F/A-18C Dynamic Campaign: Battle Group Delta

[Dagger71]

ok so by changing the dates in the miz files and some of the lua file I was able the INS now fully implemented and working.

 

DL is working as wel, l except not all flights have theirs turned on so I am guessing there is some flag that is set to false.

 

 

 

Can you guide me which lua file has it disabled? I can't find it in db_loadout.

[Dagger71]

oops forgot to enable EPLRS command in the ME.

 

 

 

So looks like everything works now, SA map, DL, INS.

 

 

 

 

 

You need to change the date value in camp_init, open both Miz files in ME, change the dates as well, and add the command in advanced waypoints for EPLRS for each (AWACS and other FA18C groups) that uses it.

 

 

During start up I saw all planes on DL, the WP distance is updating and you get the moving HSI map as well.

[Andrei]

Having played 4 missions by now, I find that I like this campaign more and more.

 

And the overall setting is perfect. 1990s, with no AMRAAMs and Datalink makes you really think what to do and how. No high-tech weapons and plenty of air defences requires a carefully planned approach to the target. Add 200+ combat radius of the mission and you know you only have one shot at it. The upside is - you have a lot of time to plan and recap on the way in and out.

 

Last mission I was flying was to hit the SA-2 site at Sirri island. That was a LONG trip. Somewhere near Queshim we've got spikes of F-4 and very soon F-14. The escorts have reacted to F-4s and got busy with them, in the meanwhile enemy Tomcats started to lock form 2' and slowly moving to 3'-4' position.

 

Decisions-decisions... Engage F-14s which means that we'd need to drop all tanks and bombs, which automatically results in mission "failure" or continue pushing to the target in the hope that the interceptors are in pretty bad position already and would have to launch from tail aspect? Do those Tomcats have Phoenixes - in that case we're done or do they have Sparrows? We can accelerate to buy us more time, but that increases fuel consumption, plus we will overtake those SEAD F-18s which need to be by the target before us.

 

Dropping all 4 Mk-83 in one run in a 30-degree dive from 15K feet watching island fade away behind the Rapier smoke plumes. You don't even hope of precisely hitting radar or launchers, just drop them in target area and hope that quantity would win the day and some of our 16.000 lbs of bombs from our four-ship would hit at least something. Dodging even more Rapiers on egress - "thank God everyone's made it" - let's get the hell outta here.

 

Ah, the atmosphere. The only downside of the mission was that due to some issues there was no tanker on station. As a result #2 and #3 didn't make it and had to eject miles before they could reach the carrier.

 

You really need to manage your WM fuel levels, but on those long flights when there's no tanker available, that's almost impossible. DCS AI is pretty bad with fuel unless you really babysit them.

 

INS is somewhat a nuisance, but it's still manageable. Unfortunately due to existing bugs and early access you can't work with it as you would in that Era, but it's still manageable. I'm very looking forward to finishing this campaign.

[bloomstombs]

Hello, what would be the best way to install this mod on steam version?

[Bagpipe]

Hello,

 

Please can i have clear and concise installation instructions/mods for installing this to "F:\Documents\Saved Games\DCS.openbeta"

 

I have changed the .bat files and followed all previous advice but still doesn;t appear in campaign menu. I have tried symlinking but still nothing.

 

HELP!

[MBot]

Make sure that your install directory is 'Saved Games\DCS'. If you need to install it under DCS.OpenBeta:

a) Adjust filepath in camp_init.lua from 'Saved Games\DCS to 'Saved Games\DCS.OpenBeta'.

b) Edit FirstMission.bat to point to your DCS installation directory

c) Run FirstMission.bat

 

I have also updated the first post.

 

Another user also reported that you need to make sure you have admin rights for these folders.

[frosen]

MBot you are too good! :D This is an excellent campaign. I love the debriefing and score tables. I hope ED do their dynamic campaign along the same lines.

[Bagpipe]

Make sure that your install directory is 'Saved Games\DCS'. If you need to install it under DCS.OpenBeta:

a) Adjust filepath in camp_init.lua from 'Saved Games\DCS to 'Saved Games\DCS.OpenBeta'.

b) Edit FirstMission.bat to point to your DCS installation directory

c) Run FirstMission.bat

 

I have also updated the first post.

 

Another user also reported that you need to make sure you have admin rights for these folders.

 

Please see attached screens showing that i have tried this and still can't see it in the campaign menu? am i missing something obvious?

[Bagpipe]

Do i have to add the "F:\Documents" part to the start of the path line?

[Bagpipe]

Ahhhh! :doh::doh:

 

I have been looking for it under the FA-18 campaign section but i now see it at the bottom under DCE section.

 

D'oh! :smartass:

 

What a plonker, was right all along

[sirrah]

I was wondering.. When I get further in progress, will the carrier group and the tanker support move closer to the area of operations? The other night I did a mission over Seerik and got back to the carrier group flying on fumes, so I wonder how to make it to and from e.g. Bandar Abbas area.

