A new entry has been added to Add-Ons Library, category CFS 2 Scenery Add-Ons

Description: Marshall Islands Scenery for CFS2 by UncleTgt

This is a reworking of the stock sceneries for the entire Marshall Islands chain. It is designed for use with Rhumbas mesh, but the scenery excludes provided should mean this works well in a stock mesh install too.

Contents: New Ground2K scenery for each, including fringing reefs.

New airbase scenery, made using FSSC.

New GSL infrastructure.

New custom Landclass & Waterclass.

Some simple missions using the stock F4U-1A Corsair for viewing the GSL airbases & scenery.

The sceneries are as prior to the US invasion, apart from: The airstrip on Delap island, Majuro Atoll, which is depicted after the US had taken what was essentially an unused runway space & developed it into a major four-engined airbase, with a substantial logistics base attached. This was all achieved before the summer of 1944.

The airstrip & facilities on Eniwetok Island, again developed double-quick after the US landings to provide a serviceable airbase by the summer of 1944.

I did run across several issues with sloping water when trying to match the runway altitudes with the mesh (they did build these runways right across the island landmass in a lot of cases. In some cases forced A16N flattens using FS Flatten or FSSC helped, but in some I had to make some compromises on runway altitudes.

Similarly I came across disappearing backgrounds (overhead view, Mission Builder only) for the NW corner of Engebi AB, & the W half of Kwajalein AB. I was unable to resolve the issue with Engebi, but a forced A16N flatten added with FSFlatten & named so it loads last of all A16Ns in this area did seem to fix the issue at Kwajalein. I may revisit my Wake scenery to see if that FS Flatten trick works there.

Installing this scenery pack: The G2K scenery included in this package requires copying contents of your scenedb/world/texture folder to your main CFS2 texture folder. (see SECTION A: TEXTURE PREPARATION)

SECTION A: TEXTURE PREPARATION

1. Highlight all files in your SCENDEB/WORLD/TEXTURE folder.

2. Copy and paste them to your main CFS2/TEXTURE folder.

3. If asked to overwrite click “no.”

4. Hi-lite all files in the Marshall_Islands_UT/TEXTURE folder.

5. Copy and paste them to your main CFS2/TEXTURE folder.

6. If asked to overwrite click “no.”

7. Highlight all files in the Marshall_Islands_UT/SCENDEB/WORLD/TEXTURE folder.

8. Copy and paste them to your your CFS2/SCENDEB/WORLD/TEXTURE folder.

9. If asked to overwrite click “no.”

SECTION B: ADDING NEW SCENERY & GSL

12. Drop the folder "Marshall_Islands_UT" & "Marshalls_Excludes_UT" into your main CFS2 folder, or wherever you pull your add-on scenery from.

13. Next, drop the content of the gsl folder along with GSLMan.exe into your CFS2/GSL folder. If asked to over write click “Yes.”

14. Make a back-up copy of your current cfs2.gsl file. Its OK to leave it in the GSL folder- just rename it.

15. Open GSLMan.exe from inside your CFS2/GSL folder.

16. From the "Available Custom Gobs" list highlight marshalls_airbases_UT.gsl Click the "ADD" button.

17. Wait until GSLMan.exe says it's thru then…

18. From the "Available Custom Gobs" list highlight marshalls_eyecandy_UT.gsl Click the "ADD" button.

19. Close GSLMan.

SECTION C: ACTIVATING & ARRANGING THE NEW SCENERY IN CFS2

20. Activate the "Marshalls_Excludes_UT" scenery. Put this low down in your Library listing, just above the "Runways" (stock runways layer) is a good location.

21. Activate your "Marshall_Islands_UT" scenery. This can be quite high in the listing, way above any mesh, watermasks or exclude layers, BUT CERTAINLY ABOVE the "Marshalls_Excludes_UT" layer! I put my G2K sceneries below the "Airport Facilities Data" layer.

The scenery is installed.

NOTE: To make the runways available in MB enter the runway entries listed in the marshalls_UT/airbase_entries.txt file into your airbases.dat file which can be found in your CFS2/INFO folder. Be sure to back up your current airbases.dat file first.

Credits

Thanks to: Jean Bomber for his inspiration, advice & support. He talked me through getting to grips with G2K & more…

Maskrider for all his airbase packages & the blended airbase tutorial. This set the standard for airbase sceneries for the game.

Rhumbaflappy for the new more accurate world mesh – it was a desire to make best use of this development that is the driver for many of my scenery projects. He also developed the vtp1 fixer programme to fix display errors in vtp bgls compiled from Ground2K. I also used one of his 2019 VTP mask excludes to get rid of the default coastlines across this area as my usual method of using Exclude8 to generate .bgls kept causing CTD when loaded.

GavinC for his reworking of the stock airbases, making individual base reworking/ revision much easier.

Shessi for his water textures, that were the inspiration for my reworking of Jimkos Pacific Blues, & indirectly lead me to develop this latest set of water textures.

Lindsay Watt for all of his scenery objects & innovations.

Wolfi for his scenery objects.

Xavier for all his scenery objects & airbase sceneries, opening up a larger world for us all to fly in
Martin Wright for all the various software tools that are so useful!

Russell Dirks for his EZ landclass programme, making large scale land/ water class adjustments possible
Christian Fumey for his excl8 & Ground2K programmes, making the creation of completely new scenery possible for CFS2.

