SandyC

Whirlwind Over Vietnam: such anticipation, such disappointment. I had fantasies of a great mission editor which would allow the Vietnam conflict to come alive...

Someone will quite soon produce a version which does not need an investment of $25,000 - and then...and then...all those helos and planes I have been dreaming of... But then, what about the FMs, and the weps packs and the skinning?

Thanks, Capun and the A-Team for this classic helicopter. It has been a sorely needed addition to the TW series, so your work on this fine little baby is much appreciated!

I find that you need to keep reminding them to attack. For ground pounding, I give them the command to attack the ground through 'Tab' as I begin my attack run - and then repeat it just before I release my ordnance. Do it earlier and they wander off to other locations. But as the action progresses, I keep sending out a stream of commands. I find that as long as I stick around the scene and issue orders, they do quite a bit of damage. If I head for home, they just fly around until they get wasted or eventually RTB. Last mission out, the AI in a 16-ship Iron Hand attack force killed a whole selection of radars and SAM launchers, as well as a couple of AAA mounts - and that was right down to the sixteenth ship. If I do not issue orders, they just fly around uselessly and RTB with full weapons loads. Sometimes I act as a kind of aerial fire director, orbiting the target, ordering the AI ships in and then attacking when they are committed. But there is no logic to it. I can always guarantee that no matter how many orders I issue, a few of the AI will appear in the log as 'No weapon fired'! I don't know if I am just lucky but I set up a 4-ship AI F4 CAP formation and, although 2 were blown to bits by a SAM salvo, the two survivors knocked 8 MiG-19s out of the sky in a Sparrow-fest. It could also be that the AI behaves better in missions you make yourself than it does in the missions generated by the game engine. People criticise the flight models of the AI in the IL-2 series but the AI aircraft naturally do the fighting business when they are in a mission. It is harder work to get them fighting in TW games but it can be done.

Too cool. Thanks for the work!

No, no...not the eels!

Thanks, Julhelm, for more work on this classic aircraft!

Thanks, pappy. I love this aircraft and your skin is magic!

Nice mod, Kreelin. I assume you made the mission in your own KMD. How did you set up the choppers? Did you set them as one large formation or a couple of smaller flights. I also assume you set the CAS because that makes the AI stick around the scene of the action longer? Thanks for the video.

Started flight sims with IL-2 in 2002 but stumbled upon SF shortly thereafter. I am addicted to this game. I prayed for the Vietnam add-on that Armourdave and others were doing way back then, then along came... WOV! I think TK is on fast track to canonization by the Pope - Saint TK, the patron saint of open architecture sims. I think the guy is really admirable for the way he took the horrendous flak blasted at him in the early days, kept the faith and gave us, with all the modders and the other guys on the forums offering advice, etc., a truly great sim experience. I like IL-2 but rarely play it these days because it somehow seems clinical compared to the TW series. Viva, TK! Viva, ThirdWire! And happy anniversary!

I have to say that it is mircaulous watching a Voodoo being created before our very eyes in this way! Much appreciation, Julhelm. It is inspiring seeing your work unfolding.

I had the same issue on some missions I built. A couple of things I worked on: I do not know why it would make a difference but I found that with most carriers a two-aircraft flight is okay. If I put four aircraft on them, even if there are four cats, the planes did exactly what you said. I am not sure how many aircraft you have in the flights but you might experiment with that and see if it helps. It may also be that your departure point is too close in. I have found that a reasonably distant departure point dead ahead of the carrier's direction, at a decent height and a good airspeed - say, 2,500 metres and 250-300 knots - stops the aircraft blowing up. I am not sure why any of this makes a difference but it just did for me.

I think you're right. I liked the look of Le Missioneur but you know what it is like when you have a crash - you get nervous about trying something again. In general, Le Missioneur looked more user-friendly but I have got used to KMD and find it works well. Which brings me to a point raised before. I have made brilliant missions using IL-2 FMB very quickly and I think that the Thirdwire series would have yet another lease of life if we had a similarly easy and flexible Full Mission Builder and ground maps as part of the game engine. I know this has been done to death and I am very happy with KMD. But not everyone is that adept at mission-building and it takes significantly longer to make a successful mission in the TW series. Placing ground objects and orientating them is such an easy thing to do in the IL-2 series. But it's okay - I have a great time making missions in WoV and WoE and hardly play Il-2 any more, so this is not a complaint - more of a yearning in my favourite games! In the meantime, thank God for KMD and Kreelin's work ... and no doubt Le Missioneur for its fans.

I tried Le Missioneur but it messed up my graphics something horrible so I have not tried it again - but this may have been a freak incident. KMD is terrific once you have mastered it. I have built some great missions full of action with KMD. You just have to be scrupulously systematic and ensure that you apply and save all after each item is set up or modified. Kreelin is also around these forums and SimHQ and is very helpful with advice and support. A couple of years ago there was a small bug in KMD and he went and fixed it for us right away. I think there are more of us using KMD, so it is possibly easier to get help (?)

It already looks like a work of art the way it embodies the aircraft's power! Beautiful stuff...

My money is on the rumour that he is sunning himself at the Tora Bora Surf Club on the Afghan-Pakistan border.

I live in the UK, so count me in as your local liaison officer and pub guide. It's amazing what we are all prepared to sacrifice for a Buccaneer add-on...

Great images, especially with the huge funeral pyres' smoke. I also like the fact that you could strain soup through that Scooter and it is still flying.

TeTeT, thanks for your work on this one! I had started revamping the infantry myself but RL slowed me down. I had just sorted out the NVA Squad. Now you have saved me the work on the others. Much appreciate your effort on this one.

Fubar, a great high-octane, high-adrenalin movie! You can see the first Shrike strike on the radar on the shore - cool hit. The water looks great on take-off and Haiphong looks very realistic. I also loved the huge POL fire raging into the sky. Thanks for the entertainment!

Page 2 of this thread: Charlielima - love the picture of the Skyray. It made me nearly weep with nostalgia. Thanks for posting it.

Thanks for the swift response - and the great work!

These tiles look great! Thank you, Brain. Do you or does anyone else know if they are compatible with a YAP install. I am assuming that there should not be a problem but I would be grateful for a steer from anyone who has installed them and has YAP up and running. Any info or advice would be welcome. Cheers.

Cool work, Brain. Like the new textures.

My money's on Wings Over Israel, or Woi Vay for short.