Bletchley

Available soon, from here: http://combatace.com/files/category/353-maps-missions-and-campaigns/ This is the final date-mod, covering August-November 1918. New missions for two-seater pilots include spy-drops (the elusive 'Beatrice') and supply-drops (British only). At the beginning of August the initiative passed back to the Allied armies. In the British sector Haig was planning an assault on the Amiens front - an attack by the British Fourth Army and French First Army, with massed tanks and aircraft to replace the long preliminary bombardments of the previous year. Air activity was increased on all British sectors, to conceal the point of attack and push back German recon. aircraft from the front. Bomber squadrons, heavily escorted, were tasked to attack airfields and rail centres - activity that was to be strongly, if selectively, opposed by large numbers of German fighters flying in groups of 20 to 40 aircraft, above the low-flying two-seaters on ground attack, counter-battery and contact patrols. The British and French offensive was launched on 8th August, concealed by a heavy ground mist. The German Army was taken by surprise, and Allied forces advanced up to 8 miles on the first day. The British two-seaters concentrated on contact patrolling, counter-battery work and bombing behind the lines, whilst the fighters were used for ground attack and close offensive patrols. By 11th August, however, German resistance and reinforcements had brought the Allied attack to a halt. The British and French armies had advanced 12 miles. At the end of August another British and French assault was launched - this time, towards Bapaume with an assault to capture the Arras-Albert railway line along 33 miles of front, and a French assault between the British sector and Soissons. The aim this time was to overwhelm German forces and drain them of the capacity to counter-attack by attacking along a wide front. Bapaume fell on the 29th August, Peronne on 1st September. This sustained assault forced the Germany Army to retreat back from the Drocourt-Queant line to prepared positions further back, with Lens abandoned on 3rd September. On 12th September US forces launched at attack on the St. Mihiel salient, which was captured after just two days of fierce fighting. This was followed by a lull in the fighting, as preparations were made for the final Allied assault to break through the Hindenburg Line. Air fighting was intense throughout this whole period, and up to the end of October. The assault was finally launched with an attack towards Cambrai on the 27th September, followed by an attack in Flanders between Dixmude and St. Eloi on the 28th, and on the Hindenburg Line between Cambrai and St. Quentin on the 29th. By the beginning of October the Germany Army was in retreat, in almost all areas, although the air above the battlefield was still being strongly contested by the German fighter wings. On the ground, however, resistance was now crumbling fast, and German columns were in retreat along the roads back to Germany.... Bletchley

"is it possible to have - say - one mod of 1916, one of 1917 and one of 1918 active in JSGME, as they are not for the same period of time?" One from 1917 and one from 1918 are probably OK, as only the mission types change - for 1915 and early 1916 the flak file also changes, so you might find that the Allied flak artillery are using the less effective shrapnel shells into 1917/18 if you have both 1915 or early 1916 'active' at the same time as 1917 and 1918. Not sure if there would be any other problems - I havn't tried to keep more than one 'active', and so I would generally recommend just one of these date-mods be 'active' at any one time. But you could try, see what happens :) Bletchley

I will be away until 16th now, so I won't be able to respond to any questions until then. But will catch up on my return, so do please report anything odd like this - also, on your impressions of the flak settings now. Thanks :) Bletchley There may be some link between the mission type selected and the AI aggression settings, so in fiddling with these mission type settings I may have unintentionally introduced some less aggressive AI pilot behaviour... I guess the AI might be more focussed on the mission 'task' now than air combat ... just a thought.

Hmmm...Not sure why this should be, if it is. I only changed the mission types and the flak effects, but this might have had an unintended effect on the AI (?). I know that when HPW brought out his first damage mod this effected the OFF dice-roll-on-death setting, somehow, to produce player-pilots that could not be slain - even though he was only changing aircraft files. So I guess it is possible that these date-mods have done something similar, but to the AI this time (?). Bletchley

