pdiddy, I guess you're using OTC for RFB, the 1.4 version?

I should point out that when identifying the target in the Recognition Manual, don't forget to note where the proper point of height reference is for the particular target you've selected. In the case of your image of the Kitrurin Maru, the height reference point is the top of the funnel. Always use the RED marked reference point on the picture. Also, some ships have their national flag added to the RM picture.....use the top of the flag where it's positioned to the mast.

Another thing to remember is when using the Stadimeter, use the "L" key to lock the target before taking a reading. The important thing to know when doing this is when you "Send" the information to the TDC, the target's "Relative Bearing" is also sent to the TDC, not just the found range. Knowing this is very important when counting the Telemeter Divisions, then using the Omnimeter to find range. You usually will not want the target "Locked" in position to use the Telemeter Divisions to make a reading.

The trouble comes when you "Send" the found range after setting the Range Dial......you need to make sure the target is centered to the periscope or a wrong Relative Bearing will be sent to the TDC. If the center line of the scope is off center of the target, the wrong bearing is sent to the TDC. A good practice is to count the Telemeter Divisions while positioned on the height reference point, then "Lock" the target back to the center position before sending the found range to the TDC.

If you're "testing" the accuracy of either the OTC Stadimeter, or counting the Telemeter Divisions/Omnimeter process, you can do a couple of things. With the Stadimeter found range, use the active Sonar to ping the target, then "Send" the found range to the TDC. When you return to the periscope screen, the Position Keeper "Range" display shows the accurate distance to the target. Compare it to the Stadimeter found range...as long as there isn't too much time lost between the checks. This is also a good way to compare any mods accuracy with the Stadimeter.

The way to check the accuracy of the Omnimeter is to play the game with Auto Targeting selected. Let the game tell you what the accurate distance is when its shown in the PK Range display. Yet, use the Telemeter Divisions/Omnimeter to do it yourself, comparing the results. I think you'll find the accuracy acceptable. :up:

That's OTC with RFB 2.0 for SH4 v1.5.

I had to "futz" with it a bit, had a few CTDs, but I appear to now have a stable version (more testing required). Your changelog was extremely helpful. (I have OTC installed over a stock RSRDC version and over a TMO version so have some familiarity with the files.)

Using your Hiryu test mission verified the stadimeter accuracy initially. :up: And that screen shot is from your AOB test mission. All seems to be well so far. (I haven't ported over the whole mod, e.g. I left out the AI sensor tweaks, the ship*.sim files because of ISP, and the weapons/sensor upgrade tweaks.) I concentrated on the radar screens, corrected visual world, corrected rec. manual, omnimeter and range dial.

Although I've read/skimmed through the RFB manual and the thread here on Subsim, I didn't realize the RFB rec. manual was rigged until reading one of your posts. (I had read about the A-B-C ratings of reliability, but since they weren't in the rec. manual, had assumed that idea had been abandoned.) Anyway, I'm sure some love it, but I can't live with a rigged rec. manual. If the A-B-C ratings had been included, that would be one thing, and I get that ships changed their mast height and had different heights based on different drafts, many more ships to identify, etc. RFB is an outstanding mod, but having purposely incorrect values with no way of knowing the reliability of any given piece of information is its worst feature imo. The real manual (late war at least) had more and better information than what we get anyway (as I'm sure you know):

http://archive.hnsa.org/doc/id/oni20.../img/pg023.jpg

Besides it is way better sinking a "Nippon Maru" than a "Large Modern Tanker" or whatever!

Thank you for making this great mod which has added so much to SH4. (And thanks for the quick lesson in its use in the previous post.)

fantastic, I would love to see a new mega mod for SH4

Yes, there are still folks working on mods for SH4!! TorpX being one of them.

I could probably bring this up in its own thread, but I'll do it here.

One of the most obvious issues with the stock planes is that they don't attack as expected. They will fly over your position more than they will attack. The problem is in the visual sensors, and in which direction their pointed. Also, there's an issue in the general "loadout" of the aircraft.....if the plane doesn't have a bomb in the basic loadout, its more than happy to fly right over your sub, even though its within visual range.

