So about the clouds...

[Avimimus]

They make you feel awfully small don't they? They even make the mountains in Kuban look small..

 

Anyway - I just wanted a dedicated cloud thread.

[40plus]

They are a fantastic upgrade.

I just posted in the main thread, but has anyone else noticed how they look when viewed through a mirror?

[Avimimus]

The cumulonimbus 2 and cumulus congestus seem to be among the largest (although I gather cumulonimbus can be even larger in real life)?

 

Also, there should be hail stones sometimes with the largest storm clouds  It'll be interesting if they ever decide to add localised wind or hail (imagine it as tiny bullets that come out of nowhere). I also wonder if someday the AI will be able to choose to fly around clouds (I suspect that might be a technical challenge though - and best left up to the mission designers).

 

I've also found it quite nerve wracking to fly WWI aircraft up through clouds - as the IFR is basically looking at the wing mounted anemometer to see if one is speeding up suddenly (i.e. descending) and trying to figure out which was is up from that... as well as avoid over-speeding. I've managed to climb through the clouds in a lazy spiral successfully so far - but it is several minutes of blind flying and there is constant fear of vertigo.

 

Anyway, this leaves me wanting civilian aircraft and aircraft with high climb rates or better forward views (e.g. Ju-188, Fw-189, Fi-156, DH.2, DH.5). We have the He-111 though. I wonder if a Bristol Box-kite or thr Etrich VIII Luft-Limousine could climb high enough... it'd be a sense of accomplishment I think to play among the clouds?

[oc2209]

16 hours ago, Avimimus said:

They make you feel awfully small don't they?

 

The only thing I feel since the cloud update, is a sudden hunger for mashed potatoes. You know, the really fluffy whipped kind.

 

3 hours ago, Avimimus said:

The cumulonimbus 2 and cumulus congestus seem to be among the largest (although I gather cumulonimbus can be even larger in real life)?

 

Congestus is my favorite so far. When you fly above it, you get all those peaks and valleys of cloud banks to fly around.

[RyanR]

 

 

Thanks for starting a thread!

 

It's a huge change. Stunning. I cranked all the cloud settings up just to mess around. Had to climb 8K feet, while staring intensely at poor La-5 instruments (bank, slip, and VSI) just to get on top of it. I never was so happy to see the proverbial "break in the clouds" to dive down into just to get back underneath it all.

 

Definitely a huge game changer.

 

-Ryan

[walter55]

They are great, look good, easy on your hardware, even when cranked up, love'm. 

 

Cheers

[Jeroen83]

They complete changed the sim. Great job. It also seems ambient occlusion is improved inside the cockpit, has anyone else noticed this?

 

I have one small suggestion though: flying through the shadows of even the thickest of clouds, the sun never really disappears, even in rain. There is always a faint sunshine. This distracts a little bit from the feeling of flying in bad weather. I think a more dramatic effect would be accomplished if the sun would be completely obstructed in these situations, especially with the excellent ambient occlusion effects inside the cockpit!

[Guest deleted@50488]

It's a New sim !!!

[Avimimus]

What is the experience like dogfighting? I only fly single player these days - but I have a few impressions:

 

- It is less of an issue than one might think, since the clouds are so larger there are often dogfights that happen near clouds but don't actually end up inside them.

 

- It is often much more unsettling because clouds can easily cause one to lose sight of an opponent (often unpredictably). At the same time, it is often easier to spot aircraft if they have a cloud mass behind them.

 

- I'm finding the the new clouds tend to make spatial orientation easier. They are more unique than the ground textures and it is easy to keep track of where one is turning. This was a nice surprise.

 

Overall, I'm a bit reminded of one of my first flights in the original Il-2... I was trying out the Bf-109F for the first time against an I-153... and it was winter so the white-painted I-153 was well camouflaged... I didn't properly disengage but kept trying to turn to find it - and it easily pecked me to death... but it was a series of attacks seemingly out of nowhere... that is what it felt like - being hunted by a ghost. Dogfights in the clouds are a bit like that.

 

[BlitzPig_EL]

My only problem in combat is the AI can, and will, track you through clouds.

[Avimimus]

1 minute ago, BlitzPig_EL said:

My only problem in combat is the AI can, and will, track you through clouds.

