Announcement - new A-10C DLC training campaign

Thanks guys for the kind words! Together with Doughboy we are really doing our best to do all the research that is necessary both on A-10C systems as modelled in the sim, but also how they work IRL. We also look deep into the RL ATC procedures, and finally we use the RL docs on A-10 wherever they are compatible with what we have in DCS (and I have to say they are in most of the aspects). All in all it is a lot of work that goes into this.

Now as for the progress, we have M1 almost ready (with only smalls updates we need to introduce), M2 and M4 built and ready for audio recording, M3 script being written. When ready we will publish the whole roadmap regarding the mission content we are planning to include.

So stay tuned and thanks for your feedback! And many thanks to Bunyap for his preview!

Nice one Dragon / DB.

I've just got back in the pit and am trying to re-acquaint myself firstly with my stick and throttle :) and trying to remember everything you guys taught me with the 319th, it's all coming back to me albeit slowly. I am hoping to have a fully juiced up rig in the new year but for now I'm using my laptop which is ok for world 1.5 but not for world 2 / NTTR.

Looking forward to your next release and hopefully getting back in the air with yourself and DB.

Have a great xmas mate, see you in the new year, Ho Ho Ho :)

Excellent, cant wait for another Campaign of yours:thumbup:

Thanks Shane, looking forward to flying together again!

And thanks rajdary, this one will take a lot of time to do properly, but we are very committed to have it out next year (rather by the end of 2017)

Is this the campaign that Bunyap is previewing?

Yes it is.

I like the video. Up the Irons! :punk:

I'm excited for this one. Bunyaps preview was a good tease.

Me too, gonna be good.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

So, i managed to look all videos from Bunyap - and i must say, can't wait to play - hurry up baltic_dragon :smilewink:

Nice concept & preview! Keep it up :)

Thanks gentlemen. We are feeling the pressure - making a comprehensive, realistic and fun-to-play training campaign is not an easy task, especially that big part of the audience here are seasoned Hog drivers. But still we hope that each one of you will find something new in it.

^ Lots and lots of pressure!!! But thank you guys for your support, interest, and feedback!

His looks like it's shaping up to be a awesome campaign, can't wait!

Just wondering how it is coming along.. And wouldn't it make a little more sense sense it is TRAINING that you have complete newbies test it out instead of someone who is already flying the A10?

Also it is interactive so one can learn by watching and by doing both or is it like many of the so called training and just a video to watch and try to remember what does what then close it and try to go remember what you just watched.

Also Hoping you do not try to add to much info to fast and cram to much into it... Take it slow and make more is much better for us newbies then trying to completely learn all about a complete system at once... Baby Steps lead to great leaps.

also... why cant you make it comparable back with version 1.2 as I have read over and over they are still having many problems with 1.5 and also 2. and still have not worked things out as well as 1.2 was working.

Just wondering as a new user also why is it that most people who do not need the basic training that new players need are the ones to do the testing... of course they are going to find things much easier because they already know and not trying to learn something new?

And wouldn't it make a little more sense sense it is TRAINING that you have complete newbies test it out instead of someone who is already flying the A10?

Speaking as a player who tested quite a few of Baltic Dragon's missions: I liked his missions a lot and provided some feedback, so we got in touch and things took off from there.

I believe Baltic Dragon would be more than happy to receive feedback from new players. Just shoot him a PM and see if you can go ahead and test these missions. :smartass:

However, I think it makes sense to have experienced players among the testers to make sure the missions are spot-on. It's incredibly easy to forget something or make a small mistake. New players might not spot that, while more experienced ones probably will.

And every player did start as a newcomer, so each and every one of us has some ideas about how to learn and maybe also how to teach these things. I don't believe a mission would be unfriendly to a newcomer just because there were no newcomers among the tester team. But having someone really new to the aircraft as tester will definitely help get another perspective, which means I'm coming back to my previous point: It sounds like you're volunteering, right? :thumbup:

Also it is interactive so one can learn by watching and by doing both [...]

What I've seen so far (mission one), you as the player need to push every single switch, knob and button. And they're not highlighted, but their positions will be called out by the instructor pilot.

From my perspective, it's exactly the type of training I would have loved to have when I started with the A-10C. The original, interactive training missions are awesome, but this new stuff just takes everything to a whole new level.

Plus, it puts a story around the training, so it's actually very immersive.

Also Hoping you do not try to add to much info to fast and cram to much into it... Take it slow and make more is much better for us newbies then trying to completely learn all about a complete system at once... Baby Steps lead to great leaps.

I believe that's exactly the plan. :thumbup:

why cant you make it comparable back with version 1.2 as I have read over and over they are still having many problems with 1.5 and also 2. and still have not worked things out as well as 1.2 was working.

1.2 has not been supported by updates ever since 1.5 was declared stable.

This campaign takes place in the Nevada map, which is not available for 1.2.

1.2 featured an old graphics engine; the engine in 1.5 is massively better suited for modern graphics cards.

To put it short, 1.2 is completely old and outdated, and I haven't seen any new missions for 1.2 in a long time. 1.5 and 2.0 are the way to go (which will eventually be merged into a version called 2.5).