I've also been working on adding additional planes to SH4 beyond the half dozen that's provided by the stock game. One in particular is a Japanese "Kamikaze" plane that will directly attack Allied forces with severe damage results. I'm almost done with it, and the effects are amazing. The Japanese plane will seek out enemy shipping, and deliver a direct blow to a target ship as expected.

I can tell you, if a sub get's hit, it won't be pretty!!

Pictures to follow!

Sounds good Cap'n! :up:

have u started a thread for this mega mod your working on yet?

No, not yet. Still a little too early to get information out about it. However, I don't see why I can't show you what I've been up to with the one suicidal plane for the Japanese.

This is the Museum shot of the plane.

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...pscmesayc8.jpg

The bright yellow engine cowl should be enough of a warning!!

The AI has chosen a Casablanca CV.

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...psdulac3ag.jpg


http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...psmqataaug.jpg

Looking good so far. Those guys on the deck better duck!

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...psy9olnkvd.jpg


I forgot I had a couple of Kamikaze planes flying around in this test mission! A double whammy.

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...psdbsiaoky.jpg


I think I've got the hit points set a little high!?!

http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...psdzaxbruo.jpg


http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...ps4fukn2yt.jpg


She didn't stay afloat for very long.


http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...pseabg5smp.jpg


So, I think a little more tweaking with the damage model and it's ready to go..... One more shot of it taking a crack at the Iowa.


http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w...pselyfne07.jpg


Anyway, my plan is to add several new planes to the Air group. I'm hoping to add a B-25, B-29, a P-36.....we'll see. I'm just learning 3D modeling so who knows what trouble I'll get into. I'd like to add the Akiga, and Kaga CV's but that's down the road.

No time table on anything, just plugging along. This time of year I can do things I normally don't have time for.

I think it's good that your making new planes. I have a few neat ideas for the game, do u want to here them?

Sure!

Ideas.......we usually have a "boat load" of them. Figuring ways to implement them into the game is the trouble.

Some things can be manipulated to have the game think it's doing something, yet through modding, the results are actually something else. We didn't really change the way the game engine works (unfortunately no one has cracked the SH4 hard code to change specific processes/outcomes....if we did the folks around here would have you banned in a minute!! Not to mention legal implications from UbiSoft), but we can change the physical appearance of a process and make it appear something new has happened within the game. There's still limitations on just what we can do.

For example, the Kamikaze plane icon on the map screen is still going to be visible at the further out zoomed views because the darn thing is a plane. Sure I can remove the plane icons completely for all planes.....doesn't TMO or RFB do that? But, I really don't want to do that. The map screen in-game is your SD radar in use. I really don't want to take away the ability of using the Nav Map to show a planes location since that's the only physical way of displaying a planes position.......except for using my Radar setup that OTC introduces. Which, when I think of it, maybe that isn't such a bad idea. Use the Radar as it was intended to find approaching planes.......but wait, the problem still exist's......the Radar will still show the Kamikaze blip traveling away from the sub after it's hit the target because the Kamikaze plane itself isn't the delivering plane, it's just a bomb dressed up like a plane. The delivering plane is invisible to us, yet the game knows exactly where it is. Will show it on the map or Radar screens, and fire away with AA weapons after the Kamikaze bomb hits the target, and the invisible delivering plane makes it's get a way.

You see, we can dress up the monkey and make him dance, but it's still just a monkey underneath!

Firstly I haven't played the game with RSRDC into the late war, so idk if this is already in a mod. My idea is to add some US heavy bombing raids on japanese bases ,like Rabaul or Balikpapan. I guess u could say that I want a mega mod that includes more aircraft events as well as other things.

Additional events to put to use additional planes is a good point. For instance, the Kamikaze plane wouldn't be of much good if it only showed up in the Museum, or when you wanted to make a specific mission for it through the Mission Editor......an Editor that not very many players know how to use.

