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Guys: I'm all for adding more armed recon and shipping routes to both the North and South Vietnam terrains. We added a bunch several years ago, but there's room for more, esp. along rivers. I do think the North/South division -- in terrains as well as campaigns -- should stay. That means no ground war for Rolling Thunder, Linebacker I, or Linebacker II. If players want to fly a preponderance of CAS/armed recon missions, then they should choose one of the southern campaigns. If they want strike missions, MiGs, SAMs,and heavy AAA (with some armed recon/anti-ship missions) then they should choose one of the northern campaigns. As for MiGs, I would prefer not rely on a PIRAZ group to thin them out. Although there do tend to be more MiGs at the outset of campaigns, they get whittled down rather quickly. In other words, this is a self-correcting problem. Any further management/control of MiGs can be done through the campaign INIs. Put very simply, I would prefer not to turn every single Vietnam campaign into a mud-moving fest. And I'd bet there are plenty of players who would agree. Eric Howes

Swordsman422: A few thoughts on your proposals: 1) Carrier battle groups & escort jammers Escort jammers are easily done and, in fact, it is already on my list of things to add. Carrier battle groups, on the other hand, I'm skeptical of. For starters, Rolling Thunder needs carriers going on and off station multiple times over the course of the campaign, which you can't do with SF2NA CBGs. The alternative is to have 10-12 CBBGs all sailing around the gulf, which might be interesting the first time you see it but would quickly get old and generate complaints about historical inaccuracy from users. Moreover, using CBGs effectively doubles the number of campaign variants that need to be maintained and updated over time -- patch after patch from TK. Believe me, it gets really old really quick. 2) AAA batteries If you want to do all the target placement, go for it. 3) CAS & Interdiction missions There are no CAS missions in Rolling Thunder because there is no ground campaign. As for interdiction, if you have specific suggestions I'm all ears. 4) Targeting of air bases Better accomplished by splitting Rolling Thunder campaign into multiple campaigns that cover different stages of the time period 1965-1968. The mod is already enormous, and we should avoid adding yet another terrain variant where possible. The downside, of course, is more stuff to maintain -- and more opportunity for errors/bugs to creep in. 5) Atmosphere Not much reaction to this as this is a rather vague proposal, aside from the rifle-armed peasants. Those, at any rate, are what immediately strike me when looking over these proposals. Eric Howes

Talez: Actually, it's in the right position. It's just using the wrong lights. The attached ZIP file contains a quick fix for the AV-8B RWR. It's not TEWS anymore, but it does work correctly. Eric Howes AV-8B-da_RWR_Fix.zip

Ice Man: As stated in the ReadMe, SF2E patched to Mar2012 is the minimum requirement for this mod. Although SF2NA is supported, it is not sufficient. You must have SF2E. Eric Howes

hrc: Glad to hear that solved the problem. Attached is the complete set of ODS carriers with SF2NA lines stripped from them. Eric Howes Old_Carriers.zip

hrc: OK, I'm assuming this is carrier-related since you report that most/all naval aircraft are similarly affected. Attached is a ZIP with replacements INIs for the two main carriers (CVN68 & CVN71). These replace the files in your \Objects\GroundObject folder (might want to back up currently installed versions first). These INIs effectively strip out all SF2NA-related lines in the INIs. Let me know if these do the trick. Btw, what patch level are you on? Eric Howes

hrc: What platform are you running on (WinXp or Vista/Win7)? Also, is SF2NA part of of your install base? Finally, does this problem happen with any other naval aircraft? Eric Howes

Wilches: Thanks for the fix. Eric Howes

Wrench: Unfortunately, that doesn't change the visual appearance. As JSF_Aggie noted, what you're seeing is a side effect of the water shader being used: http://combatace.com...post__p__566148 The easy fix is simply to remove these two files from the the DS terrain folder: WaterNormal.dds TERWATEREFFECT2.FX The terrain will then revert to using the stock water effect and the custom WATERNORMAL.bmp that's in the folder. If one prefers the stock 3W water appearance, then remove the WATERNORMAL.bmp. Also, the specified minimum requirements for the mod are SF2E Mar2012, nothing else. Folks should change the CAT pointer only if they are running an install that includes SF2. Eric Howes

Talez: The default DATA.INI uses a catapult configuration that's a bit tricky, esp. with heavy loadouts. There's an alternate LHA-1 DATA.INI in the \GroundObject\LHA folder: LHA_DATA_alt.INI. That one uses a different catapult configuration. Rename the existing LHA_DATA.INI to something else, then rename the LHA_DATA_alt.INI to just plain LHA_DATA.INI. You should an easier time with the alternate DATA.INI. Eric Howes

