AI MOD version 3 beta..

[+bortdafarm 1]

i think it's an old habit from Red baron days that i can't seem to break....if i die i start a new campaign...no reflys at all...ever..it just doesn't feel right, mind you i have been testing stuff as i go along so that means i am paying more attention to my Squadron buddys than my six.. but even so i have tried a couple of straight campaigns in the se5a...and tho i am an experienced combat flight simmer, it (given no reflys) is the toughest campaign i have tried ..far tougher than Red Baron2/3d

as i say i can shoot down the enemy planes by the bucket full, but something allways seems to get my fuel tank or a pilot shot if i fly the mission by the book...it's still great fun but if i take the refly option it's going to start feeling like i'm playing "Driver"

i occasionaly get a recon mission.. and escort job

i like the recon missions better as they just involve flying over an area to get a success rating (no primary targets) which with HUD off you have no way of knowing wether the aircraft or target your attack is the primary target or not.. other than a guess

 

all a bit daft really to be honest

[+Tailspin 3]

These threads are really interesting. However sometimes I wonder if I have the same First Eagles as some of you. I've not touched a thing as far as AI goes and my AI pilots routinely get kills. I get whacked by two seaters forward firing guns if I'm not careful. I see all kinds of various levels of agressiveness in the AI. I just flew a recon mission. I heard the telltale rumble of AAA, realized I didn't hear my wingie "buzzing" around behind me. I looked around for him and find he's off engaging enemy fighters near an aerodrome that was a good mile off our flight path and he stayed with them. There is a "randomness" built into the game. About 3/5ths of the AI pilots you encounter aren't going to be better than "regular". (OK...thats a WAG based on the 5 skill levels )Probably a pretty accurate ratio. Sometimes I wonder if we aren't confusing this random encounter factor and the unlikely chance we will encounter an ACE pilot everytime we fly with a deficiency in the sim. Just like real life, especially in major conflicts with high attrition rates like WWI and WWII, there are going to be great differences in skill level and agressiveness among pilots. With, IMO, the bulk of those skill levels leaning towards the green end of the spectrum. Maybe the sim isn't so far off after all.

[+bortdafarm 1]

I agree.. each time i return the game entirely back to stock the results are usualy better than with any of the mods...wether this is entirely a random thing or what is the intrigueing thing..it's my experience with AI issues of an type in other sims that i have modded that at the end of the day there is very little that can be done with it other than to change it's behaviour slightly...improving it is dang near impossible as what ever you do there somehow seems to be a catch 22 clause involved...but you do learn a lot about a sim/game by making the attempt..and i just can't resist trying just one more thing etc.. just in case...

 

LOL!!!

there's some complex stuff going in in this game, far more than first meets the eye...that's for sure..hell of a campaign engine ...(for all my complaints) a superb thing of beauty

wish more games/sims had such a dynamic campaign engine...most just don't bother...

[+Tailspin 3]

Agreed. There is more depth than many give credit. Regarding AI improvement, adjusting the values in the AIRCRAFTOBJECT.INI is probably your best bet. I don't know if you are familiar with Fubar's UBER AI MOD for Thirdwire's jet sims but you should get a copy of it for a comparison to what you have already done. Its available in the Downloads section here. The only other thing I can think of, again from the jet sims is to increase the MaxVisibleDistance= in the aircraft data.ini. This causes the enemy to "see" you further away and get them to engage with missles earlier. It may or may not affect the agressiveness of AI in FE. Worth a look, I suppose. It also could cause the AAA to shoot at you from further away too.

[+bortdafarm 1]

yes i may take a look at Fubars file...

 

the problem i have with the stock game , campaign play, is that with all the aids turned off

and if i follow the mission briefing then i have yet to survive beyond three patrols...

it's one of those contradictions of the game...on the one hand it's very easy to rack up a supernatural number of kills...but on the other the game can kill you in a split second...pilot kill fuel tank fire or flak direct hit.. with no visual aids the enemy can sneak up on you very quickly...it's so hard to spot them against the terrain (as is only natural) that i often (as in real life i have read) go from being in the middle of a mad dogfight with a sky full of planes to blam suddenly i can find one anywhere..i allways get seperated from my squadron and often fly from flak burst to flak burst figuring that they will be somewhere near by those !!