I'm pretty sure this is answered in the mission briefing ;)

 

Sorry to get back on this, but I can't find any answer to this in the mission briefing screen. It only shows the current state of all units and the current mission objective.

 

 

I know about the FPAS page and I know all targets should be within reachable range if I stick to the flight plan, but as I mentioned before, there will be hardly any (if at all) room for side steps when surprised by enemy air assets (at least not with my air to air "skills" :P)

 

 

Edit:

Just tried another mission. Though I'm really excited about the dynamic feel of this mission/campaign (MBOT, you really took mission editing to the next level!), the travel distances are a bit overdone imho. Up to a point that (at least for me) it takes away a bit of the enjoyment :(

Please let me explain:

I just flew a SEAD mission, escorting a strike package going for Bandar Abbas (±300nm). To respect the flightplan, it took me over 40 minutes of flying straight at angels 28 to even get to Bandar Abbas area (ctrl-z is not really usable due to extreme frame drops).

Upon arrival, I did what I was there for together with my AI wingmen and destroyed the SA-2 from my objective. I all happened clean and without any trouble. Still, while egressing, all three wingmen called in BINGO and (of course, as this is still not fixed in DCS) 30 seconds later they ejected...

Not really feeling like doing another 40 mins of flying straight, I quit the mission and accepted the result.

Only to find that my next mission is an attack on Siri Island. Which, if I follow the flightplan, will be more than 450nm away from the carrier group :shocking:

 

So, I'd really like to know, will the mission travel distances decrease further down the road?

Edited January 11, 2020 by sirrah

[GWdope]

Hi, So I have fallowed the instructions to get this to run on Open Beta including changing the FirstMission.bat to also have the correct file path. now when I run FirstMission.bat I get this:

 

"E:\Eagle Dynamics\DCS World OpenBeta\bin\luae.exe: cannot open ..\..\..\Scripts\BAT_FirstMission.lua: No such file or directory

 

Do I need to replace the "..\..\.." with a file path? if so I don't know where this is.

 

Thanks

[MBot]

Hi, So I have fallowed the instructions to get this to run on Open Beta including changing the FirstMission.bat to also have the correct file path. now when I run FirstMission.bat I get this:

 

"E:\Eagle Dynamics\DCS World OpenBeta\bin\luae.exe: cannot open ..\..\..\Scripts\BAT_FirstMission.lua: No such file or directory

 

Do I need to replace the "..\..\.." with a file path? if so I don't know where this is.

 

Thanks

 

That error suggests a wrong installation directory. Are you sure you unzipped the campaign into "\Mods\tech\DCE\Missions\Campaigns"? The installed directory must then be "\Mods\tech\DCE\Missions\Campaigns\FA-18C Battle Group Delta".

[MBot]

Just tried another mission. Though I'm really excited about the dynamic feel of this mission/campaign (MBOT, you really took mission editing to the next level!), the travel distances are a bit overdone imho. Up to a point that (at least for me) it takes away a bit of the enjoyment :(

Please let me explain:

I just flew a SEAD mission, escorting a strike package going for Bandar Abbas (±300nm). To respect the flightplan, it took me over 40 minutes of flying straight at angels 28 to even get to Bandar Abbas area (ctrl-z is not really usable due to extreme frame drops).

Upon arrival, I did what I was there for together with my AI wingmen and destroyed the SA-2 from my objective. I all happened clean and without any trouble. Still, while egressing, all three wingmen called in BINGO and (of course, as this is still not fixed in DCS) 30 seconds later they ejected...

Not really feeling like doing another 40 mins of flying straight, I quit the mission and accepted the result.

Only to find that my next mission is an attack on Siri Island. Which, if I follow the flightplan, will be more than 450nm away from the carrier group :shocking:

 

So, I'd really like to know, will the mission travel distances decrease further down the road?

 

The carrier initially starts in the Arabian Sea. Once the missile boats at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz and the radar site at Bandar Jask are destroyed, the battle group will enter and patrol the Gulf of Oman. It will never enter the Strait of Hormuz. Flights to the Bandar Abbas target are will be fairly short trips but missions into the Persian Gulf will remain longer. That is how it is supposed to be.

[PB0_CEF]

The carrier initially starts in the Arabian Sea. Once the missile boats at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz and the radar site at Bandar Jask are destroyed, the battle group will enter and patrol the Gulf of Oman. It will never enter the Strait of Hormuz. Flights to the Bandar Abbas target are will be fairly short trips but missions into the Persian Gulf will remain longer. That is how it is supposed to be.

