il2mg - Mission Generator

[Toxin1]

I am really looking forward to trying out your next update!

[LLv24_Zami]

Looks really like an active airfield! Nice work!

[Sim]

A couple of WIP screenshots of the generated patrol missions. When the player is a wingman (image 1) you will see the flight route and the pattern your leader will use for patrolling the area. When the player is a flight leader (image 2) you will be assigned an area but the flight route and how to carry out the actual patrol is up to you (hence you must lead your flight).

 

 

[Toxin1]

Very cool idea!! 

[Sim]

New update - r4 (see first post for download link)

• Added new mission type - patrol area.
• Added Morozovskiy south airfield.
• Updated existing and added some new units.
• Implemented locations database (for fast lookup of map items, places and other features).
• Added a new --task command-line parameter (to select desired mission type).
• The --date command-line parameter now accepts season values (example: --date summer).
• Units now have assigned roles (a set of valid mission tasks and their probabilities).
• Territories are now identified based on day-by-day front lines.
• Improved precision of sunrise, sunset and solar noon computations.
• Adjusted VVS pilot rank distribution.
• Fixed binary mission file compatibility with 1.107b patch.
• Fixed an issue with explosion sound on the airfield during the start of a mission.
• Other minor changes and tweaks.

---

 

Hey. So the new patch 1.107b introduced changes to binary mission file format and the old r3 version will no longer work correctly. Instead of just releasing a small compatibility fix - I am pushing out what I have right now from the new version (with some of the new features and content not yet fully working disabled for now). So this adds the new patrol mission type in a "beta" version. I still want to improve some aspects - like the briefing text and there are probably some more tweaks left. Anyway, would love to hear what you think of this new mission type.

[Toxin1]

Hi Sim,

 

Finally tried out your new version with the patrol mission.  Flew a German 109G flight of 2 looking for enemy recon.  The map icons looked very nice and was able to taxi and take off together from Pitomnik.  Did not run into any enemy flights but AI flights may not be ready yet? I did not receive a radio call from the tower on RTB and my wingman flew circles around the airfield without landing.  Also, I was not able to use the Morozovskiy_south airfield with a "airfield is not active" message.

 

Thanks for your continued work on this as it is coming along very nicely  

[Sim]

Hey Toxin1,

 

Thanks for testing the new missions!

 

Did not run into any enemy flights but AI flights may not be ready yet?

 

Yes, AI flights are not yet in and only the player flight is currently active. I have something very special planned for AI flights - they will essentially fly the same missions as the player does. However, I am probably like 2 more updates away from working on the AI flight functionality.

 

I did not receive a radio call from the tower on RTB and my wingman flew circles around the airfield without landing.

 

If you were flying as a leader - the idea is that you should issue "return to base" radio command to your wingmen yourself once over the airfield. They should land and return to base then. I will probably improve the landing sequence further down the road to make it more automatic.

 

Also, I was not able to use the Morozovskiy_south airfield with a "airfield is not active" message.

 

This generator includes historical unit deployments - and since currently missions are only available for fighters - the Morozovskiy south airfield is basically very rare right now. If you try creating missions with --airfield morozovskiy_south param and repeat this for a while - a mission will be found. This "xyz is not active" message will be removed in the future (when generator can lookup valid dates based on player input params). Also note, that the airfield may look half empty or full depending on the mission date. The reason is that every static plane you see on the airfield is accounted for (based on local unit plane inventories)  

Edited February 23, 2016 by Sim

[Sim]

Finished new Morozovskiy west airfield:

 

 

[Toxin1]

Eagerly waiting for new update..............

[Sim]

Eagerly waiting for new update..............

 

Working on it!   The next update will include new command-line parameters for creating missions based on plane and/or unit, two new airfields, some new units and the new fighter sweep mission type. The fighter sweep thing is holding me back right now, but I have most of the stuff figured out and it should't take too long now.

 

I have also been thinking more and more about the GUI version lately, even went ahead and made some mockups showing how I expect it to function. Mockups are still WIP and there are some things not included (like airfield selection and more options - including difficulty/complexity sliders).

 

 

The GUI will function as a mission manager letting you create the missions you want, preview them and launch with a single "Launch" button. Any feedback is welcome!

Edited March 22, 2016 by Sim

[JGr2/J5_W0LF-]

Can this create Co-op missions! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE....

