The Unit mode is how you edit the properties for each and every unit in the mission. For example, the 3 Plt, 267th Tank Regt is comprised of four T-72 TANKS that are dug into their emplacements. If you hit the Objects button, you can add, remove or change to the number of tanks or whatever other vehicle/ship you require. If you hit the Timing button, you can control the activity of each unit. This include when it wakes up, appears, vanishes, or activates by range to enemy presence. Thereby programming a portion of the AI of the computer controlled units.

The Unit Editor assigning ground and airborne units to the battlefield.

The Checkpoint (ChkPnts) button is how you add and subtract waypoints. For each checkpoint, you can use your mouse to select the targets of your flight. Time over target (TOT), speed and altitude are also parameters to be set by the user. These are the most time consuming work in the mission creation, but are important if you want your wingmen to show up for the party.

My first shot at this failed because I used the ESCORT FARP instead of ESCORT PLAYER action to get my computer flown Kiowas to escort my flight. What happened as a result of my error, is that these blokes hung around the FARP like a hawk over a field mouse. The amount of time you invest into Unit setup will be directly proportional to the complexity of your mission. Why? Because you’re manually setting up the AI of the battlefield. This makes me respect what the semi-automatic mission generator is doing for us in a matter of seconds.

A-10 War Hog and Su-25 Frog Foot on the prowl in TANKS_ALOT.

The Players mode is used to define the flights available to human players. The default is that each flight is assigned its own FARP. But that might not be the best use of FARPs. You may decide to have all flights assigned to FARP1 on take off. Then spread the FARPs along your checkpoints to facilitate what their name implies: forward arming and refueling points. Doing so, would enable the flights to rearm and engage without having to crash and die, or spend lots of time returning to the takeoff checkpoint. Checkpoints are assigned as well as air tasking orders (ATO 15051 means SEAD, search and destroy mission). Selection is also made for type of airship desired: Apache, Kiowa or Blackhawk.

Air Tasking Orders window summarizes allied air assignments.

Click to continue . . .

Report file windows gives mission success and failure statistics.

The post flight statistics for you mission is compiled and made available to you via the Air Tasking Order Report. Here we get the numbers on things like kills, success and failure statistics on a per flight basis. A great squadron or tourney score keeping report that has a print button feature. The Mission Flight Profile report is a list of the checkpoints versus the action to be performed and TOT. A good thing to check before you fly, or to print out as a knee board crib sheet while flying the mission.

When it comes to add on products, BattleField Communicator and Missioneer-PLUS get my votes for best simulation add on products of the year, thus far. These are superior products that come to us at half the cost of the average flight sim. This genre rarely gets any respect, but I believe that they are well worth the investment for the serious simmer.

Paul "BLADES" and myself "AV8R" in formation via TCP/IP, this is great MP gameplay.

What a product like Missioneer-PLUS does for LongBow2 is that it makes this King of the Rotors sim even better. I found it surprising that LB2 did not already have a manual mission editor when I first went through all the GUIs. This is the same developer that makes the fully featured editor for USNF97, ATF, FA; so why was it missing in LB2? For that matter, why was it also missing in F15-E? I don’t have the official story on that, but I can only imagine that MP mission editing seems to be a bigger development issue for 3D games than it was for 2D only games. Its probably also the last item on the development schedule task list.

In any case, let’s thank our lucky stars for add on developers like GTT. Soon to be released will be the LongBow2 Commander which is even more advanced than is MissioneerPLUS (an upgrade offering is available to those that already own MissioneerPLUS) So what’s next up GTT, an editor for Jane’s F15-E? We all know F15-E needs an MP mission editor _real_ bad.

The Missioneer-PLUS has a free 30 day trial period before you have to register it. In the mean time, feel free to try my mission and download this starter bonus pack from GTT: Be fore warned, my TANKS_ALOT mission has A10, Su25, Cobra, Hinds, and a pair of F16s flying in the vicinity. The idea is to scramble protect our front line of defense tank forces, search and destroy all ground and air threats. And if you’re really hot, go up the valley of death and take out the enemy’s HQ.

SEMPER FI, and Enjoy! Send the best missions you create to : The Editor.

AV8R’s TANKS_ALOT mission.

Till next time, Check Six.

AV8R