File Name: 1918(3) OFF MOD File Submitter: Bletchley File Submitted: 07 April 2011 File Category: Maps, Missions, and Campaigns New missions. 1918(3) August-November. At the beginning of August the initiative passed back to the Allied armies. In the British sector Haig was planning an assault on the Amiens front -an attack by the British Fourth Army and French First Army, with massed tanks and aircraft to replace the long preliminary bombardments of the previous year. Air activity was increased on all British sectors, to conceal the point of attack and push back German recon. aircraft from the front. Bomber squadrons, heavily escorted, were tasked to attack airfields and rail centres - activity that was to be strongly, if selectively, opposed by large numbers of German fighters flying in groups of 20 to 40 aircraft, above the low-flying two-seaters on ground attack, counter-battery and contact patrols. The British and French offensive was launched on 8th August, concealed by a heavy ground mist. The German Army was taken by surprise, and Allied forces advanced by up to 8 miles on the first day. The British two-seaters concentrated on contact patrolling, counter-battery work and bombing behind the lines, whilst the fighters were used for ground attack and close offensive patrols. By 11th August, however, German resistance and reinforcements had brought the Allied attack to a halt. The British and French armies had advanced 12 miles. At the end of August another British and French assault was launched - this time, towards Bapaume with an assault to capture the Arras-Albert railway line along 33 miles of front, and a French assault between the British sector and Soissons. The aim this time was to overwhelm German forces and drain them of the capacity to counter-attack by attacking along a wide front. Bapaume fell on the 29th August, Peronne on 1st September. This sustained assault forced the Germany Army to retreat back from the Drocourt-Queant line to prepared positions further back, with Lens abandoned on 3rd September. On 12th September US forces launched at attack on the St. Mihiel salient, which was captured after just two days of fierce fighting. This was followed by a lull in the fighting, as preparations were made for the final Allied assault to break through the Hindenburg Line. Air fighting was intense throughout this whole period, and up to the end of October. The assault was finally launched with an attack towards Cambrai on the 27th September, followed by an attack in Flanders between Dixmude and St. Eloi on the 28th, and on the Hindenburg Line between Cambrai and St. Quentin on the 29th. By the beginning of October the Germany Army was in retreat, in almost all areas, although the air above the battlefield was still being strongly contested by the German fighter wings. On the ground, however, resistance was now crumbling fast, and German columns were in retreat along the roads back to Germany.... Click here to download this file

Available now from here: http://combatace.com/files/category/353-maps-missions-and-campaigns/ (mistyped as 1918(20 OFF MOD - if any admin. are reading this, please edit it to read 1918(2) OFF MOD, if possible. Thanks. I don't seem to be able to edit it) 1918(2) May-July. The German offensives on the Aisne, the Matz, and the Marne. During this period the technological pendulum started to swing back towards the Garman air service once again, as increasing numbers of the new types, and particularly the Fokker D.VII, started to give the German pilots an edge at high altitude over the Allied pilots. At the same time, however, the close infantry and combined arms support doctrines being developed and practised by both side brought the main focus of this air fighting right down to ground level, where the decisive moves were now being played out. After the failure to make a decisive breakthrough against the British Army in the north, the German focus of attention switched to the French sector. On the 27th May 1918 the German Army attacked the French and British positions on the Aisne. Within a few hours the Germans had punched a large hole in their line, crossing the Aisne and advancing for 12 miles, supported by ground attack and contact patrols flown by Schlachtstaffeln under an umbrella of near complete air supremacy provided by the Jastas flying above them. By the 29th May the German advance had reached Soissons, and was heading for Paris - only to be brought to a halt by US reinforcements rushed in to the defence at Chateau Thierry. This was followed by an Allied counter-attack at Bellau Wood on the 4th June, one that completely halted the German advance. The Germans once again shifted their focus of attack, and on the 9th June they launched their attack on the Matz. Once again they made swift early progress, 6 miles on the first day, but the French were ready for them this time and launched a counter-attack on the 10th July that halted the German advance. The Allied recon. and photo.recon work was intensified, as a further attack was anticipated, and the bombing of German rail centres began again to try and disrupt the movement of German troops. When the third and final German attack was launched, it came on the 15th July, on the Marne against the French army around Rheims. But once again the attack was brought to a halt, on the 18th July, by an Allied counter-attack that pushed the German forces back right across the Marne. By the beginning of August Soissons had been recaptured and the initiative was once again in the hands of the Allies... Bletchley

1918(3) will have a new mission type in the quiet sectors (if there are any...), but only if you are flying a two-seater. On this mission, 'Spy drop', your temporary 'Observer' will be the seductive 'Beatrice' (but it is no good looking in the unit roster, she isn't there), and your task will be to drop her near a factory behind the enemy lines. But she is possibly a double, or even a triple agent... this little hussy seems to be working for the British, the French, and the Germans... :) Bletchley On these missions you might want to ditch any 'escort' that is asigned to you (two's company, three's a crowd...). You will also be advised that you need to leave all your ammo. and bombs behind, as the elusive 'Beatrice' needs the space and the weight allowance for her pigeons and her signalling equipment...