Talez: You posted the following bugs: Frankly, I don't know that there's much we're going to be able to do about these -- at least not immediately. To address your points: 1. F-117 cockpit -- someone will have to take a look at this, should be fixable. 2. Ground terrain -- probably not fixable, as Wrench can't get the terrain to load in the Terrain Editor for further revisions. 3. Which AV-8 mission? 4. F-117 flights -- limitation of the game. 5-7. MiG-23 cockpits -- this should be fixable, but someone experienced with cockpits will have to do it. 8. Game bug -- happens with a number of aircraft with bomb bays; also you might see aircraft RTB with gear down. In other words, a lot of what you've pointed out is either not fixable by us, not easily fixable, or possibly fixable if someone with the right knowledge steps up to tackle the job. Eric Howes

Guys: The third hotfix for SF2E ODS has been posted -- see here: http://combatace.com/topic/71944-hotfix-3-for-sf2e-ods/ As before, this hotfix is cumulative, meaning that it contains all the fixes and updates from the previous hotfix packages. Eric Howes

Guys: The third hotfix for SF2E ODS has been posted -- see the first post of this thread. As before, this hotfix is cumulative, meaning that it contains all the fixes and updates from the previous hotfix packages. Eric Howes

CavtankerKyle: That would really be a separate project. No plans to expand the ODS mod, which is huge as it is, to take in another war entirely. Eric Howes

Ice Man: The A-10_78 uses the stock pit from SF2E: CockpitDataFile=A-10A_78_cockpit.ini If you have SF2E installed, you should have it. Paul, looks like the S-3B is having the same problem with the JPG skins as some of the C-130s. The fix is easy enough. Toro, from what I understand the bug you've encountered is a bug in the SF2NA code itself -- nothing we can do anything about. Eric Howes

Kokiak: WeaponDataTye=7 is the new cruise missile weapon type. We didn't convert the Harpoons, primarily because we weren't sure that weapon type supported targets other than ships. Eric Howes

Brennus: Does that mean the fix I suggested works? Eric Howes

Guys: The Hotfix package available for this mod has been updated to incorporate additional fixes and updates. See: http://combatace.com/topic/71944-hotfix-4-for-sf2e-ods/ This updated package includes all the fixes and updates from the first hotfix. Eric Howes

Guys: The Hotfix package in the first post of this thread has been updated to include more fixes and updates. It includes all the fixes and updates from the first hotfix. Eric Howes

Brennus: Try replacing the Campaign section of your Options.INI with this data: [Campaign] CampaignName=19910117 Desert Storm PlayerService=USAF PlayerUnit=336th TFS AircraftType=F-15E Difficulty=NORMAL Length=NORMAL AircraftSupply=NORMAL WeaponSupply=NORMAL LoadCampaign=FALSE CampaignSavename=DefaultCampaignSave The Options.INI is located in the root of your Mods folder. Eric Howes

Chauve: I just tested several squadrons off the Saratoga in the campaign. In all cases the carrier showed up just fine and I started without incident from the deck, not in the water. I should note that there's nothing special about the Saratoga. It uses the same carrier model as two of the other four carriers. Barring a config problem in the campaign DATA.INI or the ship's NAMES.INI (both of which I just checked), the only causes for your problem that I can come up with are these: 1) Installation error of some sort on your box. 2) Your PC having problems loading all the objects in the campaign, which loads a lot more than a typical Single Mission. It's also interesting that you had similar problems with other aircraft and carriers with the Mar2012 patch level. Most of our testing with the carrier battle groups was done on the Mar2012 patch level, though, and we never saw anything like you're reporting. Whatever the cause, it seems to be peculiar to your box or install. My recommendation would be to try a fresh reinstall of the mod itself. Eric Howes

Chauve: PureBlue is referring to another small issue that was resolved with the hotfix. What aircraft/squadron were you flying? Did you test this campaign before applying the hotfix? Eric Howes

Wrench: If you do manage to get the terrain loaded in the TE, add the rivers and other goodies, we would be more than happy incorporate it into the mod as part of an update. And, yes, you would get another shout-out in the ReadMe for the updated terrain. Best, Eric Howes

Wrench: The ReadMe clearly specifies that the credits in the new ReadMe cover only the new mods/updates/additions: The Mod includes the all the documentation for the original version, where you are credited, and explicitly points readers to it: Finally, the list in the new ReadMe does give you credit for something new that was incorporated. You are named there and are not, contrary to what you say, "conspicuously absent." Eric Howes

Jarhead0331: Try replacing the Campaign section of your Options.INI with this data: [Campaign] CampaignName=19910117 Desert Storm PlayerService=USAF PlayerUnit=336th TFS AircraftType=F-15E Difficulty=NORMAL Length=NORMAL AircraftSupply=NORMAL WeaponSupply=NORMAL LoadCampaign=FALSE CampaignSavename=DefaultCampaignSave Eric Howes