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JETFIGHTER III
MISSION EDITOR
USER’S GUIDE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
3
RUNNING THE MISSION EDITOR
4
RUNNING FROM WINDOWS 95 4
RUNNING FROM DOS
4
WHERE TO GO FROM HERE
MISSION CREATION OVERVIEW
WHAT IS A MISSION
OBJECTS
THE POSTURE SYSTEM
MISSION GOALS
WAYPOINTS
WINGMEN
EVENT BOXES
5
USING THE MISSION EDITOR 13
MISSION EDITOR BASICS
THE MAIN SCREEN
USING THE MAP
CREATING AND MODIFYING OBJECTS
PLAYER WAYPOINTS
OBJECT PATHS
USING GROUPS
SAVING AND FLYING YOUR MISSION
KEYBOARD CONTROLS
MISSION CREATION CHECKLIST
MISSION CREDITS 33
27
INTRODUCTION
WELCOME TO THE JETFIGHTER III MISSION EDITOR. THIS MISSION EDITOR
IS A MODIFIED VERSION OF THE PROGRAM THAT WE ACTUALLY USED TO
CREATE MANY OF THE MISSIONS INCLUDED IN JETFIGHTER III. YOU WON’T
BE ABLE TO DO EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN HERE AT MISSION STUDIOS,
BUT YOU CAN CERTAINLY CREATE SOME FUN AND SOPHISTICATED
MISSIONS.
BECAUSE THE PROGRAM WAS DEVELOPED AS A TOOL FOR OUR MISSION
DESIGNERS, IT IS VERY POWERFUL, BUT CAN BE COMPLICATED TO USE.
WITH THIS IN MIND, WE RECOMMEND THE MISSION EDITOR ONLY FOR
“EXPERTS” WHO ARE WILLING TO LEARN ALL THE INTRICACIES INVOLVED
WITH CREATING MISSIONS.
THIS DOCUMENT DESCRIBES THE BASIC IDEAS BEHIND CREATING A
MISSION FOR JETFIGHTER III. IT ALSO CONTAINS INSTRUCTIONS FOR
USING THE MISSION EDITOR ITSELF. WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND
READING THIS GUIDE COMPLETELY.
FOR UPDATES TO THE MISSION EDITOR AND THIS DOCUMENTATION,
PLEASE VISIT WWW.MISSIONSTUDIOS.COM. WE WILL ALSO HAVE AN AREA
WHERE WE WILL POST MISSIONS SUBMITTED BY USERS. IF YOU HAVE A
MISSION YOU WOULD LIKE TO SUBMIT, JUST VISIT OUR WEB SITE AND
FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS ON OUR HOME PAGE.
RUNNING THE
MISSION EDITOR
BEFORE RUNNING THE MISSION EDITOR BE SURE THAT YOU HAVE
INSTALLED JETFIGHTER III PROPERLY, AND CAN FLY THE SIMULATOR.
YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO RUN THE MISSION EDITOR WITHOUT THE
JETFIGHTER III CD IN THE CD-ROM DRIVE.
RUNNING FROM WINDOWS 95
• BE SURE YOU HAVE THE JETFIGHTER III CD IN THE CD-ROM DRIVE.
• IF YOU INSTALLED JETFIGHTER III AUTOMATICALLY WITH WINDOWS 95,
THE INSTALL PROGRAM PLACED A ICON IN THE START MENU.
• PRESS START, SELECT PROGRAMS, SELECT MISSION STUDIOS AND
SELECT MISSION EDITOR.
• IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A MISSION STUDIOS FOLDER IN YOUR START
MENU, USE THE EXPLORE AND OPEN THE FOLDER WHERE YOU
INSTALLED JETFIGHTER III. THEN, CLICK ON THE JF3EDIT ICON. THIS
WILL START A MS-DOS SESSION AND RUN THE MISSION EDITOR
RUNNING FROM DOS
THESE EXAMPLE ASSUME YOU INSTALLED JETFIGHTER III TO C:\JF3
• BE SURE YOU HAVE THE JETFIGHTER III CD IN THE CF-ROM DRIVE.
• CHANGE TO THE DRIVE WHERE YOU INSTALLED JETFIGHTER III BY
TYPING: C: [ENTER]
• CHANGE INTO THE JETFIGHTER III DIRECTORY BY TYPING: CD \JFIII
[ENTER]
• RUN THE MISSION EDITOR BY TYPING: JF3EDIT [ENTER]
•
IN JUST A MOMENT, THE MISSION EDITOR WILL APPEAR SHOWING YOU A
MAP OF THE WORLD. YOU ARE JUST MINUTES AWAY FROM MAKING YOUR
FIRST JETFIGHTER III MISSION!
WHERE TO GO FROM HERE
IF YOU WANT TO JUMP RIGHT INTO CREATING A MISSION, YOU CAN SKIP
TO THE MISSION CREATION CHECKLIST. THIS CHAPTER IS AN OUTLINE
FOR CREATING A MISSION. IT WILL WALK YOU THOUGH MOST OF THE
BASIC FUNCTIONS OF THE MISSION EDITOR.
FOR A MORE “PHILOSOPHICAL” INTRODUCTION TO THE JETFIGHTER III
MISSION SYSTEM, CONTINUE TO READ THE MISSION CREATION OVERVIEW
BELOW. IT DESCRIBES THE BASIC PARTS OF A JETFIGHTER III MISSION.
THE SECTION TITLED USING THE MISSION EDITOR IS A FUNCTIONAL
REFERENCE TO THE MISSION EDITOR PROGRAM.
MISSION CREATION OVERVIEW
WHAT IS A MISSION?
TO A PLAYER, A MISSION IN JETFIGHTER III IS PRETTY
STRAIGHTFORWARD. HE READS HIS MISSION ORDERS, LOADS UP HIS
AIRCRAFT AND TAKES OFF, TRYING TO COMPLETE THE MISSION GOALS
WITHOUT GETTING SHOT DOWN. TO A MISSION DESIGNER, A MISSION IS
MUCH MORE. IT INVOLVES MANY COMPONENTS INCLUDING:
•
THE SCENERY WHERE THE MISSION TAKES PLACE.
• A SET OF WAYPOINTS FOR THE PLAYER TO FLY
• FRIENDLY AND ENEMY FIGHTERS, SHIPS AND ANTI-AIRCRAFT
EMPLACEMENTS.
• PATHS FOR THE OBJECTS TO FOLLOW.
• BEHAVIORS FOR THE OBJECTS.
• GROUND TARGETS
• OTHER OBJECTS, LANDMARKS AND POINTS OF INTEREST.
• A SET OF MISSION GOALS.