 

with the aids off this is one seriuos hardcore campaign.. well beyond normal normal sim difficulty...when you take it as a whole rather than simply how easy it is to get the kills..it's furstrating becuase i can't stay alive long enough to gauge or enjoy the deeper dynamic aspects i just started a new campaign a couple of minutes ago....same thing... pilot kill by an enemy fighter that i just didn't see (untill it was too late)

HUGELY realistic...they can fly right past you (especailly the albatros) and you can't see them against the ground texture..next thing you know he's right on top of you or the most common surprise is that you think that there is only one of them....and maneuver to get on his tail ..not realising that there's two of them and you lost sight of number one in a turn and are now attacking number two..mean-while number one has gotten behind you and blam your dead...it's brilliant but makes appreciating the over-all campaign virtualy impossible..what a strange contradiction this sim is!!

 

i still lose far too many squadron mates for my taste... lost all three on this patrol...kinda want that dynamic RPG element to work

[+TexMurphy 0]

Ok here is my conclusion.

 

You can force the AI to not take as many bad shots (increase its gunnary %) but then he fires less. This is due to the AI´s inability to get into a good shooting position and this is most likely due to lack of rudder usage.

 

The catch 22 is that if you increase its flying ability it will become harder to get on its six so it evens out.

 

What Im saying is that you will more or less always see the AI get 1-2 kills every 2 or so missions not more.

 

When it comes to the life of the AI... there are two types of deaths 1 due to ack and 2 due to enemy planes...

 

Ack death you can reduce by taking the wing in low. Fly in under the ack and fight low. Increase in your and enemies chance to survive.

 

Enemy planes. Make sure to change YOUR flying style to "scrape s**t of wingmen". Im working more and more on this and it is giving results.

 

Tex

[+bortdafarm 1]

yes i had reasonable results by vastly reducing the accuracy of the guns for the Ai (gundata ini)

from what you say that bears out..

here's part of the catch 22 and "hidden" element of the campaign engine and the way it handles the AI pilots ..

if you go into the campaign dta file and increase the experience for just the player squadron say RAF1 (as i gave an example of above for experimenting with)....you get high stats on the roster board...but what actually happens is that the game gives all the AI pilots the same level of stats (it levels them up so to speak)

 

if you exit that campaign and start a freh one in a different squadron even tho that squadron has the stock level of experience set in the campaign data ini..you find that THAT squadron has the increased stats aswell..

 

regardlesss of what changes you make the campaign often simply changes ALL the aircraft and AI pilots abilitys to suit...so roughly speaking there's not a vast amount that can really be done (in the short term) other than to change things- which once the novelty has worn off...are simply different not genuinely better...

so far anyway..i have the odd thing or two work out well..i set up the Se5a's with aircraftObject AIDATA changes so it could easily evade an entire squadron of enemy ai...nothing ubered at all no enhancements to the aircraft what so ever..just AI pilot utilising the full extent of the envelope and doing consistent u-turns (allmost stall turns in a way) BUT here's that catch 22 again THIS change could not be applied to any other aircraft....familiar territory here so often found this in other sims...there's allways a catch 22...something you DO NOT wnt to apply to all the AI pilots = gets applied to all the AI pilots, where-as something you do want to be applied to all the AI pilots stubbornly refuses to follow the same rule...and so on...LOL

 

at the end of the day tho the FE ai is as good as if not better than any other period sim...AFAIK

certainly it is the equal of red baron etc..the Ai rarely got kills in that classic benchmark sim and the player knocked them out of the sky line ducks..it's the same old bug bear tho and it does get repetitive...same problems with better graphics...

 

strange game this first eagles...dunno wether to laugh or cry !!!