 

I've long said that having an AI which occasionally loses track of the player.. and then disengages before searching for the player and re-engaging (as a real pilot, or a player would) would bring a lot of benefits for both gameplay and realism.

[Hanu]

1 hour ago, BlitzPig_EL said:

My only problem in combat is the AI can, and will, track you through clouds.

 

Hmm, I've dived away into clouds several times and chasing AI disangages. After coming out, it might re-engage if close enough.

 

Could this be related to distance then that you must have enough separation?

[LuftManu]

6 minutes ago, Hanu said:

 

Hmm, I've dived away into clouds several times and chasing AI disangages. After coming out, it might re-engage if close enough.

 

Could this be related to distance then that you must have enough separation?

Also had the AI losing me. Maybe it's related to distance as you say

[40plus]

It had previously been reportedly reaffirmed that the AI cannot see through clouds. I imagine it's the same with the new clouds but may be worth confirming.

[Avimimus]

25 minutes ago, 40plus said:

It had previously been reportedly reaffirmed that the AI cannot see through clouds. I imagine it's the same with the new clouds but may be worth confirming.

 

Yes, it'll be interesting to have confirmation.

 

One thing I do suspect - they are better at quickly spotting the location of the player and keeping track of it (than players are at quickly spotting the AI). This is probably true in good weather as well, but would be more noticeable in cloudy weather because contact is lost and regained more often.

 

I think it'd be pretty neat if there was a chance that the AI doesn't spot the player right away. Similarly, if the player is out of sight for a moment - having the AI turn ninety degrees (and climb or dive) while trying to re-acquire the player would be neat... IRL pilots often disengaged and returned to base if they lost track of the enemy (and it happened often).

 

25 minutes ago, 40plus said:

It had previously been reportedly reaffirmed that the AI cannot see through clouds. I imagine it's the same with the new clouds but may be worth confirming.

 

Yes, it'll be interesting to have confirmation.

Edited December 11, 2021 by Avimimus

[Jade_Monkey]

3 hours ago, Avimimus said:

I've long said that having an AI which occasionally loses track of the player.. and then disengages before searching for the player and re-engaging (as a real pilot, or a player would) would bring a lot of benefits for both gameplay and realism.

 

Allegedly it's already implemented. The problem is that only really works in the thickest part of the cloud but what the AI considers "thin" is still pretty thick for a human player. I've gone back and forth with the devs in this with no better answer. Same thing with AAA shooting through clouds.

[Willy__]

4 hours ago, BlitzPig_EL said:

My only problem in combat is the AI can, and will, track you through clouds.

 

Its been that way since launch

[LVA_Picard]

what I notes' in VR with the clouds (looks fantastic) is the darker clouds makes some circles  like you see if you have gamma settings to high , I guess I have to fiddle a little more with the settings to made those go away . 

[RyanR]

Finally got back to a P-47 career since the new update. Totally different sim. The weather report was "Heavy clouds at 3900 ft." Target was a bridge so there were two 1,000lb bombs, and the clouds topped at well over 10K ft. Loooong climb on instruments only. Not realistic to get above the clouds climbing at 500 ft/minute, so it was a constant weaving around some very tall clouds.

 

There was a break in the clouds over the target.... but it was still really disorienting diving through the clouds. The dive was steep enough to lose the artificial horizon, so what would have been a simple dive a before the update required a complete reassessment of priorities: Don't auger.... then, dodge the AA.... wow.

 

-Ryan

[Gambit21]

I agree that the new clouds are a game-changer for this sim.

I normally can't fly my own work, but I might have to get into the A-20 at some point and fly Havoc!

 

In the process of updating, and will do the same with Hell Hawks. 

 

 

[Leif_]

Do others have the same impression?
I feel like I can fly in a cloud that is so dense that I feel like I can't see my own wingtips but the AI can shoot at me from 3 miles away.

Otherwise the new update is fantastic.

Edited December 17, 2021 by Leif_

[BlitzPig_EL]

Indeed, the AI's amazing head on attack accuracy is beyond the pale.  The Bf109 G6 Late's ability to snipe at very long range with me Mk.108 in head on attacks has forced me to remove them from all of my missions where they appear.  It's madness really.

Edited December 17, 2021 by BlitzPig_EL

[IckyATLAS]

The clouds are really beautiful. The colors and light interaction is also gorgeous. I am now reviewing my Kuban campaign to better use these effects, and also make some improvements here and there.

