DD_Arthur

Map everything through the game only. Not sure about external software. I've never used it. I suspect problem 2 is due to this. Prop pitch is the called Propellor RPM control in the engine settings column. You can assign it to keyboard strokes or a lever. It's possible you've mapped it to keys that are already in use for something else? If you've got a multiple assignment you'll have two orange boxes showing. You don't need to set anything for manual or auto prop-pitch control. The LW fighters have auto prop-pitch. Although you can set it to manual there is simply no point as it will just make it easier to blow an engine. There is no performance advantage to be gained. All the Russian and allied stuff have a CSU so you'll need to set the Propellor RPM control. There is no auto option for these. Launcher hanging? I don't use it. Go into C:\Program Files (x86)\1C Game Studios\IL-2 Sturmovik Battle of Stalingrad\bin\game\ In here you'll find four items marked with a red star. You want the one marked with a red star with IL2 next to it. It's an application file. Make a shortcut to it and put this on your desktop and you should be able to launch the game from there. Keep the launcher for updating the game only.

As per the title; it'll be rough and ready but I hope it will be a big help to those new to this game or those just re-installing and help them avoid some of those more common 'WtH!' moments that this game can throw up. Please, please feel free to correct me where I'm wrong, add any advice or experience you have or just plain ask questions. Perhaps this can become some rolling thread where we can share tips and advice as we gain experience with this sim. As an example I'm going to assume whoever is reading this has had plenty of experience in IL2 1946 and has just bought or is about to download Battle of Stalingrad Premium Edition. First of all; even though you have purchased Battle of Stalingrad, what you've actually downloaded is the full series and content released by 1CGS so far. Mines now a whopping 19gig's worth - including 6 gigs of dodgy skins! So your game contains all the planes and all the maps already but.....to access all that you have to pay via the website. Do purchase everything through the official website. You can buy it through Steam too but be aware Valve take around 30% of your purchase price. To the game devs that 30% is their profit to plow back into game development. Don't buy it from anywhere else. So you've downloaded the game - I let mine install where it wanted to, in X86 Programme files on my C drive - and should now have an IL2 Sturmovik icon on your desktop. Click on the icon and open the game launcher. Before you press play, click on settings in the top right. In the drop down menu make sure you set your native screen res and make sure you uncheck "Seed when downloaded" and "Prefer web distribution". Now hit PLAY and fill in the registration screen details and click the boxes to make it remember you and accept its T's & C's. Now hit ENTER and you will connect to the master server in a clunky way and it will verify your game. At this point and after an update I would exit your game and reboot your PC. It just helps straighten out 'stuff'. Before you re-launch your game, plug in your devices and fire up TrackIR. Now update your TrackIR software too. Now you can launch your game again. On the right you will be presented with a list of things to do. Obviously we'll need go to Settings first and I recommend then going into Graphics. Do this now so your game fits your screen and nothing is out of place. Now your graphics settings will obviously depend on your screen res and the horsepower of your system. My own system at the moment is Win10 run by an i7 930 processor and a gtx770. That means eight year old technology! These are the settings I run when I want to fly online; It gives me a nice smooth experience with consistant frame rates. As you can see, I'm running at my native screen res with vsync on so 60fps is the highest my fps will go. Fine by me. You can also run the game in windowed mode by unchecking the Full Screen box and switching vsync off. You might experience some 'tearing' when using TrackIR but frame rates will be significantly higher. I'm also running at the 'Balanced' graphics pre-set. I dont use SSAO or HDR as I'm not sure exactly what benefit they bring but your mileage may vary. Sharpen certainly does make a visible difference to the game but I prefer it off at the moment. The values for