BY CAREFULLY PLACING OBJECTS, CREATING FLIGHT PATHS, MODIFYING
BEHAVIORS AND CONSTRUCTING MISSION GOALS, YOU CAN MAKE A
MISSION THAT IS EXCITING AND FUN. BEFORE DISCUSSING THE DETAILS
OF USING THE MISSION EDITOR WE WILL FIRST EXPLAIN THE MAJOR
COMPONENTS THAT GO INTO MAKING A MISSION.
OBJECTS
OBJECTS AND THEIR BEHAVIOR ARE AT THE HEART OF EVERY
JETFIGHTER III MISSION. THE SIMPLEST MISSION CONSISTS OF JUST ONE
OBJECT… THE PLAYER. BY ADDING MORE OBJECTS, MODIFYING HOW
THEY BEHAVE AND GIVING THEM A PATH TO FOLLOW, YOU CAN CREATE
COMPLEX AND EXCITING MISSIONS.
JETFIGHTER III CONTAINS A LONG LIST OF OBJECTS THAT CAN BE
INCLUDED IN A MISSION. AIRCRAFT, SHIPS, SAM SITES AND EVEN
TELEPHONE POLES CAN BE ADDED TO MAKE YOUR MISSION SEEM MORE
ALIVE AND REALISTIC. SOME OBJECTS, LIKE BUILDINGS AND RADIO
TOWERS, CAN’T MOVE OR LAUNCH ANY WEAPONS. THEY CAN, HOWEVER,
SERVE AS TARGETS OR LANDMARKS. OTHER OBJECTS, LIKE AIRCRAFT
AND SHIPS, CAN MOVE THROUGH THE JETFIGHTER III WORLD AND
ENGAGE OTHER OBJECTS. YOU TELL THEM HOW TO MOVE AND BEHAVE
BY MODIFYING CERTAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF EACH OBJECT.
OBJECT CHARACTERISTICS
WHEN YOU PLACE AN OBJECT IN THE WORLD USING THE MISSION EDITOR,
YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO CHANGE ITS CHARACTERISTICS. FOR
EXAMPLE, YOU CAN CHOOSE WHETHER TO MAKE AN OBJECT A FRIEND
OR AN ENEMY. YOU CAN GIVE WEAPONS TO CERTAIN OBJECTS. YOU CAN
DETERMINE HOW THE OBJECT WILL AFFECT THE OUTCOME OF THE
MISSION AND YOU CAN CHANGE AN OBJECT’S POSTURE. AN OBJECT’S
POSTURE DETERMINES HOW IT WILL REACT TO ENEMY OBJECTS WHEN
THEY ARE DETECTED. POSTURES ARE DESCRIBED IN DETAIL LATER.
OBJECT BEHAVIOR MODEL
IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND HOW OBJECTS IN JETFIGHTER III
BEHAVE WITH RESPECT TO THE DIFFERENT SETTINGS YOU CAN GIVE
THEM. UNDERSTANDING THIS IS VERY HELPFUL IN PLANNING OUT
COMPLEX MISSIONS. OBJECT BEHAVIOR CAN BE SEEN AS A THREE LEVEL
SYSTEM.
FLIGHT PLAN
AS A MISSION DESIGNER, YOU CAN GIVE CERTAIN OBJECTS FLIGHT
PLANS. THIS IS A SET OF WAYPOINTS AND PATROL POINTS WHICH THE
OBJECT WILL TRY TO FOLLOW IF IT CAN. HOWEVER, IF AN OBJECT’S
POSTURE TELLS IT TO DO SOMETHING ELSE, THE FLIGHT PLAN WILL BE
TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED. ALSO, IF AN OBJECT BELIEVES IT WILL
CRASH WHILE ATTEMPTING TO FOLLOW THE FLIGHT PLAN YOU GIVE IT,
THE OBJECT WILL TRY TO AVOID THE GROUND.
POSTURE
POSTURES ARE USED TO TELL OBJECTS HOW TO REACT WHEN THEY
DETECT DIFFERENT TYPES OF ENEMY OBJECTS. THE POSTURE SYSTEM
CAN TAKE AN OBJECT OUT OF ITS FLIGHT PLAN. FOR EXAMPLE, YOU CAN
PLACE AN F-14 ON A FLIGHT PLAN AND SET ITS POSTURE TO “ATTACK
ENEMY FIGHTERS WITHIN 20 MILES”. THE F-14 WILL FLY ITS FLIGHT PLAN
UNTIL IT DETECTS AN ENEMY FIGHTER WITHIN 20 MILES. AT THAT POINT,
THE F-14 WILL VEER OFF AND ENGAGE THE ENEMY. WHEN IT IS FINISHED,
IT WILL RESUME ITS FLIGHT PLAN.
SELF PRESERVATION
AN OBJECT’S MOST BASIC BEHAVIOR IS TO SURVIVE. NO MATTER WHAT
YOU TELL AN OBJECT TO DO (WITH SOME EXCEPTIONS), IT WILL TRY TO
STAY ALIVE. FOR EXAMPLE, IF AN OBJECT IS ENGAGED BY AN ENEMY, IT
WILL AUTOMATICALLY RELEASE FLARES OR CHAFF TO TRY TO DEFEAT
THE ENEMY MISSILE. LIKEWISE, AN AIRCRAFT WILL ALWAYS ATTEMPT TO
AVOID CRASHING INTO A MOUNTAIN.
POSTURES
POSTURES ARE AN IMPORTANT PART OF HOW OBJECTS IN JETFIGHTER III
INTERACT WITH EACH OTHER. A POSTURE IS BASICALLY AN ACTION THAT
AN OBJECT WILL PERFORM IF SOME SPECIFIED CONDITIONS ARISE.
THESE BEHAVIORS TAKE PRECEDENCE OVER THE WAYPOINTS (OR FLIGHT
PLAN) THAT YOU GIVE AN OBJECT. SO, IF THE GIVEN CONDITIONS ARISE,
THE POSTURE SYSTEM WILL CAUSE THE OBJECT TO LEAVE ITS COURSE
AND PERFORM THE SPECIFIED ACTION. ONCE THE CONDITION IS
SATISFIED, THE OBJECT WILL RETURN TO ITS PREVIOUS FLIGHT-PLAN.
THE BEST WAY TO INTRODUCE POSTURES IS TO GIVE A QUICK TYPICAL
EXAMPLE. THEN, WE WILL DETAIL EACH ASPECT OF THE POSTURE
SYSTEM SO YOU CAN CREATE INTERESTING COMBINATIONS OF
BEHAVIORS AND REACTIONS.