 

my instinct tells iwas right in the AIMODv1 up.loaded in the downloads section to state that the "aircraft"_data.inis should be installed into the ROOT objects folder...not the individual aircraft folders as is the norm'---

 

for example the edited WWICAMP1_DATA.ini with the enhanced experience stats actualy works when simply placed into the root flight folder (where the parent CAT file lives)....and so on..this is the method i will be returning to from now on..

Edited December 21, 2006 by bortdafarm

[Old Guy 0]

Tex and bortdafarm,

 

I've been fiddling with several settings in the AIRCRAFTOBJECT file and the only one that really makes a difference is the MaxRollFormation setting. I tried 5.0 as suggested and found that my flight did stay close -- perhaps too close. I also found that the enemy two-seaters tended to remain bunched up, even when attacked (which is probably realistic -- massing of defensive fires). In fact, it got lots more difficult to attack them for that reason. Enemy fighters also tended to stick together.

 

End result: a couple of monumental gun battles.

 

I changed the setting to 10.0 and now get a decent combat formation for my guys and similar results for the enemy. Two seaters still tend to stick together, which makes life interesting, though short.

 

Like Tex mentioned, I'm now concentrating on knocking bad guys off my wingies. I haven't managed to survive long enough to make any judgments on that technique yet, but it looks promising. Once, Mr. AAA got me as we mixed it up over an airfield. Note to self: Avoid dogfights over targets infested with flak. A couple times I collided with other planes. Messy that.

 

My biggest problem right now is that I absolutely cannot see well enough out of a Spad to survive. I do not have Track IR. Anybody have an idea of how to improve player visibility in the Spad? On a related topic, the left rear snap view for my Spad shows a black area which I take to be the edge of the cockpit, but it has no graphic in it. Anyone else seen that?

 

I have the snap view angle set to 155. I think default is 150.

 

Jim

[+Tailspin 3]

"my instinct tells iwas right in the AIMODv1 up.loaded in the downloads section to state that the "aircraft"_data.inis should be installed into the ROOT objects folder...not the individual aircraft folders as is the norm'---"

 

Incorrect. The modified aircraft DATA.INIs don't work unless they are in the correct aircraft file. You can test this by using an easily verifiable change like the Fokker DVII speed fix.

[MajorDB 0]

I am going to do a reinstall of the stock settings, and try to get some baseline data.

 

I will use the following ROE

 

1. Start in the Air.

2. ALT + N to Objective

3. Fight for 4 minutes

4. Press ESC KEY to end mission.

[+bortdafarm 1]

"my instinct tells iwas right in the AIMODv1 up.loaded in the downloads section to state that the "aircraft"_data.inis should be installed into the ROOT objects folder...not the individual aircraft folders as is the norm'---"

 

Incorrect. The modified aircraft DATA.INIs don't work unless they are in the correct aircraft file. You can test this by using an easily verifiable change like the Fokker DVII speed fix.

 

 

 

ahem....i disagree....but not entirely

[Gr.Viper 131]

My biggest problem right now is that I absolutely cannot see well enough out of a Spad to survive. I do not have Track IR. Anybody have an idea of how to improve player visibility in the Spad?

 

You can try switching to F2(wide) view before the fray and setting it to look up-front with your mouse. The position of each view is saved until you reset it, so you'll be able to switch between F1 looking front for general navigation, F2 set to up for tracking someone you follow in a turn and F3 for finishing the bastard off. F4 is also good if you don't consider automatic padlock a cheat and do not mind hitting target selector key many times. Default controls are rather awful IMHO... too many Alt+, Ctrl+.. some related functions are scattered all across the keyboard.

But don't get carried away by the fight too much - SPAD's advantage is speed, not maneuverability. I've never been able to catch up with any in a straight level flight. BTW, AI is definitely aware of that and quite often "runs away" until I stop following it. Then it turns around and comes down on my tail. So for your safety you should at least try to do the same - never lose speed or follow them into tight turns. Fokkers are literally able to fly in circles around low speed SPAD without much exposing themselves to gunfire.