File Name: 1918(20 OFF MOD File Submitter: Bletchley File Submitted: 05 April 2011 File Category: Maps, Missions, and Campaigns New missions, May-July 1918. The German offensives on the Aisne, the Matz, and the Marne. During this period the technological pendulum started to swing back towards the Garman air service once again, as increasing numbers of the new types, and particularly the Fokker D.VII, started to give the German pilots an edge at high altitude over the Allied pilots. At the same time, however, the close infantry and combined armes support doctrines being developed and practised by both side brought the main focus of this air fighting right down to ground level, where the decisive moves were now being played out. After the failure to make a decisive breakthrough against the British Army in the north, the German focus of attention switched to the French sector. On the 27th May 1918 the German Army attacked the French and British positions on the Aisne. Within a few hours the Germans had punched a large hole in their line, crossing the Aisne and advancing for 12 miles, supported by ground attack and contact patrols flown by Schlachtstaffeln under an umbrella of near complete air supremacy provided by the Jastas flying above them. By the 29th May the German advance had reached Soissons, and was heading for Paris - only to be brought to a halt by US reinforcements rushed in to the defence at Chateau Thierry. This was followed by an Allied counter-attack at Bellau Wood on the 4th June, one that completely halted the German advance. The Germans once again shifted their focus of attack, and on the 9th June they launched their attack on the Matz. Once again they made swift early progress, 6 miles on the first day, but the French were ready for them this time and launched a counter-attack on the 10th July that halted the German advance. The Allied recon. and photo.recon work was intensified, as a further attack was anticipated, and the bombing of German rail centres began again, to try and disrupt the movement of German troops. When the third and final German attack was launched, it came on the 15th July, on the Marne against the French army around Rheims. But once again the attack was brought to a halt, on the 18th July, by an Allied counter-attack that pushed the German forces back right across the Marne. By the beginning of August Soissons had been recaptured and the initiative was once again in the hands of the Allies... Click here to download this file

Available now from here: http://combatace.com/files/category/353-maps-missions-and-campaigns/ 1918(1) January-April : German Spring Offensive in Picardy and on the Lys. Poor weather in January restricted much British air observation, but as the weather improved it was clear, by February, that the German build-up was taking place against the British Third and Fifth Armies opposite the Cambrai salient. During this period Jagdgeschwader 1 was joined by two new German fighter wings, JG2 and JG3, to give the German air service a numerical superiority for the first time. But they were remaining quiet, for the most part, trying to conceal the extent of the build-up of air units in this sector, only bombing the British rear areas by night and sending out high altitude recon., photorecon. and art.obs. machines by day. The British responded to this build-up with a programme of intensive recon. and bombing of the German airfields and rail network by day and by night. Fighter squadrons were also being used to attack airfields by day - in part, in an attempt to lure the German fighters into the air (mostly without much success). But the main work of the Corps machines was with their artillery units, ranging the guns on to enemy gun batteries, supply dumps and lines of communication in the front sectors. This was supported by the fighter units, flying squadron-strength 'Close' and 'Distant' patrols to keep the airspace over the front clear of German machines. On 21st March the German Spring Offensive was unleashed, aiming for Amiens. German two-seaters supported the attack with contact patrols, ground attack and art.obs., with the single-seater fighters flying above to protect them from air attack. As and when the weather allowed, British machines were also flying contact patrols and tactical recon. missions, with fighters flying line patrols and ground attack missions. The bombers were attacking rail junctions and bridges, mostly but not always, by night. After eight days of heavy fighting the German assault was held along the Amiens Defence Line, a line stretching from Mezieres to Ignaucourt and Hamel, and on 5th April the German attack towards Amiens was finally blocked, just ten miles short, at Villers Bretonneaux. On the 9th April the German focus switched to the Lys valley with a surprise assault on the weakly held British and Portuguese line in heavy mist. After the initial breakthrough and swift advance, this attack was also held, although in the ten days that it lasted the Germans managed to recover nearly all the territory lost to the British in the previous autumn. By the end of April, however, both attacks had been halted. The Germans were aware, though, that a decisive breakthrough was still an urgent necessity - In April nearly 120,000 US troops had landed in France, to be followed by a further 220,000 in May and another 275,000 in June. German attention now switched again to the French sector, for one more throw of the dice before it would, finally, be too late... Bletchley

Thank you Olham, it is great to read these stories. I am glad the date-mods are working :) Bletchley 18(2) May-July will be up soon. The last one will then be 18(3) August-November. I will be away for a week from the 8th, so I will try and get the last two done by then.

