Terrain for First Eagles. This mod is for the pre-Expansion Pack version of FE.
I have combined the Airfield AA MG and Bridge mods into one download.
Unzip to a Temp folder and see the Readme for Installation instructions.
RESTRICTIONS apply for certain files contained in this mod. Please read the ReadMe for further information.
TS
I found the default trenches looking rather flat, so I enhanced the textures and added a little variation in colour. The result looks more defined, although the bitmaps still have the same size.
Installation:
Just unzip the files in the WWI\Terrain\WWIVerdun folder.
This version includes a number of changes, which are explained in the readme. With these modifications, it works on my system, and I have no problem with stats. I can't guarantee you'll have the same results, as the stats problem seems to be very system dependent, and mission time seems to have an affect also. I'm reposting this because it works for me, and it might work for you. It adds a bit to immersion, so if you can get it to work, I think it's worth it. Complete installation instructions are contained in the readme.
My thanks to Kesslebrut, and Geo, for the use of their ground objects. If you tinker with this, and wish to post a modified version, feel free, just don't mod the ground objects without the specific permission of the original authors.
When Geo finishes his superb new German 77mm gun, and his new 75, I will post a types and targets ini update to take advantage of them. From the screenshot he posted at ThirdWire, they should be fantastic!
As always, you use these files at your own risk. I hope they work for you as well as they worked for me.
Heck
Fokker E.IV and E.IVa
Model by Laton
Skins (E.III) by v. Deutschmark
FM by peter01.
The zip file contains two variants, with alternate armament (2 and 3 gun) configurations.
Release pack also includes original bmp templates for anyone who wishes to make and distribute their own skins.
Check the Readme for installation instructions and any other notes.
Little mod of the Spad VII to turn it into a Spad XII (apologies and acknowledgement to Gr.Viper who went before me)
Model changes: removal of the nose humps and reskin
XXX_data.ini changes: tweaked flight model reflecting the much heavier weight, more powerful engine (220hp nominal), wing stagger, better aerodynamics, and more wing area
New weapon (37mm S.A.M.C.) New (it’s a mod of stock) reloading sound for the canon (its slow), New firing effect for the canon (cockpit smoke)
New hanger and loading screens
The canon is on the secondary fire button and takes 12 sec to reload (new sound more or less reflects this)
It has 12 reloads
I have seen the A.I get infrequent hits with this setup (I’m pretty infrequent too)
---------------------------------------------------
A few “Facts”
The Spad XII was a beefed up version of the Spad VII with a new engine (Hispano-Suiza 8Cb 220hp) and a slightly more refined fuselage, more wing area and the most obvious difference, slight wing stagger (something we can’t do with the stock model)
It had a 37mm S.A.M.C. semi-automatic canon with twelve reloads mounted to fire through the prop hub and with the breech situated between the pilot’s legs
Because of the breech placement the controls were of the Deperdussin type (wheel)
After initial enthusiasm for the aircraft by the French ace Georges Guynemer, the Aéronautique Militaire placed an order for 1000 airframes,
However the Spad XII proved very difficult to fly with its unfamiliar controls, the new weapon filled the cockpit with smoke on firing and was difficult to aim and reload, and to cap it off, the new Hispano-Suiza proved to be unreliable
Its doubtful that more than twenty aircraft were completed and these were issued singly to individual Aces of the Aéronautique Militaire, There were never more than 6-8 on the front at any one time and they were widely spread throughout the Escadrille’s
---------------------------------------------------
Top speed 220kph at SL
Ceiling 7000m
Empty weight 628kg
---------------------------------------------------
Files
New Reloading sound: gun_reloadlg.wav goes in the Sounds folder
The SOUNDLIST.INI must be modified to add the sound (this must be extracted to the flight folder if you haven’t already) see below
New gunfire effect: 37mmSpad.ini must be placed in the effects folder
New cannon must be added to the bottom of your GUNDATA.INI (this must be extracted to the Objects folder if you haven’t already) see below, and then the GUNDATA.INI must be opened and saved with the gun editor
New aircraft folder SPAD_XII placed in the Objects/aircraft folder
This contains 4 skins (the French aces, Nungesser of Esc65, Madon of 38ESC, Fonck of Esc103 and Guynemer of Esc3),
the Ini’s necessary for the craft,
a hanger screen and two version of the loading screen: wide(default) and normal (you must rename it to use it)