Yes, you actually can learn something from AI in this game :yes:

 

Sometimes life gets very tough for German two-seaters. All three are AI.

I just love bad weather. And camouflage gets even harder to spot...

[Guest IndioBlack]

Okay, now that I've read all your reports, I see now why I find the campaigns so easy.

 

 

The only mods I have are a tail-wheel fix for taxying.

Separate triggers for the Se5a guns

The rudder mod that fixes the adverse yaw on the Se5a

The smoke FX

The new Engine sounds

The snap to check-six view fix

 

I'm using a Hard Flight Model, Hard landings etc

 

I chose a British campaign in the Se5a

 

If I have to change the magazine on the gun, I break off, fly straight and level, and then pull the change lever until it's done.

I also break off and work the jam lever if I have a jam.

I also don't refly, but haven't had to.

I always start on the airfield, and always land.

 

Inadvertantly, I appear to be flying a Normal default campaign, not a Hard one. I fly single mission on Hard, and didn't notice this error.

 

I fly with the Info boxes on so that I can ident Primaries, and therefore I get a red box around an enemy aircraft. I also get the cone that points at the bad guys. Consequently, I don't have the problem of finding or not-seeing the enemy. This must give me an excessive advantage over those of you who don't use those aids. My hat is off to you.

 

I use the map to find concentrations of enemy aircraft to chase. Some of you don't. Again this gives me an advantage in finding targets of opportunity.

 

I always fly with the cockpit off, using the iron sight. Consequently I have an enormous amount of situational awareness. I lose the cockpit (even though it is beautifully done) because it is the wrong scale for my monitor. The monitor is in my face, so the Iron sight is more realistic.

 

I like all my aids, so that leaves the only thing that I can do: Change the Campaign to Hard.

 

This may give me a bigger struggle, and it may give me a wider range of mission types. As I say, so far, it's just dogfighting and one balloon-bust. But I take the point that this all may just be the internal dice-throw that decides what I get, and the dice is just giving me dogfighting.

Maybe it would also be different if I flew in a Spad, or as a German.

 

I appreciate reading all of your input.

Edited December 22, 2006 by IndioBlack

[+Tailspin 3]

ahem....i disagree....but not entirely

 

I await your explanation.

 

BTW IndioBlack...I use the target box myself, but always fly in the cockpit. You really should use the Fokker/Albatros speed fix too as they are almost 50km/hr too slow without it.

[Gr.Viper 131]

But I take the point that this all may just be the internal dice-throw that decides what I get, and the dice is just giving me dogfighting.

I had a look at the campaign .ini file which comes in FEexpertmod - there are strings which, I suppose, determine the chances of certain mission types for all squadrons on the map. Try altering those and you might get more air-to-ground action. Doesn't look like mission types depend on difficulty...

[+Tailspin 3]

Old Guy...do you have the up and down views programmed too? I use two extra keys on my stick base for up and down. That way you have an additional 45 degree up and down view for each snap view. I also have hat forward programmed for the forward view. Then I can activate padlock and use hat forward to snap back and forth to get my bearings.

[Guest IndioBlack]

BTW IndioBlack...I use the target box myself, but always fly in the cockpit. You really should use the Fokker/Albatros speed fix too as they are almost 50km/hr too slow without it.

 

 

You're right, I should use the speed fix. I will.

[+bortdafarm 1]

I await your explanation.

 

 

can't disagree with the fact that placing the "data inis in the aircraft's folder works

can't agree with the assumption that placing the "data inis in the object folder does not work

why? because the stock information is stored in a cat file in exactly the same folder...

and because i'm having a "modders" hunch

 

fun or what!!!

