Medals in OFF

[Ironhat 0]

I'm starting to think the medal awards are some what off. I have a American pilot flying spads with the 94th who has just over 10hrs flying time and 10 confirmed kills. He has been awarded 2 Medal of Honors ! The second one after the last mission when he was shot down after not getting a round off in a dog fight ! He bailed out over enemy lines and escaped prison. For that he gets the MOH ? I hope this is just one of those things programmed into CFS3 and hopefully something the OFF devs can adjust in the future.

[Ironhat 0]

Bailing out is a hold over from my CFS3 days. My guy did it all correct , arms holding the risers etc but they weren't there and as you said , no chute. It was kinda funny in a way.

Seems i read where many years ago they had some chutes late in WWI. Balloon crews used them i think. Maybe air crew very late in the war ?

More comments on this would be interesting.

[ConradB 0]

By the later part of 1918, German flyers began to use them. Although they didn't always work, enough did. Yes, observers would bail out from those gasbags, and parachute to safety.

[Siggi 10]

I believe the allies had parachutes ordered and stocked at least a year before the end of the war but never issued them.

[Morris 2]

Ironhat,

 

I have 4 MOH also for 94th.

 

m

[Hasse Wind 46]

What little I've gathered from Paarma's posts, the awards in P4 are going to be AWESOME. If the current system in OFF P3 is completely unrealistic and unsatisfactory, the P4 award system will take the realism and visual beauty of the medals to another level altogether. So all we have to do is to wait for the next version of the sim...

[+Paarma 0]

Thats right. We have planned do improved new award system and many medals for all countries, but thats probably P4.

Cheers

 

Arto

[Siggi 10]

When's P4 due out?

 

 

 

 

[+Paarma 0]

lol, that guy in the picture obviously know some secret plans of P4.

 

When's P4 due out?

 

 

 

 

[Ironhat 0]

I wonder if they will have to beat him to get the info on P4 ?

 

Come on guys at least give us a hint as to when we might see P4. We understand nothing is written in stone on going live with an expansion.

[Waldemar Kurtz 1]

I don't think the awards are based on what happened in your mission. that is to say, you could fly a mission and come back and get a medal you something you did several missions ago. medals are in direct relationship to victory confirmations. although, historically speaking, it was possible to get a medal for distinguished service even if you never shot down an enemy machine.

 

since OFF is still a work-in-progress we can expect many changes in the decorations of future versions. you probably got a Congressional Medal of Honor for some notable performance earlier in your career. it's not that you got a CMH for bailing out-- it's that you lived long enough to learn about getting the award from your previous exploits.

 

just a case in point, there was one German pilot who scored over 30 victories but never received the expected Pour Le Merite that so many German aviators might have expected by the end of the war. OFF actually has some lag-time between victories and medals. unlike RB3d where you'd get the medal pinned on you as soon as you landed on the ground!

 

and, as many have said, the only air service to issue parachutes to their aviators would be the German Air Service in the last half of 1918. (although I think it started in small numbers between April and July). I don't remember the details too clearly just now.

[GeorgeBoles 0]

Good Afternoon, Chaps.

 

I wonder a few things about this War we are fighting over Flanders Fields.

 

• When I am debriefed and I am told that we "must keep up the pressure", is that a subtle British way of saying that HQ is disappointed with my performance and I am cruising for a court martial?
• What does the R:-20 or R:-30 message mean at the end of some of my logged missions? Have I upset someone in intelligence there?
• Are the first two or three way-points around my home airfield critical too keep Head-Quarters satisfied with my performance. My flight around the aerodrome to allow my squadmates to form up is a much smaller radius than set by the way-points. Usually I fly around the airfield only about half a time, and then I am offered to use X to warp to the next waypoint.
• How do I find these bloody balloons I am supposed to protect or destroy. I can fly to the location as quickly as possible and find no balloon, no troops, no nothing - although there can be strings of balloons two to five miles away all waving happily away.
• Do balloons show up as "vehicles" on the TAC map?
• What to troops marching or dug in show up as: also "vehicles"? (They can be VERY difficult to find in the mountains and forests in Alsace. One needs very keen eyes or even a little radar to help find them. :o)
• When we have to patrol the front, are we supposed to circle the designated waypoint, or patrol between the two waypoints near the front - all in order to keep the Brass happy?