---------------------------------------------------
SOUNDLIST.INI
Add near the top of the file:
---------------------------------------------------
SoundFile0XX=gun_reloadlg /////////////////////XX is the next number in the sequence above
---------------------------------------------------
And at the bottom add:
---------------------------------------------------
[gun_reloadlg]
Priority=HIGH
3DSound=FALSE
NumBuffers=1
Looped=FALSE
---------------------------------------------------
GUNDATA.INI
Add at the bottom of the file
---------------------------------------------------
[GunData0XX] //////////////////////////////////XX is the next sequential number
TypeName=37MM_SAMC
FullName=37mm SAMC Moteur canon
Caliber=37.000000
ROF=1.000000
MuzzleVel=400.000000
AmmoWt=0.650000
WarheadWt=0.035000
Reliability=97.000000
Accuracy=70.000000
AddLight=TRUE
MaxLightRange=1000.000000
FireColor=0.150000,0.100000,0.100000
GunFireEffect=37mmFireEffectEnH
GunFireSound=TankGun
EffectClassName=37mmEffects
EffectTime=10.000000
TracerTexture=Tracer.tga
TracerSize=0.150000
TracerDistFactor=0.002000
TracerLength=0.015000
MaxVisibleDist=4000.000000
MaxStreakVisibleDist=1000.000000
TimeFuzed=FALSE
---------------------------------------------------
Important: the GUNDATA.INI must be saved in the gun editor after manual editing
Have fun :yes:
V
FE effects enhancements!......I Wanted more EFFECTS in this Fantastic WWI SIMS!!!!
Godwin Brumowski (1889-1936) had the most confirmed (35) and unconfirmed (8 downed behind enemy lines) victories among Austria-Hungary's pilots. Brumowski began flying on the Italian front in the spring of 1916. Beginning in April 1916, he got five confirmed victories flying the Albatros B.1, Hansa Brandenburg C-1 and D-1. After studying tactics with Jasta 24 from March 19-27,1917 on the Western Front he returned to the Italian Front and took command of Flik 41J, Austria-Hungary's first true fighter squadron. In August 1917 Brumowski got his first Albatros, D.III Oef 153.06, with a natural finished plywood fuselage topped by green and mustard sworl camo.. In October 1917 Brumowski began flying 153.45, painted red in admiration for Manfred von Richthoven. From November 1917 to April 1918 Brumowski flew 153.52 and 153.45. Initially both were all red with the famous Totenkopf skulls. Sometime during this period, mustard yellow sworls were applied over the red. From November 1917 on, Flik 41J marked their planes with yellow-and-black wheel discs. On February 1, 1918 Alb 153.45 suffered heavy damage in combat and an in flight fire. Three days later, Alb 153.52 was totally destroyed after barely surviving combat with eight British fighters. Alb 153.45 was repaired and flown through April, when it appears to have been retired. In June 1918 Brumowski was flying 153.209 when he was grounded. I found no photos showing the sworl pattern on 153.209. By October 1918, Brumowski was flying a dark brown desk with a green blotter, in command of the Austro-Hungarian air force operating along the Isonzo.
No Hanroit HD-1s were among Brumowskis confirmed or unconfirmed kills.
The Totenkopf, or death head images on the fuselage, and the crosses on the rudder were carefully reproduced from photographs for the aircraft (153.45, 153.52 and 153.209) in this series. The sworled camo is the final rendition of many variations attempted after comparison with photos and other research. All four aircraft and all six paint schemes are included in this series. Choose your favorite.
My time machine is no longer operational. These skins are interpretations, well-grounded interpretations, but certainly a mix of accuracy and flaws. I am aware of two variations from the photos and other sources. First, some Austrian pilots removed the spinner caps because these occasionally came loose in flight. Second, the rudders depicted are round at the trailing edge, rather than the straight. Both rounded and straight rudders were used on Alb D.III’s, but I would have preferred to use the straight edge type as that is depicted in most photos of Brunowski aircraft. Available models offer neither the straight rudder nor the spinner free versions. Modification of these parts is beyond my present skill. If you can do it, please contact me.
Many sources were consulted in the preparation of these skins, including: Dr. Martin O'Connor, Air Aces of the Austro-Hungarian Empire 1914-1918, Austro-Hungarian Aces of World War 1 by Chris Chant, Mark Rolfe (Illustrator) / Paperback / Osprey Publishing (February 2002), Above the War Fronts by Norman L. R. Franks, Russell Guest, Gregory Alegi / Hardcover / Grub Street (September 1997), Windsock Datafile #19 Albatros D.III (Oef)/ Grosz/Colours & Markings by Ray Rimmel , The Aerodrome Forum, R.N. Pearson profiles and other material on line.