 

whilst it's perfectly obviuos from trying that most changes made to an "data ini in the root folder does nothing

i'm not comvinced that all changes made to an individual aircraft ini in the root folder do nothing at all

there's something subtle going on with the game , as other data inis work perfectly when left in the root folder

i'm betting that certain sections of the inis are read from different locations...placing it in the root folder may allow some additional information to be added to the ini which would not be read or read differently if the ini was located in the aircraft folders...not saying i'm right about this..it's just that i have had this with other games and ...against all eveidence to the contrary i'm usualy right!! (gulp)

anyhuw dun wanna get into one of those "sim" like technocratic issues as were still fishing for answers and trying to get a feel for the game

 

for most edits yup the ini has to go in the aircraft's folder

Edited December 22, 2006 by bortdafarm

[+bortdafarm 1]

I fly with the Info boxes on so that I can ident Primaries, and therefore I get a red box around an enemy aircraft. I also get the cone that points at the bad guys. Consequently, I don't have the problem of finding or not-seeing the enemy. This must give me an excessive advantage over those of you who don't use those aids. My hat is off to you.

 

I use the map to find concentrations of enemy aircraft to chase. Some of you don't. Again this gives me an advantage in finding targets of opportunity.

 

I always fly with the cockpit off, using the iron sight. Consequently I have an enormous amount of situational awareness. I lose the cockpit (even though it is beautifully done) because it is the wrong scale for my monitor. The monitor is in my face, so the Iron sight is more realistic.

 

I like all my aids, so that leaves the only thing that I can do: Change the Campaign to Hard.

 

I appreciate reading all of your input.

 

perhaps the trick here would be to modify the HUd and INFO boxes to enable some sort of mid ground between no aids at all and the slightly over done arrow pointing at the enemy and ident box surrounding it..in combat perhaps changing ALL the boxes and arrows to the same colour would makes life more difficult with-out rendering the player subject to severely to the restricted view system that all flight sims are stuck with..

especaily if your still using the stock set up..(i don't use the rear view "check six" fix etc)

 

personaly i'd LOVE to see the pilot animations include a "point" animation

(he does look at the target but only if you lock it first) so if he actualy pointed at an enemy aircraft when he first see's it (using the closest enemy option) then you could enjoy the external view whilst flying along and be alerted to an enemy by your own pilots animation!! that would be for me a HUGE feature!!

would make such a differnce to the immersion and do the same job as all the aids but in such a nice way..he could point at the nearest frindly or members of your squadron if you get seperated..and at the primary for reference...it wouldn't be exact but i don't think we really want it to be exact...have to leave some room for the un expected..far nicer and in keeping with the nature of the sim/game

 

he could point at the enemy (as we have seen them do in countless movies) and then look at the camera as if to say "eh up bud ...wake up will ya!! your gonna get me killed!"

 

another possibility might be to disable the pilot kill and engine kill for the player and the player squadron..this would only work for the Se5a really as only one other squadron uses the type other than the player..

but i would say that around 50% of the players squadrons AI pilot deaths come from pilot kills and engine kills forcing them down behind enemy lines..(POW) (MIA) etc...

 

 

[Nose]

ParentComponentName=Fuselage

ModelNodeName=Nose

DestroyedNodeName=

ShowFromCockpit=TRUE

DetachWhenDestroyed=FALSE

HasAeroCoefficients=FALSE

MinExtentPosition=-0.37,-0.04,-0.53

MaxExtentPosition= 0.37, 1.65, 0.60

CollisionPoint[001]= 0.00, 1.68, 0.00

DamageRating=DESTROYED

SystemName[001]=Engine

 

// Crew ---------------------------------------------------------

 

[Pilot]

SystemType=PILOT_COCKPIT

PilotModelName=WWIpilot

PilotHeadNodeName=head

Position=0.0,-1.14,0.73

MinExtentPosition=-0.27,-1.49,-0.29

MaxExtentPosition= 0.27,-0.45, 0.84

 

adding armour to the pilot (?) and removing the

SystemName[001]=Engine

from the nose (perhaps replacing it with something else or leaving it empty)

 

would reduce the casualty rate for the AI

it would even if applied to all the aircraft reduce slightly the kill rate for the player....as i (at least) get most of my tally from pilot deaths and engine kills)

dunno about any-one else?

