Heretic

I don't get it...I've installed NF4+ in the right sequence in a SFP2 version patched to the current standard with all the updates. I've even left out the custom terrain this time!

Sorry for the double post, but I think it's the F-100D_64 that causes the crash upon campaign selection. The "_RDAF" variation works just fine. - Edit: This is weird. Taking the missing .inis from the RDAF version and renaming them, etc...doesn't help... - Edit²: Selecting an F-4C unit also crashes SFP2.

Regardless of sim, I just can't get enough of autogen trees and houses. <3

Yes, yes and yes. I think it was the 55th TFS in the '68 campaign. 613th TFS. Well, a USAF unit is flying a RDAF mod F-100D in the '62 campaign (first unit that is selectable). Hm. Or a discrepancy between the .ini and _Data.ini. Will have to investigate. Well, they've got a line for upgrades in their data.ini entry, so it should theoretically be possible.

Now that just blows. Even worse than flying a more than perfectmission in terms of kills just to be killed off by that "one more enemy fighter". :/

Qué?

One from yesterday (no pics though). First of all, I never play "dead is dead" campaigns. If I die during a mission, I put it down as a "bad dream the night before the actual flight" (can happen multiple times, lol). The following one took me three or four tries to survive. It's set in NF4+ in the 1968 campaign. Anyways, the mssion objective was intercepting an enemy flight over Bremen. While defaulted as a mere two plane flight, I had to increase to eight to stand a chance. Planes were F-4Ds with standard A2A loadout plus SUU-23 pods for my flight of four. Takeoff and transit was uneventful, but shortly after arriving in the target area, Red Crown pointed out multiple contacts a mere 10 nm from my position. I didn't notice anything on radar, so I started circling and bobbing up and down to get them to show up. My WSO calculated the enemy's position (aka I looked on the map) and I vectored my flights away and around the enemy, but foolishly established a head-on position, tried to gain a Sparrow lock and ordered my flights to engage. That's when things went horribly wrong. While just gaining a lock, the enemy fighters, ten to twelve Su-15s, let some of their AA-3s rip through the sky and subsequently splash two F-4 of my second flight. We zoomed past each other and a missile-fueled furball ensued. I was busy to deal with three to four Flagons on my tail and their attempts to Mach 2-probe my tailpipes and my buddies didn't fare any better. At one point, I could isolate a single Flagon and rip it apart with my SUU-23, but not until another F-4 succumbed to an Anab. The tally was 1-3 now. Not good at all. Over time, the fight dispersed. The Reds had exhausted most of their missiles by now and things got a lot easier. One more F-4 tumbled down the sky though, but in turn one of my Sparrows found its target in an unaware Flagon while two more ate SARH or IR ammo. 4-4. Red Crown, however, suddenly gave me a mission failed, because two Su-15s, which simply ignored the missile lobbing fest and dashed straight for Bremen, started harassing a german F-104 CAS flight and, worse, my actual targets, ten "Brewers", put their can opening skills to use on BLUFOR tanks. After some unsuccesful shots with Sparrows and Sidewinders at Flagons, I decided to call it quits and head home. Luck or dumb planning by the Soviets had it that both the Brewer and the Flagon flight crossed my path on the way home. Bliss and rage ensued. I bounced the Brewer flight, ordered my remaining three other Phantoms to attack and let a Yak-28 eat an Echo Sidewinder. The enemy flight dispersed explosively and in the process, two of my guys got lucky again. 7-4. At one point, while pursuing a Brewer, I noticed the Su-15s zooming overhead on their way home and I broke off and decided to have my way with them instead. Those arses got some of my squadron's better pilots and thus, this became kind of personal. I nailed one - 20 mm style with a humiliatingly obvious and slow approach from behind. 8-4. I wanted to zap one more Flagon after that, but east german airspace was approaching fast and I didn't want to fall victim to a SAM. So curses and wishes for a catastropic landing was all he got. Back on course and willyoulookatthat!, there was a pair of Brewers that got separated from the main furball. And I still had ammo in my gunpod. Yay! A nervous glance at my fuel gauge assured me that I could afford one more fight, but I was on my own. The surviving rest of my forces got sent RTB after the Yak-28 incident for calling out bingo fuel and Winchester. I didn't need the 'though. Yak-28s don't pose much of an air combat threat. So down I went, but they saw me coming and dispersed. In an extreme case of underestimation I was surprised how well those planes can turn. I've tried several times to get a shot or stay inside his turn, but to no avail. After cursing him with a wide array of f-words, I broke off the attack and headed home. All in all, the mission was well, not optimal. Failed the objective and had to pay in precious pilot and aircraft currency, but nearly got ace status in a single mission in return. And considering that this way just my second mission of the NF4+ 1968 campaign, I'm sure this won't be the last onslaught I'll see... Tl;dr - my missile fighting and command skills are sub par.

