Moggy's Log - September 2023

[Moggy]

I really should have started this 23 years ago. It was on 19th September 2000 that I took my first steps into EAW modding. I emailed Flyright, who was to be for a number fo years thereafter my EAW modding colleague, about his single mission addon for the B26. I wanted something similar for Claudio Wiches early model Wellington. I was always into bombers. Before the end of the month with a copy of Charles Gunst's notes and a hex editor I had the Wellington flying in what we used then to call a "flying slot" and delivering a 4,000 lb cookie.



Screenshot from 30th August 2000.

Lots gone under the EAW bridge since then!

So, this month.

We have been putting a bit of work to get The Gen's public forum (this one!) back in order, and only really today have I got back to continuing to work on the Italy/Balkans/Ukraine theatre



Before the work on The Gen I was working my way through the various plane-sets, and taking what advantage I could of the multiskin system to bring new life to some old (but very good) skin collections, perhaps using them with new models and skins. This for exampe is a scratch unit of Polish P11Cs with variant skins (and variant models)



All able to fly as one squad using the multiskin system first brought into EAW in the Code Group's 128A release in 2009.

I was up to thinking about the heavy bombers based in Italy after 1943. The daylight raiders were the USAAC 15th Airforce B24s and B17, anf the night raiders were the RAF 205 Group Wellingtons and Halifaxes. We have in the 160 aircraft inventory some great B24 skins, in particular Rotton50's terrific mixed 8th Air Force squad complete with the dazzling assembly ship.



I needed something like that for the Italian based units. Something temporary for now until something better replaces it. So I wnt looking for all the EAW B24 skins I could find, mainly at Sandbagger's Tally Ho! Downloaded a heap, but there were very few applicable to the 15th Air Force. But enough to make something. In the early days in Italy some squads will still have their desert skins having transfered from Libya, some would have the more European skins of olive drab, others the bare metallic finish. This mixed squad of B24Js, made today, captures that:



It'll do for the moment (until Ray comes up with something better ). Meanwhile, what about a mixed squad of B24Ds?

[rotton50]

I have a mixed squadron of B-24's in the Aircraft Inventory, which it looks like you have.

I also have:

1 - European B24D's and B-24J's, non-multiskined.
2 - Desert B24D's multi-skinned.
3 - SPAW PB4Y-1 and -2 non-multiskinned.

The 3dz models on all of them have been upgraded with rounder edges and such.

Let me know what you'd like to do and I'll get to it.

[Moggy]

I was trying to get a sense of the colour schemes used by the units based in Italy (15thAF), so it was essentially the olive drab, and the all-metallic, and I guessed some at least in the early days in Italy, were still in their desert camo.

So what would be good is mixed squad of those three camo types, either all B24D or all B24H/J.

[rotton50]

I put a mixed skin B-24D set named B24Dmixedskins.zip in your folder. Mostly variations of the olive drab paint but tail end charlie has desert colors. There are also individual nose art files included.

Once you suss out the file naming scheme you can mix and match them as you choose if you wish to add a couple more desert skins. Also, as far as I know there are no bare metal B-24 skins out there but I came up with a pretty good way to make bare metal / winter camo skins.

Make a copy of the skin, open the copy and turn it from color to black and white (or grayscale). Fiddle with the brightness/contrast settings until you're happy and then cut/paste to the original texture. This way the color portions of the skin like insignia, pilots, wheel wells and such stay colorized. A little brighter makes a bare metal skin, a little darker makes a winter camo skin.

Just one note on the B24 file set. To save a bit on storage memory each plane doesn't have it's own full set of files. Since there are four different olive drab version, the 3dz's for some of the planes don't point to a corresponding set of textures, but instead point to one of the four different olive drab sets.

Just so you know, I do this quite often with multiskin sets.

[Moggy]

Many thanks Ray, I will get to it.

I really hadn't until now appreciated the flexibility of the multiskin system to create sets like this.

This multicoloured "assembly ship" thing. Do you know how these distinctive planes were used, and should I have one in the Italian based set?

[rotton50]

Hard to believe, I know, but I refrained from pointing out to Modred the futility of this skin and in the interest of community civility I included it in the B24D/J mixed skin set. (Filed under no good deed goes unpunished).

You see, these were "war weary" aircraft deemed unfit for combat. They were painted bright colors for high visibility and then used as assembly ships for the various squadrons. Once assembled they peel off and head home.......Which means they have no place in the EAW world.

Truth is, I planned out taking it out in the next upload as it doesn't fit and I don't have to worry about community civility anymore.

Although, come to think of it, darkened a bit it would probably make an alternative desert skin. I'll give that a try.

[Moggy]

Ah, I see, they didn't go into combat. Not needed then.

[rotton50]

Since I was at it I upgraded the desert skinned B24D's to multiskins.

I darkened some planes and lightened some planes and added two with a modified version of Modred's original.

It will be in the next package but if you think you could use it let me know.

[Moggy]

Thanks Ray.

I'll have them now please

[rotton50]

I put two files in your folder, DesertB24D.zip and SilverB24J.zip.

As you see, I went ahead and made a bare metal skin for the B24J with new nose art to go along with it. All 16 planes in this set are bare metal but I'll go back to the B-24J file set and switch some of the existing planes from green to bare metal, which will show up in the next upgrade package.

With these additions you can now mix and match B24's to your heart's content. My suggestion, and it's only a suggestion, is that you make your folders compatible with the Aircraft_inventory system, send them to me and I'll add them to the package.

(It would be extra special nice if you mention my continuing contributions the next time you post pictures at SimHQ.)

[Moggy]

Thanks Ray.

It will be my aim that all planes used in the Italy-Balkans-Ukraine will be in the central inventory.

Name check

[rotton50]

Just an FYI.

Since I was messing around with B-24's I decided to add another "what-if" plane to the inventory.

In 1942 Consolidated proposed a twin engine floatplane using the "Davis Wing" from the B-24, calling it the PB4Y Corrigidor. They built three prototypes but that's as far as it went.

Well, I didn't want a floatplane as the game play is relatively limited for that type so I made a totally fictitious attack version as a land plane called the PB4Y-2.

Easy enough to take out two engines, shorten up the wing a bit and add hardpoints under the wings.

I armed it with a 40mm cannon in a blister on one side of the nose and two 20mm cannons on the other side plus three twin 50 cal gun turrets.

The loadout is simple, either 28 x 100 lb bombs or 8 x 500lb skip bombs.

It will show up somewhere in a future SPAW planeset.

[Moggy]

Picture!

[Moggy]

Shazam!







Between the image markers, the text should be (for example):

http://mogggy.org/Rotton50/P4Y-2bombs.jpg

[rotton50]

More examples of what can be done with add-on 3dz's and a little attention to detail:

CantZ 1007 before / after -



SM-79 before / after -



The same treatment for other tri-motors -
CantZ 507

SM-81

SM-82