 

i'll try it see if it pans out

Edited December 22, 2006 by bortdafarm

[Gr.Viper 131]

Hm.. it gets a bit funny. I mean, disabling pilot wounds and engine shutdown - weren't these the main reason for WWI planes to go down? I might be better if AI was tweaked in such a way that everyone maneuvered much more. I was able to get numerous kills just because the enemy I tailed suddenly just went straight forward. And they don't try to avoid flak that much - they just go on fighting while I usually drop to 30 meters or less until flaks run out of ammo.

 

The AI in the game lacks survival instinct. Is there a way to teach it?

 

wow, Fokker speed fix really adds fun to the AI battle. At least allied planes don't overrun them so often...

[+bortdafarm 1]

Hm.. it gets a bit funny. I mean, disabling pilot wounds and engine shutdown - weren't these the main reason for WWI planes to go down?

 

yes i reckon your right..but the way things translate into games doesn't allways work out terribly well..

 

i've tried the armour for the pilot and engine approach and in effect it does create some use-full changes ..

precisely for the reason mentioned...

A) the AI pilots have a greater chance of survival (as a rule..the rest of the aircraft is just as vunerable as stock so it varys and is still dynamic..it's not a blanket effect)

B)eye candy....as a result of (A) you see far more aircraft with wingtips missing and other obviuos damge to the aircraft...good for the visual aspect of the game as well...

C) far fewer aircraft left on the ground as a result of engine failure/damage alone.

D) the player as a rule ---see (A) again-- finds it more difficult to get kills...or at the very least he needs to expend more ammo for each....tho most players will simply adapt and go for the tail and wings rather than the fuselage...but he will need to get closer to pick his target area

E)the AI still seem to be able to get the normal amount of kills ..because they don't tend to get so many pilot/engine kills aas the player to begin with

AND the longer they stay alive the more chance they have of finding an ideal (and allready damaged target... )

F)fewer instant deaths for the player...

 

it's worth considering as one possible route..

 

anyhuw here's the files (yes they go into the aircraft folder he he!!)

fepienarm.zip

Edited December 22, 2006 by bortdafarm

[Old Guy 0]

I've flown part of a campaign and a few other missions since changing the MaxRollFormation to 10.0 and I can attest that furballs seem to involve more aircraft, presumably planes that drifted out of the fight with the number set at the default value.

 

I get AI on my tail more often and was shot down once by an AI plane, rather than a tail gunner. my usual method of self destruction.

 

However, a quick F6 tour shows me many loose AI planes spread out across the countryside. A very few are engaged in hesitant combat, while the rest seem to be motoring around at random. I watched one Spad driver dive and climb time after time, for no apparent reason.

 

I'm not overly concerned about the lost sheep. At least the pilots close to the action are getting into the battle.

 

I've had some graphics problems with the planes that were originally non-flyable. I suspect I need some additional files.

 

Jim

[+Tailspin 3]

can't disagree with the fact that placing the "data inis in the aircraft's folder works

can't agree with the assumption that placing the "data inis in the object folder does not work

why? because the stock information is stored in a cat file in exactly the same folder...

and because i'm having a "modders" hunch

 

fun or what!!!

 

whilst it's perfectly obviuos from trying that most changes made to an "data ini in the root folder does nothing

i'm not comvinced that all changes made to an individual aircraft ini in the root folder do nothing at all

there's something subtle going on with the game , as other data inis work perfectly when left in the root folder

i'm betting that certain sections of the inis are read from different locations...placing it in the root folder may allow some additional information to be added to the ini which would not be read or read differently if the ini was located in the aircraft folders...not saying i'm right about this..it's just that i have had this with other games and ...against all eveidence to the contrary i'm usualy right!! (gulp)

anyhuw dun wanna get into one of those "sim" like technocratic issues as were still fishing for answers and trying to get a feel for the game