"How often did RFC pilots typically get assigned to balloon busts?" I would say, not often, and some never. Attacking the balloon line was usually done just before or in the first few days of an offensive (from 1917 onwards) to try and 'blind' the enemy to the last minute movement of troops and equipment into the forward positions, and to conceal any initial progress on the ground. It was usually a concerted attack along the whole balloon line, not just isolated attacks against individual balloons - the individual attacks on isolated balloons were usually undertaken as a 'self-tasked' mission by pilots who went on to specialise in this dangerous work (most pilots appear to have stayed well away). So for this reason, in the date-mods, I made balloon attacks a mission only in the 'active' sectors, and they should not come up very often even there, but it is a frequent option as part of a lone-wolf mission in 'quiet' sectors. The balloons themselves were easy to replace, and shooting only one or two down was mostly a temporary inconvenience - but the trained Observer was valuable, which is why they were issued with a parachute :) Bletchley

So far as the date-mods go, the difference is in the missions you get to fly. The generic set of OFF missions does not change throughout the year. In the 'active sector' mod you will get more ground support type missions (contact patrols, ground attacks, balloon busts, etc.). In the 'quiet sector' mod you are more likely to get a free-ranging or 'lone wolf' type patrol, or a long recon., or a long offensive patrol. This will vary by the period (sometimes on the offensive, sometimes on the defensive), and by your choice of pilot nationailty (so you won't get any long offensive patrols or ground attack missions if you are flying a German fighter). The only date-mod that changes the level of air activity is the '1915' mod, where 'light' air activity is pre-selected within the weather file (if you find that you don't like this, you can increase the regional air activity setting in the workshop by one level, and this should get you back to something like the previous default setting). Bletchley

I have mostly just paraphrased the historical background from entries in Trevor Henshaw's 'The sky their battlefield' :) Bletchley

File Name: 1918(1) OFF MOD File Submitter: Bletchley File Submitted: 03 April 2011 File Category: Maps, Missions, and Campaigns New missions. 1918(1) January-April : German Spring Offensive in Pacardy and on the Lys. Poor weather in January restricted much British air observation, but as the weather improved it was clear, by February, that the German build-up was taking place against the British Third and Fifth Armies opposite the Cambrai salient. During this period Jagdgeschwader 1 was joined by two new German fighter wings, JG2 and JG3, to give the German air service a numerical superiority for the first time. But they were remaining quiet, for the most part, trying to conceal the extent of the build-up of air units in this sector, only bombing the British rear areas by night and sending out high altitude recon., photorecon. and art.obs. machines by day. The British responded to this build-up with a programme of intensive recon. and bombing of the German airfiels and rail network by day and by night. Fighter squadrons were also being used to attack airfields by day - in part, is an attempt to lure the German fighters into the air (mostly without much success). But the main work of the Corps machines was with their artillery units, ranging the guns on to enemy gun batteries, supply dumps and lines of communication in the front sectors. This was supported by the fighter units, flying squadron-strength 'Close' and 'Distant' patrols to keep the airspace over the front clear of German machines. On 21st March the German Spring Offensive was unleashed, aiming for Amiens. German two-seaters supported the attack with contact patrols, ground attack and art.obs., with the single-seater fighters flying above to protect them from air attack. As and when the weather allowed, British machines were also flying contact patrols and tactical recon. missions, with fighters flying line patrols and ground attack missions. The bombers were attacking rail junctions and bridges, mostly but not always, by night. After eight days of heavy fighting the German assault was held along the Amiens Defence Line, a line stretching from Mezieres to Ignaucourt and Hamel, and on 5th April the German attack towards Amiens was finally blocked, just ten miles short, at Villers Bretonneaux. On the 9th April the German focus switched to the Lys valley with a surprise assault on the weakly held British and Portuguese line in heavy mist. After the initial breakthrough and swift advance, this attack was also held, although in the ten days that it lasted the Germans managed to recover nearly all the territory lost to the British in the previouse autumn. By the end of April, however, both attacks had been halted. The Germans were aware, though, that a decisive breakthrough was still an urgent necessity - In April nearly 120,000 US troops had landed in France, to be followed by a further 220,000 in May and another 275,000 in June. German attention now switched again to the French sector, for one more throw of the dice before it would, finally, be too late... Click here to download this file

