Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2
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Part I:
I feel this campaign is coming to an end now and so I wanted to share my experience.
Remembering a suggestion from @SpbGoro some years ago (I have a heavy real life load), I did not move units manually. Although, I handed some of the white bordered units over to HQ after they had achieved their “magnetic task” to draw the automated units near them (I especially wanted to have the units on the east coast available). Challenge rating was Rookie (which for itself is very demanding, having MIGs and Mirages all over the Map).
For most of day 1 I let the sliders and PAKs under HQ control because I felt I wouldn’t do it much different. Then I set higher priority to Basrah and Southern Iraq and adjusted sliders a bit towards SEAD and OCA (although they were almost perfect already).
My strategy was to take out the SAM thread and some of the dangerous airbases near the front, clearing Kuwait and Basrah for other flights and then working my way up to Baghdad. Basrah INTL and Al Taqaddum especially required me to frag multiple packages for the same time, also having EF-111 Raven support to blind the radars. Even so, enemy HQ masterfully put Interceptors into the air. Relatively soon I also took out H3 and H2 in the somewhat unbalanced west. SEAD is really tricky with the updated HARM system and no thread circles available on map.
For this, I took over the 33rd Fighter Squadron with F-16 Block 25 and decoupled it from HQ to be near the action and to reach everything well. I love the 421st with Block 40 (read Vipers In The Storm) but it wasn’t very good for frag frequency operating out of Al Minhad).
The entire campaign was a high thread environment until recently even when the enemy had just some aircraft left on each airbase and most SA-2, -3 and -6s were down (those nasty SA-9, -8 and -13 almost always got someone). Later, enemy AI concentrated its few aircraft into effective point operations (Interceptions, packages towards Saudi Arabia or Kuwait, CAPs and Sweeps …), keeping the threat level high. At the moment of the screenshots, it is rather quiet, but I’m sure they will come back again soon.
The ground unit movement was a big surprise to me because they not only invaded Kuwait from the south, but even encircled it, drawing units from the west. But the most important thing to see was the push in the middle of the FLOT (it looks almost like the real flank maneuver). Major movement started when the HQ “felt” confident for success (see JSTARS replay). I think that is because of the PAK sliders or has @SpbGoro done some magic?
At first, I was a bit disappointed not seeing those beautyful Tu-22 Blinders. Imagine my lucky surprise, when they were sent to Al Taqaddum for reinforcement.
Now lets see how the troops advance around the bay, then over the Tigris and into Basrah.
Minor flaws I came along:
- The reinforcement squadron of Su-7 at Al Iskandariyah was never utilized by enemy HQ.
- From later Day 1 to Day 2 the 17th Squadron (F-16 Block 25) got no missions. I switched over, fragged a few for myself and the problem was gone, they got missions again.
- The same time A-10 were almost not fragged. Playing with the sliders did help.
Other thoughts:
- What a great campaign!
- Not a single CTD
- That doesn’t feel like Rookie!
- Should the GBUs be taken out of Inventory? Are they squadron or base related? Remembering Vipers in the Storm Keith Rosenkranz always loaded 2 Mk-84. (But please leave those unrealistic TERs for Mavericks in there )
- Is there a way to disable HTS pods in loadout screen? They aren’t loaded anyway.
- F-16 loadout for bombs always adds GPU/5 gunpod (jammer or center bag would be better)
Screenshots (I forgot to make some more earlier):
Flank maneuver
As seen from JSTARS
Force Levels
Challenge rating Rookie? Watch those losses!
Sliders after softening the SAM and aircraft threads.
PAK adjustments same time as sliders above
Tu-22 Blinder! For them I let Al Taqaddum get repaired and send a Package to see them in action (what I did).EDIT:
Other other thoughts:- Nice “Abandoned Warehouses” in H3 depot (many Very High targets)
- Kuwait Towers! (Feeling like in F-15 III. Did they exist in Falcon 3.0?)
- Incirlic missing…
The last point is missed very bad. Without tasking aircraft from Incirlic, one can’t almost do nothing against Mosul or Kirkuk. I know from the old 128 theatre where it was existent, that it is a huge task just for that one airbase. You would have Syria, Israel and Jordan on the map. And in the old theatre, all the eastern gulf bases where not existent (no Al Minhad). But those are important for the new Anti Iran Campaign.
A fake Incirlic would not be possible in the upper left corner of the map? Just for balancing? -
@Atze-0 Great summation and outstanding feedback! Thanks for taking the time and effort to provide this assessment to the community.