Well, just to make ne point clear. Just because a mission / campaign is labelled 'Training', it does not automatically mean that it is for newbies (although this one is). There is a fscking lot of advanced stuff to learn which would immediately overburden a nebwie

Just wondering how it is coming along.. And wouldn't it make a little more sense sense it is TRAINING that you have complete newbies test it out instead of someone who is already flying the A10?

 

Also it is interactive so one can learn by watching and by doing both or is it like many of the so called training and just a video to watch and try to remember what does what then close it and try to go remember what you just watched.

Also Hoping you do not try to add to much info to fast and cram to much into it... Take it slow and make more is much better for us newbies then trying to completely learn all about a complete system at once... Baby Steps lead to great leaps.

 

also... why cant you make it comparable back with version 1.2 as I have read over and over they are still having many problems with 1.5 and also 2. and still have not worked things out as well as 1.2 was working.

 

Just wondering as a new user also why is it that most people who do not need the basic training that new players need are the ones to do the testing... of course they are going to find things much easier because they already know and not trying to learn something new?

Hey,

I don't want to repeat many of the things Yurgon said, as these were (as usual) spot on. Just to add some stuff:

A) How it is coming along. Slowly, but the beginnings are always most difficult. We want to sort out lots of stuff that we can then reproduce in future missions without having to return to previous ones (things like real life ATC operations, work of some systems, procedures on the ground + getting around some AI difficulties). So only one mission is ready, but scripts for another 2 are practically done and will be recorded and plugged in as soon as we have the outstanding stuff for M1 sorted out.

B) Newbies testing the campaign. Yes and no. This campaign aims to be very comprehensive and cover ALL of systems useful during single player missions / campaigns. To give you an example - even after the first mission, tested by several very experienced Hawg drivers, EACH of them found something new he did not know. But many also pointed out some stuff we've missed or we should include. That is the way to ensure that the campaign is really comprehensive.

Now we also need newbies (but mind you, not complete ones - we advise before jumping into the pit for this one to finish all the stock training missions AND read the manual, although we do point out parts of it necessary for each of the missions) - to tell us if everything is explained in a clear manner, where repetition option should be included etc. So we will want both experienced and inexperienced players testing it.

C) Too much info in each mission. There will be quite a lot, as we want to make it feel realistic. In reality nobody would go up for 15 minutes just to practice one aspect of say, navigation. On top of that it will have an advanced storyline, so there will be dialogues about lots of different stuff (current political situation, background of the pilots, history of the A10, description of different places in Nevada, funny stories etc). So expect long missions, just as you would in real life. But we will make it possible to replay them, so once you finish a mission we will want to add it to the training mission folder (we will see if that is technically possible).

But usually you won't be forced to do anything with any time limits, so it will be quite relaxed.

Hope that answer your questions. And if you want to join the testing team, please PM me!

Well, just to make ne point clear. Just because a mission / campaign is labelled 'Training', it does not automatically mean that it is for newbies (although this one is). There is a fscking lot of advanced stuff to learn which would immediately overburden a nebwie

This one is mainly for newbies, but we're sure that everyone will find something for himself in it. We have seen so many repeating questions about different systems that we thought it would be good to include them in one, comprehensive set of training missions.

[...] EACH of them found something new he did not know.

I can definitely attest to that! :thumbup:

I'm sure the depth of these missions will provide new information and knowledge for most of us virtual pilots. I've already incorporated some of the new stuff I learned into my startup procedure and I'm curious to find out what the next missions will teach me. :)

I've already incorporated some of the new stuff I learned into my startup procedure and I'm curious to find out what the next missions will teach me. :)

Can't wait to get these missions :)

Yea, I'm looking forward to this campaign too.

I consider myself "seasoned" on the A10C, but it's been a while since I don't fly it seriusly and now I expend most of my time in other modules.

I'm sure I've forgoten a lot of things about, let call it, "the proper way to do things on the hog".

I think If the campaign follows a similar rythm as the M2K one, it will be on the proper balance of topics discused vs flight time expended. Also the hog being slower allows for more content included on each misión.

Hi Baltic Dragon! I would like to ask You about news for this DLC. I can't wait for It ! ;)

Hi! It is coming together, albeit slowly, taking into account the sheer volume of research and testing that is needed for just writing the scripts. We were also checking some procedures with real life pilots to get things right from the beginning. Realistically the development will probably take at least 9 months and we don't want to rush it. So stay tuned, we will be posting news, some videos etc.

Hello baltic_dragon

I am really looking forward for your campaign. I started playing DCS after a longer break and I started with reading the manual as well as with und he training missions.

However I prefer learning by doing with a campaign and your campaign is exactly what I was looking for. A campaign where I also learn and where I improve my skills.

Take your time and I will definitely buy it. I really can't wait :thumbup:

Cheers Weasel

Hi there, baltic_dragon! I'm in much the same boat as the poster above me. I'm very much the learn-by-doing sort, and a campaign like yours is sure to be an immense asset to the community. For such a forgiving aircraft, the A-10 is remarkably complex. Looking forward to the release, and I'll be watching for it closely!