1917(1) will cover the period from January through to April 1917 : the withdrawal of the German army to the Hindenburg Line, the diversionary Battle of Arras and Nivelle's great offensive in the Champaign. Available from: http://combatace.com/files/category/353-maps-missions-and-campaigns/ Have fun! Bletchley

File Name: 1917(2) OFF MOD File Submitter: Bletchley File Submitted: 02 April 2011 File Category: Maps, Missions, and Campaigns New mission, same new flak. 1917(2) covers the period May - December, starting with the winding down of the British Arras spring offensive and ending with the Battle of Cambrai in the autumn. During this period the French front was quiet, following on from the failure of Nivelle's offensive on the Aisne, and attention was now about to switch to the Flanders area. During one of the worst summers on record, wet and miserable, the British repeatedly tried to break through the well prepared German defences in Flanders - starting with the successful capture of the Messines-Wytschaete ridge in June, to prevent the Germans from gaining overlook of the preparations for the major British offensive of that year, the Third Battle of Ypres, that opened on 31st July but failed to make much progress, continuing sporadically after this initial failure into further assaults: on the Polygon Wood (end of September), Paschendaele Ridge (October), and then the Battle for Paschendaele itself between 30th October and 10th November. Finally, with the use of tanks, a partial breakthrough was achieved further south, at Cambrai, but it was ultimately a failure due to the lack of reserves needed to exploit the opening, and ended with a successful German counterattack south of Bourlon Wood. In this eight month period there was a considerable shift in air tactics on both sides of the line. The German air service, despite expansion by the end of the year to almost twice the size that it was at the start, was still struggling against numerically superior odds and an influx of British pilots now better trained, with technologically superior aircraft, and deployed in larger squadron-strength offensive patrols. To prevent the British regaining air supremacy over the vital 'active' areas of this front, the Germans responded by grouping their best pilots and Jastas into the first wing-sized formation, or Jagdgeschwader 1 "Richthofen's Circus", that could be moved along the front to wherever it was most needed. This had the effect, however, of taking the best pilots and units away from the 'quiet' sectors, and this allowed the British Corps machines to go about their daily photo.recon. and art.obs. missions in these areas with far less opposition than might otherwise have been the case. Both the British and the German air services also started to develop a doctrine of ground attack, a development of the 'contact patrol' into a full fledged 'battle' or 'protection' patrol aimed at the silencing or supression of the mg nests and hidden artillery batteries that formed the major obstacle to the advancing infantry (the product of a new doctrine of 'elastic' defence, developed first by the Germans along the Hindenburg Line and subsequently adopted by the British as well). Scouts, such as the DH5 and the Camel, were used for this by the British, whilst special 'Schutzstaffeln' two-seater units were used by the Germans. The period also saw the development of the first 'wireless intercept' missions on both sides, where the wireless signals from the enemy art.obs. aircraft were triangulated by listening posts along the line, and a pair or section of fighters, held at readyness, would be 'scrambled' to intercept (but often arriving too late). The British also extended the strafing and bombing missions into the German rear areas, targetting the lines of communication and airfields, whilst two-seaters would bomb the airfields and railway junctions by day and night. Despite these efforts the British had nevertheless failed to make a decisive breakthrough by the end of the year, and were about to be forced back onto the defensive as the German forces started to redeploy westwards after the end of the Russian campaign in the autum of 1917. The Germans knew that if they were to have any chance of winning the war in the west, they needed to strike now, before the USA's entry into the war tipped the balance decisively back in favour of the Allies... Click here to download this file

