Stephen1918

Here's the latest version of the 12. I've added the windows in the upper wing, trimmed down the vent (fillet) behind the cowling, and changed the area around the cockpits. I still can't get the Etévé ring to sit flush like it should, but this is believable.

I see what you mean, and I agree, that part is too long. I'm assuming it was a vent for the cowling, so I've left the bottom open. I'll try and trim it down. As for the fuselage, the picture I showed was an early model, and they probably changed it pretty fast. Looking at my resources, I see that most of them did not have the curved deck between the cockpits, although one or two did. I guess I just spotted it a incorparated it because it made the Etévé ring look better. I'll see what I can do. (But I'll leave it the way it is if I can't come up with anything better.) Thanks for pointing these things out. Stephen1918

Thanks for your comments 33Lima. I don't know what you mean by: "The little fillet behind the cowling each side ..." I had to compromise on the Etévé mount and that affected the fuselage a little. In real life, the vertical bars on the Etévé moved back and forth as the gun was raised. I couldn't get the game to animate the gun mount so I fudged it. I made the "u" bar a little longer so it wouldn't disconnect from the vertical bars too much when the gun is raised. That meant I had to make the base stick out more than it should. And that intersected the fuselage when the gun turned, so I had to raise it up. This photo of a Nieuport 12 is from Windsock and it shows a deck between the two cockpits. With the Etévé mount, this was removed to mount the ring. I sort of crossed the two to make mine work. It's the best I can do. I have planned for windows in the upper wing, but I haven't made them yet. There's a lot of potential for variations, but I'll finish these two first... Thanks for your observations, and let me know what you mean by "the fillet" Stephen1918

I appreciate your help Ojcar. It will be a while before the Nieuports are ready, I haven't even animated the control surfaces yet.

I hope you mean that in a good way!

I uploaded the Albatros C.III this morning. This is my second 2 seater and includes more user options than my other planes so far. (Sinbad is also working on a skin for this plane.) My thanks to Ojcar for making the FM, to Nix for making the engine sound, and to Sinbad, Whiteknight06604, and Wrench for help with the details. Stephen1918

Nice work on the dragons! I also like the "used" look you've given to the metal parts. How soon before we can fly it? :)

Quack74 - I'm glad to see that you got the problem solved, it had me totally stumped. Ojcar - I glad to hear that your dog is doing better. I hope he makes a speedy recovery.

I'm working on the Nieuport 10/12 right now. I hope to have that done by the end of August. Then I think I'd like to do a pusher - a Vickers, Caudron, Farman, or Voisin would all be interesting to build. There are so many good suggestions I wish I could work faster... Stephen1918 (Yeah, I know the Caudron isn't a pusher, but it has a similar frame structure.)

I've been learning about FMs, mostly by comparing the Data.ini's of a variety of planes. I noticed that the Albatros D.III that came with FE1 doesn't have any section for AIData in the data file, but the plane can still be flown by the AI. That tells me that there are default settings somewhere else in the game. The problem you're having occurs when the AI is controlling the plane. Try removing the AIData completely (comment those lines out, but don't delete them) and see if there is still a problem. If the problem goes away, then we know that it's in the AIData - if the problem is still there, then we know that it's something else. If the problem is in the AIData, then uncomment the lines in small batches and play the game. When the problem comes back then we'll know which lines are causing the problem. Stephen1918

The Lloyd and the Albatros are the ones with a loadout and with a gunner. I don't know how that could be affecting the AI take-offs. Is anyone else having a problem getting the AI to make my Lloyd and Albatros take off?

I don't know how to get the video to play directly from Combat Ace, but I must say the it is sweet! How did you capture video from the game? Stephen1918

