Tank50us

clearly someone was playing a bit of RA2.... so while we're at it, why not some giant squids?

and their actual Destroyers as well

That and some JSDF assets as well, which I think is something desperately needed in DCS since any conflict with China would likely see the JSDF being involved in some capacity.

A little thing, but it would be nice if in the Mission Editor, when setting up unit formations, if there was a graphic that showed exactly what the formation is supposed to look like. Additionally, it would also be nice for there to be a tool-tip to give advice on just what certain formations are meant to be used for, seeing as not everyone who plays DCS has encyclopedic knowledge of these subjects.

This is also what Combined Arms also allows people to do. The extent may be limited, but it does allow for it. Also remember that those in CA can also direct (over voice coms) their most powerful asset in air defense: Their sides own fighters.

the answer is simple: Document and report. <profanity>ty players will always exist, and sadly, there's not a whole killin' lot that ED, or anyone can really do about them other then yeet them when they catch them. But they first have to be reported, which unfortunately, a lot of people just don't do.

That would require a server-side mod or setting. Either way, it's a good idea

Alright, side topic related to this, what if ED opened up a Community Contributor Program, where people can submit potential assets to ED for use in DCS. It can be anything from a simple box to a rack of Hellfires, to entire AI assets. We all know that ED has a laundry list of things they want to add to the game, but only so much time to work on any of them. Would something like that work?

Little correction: It's not Bacterial, it's "Biological", because viruses can be used as weapons as well as bacterium. That being said, NBC weapons and conditions would be an interesting thing to see, so long as ED can figure out how to make them *not* turn servers into nuclear devices, and our computers into easy-bake ovens. However, I can also understand why such weapons are not in DCS beyond that: They're very touchy subjects to some, and frankly, can be easily mistreated by players. However, if someone wants the weapons without the consequences, I'd suggest having the 'pieces' as static objects that can be placed on the map. This way we can build entire missions around their disposal or capture. An example would be a stockpile is located by a ground team on Saipan, and the weapons need to be disposed of safely and quickly. The only option available is to hoist the canister/crate and take if over the trench and drop it. The extreme depths and pressures will render the agent inside completely harmless, and inaccessible to those wishing to capture and deploy it.

Legal (F-15) Eagles And I get the feeling you missed the part where it has to go through an approval process before it can become part of the game proper. If someone tries to submit an F-100 Super Saber with less polygons than the LMAC Mirage 2000-5 or Seahawk, and doesn't have a modeled cockpit, then it's more than likely going to get rejected before the ED QA guys even try the flight model. We've seen four teams now that've been able to do work that rivals that of the 3rd Party Devs, but only one has gone on to the road to becoming official (the Hercules), and I'm sure there are more out there who want to make something that is high in quality, but to get it represented correctly, need the SDK, which is locked behind closed doors. This sets that barrier to something that can be surmounted if they can scrounge the upfront fee, albeit with certain caveats. If that team can deliver multiple high quality products, then they have a chance to become official, and get the full SDK. But no team is going to get there if they're submitted half-arsed work that can be done in 30min. And on top of that, there's a chance that they could even get paid for their hard work if they decide to charge for it.

except as previously stated, the SDK Light isn't something that's just handed out, a team would have to pay for it, and included in the sale price is the access to the Legal F-15s that ED likely has on retainer anyway. Seriously, do you think that ED doesn't already have its own legal team? Just about any company dealing with game design is going to have a lawyer on speed-dial for a wide range of situations.

oh look who showed up.... Come to bust a decent idea that could get us more aircraft and items without having to break the game? I notice that, as per the usual with you, you don't offer anything constructive, just laughing at the idea that maybe ED, a company who has obviously navigated the legal mine fields to get the licenses to make these modules in the first place, wouldn't be able to A: Help the teams also looking to make something official navigate those waters, or B: Have the clout to come in an back up the teams when legal issues do come up. I think ED does have the ability, or at least the knowledge of how to get the major companies to fork over the licenses to make the planes. Obviously older aircraft (WW2 or early-mid cold war) get a bit tricky since many of those companies no longer exist, and tracking down who owns the rights now is a hassle, but that isn't impossible, at least in the US. Things get tricky in Europe, Russia and China obviously, but some countries are more open than others (Japan for example), so while it may be difficult, the fee paid by the dev team to get the SDK could be set aside as a legal fund for ED to send in the Mosies with Briefcases to get the license agreements

maybe, but some of the teams are doing this for free, and if they set the cost to zero, then they aren't profiting off of some other companies design, ergo, there should be no legal issues. But then again, in this case I think ED has the clout to come in and get the lawyers to back off a bit.

