Viso's Battle of France
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Viso's Battle of France Campaign for CFS3
Installation Instructions

Designed by Craig "Viso" Murray

Send an email to Craig

Last Updated 05-May-2006

 

Introduction

Installation

Campaign Components

Campaign Features, Tips, and Glitches

Modifying the Campaign

Acknowledgements


Introduction

The Battle of France (BoF) campaign is actually a package of campaigns designed for Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator 3 (CFS3). These campaigns allows players to fight the tactical air war of the Battle of France between May 1940 and October 1940. I hope you enjoy it as an opportunity to fly some early-WWII aircraft against their historical opponents. Please visit my Battle of France Campaign Website to find updates for the campaign. If you have suggestions for future BoF campaigns, please contact me by e-mail.

Conditions of Use
 These files are distributed as freeware. I assume no responsibillity for any damages arising from their use. You may modify and/or redistribute these files as you wish, provided that you distribute them with a copy of the original Installation Notes file. You may not collect any fees for modifying or redistributing these files without my express written permission.
 
Mark I vs Mark II vs...
 Depending on how many aircraft you wish to download, you may choose to install a particular "Mark". As of May 10, 2006, the only campaign available was Mark I. However, Mark II will be released as soon as the Ju-87B and Hs-123 are available - probably June 2006. As more and more aircraft become available, new versions of the campaign will be released. However, all Marks are incremental, so if you like Mark I and want to upgrade to Mark II then you only need to download the extra components.

However, do not install Mark II if you only plan to download the components for Mark I. Otherwise, you will receive an error message when CFS3 starts up. However, if you have downloaded all of the components for, say, Mark II, you can run either Mark I or Mark II. Installation
Installing the campaign is simple. You do not require a separate installation of CFS3; it will run within an existing installation. However, the campaign has not been tested with Firepower or any other add-ons. Installation steps are as follows:

Step 1: Decide which Mark(s) you wish to install. The higher the mark, the more aircraft you'll need to download.

Step 2: Refer to the Campaign Components section below and download each of the components listed for that Mark. Where aircraft require multiple files, such as shared files and such, I've tried to include those links as well. ZIP file names are noted just in case the links don't work and you're forced to look elsewhere.

Step 3: EXCEPT FOR THE BOF CAMPAIGN FILES, install all downloaded components to CFS3. Please refer to the installation instructions for each component to ensure that you've installed it correctly.

Step 4: Unzip the bof_package.zip file. This file contains several other files which must be copied to certain locations.

  • If you're using the Fairey Battle v2 or earlier (the only one available in May 2006), you'll need to create an AI version of this aircraft. To do this, unzip the sz_fbattle_21_campaign.zip in your \aircraft\sitz_faireybattle_ii folder. Delete any BDP files in this folder. Please refer to the enclosed RTF for additional instructions.

  • If you're using the MS-406 v2 or earlier (the only one available in May 2006), you'll need to create an AI version of this aircraft. To do this, unzip the sz_ms406_21_campaign.zip in your \aircraft\sitz_faireybattle_ii folder. Delete any BDP files in this folder. Please refer to the enclosed RTF for additional instructions.

  • In your \aircraft\fs_bf109e_02v2 folder, delete all BDP files. Next, copy the included fs_bf109e_02v2.xdp file to this folder. This will delete all of the loadouts for this aircraft; Bf-109s didn't typically carry bombs during the Battle of France. 'Jabos' or fighter-bombers weren't common until later in 1940.

  • In your \aircraft\fs_do17z2_fifh folder, delete all BDP files. Next, copy the included fs_do17z2_fifh.xdp file to this folder. This will make the Do-17 into a campaign-flyable aircraft.

  • Place the Battle of France Mk I.xml file in your \campaigns subfolder. This is the same directory that should already have the file fortress europa.xml in it.

  • Start CFS3 and then start the campaign as you would any other campaign. If you run into problems, please send me an e-mail.

Campaign Components
Depending on how many aircraft you're willing to download, there is a BoF Campaign to suit your tastes. For example, BoF Mk I requires only six aircraft. However, if you are a fan of this era, you might prefer BoF Mk II, which includes more aircraft. For any particular version of BoF , just download all of the files listed in that column. Some files are available at two different locations, thus you will find separate links for Netwings and Sim-Outhouse, for example. I've noted the file names just in case you aren't sure whether you already have a particular file.