File Name: Albatros C.III File Submitter: Stephen1918 File Submitted: 01 August 2011 File Category: Albatros The Albatros C.III was a general purpose two-seat plane and was based on the C.I and C.II models. An improved tail structure made it more agile than its predecessors and it was produced in large numbers. The plane was armed with a Parabellum machine gun mounted on a pivot in the rear cockpit along with a synchronized machine gun mounted beside the engine. The C.III was used for reconnaissance, aerial photography, and light bombing. The gun ring had limited movement, especially in the vertical direction, which I have tried to reproduce in my model. I have included two loadouts, one for four 12.5 kilo bombs carried internally, and another for six 12.5 kilo bombs carried externally under the wings. I have also included three skinning options - an unpainted standard wood and linen, a light blue paint, and a green paint. All of these are pretty basic so I have included my skinning templates for those who want make their own skins. This plane uses the national markings that come with First Eagles, so you can change nationalities to fly for Bulgaria or the Turks. I have included decals for serial numbers and for personal markings. These will be applied randomly. Some of the personal markings include crosses, I don't know if that would be appropriate if you're flying for the Ottoman Empire. Historical Notes: The serial numbers are fictious, but in the correct range for the 1916 Albatros C.III. The personal markings are completely fictious, but I think reasonable for German markings early in the war. I have not found an example of the Albatros C.III in green paint, but many German planes on the Eastern Front were painted green later in the war, so the color is not unrealistic. If historical accuracy is important to you, you can delete the offending files. Credits: My thanks to Ojcar for making the excellent data.INI file for this plane. My thanks to Nix for making the realistic engine sound file for the Mercedes 6 cylinder engine. Thanks also to Sinbad, Whitekinght06604, and Wrench who provided me with valuable resouces and information for the cockpit details. Installation instructions: For FE1: Unzip the file and move the folder named "AlbatrosC3" into the FirstEagles/Objects/Airplanes folder. You also need to move the sound file "mercedes160m2.wav" into the FirstEagles/Sounds folder. For FE2: Unzip the file and move the folder named "AlbatrosC3" into the FirstEagles/Objects/Airplanes folder. Then in the FirstEagles/Objects/Decals folder, create a new folder named "AlbatrosC3". Move the folder named "D" from the Airplanes/AlbatrosC3 folder into the Decals/AlbatrosC3 folder you just made. You also need to move the sound file "mercedes160m2.wav" into the FirstEagles/Sounds folder. March 12, 2012 - Uploaded a new version with an improved FM by ojcar. Click here to download this file

I uploaded the Lloyd C.II today. Ojcar wrote the FM and added some features - A Schwarzlose machine gun and a heavy bomb load. My thanks to him for the improvements. This is going to be a challenging plane to fight with, there is no forward gun and the gunner had limited motion (this plane didn't use the scarff ring mounting) so you need to move the plane somewhat to help bring enemy aircraft into range. I have included installation instructions for both FE1 and FE2. Thanks again to Ojcar for helping me with this. Any mistakes are mine alone. Your comments and criticisms are welcome.

I agree with the others, it's probably your computer. I have an older computer and when I try to run FE1 at "Unlimited" graphics setting it hangs at 80% and never goes beyond that (I've waited for as long as 15 minutes before rebooting the computer). When I run at "High" it hangs for a long time at 80% but eventually finishes, and then runs slow when there are shadows on the plane, but runs fine when I back off a bit. I usually run the game in "Medium". Stephen1918

I have the Albatros C.III built and rigged. I worked out how the random decal thing works, so each plane will have its own serial numbers and fuselage marking. I'm also using the national insignia that come with the game, so you will be able to change nationality. I also included an internal bomb rack with the bombs mounted vertically between the pilot and gunner, like in the real plane. I'm still working on the skins and starting on the cockpit. I'm having trouble finding photos of the cockpit. (The cockpit of the D series was very different from the C series.) I found a drawing of a Rumpler C.I, which was built about the same time, and a photo of the cockpit in a plastic model of the Albatros C.III. If anyone has photos to share of the cockpit of the Albatros C.III, please let me know, otherwise I'm going to fake it. Thanks, Stephen1918

These are both great airplanes. I really like the LVG and will put it on my list...

That's an inspiring story and the DH5 is an interesting looking plane. I will definitely put it on the list. I can't promise when (and if another modder wants to do it sooner, that would be OK too.) The FM for a plane with a reverse stagger to the wings might be a challenge. (@Nix - HoHoHo.) Stephen1918

The next one will probably be the Nieuport 10, since it was asked for. Then I'll need to slow down, I've made six planes (not counting the Albatros) since the beginning of May. I can't keep up this pace. But don't worry, I'll keep making planes, just not as fast. The skinners need to catch up anyway The Anatra is on my list, after the Nieuport. Stephen

Thanks for the photos, Whiteknight, these will be a great help!

Thanks for the engine sound, Nix. I was going to ask when I got closer to finishing the plane.

I uploaded the Phönix D.II last night. My thanks to ojcar once again for making the FM. And my thanks to all the readers of the Forums who helped me get the details right. Ojcar has also made an FM for the D.IIa, which had a different engine. I will be uploading that plane as soon as soon as I finish making the new engine.

Sorry about that I'm going to have to slow down soon and get caught up on my real life too.

Quack74 is working on some custom skins for the Phoenix. These are some work-in-progress posts. As Whiteknight said, he hasn't uploaded them yet.

Quack74, I cannot reproduce the problem you're having. I've tried up to 6 Lloyd's in "Easy" "Normal" and in "Hard" modes and they all take off OK. I'm Using FE Gold with no patches. I don't know if there is a difference in FE2 or if you may have some patches that affect the flight. I went through Peter01's sticky posting, FE AI 101. He says that the PitchForAltitude setting in the DataAI controls how the plane climbs and takes off. He uses a value of .00027. I see that Ojcar used .00007 in the Lloyd. You might try increasing the number and see if that helps. Is anyone else having this problem? Stephen