EXAMPLE
SUPPOSE YOU CREATE A FRIENDLY F/A-18 HORNET AND GIVE IT A FLIGHT
PATH. YOU ALSO GIVE IT A POSTURE WHICH STATES: “ATTACK ALL
ENEMY AIRCRAFT DETECTED WITHIN 20 MILES”. THE F/A-18 WILL BEGIN
TO FLY ITS COURSE, AND CONSTANTLY CHECK TO SEE IF ANY ENEMY
AIRCRAFT HAVE APPROACHED WITHIN 20 MILES. IF IT FINDS AN ENEMY
WITHIN 20 MILES, IT WILL VEER OFF COURSE AND ENGAGE THE ENEMY.
THE DOGFIGHT WILL CONTINUE UNTIL THE F/A-18 DESTROYS THE ENEMY
AIRCRAFT, OR IS DESTROYED ITSELF. AFTER THE DOGFIGHT, IF THERE
ARE NO MORE ENEMY AIRCRAFT WITHIN 20 MILES, THE F/A-18 WILL
RETURN TO ITS FLIGHT PLAN.
POSTURE COMPONENTS
A POSTURE SETTING CONSISTS OF 3 COMPONENTS, AN ENEMY OBJECT
TYPE, A RANGE, AND A BEHAVIOR. THE POSTURE BEHAVIOR IS
TRIGGERED WHEN AN ENEMY OF THE GIVEN TYPE IS DETECTED WITHIN
THE GIVEN RANGE. HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF POSTURE SETTINGS:
•
ATTACK ENEMY FIGHTERS DETECTED WITHIN 20 MILES.
• IGNORE ENEMY GROUND VEHICLES.
• ATTACK ENEMY STRUCTURES DETECTED WITHIN 15 MILES.
• EVADE ENEMY FIGHTERS DETECTED WITHIN 30 MILES.
• ATTACK ENEMY BOMBERS DETECTED WITHIN 25 MILES.
POSTURE OBJECT TYPES
EACH OBJECT CAN HAVE UP TO SEVEN DIFFERENT POSTURE SETTINGS,
BASED ON THE SEVEN CLASSIFICATIONS OF ENEMY OBJECTS THAT IT
MAY ENCOUNTER. THESE CLASSIFICATIONS ARE:
• ENEMY FIGHTERS (INCLUDES HELICOPTERS)
• ENEMY BOMBERS
• ENEMY SHIPS
• ENEMY SAM SITES
• ENEMY AAA SITES
• ENEMY GROUND VEHICLES
• ENEMY GROUND STRUCTURES
DEPENDING ON THE TYPE OF OBJECT YOU ARE WORKING WITH, NOT ALL
DIFFERENT POSTURE CLASSIFICATIONS WILL BE AVAILABLE. FOR
EXAMPLE, SAM SITES DO NOT HAVE POSTURES AGAINST OTHER SAM
SITES!
POSTURE DETECTION RANGE
THE SEVEN POSTURE SETTINGS ARE GOVERNED BY A “DETECTION
RANGE”. THIS RANGE DETERMINES THE DISTANCE AT WHICH THE OBJECT
WILL CHECK FOR ENEMIES. THIS ALLOWS YOU TO CAREFULLY CONTROL
HOW AND WHEN POSTURE BEHAVIORS WILL “KICK IN”.
POSTURE BEHAVIORS
THERE ARE FOUR BASIC TYPES OF BEHAVIORS THAT POSTURES CAN
TRIGGER: IGNORE, ATTACK, DEFEND AND EVADE. EACH BEHAVIOR IS
DESCRIBED BELOW IN DETAIL.
IGNORE
THE IGNORE POSTURE BEHAVIOR ALLOWS YOU TO HAVE OBJECTS
COMPLETELY IGNORE THE PRESENCE OF ENEMIES. WHEN USING THE
IGNORE POSTURE BEHAVIOR, THE DETECTION RANGE IS NOT USED.
ATTACK
ATTACK IS THE MOST COMMON POSTURE BEHAVIOR YOU WILL BE USING.
THIS BEHAVIOR TELLS THE OBJECT TO ACTIVELY PURSUE AND ATTACK
THE GIVEN TYPE OF ENEMY OBJECT THAT IT DETECTS WITHIN THE GIVEN
RANGE. THE OBJECT WILL CONTINUE TO ENGAGE ITS TARGET UNTIL IT
SUCCESSFULLY DESTROYS THE ENEMY… OR DIES TRYING! OBJECTS
THAT CAN NOT CARRY WEAPONS, LIKE BUILDINGS AND SOME
HELICOPTERS, CAN NOT USE THE ATTACK POSTURE.
DEFEND
THE DEFEND BEHAVIOR WILL CAUSE AN OBJECT TO DEFEND ITSELF IF
THREATENED BY AN ENEMY WITHIN THE GIVEN RANGE. THE OBJECT WILL
NOT SEEK OUT THE ENEMY, BUT RATHER ATTEMPT TO CONTINUE ON ITS
COURSE UNTIL IT DECIDES THE THREAT OF THE ENEMY IS TOO GREAT. AT
THAT POINT, IT WILL ENGAGE THE ENEMY.
EVADE
AN OBJECT WITH A POSTURE SETTING OF EVADE WILL ATTEMPT TO PUT
AS MUCH DISTANCE BETWEEN THE ENEMY OBJECT AND ITSELF UNTIL THE
ENEMY IS OUTSIDE OF THE GIVEN RANGE.
SOME TIPS ON POSTURES
POSTURES ARE A POWERFUL FEATURE OF JETFIGHTER III MISSION
BUILDING. SUBTLE CHANGES IN OBJECT POSTURES CAN HAVE A
DRAMATIC EFFECT ON HOW A MISSION PLAYS OUT. HERE ARE SOME TIPS
AND TRICKS FOR USING POSTURES.
USE THE DEFAULTS
WE HAVE TRIED TO SUPPLY DEFAULT VALUES THAT MAKE SENSE FOR
SIMPLE MISSIONS. YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO CREATE BASIC MISSIONS
WITHOUT CHANGING TOO MANY POSTURE VALUES.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
WHEN FIRST USING POSTURES, KEEP THEM SIMPLE. SET MOST POSTURES
TO IGNORE AND TURN ON JUST THE POSTURE SETTINGS YOU WANT.
CHECK THE DETECTION RANGES
DON’T FORGET THAT ALL POSTURING ACTIVITY IS BASED ON WHETHER
OR NOT THE OBJECT DETECTED AN ENEMY. IF THE DETECTION RANGE IS
SET TOO SMALL, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT NO ENEMIES WILL GET CLOSE
ENOUGH FOR THE OBJECT TO DETECT.
