Tunisia terrain upgrade WIP

[jet_spud]

i'm really looking forward to this one cos i believe it includes malta and sicily.

 

wrench, if you need any info on raf ops in this area just let me know.

[Wrench]

Just to let everyone know it's on hold right now, as I'm working on Veltro's P-61, as I promised him. Although I had to do a quicky rebuild to the Phillipines map (swaped out the 2 US airfields for runway2 and runway1 -and man, do it need some work overhauling!!!! Research is gonna kill me!!) so the thing has somewhere's to take off from. It looks like PI might be the next WW2 map that gets an overhaul, after Tunisia, Panama/Central America and India-Pakistan. These last 2 are 'modern' maps

 

wrench

kevin stein

[+Baltika]

Hi Wrench,

 

At the risk of being OT, I have thrown together a very very early stage PI full-scale terrain which includes Formosa for Japanese airbases there. If you are going to Wrenchify the Philippines, do you want to take a look at that build?

 

There are some problems with using Edward's PI map which is available here, not least that part of the islands (where the Japanese landings took place in the North) are beyond "The Wall." Also, it is the standard TW 66% (or whatever) scale.

 

So, if PI is on your hitlist for a makeover, I suggest going from the ground up.

 

Here's where I have got to so far:-

 

 

I also thought this would give plenty of room for some later shipborne encounters out in the Philippine Sea, get my drift

 

Let me know if you want it and I'll get it over to you somehow.

 

Cheers,

 

Baltika

Edited September 8, 2009 by Baltika

[Wrench]

YAAAHHH!!! Formosa is there!!! That'll give the IJA/IJN some bomber bases! (also give you a chance to redo the 1941 campaign too!)

 

I think your's is gonna be a MUCH better starting point, being full scale and having the needed Formosa.

 

We'll figure out a way to get it into my hot little hands. No rush, sometime next year is good! LOL! Got at least 3 other maps to do...

 

wrench

kevin stein

[+Baltika]

YAAAHHH!!! Formosa is there!!! That'll give the IJA/IJN some bomber bases! (also give you a chance to redo the 1941 campaign too!)

 

I think your's is gonna be a MUCH better starting point, being full scale and having the needed Formosa.

 

We'll figure out a way to get it into my hot little hands. No rush, sometime next year is good! LOL! Got at least 3 other maps to do...

 

wrench

kevin stein

 

 

Glad you like the look of it. I set out to make a proper PI '41 map for the very reason that that invasion was launched from Formosa,and that would allow a full range of japanese flyable units for that compaign. But, an alternative set of .inis would easily transform it into a later setting for a US liberation campaign.

 

If there's no rush, then what I'll do is continue working up the CityList.ini to convert all the existing target areas to this map. I got about half way before my butterfly's attention span got distracted to other projects. Once that's done, I can zip it up and send it on, or even post it up here as a flyable beta. But, yeah, it could be next year before it happens. I got a few things just needing knocked into shape and kicked out the door first

 

Cheers mate

 

Steven (Baltika)

[jet_spud]

all we need now is a fylable G3M "Nell" and its a bomb run over Clark Field! most of the other planes for both sides in the 41-42 campaign are pretty much already available right?

 

44-45 is good too, except there is no Ki-44 or J2M, least i have'nt found them, strictly speaking the IJN N1K2 "George" should be the earlier N1K1 model but who's splitting hairs............

 

what about kamikazes in the second campaign - is that possible with this engine?

[Wrench]

what about kamikazes in the second campaign - is that possible with this engine?

 

MKSheppard came up with some AI tweeks that seem to create them ... unfortunately, it DOES require creating a 'new' aircraft (which really ain't that hard to do) with the modified AI sections.

 

Unfortunately X2, I haven't had time to experimentate with it either.

 

It's in one of the thread in this forums, look in the 'Invasion of Japan Thread', near the last 2 pages or so

 

wrench

kevin stein

[+PureBlue]

Guys, an off-topic question if I may:

 

How do you go by creating those planning maps with labels?

Is it the 1024x1024 plan map (Which is an exported height map from TE), opened with KMD, showing only selected target areas;

Then capture that screen and write out the area names in Gimp/Photoshop,

 

is that how you do it, or any other easier way?

Edited September 12, 2009 by pureblue

[Silverbolt]

Maybe I should! Ain't it terrible I Nice Jewish Boy ™ like me can't read Hebrew!!!??!!! The stuff on the right kinda looks like 'cursive' Hebrew, but I still can't read it!!

 

wrench

kevin stein

 

i feel your pain Wrench...i can read my name,put teflin, say some bless, say hi, but i don't really understant a thing if it isn't translated in the sidur.