[Toxin1]

Really great stuff Sim!  The GUI seems very streamlined and intuitive.  The more options, the better. 

[Bando]

This is starting to look better and better.

 

Thank you for making this.

[Sim]

Some examples of the procedurally generated fighter sweep routes:

 

Edited March 27, 2016 by Sim

[Jade_Monkey]

Really cool stuff!! Looking forward to taking a closer look when i get home.

[Sim]

New update - r5 (see first post for download link)

• Added new mission type - fighter sweep.
• Added Voroponovo airfield.
• Added Morozovskiy west airfield.
• Updated existing and added some new units.
• Added a new --plane command-line parameter (to select desired plane type).
• Added a new --unit command-line parameter (to select desired unit).
• Utility is now built and distributed as a 64-bit executable.
• Anti-aircraft train platforms can now be used for airfield defense.
• All non-custom airfields now use stock (default) blocks and structures.
• New fog (mist) weather effect is now used correctly.
• Fixed an issue with missing airfield campfire and smoke effects.
• Fixed an issue with --time night not working as expected.
• Other minor changes and tweaks.

---

 

The new fighter sweep mission type is now available. The one thing I haven't been able to do is write more of the stories/descriptions for the briefing (currently there is only one) - I might use some help with this.. I wonder if anyone would be interested in helping me with the writing stuff? (please send me a PM if interested).

 

 

As for other content - two new airfields were added. The Voroponovo is particularly interesting - as it unlocks some PVO units that operated I-16 and even MiG-3 fighters. The command-line interface has got two new options and became a bit smarter as well. Something like --plane p40 will correctly produce a mission as it is now able to lookup the dates when P-40 equipped units operated (previously it could fail with "No valid units found" message).

 

And the utility is now built as a 64bit executable 

[KpaxBos]

Hello,

 

Great ! Getting better and better.

 

How can I find :

• list of available airfields
• list of planes -> this I can figure it out
• list of available units ?

 

Thanks again for this great tool.

 

Have fun

[SCG_Space_Ghost]

This looks like a solid alternative to the... interesting... flight paths that PWCG generates.

 

The airfields and atmosphere you're creating are phenomenal as well.

 

I'm definitely looking forward to the fleshed-out world you're creating with this generator and I'll be keeping an eye on the progress.

Edited April 4, 2016 by Space_Ghost

[Sim]

Hey,

 

How can I find : list of available airfields

 

Currently there are 13 airfields where you can start from the ground/runway:

• altuhov
• illarionovsky
• karpovka
• kotelnikovsky
• leninsk
• morozovskiy_south
• morozovskiy_west
• oblivskaya
• pitomnik
• solodovka
• srednyaya_ahtuba
• tuzov
• voroponovo

 

 

list of planes -> this I can figure it out 

 

It should just work with any plane name. It's also a bit smart, try --plane "Bf 109" and it will create a mission with any of the Bf 109 variants. You can't create missions for some planes yet (bombers mostly) - as they do not have any bomber missions/tasks assigned yet.

 

 

list of available units ?

 

The list would be big as currently there are 179 individual units already in, and I continue adding them with each new version. Please wait for the GUI version where you will be able to select all units visually. The --unit input just like with --plane does not strictly require exact unit id - so you can use something like --unit "JG 3" to produce mission with any of the JG 3 units.

[KpaxBos]

Hello,

 

A big thank you for taking time to answer me.

 

Have fun

Edited April 5, 2016 by KpaxBos

[Sim]

Added Romanians for the next version - they will speak German as we don't have real Romanian country yet - but other than that all the ranks, names and plane skins will be authentic.

 

 

I was always fascinated with their aviation history.. fingers crossed one day we will be flying IAR 80/81 over Stalingrad 

Edited April 9, 2016 by Sim

[SvAF/F19_Klunk]

just found this thread.. fantastic project and good luck!! I will try it out as soom as time permits....

thank you and may I say "what a great community!"

[Sim]

Some progress on the graphical user interface, but still lots of things to do..

A WIP screenshot of the main missions screen:

 

Edited April 24, 2016 by Sim

[Jason_Williams]

Looking great Sim!

 

Jason

[LLv24_Zami]

Really nice work!

[74_jim_nihilist]

Wow. Impressive on all fronts.