MISSION GOALS
PART OF CREATING A MISSION IS DETERMINING WHAT THE PLAYER IS
SUPPOSED TO DO, AND CHECKING WHETHER OR NOT HE HAS COMPLETED
THAT GOAL. IN JETFIGHTER III MISSION GOALS ARE RELATED TO
OBJECTS. EACH OBJECT HAS THE ABILITY TO AFFECT THE GOAL OF THE
MISSION. FOR EXAMPLE, THE GOAL OF A MISSION MAY BE TO DESTROY
AN ENEMY MIG-29, OR TO PROTECT A FRIENDLY B707. YOU CAN SPECIFY
HOW EACH OBJECT IN YOUR MISSION AFFECTS THE GOAL OF THE
MISSION. THE SIMULATOR PERIODICALLY CHECKS ALL THE OBJECTS AND
DETERMINES IF THE CONDITIONS FOR A MISSION VICTORY, OR LOSS, HAVE
BEEN MET. HERE ARE THE VARIOUS OPTIONS THAT CAN BE SET.
NO EFFECT
WHEN SET TO NO EFFECT, THE OBJECT HAS NO EFFECT ON THE GOAL OF
THE MISSION.
MUST SURVIVE
IN ORDER FOR THE MISSION TO BE A SUCCESS, THIS OBJECT MUST NOT
BE DESTROYED. IF AN OBJECT THAT IS SET TO MUST SURVIVE IS
DESTROYED, THE PLAYER WILL RECEIVE A MESSAGE TELLING HIM THAT
THE MISSION CAN NO LONGER BE COMPLETED SUCCESSFULLY.
MUST BE DESTROYED
THIS IS THE MOST COMMON SETTING. EVERY OBJECT THAT IS SET TO
THIS CONDITION MUST BE DESTROYED FOR THE PLAYER TO COMPLETE
THE MISSION. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE PLAYER DOES NOT
HAVE TO BE THE ONE THAT DESTROYS THE OBJECT. IN FACT,
JETFIGHTER III DOES NOT CARE HOW THE OBJECT IS DESTROYED.
MUST BE IDENTIFIED
IN SOME MISSIONS YOU MAY SIMPLY WANT THE PLAYER TO DETERMINE
THE TYPE OF A CERTAIN OBJECT. IN ORDER TO DO THIS, THE PLAYER
MUST FLY CLOSE ENOUGH TO THE OBJECT SO THAT HIS RADAR CAN
DETERMINE WHICH TYPE OF OBJECT IT IS. THIS OPTION IS GOOD FOR
RECONNAISSANCE MISSIONS.
EXAMPLE
SUPPOSE YOU WANT TO CREATE AN ESCORT MISSION. YOU CREATE A
B707 OBJECT AND SET IT TO MUST SURVIVE. THEN, YOU CREATE 2 SU-27S
AND SET THEM TO MUST BE DESTROYED. IN ORDER TO COMPLETE THE
MISSION, BOTH SU-27S MUST BE DESTROYED AND THE B707 MUST
SURVIVE. REMEMBER, THE GAME CHECKS ALL OF THE WIN CONDITIONS.
WAYPOINTS AND PATHS
WAYOINTS AND PATHS ARE NAVIGATIONAL AIDS THAT CONTAIN
LATITUDE, LONGITUDE AND ALTITUDE INFORMATION. BASICALLY, A
WAYPOINT IS A POINT IN SPACE THAT THE PLAYER OR OBJECT CAN FLY
TO AND USE FOR NAVIGATION. IN A TYPICAL JETFIGHTER III MISSION,
WAYPOINTS ARE PLACED TO GUIDE THE PLAYER THROUGH THE MISSION
ACCORDING TO YOUR DESIRED PLAN. PATHS ARE JUST LIKE WAYPOINTS,
EXCEPT THEY ARE USED BY THE NON-PLAYER VEHICLES IN THE GAME.
WAYPOINTS
WAYPOINTS COME IN TWO ‘FLAVORS’: NAVIGATIONAL TURN POINTS AND
GROUND TARGET AREAS. BOTH TYPES OF WAYPOINTS SERVE AS
POSITIONS IN SPACE THAT THE PILOT IS SUPPOSED TO FLY TO. GROUND
TARGET AREAS HAVE AN ADDITIONAL FUNCTION. THESE WAYPOINTS ARE
DISPLAYED IN RED IN THE PILOT’S HUD (AS OPPOSED TO NAVIGATIONAL
TURN POINTS WHICH ARE GREEN) INFORMING THE PILOT THAT GROUND
TARGETS ARE LOCATED NEARBY.
DYNAMIC OBJECTS, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE PLAYER’S AIRCRAFT
AND WINGMEN AIRCRAFT, CAN BE GIVEN A SET OF PATH INSTRUCTIONS
SIMILAR TO THE WAYPOINTS GIVEN TO THE PLAYER.
PATHS
PATHS ARE VERY SIMILAR TO PLAYER WAYPOINTS. PATHS CAN BE
THOUGHT OF AS THE “FLIGHT PLAN” FOR NON-PLAYER OBJECTS IN THE
GAME. UNLIKE THE PLAYER, WHO CAN CHOOSE TO SKIP WAYPOINTS OR
FLY THEM IN THE WRONG ORDER, OTHER OBJECTS IN THE GAME WILL
FOLLOW THEIR PATHS IN THE EXACT ORDER YOU DEFINE. THE ONLY
CIRCUMSTANCES THAT WILL CAUSE AN OBJECT TO STRAY FROM ITS
PATH IS IF ITS POSTURE CAUSES IT TO TAKE SOME ACTION, OR THE
OBJECT MUST CHANGE ITS COURSE TO AVOID A COLLISION.
OBJECT PATH POINTS COME IN TWO FLAVORS, REGULAR NAVIGATIONAL
TURN POINTS, AND PATROL POINTS. A PATROL IS SIMPLY A CIRCULAR
PATH OF A GIVEN RADIUS AND ALTITUDE THAT CAN BE FLOWN WITH ANY
NUMBER OF REVOLUTIONS. THESE PATHS ARE SPECIFIC TO EACH
INDIVIDUAL DYNAMIC OBJECT.
GROUND TARGET LOCATIONS
GROUND TARGET LOCATIONS CONSIST OF THE LATITUDE, LONGITUDE
AND ALTITUDE INFORMATION OF AN OBJECT WHICH YOU WANT THE
PLAYER’S THE AIRCRAFT TARGETING SYSTEM TO RECOGNIZE
AUTOMATICALLY. THIS ENABLES ‘SMART’ WEAPONS TO HOME IN ON A
TARGET OBJECT.