 

 

 

I agree with that : naval air forces are often sailing far from their targets ;)

 

 

Envoyé de mon iPhone en utilisant Tapatalk

[sirrah]

The carrier initially starts in the Arabian Sea. Once the missile boats at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz and the radar site at Bandar Jask are destroyed, the battle group will enter and patrol the Gulf of Oman. It will never enter the Strait of Hormuz. Flights to the Bandar Abbas target are will be fairly short trips but missions into the Persian Gulf will remain longer. That is how it is supposed to be.

 

Thanks Mbot, I'll make sure to take out those boats and radar then :thumbup:

[VDV]

Why there are not count when im entering the waypoints...in WP1, it always stays to 46.1 nm. Also, can I change my loadouts and skins or this will affect to DCE?

Edited January 12, 2020 by VDV

[frosen]

Why there are not count when im entering the waypoints...in WP1, it always stays to 46.1 nm. Also, can I change my loadouts and skins or this will affect to DCE?

 

You need to align the INS and update it. See page 3 or 4 in this thread for instructions.

 

But free from memory: After the normal alignment, select Wpt 0 then press WPTDSG. Then press DSG, UPD and ACPT. Now you should get the map in the HSI as confirmation that you did it right.

[parxuk]

You need to align the INS and update it. See page 3 or 4 in this thread for instructions.

 

But free from memory: After the normal alignment, select Wpt 0 then press WPTDSG. Then press DSG, UPD and ACPT. Now you should get the map in the HSI as confirmation that you did it right.

 

From experience:

 

1. In the case the plane didn't move since start of the mission: coordinates of the first waypoint can be used to set own coordinates after INS align completed

a) on HSI page choose wpt 0 using PB12 "up" or PB13 "dn", then press PB14 "WPDSG"

b) on HSI page press PB7 "UPDT", press PB7 "DSG", press PB6 "ACPT"

[bloomstombs]

hi Mbot. Thank you! Just got done with work . Cant wait to try this out!

[GWdope]

That error suggests a wrong installation directory. Are you sure you unzipped the campaign into "\Mods\tech\DCE\Missions\Campaigns"? The installed directory must then be "\Mods\tech\DCE\Missions\Campaigns\FA-18C Battle Group Delta".

 

Thanks Mbot, I did have the file structure incorrect. I can now run the .bat file and the campaign turns up in the campaign UI, but I'm now getting a mission script error after closing the first mission:

 

[string

"C:\Users\xxx\AppData\Local\Teno\DCS.openbeta\/~mis00007628.lua']:179:attempt to index local 'logFile' (anil value)stack traceback:

[C]:?

[string (same as above)]:179: in function 'on event'

[string 'Scripts/World/Eventhandlers.lua'];13;

in function <[string 'Scripts/World/Eventhandlers.lua']:11.

 

Im using the Mission scripting mod via JSGME for the script sanitation edit, could that be the issue?

[MBot]

I don't think the sanitizing is the issue, as you wouldn't get that far to that error if that didn't work. If you have done the adjstments realted to the OpenBeta correctly, admin rights for these folders might be the issue. One other user reported that this solved his problems.

[bloomstombs]

Installation:

1. Download Dynamic Campaign Engine and extract to "...\Saved Games\DCS\Mods\tech".

2. Download Battle Group Delta campaign and extract to "...\Saved Games\DCS\Mods\tech\DCE\Missions\Campaigns".

 

Make sure that your install directory is 'Saved Games\DCS'. If you need to install it under DCS.OpenBeta:

a) Adjust filepath in camp_init.lua from 'Saved Games\DCS to 'Saved Games\DCS.OpenBeta'.

b) Edit FirstMission.bat to point to your DCS installation directory

c) Run FirstMission.bat

 

 

Can you please clarify.

 

I do not have a saved games folder. I dont have a DCS\Mods folder. I dont have a Mods\tech folder.

 

This is the closest I got to the mods folder:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\DCSWorld\Mods

 

There are only 2 folders in my Mods folder : aircraft, terrains.

 

Can someone confirm this mod wont work on the steam version?

If i absolutely have to I will move to stand alone version. I pay a little more for stuff on steam but I dont have to hassle with licensing through DCS (Ive lost my a10 warthog and blackshark licenses so I started buying everything through steam).

[MBot]

Unfortunately I don't know the folder structure of the steam version, so it's hard to tell wether it will work at all.

 

Note that the Saved Games folder is not under DCS but is a folder under the Windows user. Is this any different with the steam version?

[bloomstombs]

Hi thank you for responding!

Yes the saved games folder is under users :

C:\Users\15702\Saved Games\DCS

But only has these folders:

Config

data

fxo

imageshop

kneeboard

logs

metashaders2

missioneditor

missions

movies

screenshots

tracks

 

thats all the folders i have.

I read somewhere that inorder to have a mods folder i need combined arms? Could that be the issue?

Thank you in advance

 

This is my campaigns folder:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\DCSWorld\Mods\aircraft\FA-18C\Missions\Campaigns

Edited January 14, 2020 by bloomstombs