Shadows quality, Mirros, Grass quality and Antialiasing depend on the power of your system. Running a big-hitter graphics card? Go for it and whack 'em up to max! Landscape detail setting depends on the Vram of your graphics card. Mines got 2gigs so I've set it to 2. If you've got 4 or more set this to four. Get this wrong and it can be a show-stopper. Also, try the 'Ultra' graphics preset for the biggest difference in quality. No, I don't actually know what the differences are in these pre-sets but I either use Balanced or Ultra. Use Ultra for the nicest clouds, the nicest water, the nicest mirrors, etc. The game now has it's own frame rate counter to help with all this. Landscape filter gives choice of blurred or sharp. I Can't see too much difference in either setting. Dynamic resolution factor? Er....if you have a less than the best graphics card then this is supposed to help....I think. All I know is that having it on Full works for me. Gamma correction? Low as it'll go. Now lets just press Accept and go into Cameras. These are my settings; Down the bottom left under External view make sure Cinematic is unchecked otherwise you get the motion blur effect in cockpit view = uurghh!! Make sure you enable headshake! IL2 Sturmovik has a great many viewing and camera options. The best place to read about them and many other handy things can be found here; https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/16752-il-2bos-user-manual-released-first-edition-english/ The community made user manual. It's getting slightly out of date as the game progresses but it is still a very impressive and very handy download. Now we'll just come out of Settings and back to the main menu. Select Quick Mission. Down the bottom right is a setting marked 'REALISM' in grey. Hit it and enter your realism settings. These are important as they govern how the game will function for you. I have my settings as I would have them in IL2 1946, CLoD and DCS. These are your offline settings. Online settings are governed by the server. Enabling Object markers, Padlock, Navigation markers and Allow spectators means I can select external views of my own plane and the AI and I can navigate on the main map by displaying my own planes position relative to it. You'll also enable icons on. By pressing H I can also clear the screen completely of all this 'help'. Also, disabling the GUI saves around forty per cent of your graphics resources too! Turn off all simplifications except Warmed up engine. Turn off all piloting assists except Autopilot. As well as enabling the auto pilot - not that handy me thinks - it also enables the very important Level autopilot function. To navigate in multiplayer, check six, hit level autopilot and bring up the main map to navigate. Now it's time to return to the main menu and jump back into settings. If you can set up IL2 1946 options then all the settings choices are fairly straightforward and I'm not going to comment on them now except for Key Mapping. Now if you've any experience with Rise of Flight this is going to be pretty straightforward. If not; the following is something I posted for Snacko a while back but is still relevant As my small brain shrivels on a daily basis I've tried to retain as many key commands/procedures that I am used to in IL2 1946 across all the sims I own. This means I have a lot of keyboard assignments that you may want to put on your Hotas set up but it works for me. I don't have a Saitek set up but I do have Hotas arrangement. I'm using a Microsoft Forcefeed back 2 stick and FT's old Logitech G940 throttle unit. This has two nice big levers that I use for prop pitch and throttle. I have assigned the throttle on my MSFFB2 as the water radiator control. The water radiator and cowl flaps for air cooled engines are about the only thing BoS allows you to assign to an axis or slider. I also have double assignments where they don't interfere with each other. Also, do you have Battle of Moscow too? Some of the assignments in controls in the game will refer to specific planes like the Bf 110 which you wont have if you don't have BoM. Once again, bearing in mind that I try to retain my familiar IL2 1946 settings, here is a run down of what I use/have assigned in game - different from the stock settings - by how it appears in the Main Menu/Settings/Key Mappings/Controls section of the game. From left to right we have Service, Camera Controls, Pilot Head Controls, Main Controls, etc. tabs so I'll with start with SERVICE About the only assignment