Just trying to help with the war effort here. Unfortunately, when I ask my wingman and other squadron mates to lead the flight, they make a right hash of it lots of times. Uncle Al has warned me of that!

 

Salute to you All,

George.

 

 

[Ironhat 0]

For balloon missions switch to vehicles as you near the area it is in. The one that is your target will be at the end of the waypoint.

Edited February 7, 2010 by Ironhat

[Waldemar Kurtz 1]

I wonder a few things about this War we are fighting over Flanders Fields.

 

• When I am debriefed and I am told that we "must keep up the pressure", is that a subtle British way of saying that HQ is disappointed with my performance and I am cruising for a court martial?

it means nothing, to put it bluntly. it gets said after every mission in which you are not shot down, killed, taken prisoner, what-have-you. it's just another way of saying "hey, hey, don't you want to go up and fly again, lad?" it's nothing to worry about. I'm not entirely sure if court-martials are possible in this game. perhaps I shall go out and unceremoniously kill a half-dozen of my wingmen and find out! :p

 

 

• What does the R:-20 or R:-30 message mean at the end of some of my logged missions? Have I upset someone in intelligence there?

good question. it's the number that represents the "realism multiplyer". the more difficult you make the realism settings the higher this factor will be. if you change any of the realism settings this final number will be changed in your logbooks. to test this theory out, try making your pilot invincible or give him unlimited ammo and then compare it to a mission flown with all of the highest difficulty settings. I've found that this R-score is no longer posted in my campaigns now that I use "Hat in the Ring" patch.

 

• Are the first two or three way-points around my home airfield critical too keep Head-Quarters satisfied with my performance. My flight around the aerodrome to allow my squadmates to form up is a much smaller radius than set by the way-points. Usually I fly around the airfield only about half a time, and then I am offered to use X to warp to the next waypoint.

I believe these waypoints are probably required by the AI to navigate safely. some games (like RB3D) have an orbit or loiter function where the AI is able to circle about a single point for a specified period of time. CFS3 seems to be more specific in it's needs. so I guess they need those numerous little waypoints on take-off to make sure that the AI don't start stooging along the deck immediately.

 

• How do I find these bloody balloons I am supposed to protect or destroy. I can fly to the location as quickly as possible and find no balloon, no troops, no nothing - although there can be strings of balloons two to five miles away all waving happily away.

as Ironhat said, it will be the one closest to your designated waypoint. in fact, you'll have to fly directly over the balloon to have the TAC prompt your next waypoint.

 

 

Do balloons show up as "vehicles" on the TAC map?

 

yes

 

• What to troops marching or dug in show up as: also "vehicles"? (They can be VERY difficult to find in the mountains and forests in Alsace. One needs very keen eyes or even a little radar to help find them. :o)

yes, troops do show up as vehicles. it's odd, but you CAN find them with the TAC display by switching to vehicles.

 

• When we have to patrol the front, are we supposed to circle the designated waypoint, or patrol between the two waypoints near the front - all in order to keep the Brass happy?

when you patrol the front you can do whatever you want, I suppose. I've found that if I follow the mission waypoints TOO closely the game will decide "job well done, chaps!" and give me that dreaded purple 'MISSION COMPLETE' text. so now I avoid finishing all of my mission objectives until as late as possible during the sortie-- sometimes I outright ignore them. the reason being is that the second the game manager figures out your "mission is complete" it no longer logs ANYTHING of your flight. no elapsed time, no victories, no injuries, no deaths. this became painfully obvious when I flew a recon sortie. after finishing the prescribed 20 minutes over the target I stumbled onto a flight of some 8 enemy fighters, shot down two before getting sent down in flames and having my machine fly into hundreds of little pieces. when I got home it congratulated me on a job well done-- and that I had to keep the pressure on. why did it do that, you might ask? because I had completed the primary mission objective intact! so, there are times where I would advise people to NOT complete the mission objectives too early!

 

 

[Rickitycrate 10]

Siggi, that guy got out of the straight jacket but they caught him when his pants fell down. Seems his belt betrayed him.

[GeorgeBoles 0]

Good Evening, Chaps.

 

Very helpful responses to my questions, and especially to Waldemur for your excellent summary of the things which have concerned me a bit ... about the game, not Real Life.

 

Thanks again,

George