 

for most edits yup the ini has to go in the aircraft's folder

 

What changes would you be refering to in your modder's hunch? AFAIK the sim reads the individual aircraft .INI then checks the aircraft folder for those files refered to, ie. XXX_DATA.INI, XXX_COCKPIT.INI, XXX_AVIONICS.INI, etc. If those files aren't present, the it reads the .CAT file. If you remove one of those .INIs from the individual aircraft file then the sim reverts to the default values in the .CAT file. If, as in the case of add-on planes, there is no original file in the .CAT file then things won't work at all. Try it with the Gotha. Remove the Gotha DATA.INI and put it in the Objects folder. The plane is no longer selectable in Single Missions because the game can't find its DATA.INI. I wonder if some of those subtleties you are sensing are the changes you've done to other .INIs like MISSION_DATA, CAMPAIGN_DATA, AIRCRAFTOBJECT_DATA files that aren't really related to the aircraft_DATA.INI?

[ezlead 42]

Bortdafarm:

Just an FYI for you.

I used some of your mods to the AI and made changes for a 1962 campaign that I am flying.

The AI are a lot more aggressive and harder to hit.

I am flying an F-8e and I must have either pulled in front of my wingman or P****ed him off because he immediately put an AIM-9b Sidewinder up my A**.

I laughed for about 15 minutes after I found out who shot me down.

I am going to leave the settings where they are because, That's Aggressive.

Thanks for your hard work.

Keep the mods coming!

 

[+bortdafarm 1]

What changes would you be refering to in your modder's hunch? AFAIK the sim reads the individual aircraft .INI then checks the aircraft folder for those files refered to, ie. XXX_DATA.INI, XXX_COCKPIT.INI, XXX_AVIONICS.INI, etc. If those files aren't present, the it reads the .CAT file. If you remove one of those .INIs from the individual aircraft file then the sim reverts to the default values in the .CAT file. If, as in the case of add-on planes, there is no original file in the .CAT file then things won't work at all. Try it with the Gotha. Remove the Gotha DATA.INI and put it in the Objects folder. The plane is no longer selectable in Single Missions because the game can't find its DATA.INI. I wonder if some of those subtleties you are sensing are the changes you've done to other .INIs like MISSION_DATA, CAMPAIGN_DATA, AIRCRAFTOBJECT_DATA files that aren't really related to the aircraft_DATA.INI?

the answer to those questions are ---at the moment---"i have absolutely NO IDEA!!!" it's just a hunch.....but just as in the real world during WW1 just about EVERY trick in the book was tried to improve the real world situation for the aircraft and most of those would sound perfectly crazy and indeed LOOKED perfectly crazy.....BUT every single one of those attempts brought the situation one step closer to something that was use-full.....(strapping a hunk of metal on the propellor to deflect the bullets from a forward firing machine gun!!...now if someone suggested doing that in a sim there'd be crys of CHEAT and the poor guy would be driven from the place with a barrage of contempt etc ..we've all seen it done a hundred times ) for the time being i'm content to stick with my hunch....following just such a hunch got fully functioning changing weather with real world accurate weather reports both dynamic and editable working in Silent Hunter II...and yes i got the same story there.....so no i don't care any-more...it's a hunch it may come to something it may not it's not worth getting over exicited about..i'll let you know of course ..if anything GOOD comes out of it..i'll allso let you know if it does not...fair???)

 

meantime you can take the mickey all you like...

 

Bortdafarm:

Just an FYI for you.

I used some of your mods to the AI and made changes for a 1962 campaign that I am flying.

The AI are a lot more aggressive and harder to hit.

I am flying an F-8e and I must have either pulled in front of my wingman or P****ed him off because he immediately put an AIM-9b Sidewinder up my A**.

I laughed for about 15 minutes after I found out who shot me down.

I am going to leave the settings where they are because, That's Aggressive.

Thanks for your hard work.

Keep the mods coming!

 

many thanks EZ glad to hear there's some spin off's from this stuff going one