Adding Aircraft to DGC Folder / Campaigns

[Dataman]

To All,

This is my first post so please forgive me if this question may have already been asked (and answered).

I have I-L2 1946 version 4.09 installed on my home laptop.

I have been flying the "built-in" dynamic campaigns the game has to offer but have come across a situation I could use some assistance with.

For the US Marine campaign, I have added a few newer Corsairs to different portions / sections of the campaign by editing the "planesUM1.dat" file.

All I have had to do is to copy the name of the plane I would like from the 'Skins' section and add it where needed to the .dat file using Notepad.

At least for me, this has made some campaigns more enjoyable.

However .......

I have tried adding the Tempest to the "planesGB1.dat" file but the aircraft is not recognized when I start the campaign as an available option though the drop-down selection.

Does anyone know what I might be doing wrong?

Thank you in advance for any guidance that can be offered.

Sincerely,

Data

[Treetop64]

Simply adding user playable aircraft to a planesxxx.dat file isn't enough. There are lines of code in the DGen.exe itself that mirror those in the planesXXX.dat files. It's like a planesxxx.dat file within the executable. They have to match with the .dat file or else the plane being added in the .dat file will not be accepted in campaigns.

There are two solutions, however.

You can download and use Lowengrin's DCG (http://members.shaw.ca/lowengrin/). It has seen active development for more than ten years and is still being developed even today. There are a lot of options and takes a bit of time to learn, but it is highly configurable and flexible. Also, the campaigns are truly dynamic, not just random missions generated for a fixed campaign like in the default DGen. A very powerful tool, user-friendly, and very stable. Very highly recommended!

The other option is Asura's DGen (http://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,20104.0.html). It is a user modified version of DGen and fundamentally operates the same way, except that now the user has access to many files that were once exclusively compiled in the executable. Any user-flyable aircraft can be flown in any campaign.

The last version I used was v2.0.1.0. Personally, I can't quite recommend this work becasue there have been a host of other changes made that don't make sense and that I don't necessarily agree with. One of which is the removal of randomly generated flights for European and Russian campaigns that were not part of the script called for in the ops.dat file. That killed a lot of the immersion. The DGen Mod can also be very buggy at times. Conflicts with campaigns resulting in aircraft exploding when they spawn, spawning in incorrect locations, being improperly labelled (i.e. parked US aircraft with Soviet markings in a Solomon Islands campaign), or flying at too low an altitude and crashing, are common. Attention is paid to adding lots of technical bells and whistles but the stability and compatibility of the program is questionable at best, unless campaigns are kept very simple, which IMO defeats the point.

[Dataman]

Thank you Treetop! :)

I may try Lowengrin's DCG but will wait for a new computer as my current laptop is rather old and really does not handle IL-2 1946 as nicely as I would like.

I do want to ask, and pardon my persistence, but do you believe there is a way then that I can manually adjust the DCG Campaign executable to mimic what I place in the planesxxx.dat file?

For the GB campaign, I was able to add a field modified Hurricane and it took, but similarly to adding a Tempest, I tried adding a couple of different Spitfires but to no avail.

If adding ANY plane would not take, I would of course give up and try Lowengrin's DCG for sure, but as some planes take and some do not, I am hopeful for a potential fix for the current situation before abandoning all hope.

Thank you once again for your advice.

[taly001]

I agree with what Treetop64 said above, but to answer your question....

is a way then that I can manually adjust the DCG Campaign executable to mimic what I place in the planesxxx.dat file?
Theres no need too as DCG already does it by its own files!
A DCG campaign will still need some .txt editing but its easier than DGen_mod and less buggy.

BTW Your il2 4.09 is way too old, I suggest you get DCG and the il2 update it needs.

Personally I still use DGen.exe version 4.0.8.6 alot,This was the last "official" DGen and lets some of the newer planes work. DGen lets you define frontline movements by date which I like for some of my campaign designs.