I've changed in here from the stock settings is assign the Record button to my stick CAMERA CONTROLS Camera Zoom is on my mousewheel. Rotate Camera Up/Down = Mouse Y Rotate Camera Left/Right = Mouse X Camera Player Cockpit F1 External Free Cam/Player = F2 Other cams are also assigned to the F keys. PILOT HEAD CONTROL Pilot Head Zoom = Mousewheel Pilot Head Zoom In = Joystick POV hat up Pilot Head Zoom Out = Joystick POV hat down MAIN CONTROLS AI Autopilot For Level Flight = Q Adjustable Stabilizer Axis = a couple of buttons on my throttle unit - same controls used for FW190 adjustible stabiliser further down the list Trim controls in BoS are important but the game does not allow them to be assigned to any sliders or rotarys so I use the same configuration as in IL2 1946 - the number pad on my key board! Flaps and gear assignments; like my IL2 1946 install. Assigning something to Tail Wheel Lock is essential! Wheel Brakes for Russian aircraft work on both wheels simultaneously so are assigned to a hat switch on my throttle. Wheel brakes for German aircraft are toe brakes and have separate assignment for left and right so I have them on bottons on my throttle as I don't have pedals Gunsight filter; applicable to P40, Spitfire and all 109's, 110's and 190's. Altimeter: Reference Pressure Toggle on keyboard - important assignment! ENGINE CONTROLS Ignore the Auto Mixture and Supercharger control. Thats the confusing one you mention in your post. You don't need it! You don't need Auto RPM Limiter either. Throttle and Pitch are assigned to the two nice big levers on my throttle and work for all planes with CSU's - mainly Soviet. German planes with DB engines like the BF109 and the 110 are designed to run in auto prop pitch and this is modelled in BoS very well. You can assign manual controls but I don't use them as it's just a quick way to blow your engine. There is no performance advantage. Same goes for the FW190. Mixture and Supercharger Mode Switches are vital for Soviet planes as they had manual mixture and supercharger stage switch controls so I've assigned them to my keyboard as per IL2 1946. Switch Engine Boost ON/Off - only applicable to the LA-5 Switch Propellor Pitch Control Mode Manual/Auto and Propellors High Pitch/Low Pitch = as above, to work LW 'planes in manual prop. pitch control - see above' I don't use them. Prop Feathering On/Off = I have a key assigned but I'm not sure which planes have this function. PE-2 and HE-111 perhaps? Switch Water Radiators Control Mode: Manual/Auto? Another assignment for LW fighters that is not needed. Water Radiators Shutters = assigned to the throttle on my MSFFB stick Oil Radiators Shutters? Thats the oil cooler in plain english - you'll need key assignments for it Engines Inlet and Outlet Cowl Shutters? for Soviet planes with radialengines only. These are a double assignment to my MSFFB throttle. Switch Engine Controls = key pad. No need to assign all those controls for engine 1, engine 2 at the moment in my opinion. I simply don't have enough levers! WEAPONS CONTROLS This is pretty straight forward and I re-use all my usual IL2 1946 assignments. There are some differences. Drop Bombs Mode Toggle = assigned to button on my stick and selects whether you want to drop bombs individually or in salvo Launch Rockets Mode Toggle = same function as above. Drop Bombs Delay Toggle = no idea what this does! Ignore it. Reload All Guns = needed, key on stick assigned to it Don't use much else except Gunners Fire At Will and Gunners Far Engage Distance to wake my AI gunners up and make them fire at enemies. ORDERS AND GESTURES A true hang over from RoF. You can assign stuff if you like firing flares, etc. Useful for the single player are; Attack Nearest Air Target Attack nearest ground Target Do Like Me Cover Me. If you're lucky your AI wingmen might just feel like obeying these commands or.....they might just f#'k off into the distance for no apparent reason. Phew! Must be time for me to lie down now. Did I mention dodgy skins? Uh oh! Forgot some useful links; https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/3625-air-combat-tutorials-tir-profile-g940-controls-18-november-2/ https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/25993-aircraft-flight-and-technical-specifications-and-operational/ https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/30773-bom-cockpits-and-operation-quick-guide/ https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/29700-basic-guide-cem-key-mapping-new-starters/