[Sim]

The first version of GUI is almost ready!

 

A couple of screenshots of the screen used to create a new mission:

 

 

 

In the first screenshot - nothing is selected and it's a default view you get when entering the screen. You can press the "Create" button at this point and will get a mission without any preference at all - hence a random choice/selection will be made for you from all the available data.

 

In the second screenshot - you can see I have selected three Romanian escadrillas and a specific mission date. Other data is being highlighted as valid or invalid. From this screen you can figure that you will be flying one of the selected escadrilla on Bf 109 E-7 from Karpovka with one of the four missions (tasks) available.

 

In the future updates I will be adding another dialog where other mission parameters will be set (weather conditions, parking/runway/air starts, difficulty etc). Hoping this screen is not too complex and will make it easy to create a mission you would like to fly.

Edited May 5, 2016 by Sim

[keeno]

Sim, 

 

this is looking really cool, gonna give it a whirl on me next days off work. Thanks for developing it and sharing.

 

Cheers

[Luger1969]

Looking great sim. Cant wait for the gui and ai.

[Sim]

New update - r6 (see first post for download link)

• Added graphical user interface (GUI).
• Added Romanian country and related units.
• Other minor changes and tweaks.

---

 

This new version now includes the GUI interface! Forgive me for all the yellow.. this is what you get when a programmer has to design a software UI..

 

An important thing about this GUI application is that the "Launch" button will launch the game and your selected mission automatically. You don't need to navigate to the "Missions" menu and do that manually. And since the mission is launched automatically - you will not be able to select difficulty mode from game UI. Right now, to select the difficulty mode - you can right click on the "Launch" button as in the screenshot below:

 

 

Custom difficulty option will use your last saved settings right now (I will be adding the ability to modify custom difficulty settings with a GUI dialog in the future).

[KpaxBos]

Hello,

 

Fantastic. Yellow appearance not bad at all.

I just have a quick run. I had to launch twice to get directly in mission; first time, normal start; second time I get directly in the mission.

Not a problem for me.

Is the line mode command sill available ?

 

Thanks for this tool.

 

Regards and again

Edited May 14, 2016 by KpaxBos

[Sim]

I just have a quick run. I had to launch twice to get directly in mission; first time, normal start; second time I get directly in the mission. Not a problem for me.

 

Interesting, let me know if this happens all the time. I wasn't able to reproduce that kind of problem on my PC/setup.

 

Is the line mode command sill available ?

 

Yes, it's in the "resources" folder named as "il2mg-cli.exe". This GUI application is just a shell around this command-line utility.

[PapaFlo]

Thank you - what a great tool!

Flo

Edited May 14, 2016 by papaflo

[KpaxBos]

Hello,

 

Just made some other checks.

Now the problem has disappeared, everything working as described (auto start up).

The only thing I have done is to set difficulties (in the GUI) to 'custom' (my default setting). Since this chaneg, I had no more problems.

I reverted the settings to normal in your gui but the problem did not show up again. I do not know what happened.

 

Important is that now all correct

[Jade_Monkey]

Good stuff!

 

I didnt encounter any enemy planes on my fighter sweep, and the mission ended near the end (i was steering away from the flight leader, not sure if that has anything to do).

The interface looks great and the option to launch straight to the mission is really nice.

Looking forward to seeing more of IL2MG!

Edited May 16, 2016 by Jade_Monkey

[Sim]

@Jade_Monkey: There are no AI flights yet (only player flight). This is on my TODO list and is something I will be working on soon (after finalizing some remaining GUI stuff).

Edited May 16, 2016 by Sim

[Jade_Monkey]

Sorry about that. I knew that there were no enemy AI in the previous release but wasnt sure about this one.

 

Love the airfields and the interface, very well done.

[Trooper117]

Just discovered this thread... it looks really good.

I'm a little confused though at the moment... if you set up the mission and fly it, you won't meet any enemy aircraft as they are not factored in yet?

[Sim]

I'm a little confused though at the moment... if you set up the mission and fly it, you won't meet any enemy aircraft as they are not factored in yet?

 

Yes, only player flight is currently active. I would not recommend this to anyone just yet.. Unless you are interested in a free flight over an airfield or maybe some formation practice with AI wingmen.

[Trooper117]

Thanks for the clarification...