Regards,
Tomcattwo
(VoiceClone) -
Well there is a chance I might get into the DB myself and revamp part of it to make a standalone FL 90s campaign…
Let’s see how this is going to take me…
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@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
- Should the GBUs be taken out of Inventory? Are they squadron or base related? Remembering Vipers in the Storm Keith Rosenkranz always loaded 2 Mk-84. (But please leave those unrealistic TERs for Mavericks in there )
Yes, I’ll see what of the GBU bombs can be removed for Block 25/30.
The fact is that there are several campaigns in the theater. If you remove the weapon from the aircraft in the ODS, then in other campaigns the weapon will also disappear, since the database is shared.Therefore, I had to leave the weapon as it is. I removed only the most modern weapons that not fit into the era, such as JDAM, JSOW and Etc.
But, it’s important to remember that everyone can edit through the BMS weapon suspension editor, as he sees it.- Is there a way to disable HTS pods in loadout screen? They aren’t loaded anyway.
Yes, I’ll take it out.
- F-16 loadout for bombs always adds GPU/5 gunpod (jammer or center bag would be better)
GPU-5 / A cannon pod - judging by the weapon suspension schemes, it was used in this war.
https://dstorm.eu/pages/loadout/f-16.html
In the future, I will leave it only for the F-16A.- Incirlic missing…
- A fake Incirlic would not be possible in the upper left corner of the map? Just for balancing?
Now it’s too late to add something, it will take a lot of time. + will require the completion of the land of the entire north-west. For one airfield.
-The ground unit movement was a big surprise to me because they not only invaded Kuwait from the south, but even encircled it, drawing units from the west. But the most important thing to see was the push in the middle of the FLOT (it looks almost like the real flank maneuver). Major movement started when the HQ “felt” confident for success (see JSTARS replay). I think that is because of the PAK sliders or has @SpbGoro done some magic?
Yes, magic! And some triggers + аs well as tuning the characteristics (Role scores) of battalions and brigades.
https://forum.falcon-bms.com/topic/20431/mideast-theater-128-segments-for-4-35-u3/250?_=1664650387947
Thanks for the feedback Atze-0.
Try the 2003 campaign. Iraqi Freedom. -
@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
The reinforcement squadron of Su-7 at Al Iskandariyah was never utilized by enemy HQ.
I Removed Su-7 from Al Iskandariyah to another airfield, now it works as it should.
Also - removed the GBU and HTS for Blocks 25/30.
Coincidentally, these aircraft are not used in other campaigns. Added more points +5 (hit chance static) in DB for simple bombs like MK-82/84. As a result, these weapons have become somewhat more commonly used by the AI. -
Part II:
Now I won the campaign at Day 4 8:07 Z (with manual movement it could be possible on Day 3).
I managed sliders and PAK manually, planned the 33rd squadron for myself (leaving ground movement to HQ).
The ground movement in the last phase was:
My troops moved in with great force from the south and the west, I concentrated on CAS.
Threat level remained high from the few enemy aircraft (they came back) and SAMs, especially SA-8, -9 and -13 after shutting down all the SA-2, -3 and -6s.One thing I noticed almost the entire campaign: The A-10 got almost no missions (I always added them packages in Kuwait/Basrah because of this, but they were under HQ control).
Curious, how it would go if only HQ takes over entirely, I loaded a Save from Day 3, gave back my squadron plus all the Priority management to HQ and fast forwarded at speed 64× (asking myself if the A-10 problem arose from my PAK and slider management).
It was the same with the A-10. Are they too far away for the campaign engine?As you notice on the screenshot, HQ took muuuch longer ending the war.
Now I ask myself the following: I have read here in the forums some years ago that the old system of Initiative and Skill is not active anymore. If it would be, I would have lost the war because not flying personally from time to time (initiative) or my troops would have fought like drunken Sissies (skill if not flying good every few hours).BUT: I saw rather long phases of “Consolidating” in this automated phase. Ground movement was far more static, the flank maneuver not so sophisticated.
Can we be sure everything in my personal run went smoothly just because of myself picking the right targets or is another sort of Initiative/Skill system in its place?The second case would sound sensible to me, forcing the Player to do something and to do it good.
In the first case, I instantly go printing t-shirts with “Official BMS Campaign Master” on them and order myself this thing (my wife announcing a public divorce if I do): https://wwsimstore.com/view/goods-details.html?id=382@SpbGoro said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
Incirlic…
Now it’s too late to add something, it will take a lot of time. + will require the completion of the land of the entire north-west. For one airfield.