I've got a Kamikaze plane in one of my "optional" mods for OTC...."Tokko's Revenge". Although it doesn't work as expected (it only heavily level bombs a target), I made sure it appears on several Aircraft Carrier's to be launched as the other CV based planes would. Adding it to several other land based sites would be appropriate too.

I've not looked at what Lurker did with his planes, so I don't know if he set up plane bombing routes or not......but yes, that's something that should be done. Again, there's little point in adding planes if they aren't used or left in the inventory.

You pointed out Balikpapan as a bombing site. A site I know all too well, due to my uncle (Father's brother) who's B-24 plane is still MIA from a bombing run in Oct. 1944. Dad was in the Pacific (his Tank Battalion left the States in late 1942) when he heard the news about his younger brother. Something he had a hard time getting over since his brother only joined the Air Corp due to Dad's letter's about the places he'd been to while over sea's. He qualified for pilot training, yet an offer came to him for a tail gunner position because of his small stature. He took it, because he thought the war might be over by the time he finished flight school! I have every intention of adding the 307th Long Rangers to the game.

What else you got? :yeah:

I also think it would be cool to see some of the smaller lesser known bombardments of Guadalcanal, including air raids. Again idk if RSRDC already has some of the lesser known bombardments, but I will say that it would be neat to see some air raids on Henderson and some ship bombardments, like, " the night of the battleships," which was a bombardment on Guadalcanal by the battleships, Kongo and haruna, in October 1942. Plus could u possibly add in the battle of Rennel island? If u don't know what that is, either Google it or ask me.

You're right, I don't know anything about Rennel Island.....I'll look it up though.

Putting missions in place isn't too hard to do, just lot's of tedious typing that can easily be screwed up by a couple of misspelled words. Lurker did a lot of his mission building outside of the Mission Editor. Actually, it's better if you don't use the Mission Editor for some of the missions. The Mission Editor has a funny way of "saving" some of the built missions...... where you should still open up the mission .mis file with NotePad to edit some of the entries. I forget just what to do, but then again I forget where I put my glasses too!

Mission building still takes some trial and error game play. Like RSRDC's idea of having so many different way points, with different travel speeds between them. It's a good idea to have a ship change speeds as you follow it.....makes game play unpredictable. But, when you drop a ships travel speed to less than half its rated MaxSpeed from its .sim file, you'll not hear a thing through the use of the subs Hydrophones yourself. Even if the target is in eyesight of the sub.

I've also seen where a ship's route cuts right through a small land mass. I don't have to see it in-game to know that ship never see's the light of day on the other side of the land. So, you put a ship into spawning in-game only to have it crash/sink when it hits an island. That's one reason why Truk Island usually doesn't have ships spawn/end within the harbor. The narrow entrance is too hard to make sure every mission ship can make it through, without hitting something. So, most of the time the ships spawn/end outside the harbor.

You gave me another idea, can u add in the air raids on Truk in feb. and April 1944? Also I have noticed some bugs in the game even with mods. One bug is that the base colors on the map don't change right away, like with Rabaul, after it was occupied by the japanese it was still blue. Another wierd thing is that sometimes there can be ships from one country sitting by an enemy base. Like one time I was patrolling off Rabaul after it was taken by Japan and there were a lot of Australian ships right by japanese controlled Rabaul.

The final big bug is that when i started a career with TMO + RSRDC in July 1945 Iwo Jima was still marked as red and there were still jap ships there, when there should be US ships and the island should be US controlled. So can u fix these problems? Also could u add more land defense guns to the bases and more harbor traffic? That would be cool.

I don't know, I've never looked at the issue of Dates/Time and which nationality holds what. I know there's a file that controls on whose side you're on, and when the side may change.....like the Italians....they flipped and flopped a couple of times. There's probably a file that controls a land base ownership just as well.

Probably. :D

I know I'll be getting into those Land Air Base files to add the additional planes to their inventory.