EACH GROUND TARGET LOCATION IS THEREFORE ASSOCIATED WITH AN
OBJECT IN THE MISSION. NOT ALL GROUND TARGETS NEED TO BE
HANDLED THIS WAY BUT THEY ARE NECESSARY FOR ‘SMART’ WEAPON
HOMING. GROUND TARGET LOCATIONS ARE GENERALLY USED TO
TARGET STATIC OBJECTS AND ALL SHIP TYPES. EACH GROUND TARGET
LOCATION IS ASSOCIATED WITH A GROUND TARGET AREA WAYPOINT IN
ORDER TO INFORM THE PILOT THAT HE IS APPROACHING GROUND
TARGETS. OF COURSE, ALL GROUND OBJECTS CAN BE TARGETED USING
THE MANUAL TARGETING SYSTEM.
CURRENTLY, IN ORDER TO CREATE THESE “PRE-DESIGNATED” TARGETS,
YOU MUST MANUALLY CREATE A GROUND TARGET WAYPOINT AND
ASSOCIATE IT WITH THE OBJECT.
WHEN A PLAYER REACHES THIS GROUND TARGET AREA WAYPOINT, HE
WILL BE ABLE TO TARGET NEARBY GROUND OBJECTS BY SELECTING AN
AIR-TO-GROUND WEAPON AND CYCLING THROUGH THEM WITH THE [T]
KEY.
WINGMEN
IF YOU HAVE FLOWN MISSIONS IN JETFIGHTER III BEFORE, YOU HAVE
PROBABLY LEARNED TO USE, AND POSSIBLY RELY ON, YOUR WINGMAN.
A WINGMAN IS ANOTHER AIRCRAFT THAT FOLLOWS THE PLAYER AND
OBEYS THE JETFIGHTER III WINGMAN COMMANDS. ADDING A WINGMAN
TO A MISSION CAN MAKE THE GAME MORE COMPLEX AND EXCITING. WITH
THE ADDITION OF A WINGMAN, IT IS POSSIBLE TO CONSTRUCT MISSION
GOALS THAT THE PLAYER CAN NOT COMPLETE ON HIS OWN. ONLY THE
CAREFUL USE OF THE WINGMAN WILL ALLOW THE MISSION TO BE
COMPLETED SUCCESSFULLY.
EVENT BOXES
EVENT BOXES ARE RECTANGULAR REGIONS OF THE JETFIGHTER III
WORLD THAT ARE USED AS CONDITIONAL “TRIGGERS FOR OBJECTS. FOR
EXAMPLE, YOU CAN TELL AN ENEMY FIGHTER NOT TO APPEAR UNTIL THE
PLAYER FLIES INTO A CERTAIN REGION OF THE MAP.
AN EVENT BOX CONSISTS OF FOUR LATITUDE AND LONGITUDE POINTS
THAT DEFINE THE BOXED AREA, A CONDITIONAL TRIGGER CONSISTING OF
WHETHER A PARTICULAR DYNAMIC OBJECT IS INSIDE OR OUTSIDE THE
REGION, AND A SET OF OBJECT INSTRUCTIONS TO BE PROCESSED BY THE
JETFIGHTER GAME ENGINE. THE MOST BASIC OBJECT INSTRUCTION IS
THE INITIALIZATION OF AN OBJECT. BASICALLY IT ALLOWS OBJECTS TO
‘POP’ INTO EXISTENCE AT ANY TIME AFTER THE START OF A MISSION.
THIS IS USEFUL FOR PROPERLY TIMING EVENTS IN THE MISSION
REGARDLESS OF THE TIME IT TAKES THE PLAYER TO FLY THE
WAYPOINTS. OTHER OBJECT COMMANDS INCLUDE SENDING RADIO
MESSAGES, CHANGING POSTURES OR ALLEGIANCES, FORMATION
COMMANDS, REVISED MISSION GOALS. ETC. THE EVENT BOXES ARE
TRIGGERED ONLY ONCE IN A MISSION AND ARE NOT RESET. UP TO FOUR
OF THESE BOXES CAN BE PLACED IN EACH MISSION.
USING THE MISSION EDITOR
THIS SECTION SERVES AS A USER’S GUIDE TO THE MISSION EDITOR
PROGRAM. IT IS POSSIBLE THAT UPDATES WERE MADE TO THE PROGRAM
AFTER THIS DOCUMENT WAS COMPLETED, SO WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU
CHECK WWW.MISSIONSTUDIOS.COM FOR UPDATES TO THIS DOCUMENT.
MISSION EDITOR BASICS
THIS MISSION EDITOR IS A MODIFIED VERSION OF THE PROGRAM WE USE
HERE AT MISSION STUDIOS. BECAUSE OF THIS, IT DOES NOT HAVE ALL
THE “POLISH” OF A CONSUMER MISSION EDITOR. YOU MAY FIND ITS
OPERATION DIFFERENT FROM MANY “WINDOWS” STYLE APPLICATIONS
THAT YOU ARE USED TO. HOWEVER, THE EDITOR IS VERY POWERFUL AND
ALLOWS YOU TO CREATE VERY COMPLEX SITUATIONS IN JETFIGHTER III.
ONCE YOU GET USED TO THE CONTROLS AND LEARN ITS FEATURES, YOU
SHOULD BE ABLE TO CREATE EXCITING NEW MISSIONS.
MISSIONS CAN BE EXTREMELY SIMPLE - JUST THE PLAYER AIRCRAFT - OR
EXTREMELY COMPLEX WITH NUMEROUS DIFFERENT OBJECTS ALL
PROGRAMMED TO OPERATE DIFFERENTLY. CREATING COMPLEX
MISSIONS TAKES TIME AND EXPERIENCE. DON’T GET DISCOURAGED IF
YOUR FIRST COMPLEX IDEAS DON’T WORK AS YOU HAD PLANNED.
SOMETIMES IT TAKES SOME TRIAL AND ERROR TO UNDERSTAND HOW THE
ENTIRE SYSTEM WORKS.
THE MISSIONS YOU CREATE CAN ONLY BE FLOWN BY LOADING THEM INTO
THE MISSION EDITOR AND USING THE [FLY] BUTTON. IF YOU WANT TO
EXCHANGE MISSIONS WITH YOUR FRIENDS, YOU NEED TO BE SURE THEY
HAVE A VERSION OF JETFIGHTER III THAT INCLUDED THE MISSION EDITOR.
MOST OPERATIONS IN THE MISSION EDITOR USE THE MOUSE. WHEN THIS
DOCUMENT REFERS TO “CLICKING” OR “PRESSING” A CONTROL, THAT
MEANS PUT THE MOUSE OVER THE CONTROL AND PRESS THE LEFT
MOUSE BUTTON.
