Battle of Britain FM Pack

[+baffmeister]

After scattering BoB FM's all over the WW2 forum, here are the latest updates all in one place! The install instructions are a bit convoluted and may not be the best way to do it but for experienced SF-2 players it shouldn't be that difficult to get things working. Some aircraft are "A Team" models so you will require access to that site to install the entire package.

 

Required files available at CombatAce:

http://combatace.com/files/file/13646-sf2-ww2-hawker-hurricane-ia-etobob-by-raven/

http://combatace.com/files/file/13510-sf2-ww2-spitfire-mk1a-by-mod-mafiatmf/

http://combatace.com/files/file/13826-pasko-ju-87b-r-sf2-update-eto/

http://combatace.com/files/file/13938-sf2-ww2-eto-boulton-paul-defiant-remod-pak/

http://combatace.com/files/file/13795-sf2-ww2-raf-bombers-pak/

http://combatace.com/files/file/14020-bf109e-3/

http://combatace.com/files/file/14035-bf109e-47z/

http://combatace.com/files/file/13952-sf2-ww2-eto-bristol-blenheim-mkiv-skin-pak/

 

Required aircraft from the "A Team" site:

Do-17Z

He-111H6

Ju-88A4

Blenhiem IV

BF-110C

 

OVERVIEW:

 

This project was started so I could develop a standardized approach to building WW2 FM's. It has taken much longer than expected but I like the results so plan to put together some other WW2 FM Packs in the future. Next projects will be some post BoB FM's covering the 1941 time frame and some Battle of France FM's.

This package is intended for experienced SF-2 users. The installation instructions are contained in the assorted parts folders.

NOTES:  After a year and a half in developement, this project remains a bit of an experiment. Most of the time has been spent on the fighter aircraft flight models, trying to get realistic speeds, roll rates and turn rates. They aren't Hi-Fi but hopefully are somewhat representative. Details below:

FIGHTER FLIGHT MODELS: The Spitfire and BF-109 FMs are ThirdWire based but, besides new engine tables, have had lots of adjustments to get the desired performance of the early versions. The Hurricane and BF-110 FM's are updates of the original freeware versions but with new engine tables, CDL tables, and some assorted ThirdWire tables. The fighter aircraft, including the Defiant, can be belly landed.

BOMBER FLIGHT MODELS: The bomber FM's are a bit "Generic" using some elements of ThirdWires C-47 FM. They do get dedicated engine tables and drag adjustments to generate realistic speeds. Most of the time spent on them was adjusting collision points and min/max extents for fuel tanks etc. [important for damage modeling.]

DAMAGE MODELING: Quite a bit of time spent on this subject.
Guns: The Browning machine guns are a bit light on hitting power compared to the Luftwaffe cannon so I have increased the accuracy and burst length [pilot AI data] to compensate. I think this is a realistic approach and will be used for any future machine gun only WW2 aircraft FMs I do.
Armor Protection: For pilot protection I am just following general practice for the time period and is not aircraft specific. Even the early Spits and Hurris with no armor get some to represent structure and equipment that was sometimes placed to protect the pilots. Also, all aircraft get some armor as structure to offer some protection to engine, fuel tanks etc. Radial engined aircraft get a little more armor around the engine to represent their capacity to run with more damage.
Component Damage Rating: With a few exceptions, the DAMAGERATING= entry for the various components has been set to DISABLED. This can lead to some very long but interesting crash sequences as the AI will continue to try and fly the aircraft even with fatal damage. Keep this in mind when reviewing the de-brief screen.
Bomber Gunners: To compensate for the AI's lack of imagination when attacking bombers, I have considerably reduced the accuracy of the bomber gunners. Also, where one gunner is operating more than one gun position, [common on some Luftwaffe bombers] the chance of firing has been reduced accordingly.

A.I. DATA: Some changes from previous versions to reduce crashes and improve both offensive and defensive capabilities.

Other Changes: On previous uploads I used the [early] designation for the Spitfire 1a and Hurricane 1a versions with 6lb boost but that is no longer the case. The previous early versions are now just called Spit_Mk1A and Hurricane1A. The previously released N powered BF-109E7 will be included in a future post BoB pack.

 

Raven has an updated Hurricane 1A model available but I haven't had a chance to introduce it into this package yet. It will get done at some point.

 

Here's the package:   BoB FM Pack0.95.zip

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ShrikeHawk]

Nice! Thanks for doing all this.

[+baffmeister]

No problem. It has been an interesting project!

[+baffmeister]

Attached is an FM for Veltro2Ks' Do-17z model you can get here: http://combatace.com/files/file/15216-dornier-do-17z/  It's a nice model with 2 lods so should offer better frame rates than the A-Team version.

 

This is beta 0.96 standard and is a bit different from the previously released BoB bomber FM's which are in the process of being upgraded.

 

Beta 0.96 changes:

 

The aerodynamics are unchanged, it's still a variation of the Generic WW2 bomber FM I've been using and is meant for AI use only. If you really, really, really want to use this as a player flown aircraft I would recommend making a dedicated ATTACK version.