Some live shots here:

 

On the black sea:

 

 

The escorting P47 on top of the clouds:

 

 

And now a comparison between the old version and the new version. You will be able to see the difference. 

It is an overcast sky and a flight of IL2 is on top. Here the two pictures.

 

1) The old version. You can also see those annoying artifacts parallel lines on the clouds.

 

 

2) And now the new version. We are in another dimension. The cloud texture is perfect. Enjoy.

 

 

 

[Gambit21]

Eagle Flight on maritime patrol - Havoc Over the Kuban.

[Winkysmith]

Been searching through the cloud types, and they’re all beautiful! Yet to find something similar to this, though:

[doyle66]

Or these over the Irish sea:

 

Edited December 21, 2021 by doyle66

[Feathered_IV]

I think you do get clouds similar to that.  But they are more like this:

 

[Retnek]

The search for the suitable cloud might start here:

https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/75790-new-il2-clouds-tips-and-tricks/

[PB0_Roll]

Cloud construction, colors, shapes, are very much improved and believable.

 

Does anyone know why they chose to make clouds blurry though ?

[J2_Bidu]

13 minutes ago, PB0_Roll said:

Does anyone know why they chose to make clouds blurry though ?

 

It's not a choice, rather a current limitation of the technology used.

Given the pros and cons, I can well live with that

[Crashbangwallop]

In case anyone here's unaware, just drawing your attention to the Cloud Appreciation Society.

 

https://cloudappreciationsociety.org/

 

It's all about drawing people's attention to, informing about, and generally celebrating the beauty and ever-changing variety of Clouds and all Atmospheric phenomenon.

 

December's current 'Cloud of the Month' is an astonishing photo of multiple haloes from Switzerland

https://cloudappreciationsociety.org/december-2021/

 

Will also help put some light on the Cloud types in the new Quick Mission weather set-up menu choices ?

[IckyATLAS]

39 minutes ago, Crashbangwallop said:

In case anyone here's unaware, just drawing your attention to the Cloud Appreciation Society.

 

https://cloudappreciationsociety.org/

 

It's all about drawing people's attention to, informing about, and generally celebrating the beauty and ever-changing variety of Clouds and all Atmospheric phenomenon.

 

December's current 'Cloud of the Month' is an astonishing photo of multiple haloes from Switzerland

https://cloudappreciationsociety.org/december-2021/

 

Will also help put some light on the Cloud types in the new Quick Mission weather set-up menu choices ?

At first I thought it was a joke. But no they really exist. I love clouds so I am happy to discover them . Thanks for sharing.

[352ndOscar]

You never know what you’ll see……

 

[kendo]

Next instalment - Battle of Hiroshima! 

[Crashbangwallop]

1 hour ago, IckyATLAS said:

At first I thought it was a joke. But no they really exist. I love clouds so I am happy to discover them . Thanks for sharing.

 

Glad you've picked it up... ?

[dawud]

Yesterday i flew my first missions at low light (early morning/night)
The Color-banding was horrible and clearly visible everywhere in the Sky.
They really have to adjust something.
It´s very apparent on the screenshot from Gambit21
Clearly visible banding, even worse in VR.

And even tho´the new Clouds are beautiful, this is hard to ignore ingame.
Not as bad, as the stutter of the old ones tho´.

Edited December 21, 2021 by dawud

[Luftschiff]

At this point I'm ready to chalk it up to your monitor because I can't see it in game nor in your screenshots

5 hours ago, Feathered_IV said:

I think you do get clouds similar to that.  But they are more like this:

 

 

Unfortunately very true - it was my hope that this was one thing the cloud update would address, not exacerbate.

[BlitzPig_EL]

2 hours ago, 352ndOscar said:

You never know what you’ll see……

 

Can you share what exact cloud setting produces that in game?  I have been trying to get that exact effect, to no avail.

[MajorMagee]

1 hour ago, Luftschiff said:

At this point I'm ready to chalk it up to your monitor because I can't see it in game nor in your screenshots

 

Unfortunately very true - it was my hope that this was one thing the cloud update would address, not exacerbate.

This might help. http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/black.php

[dawud]

As for the Reverb G2 VR-hmd, neither Windows nor Nvidia´s contrast/color-override, seems to be working.

Edited December 21, 2021 by dawud