THERE ARE ALSO MANY KEYBOARD CONTROLS AVAILABLE. THESE ARE
DETAILED IN THE SECTIONS THAT FOLLOW.
THE MAIN SCREEN
THE MISSION EDITOR SCREEN IS DIVIDED UP INTO SEVERAL MAIN AREAS.
EACH AREA IS DESCRIBED BELOW.
THE MAP WINDOW
THE LARGE WINDOW AT THE TOP OF THE SCREEN IS THE MAP. THIS IS
WERE YOU WILL POSITION, MOVE AND CHOOSE THE OBJECTS AND
WAYPOINTS THAT MAKE UP THE MISSION.
THE MAP CONTROLS
IN HE UPPER RIGHT CORNER OF THE SCREEN ARE THE MAP CONTROLS.
THESE LET YOU REPOSITION THE MAP TO VIEW THE AREA OF THE MISSION
YOU ARE CURRENTLY EDITING.
THE STATUS BAR
AT THE VERY BOTTOM OF THE SCREEN IS THE STATUS BAR. IT IS
IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER TO LOOK AT THIS ARE OFTEN AS IT GIVES YOU
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO PERFORM MANY OF THE TASKS IN
THE MISSION EDITOR. IF YOU EVER GET LOST OR CONFUSED, BE SURE TO
LOOK DOWN AT THE STATUS BAR.
THE CONTROL AREA
BELOW THE MAP IS AN AREA OF THE SCREEN THAT IS USED TO PERFORM
MANY OF THE FUNCTIONS IN THE MISSION EDITOR. THE BUTTONS IN THIS
CONTROL AREA CHANGE DEPENDING ON THE MODE OF OPERATION THAT
YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN.
THE OBJECT ICON WINDOW
THIS SMALL WINDOW ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF THE SCREEN DISPLAYS
AN IMAGE OF THE CURRENT OBJECT, OR THE JETFIGHTER III IMAGE IF
THERE IS NO OBJECT CURRENTLY SELECTED. IT ALSO DISPLAYS 5
SYSTEM CONTROLS THAT LET YOU MODIFY SOME DEFAULT BEHAVIORS
OF THE MISSION EDITOR.
USING THE MAP
THE MAP DISPLAY IS THE HEART OF THE MISSION EDITOR. MANY
OPERATIONS INVOLVE SELECTING POSITIONS OR OBJECTS ON THE MAP,
SO IT IS IMPORTANT TO GET FAMILIAR WITH MOVING AND ZOOMING THE
MAP.
MOVING THE MAP AROUND
MOST OF THE MAP CONTROLS ARE GROUPED TOGETHER IN THE UPPER
RIGHT OF THE SCREEN. THE [NORTH], [SOUTH], [EAST] AND [WEST]
BUTTONS SCROLL THE MAP IN THE GIVEN DIRECTION.
THE [ZOOM IN] AND [ZOOM OUT] BUTTONS CHANGE THE SCALE OF THE
MAP.
YOU CAN ALSO REPOSITION THE MAP BY CLICKING THE MOUSE IN THE
MAP WINDOW. BE CAREFUL, HOWEVER, NOT TO MOVE THE MOUSE WHILE
YOU ARE CLICKING TO RE-POSITION THE MAP. IF YOU MOVE THE MOUSE
TOO FAR WHILE HOLDING DOWN THE BUTTON, THE MISSION EDITOR WILL
ASSUME YOU ARE TRYING TO CREATE A GROUP AND WILL NOT MOVE THE
MAP.
SETTING THE SCROLL SPEED
THE SPEED AT WHICH THE MAP SCROLLS IS CONTROLLED USING THE
CONTROL BELOW THE MOVEMENT ARROWS. MOVE THE BAR TO THE
RIGHT TO SPEED UP THE SCROLL RATE, OR TO THE LEFT TO SLOW DOWN
THE SCROLL RATE.
WORLD VIEW
TO ZOOM OUT TO THE “WORLD” LEVEL, PRESS [M]. THE CROSSHAIRS
INDICATES THE CURRENT POSITION OF THE MAP DISPLAY. TO ZOOM
BACK IN TO THE REGIONAL MAP, PRESS [M] AGAIN.
JUMPING TO A SPECIFIC OBJECT
ANOTHER USEFUL MAP CONTROL IS THE [JUMP TO OBJECT] BUTTON
LOCATED IN THE WINDOW UNDER THE MAP. THIS CONTROL LETS YOU
CENTER THE MAP ON ANY OF THE OBJECTS THAT YOU HAVE PLACED IN
THE MISSION.
CREATING AND MODIFYING OBJECTS
CREATING, MOVING AND CHANGING THE CHARACTERISTICS OF OBJECTS
IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF CREATING A MISSION. THIS
SECTION DETAILS THE VARIOUS WAYS TO MANIPULATE OBJECTS IN THE
MISSION EDITOR.
CREATING AN OBJECT
TO BEGIN CREATING OBJECTS, PLACE THE EDITOR INTO “OBJECT
CREATE” MODE BY CLICKING ON [OBJECTS]. A COLUMN OF BUTTONS
WILL APPEAR FOR OBJECT MODE. CLICK ON [ADD NEW] TO ENTER
CREATION MODE. WHILE YOU ARE IN “OBJECT CREATE” MODE, YOU CAN
CONTINUE TO CREATE OBJECTS USING THE STEPS BELOW:
•
CLICK IN THE MAP TO PLACE AN OBJECT INTO THE JETFIGHTER III
WORLD.
• AFTER CLICKING ON THE MAP, THE EDITOR WAITS FOR YOU TO TYPE IN
A NAME FOR THE OBJECT. WHEN YOU’RE DONE, PRESS [ENTER].
• A LIST OF OBJECT TYPES NOW APPEARS BELOW THE MAP. CHOOSE
THE TYPE OF OBJECT YOU WANT AND CLICK ON [OK].
• NEXT, A HEADING ARROW APPEARS. MOVE THE MOUSE TO ROTATE
THE ARROW IN THE DIRECTION YOU WANT THE OBJECT TO FACE.
CLICK THE MOUSE WHEN YOU ARE DONE.
• AFTER PLACING THE OBJECT, THE OBJECT INFORMATION LIST WILL
APPEAR BELOW THE MAP. YOU MAY CHANGE ANY OF THE AVAILABLE
FIELDS IN THIS LIST, OR ACCEPT THE DEFAULT VALUES. WHEN YOU
ARE DONE, CLICK [OK].
• AT ANY TIME YOU CAN ABORT THE CREATION OF AN OBJECT BY
PRESSING [ESC]. BE SURE TO CHECK THE STATUS BAR ALONG THE
BOTTOM OF THE SCREEN FOR HELP ON THE CURRENT OPERATION.