Hmmm...dunno whats going on there BluBear. One thing that I've found very useful is after each update of the game, before launching the game i re-boot my PC so that everything is....just so, if you see what i mean? Later tonight I'll sit down and do some sort of new user's guide.

I would think our immediate needs would be for those interested to just get together on what would usually be a non-flying night. A Monday, Wednesday, Friday, etc. and have a little fly around. The flying and engine management bit is fairly straightforward but if you want to get together the first thing to learn is taxiing to takeoff! Oh yeah, formation flying in BoX is fantastic! Perhaps the easiest way would be to gather on an empty server. There is one - called New Wings - that runs the Moscow map and has the complete planeset from BoS and BoM available. It's based in north america and has decent ping, plenty of ground targets too and is usually empty. Might be an easier entry than straight into the hurley-burley of some of the more popular dogfight servers.

They are in your game already Snacko and they're both unpronounceable.

I'm not sure if 'we' are suggesting anything. I don't think things have got that far. I am suggesting that people who have not got any of the BoX series should start with Battle of Stalingrad premium edition. https://il2sturmovik.com/store/battle-of-stalingrad/ All the BoX series have the same minimum requirements; Quad core processor running at least 3Mhz 3Ghz, gpu nvidia 660/1050 or equivalent. Operating system must be Win7 64bit or above. Having Battle of Stalingrad will give the basic plane set to be competitive in multiplayer. How it works; in single player you will have access to the Stalingrad map and two other community made maps and the ten aircraft that come with Battle of Stalingrad. You will also be able to fly against the other aircraft. In multiplayer you will be able to fly on all the maps. So if you choose to join a dogfight server in multiplayer that is running the Battle of Kuban map you will be able to fly on this map. However, you will only be able to fly the aircraft that you have in the Battle of Stalingrad game. If any of the Dogz don't meet these minimum specs yet? Then in my opinion we wait. There is still plenty of time. This thread is about an exploration of the future. In no way should any member of the Dogz feel worried about their ability to continue flying with the group. This must not become a excersize in loosing members! Videos you have seen suggest a significant imbalance in flight models? Welcome to the world of Luftwhining The game itself is constantly updated with free patches. A large and significant one is coming just before christmas. Game updates - a history of; https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/12826-game-updates/?p=503128

The m key displays some sort of mini map. I've no real idea what the mini map does though. Press o to bring up zoomable map.

Wassiscardthen?

Omg!!! I can sense an arse-kicking in store for us in the near future!.

Good luck Dave. I've got a link to the manual here; https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/16752-il-2bos-user-manual-released-first-edition-english/ Also, when you come to set up your controls you might want to read this; http://dangerdogz.com/forums/topic/12440-bos-for-8-bucks/?do=findComment&comment=127297

I think you've hit the nail on the head here Mick. The object of the excersize is to explore future options. It's definitely not going to be at the risk of loosing current members. We still have plenty of time. I agree with FT very much too. The answer to low numbers are new members. I think BoX is where you'll find 'em.

Can't really comment on the sounds as I usually have 'em turned down. Technicolor shades are my choice. I use something called Reshade to apply a post-processing effect called SweetFX. I also use this in DCS and CLoD.

All the 109's have their rear vision restricted by an armoured headrest. However, there is an option to have it removed. In the G2 and G4 you can also select an armoured glass headrest. In multiplayer this can be made a server side option. Given the choice most people will fly with the armour removed so you have some sort of rear view......and then moan when they get P.K'd.

Sale ends November 29th.

Kuban early access is discounted at the moment but I thought $69.99 might seem a bit of a fright! On the other hand, with Kuban you get the Spitfire, FW190A5 and very soon the P39 and Douglas Boston. Toughie.........

Good point, well made. I can however see a Mosquito in BoX within two years. In the meantime we'll just have to put up with the P38! By the middle of January the BoX series will comprise thirty-four flyable planes, five maps with multiple seasons and a coop mode very similar to IL2 1946. In the spring they plan on introducing a re-designed GUI which will give multiplayer mode a Hyperlobby type interface for enhanced hosting followed by the Spitfire mk. IX, the Bf109 G-14 and sometime in the summer the FW190 A8. They are just going to keep going now.......... In the same timescale that it has taken the BoX series to get this far - around four years - Team Fusion will have (hopefully) released a total of three patches for CLoD. In that same timescale DCS WW2 has released two planes and one map. This isn't a swipe at DCS or CLoD. There is simply no substitute for a well organised, driven team of full-timers. Neither DCS or CLoD can do that. However, this comes at a price. The cost of the software? The BoX wages bill is around $80k per month and also as a cost in hardware. Everyone must fly but for BoX everyone must have a quad core. Anyone remember the original cost of IL2 Forgotten Battles yet?