Just drop the folder in your Albatros_D3OAW folder and select Brumowski 15352 in the loadout screen. You can change the name if you like, but be careful; only two words or combination of words and numbers are permitted. There is no need to edit the ini.
These skins are made available only for your personal use. Please no distribution or republication of any part of these files. I’d appreciate any comments, especially with links to source material. Have fun.
Godwin Brumowski (1889-1936) had the most confirmed (35) and unconfirmed (8 downed behind enemy lines) victories among Austria-Hungary's pilots. Brumowski began flying on the Italian front in the spring of 1916. Beginning in April 1916, he got five confirmed victories flying the Albatros B.1, Hansa Brandenburg C-1 and D-1. After studying tactics with Jasta 24 from March 19-27,1917 on the Western Front he returned to the Italian Front and took command of Flik 41J, Austria-Hungary's first true fighter squadron. In August 1917 Brumowski got his first Albatros, D.III Oef 153.06, with a natural finished plywood fuselage topped by green and mustard sworl camo.. In October 1917 Brumowski began flying 153.45, painted red in admiration for Manfred von Richthoven. From November 1917 to April 1918 Brumowski flew 153.52 and 153.45. Initially both were all red with the famous Totenkopf skulls. Sometime during this period, mustard yellow sworls were applied over the red. From November 1917 on, Flik 41J marked their planes with yellow-and-black wheel discs. On February 1, 1918 Alb 153.45 suffered heavy damage in combat and an in flight fire. Three days later, Alb 153.52 was totally destroyed after barely surviving combat with eight British fighters. Alb 153.45 was repaired and flown through April, when it appears to have been retired. In June 1918 Brumowski was flying 153.209 when he was grounded. I found no photos showing the sworl pattern on 153.209. By October 1918, Brumowski was flying a dark brown desk with a green blotter, in command of the Austro-Hungarian air force operating along the Isonzo.
No Hanroit HD-1s were among Brumowskis confirmed or unconfirmed kills.
The Totenkopf, or death head images on the fuselage, and the crosses on the rudder were carefully reproduced from photographs for the aircraft (153.45, 153.52 and 153.209) in this series. The sworled camo is the final rendition of many variations attempted after comparison with photos and other research. All four aircraft and all six paint schemes are included in this series. Choose your favorite.
My time machine is no longer operational. These skins are interpretations, well-grounded interpretations, but certainly a mix of accuracy and flaws. I am aware of two variations from the photos and other sources. First, some Austrian pilots removed the spinner caps because these occasionally came loose in flight. Second, the rudders depicted are round at the trailing edge, rather than the straight. Both rounded and straight rudders were used on Alb D.III’s, but I would have preferred to use the straight edge type as that is depicted in most photos of Brunowski aircraft. Available models offer neither the straight rudder nor the spinner free versions. Modification of these parts is beyond my present skill. If you can do it, please contact me.
Many sources were consulted in the preparation of these skins, including: Dr. Martin O'Connor, Air Aces of the Austro-Hungarian Empire 1914-1918, Austro-Hungarian Aces of World War 1 by Chris Chant, Mark Rolfe (Illustrator) / Paperback / Osprey Publishing (February 2002), Above the War Fronts by Norman L. R. Franks, Russell Guest, Gregory Alegi / Hardcover / Grub Street (September 1997), Windsock Datafile #19 Albatros D.III (Oef)/ Grosz/Colours & Markings by Ray Rimmel , The Aerodrome Forum, R.N. Pearson profiles and other material on line.
Just drop the folder in your Albatros_D3OAW folder and select Brumowski 15345 in the loadout screen.
My apology to those who had problems with the earlier download of this skin. The naming convention was not correct.
You can change the name if you like, but be careful; only two words or combination of words and numbers are permitted. There is no need to edit the ini.
These skins are made available only for your personal use. Please no distribution or republication of any part of these files. I’d appreciate any comments, especially with links to source material. Have fun.
sinbad © 2008
Bridges and Airfield AA MG defenses to the Verdun Terrain for First Eagles. This mod is for the pre-Expansion Pack version of FE.
I found the default trenches looking rather flat, so I enhanced the textures and added a little variation in colour. The result looks more defined, although the bitmaps still have the same size.
Fokker E.IV and E.IVa
FE effects enhancements!......I Wanted more EFFECTS in this Fantastic WWI SIMS!!!!