• IF YOU MADE A MISTAKE, OR NEED TO CHANGE THE PROPERTIES OF
AN OBJECT, DON’T WORRY. YOU CAN ALWAYS [MODIFY] ANY OBJECT
YOU HAVE PLACED.
TO EXIT “OBJECT CREATE” MODE, SIMPLY CLICK ON THE [OBJECT]
BUTTON AGAIN.
MODIFYING OBJECTS
ONCE YOU HAVE PLACED ONE OR MORE OBJETS IN THE MISSION, YOU
WILL PROBABLY WANT TO MODIFY THEM AT SOME POINT. TO BEGIN
MODIFYING OBJECTS, YOU MUST ENTER “MODIFY OBJECT” MODE.
• CLICK ON [OBJECT] AND THEN [MODIFY].
• POSITION THE MAP UNTIL YOU SEE THE OBJECT YOU WANT TO MODIFY
IN THE MAP WINDOW.
• CLICK ON THE OBJECT IN THE MAP.
• THE OBJECT INFORMATION LIST WILL APPEAR IN THE AREA BELOW
THE MAP.
• CLICK ON ANY FIELD TO SELECT IT.
• YOU CAN MODIFY ANY FIELD BY CLICKING IN THE DATA AREA AND
TYPING A NEW VALUE, OR
• NUMERICAL FIELDS CAN BE INCREMENTED AND DECREMENTED USING
THE LEFT AND RIGHT ARROWS ON THE ARROW PAD LOCATED NEXT TO
THE OBJECT INFORMATION LIST.
• YOU CAN CYCLE THROUGH THE DIFFERENT FIELDS IN THE OBJECT
INFORMATION LIST USING THE UP AND DOWN ARROWS ON THE ARROW
PAD.
• YOU CAN CYCLE TO THE NEXT OBJECT IN THE MISSION USING [>>]
• YOU CAN CYCLE TO THE PREVIOUS OBJECT IN THE MISSION USING [<<]
• PRESS [OK] WHEN DONE MODIFYING THE OBJECT.
MOVING OBJECTS
TO MOVE OBJECTS, PRESS [OBJECTS] AND THEN [MOVE] TO ENTER
“MOVE OBJECT” MODE. SIMPLY CLICK ON THE OBJECT IN THE MAP THAT
YOU WISH TO MOVE. THAT OBJECT WILL TEMPORARILY DISAPPEAR.
NOW, MOVE THE MAP TO WHERE YOU WANT THIS OBJECT TO END UP, AND
CLICK ON THE MAP AGAIN. THE OBJECT WILL BE PLACED IN THE NEW
POSITION.
IF YOU HAVE A GROUP ACTIVE, THE ENTIRE GROUP WILL BE MOVED.
DELETING OBJECTS
DELETING OBJECTS IS SIMPLE. SIMPLE PRESS [OBJECTS] AND [DELETE]
TO ENTER “DELETE OBJECT” MODE. NOW, IN THE MAP, CLICK ON THE
OBJECT YOU WANT TO DELETE. YOU CAN CONTINUE TO CLICK ON
OBJECTS AND DELETE THEM AS LONG AS YOU ARE IN “DELETE OBJECT”
MODE.
IF YOU CLICK ON AN OBJECT THAT IS PART OF A GROUP, THE ENTIRE
GROUP WILL BE DELETED.
IF YOU CLICK ON YOUR AIRCRAFT CARRIER, ALL OF THE OBJECTS ON THE
DECK, WHICH MAY INCLUDE THE PLAYER, WILL BE DELETED ALONG WITH
THE CARRIER AND THE CARRIER FLEET.
YOU MAY WANT TO SAVE YOUR MISSION BEFORE DELETING OBJECTS.
THERE IS NO UNDO OPTION IN THE MISSION EDITOR.
COPYING OBJECTS
COPYING OBJECTS IS A POWERFUL FEATURE OF THE MISSION EDITOR.
YOU CAN CREATE AND SET UP AN OBJECT, AND THEN MAKE MANY
COPIES OF IT. TO COPY AN OBJECT, FIRST SELECT “COPY OBJECT” MODE
BY PRESSING [OBJECTS] AND THEN [COPY]. NEXT, SELECT THE OBJECT
ON THE MAP THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COPY OF. AFTER
SELECTING THE OBJECT, CLICKING ON THE MAP AGAIN WILL MAKE A
COPY OF THAT OBJECT. THE MISSION EDITOR WILL AUTOMATICALLY RENAME THE OBJECT TO PREVENT NAME CONFLICTS. YOU CAN CONTINUE
CLICKING TO MAKE MORE COPIES OF THE OBJECT. WHEN YOU ARE
FINISHED, PRESS [ESC].
OBJECT PARAMETERS
THE FOLLOWING IS A DESCRIPTION OF THE DIFFERENT PARAMETERS
THAT CAN BE CHANGED FOR AN OBJECT. REMEMBER THAT NOT ALL
OBJECTS HAVE ALL THESE PARAMETERS. FOR EXAMPLE, STATIC
GROUND OBJECTS LIKE BUILDINGS DO NOT HAVE POSTURES AND DO NOT
FIRE WEAPONS.
NAME
THIS IS THE NAME YOU WANT TO BE USED FOR THE OBJECT. THIS NAME
APPEARS IN THE TOP “MESSAGE BAR” OF THE SIMULATOR WHEN THE
OBJECT IS INVOLVED IN MISSION ACTIVITIES.
ALTITUDE
THIS SPECIFIES ALTITUDE OF OBJECTS IS IN UNITS OF FEET ABOVE
GROUND LEVEL (AGL). THEREFORE YOU SHOULD KEEP IN MIND THE
GROUND ELEVATION WHEN SETTING ALTITUDE.
SPEED
THE SPEED OF AN OBJECT IN KNOTS (NAUTICAL MILES / HOUR). OF
COURSE, BUILDINGS WILL NOT HAVE THIS FIELD AVAILABLE.
RELATIONSHIP TO PLAYER
THE ALLEGIANCE OF AN OBJECT IS ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH RESPECT TO
THE PLAYER AND CAN BE SET TO FRIENDLY, ENEMY, OR NEUTRAL.
REMEMBER, POSTURE SETTINGS WORK WITH RESPECT TO OBJECTS OF
THE OPPOSITE ALLEGIANCE.