Next up will be 1917(2) - uploaded, but waiting to 'clear'. 1917(2) covers the period May - December, starting with the winding down of the British Arras spring offensive and ending with the Battle of Cambrai in the autumn. During this period the French front was quiet, following on from the failure of Nivelle's offensive on the Aisne, and attention was now about to switch to the Flanders area. During one of the worst summers on record, wet and miserable, the British repeatedly tried to break through the well prepared German defences in Flanders - starting with the successful capture of the Messines-Wytschaete ridge in June, to prevent the Germans from gaining overlook of the preparations for the major British offensive of that year, the Third Battle of Ypres, that opened on 31st July but failed to make much progress, continuing sporadically after this initial failure into further assaults: on the Polygon Wood (end of September), Paschendaele Ridge (October), and then the Battle for Paschendaele itself between 30th October and 10th November. Finally, with the use of tanks, a partial breakthrough was achieved further south, at Cambrai, but it was ultimately a failure due to the lack of reserves needed to exploit the opening, and ended with a successful German counterattack south of Bourlon Wood. In this eight month period there was a considerable shift in air tactics on both sides of the line. The German air service, despite expansion by the end of the year to almost twice the size that it was at the start, was still struggling against numerically superior odds and an influx of British pilots now better trained, with technologically superior aircraft, and deployed in larger squadron-strength offensive patrols. To prevent the British regaining air supremacy over the vital 'active' areas of this front, the Germans responded by grouping their best pilots and Jastas into the first wing-sized formation, or Jagdgeschwader 1 "Richthofen's Circus", that could be moved along the front to wherever it was most needed. This had the effect, however, of taking the best pilots and units away from the 'quiet' sectors, and this allowed the British Corps machines to go about their daily photo.recon. and art.obs. missions in these areas with far less opposition than might otherwise have been the case. Both the British and the German air services also started to develop a doctrine of ground attack, a development of the 'contact patrol' into a full fledged 'battle' or 'protection' patrol aimed at the silencing or supression of the mg nests and hidden artillery batteries that formed the major obstacle to the advancing infantry (the product of a new doctrine of 'elastic' defence, developed first by the Germans along the Hindenburg Line and subsequently adopted by the British as well). Scouts, such as the DH5 and the Camel, were used for this by the British, whilst special 'Schutzstaffeln' two-seater units were used by the Germans. The period also saw the development of the first 'wireless intercept' missions on both sides, where the wireless signals from the enemy art.obs. aircraft were triangulated by listening posts along the line, and a pair or section of fighters, held at readyness, would be 'scrambled' to intercept (but often arriving too late). The British also extended the strafing and bombing missions into the German rear areas, targetting the lines of communication and airfields, whilst two-seaters would bomb the airfields and railway junctions by day and night. Despite these efforts the British had nevertheless failed to make a decisive breakthrough by the end of the year, and were about to be forced back onto the defensive as the German forces started to redeploy westwards after the end of the Russian campaign in the autum of 1917. The Germans knew that if they were to have any chance of winning the war in the west, they needed to strike now, before the USA's entry into the war tipped the balance decisively back in favour of the Allies... Bletchley Next one, 1918(1) January-April :)

"Would this mean, that in the area of the Niville offensive, there would be "most action"? I just checked a map of the area around Laon, but there were not many Jastas there?" Well yes, in theory - but I don't think OFF is really optimised for French campaigns in Phase 3 ... maybe in Phase 4 ? :) Bletchley New mission type appearing with the 1917(2) mod - 'wireless intercept' missions where 'lone wolf' scout aircraft are 'scrambled' to intercept enemy art.obs. aircraft that have been located by triangulation from wireless listening posts... :)