I've found that UVW Unwrpping in GMax is way more agonizing than in 3DS Max. In fact, the unwrapper in GMax frequently throws me into fits of rage that would even scare the Hulk or Hitler. *Cough*

Ooooh, OTC...tons of fond memories from SF1 days. That campaign actually got me into mud moving - combined with some "Oh, I've got fuel left...HEY, YOU THERE!" dogfights in the Hotrod.

Seeing the F-31...I'd do things I can't post about here to get my hands on the model and 'pit source files to adapt it for FSX...I've always wanted one of those! (Although the thrust vectoring won't work in FSX) I must be doing it wrong in the campaigns then. Because just firewalling the throttle and saying "bye,bye" doesn't work against Fishbeds. :| I've learned the hard way that even a Sparrow won't save a Phantom more than once. It's all in guns, lol.

I've had AI always destroy their targets so far. Granted, they waste all their bombs on a single fuel tank or the center of the runway, but it was always enough to get Red Crown to clear us for RTB. Makes for a nice backup in case you're too stupid to bring your weapons to bear. As for level bombing: I'm only doing it from low altitude (1000, 2000 ft) with a good bit of intuition, luck and experience.

Well, most of my SF1 flying was in the Rhino, so I'd say I've got some experience fighting MiGs. Not as much as the professionals tho', but it's enough to survive and catch a few with guns. Mkay. So I guess it's DIY then. Hooray for tutorials in the Knowledge Base! :D

Same in the Heer. I've witnessed a helo kill in the crew simulator, so at least in theory it's possible. In the field...well, only if you have the moment of surprise or an unwary helo driver.

Well, my aim in that campaign is to survive till I can get Phantoms. And then survive till I get the version with a gun. And then I won't have to worry about the Fishbeds anymore. :D P.S: Has the SoCal terrain ever been updated for SF2? Might surely be nice to take stuff up against other, actually friendly, stuff and go Top Gun on it. *Chuckle*

Actually, it's more a matter of going east. ;) But mucho thanks! Backs up my campaign findings. I usually try not to bother with MiGs upon ingress and leave 'em to my escort, but once I'm eight M-117s lighter, I try to fist fight with the Thud if the situation demands it (MiGs all over my wingies, more MiGs than friendlies). While I can engage and disengage MiG-17s at will to a certain degree (as long as I don't lose too much speed and keep it in the vertical), I find it next to impossible to tangle with -19s and -21s. I've managed to kill one of the former after a lengthy - nearly 1 on 1 - dogfight, but no joy with the latter. Even when going home, the -21 remains dangerous as I usually have to let the M61 do the work ('winders are useless in '62 and I tend to fire 'em as a distraction in dogfights), which requires sneaking up and constantly muttering "I'm not a 105 crawling up on your six, you don't see me". Needless to say, this hasn't worked so far and I'll be damned if it ever works. So I guess the lesson for me here is: Bore the other one so much that he wants to go home and keep your -9Bs for exactly this moment. Thanks again!

Can I request a setup? F-105D vs MiG-21F13 I just want to see if there's any chance of bringing one down in a fist fight ('winders allowed nonetheless) instead of running scared when seeing one. Knowledge needed for campaign play.

1) Wingmen who don't take "terrain following" literally. It's like having Rollercoaster Ronnie watching your back from 500ft above while you're just evading the hilltops - well, until he eats a SAM, flak or a 23mm projectile anyways. 2) Rain on canopy just to strain the GPU a bit more. :> 3) Possibility to start and end flights on the ramp with engine(s) off. Also, I second the motion for a more dynamic war and ejections. Regarding the AI and limited fuel...I get the feeling that the Reds break and run from the fight at one point...and not necessarily because they ran out of ammo.