That’s absolutely understandable. I help myself working a way in over the not so populated west, taking care of H2, H3 and Al Asad first
Yes, magic! And some triggers…
https://forum.falcon-bms.com/topic/20431/mideast-theater-128-segments-for-4-35-u3/250?_=1664650387947That works great!
Try the 2003 campaign. Iraqi Freedom.
On my way!
@SpbGoro said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
I Removed Su-7 from Al Iskandariyah to another airfield, now it works as it should.
Also - removed the GBU and HTS for Blocks 25/30.
Coincidentally, these aircraft are not used in other campaigns. Added more points +5 (hit chance static) in DB for simple bombs like MK-82/84. As a result, these weapons have become somewhat more commonly used by the AI.OK, I’ll install the new version when available.
@MaxWaldorf said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
Well there is a chance I might get into the DB myself and revamp part of it to make a standalone FL 90s campaign…
Let’s see how this is going to take me…
That would also be a good basis for fictional Cold Hot War campaigns.
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@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
and fast forwarded at speed 64×
A small note.
As far as I remember, in 2D mode it is better not to exceed the campaign speed x32, x16 is optimal.
Too high speed can affect the behavior of AI,
And about every 6-8 hours - re-enter the campaign. Sometimes this pushes through the actions of hung battalions. -
@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
ne thing I noticed almost the entire campaign: The A-10 got almost no missions (I always added them packages in Kuwait/Basrah because of this, but they were under HQ control).
For the experiment. You can try setting the max range value (default = 1280 km) for the “squadron” and “flight” the A-10 in BMS Editor. For example, set = 2000 km and see if anything changes. (Campaign restart will be required)
Placing the A-10 closer to the front line will break the historical component, as the A-10s were based at King Fahd Airport, Saudi Arabia.
https://dstorm.eu/pages/en/usa/a-10.html -
@Atze-0 @Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
That would also be a good basis for fictional Cold Hot War campaigns.
The current database already corresponds to the 80/90s years. If you choose aircraft not higher than the F-16 Block-30.
In the Iran-Iraq campaign, just - the era of the 80s is modeled.
The Iran-US campaign simulates a fictitious conflict with modern weapons and aircraft.
In general, it all depends on which aircraft you install in the campaign. -
@SpbGoro said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
A small note.
As far as I remember, in 2D mode it is better not to exceed the campaign speed x32, x16 is optimal.
Too high speed can affect the behavior of AI,
And about every 6-8 hours - re-enter the campaign. Sometimes this pushes through the actions of hung battalions.Yes, the old rules. But with time acceleration I’m not sure if it still applies anymore. Together with AI behavior it had much to do with CTDs in the old days. I might test later.
Re-entering campaign: I have noticed that, too.@SpbGoro said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
For the experiment. You can try setting the max range value (default = 1280 km) for the “squadron” and “flight” the A-10 in BMS Editor. For example, set = 2000 km and see if anything changes. (Campaign restart will be required)
Placing the A-10 closer to the front line will break the historical component, as the A-10s were based at King Fahd Airport, Saudi Arabia.
https://dstorm.eu/pages/en/usa/a-10.htmlDone, that wasn’t the “fault”. The other data look OK.
I wanted to start up Mission Commander to test a squadron nearer to the FLOT and look at other data, but it throws many errors right into my face: Maybe MissionCommander_0.5.13.521 is way too old (wants camo.cfg, Strings.idx, loads “the old way”, cannot open Save0).
I think it is only some “statistical value”, so HQ doesn’t consider planning more missions. There are some SCARs and CAS at the beginning and then nothing.
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OK, I got the new Mission Commander (somehow I had in my mind it wasn’t public).
When testing, I made a foolish mistake at the beginning -> WAIT FOR DAYLIGHT
Nevertheless, the Hogs get missions very sparsely. Most of the time you see “Planning” or 1 to 3 Flights max. So you can always plan Packages with them (not seeing this “No aircraft at this time”).
What I did in MC:
- Exchanged 33rd (F-16C-25) and 511th (A-10A) -> at King Khalid Military City, the A-10 never got Missions, the F-16 got plenty at King Fahd
- set role to General, fraction U.S. -> no change
- gave the 511th F-16 -> many missions
- try A-10C -> no change
Maybe the cause are changes in the engine?
- the Fog of War seems to be denser today (units disappear much faster), HQ doesn’t see ground units long enough to plan many missions? But why do the other attack aircraft get them?
I’ll test a bit in Korea and compare the values in BMS Editor and Mission Commander…
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Ok, it’s all in the numbers:
I put some rather fancyful values into the Role Scores in BMS Editor and mission scheduling exploded.
