Making Some Minor Adjustments to the US Awards While We Wait For P4

[+RAF_Louvert]

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Greetings All,

 

Last weekend I began an American DID campaign with the 17th Aero and soon discovered what others had pointed out about the US awards; they follow no logical or historic guideline at the moment. I realize that one of the features of P4 will be a total rework of the medals system, but for the time being I sorted out how to make a few adjustments of my own for my US pilot. After his first five kills had been confirmed he was given the Congessional Medal of Honor: Not a chance of this happening in RL. After his second five kills had been confirmed he was given yet another CMoH: A snowball surviving it's entire summer vacation in Hell would have been more likely.

 

So, I went into my "PilotXDossier" file, ('X' being the number of the pilot in question), and changed line 20 to read "Distinguished Service Cross", (rather than "Congressional Medal of Honor"), to see if it would change the award, and "Presto!" it was now a DSC. This then got me to wondering if the sim simply recognizes a plain text command and assigns the image with the exact same name from the "Medals" folder. I was very pleased to discover that is precisely how it works. With this new understanding now at my command I created a bmp image for the Belgian Croix de Guerre, (WWI version), and dropped it into the "Medals" folder, then changed line 21 to read "Croix de Guerre Belgium", (again, rather than "Congressional Medal of Honor"), and wouldn't you know that is now what shows as the award.

 

 

 

I chose the Belgian CdG in this instance as there are is a sizable contingent of Belgian troops nearby and during the mission just prior to my second award I had been strafing German ground targets directly across from them. This award would have been far more likely, given the situation, than a CMoH, and historically there were quite a few US pilots who returned from the War with this trinket.

 

If anyone else wishes to use this method during their US campaings you can find accurate historical precedent to follow by reviewing the awards of the many US aces over at The Aerodrome.

 

Enjoy!

 

Lou

 

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[+Olham]

Good idea, Lou (Creaghorn will LOVE it!), I'll see, if I can find similar details

about German pilots. Thanks for sharing!

[Herr Prop-Wasche]

That is most excellent news, Lou!

 

I suppose this also means that my virtual pilot can now "somehow" find himself in possession of a Pour le Merite. (Any rumors that he came into possession of such a prize by scavenging it off a deceased German ace are only rumors, and scandalous at that, requiring pistols at dawn)!