33LIMA

Stock AI RE8 made player-flyable, for FEG & FE2. See readme for installation etc. Loadout screen locks up in FE2; will upload fix if/when found.
 
OFF has a Harry Tate already, RoF is about to get one. Couldn't find an RE8 for FE so made this myself.

ArcMod alters the arcs of fire for the observers' guns in all OFF Phase 3's 2-seaters (except the the twin-Lewis-gunned FE2b and the fixed-Lewis BE2c). The aim is to provide a better experience for 2-seater missions and campaigns, whether flying or gunning, and without making life too much more difficult when flying scouts and attacking them. The spur for this was the quite severe limits in the stock arcs, which sometimes prevents gunners from firing when it looks like they should. If manning the gun yourself, it becomes very clear how severely how your arcs of fire are limited, downwards in all directions, especially.
 
The main change is that ArcMod increases the depression limit for all aircraft (exceptions above) from 10 degrees stock, to 25 degrees. Elevation has been changed from 30 degrees (stock, except Brisfits) to 45 degrees (roughly the same as the stock Brisfit), again across the board. This will obviously give all observers a significantly better field of fire, including yourself when manning the gun, and thus a better chance of survival when attacked.
 
Lateral fields of fire have been adjusted a little. Stock, there was a fair bit of variation but I have instead put planes into two groups - those with observers sitting roughly level with a wing trailing edge get 90 degrees either side (0=fully aft) while those who can fire ahead over the upper wing (just the Hannover, Brisfit, Roland) get around 160 degrees, leaving just a small-ish gap dead ahead.
 
These new arcs are all somewhat arbitrary of course. Greater tho they are, they are still less than the theoretical maxima; but I hope they still take some account of the practical limits for effective fire, within the limits of the game engine. For example, I realise observers had some field of fire forward between the wings, but I have stuck with something close to the stock OFF approach, limiting the ability to fire ahead to those who planes whose observers can readily fire ahead over the upper wing, without risk to struts or wires - the Hannover, Brisfit and Roland.
 
ArcMod still leaves a significant 'blind spot' underneath in all directions, but it is naturally a smaller one and on balance I think is much more realistic. There is still a considerable blind area ahead as well, except for the Hannover, Roland and Brisfit. By comparison, the Rise of Flight DFW CV has much greater depression and has 360 degrees traverse (tho it will damage its own aircraft, unlike OFF).
 
Readme with installation instructions included (JSGME recommended)

If you have found it frustrating that many enemy planes, even inferior ones, seem to be faster and are able to stay above and/or ahead of you in combat, you may want to try this mod. It prevents computer-flown ('AI') enemy planes in Campaign missions from enjoying the performance advantage they get from flying at the plane's empty weight, while player-flown aircraft, more realistically, take account of pilot, ammo and fuel/oil loads.
 
Not compatible with other Flight Model mods; likely to be OK with Damage Model mods.
 
See Readme for full details.

This mod improves your ability, without visual aids, to locate (and react appropriately to) aircraft being engaged by AA fire. It does this by permitting use of the 'Hard' Workshop setting for ground guns (which setting reduces the 'spread' of AA bursts by increasing accuracy), but reducing both rate of fire (which 'Hard' setting also increases) and lethality. With FlakMod, it's easier to make out if enemy planes under AA fire but which you can't yet see are higher or lower, coming or going, so you can make tactical decisions while you still have options.
 
Thanks are due to Bletchley, for permission to modify and use some files from his excellent 1917 Mod. If using the latter, FlakMod probably needs to be enabled/installed on top/afterwards.

This version of ArcMod, like the other version uploaded to CombatAce in Oct 2011, alters the arcs of fire for the observers' guns in all OFF Phase 3's 2-seaters (except the twin-Lewis-gunned FE2b and the fixed-Lewis BE2c, neither of which really needed any change).
 
The only difference with this version is that it includes HPW's 1.25 Damage Model for the included 2-seaters. It is designed to be installed AFTER and ON TOP OF HPW's 1.25 DM - see 'installation' in the Readme for details. This enables both mods to be in use at the same time, instead of one or the other, so you can get both the improved DM and the increased 2-seater arcs of fire.
 
Easy installation with Jonesoft Generic Mod Enabler. Enable only after HPW's DM 1.25, ignoring JSGME warnings as the files concerned DO need to be over-written.
 
Thanks are due to Herr Prop Wasche for producing this version!

This version of ArcMod increases the arc of fire for the Fe2b. It includes only this aircraft. It's recommended for use along with the main version of ArcMod, which does the same thing for the other OFF 2-seaters (except the fixed-gun BE2c and the FE2b).
 
Though I left it out of ArcMod originally, having since flown the 'Fee' more often, I decided to do an Arcmod for it, too.
 
The changes I have made to the arcs of fire for the FE2b's front and rear Lewis Guns are as follows:
 
Front gun:
- max elevation reduced from 60 degrees to 45 degrees;
- max depression increased from 20 to 25 degrees;
- max traverse increased from 90 degrees left and right, to 110 degrees (0=straight ahead)
Rear gun
- max depression increased from 0 degrees to 10 degrees
 
The main results are the front gun has a better all-round field of fire, including very slightly to the rear (except upwards, where the unrealistic 60 degree limit is somewhat reduced); and the rear gun can now fire slightly down to the rear, between the wings and the lattice tail, reducing somewhat the very wide blind spot.
 
Flying or gunning a Fee, you will now be a more dangerous foe; attacking one, you will no longer be able to sit behind him in safety, but will need to come in lower to avoid return fire.