Boosterdog

My Hind landings under a beautiful CLEAR Georgian sky have improved greatly..........and will likely continue to do so for several weeks more......

Ah.........fond memories of the word "high" and sliders that went to the right..........

...and we were happy to have the NKVD I can tell you!

Also done. No difference.

It all depends on if you want to use mods and how much patience you have. If you do the world is your lobster and there are a good few airfield templates created by RUDEL I think that use the VPC mod in particular (i think there were for farps also) . If you dont then you get either the butt ugly FARP pyramids or the invisible farp recently introduced with a few tyres. I dont use templates as each FARP has its own topological demands but tend to go with the use of vehicles over the farp objects to achieve the refuel/repair/beacon functions although I may throw in the non farp ammo depot for looks and a tent for repair if I so inclined. When it comes to dressing again if you use mods you have a lot of great choices but if you dont then you are down to cargos and tyes really. I use logs, pipes and the odd tower alongside the ammo boxes. If its a RED farp there is ALWAYS an Mi8 in there cos........there is always an Mi 8 somewhere in every red helo doc Ive ever seen! Sadly we dont have a covered and tied down static. And if its expendable (Ie there is a FARP incursion planned) have it explode if damaged cos, if not its almost indestructible. If its a blue FARP then the SC deck crew can come in useful for limited USMC applications. I never plonk down farps without checking them in the game. Too often I see missions where there are balancing above the ground or there are placed in an area where the ground colouring jars (re pixelated town fuzzy felt mat effect). I also try to avoid areas where the roads are mismatched or cut jarringly through towns as you fly into and out of the FARP to. Finally I use triggers for flares, illumination flares and smoke accessible via the radio menu to give at least the impression of life. If Im particularly struck with a FARP I many even have vehicles trigger to approach or leave the LZ after a landing and again after a refuel but this can be buggy and is nigh on impossible on a pyramid FARPS it appears. What I would say however, and this may just be me, but the moving vehicles get old pretty quick. I did once have a mod with a yellow "Follow Me" Hummer and used it to sprint out in front of my Harrier to pace the taxi into the RR area but, after a while it began to bug me cos, with just one straight road, where else was I going to go?. As you can tel. I Lubs FARPS!

Its not. Certainly not for me. Just as it affects the reprojection it also affects the good ole vsync floor which many of us dinosaurs on sub prime rigs still rely heavily upon to produce a (mostly) smooth flowing experience. And I suspect there are a lot of us dinosaurs still roaming the DCS world if not the forums.

Sorry - its another "what should I do?" thread. My current system uses a 5 year old I5 6600K with a 4.3Ghz OC and a GTX 1080. I play using a 1080P monitor and, for the foreseeable, will not be changing that. The last two years has seen DCS progress and my system's ability to run even the most basic of missions, especially low down ones, diminish. Attached is a snapshot of the CPU and GPU use in the Mi24 instant mission PG Disaster Relief with Vsync off in order to let the horses (donkeys) run free (limp lamely) to show my agony. As I understand it, the GPU is doing what it should and running full tilt but the CPU is floundering like a fat dad in the parents race on a school sports day. Temps appear all in order and within the prescribed limits. So, a couple of initial questions to the wise. 1) Am I reading the graph correctly? 2) Would the £1000 I have available be well spent on a new CPU if the GTX1080 stays (1080P use only)? Assuming the answer to 2) is "yes" or "possibly" and given the plethora of self important t-shirt and mug selling "experts" on the internet and Youtube confusing the heck out of me.... 3) Would I go for a 5600X or an I5 11600K? 4) What memory would I go for each (I've read, and lost the will to live, about RAM but somewhere in my dull little head is a voice saying "pair a Gskill Trident Z Neo 3200 CL14 32GB dual kit ((2x 16GB)) with the 5600X and worry not about the 2 v 4 sticks debate". The voice simply shrugs it shoulders and kicks it feet when it comes to the I5. The sole use of the PC will be DCS at 1080P. No VR, no 4K but an absolute need to remain comfortably above 60 fps with room to spare. I should also add I not really too interested in whats around the corner. Experience has shown me there is ALWAYS something around the corner but when it comes its not available or not available at RRP and, by the time it is, something else i just around the corner. Same for VULKAN. Im sure it come but so will my demise and since I cant predict either I dont want to think about them. Thank you in advance for all and any help or advice.

Not only do we get the same destruction model regardless of what was there before but it also costs about 10 fps up close. 10 fps for something that wouldnt look out of place in a certain blocky adventure game(which also runs like a bag of doo if you increase the graphics to anything approaching nice oddly enough).

Playing 2D @1080P, quick and dirty test showed only a 3-4 fps decrease with GI on in the Hind. On my old I5/GTX1080 rig DCS always has been a fine balancing act between what I consider to be the minimum enjoyable graphics and maintaining even the smallest buffer above 60 fps. I have nothing set high and none of of the newer SSAA, SSLR or SSAO on. The last patch made altering many (already pretty light) missions necessary even critical by removing the weather and AI and effectively wrote off all but the Georgian and PG maps for Helos. And this is 2D and 1080P. Hardly cutting edge.

YMMV but for me its a 5-7 fps difference and exactly what Id expect to see by adding or removing the fluffy stuff. Very little difference between the quality settings (2 fps) and it matters not if you have a full overcast or a couple of scattered clouds. 2D @ 1080P.

Essentially useless in MP true but nice to switch into and out of in SP without any delays. Same for the F14. EDIT - actually, thinking about it, I never use it even in SP. So i agree, be nice if it were a switchable option.

Sorry, I meant the elevator opposite the superstructure.

Thanks for the tips fagulha. I tend to avoid shader mods. Ive used many in the past but few make me happy. Solution for me was to go easy on the eye candy and not cram as much into everything. In my "stress Test" mission have over 100 objects on the deck if you include all the chocks, extinguishers, tractors, crew etc plus about 20 AI doing various AI things (badly) including landing and massed take offs. Removing 3 tomcats from Jurrassic Park brought to fps back up enough for even F14 missions to run smooth on the deck (I spawn to the rear of the carrier facing this area). Ive only just put DCS back into my living room after about 6 months away so am also in the process of deciding which bit of outboard gear I NEED and which i simply want (space is not very generous even with an understanding family). Once thing I did notice is just how much Track IR introduces stutters thanks to its 60 hz refresh demands. Without it even the vsync'd halfed refresh 30 fps was smooth using a mouse. Guess there is no cheap solution for that one.

I do it that every patch and after any config alteration. Sadly the patch has tipped my old rig over the side when it comes to carrier ops. Unless I want empty decks. Which I dont. Im not complaining. I think its a good patch but as Im dependent on vsync and was already balancing on 60 fps with my old I5/GTX1080 its tanked me on deck to 30fps in the F14 which beyond my tolerance graphically. Fine for most other things (outside of the channel) but hey ho.

New water effects appear to come at some small cost in fps (unsurprisingly) but carry the plus of still looking very good a medium settings (read MUCH better than the old ones at ANY setting) and which, from my limited mucking about, gets the fps back plus a bit more (great for me and my ageing, vsync bound system). Bow wave and wake effects are much better and the overall appearance, as already mentioned, is greatly improved. Forrestal is also great but, after SC, misses the added interest of an animated crew which is a real shame given the talent and effort put into it. I hope something can be worked out with ED in the future. EDIT - seems the new patch has dented performance for me with a busy SC deck limping in at around 10-15 fps less than the last patch even with lower water settings.

Hi, this is what butters my parsnips Anyone who spends time creating stuff for others should feel free to do it for their enjoyment too so please take all the stuff below with a pinch of salt and not as a demand! Ive spent months creating complex mission only for stuff to break so I do appreciate the amount of effort that goes into a campaign. Some of the things I like and dont. Audio not text. Ideally GOOD professional/gifted voice acting. Wouldn't expect it from a free campaign but I would for a paid one. Some Amazon polly voices can, with some judicious editing and degrading, almost sound real and its cheap. Recording of amateur community members reading lines is sometimes worse than no sound at all but sometimes they really hit the mark too. Variation in the airfield scenery/layout. Starting out each mission with a groundhog day experience can be a chore. Limited briefing text is a bonus. Reams of intro always feels a little "this is the plot" to me. I prefer being drip fed in game audio. Mixing the weather/lighting. Not easy given what mission builders currently have but a little turbulence here and there or coming home in the dark helps keep my attention. An impression you are not fighting an entire army Rambo style. Activity around the airfield, support from AI, coms from AI doing something away from your area all help. Surprises. Randomising where those blasted MANPADS and Tors pop up help keep replays fresh. Its lot to create but alternate outcomes even just within each mission can be good to. IADS. Giving the enemy AI at least the impression of intelligence adds to the immersion in certain situations. No tours without a reason. The ubiquitous familiarisation flight can be a grind but can also be good if there is enough information triggered during it. A diversion is always welcome too. Hope some of that serves as a starter. Cheers

......apart from the viggen (of course). Mea culpa

I find the Harrier a lot more fun that either the A10 or the Hornet BUT I also find it more limited in its overall capability and many of its systems are either still bugged or very difficult to work with (or both). This said, dropping iron bombs seems fine, using mavs seems ok and nothing gives you the impression of speed at low level like the harrier.

What about Gimp?

I found it a very useful feature to improve my refueling technique. The sooner I make contact the sooner he shuts up!

all the info you need, none you dont and far from dry too.

So little do they care that they are producing two new ones and making those the larger proportion of their modern output for the next 18 months to 2 years? Having a few older modules that are likely spaghetti coded and that most have already bought, rightly or wrongly isnt a great incentive to sort helo related stuff out. Hopefully having two premium priced modules and needing to claw back the investment on them is. Not saying it'll fix the BS but it may help push fixes for other helo related stuff and the so so low/slow flying graphics. Or maybe not, depends how many ED reckon will buy either or both just to have them I guess.

After a full weekend of getting to grips with the Mi8 and the sling loading I finally completed mission 4 only to be wiped out 100M from the runway threshold by a Landing IL76. No warning and after obtaining permission to land too. Rude. Im assuming its one of several that are landing given some were already on the deck and Im also assuming they are likely to be about just as you are coming home. Anyhow. For anyone else working through this campaign - dont rely on dumb and dumber next to you or the ATC and keep your eyes peeled!

Well ive given it enough time for now. Whether its true to real life I know not but, as it stands, its too finicky, un-intuitive and glitch prone to be even remotely useful to me. Thankfully the Harrier still has its other charms. Thanks to all who tried to help.

Thanks Zaius. The main thing that defies me now is using the DMT then slaving the tpod. Tpod on its own no problem, auto bombing no problem but the getting the TV into SOI - not a chance. Not even a noob at all this. Should be a sinch! Onwards and upwards. The Harrier is by far my favorite module but also the most frustrating.