UncleTgt,

JUN 2020
Marshall Islands Scenery for CFS2 by UncleTgt

This is a reworking of the stock sceneries for the entire Marshall Islands chain. It is designed for use with Rhumbas mesh, but the scenery excludes provided should mean this works well in a stock mesh install too.

Contents: New Ground2K scenery for each, including fringing reefs.

New airbase scenery, made using FSSC.

New GSL infrastructure.

New custom Landclass & Waterclass.

Some simple missions using the stock F4U-1A Corsair for viewing the GSL airbases & scenery.

The sceneries are as prior to the US invasion, apart from: The airstrip on Delap island, Majuro Atoll, which is depicted after the US had taken what was essentially an unused runway space & developed it into a major four-engined airbase, with a substantial logistics base attached. This was all achieved before the summer of 1944.

The airstrip & facilities on Eniwetok Island, again developed double-quick after the US landings to provide a serviceable airbase by the summer of 1944.

I did run across several issues with sloping water when trying to match the runway altitudes with the mesh (they did build these runways right across the island landmass in a lot of cases. In some cases forced A16N flattens using FS Flatten or FSSC helped, but in some I had to make some compromises on runway altitudes.

Similarly I came across disappearing backgrounds (overhead view, Mission Builder only) for the NW corner of Engebi AB, & the W half of Kwajalein AB. I was unable to resolve the issue with Engebi, but a forced A16N flatten added with FSFlatten & named so it loads last of all A16Ns in this area did seem to fix the issue at Kwajalein. I may revisit my Wake scenery to see if that FS Flatten trick works there.

Installing this scenery pack: The G2K scenery included in this package requires copying contents of your scenedb/world/texture folder to your main CFS2 texture folder. (see SECTION A: TEXTURE PREPARATION)

SECTION A: TEXTURE PREPARATION

1. Highlight all files in your SCENDEB/WORLD/TEXTURE folder.

2. Copy and paste them to your main CFS2/TEXTURE folder.

3. If asked to overwrite click “no.”

4. Hi-lite all files in the Marshall_Islands_UT/TEXTURE folder.

5. Copy and paste them to your main CFS2/TEXTURE folder.

6. If asked to overwrite click “no.”

7. Highlight all files in the Marshall_Islands_UT/SCENDEB/WORLD/TEXTURE folder.

8. Copy and paste them to your your CFS2/SCENDEB/WORLD/TEXTURE folder.

9. If asked to overwrite click “no.”

SECTION B: ADDING NEW SCENERY & GSL

12. Drop the folder "Marshall_Islands_UT" & "Marshalls_Excludes_UT" into your main CFS2 folder, or wherever you pull your add-on scenery from.

13. Next, drop the content of the gsl folder along with GSLMan.exe into your CFS2/GSL folder. If asked to over write click “Yes.”

14. Make a back-up copy of your current cfs2.gsl file. Its OK to leave it in the GSL folder- just rename it.

15. Open GSLMan.exe from inside your CFS2/GSL folder.

16. From the "Available Custom Gobs" list highlight marshalls_airbases_UT.gsl Click the "ADD" button.

17. Wait until GSLMan.exe says it's thru then…

18. From the "Available Custom Gobs" list highlight marshalls_eyecandy_UT.gsl Click the "ADD" button.

19. Close GSLMan.

SECTION C: ACTIVATING & ARRANGING THE NEW SCENERY IN CFS2

20. Activate the "Marshalls_Excludes_UT" scenery. Put this low down in your Library listing, just above the "Runways" (stock runways layer) is a good location.

21. Activate your "Marshall_Islands_UT" scenery. This can be quite high in the listing, way above any mesh, watermasks or exclude layers, BUT CERTAINLY ABOVE the "Marshalls_Excludes_UT" layer! I put my G2K sceneries below the "Airport Facilities Data" layer.

The scenery is installed.

NOTE: To make the runways available in MB enter the runway entries listed in the marshalls_UT/airbase_entries.txt file into your airbases.dat file which can be found in your CFS2/INFO folder. Be sure to back up your current airbases.dat file first.

Credits

Thanks to: Jean Bomber for his inspiration, advice & support. He talked me through getting to grips with G2K & more…

Maskrider for all his airbase packages & the blended airbase tutorial. This set the standard for airbase sceneries for the game.

Rhumbaflappy for the new more accurate world mesh – it was a desire to make best use of this development that is the driver for many of my scenery projects. He also developed the vtp1 fixer programme to fix display errors in vtp bgls compiled from Ground2K. I also used one of his 2019 VTP mask excludes to get rid of the default coastlines across this area as my usual method of using Exclude8 to generate .bgls kept causing CTD when loaded.

GavinC for his reworking of the stock airbases, making individual base reworking/ revision much easier.

Shessi for his water textures, that were the inspiration for my reworking of Jimkos Pacific Blues, & indirectly lead me to develop this latest set of water textures.

Lindsay Watt for all of his scenery objects & innovations.

Wolfi for his scenery objects.

Xavier for all his scenery objects & airbase sceneries, opening up a larger world for us all to fly in.

Martin Wright for all the various software tools that are so useful!

Russell Dirks for his EZ landclass programme, making large scale land/ water class adjustments possible
Christian Fumey for his excl8 & Ground2K programmes, making the creation of completely new scenery possible for CFS2.

UncleTgt,

JUN 2020

To check it out, rate it or add comments, visit Marshall Islands UT.zip
The comments you make there will appear in the posts below.