I think I have found a somewhat sweet spot:
But I experienced the same in Korea (watched ATO), other aircraft more often get all the CAS and the BAIs (F-16, F-18, Tornado, …)
So, this seems not to be a “real” problem.
EDIT: @SpbGoro It seems the FAC value generates those missions together with subsequent On-Call-CAS missions. Also, working in IT, I hesitate to set a value to 100 (CAS/Int). Since all other aircraft have values dividable by 5, I don’t like those 1 percents, too (CAP, SEAD). But setting them to 5, has a too severe impact -> HQ sending A-10 on DEAD towards Baghdad.
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@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
generates those missions together with subsequent On-Call-CAS missions.
Requests for On-Call-CAS appear when ground battalions are in combat. Probably at this moment you had ground units fighting somewhere.
But, as I see it, we need more tasks like SCAR / BAI, which are mainly issued for helicopters now.
@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
1 percents, too (CAP, SEAD). But setting them to 5, has a too severe impact -> HQ sending A-10 on DEAD towards Baghdad.
This can be edited in the A-10 DAT file. The string “misTypeCapability”.
Disable values (set to 0) for DEAD/SEAD/TARCAP and other tasks specific to other aircraft types…Useful script: http://fabioschick.altervista.org/tools/ACData-MissionType-Selector/
PS.
One more moment.
In the campaign folder there is a file “Falcon4.aii”, there is a line “MaxBAIDistance=”, for the sake of experiment, you can change the values, for example, set = 150.
And to see if anything changes for the A-10s, as well as helicopters, in terms of increasing the range for missions like BAI / SCAR.
After changing the values, it is advisable to restart the campaign.As it seemed to me, it seemed that, sort of, the range of mission planning increased.
First day, second hour of the campaign. 76 Squadron A-10.
Already generated 4 SCAR missions.The planned flight selected in the screenshot has a total range of 484 miles.
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@SpbGoro said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
generates those missions together with subsequent On-Call-CAS missions.
Requests for On-Call-CAS appear when ground battalions are in combat. Probably at this moment you had ground units fighting somewhere.
Yes, I had some fighting units. From my understanding, On-Call-CAS needs an FAC, ground based (units having contact with the enemy) or aerial (i.e. A-10 on FAC mission). Then they are generated together. It definetly makes a difference, since before that they were almost non-existent (On-Call-CAS for A-10). After the change I had a good mission generation.
Since the A-10 in Kuwait Database has an FAC value of 0, it could be one cause for the inbalancies. In many other theaters (also default Korea), there is a value of 80 per default. Could that also be a default in the next version of MidEast128?But, as I see it, we need more tasks like SCAR / BAI, which are mainly issued for helicopters now.
And more survivable aircraft like the Viper.
@Atze-0 said in Campaign Report Desert Storm MidEast 128 for BMS 4.36 u2:
1 percents, too (CAP, SEAD). But setting them to 5, has a too severe impact -> HQ sending A-10 on DEAD towards Baghdad.
This can be edited in the A-10 DAT file. The string “misTypeCapability”.
Disable values (set to 0) for DEAD/SEAD/TARCAP and other tasks specific to other aircraft types…Useful script: http://fabioschick.altervista.org/tools/ACData-MissionType-Selector/
Uhmm, since I change the values in
Mission CommanderBMS Editor, I wouldn’t have to change them in the file itself?
Those “1”-values for SEAD andEscortCAP are Defaults over many theaters.PS.
One more moment.
In the campaign folder there is a file “Falcon4.aii”, there is a line “MaxBAIDistance=”, for the sake of experiment, you can change the values, for example, set = 150.
And to see if anything changes for the A-10s, as well as helicopters, in terms of increasing the range for missions like BAI / SCAR.
After changing the values, it is advisable to restart the campaign.As it seemed to me, it seemed that, sort of, the range of mission planning increased.
First day, second hour of the campaign. 76 Squadron A-10.
Already generated 4 SCAR missions.The planned flight selected in the screenshot has a total range of 484 miles.
WOW, that makes a huge difference!
I would have seen MaxBAIDistance as a value how far the involved aircraft would “stray” from their ground attack waypoints…
Gravely, in Korea this value is only 20! But OK, it’s a 64 Seg theater?One very interesting thing in Falcon4.aii I was asking myself over the last years:
[Campaign]
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ActionRate = 2
ActionTimeOut = 12
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NewInitiativePoints = 1I think here we see that action on the battlefield at least per Initiative is still active in a different form to the old days. But not sure if the player’s skill is still taken into account.
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