 

[Wrench]

PB: the program I use is an old one by Kreelin, called "SFMap". It reads the HFD and targets ini, looking for runways, and then adds them

 

Mostly I make 2 version, 1 with the lables and one without, import the bmps into Photoshop as a multi-layerd PDS and then just add the new airfield/city dots and labels in there.

 

If it's not around here in the d/l section, let me know and I'll write a quickie readme (as the maps are odd sizes when created, and need to be squared up to the 512x,1024x and 2048x sizes the game needs) and upload it.

 

What's good about SFMap, is it sits right in the main folder (example: C:\Program Files\Wings Over Europe\SFMap.exe). It'll read ALL terrains in that game install; you can have as many copies as you've got installs, and it don't care.

 

SB:, man do I KNOW that feeling! I've some ultra-Orthodox relatives, and I can't understand a thing they say! I've probably forgotten most everything I've ever learned ... a terrible thing to loose one's historical heritage.

 

wrench

kevin stein

[+PureBlue]

Thanks Wrench.

I just starting exploring SFMap, and it's another fine job of programming from Kreelin.

Very very useful.

[Wrench]

Just to let you all know that I'm still working on this ... I want to finish it before the CR.42 is released, but probably won't make it in time.

 

I HAVE, however, created 4 or 5 new cityport tiles, as seen below at Tripoli. Yes, I don know the breakwater extends quite a ways towards the northeast (well, in our time, at least -- I figure it was expaned by Quadaffi)

Consider this (or these) as more or less generic ship basins. To do the Tunis basin alone would probably require 6-8 new tiles, and I just don't feel like building them (and rebuilding the entire city as well, given the game's inherent scaling issues....)

 

BTW, does anyone know if WW2 Tripoli would have a lighthouse?? As you can see, there's a nice empty spot on that jetty for it....

 

wrench

kevin stein

[+LloydNB]

Looks great Wrench

 

I especially like the signal light/watchtower on the breakwater. Nice touch.

 

Lloyd

[Wrench]

Thanks! It's just your garden varitey airfield control tower, although I DID think about using the guardtower, as it's taller. Right opposite it, on the southern breakewater is where I might place a lighthouse (the old brick one would look good there, methinks)

 

You can see Castel Benito in the background, and if you look carefully at the cargo ship at 2 o'clock, you'll see its being manuvered against the jetty by a tug boat.

 

Photoshop always amazes me ... it unbelievable what one can do with the clone stamp tool!!

 

wrench

kevin stein

Edited October 24, 2009 by Wrench

[Wilches]

Cool ! Questions - Will you (Wrench) make a Torch scenario, with historical airbases for Vichy and Aeronavale planes? Will you add the Curtiss H-75, DB-7, D-520 for campaigns or is just the terrain?

[Wrench]

I don't build campaigns ... I'm just the terrain/skins/objects/ini dancer.

 

As to historicaly located bases, cities, etc, within the bounds of the game engine and my skill sets, abso-fraking-lutely!

 

I'm sure the aircraft are being taken off as we speak. Although, we ARE missing the M-3/M-5 Stuart light tanks...plus whatever tanks the Vichy forces had. (although we DO have the Soussa S-35, both in French AND German vairities)

 

wrench

kevin stein

Edited October 25, 2009 by Wrench

[+EricJ]

Just the proverbial question... will a modern setting be able to be used? Or are you keeping it WWII?

Edited October 25, 2009 by EricJ

[Wrench]

WW2 for now (in reference to Morocco/TORCH). Obviously, the terrain features, (cities, rivers, mountains) wouldn't be changing, unless the oceans rise more than 1000 meters or the world turns to ice (which DOES open some quite interesting possibilities....)

 

BUT...as the terrain WAS started with a post-war/post-modern time frame in mind, it'd be a VERY simple matter to replace the WW2 objects with more modern ones. We all know the drill ... find/replace such*and*such with this*and*that in the targets.ini, and add the 'newer' modern tanks, vehicles, ships to the typesini. Nothing to it! Having already done this for the Modern Darwin terrain....

 

The airfields would/will be the most problematic, depending on tiling, if I used the 4-tile airbase for runways 1,4,5,6 no issues. Those placed in the 'desert' won't be a problem. Runway 3 (small) and Runway 2 (medium-small) would be the only real issues for 1950s and up jets. Other than that, the 'terrainobjects' are like the Lok-Nar, for "all times and all galaxies" (sorry, was watching Heavy Metal last week)

 

wrench

kevin stein

[+EricJ]

lol no probs man, thanks!