  BoF Mk I BoF Mk II BoF Mk III BoF Mk IV BoF Mk V
Description Lean Version:
Requires the fewest downloads.		 Standard Version:
Adds more German aircraft.		 Future Version Future Version Future Version
Original Release Date Apr 26, 2006 June 2006? TBD TBD TBD
Date Last Revised May 3, 2006        

Shared Files BoF Mk I BoF Mk II BoF Mk III BoF Mk IV BoF Mk V
Campaign File BoF Package Coming Soon      
1% Gun/Weapons Pack
(Look in CFS3 1% Downloads - 1% Guns/Weapons)		 AvHistory AvHistory      
CFS3 Nationality Expansion Kit ~ Redux. Warning! File size is 27.6MB Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
French Gauges Pack
Fr_Gauges_v1.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
French Weapons Pack
Fr_Weapons_v1.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      

French Aircraft BoF Mk I BoF Mk II BoF Mk III BoF Mk IV BoF Mk V
Bloch MB-152          
Bloch MB-174          
Breguet Br-693          
Curtiss H-75A          
Dewoitine D-520          
Morane-Saulnier MS-406
sz_ms406c1_20.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
Morane-Saulnier MS-406
(Flight Model Update)
sz_ms406c1_21.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
Potez Po-631          
Potez Po-637          
Potez Po-63.11
sz_po6311_10.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      

German Aircraft BoF Mk I BoF Mk II BoF Mk III BoF Mk IV BoF Mk V
Dornier Do-17Z
fs_do17z2_fifh.zip		 Sim-Outhouse        
Dornier Do-17Z
(Shared Files)
fs_do17z2_shared_version2.zip		 Sim-Outhouse        
Henschel Hs-123   Coming Soon      
Junkers Ju-87B-1   Coming Soon      
Messerschmitt Bf-109E-1
(Look in CFS3 1% Downloads - 1% WW2 Fighters - Germany for 3gr_bf109e_1.zip)		   AvHistory      
Messerschmitt Bf-109E-3
fs_bf109e_02v2-15.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
Messerschmitt Bf-109E-3
(Shared Files)
fs_bf109e_shared_version2.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
Messerschmitt Bf-110C-3
fs_bf110c3_a2ab.zip		   Foute Man
Netwings		      
Messerschmitt Bf-110C-3
(Shared Files)
fs_bf110c_shared.zip		   Foute Man
Netwings		      

British Aircraft BoF Mk I BoF Mk II BoF Mk III BoF Mk IV BoF Mk V
Fairey Battle Mk II
sz_fbattle_ii_20.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
Fairey Battle Mk II
(Flight Model Update)
sz_fbattle_ii_21.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      
Hawker Hurricane Mk 1a
fs_hurr_mk1_073_tpd_v2-5.zip		 Foute-Man
Sim-Outhouse		 Foute-Man
Sim-Outhouse		      
Hawker Hurricane Mk 1a
(Shared Files)
fs_rafbobfighter_shared_version2.zip		 Foute-Man
Sim-Outhouse		 Foute-Man
Sim-Outhouse		      

Belgian & Dutch Aircraft BoF Mk I BoF Mk II BoF Mk III BoF Mk IV BoF Mk V
Belgian Fairey Battle Mk II          
Belgian Fiat Cr.42          
Dutch Fokker D-XXI          

Optional Aircraft
These aircraft are not required, but adding one or more of them will spice up your escort and intercept missions.		 BoF Mk I BoF Mk II BoF Mk III BoF Mk IV BoF Mk V
Bristol Blenheim IV
Blenheim_XD-E.zip
(See readme files for setup instructions)		 Sim-Outhouse Sim-Outhouse      
Bristol Blenheim IV
(Original Files)
cfs3bleniv.zip		 isoliti4gatti isoliti4gatti      
Bristol Blenheim IV
(Italian Gauges)
itagauges.zip		 isoliti4gatti isoliti4gatti      
Dornier Do-17Z
fs_do17z2_fifh.zip		   Sim-Outhouse      
Dornier Do-17Z
(Shared Files)
fs_do17z2_shared_version2.zip		   Sim-Outhouse      
Heinkel He-111P
fs_he111h2_04_stabkg53.zip		 Sim-Outhouse Sim-Outhouse      
Heinkel He-111P
(FS Shared Files)
fs_he111_shared.zip		 Sim-Outhouse Sim-Outhouse      
Heinkel He-111P
(GC Shared Files)
gc_he111h_share.zip
(Looks in the He111 section of CFS3 Ground Crew Addons)		 Netwings Netwings      
Junkers Ju-88A
fs_ju88a_4daa_mk1-1_full.zip		 Sim-Outhouse Sim-Outhouse      
Liore et Olivier LeO 451
sitz_leo451_10.zip		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		 Netwings
Sim-Outhouse		      

Campaign Features, Tips, and Glitches
BoF is a reformulation of the stock CFS3 campaign, which means that gameplay should be simple and intuitive for most users. However, this design has some limitations that I will mention here. Hopefully, future versions of BoF will be able to address some of these issues.

