The Big Show - Spitfire Mk.IX Campaign info

[Reflected]

 

Dear Virtual Pilots,

 

Thank you for your interest in my first DLC Campaign called “The Big Show”. I put my heart and soul into it, plus as much mission editing skills as I possibly could, with the help of others of course. I really hope it will give you hours of immersion, excitement and fun. I’m so looking forward to hearing your opinions, please use this thread to share any positive feedback,questions, or things that can be improved. However, if you want to point out specific bugs, or have questions/problems about a given mission, please open a new thread to make sure I don’t miss it. I will do my best to fix them as soon as I can. Can’t wait to hear your impressions, I’ve played the campaign a few dozen times, but I always knew what would happen

 

 

GO TO THE WEBSHOP

 

Each mission corresponds to events described in the book. My recommendation is to get a copy, read it, and when you arrive to a chapter that is featured in the campaign stop, and play the mission. The other limitation I had to work with is Clostermann’s (the player’s) position in the formation. You will not fly as a wingman but lead flights, or sometimes the entire squadron. I hope you can forgive this liberty I took. The storyline begins in the Spring of 1943 with Clostermann’s first big show over France, and ends in July 1944, stationed at the Advanced Landing Ground of Longues-sur-Mer.

 

 

When creating the campaign, the script was in front of me: planes, numbers, altitudes, missions, locations, even the dialogs. The most difficult part of the job was trying to recreate these events as accurately as possible, working with the limitations of playing a computer game. Biggin Hill is not on the map, nor is Detling. The player won’t be able to rendez-vous with hundreds of B-17s returning from Schweinfurt over Zuider-See, nor can I stress your video cards with 80 plus bandits. Sometimes you’ll have to fly to slightly different locations, or hear about friendly or enemy flights in the R/T that are not really there, because it just wouldn’t make sense, you wouldn’t see them anyway. Sometimes events in the book don’t appear in chronological order, sometimes timings there contradict historical sources, and sometimes I couldn’t find any trace of what Clostermann described. The best I could do was to make an educated guess. I can only hope that I found the right balance and these missions will give you a thrilling experience; a taste of what it might have been like to fly Spitfires in 1943-44.

 

 

CONTENT

 

These 12 missions come with a lot of extra content to make them as immersive as possible. There are over a hundred custom radio messages especially recorded for this campaign, as well as dozens of historically accurate custom skins.

Each mission has two standard briefing images. One is a briefing room chalkboard with all the details of the mission, the other one is a map with headings and distances. Where applicable, there are further briefing images such as aerial recon photos of the target area.

 

     

 

This content is also available on your kneeboard: there is a page with the aforementioned map complete with headings and distances and the most important mission details underneath. My recommendation is that you try to use this to find your way rather than peeking at the F10 map that’s full of spoilers. Also on the kneeboard, you will find three pages of checklists and procedures. Try to follow them, and operate your Spitfire Mk.IX like those young men did back in 1943-44.

 

        
 

 

For those with a second monitor or a tablet, a high resolution pdf map of Normandy can be found in the documentations folder.

 

GAMEPLAY

 

These are no “Hollywood” style missions. No need to shoot down x number of enemy planes or destroy pre-defined targets to progress. Just like in real life, it will suffice to survive the mission and live to fight another day. Therefore, there is a timer set for each sortie, and after 10 minutes airborne they will be successfully completed.

 

Some of the missions have a large number of AI units such as big bomber formations, ships or ground units. I included an option to remove some of these units, so that people with less powerful PCs can also enjoy the campaign. Where applicable, there is an item in the F10 radio menu that you can select in the first 5 minutes of the mission. After that, the radio menu item will be removed. I have a Ryzen 1600x and a 1070. I played this campaign in 1080p with high settings and high FPS, and then re-played it in VR with more reasonable gfx settings. Only in the busiest times did it drop below 30, but mostly I got 45 without using the remove AI units option.

 

 

In the first couple missions you will fly as Blue Leader, leading a 4 ship formation, following Red Flight, who might be following the lead squadron of the Wing. You won’t need to worry about navigation, you’ll just have to follow the lead flight and follow Red Leader’s commands. You will be able to give orders to your own flight via the normal radio menu. Later, however, you will lead the entire squadron into battle with 8or 12 Spitfires. In these missions you can give commands to the other flight(s) via the F10 radio menu. When leading the squadron, make sure you follow the briefing details and give sufficient time for the other flights to take off and form up. You can of course head towards the target sooner than briefed, but you will risk going into battle with most of your formation lagging behind.

 

Most missions are long enough to be conscious of fuel management. Climb at +7 boost and 2650 rpm maximum, and reduce power when cruising. This will also help your wingmen to keep in formation, especially at higher altitudes.

 

 

When attacking ground targets, be careful with commands. “Engage ground targets” will make your wingmen prioritize air defenses and do suicide runs over flak batteries. Be specific and choose “Engage utility” to attack trucks. Spitfires will not attack tanks with machine guns and cannons, so don’t use the “Engage armor” command. When there is a primary target specified in the briefing, use the “Attack primary” command.

 

Spotting ground targets can be difficult in game, but AI pilots have very good eyesight and you should be using this to your advantage. Your wingmen may call out “Tally utility at 10 o’clock for 4”, which means they see trucks ahead, slightly to the left at a distance of 4 miles. You can either turn in that direction and try to spot the target, or just give your flight the order to attack, and follow them in.

 

Sometimes your wingmen may reply “negative” or “unable”. This means they either can’t see the target, or they don’t have adequate weapons to attack. This can happen when you order them to engage armor without bombs.

 

 

Not everything is meant for you. There may be engagements that happen far away, even off the map. There may be several ground targets, but this does not mean you have to take out every one of them. Your job as a commander is to make the right decision, and lead the squadron according to your best judgment to keep everyone alive.

 

Should you be in trouble, switch to channel D on your radio to contact Air/Sea Rescue.

 

It’s important to note that although the missions are not time sensitive, they work best if you follow the briefing as closely as you can. It takes precision and accuracy to assemble the Biggin Hill Wing.

 

 

For those who would like to maximize immersion, I included a blank combat report, also known as “Form F” in pdf format. Feel free to print 12 of these, sit down after each mission, try to remember all the details and complete your report, like real pilots did back in World War 2.

 

Again, I wish you hours of pure excitement, immersion, sheer terror, sweat, joy and success. All clear? Switches on!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 4, 2020 by Reflected

[Anonymous User]

Looks amazing, can't wait to try it!

[feefifofum]

Congrats on the release Reflected! :thumbup:

[Reflected]

First post updated :)

[Sabre-TLA]

Congratulations Reflected!

 

I know how much work it is to create a campaign.

 

Really looking forward to playing this! :thumbup:

[352ndDeacon]

I see you have a thumbnail of the Biggin Hill layout. Are the runway directions historically accurate? I ask because I'm currently making airfields on the Normandy map as templates via the use of Suntsag's great mod, the Marstan Mat.

[Reflected]

I see you have a thumbnail of the Biggin Hill layout. Are the runway directions historically accurate? I ask because I'm currently making airfields on the Normandy map as templates via the use of Suntsag's great mod, the Marstan Mat.

 

No, unfortunately Biggin is not on the map, so I used some other airfield (Ford?), and the layout matches the one in game. I took that picture from the mission editor.

[Reflected]

Here's a little preview/ review of the campaign at the beginning of this video. Just a few thoughts, really.

 

 

If you're still undecided, make sure you check out Sydy's playthrough videos.

[Reflected]

Spitfire IX - Big Show Campaign. Corrected a typo in the documentation. Added some B-17 skins that were accidentally missing.

 

https://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=3682826&postcount=34

[Highwayman-Ed]

Looking forward to flying this one, lots of work to do first though :)

[Reflected]

Now only for 5 bucks as part of the autumn sale. Less than a beer. Get your copy today and off you go, those Circuses and Rodeos are waiting! :pilotfly:

 

https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/shop/campaigns/spitfire_the_big_show/

 

[Anonymous User]

Purchased, super excited to get home and get amongst it! In the meantime I went and found an old copy of the book to read beforehand.

Many thanks Reflected, I’ve been waiting for a campaign such as this.

[shootersteve77]

I have a question for this campaign; is it possible to modify the missions as to make them easier or harder in the mission editor? I'm just starting with the Spitfire and needs lots of practice before I get thrown into a fur ball! I like to remove all enemy from theater to get started and learn before adding them back in as I gain confidence. Getting shot down in 10 seconds is not much fun at all..... and doesn't teach you much.

 

Thanks!

[Reflected]

I have a question for this campaign; is it possible to modify the missions as to make them easier or harder in the mission editor? I'm just starting with the Spitfire and needs lots of practice before I get thrown into a fur ball! I like to remove all enemy from theater to get started and learn before adding them back in as I gain confidence. Getting shot down in 10 seconds is not much fun at all..... and doesn't teach you much.

 

Thanks!

 

 

Steve, there are two things you can do:

 

1) use the "remove units" function at the beginning of the mission via the F10 menu. This will not only improve performance, but you'll have less planes flying around, making it easier to maintain your SA in a furball.

 

2) Try to stay above the melee, or at the side. You don't need to rush into the middle of it with guns blazing. Stay out, preferably higher, and focus 80% of your attention to protect your tail, and only 20% to actually find a target.

 

After all, new pilots in WW2 weren't allowed an easy way into things, they were thrown off the deep end. Good luck!

[shootersteve77]

Steve, there are two things you can do:

 

1) use the "remove units" function at the beginning of the mission via the F10 menu. This will not only improve performance, but you'll have less planes flying around, making it easier to maintain your SA in a furball.

 

2) Try to stay above the melee, or at the side. You don't need to rush into the middle of it with guns blazing. Stay out, preferably higher, and focus 80% of your attention to protect your tail, and only 20% to actually find a target.

 

After all, new pilots in WW2 weren't allowed an easy way into things, they were thrown off the deep end. Good luck!

 

Thanks, I'll give it a try. I was thinking the same thing as I was writing the last post. Young adults were thrown into the cockpit with minimal training and headed into action.... In today's military, pilots are trained for probably 18 months before they are mission qualified.

[Flappie]

Hi Reflected, can you please tell me if your campaign will eventually reach Steam?

[Reflected]

Hi Reflected, can you please tell me if your campaign will eventually reach Steam?

 

Hi,

That's not up to me. AFAIK it will be, but I think ED wants to see if there are any showstopper bugs that didn't come up during the testing. I don't really know how it usually works, so I can't promise anything.

[Flappie]

I understand, and I'm good with your answer. Thanks!

[PJKme123]

Steam?

 

Will this Campaign be available on Steam?.....hopefully

[mackan072]

I have a question for this campaign; is it possible to modify the missions as to make them easier or harder in the mission editor? I'm just starting with the Spitfire and needs lots of practice before I get thrown into a fur ball! I like to remove all enemy from theater to get started and learn before adding them back in as I gain confidence. Getting shot down in 10 seconds is not much fun at all..... and doesn't teach you much.

 

Thanks!

 

Can't you just turn on invulnerability within the general in game settings? I've used that for some other campaigns, as a way to ease my way into aircraft which I've been far from confident in. Having to successfully doge long range missiles or similar, while at the same time struggling with simple stuff, such as the radio, and thus pausing and flickering through the manuals constantly isn't a very pleasant experience. I've had to restart far too many missions because I've failed to identify an incoming missile while heads down, playing with knobs I don't quite understand. It's very frustrating :crash: and feels like a real hindrance to the learning aspects when you get thrown into too deep water all at once, and end up learning nothing because you simply die in the middle of it. Since then I've began to leave invulnerability on while trying to learn the basics. Once you feel that you've got controls of the basics, you can always turn the invulnerability back off and soar like a true pilot :pilotfly:

[tintifaxl]

What totally kills the immersion for me is the generic radio chatter like "defend triple A bulls" or "splash bandit ...". Can I silence this somehow?

[DD_Fenrir]

In your main options/settings, ensure "Allied Flight Reports" is deselected.

[tintifaxl]

In your main options/settings, ensure "Allied Flight Reports" is deselected.

 

OMG, that for a day one DCS pilot. :doh: Thanks for the heads up.

[flyingdutchy]

Will the campaigns be update with the Fw190-a8?

[Reflected]

Of course, I'll get to work as soon as the A-8 comes out ;)