Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[UberDemon]

I have begun developing a template that will be the prototype for all other templates.  These take time as I have to develop missions for 12 flights per team.  This only shows basic development.  When you generate missions, the results will be a lot more detailed and complex.

The first template is the 1C/Maddox DF Italy map.  I lived in Italy in the past and it is cool to see some of the towns I actually visited.

Anyway, here is some of the eye candy.  Keep in mind I am showing Taxi features and some of the scenery.  Really excited to implement that.  Makes me remember Janes WW2 Fighters.

[UberDemon]

more...

[UberDemon]

...more...

[UberDemon]

... and finally...

[RealDarko]

Amazing!! Thanks for working on this and Happy New Year!

[Witchy]

Is this going to give better ability for user created campaigns and missions and/or better object placement and ai pathfinding or something far different? It all looks fantastic.

[UberDemon]

Witchy,

In simplest terms, yes-ish.  I talk about this my latest update here:  https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,71120.msg782715.html#msg782715

I have not tackled campaign generation, but conceptually you can use UQMG to create missions and place them in a campaign... however you are giving me ideas, but there is much work to be done before I tackle campaign generation.

All the templates will use "MIS" files, of which I am already writing detailed instructions on how to create them.  It is taking a lot of effort because the first time is always the longest time.  I will also make a set of tools like documents and spreadsheets that will help adventurous users to create their own templates.  (I talked in the link above about the possibility of being able to load any IL-2 mission and use UQMG enhancements to... well.. enhance existing mission.  This will take some type to develop but is possible.  Some of the uses for that could be updating static/scripted campaigns that used the "wrong" plane in the past, or maybe writing skeleton missions and using UQMG to multiply aircraft...  But to set expectations, when UQMG 1946 Max comes out, that feature will most likely not be ready... there is much to do... and I am only one person... who does this in spare time...)

Once a template is created, the amount of liberty you have to modify and create missions will be almost infinite.  First it allows for 12 Flights per team, and each flight can be cloned as many times as you want (limited by the number of units in the IL-2 engine)... In seconds you can have a formation of 24 P-51s escorting 40 B-17s...  Using only two of the UQMG Flight Groups (out of 24... 12 per team).  These planes can take off in waves, or appear at the same time in a variety of ways.

Once you create a mission, 3 version of them will be saved, one for SP, one for DF, and one for Coop.

But yes... my goal for this development is to be the ultimate mission design tool companion for FMB, and it will be a mission generation engine on its own (that is, you can use it on its own to generate missions without having to use FMB).  WAW is the baseline, but once that is done, I'll add the DOF, TGA and JTW modules as well.

[UberDemon]

Sorta by accident the "Norway/load.ini" map is going to become my next template.  In trying to figure out some mission features I started putting some thoughts together, and decided that I will have flight Groups 5-8 (of 12 per team) will be maritime focused.  So in addition to the typical base stuff, I am taking advantage of the map's seabases.  The Seabase in Scotland has an amphibious area so you will be able to use that.  You could conceptually take off from the concrete using something like a swordfish, but it does not work well with the AI.  Even trying arrestor cables and etc.

Anyway, here is some of the work in progress...

[UberDemon]

... more...

[UberDemon]

Development of Flight Group 2 in Norway Map.  Just having some fun with the template.

[raf1659]

Unfortunately the "Maddox DF Italy" map is totally unreal and also disrespectful towards the real Italy, it should be canceled by B.A.T. 

[UberDemon]

Unfortunately the "Maddox DF Italy" map is totally unreal and also disrespectful towards the real Italy, it should be canceled by B.A.T. 

Cancel?...  Well, some of the smaller maps are not to scale and are meant for mostly online play, but that is not unique to the Italian map.  For software development it provides an easier way to test features because they are faster to load and not too taxing on the system while I am running several programs and the Microsoft Visual Studio development environment.  I am quite fond of the smaller maps because they do have hidden gems and I doubt any designer or developer had pissing off people as their objective when they put the time to design or develop them.  I noticed that several planes, stock or mod are not 100% accurate either, still I play them.  The engine is dated but still viable and fun.  The newer IL-2 series (Great Battles) is a lot better visually but I spend more time with the classic series, just like it.

In any way, I will continue to use as many of the maps as I can.  I am originally from Brazil, have Italian descent. lived in Italy for several years and use the reduced scale map for design.  The Northeastern Atlantic Brazilian map is not accurate either... and Ponta Negra is not accurately depicted in Natal... I still will make templates for it... not ready to call it disrespectful to the Brazilian people.  The dated graphics could arguably lead to IL-2 being disrespectful to every nation, every aircraft manufacturer, etc.  That's not reasonable.  I think there are other sims out there that work better even... but I choose to stick with this one, defects and all.  There are plenty of modders here that do a bang-up job continually improving the old IL-2 engine.

If you design a better Italy map with a smaller footprint, I am willing to use that too.

Back to programming.