Oh come on! My wingie survived an amazing sixty seconds before his pursuers turned on me as well. Fortunately, any kind of AI (friendly or enemy) is pretty bad at fast paced treetop hugging. But still...shattering windows of innocent people's apartments isn't cool at all! Now, is it often going to be like that in SFP2E's '62 campaign? And is the campaign winnable at all? The reds are gaining momentum on the ground... My task was interception by the way. Two F-100s against eight to ten IL-28s (one of those went after me!!), eight Mig-17s and at least four MiG-21s. If the MiG-19s operating in the vicinity had also joined in I would have been *royally* screwed! I've actually tried to get the last MiG-17 pursuing me for revenge, but stutters got bad (already set object density to "high" for next time) and fuel got low, so I buggered out. Next time... (I got an IL-28 during the initial surprise attack, wingie got 2. I kind of know now how Luftwaffe pilots felt during WW2 (late). One pass and back home before the escort gets a shot at you) P.S: I really like SFP2E. Well invested 17€s. P.P.S: Are the missiles more realistic now? Unlike in the very first SFP, I can't hit anything with the early 9Bs! P.P.P.S: The new configuration file mod installation thingy is kind of a PITA. The old method with separate installations from the start was way better. P.P.P.P.S: I like the revamped AI even though wingie number one still lacks half of his brain.

Ha! That'd be too easy. Maybe if someone had absolutely accurate numbers for the missiles to make them even more realistic...but to make them actually easier to handle...? Nah, that'd be cheating in my book (and I cheat often enough already...F4, F6, ALT+D, ALT+P...*Cough*). That's another interesting topic. Funnily enough I've never cread much for the Hoover in the SF games. I just wanted to survive long enough in one for the Zipper or Rhino to arrive. But how do you actually use a F-100 right? Hit and run?

Tone plus two or three seconds or till I'm perfectly in range. I just want these things to be a bit more manoeuverable with better target locking. All-aspect versions won't be there till the 1980s anyways.

Tried it again yesterday, no success either. Again, launch parameters were perfect and the thing just zoomed past. The closest I came to a kill was with a MiG-17 which got passed by my AIM-9B by about 3 feet. I don't get it, those freaking missiles can't be THAT useless?!? So far, I got maybe twelve off them launched, but no hit so far. Maybe it has something to do with difficulty settings? I fly with everything on "hard", except HUD. A test with F-16s and Limas brought a 60% success rate, so they're okay in my eyes. But those Bs...? - Edit: A bit of research... http://www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/m-9.html So 16%, huh? Geez...here's waiting for later variants. Let's hope they'll come soon.

I've already discovered the range thingy. At 3nm, the 'Winder will just fall short. I'll however give "aim higher" a try. Thanks.

I know, but I can't even hit an Il-28 with all the parameters in the greens! I'm right at his six, totally level, out of the tailgunner's range, with a good tone and the thing just zooms past him!

Good to know. I've tried that, but it didn't work out like intended. So now I'm back to the old procedure. One installation for stock plus some general mods, one for NF4+. I'm thinking about simply sending him home the next time I definately know I'm *that* outnumbered. Call me dumb, but I've never paid attention to the attrition system in SFP. You'll get replacements for both pilots and aircraft over the course of the campaign, right? Are those enough (I'm playing on "normal" difficulty/supply) to get at least a four-ship formation airborne? Cool, I didn't know that! I've yet to try a mission in a "normal" NF4+ campaign. The ones I've flown so far only had YAK-28s on the "other" side since I somehow porked the installation and no default planes and ground objects were there. Good to know, I'll try that. Also, are there any other recommended "general" (environment, terrain, sound, etc...say, universally applicable) mods for SFP2, maybe even from SFP1 except the terrain? P.S: I'm thinking about porting over JSF_Aggie's Harrier campaign. Anyone already running it trouble-free in SFP2? Any hints on potential mod-specific obstacles? (I'll dig through the KB first for instructions in any case.)

Wonder if JSF is still up for grabs somewhere and if it was moddable...