Operation Horizon - single player or multicrew

[Don Rudi]

Hi everyone,

I would like to introduce my new mission "Operation Horizon", a storydriven rescue mission on the Sinai map:

https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3331765/

 

The mission:

In 2016, a school class of Israeli children is on a fieldtrip to Jerusalem. On their way home their bus is stopped by a group of armed fighters and abducted to the West Bank.
Authorities are quickly informed and a ground based rescue team as well as an Apache helicopter (“Splitter”) are scrambled for a rescue operation.

At 15:30 local time, the Apache – call sign SPLITTER one-one – is launched at Palmachim Air Base. Its primary task is to find the school bus in the vicinity of the pinpointed location and wait for further instructions.

You will fly along the pre-planned flight route and follow the instructions of COMMAND. Before reaching the West Bank, you will receive MGRS coordinates of the location, where the girl’s mobile was pinpointed.
Use your F10 radio item to inform ground forces when you found the bus, else they will not proceed to the location.
You will find the bus surrounded by enemy fighters and be cleared to engage. Be very cautious not to hit the bus!

After the bus scene you might receive another assignment. Listen to COMMAND and follow the on screen instructions.

Required skills:
- enter new (way-)points into the TSD
- know how to operate external fuel tanks
- precision use of the gun

Mission highlights:

+ The difficulty of the mission can be adapted inflight.
+ comes with a full set of around 80 voice actor files in English and Hebrew.
+ custom ATC (do not use in game ATC!)
+ various F10 radio options
+ self made maps
+ single player or multi crew
+ two miz files for cold start and hot start
+ 12 page manual in PDF format
+ a little extra

*** Sinai map required ***

I highly recommend vined0g’s IDF desert UH-60A skin, for the correct display of IAF skins.
https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3309970/

Enjoy!

Playthrough mini video by 311Gryphon: 

Edited July 10, 2023 by Don Rudi

[KeyserSoze62]

@Don Rudi I discovered your mission in the user files a couple of days ago and I must say i think its superb. The voice overs are excellent and the graphic novel story line is beautiful. Do you do the graphics yourself?  Excellent work.  I have played it through a few times now and enjoyed it just as much each time.

[Don Rudi]

@KeyserSoze62 Thank you so much 

I wish I could paint like that myself, no the images are all AI created using Midjourney. Quite exhausting to finally get the image one wants.

 

[krazyj]

its a great mission, happy that I was lucky enough to aid a little in the final beta testing. 

have flown it about 10 times now and I still find it challenging. 

[Don Rudi]

6 hours ago, krazyj said:

its a great mission, happy that I was lucky enough to aid a little in the final beta testing. 

have flown it about 10 times now and I still find it challenging. 

Thanks so much for the help and the kind words 

[Zarma]

Hi !

Just flew it as CPG with a buddy piloting.

Great fun and success.

Spoiler

Right now in love with Ofek

Just a question, why the 2 fuel tanks instead of rockets. We had plenty of fuel. Could even take the internal fuel tank and 300 rounds instead of 1200.

We used only the gun and less than 300 rounds. No hellfire fired.

Keep up the nice job. Will have to test your other missions now.

[Don Rudi]

9 hours ago, Zarma said:

Hi !

Just flew it as CPG with a buddy piloting.

Great fun and success.

  Hide contents

Right now in love with Ofek

Just a question, why the 2 fuel tanks instead of rockets. We had plenty of fuel. Could even take the internal fuel tank and 300 rounds instead of 1200.

We used only the gun and less than 300 rounds. No hellfire fired.

Keep up the nice job. Will have to test your other missions now.

Thanks so much 

 

Spoiler

Standard loadout of any Israeli Apache are two fuel tanks (loiter time?) and Hellfires. From what I have read, they do not have rockets, as the chance for collateral damage is too high. The mission could easily be flown with just internal fuel, but the bags add two aspeacts - I want people not to hover and the additional weight plus the base altitude help. Also it adds a small element, as many people don't know how to activate the external fuel tanks 

 

[Grennymaster]

i had the chance yesterday, and <profanity>, im very impressed the Artwork is amazing and outstanding, you sir are an very talented artist.

The Mission itself is very nice. nothing to crazy an an very realistic szenario.

Thank you for the immense amount of work

[Don Rudi]

@Grennymasterthanks so much

The artwork is AI, I wish I could just remotely paint like that  

[KeyserSoze62]

@Don Rudi I see your comment about disappointing downloads of this mission on the ED files site.  I can assure you the mission is extraordinary and I suspect it is just that the crowds are not focused on the Apache right now.  Everyone is flying the F-15E and the majority of new file uploads are related to that.

I will spread the word all I can about your work. Extremely satisfying to play your missions.

Cheers!

 

 

[Don Rudi]

@KeyserSoze62 Thanks so much for the encouraging words, I really appreciate it. 

311Gryphon made really cool playthrough mini movie of the mission - checkmate out!

 

[Roosterfeet]

This was a truley excellent mission. I particularly liked the graphic novel approach. I sincerely hope you make more. 

[Gideon312]

+1 awesome made with the additional story telling with pictures and “authentic” voice overs! Would love to see more from you!

[Don Rudi]

On 7/16/2023 at 6:22 AM, Roosterfeet said:

This was a truley excellent mission. I particularly liked the graphic novel approach. I sincerely hope you make more. 

 

On 7/16/2023 at 6:49 AM, Gideon312 said:

+1 awesome made with the additional story telling with pictures and “authentic” voice overs! Would love to see more from you!

Thank you both so much! It was fun going down the graphic novel route  I will surely do it again somewhen, if the story allows it. 
Bottomline, I have to consider the mission being a giant fail. 300 odd downloads in three weeks is nothing and I don't yet understand
what went wrong. If it just isn't "Apache time", if it is the story as such, if it is that Apache pilots do not play SP missions anymore - I really
am clueless at the moment  

[Spirale]

1 hour ago, Don Rudi said:

 

Thank you both so much! It was fun going down the graphic novel route  I will surely do it again somewhen, if the story allows it. 
Bottomline, I have to consider the mission being a giant fail. 300 odd downloads in three weeks is nothing and I don't yet understand
what went wrong. If it just isn't "Apache time", if it is the story as such, if it is that Apache pilots do not play SP missions anymore - I really
am clueless at the moment  

Hi DonRudi, maybe it is the fact that it is mandatory to have the Sinaï map... This map is so new and there are Persian Golf and  Syria which are very popular...My self i would love to fly your campaign ( love the Apache so much and a huge thx for your hard work!) but i dont have this Sinaï map and....i am not alone with this problem...

Edited July 18, 2023 by Spirale

[Gideon312]

We can only hope that posts like this draw some more attention and love for your mission. 
I personally hope you will continue making missions like this one  

[Rudel_chw]

On 7/4/2023 at 2:18 AM, Don Rudi said:

I wish I could paint like that myself, no the images are all AI created using Midjourney. Quite exhausting to finally get the image one wants.

Hi @Don Rudi, I wasn't aware of this mission, as many others I’m immersed on the F-15E at the moment  …. But thanks a lot for letting us know about this AI software, its intriguing and I will look both onto it and into your mission 

[Don Rudi]

On 7/18/2023 at 8:43 AM, Spirale said:

Hi DonRudi, maybe it is the fact that it is mandatory to have the Sinaï map... This map is so new and there are Persian Golf and  Syria which are very popular...My self i would love to fly your campaign ( love the Apache so much and a huge thx for your hard work!) but i dont have this Sinaï map and....i am not alone with this problem...

 

Good point, @Spirale. I made a poll on the big DCS group on FB and the result suggested that Sinai was pretty well in use already. Maybe it wasn't as representative, as I thought.

On 7/19/2023 at 8:55 AM, Gideon312 said:

We can only hope that posts like this draw some more attention and love for your mission. 
I personally hope you will continue making missions like this one  

I keep making missions If my weird little mind comes up with a background story again, it will probably also be in a graphic novel style again. 

[Don Rudi]

On 7/19/2023 at 10:38 AM, Rudel_chw said:

Hi @Don Rudi, I wasn't aware of this mission, as many others I’m immersed on the F-15E at the moment  …. But thanks a lot for letting us know about this AI software, its intriguing and I will look both onto it and into your mission 

I am looking forward to your feedback  

Yes, the AI software is fun to use. I just wish it could paint aircraft realistically, but that is still impossible

[KeyserSoze62]

@Don Rudi Hope all is well. I was running your wonderful mission again in the latest version 2.9 and I noticed a strange bug.  As I reached each waypoint it did not advance to the very next waypoint but skipped one . For example after reaching waypoint 1 it advanced to waypoint 3.  I am not sure if this a general DCS bug or if it would be related to any of the scripting in your mission?  The only downside is if I didn't notice I would go on to the next waypoint and I would miss certain triggers in your mission.

Any thoughts on whether this is a mission issue with DCS 2.9 or just a general bug?

Thanks.

[Floyd1212]

It's a reported bug in 2.9.

A search for "waypoint" reveals two threads where this has been discussed.

https://forum.dcs.world/search/?q=waypoint&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=780

[Don Rudi]

10 hours ago, KeyserSoze62 said:

@Don Rudi Hope all is well. I was running your wonderful mission again in the latest version 2.9 and I noticed a strange bug.  As I reached each waypoint it did not advance to the very next waypoint but skipped one . For example after reaching waypoint 1 it advanced to waypoint 3.  I am not sure if this a general DCS bug or if it would be related to any of the scripting in your mission?  The only downside is if I didn't notice I would go on to the next waypoint and I would miss certain triggers in your mission.

Any thoughts on whether this is a mission issue with DCS 2.9 or just a general bug?

Thanks.

 

6 hours ago, Floyd1212 said:

It's a reported bug in 2.9.

A search for "waypoint" reveals two threads where this has been discussed.

https://forum.dcs.world/search/?q=waypoint&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=780

Thanks for the info. I will only have access to my DCS PC by next week. But I am somewhat relieved it seems to by a general bug of the Apache.

[KeyserSoze62]

14 hours ago, Floyd1212 said:

It's a reported bug in 2.9.

A search for "waypoint" reveals two threads where this has been discussed.

https://forum.dcs.world/search/?q=waypoint&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=780

Thanks for the info.

 

[spikenet]

Thanks for the fantastic mission. I've been away from DCS for about 6 months and this was perfect for a return to the Apache! Great fun, excellent narrative, simple enough for me to get through it in a single go and remember how to do everything! Bravo!

[Don Rudi]

6 hours ago, spikenet said:

Thanks for the fantastic mission. I've been away from DCS for about 6 months and this was perfect for a return to the Apache! Great fun, excellent narrative, simple enough for me to get through it in a single go and remember how to do everything! Bravo!

Thanks so much for the kind feedback, glad you enjoyed my mission