If you haven't got any of the BoX series then now is the chance to scoop something up in the sale. I'd recommend getting Battle of Stalingrad premium edition. At £30 or 33euro it's a bargain. You get three maps and the most important planes in the multiplayer enviroment. Also, in multiplayer you have access to the other BoX series maps of Moscow and the Kuban. You'll also be able to enjoy another whacking 'gert update to the game around christmas. https://il2sturmovik.com/store/battle-of-stalingrad/ Multiplayer now attracting between two to three hundred players during euro peak times throughout the week. Single player dust up on the Stalingrad map with settings on ultra on my ancient i930/gtx770 system;

Absolutely spot on! The demand is still there and is growing again. Remember; we are the laid-back chaps of l 'equipe Blairgowrie and our motto is debet fugere omnis! There are plenty of organised squads in the world of combat flight sims and unfortunately most of 'em seem to wear jack boots. Well we're the unorganised guys and we wear our wives underwear! Bring it on! So the good news; There is still plenty of time to take a considered and unanimous approach amongst the Dogz and still plenty of time to enjoy lots more IL2 1946. When the time comes to retire '46 then it would seem to me the most obvious successor, the one most like '46 is the BoX series......and by a margin too. Tomorrow we'll explore the how and the why and the pros and the cons. In the meantime, can you remember how much you paid for your original copy of Forgotten Battles or Pacific Fighters?

Hang on a minute. Some good ideas here but you don't want to go off half-cocked. No point in going on an e-mail campaign when we haven't got anything to offer. I'll put my (small) thoughts down later tonight when I've eaten the enormous curry my missus is preparing and I've bathed my adonis-like body! All is not lost ! Quite the contrary in fact.

Sorry FT, should have replied to this earlier. Having to re-assign keys/axis again? I suspect this has something to do with updating but not actually using the game for a while. There used to be an issue with Win10 and the recognition of devices in the game but that got fixed...last year I think. I've got a folder on my desktop called 'All things BoS' and within it I place copies of the stuff which might be effected by game updates. My game is installed thus; C:\Program Files (x86)\1C Game Studios\IL-2 Sturmovik Battle of Stalingrad Once you've sorted out all your control assignments open the game folder and you'll find the 'data' folder. Go into it and look for the 'input' folder. Found it? All your control assignments are kept in there. Just make a copy of the whole folder and put it somewhere safe. Oh yeah, you can do the same with skins and once you start flying in SP you'll find a couple of guys shouting in either Jeeeeerman or Russ. Since i find this incredibly annoying I've gone into the 'audio' folder and removed the two files marked Ger and Rus. No more shouting...... FFB not working? Er....dunno. Mine does. Do you have a floppy stick or merely the default spring effect? Might just be a case of closing the game and unplugging the stick's usb. Vsync? I'll try and write something up about the graphic options but there are two ways to go; Run the game in full-screen mode with vsync on and frames locked at target 60 OR run game in windowed mode, vsync off and frame rate unlocked. It seems to be a matter of personnal choice/power of your gaming system. I've gone with full screen. Coloured stuff and indicators all over the screen? Yeah, I know - uurghhh.....getting rid of 'em is about options. Check this post out; http://dangerdogz.com/forums/topic/11319-new-game-launcher-new-set-up/?do=findComment&comment=131519 I get rid of it all by pressing 'H' Doing away with all the on screen stuff also saves about 40% of your graphics processing power too! It's something on the "to do" list for the devs. 10 minutes after exiting and stuff is still happening? Hmmm...think that might be something to do with not actually running the game in a while too but not sure. i don't launch my game from the launcher Go into C:\Program Files (x86)\1C Game Studios\IL-2 Sturmovik Battle of Stalingrad\bin\game and find the IL2 application folder - mines 11,558kb worth - and create a shortcut to it. Put shortcut on your desktop and launch game from there. Should help.....er....possibly Hope this all helps FT

Good point FT - have edited my post

If the map for Boddenplatte works out they way they seem to be indicating then this time next year we should be able to bomb and strafe FT's house.

When I saw the server up I tried 'arse' but it wouldn't take it! elbow - lol

Big m8

Late at night - when Europe is sleeping - I have seen a DangerDogz server on the BoS multiplayer list @ Jack and the gang