 

Some changes to crew armor protection. Considering the amount of armor protection I assigned to the pilot it seemed too easy for the pilot to get killed. Not sure exactly what the problem is but I have also included armor protection for all crew members and it seems to have reduced the potential for the pilot to be killed.

 

The accuracy of the bomber gunners has been increased a bit.

 

The engine thrust lines have been moved inboard quite a bit. With realistic thrust positions the AI has a hard time flying on one engine and will usually end up going around in circles at some point. With the new changes the bombers have a better chance of maintaining flight and getting back to base. Interesting observation: a few times I have seen the AI do an engine restart after engine fires have been extinguished. Very cool!

 

Here's the FM:    D0-17V2Kfm0.96.zip

 

 

[+baffmeister]

Attached are new BoB fighter FM's that have been updated using Mues' LodViewer.  The ETO fighters will get updated next and then the BoB bombers. Installation instructions assume you have installed the previous pack.

 

Some other changes:

BF-109-E's: The bomb carrying versions have been set up to use the ETC50 rack and have new LoadOut ini's. All versions have had the drag re-balanced a bit. They turn a bit better now but not as good as the F-series.

BF-110's: Cannon rounds have been reduced from 240 to 120. The plane used 60 round drums that could be reloaded by the gunner but it was a difficult task in a dogfight so I think 1 reload is plenty. The aerodynamics have received a minor edit. The rear gunner accuracy has been adjusted.

HurricaneIIA: The previous HurricaneIIA had a Merlin XX engine table that represented 16lbs boost, which wasn't available until November, 1942. The new engine table is for 12lbs boost, low blower only.

Defiant: Rear gunner accuracy has been adjusted as well as the aeodynamics.

 

Here is the 0.97 BoB fighter package:  BoBfighters0.97.zip

[Do335]

oh man, a BoB build is really tempting....

[+baffmeister]

I am starting to think about putting together an "All in One" BoB package but really don't think I could put it together before next winter. I still have to get Ravens' newer Hurricane model in game and it has different mapping [i think] so probably not many skins available for it. I would also like to get Russos' newer BF-109 E series model going but it has a different model center so requires some edits for decal positions. I think the skin mapping remains the same. Would also like to get the Dunkirk campaign working but haven't had much time to work on it. Still, the idea might be worth thinking about as a longer term project.

[Do335]

Baffmeister yea it could be a lotta work, but definitely sign me up if you get around to it as I know it'll be fun fly with good FMs. Did a brief stint with A-Team's euro pack but its data is so simplified and amount of ac huge that it becomes an insurmountable task to update it.

[+baffmeister]

Baffmeister yea it could be a lotta work, but definitely sign me up if you get around to it as I know it'll be fun fly with good FMs. Did a brief stint with A-Team's euro pack but its data is so simplified and amount of ac huge that it becomes an insurmountable task to update it.

 

Thanks for volunteering! Once I start posting updates for the new Hurricane and BF-109 models it will probably be time to start the package. Will troll for some more volunteers at that point. For WW2 FM's I plan on slowly working back in time to the Battle of France and slowly [emphasis on SLOWLY] working forward into more ETO 1941 FM's. MTO and PTO FM's are just a distant dream/nightmare. [so many planes!]

[+Geezer]

 I still have to get Ravens' newer Hurricane model in game and it has different mapping [i think] so probably not many skins available for it.

 

As a quid pro quo, I'll make new Hurricane skins for you.

[+baffmeister]

Thanks Geezer!

[+Monty CZ]

Do you know this page?

http://www.wwiiaircraftperformance.org/me109/me109e.html

Might be useful

Monty CZ

[+baffmeister]

That site and those documents have been useful!

[+Geezer]

Because we are both working on 1940 stuff, baffmeister and I have joined forces to produce aircraft that can be used in both the desert and BoB.  I'm finishing up the 3-color camo for the CR42 - there will be BoB markings included in the graphics pack.

[+Baltika]

Hi Baff, 

 

Great work you are doing here on FMs.

 

The old, old BoB campaign for SFP1 was what got me started on modding, and your suggestion of a new SF2 compatible complete BoB package has got me very interested again.

 

I have an updated, unreleased version of the BoB campaign files gathering dust on my HDD, so count me in as a volunteer for your new BoB team.  I will need to do some work to pull it all together for release, but if you want them, give me a shout.

 

Happy days for me, made a lot of friends round here:-

 

http://combatace.com/topic/19928-battle-of-britain-campaign-feedback/

 

Slainthe!

 

Baltika

 

 

 

PS Great Pics Geezer ;-)

[+baffmeister]

Thanks Baltika, a new SF-2 BoB campaign would be excellent! For a warm up, would you consider making a much simpler Dunkirk campaign? I have a relatively simple one started but don't have much time to work on it at the moment. If you want to have a look I could send it to you with some info on what I had in mind.

[+Geezer]

Making good progress on the 3-color camo skins and should complete them this weekend.  Shot below shows the WIP baseline skins.  Top aircraft is the BoB variant (for SF2), lower aircraft is the desert variant (for FE2).  The CR42 will be released with a graphics pack of markings that will enable any modder familiar with a paint program, such as Photoshop, to make new hi-res skins, or variants of the baseline skins.