WOV mod Q?- FAC & pop smoke

[Pappa Goat]

Here are two questions:

 

1. Whenever one does a CAS mission in campaign or as a quick mission there are other aircraft rolling out too. How could one have it so that when doing CAS in S. Vietnam, there is always a FAC over the target armed with smoke, marking targets?

 

 

I have thoughts of, and will try, creating a FAC squadron in S Vietnam.... using bird-dogs or broncos, and having the loadout as smoke for 'attack' missions. BUT how could one edit the game so that:

1. The squadron is involved in almost every CAS mission.

2. When the squadron flies only one bird is sent up.

3. It is based close enough or already in the air so that it will be on target roughly when you arrive so you can see where it is marking.

 

2. Is there any way to edit the game so that friendly troops pop smoke on their position when they call for support, and keep on popping smoke? Maybe one of the 'turrets' in the squad could pop smoke instead of fire his rifle, and do so every 2 minutes or so whilst in contact with the enemy? Only problem is then every squad would be popping smoke, when only one is needed.

 

 

ANY IDEAS?

[+eburger68]

Pappa Goat:

 

WoV 8.30.2006 will automatically add a FAC aircraft (the O-1E) that does pretty much what you describe in game-generated single missions and campaign CAS missions. The only thing that "Snoopy" (call sign for the FAC) will not do is mark targets with smoke rockets (though he always says he will).

 

That functionality was partially removed in WoV 10.20.2008 and SF2V, meaning that Snoopy will still function as before in user-created single missions (provided you add a FAC flight and designate its mission type as FAC) but the game will not auto-generate Snoopy in game-created single missions or campaigns. Moreover, in SF2V the O-1E is completely missing, though the game will use alternate FAC aircraft for Snoopy (provided your desired FAC aircraft has FAC as one of its PrimaryRoles in the DATA.INI).

 

As for friendly troops popping smoke, you could create a single soldier ground item whose gun pops a smoke shell that uses the appropriate effects. YAP has several such ground items (one each for various color smoke effects). As you suspect, your problem would be using it in game -- you want one, whereas the game (at least in game-generated missions) will create entire squads out of your smoke-popping soldier. Still, it would be perfectly usable in user-created single missions.

 

Edit: actually your idea for changing one of the guns in a squad unit to smoke-popper with a very low Rate of Fire sounds like it would work.

 

Eric L. Howes

Edited November 17, 2009 by eburger68

[Pappa Goat]

So how can one edit the squadron lists?

And also edit what other flights go up when you do an in game mission?

[+EricJ]

I don't think it's possible, unless you only have specific aircraft and follow the LimitedNationsList for that country. That's one way of doing it. I used to have everything from Indian aircraft to Chinese aircraft. I edited the VietnamSEA_Nations (as well as others) and now have Aussie, USN/USMC/USAF/, and if my mind serves me right, RAF as well, and only NVietnam, so only those aircraft specified show up. And that's based on the UserList.ini of each plane.