  • Players may fly as fighter or bomber pilots for Britain, France or Germany (and "Other Allied Nations" in later Marks).
  • To keep the campaign installation simple and to prevent game crashes, an American nationality had to be included. This isn't intended as a latter day "Lafayette Escadrille". For game purposes, the Americans operate two French squadrons.
  • The campaign begins on May 1, 1940 and continues for 180 days or until all victory areas have been capture by one side. The victory areas are Berlin, Ruhr, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Dunkerque, Sedan, and Paris.
  • Amphibious invasions aren't possible.
  • The campaign is biased in favour of Germany. Allied players will do well to survive. German players will do well to recreate a rapid blitzkrieg.
  • Fighter bombers didn't really exist during the Battle of France. Thus, fighter pilots should restrict their choices to air-to-air missions such as intercept and CAP.
  • Enemy spawns are randomly controlled by CFS3. However, intercept missions are more likely to encounter fighters and CAP missions will encounter bombers more often.
  • Any aircraft installed in CFS3 which is available during the campaign dates and has a nationality of "german" or "usa" can show up as a spawn. Thus, if you have installed any Brewster Buffaloes in CFS3, they may show up as spawns.
  • Vehicles and ships are based on the stock CFS3 components. Thus, you'll see German Tigers duking it out with American Shermans in 1940. This happens because (1) BoF doesn't yet include any early-war vehicles and (2) CFS3 vehicles have inaccurate availability dates.
  • Bf-109E's generally didn't carry bombs during the Battle of France. However, the Bf-109E-3 used in this campaign already came equipped with several loadouts. Use them or not as you prefer.
  • BoF Mark I uses the Dornier Do-17Z as Germany's tactical bomber. At the time of release (May 2006), projects were underway to build both a Henschel Hs-123 and a Junkers Ju-87B but neither was available by the release date. Once these aircraft are available, they will be included in a future BoF release. Until then, the Do-17 will handle tactical bombing duties.
Modifying the Campaign
If you wish to add or change some of the campaign aircraft, you may do so. Depending on whether you want to aircraft that you can fly as part of your "career" or whether you just want to add more bombers to spice up your intercept and escort missions, follow one of the procedures listed below.

ADDING AIRCRAFT AS CAREER CHOICES
Suppose, for example, that you wish to add a new aircraft as a career choice (i.e. something that a pilot could fly I the campaign).
  1. Install the aircraft to CFS3, if not already done.
  2. Delete the aircraft's BDP file(s). Don't worry. BDP files are automatically regenerated when CFS3 starts up.
  3. Make a backup copy of the aircraft's XDP file. While you're at it, make a backup fo the BoF campaign XML file that you're about to edit.
  4. Open the aircraft's XDP file using MS Wordpad or another XML editor. The top section will four values that are of critical importance to us:
    • EnteredService and LeftService: These are the dates (in MM/DD/YYYY format) when the aircraft is available. Make sure that the aircraft will be available sometime during the campaign period.
    • Category: To be available for fighter careers, this value must be fighter_bomber. For bomber careers, tactical_bomber.
    • Country: This must be equal to britain, germany, or france_free.
  5. Save the XDP file.
  6. Open the campaign XML file using MS Wordpad or another XML editor. Scroll down until you find the "TechTree" section. The TechTree controls when certain aircraft become available to pilots. To make an aircraft available as a career choice, simply add it to this list in the campaign XML file. Save the XDP file and you're done.

Important Note: This procedure can also be used to substitute aircraft. For example, you can replace the campaign Bf-109 with another German fighter if you prefer. If you do make substitutions, make sure that you substitute the same type of aircraft (i.e. fighter_bomber, tactical bomber), the nationality is the same, and that the availability dates are valid.

ADDING AIRCRAFT AS FRIENDLIES / OPPONENTS
Suppose, for example, that you wish to add a new aircraft so that it will randomly show up as a friendly or enemy spawn.
  1. Install the aircraft to CFS3, if not already done.
  2. Delete the aircraft's BDP file(s). Don't worry. BDP files are automatically regenerated when CFS3 starts up.
  3. Make a backup copy of the aircraft's XDP file.
  4. Open the aircraft's XDP file using MS Wordpad or another XML editor. The top section contains four values that are of critical importance to us:
    • EnteredService and LeftService: These are the dates (in MM/DD/YYYY format) when the aircraft is available. Make sure that the aircraft will be available sometime during the campaign period.
    • Category: To spawn as a fighter, this value must be fighter_bomber. To spawn as a bomber, this must be tactical_bomber or level_bomber.
    • Country: To automatically spawn, this must be equal to germany or usa.
  5. Save the XDP file.

Acknowledgements
I was first inspired to build this campaign (and several of the aircraft) back in Summer 2004 when I realized how under-represented early-WWII aircraft were in CFS3. Along the way, I had the pleasure to work with many other people and organizations who shared this vision and helped me to make it a reality. Herewith, I would like to acknowledge some of the key contributors: