Iraq Map Improvements over past maps, Size, and Regions

[Exorcet]

Caucasus style boundaries are great for including water, and I'd greatly appreciate it maps went back to have really wide boundaries like that. If we could also place airports, the same would apply to extra land. I've flown missions from Georgia to Crimea before even though the latter is empty. Flights over low detail regions can be made in such a way that the lack of detail hardly matters (night, clouds, etc), but options for launching ground based aircraft are limited to the built in airports currently.

[Reflected]

In order to be able to make any meaningful Desert Storm missions, it needs to have at least Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia. Many squadrons flew from the UAE, but that's on our PG map. I guess they can't be connected so that would mean a "load new mission when crossing from one map to another" kind of campaign, which is not ideal.

[Raviar]

39 minutes ago, Reflected said:

In order to be able to make any meaningful Desert Storm missions, it needs to have at least Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia. Many squadrons flew from the UAE, but that's on our PG map. I guess they can't be connected so that would mean a "load new mission when crossing from one map to another" kind of campaign, which is not ideal.

This is horrible. The map requirement should not be campaign-focused(btw I love your campaigns)! Each map should represent the designated region in isolation, regardless of the repetition of components in other maps. I really hope ED adds at least the north of Saudi Arabia. Otherwise, the focus of the Iraq map is solely on the War on Terror, completely ignoring "Desert Storm," which is an absolute shame. Not to mention, the UAE and at least the west of the Persian Gulf should be included as well if possible (where should we put the carrier? Hornets, Tomcats, A-6! - ED PLEASE DONT DO THIS TO US). Since I joined DCS in 2016 was dreaming Desert Strom! 

Edited February 6, 2024 by Raviar

[draconus]

33 minutes ago, Reflected said:

In order to be able to make any meaningful Desert Storm missions, it needs to have at least Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia.

I couldn't find any relevance of this field to Desert Storm era. They used mostly Dhahran Air Base (known as King Abdulaziz Air Base since 1999, we need that one too) at the time until 1996. It is needed for Operations Southern Watch, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom though.

[Reflected]

Just now, draconus said:

I couldn't find any relevance of this field to Desert Storm era. They used mostly Dhahran Air Base (known as King Abdulaziz Air Base since 1999, we need that one too) at the time until 1996. It is needed for Operations Southern Watch, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom though.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organization_of_United_States_Air_Force_Units_in_the_Gulf_War

[Czar66]

3 hours ago, Raviar said:

This is horrible. The map requirement should not be campaign-focused(btw I love your campaigns)! Each map should represent the designated region in isolation, regardless of the repetition of components in other maps. I really hope ED adds at least the north of Saudi Arabia. Otherwise, the focus of the Iraq map is solely on the War on Terror, completely ignoring "Desert Storm," which is an absolute shame. Not to mention, the UAE and at least the west of the Persian Gulf should be included as well if possible (where should we put the carrier? Hornets, Tomcats, A-6! - ED PLEASE DONT DO THIS TO US). Since I joined DCS in 2016 was dreaming Desert Strom! 

 

It has been stated the map will expand south later on.

 

[Northstar98]

22 hours ago, Reflected said:

In order to be able to make any meaningful Desert Storm missions, it needs to have at least Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia. Many squadrons flew from the UAE, but that's on our PG map. I guess they can't be connected so that would mean a "load new mission when crossing from one map to another" kind of campaign, which is not ideal.

Absolutely.

Unfortunately, as it currently stands I can't bring myself to be interested in an Iraq map, without at least 1 relevant BLUFOR airbase for the Gulf War or subsequent campaigns.

Expanding the map south to include Prince Sultan would be very nice though, it would also encompass Dhahran (King Abdulaziz) as well as airbases on Bahrain and Qatar.

Edited February 7, 2024 by Northstar98

[YoYo]

I myself am curious about the size of this map. It should include all of Iraq of course, Kuwait and at least part of Saudi Arabia, so that there are also coalition's bases from operations in the Persian Gulf. Also a part of the Persian Gulf so that operations can be carried out from the sea. I'm looking forward to some news.

This video shows Iraq map, Baghdad Tower (Baghdad City):

[BIGNEWY]

On 10/16/2024 at 6:33 AM, YoYo said:

I myself am curious about the size of this map. It should include all of Iraq of course, Kuwait and at least part of Saudi Arabia, so that there are also coalition's bases from operations in the Persian Gulf. Also a part of the Persian Gulf so that operations can be carried out from the sea. I'm looking forward to some news.

This video shows Iraq map, Baghdad Tower (Baghdad City):

Hi YoYo 

please have a read of our FAQ all information we have ready to share can be found there including size 
 

 

[MAXsenna]

9 minutes ago, BIGNEWY said:

Hi YoYo 

please have a read of our FAQ all information we have ready to share can be found there including size 

Pretty sure he has now, as he posted that on Wednesday. (Actually, I know he has being active in that thread). Which begs the question:

@YoYo NineLine wrote the FAQ on Tuesday, while making it visible yesterday. Are you clairvoyant or a spy?  

[KingKenny04]

I would like to add the calls for adding Prince Sultan AB to the map in the future, this was an absolutely critical hub for large numbers of Coalition operations during Desert Storm.

Most of the other ODS-relevant bases that didn't make it in are understandable omissions, as they're either way over on the west coast of the Saudi peninsula, or already present on the PG map. While I'm hopeful that Al Dhafra and Al Minhad may someday be included on the Iraq map, I won't hold my breath. I AM holding my breath for Prince Sultan, I think that one is essential. I'll also include KKMC and KKIA, while they didn't support fighter sorties directly, they were critical hubs for support missions and hosted helicopter units.

[YoYo]

17 hours ago, MAXsenna said:

Are you clairvoyant or a spy?  

Let's assume it's a fairy . In fact, I'm still very positively surprised, because I didn't think the map would reach Qatar. Cool, the only thing is that this part will be in 2025.

[Gierasimov]

1 hour ago, YoYo said:

Let's assume it's a fairy . In fact, I'm still very positively surprised, because I didn't think the map would reach Qatar. Cool, the only thing is that this part will be in 2025.

2025 is really the best case scenario. 

If you look into the Iraq North product page:

Features Coming During Early Access

• Terrain Enhancements: Additional details in landscapes, urban areas, and natural environments.
• Expanded Landmarks: Inclusion of historical and cultural sites, enhancing the realism of the region.
• Advanced Environmental Effects: Regional weather phenomena such as mountainous fog and wind patterns.
• Additional Missions and Campaigns: More content reflecting both historical events and fictional scenarios.
• AI Improvements and Optimizations: Enhanced AI behaviours and system performance updates.

Terrain enhancements to Iraq North for sure will occupy the team in 2025 significantly if not totally. I think it will be 2026 that will present us Iraq South 

[draconus]

On 10/20/2024 at 11:42 AM, Gierasimov said:

Terrain enhancements to Iraq North for sure will occupy the team in 2025 significantly if not totally. I think it will be 2026 that will present us Iraq South 

Where did you read that they have to wait for North Iraq EA completion before releasing South part?

[Gierasimov]

2 hours ago, draconus said:

Where did you read that they have to wait for North Iraq EA completion before releasing South part?

I think it was Discord, or other social media. ED could come here and deny / confirm this, that would be nice. 

It was something along the lines of first we will release North Iraq and post it's EA we will introduce South. It was after the original announcement at the beginning of the year, maybe it was with Wags interview, I don't really remember, sorry.

[Stratos]

Seeing how incomplete this map would be without the resquested airfields, not only in Qatar or Kuwait but also in Iran and Saudi Arabia, I will really apreciatte an official statemant from ED before doing another pre purchase. Thanks.

[MarbleFalcon]

We at least need at least one Turkish base for scenerios like Operation Desert Storm, Operation Provide Confort or War on terror (isis and pkk). Malatya Erhac AFB, Batman AFB, Diyarbakir AFB or Van Airport for heli missions are the best ones for this map. Well, actually Incirlik would be the best option, but you know how far Incirlik is :d

[YoYo]

On 10/21/2024 at 3:26 PM, Gierasimov said:

I think it was Discord, or other social media. ED could come here and deny / confirm this, that would be nice. 

It was something along the lines of first we will release North Iraq and post it's EA we will introduce South. It was after the original announcement at the beginning of the year, maybe it was with Wags interview, I don't really remember, sorry.

So maybe by then there will at least be an announcement of the Sepecat Jaguar. 

And there is a good chance that Tornado will be completed.

[Hawkeye_UK]

On 2/6/2024 at 10:00 AM, Reflected said:

In order to be able to make any meaningful Desert Storm missions, it needs to have at least Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia. Many squadrons flew from the UAE, but that's on our PG map. I guess they can't be connected so that would mean a "load new mission when crossing from one map to another" kind of campaign, which is not ideal.

Need Al Jouf especially for A10c and C130's, and Ar'ar for choppers.

 

Edited December 13, 2024 by Hawkeye_UK

[Ebphoto]

So far I am really enjoying this map. The mountainous terrain is especially well done and looks very realistic. There’s a very good sensation of speed when flying down at low level, especially when in VR. I’m getting good performance with it except for a few areas around Baghdad and thats only if I have a ton of AAA units spewing lead into the air for effect! It will be interesting to watch how this map progresses through development. I’m looking forward to seeing the more southern areas as they come online in future patches. Not looking forward to the huge flight times though to get from the Gulf all the way to Baghdad and back though I know a lot of people like this & I probably wouldn’t mind it as much if I could physically do it. But my physical limitations with my spine don’t allow me that luxury ( If you consider sitting in a seat watching the clouds go by for an hour or two before you drop your bombs or whatever floats your boat a luxury). Still it’s a great looking start and I think this map will be very popular once it’s closer to a finished product, if it already isn’t popular. These mountains & how they are made to look this way,  I hope get ported over to the other maps because they look phenomenal! Well done ED!! Great stuff.