So, seeing all these mods coming down the pipe where the teams really put the work in to make the thing is almost eyewatering.... except... at the end of the day, they're mods, and sadly, as awesome as they are, too many people don't want to touch them with a ten foot pole. But what if there was a way for these smaller teams to have a gateway to 3rd Party Status? A way to prove "Yes, we can deliver", without having to go through a lengthy process. Well, that's where the SDK Light comes in. The way it could work, in theory, is that ED could offer this version of the SDK (and its learning tools) up at a cost, and part of this would require some hard rules from that point on. Such as: The assets must be of your (or your teams) creation. The team must make an exterior model, cockpit model, flight model, and damage model. All existing AIs and weapons are available (Jester, George, Petro, etc) All existing systems (RWRs, radars, T-Pods, etc) are available Multi-crew is available You won't be able to add your own AI (IE, you can't create a new Jester) You won't be able to add your own systems You won't have access to the map tools You can add weapon variations (you can add leaflet bombs or different versions of the Sidewinder), but not new weapons You can add units as needed Compare that to 3rd Party Devs like Heatblur, Razbam, Leatherneck, etc, who basically get to do just about anything ED can do, within reason (They can create weapons, with EDs approval for example). And just like with the existing 3rd party devs, there's an approval process required for any module created this way to become part of the game. That process would likely be: You prove that all of the work has been done by you and your team. You submit a test report, and a manual for your module ED then has a team go through that test report and manual and verify everything. If issues are found, the team is notified and given time to fix the issues. if the issues are fixed, or no issues arise at all, the module is priced and put into the game (however if the team decides they want it to be free, ED must honor it) After release, the team must keep working on the module to ensure it stays up to date. If issues arise, they must fix the issues, or, failing that, hand the module over to ED for the fix. Failure to do that results in that team being barred from the program, and the module becoming ED property 100%. The pros of this, if done, would be that now teams who can cook up a module equivalent mod can have the item officially added to the game, provided it passes muster. On top of that, if they can continue delivering high quality modules, they can be offered full 3rd Party status, and given access to the full SDK. The obvious drawback to this, will be our HDDs when these aircraft/helicopters start coming in. But I think we can all agree, it'd be worth it in the end.

Although rare, both bombers can be forward deployed to locations if their needed to hit something that's time critical that requires more Micheal Bay than can be delivered by the equivalent number of MudHens

I will say this about the Bombers: Although the plan is to introduce a new flight model for them, I wonder if it'll be possible to leave the FM until later? I mean, it's not like these things are doing to be doing Thunderbirds maneuvers. Or is the plan to just update their payloads and put them ingame once the textures and damage model are ready?

Same with the BUFF and BONE

That's already in the cards. They're just starting with the planes that can make us go full Michael Bay with

yup, right here: I'll be in my bunk...

The new S3B is looking pretty damn good. I do hope that the BUFF and BONE are looking good as well :3

TBF, the Bridge can be a static object. While the bridgelayer itself can be a single unit with an option to have the bridge, or not.

nah. I HIGHLY doubt many people would buy it. Certainly not enough to justify a full module.

As I'm sure many are aware, in the real world, ground crews like to get creative with the weapons being loaded onto the various planes. From taunts to pinups, it does make me wonder if we could have something in DCS where random skins for various weapons will load when the weapon is loaded onto the aircraft. This would also be useful to show that some missiles and ordinance will arrive fresh from the factory, while others might have been stored for a bit in some bunker somewhere, and the showing of this on the aircraft itself would help with immersion. Obviously something would need to be done about the weapon coming off the rail this way, but, I do think it might add a bit to the realism. It's a low priority thing, but one I wouldn't mind seeing one day.

Oh this is something I fully understand. Having done some modding work in the past, and doing a bunch of stuff with the ME for a campaign, I know things can crop up. And then there are those days where you just.... don't feel like doing anything. I know I've been there... heck had a day like that just this week. Came home from work, felt dead, went to bed. You guys keep doing what you do best, and when you need a break from staring at a screen all day, take it. Take care of yourselves. I think I speak for the whole of the 145th, and probably many units that feel this way, but... we care about you guys. We want these modules to be the best you can make them. But not at the cost of the talented people who bust their buts 9-5 working on them. So seriously guys, if you need more time, or just need a break... take it. We'll still be here when ya get back in the groove. Now for those busting EDs chops for being late.... seriously... stop it. EDs working as hard as they flippin' can to please us all. Show'em some freaking gratitude, and let them work. We'll get our shiny new toys when they're ready.

Given how transparent they've been with the AH64s development, and people are still asking why it's not out yet, I have my doubts about this statement.