Get it here: http://combatace.com/files/file/11860-1915-off-mod/ Whilst we wait for P4... 1915 This is a small historical mod that provides a much more detailed, varied, and historically accurate weather file for 1915 than currently exists in OFF; new 100% 'Lone Wolf' missions (Bomber & Fighter) that better reflect the air service roles in 1915 than the current 'generic' ones provided by OFF; and new Anti-Aircraft Artillery shells that are historically closer in their blast effects to the WWI HE and Shrapnel shells that were in use in 1915 (the current default AA shell in OFF is a direct copy of a WWII 88mm round). There are 2 files: 1915 Quiet Sector and 1915 Active Sector. To install this mod, unzip the 1915 folder from the zip folder and drop these two folders, found within, into the JGSME MODS folder: They are both installed (either one or the other, never both at the same time!) using the JSGME mods installer. If you have used HPW's damage mods, you will already have this installed in the CFSWW1 Over Flanders Fields folder. If not, follow the instructions given by HPW for installing this nifty tool :) Drop them both into the JSGME MODS folder, then use JSGME to 'activate' one or other of the files, depending on the level of campaign activity in your sector (the OFF campaign will tell you when it is quiet or active in your sector). If the campaign transitions from 'Quiet' to 'Active' just de-activate the 1915 Quiet Sector file and activate the 1915 Active Sector file (and vice versa). This will give you a different set of mission types. 1915 Quiet Sector and 1915 Active Sector contain a number of files in common:- OFFHistoricalWeather1915 This simply replaces the current OFF file of the same name in the OFF folder : OBDSoftware: CFSWW1 Over Flanders Fields:campaigns:CampaignData:Weather Weapons this contains modified Alliedflak_round and Germanflak_round files that 'tone down' the blast value of both the German HE (TNT) and Allied Shrapnel rounds. The accuracy and the blast radius are not changed at all, so the chances of being hit remain the same - but with much reduced blast effects you should notice much more varied and generally less immediately fatal damage effects. A single direct hit will still finish you off, though :) BritainBomberMissionTypes1915 BritainFighterMissionTypes1915 GermanyFighterMissionTypes1915 These contain the new mission types for your campaign - they are all 'Lone Wolf' (i.e. you will be flying alone on all missions), but you will otherwise be given a suitable mission to do, with a full mission briefing. This reflects the reality in 1915, that nearly all the missions were flown by individual aircraft (or at most a pair of aircraft). Making all of the mission types 'Lone Wolf' has, however, meant that although you will still be congratulated for a successful ground strike you will never be credited with any balloons shot down, and will not otherwise gain credits towards promotion for successful missions. If you are unhappy with this, you can still manually edit your pilot's data file to promote him or add the missing balloon kills (to be found in OBDSoftware: CFSWW1 Over Flanders Fields:campaigns:CampaignData:Pilots file). Have fun! Bletchley

File Name: 1917(1) OFF MOD File Submitter: Bletchley File Submitted: 01 April 2011 File Category: Maps, Missions, and Campaigns New missions, flak. 917(1) covers the period from January through to April 1917 : the withdrawal of the German army to the Hindenburg Line, the diversionary Battle of Arras and Nivelle's great offensive in the Champagn. It was a period in which an Allied numerical superiority in the air was pitted against a technologically superior and increasingly well organised but still outnumbered German opposition, as the expansion in the RFC and RNAS saw hundreds of the older machines and under-trained air crew flooding into France. In the first months of 1917 the German army took the strategic initiative, following a period of poor weather that hindered the Allied recon. activity, with a well planned 'scorched earth' withdrawl to a prepared defensive line. British recon. and photo recon. resources were stretched to the limit, with scouts being drafted in to take on some of the work, as they desperately photographed and mapped the new German trench systems, whilst other two-seater units covered the advancing troops with low level contact missions. The advance was harassed in many places by German two-seater aircraft doing the same, and by aggressive but sporadic attacks by the German Jastas (although many of these were now in the south, to cover French preparations in the Champagn region). So much British effort was going in to recon., and on escorting the recon. aircraft, that Allied bombing switched to night bombing, of rail and communication centres, with little in the way of day bombing. The British then launched their attack on the Arras front at the beginning of April. The Art.Obs., particularly counter-battery work, now had the highest priority, along with tactical recon. and photo recon. missions along the front, with some scouts once again being drafted in to do some of the recon. work and also to attack the balloon line. Heavily escorted day bombing now resumed, mostly against rail centres, to try and stop the Germans bringing forward reinforcements. As the British threatened to break through at Arras the Germans drew in air resources from the south of the region, and the now numerically strengthened German fighter force (including new types such as the Albatros D.III) started to take a heavy toll on the British Corps machines, bombers, long recon., and their escorting scouts. On 14th April the French launched Nivelle's long awaited offensive in the Champagne, but the Germans had advance knowledge of the detailed planning for this and it ground to a halt, after very heavy losses that tore the heart out of the French army. By the end of April the French were back on the defensive and fighting at Arras was winding down. But new British aircraft types such as the SE5 and the Bristol Fighter, deployed too little and too late to have a significant impact, were already in France, and others such as the Camel and the DH4 were on the way...the pendulum was about to swing again as the British, having survived 'Bloody April' with the offensive doctrine intact, and despite heavy losses in the air, prepared for a major offensive in the north. Click here to download this file