Advice for beginner with MB creating missions

[jldjs]

Started using MB to create some missions in PTO. Have managed to decipher how to from existing missions but am looking for some advice from those much more accomplished than I. Don't quite understand spawns, especially for those that seem to just create a facility (e.g., ship, etc), and how to manage time so opposing A/C "meet". Also, significance of the mission objective on the AI of wing man or opponents.
Thanks for the help.

[Daiwilletti]

Hi jldjs,
I highly recommend that you read the CFS3 Mission Editing SDK. IIRC it comes as a Word doc at the official Microsoft CFS3 site. http://www.microsoft.com/games/combatfs3/


Its not very long but worth its weight in gold, explaining how the structure of the mission files and the spawn files work.

HTH,

[Led Zeppelin]

it's impossible to answer a such question, there are so many things!! It's only possible to answer questions on specifics points.


For the spawns, you can install ETO Expansion kit. In the spawn folder, you can have a look at all xml scripts that start by CMP, I've build them. You can take them as exemples and don't hesitate to ask for more explanations.

[jldjs]

Thanks. I'll look for these and keep on experimenting.

[remcoc]

Hi jldjs,

Lets take a look:

Spawns
1. there is not a good tutorial available on spawns. But what you could do is the following: download the document Daiwiletti mentioned
2. Search and downloads a number of the spawns made by Wulffman (z_ruff_spawns and z2_ruff_spwans or the , new_bob_package). You can't use them anymore in ETO (and Wulffman stated that he doesn't want us to use them anymore), but you could use them to study how they are build. He also made spawns for groundvehicles and ships
3. then rebuild them with help of the document and the helpfile that's coming with the Missionbuilder.

Im still experimenting like you myself. For now, I think it's best to use spawns when you want variety in the game. When you want a plane to do specific things on a specific time and place, then you better create a regular flight in the missionbuilder. But when of the experts have different views, please help us out!

Planes actually meeting
That brings us to the problem that planes in the Missionbuilder (MB) arrive at a specific point at the same time. But when playing the game, you can't see them. I still have to experiment with them. A possibility is that a mission goes wrong when planes in the game have different speeds than the ones used by the MB. You could try this out by making a little test mission. Possible scenario's:
a. only the plane which you fly (player) uses a different speed than the MB uses for the calculation of arrival time. Perhaps this could be fixed by getting the plane to the speed mentioned in the MB before warping
b. also the the speed of the others planes in game is different from the ones used by the MB. At this moment I'am not sure how to fix this, but perhaps some else has an idea?

Then there is the possibility that warping influences the speed of the planes. This can be ruled out by flying the testgame with and without warping. By changing al the variables one at a time we could find a way to fix this.

About AI behaviour.
This problem is mentioned a lot of times in the old threads. Most mentioned is the solution to make sure that every plane you in a mission directly or by spawn has a specific loadout (change "recommended" to droptank or something like that).
When wingman are not doing what you want them to do: give the "rejoin" order then select the target and give them the order "attack" for de the seccond time.

I'am interested in your findings, because I'am struggeling like you do.

Remco

[tenspeed]

There is a short Tutorial that comes with the MB. After you install the mission builder look for this path.

CFS3/MB Folder/Help Folder/helppage HTML Document

After opening it, on the left you show have several option. The last being "Tutorial: Calais Cleanup"

Hope this helps you.

[jldjs]

I have made some headway and developed a number of missions with success. However, I am intrigued at the moment with HOW to takeoff from a carrier. I have added the carrier pack that has the full-height and low height versions of US carriers. I've looked at a mission (Tulagi_Island_Wildcat_May_4_42.xml), that has the player ac taking-off from the carrier (CV5 Yorktown) but I can't get my mission to start the ac from the deck of that carrier. It always starts in the air. What am I missing? I tried making the ac "take-off" from the carrier when I define the ac's route, but that didn't work.

[Talon]

There's a tutorial on how to setup takeoff missions from carriers.It should here at SOH.


Talon

[jldjs]

Thanks Talon, I found it.