By Kurt 'Froglips' Giesselman, MP Falcon 4.0 IP

Missions must be built 'tunable' so they can be tweaked to different levels of difficulty.

The Mig-21 BARCAPs are simple. Flights depart every thirty minutes and remain on station for thirty minutes. This gives three hours of coverage, more than enough for this mission. The first BARCAP departs at 0330, the last one lands after 0630.

All three of the DPRK Pre-plan CAS missions are part of the mission tweak options. We will try the four MiG-25s, then step down to four Hinds or two Hokums if necessary. Any of these flights will be enough to wipe out the AMB and the Blackhawks unless shot down by our escort or RESCAP. The DPRK TARCAP can be added to really toughen up the mission for the real hot shot pilotsJ

The Su-27 intercept is sort of a going away present for the SEAD Escort. Wasteful use of weapons will leave the escort 'Winchester' when the intercept arrives.

The tweak flights for the Joint Forces are the HAVCAP for the C3I package, both Sweeps and the RESCAP for the Air Mobile package.

On the good guys side, you might notice there are only four flyable aircraft for the scramble mission and four for the rescue escort. You will notice when we complete building the mission that these two flights are separated by enough time so that the same four pilots can fly both missions. Most of my missions are designed with a limited number of flyable planes.

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If I had set up the Sweeps or the On-call CAS missions as F-16 flights it would have provided more variety but generated too many variables to create a mission which has to be flown correctly to win. I enjoy building missions that challenge pilots to develop basic strategies and fly technically correct (on TOS, follow RoE, etc.). My missions can be 'beaten' everytime by an average pilot that flies using proper procedures and thinks before he or she gets in the aircraft.

We are ready to start building. Prepare your favorite beverage, sign non-interruption agreements with your spouse and kids, lock your door, muzzle the dog. Prepare for a "session."

Since everyone has read Sleepdoc's mission builder tutorial, I will just list the steps we will follow.

Pay close attention to the mission clock and the status of the editing buttons down the right side. Every action you start in the editor should be proceeded by a long hard stare at the mission clock and a confirmation that you have selected the correct editor button for the action you plan to take. Many mission building errors can be easily traced to not following these simple rules.

1. Place the Air Mobile Battalion at Unho-ri radar station. With 0350 showing on the mission clock, select and set their target as the Puho-ri docks. The mission editor will set their target to capture the Puho-ri Naval Base. 2. Place the T-55 Armor Battalion at Ongjin Airbase. With 0440 showing on the mission clock, select and set their target as the Puho-ri docks. The mission editor will set their target to defend the Puho-ri Naval Base.

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