MISSION GOAL EFFECT
EVERY OBJECT HAS A MISSION GOAL EFFECT ASSOCIATED WITH IT. THE
POSSIBLE OPTIONS ARE: NO EFFECT, MUST SURVIVE, MUST BE
DESTROYED, AND MUST BE IDENTIFIED. JETFIGHTER III KEEPS TRACK OF
THE VICTORY CONDITIONS ASSOCIATED WITH ALL THE OBJECTS IN A
MISSION. WHEN ALL CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN FULFILLED, THE PLAYER IS
INFORMED WITH A MESSAGE BOX AND A SUCCESSFUL MISSION RESULT IS
REGISTERED. IF THE VICTORY CONDITIONS CAN NO LONGER BE
ACHIEVED (SUCH AS AN OBJECT SET TO ‘MUST SURVIVE’ BEING
DESTROYED), THEN THE PLAYER WILL BE INFORMED AND AN
UNSUCCESSFUL MISSION IS REGISTERED. SHOULD THE PLAYER DIE OR
END THE MISSION BEFORE ALL OF THE VICTORY CONDITIONS ARE MET,
THEN AN UNSUCCESSFUL MISSION IS REGISTERED.
POSTURES
POSTURES DEFINE HOW AN OBJECT WILL BEHAVE WHEN IT DETECTS
DIFFERENT TYPES OF ENEMY OBJECTS. FOR A DETAILED DESCRIPTION
OF POSTURES, SEE THE SECTION ON POSTURES ABOVE.
DETECTION RANGE
THIS IS THE DISTANCE AT WHICH THE OBJECT WILL SEARCH FOR
ENEMIES. THE UNITS ARE IN NAUTICAL MILES. POSTURES WILL ACTIVATE
WHEN ENEMY OBJECTS GET WITHIN THIS RANGE.
ORDINANCE (WEAPONS)
THESE FILEDS CONTROL NUMBER AND TYPE OF WEAPONS AVAILABLE TO
THE OBJECT. DIFFERENT OBJECTS WILL HAVE DIFFERENT WEAPONS
AVAILABLE. KEEP IN MIND THAT THERE ARE LIMITS TO THE NUMBER AND
COMBINATIONS OF WEAPONS THAT DIFFERENT OBJECTS CAN CARRY.
HERE IS A QUICK CHART OF THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF WEAPONS
AVAILABLE
AIRCRAFT ORDINANCE NATO
EASTERN BLOCK
CANNON
M61A1 VULCAN CANNON
A0-17A 30MM
CANNON
HEAT SEEKING MISSILE AIM-9 SIDEWINDER
AA-2 ATOLL
RADAR GUIDED MISSILE
AIM-120 AMRAAM
AA-8 APHID
AIR TO GROUND MISSILE
AGM-65 MAVERICK
AS-10 KAREN
SHIP ORDINANCE NATO
AAA
20 MM PHALANX CIWS
SAM
SEAWOLF SAM
EASTERN BLOCK
ADG6-30 CIWS TURRET
SA-N-4 GECKO SAM
AAA AMMO
SHIPS AND AAA SITES CAN BE LOADED WITH ANTI AIRCRAFT ARTILLERY
ROUNDS. THIS FIELD SPECIFIES THE NUMBER OF ROUNDS THE SITE HAS.
SAM AMMO
SHIPS AND SAM SITES CAN BE LOADED WITH SURFACE TO AIR MISSILES.
THIS FIELD SPECIFIES THE TOTAL NUMBER OF MISSILES THE SITE HAS.
FIRE RATE
SHIPS, SAM SITES AND AAA EMPLACEMENTS CAN BE GIVEN A FIRE RATE
VALUE WHICH DETERMINES HOW MUCH TIME WILL ELAPSE BEFORE THE
OBJECT CAN FIRE A SUBSEQUENT SAM OR BURST OF AAA. THIS TIME IS
GIVEN IN SECONDS.
FLARES
THE NUMBER OF FLARES AN AIRCRAFT HOLDS. FLARES HELP AN OBJECT
DEFEND AGAINST HEAT-SEEKING MISSILES.
CHAFF
THE NUMBER OF CHAFF BUNDLES AN AIRCRAFT HOLDS. CHAFF HELPS AN
OBJECT DEFEND AGAINST RADAR GUIDED MISSILES.
PLAYER WAYPOINTS
PLAYER WAYPOINTS ARE USED TO GUIDE THE PILOT TO A SPECIFIC AREA.
THESE CAN INCLUDE SIMPLE NAVIGATIONAL WAYPOINTS THAT TAKE THE
PLAYER TO A PARTICULAR SPOT, OR TARGET AREA WAYPOINTS THAT
ARE TIED TO GROUND TARGETS. IN JETFIGHTER III, NAVIGATIONAL
WAYPOINTS SHOULD BE USED TO CARRY THE PLAYER THROUGH
INTERESTING AND EXCITING SCENERY. IN REGARDS TO TARGET AREA
WAYPOINTS, FLYING STRAIGHT TO YOUR TARGET AND STRAIGHT BACK IS
NOT ALWAYS THE MOST STRATEGIC PATH OR INTERESTING WAY TO FLY,
EVEN THOUGH IT IS THE SHORTEST ROUTE.
CREATING PLAYER WAYPOINTS
TO BEGIN PLACING WAYPOINTS, CLICK ON [WAYPOINTS], THEN ON [ADD
NEW]. CLICK IN THE MAP TO PLACE A WAYPOINT INTO THE JETFIGHTER III
WORLD. TYPE IN A NAME FOR THE WAYPOINT AND PRESS [ENTER]. THE
STANDARD NAMING CONVENTION FOR WAYPOINTS IS WPT1, WPT2, ETC.
THE WAYPOINT INFORMATION LIST WILL APPEAR BELOW THE MAP. YOU
MAY CHANGE ANY OF THE FIELDS IN THIS LIST. THE TWO MOST
IMPORTANT ARE ALTITUDE AND WAYPOINT TYPE. SET THE ALTITUDE TO
THE HEIGHT YOU WISH RELATIVE TO THE GROUND. AFTER SETTING THE
WAYPOINT TYPE TO NAVIGATIONAL TURN POINT, CLICK [OK]. TO PLACE
THE REMAINING WAYPOINTS, CLICK ON [WAYPOINTS], AND THEN ON
[COPY]. CLICK ON THE FIRST WAYPOINT YOU PLACED ON THE MAP.
PROCEED TO PLACE THE REST OF YOUR WAYPOINTS BY CLICKING IN THE
MAP. THE MISSION EDITOR WILL AUTOMATICALLY INCREMENT THE
NUMBER OF THE WAYPOINT.
THE TWO TYPES OF WAYPOINT TYPES ARE NAVIGATIONAL TURN POINTS
AND TARGET AREAS. NAVIGATIONAL TURN POINTS ARE USED TO GUIDE
THE PLAYER THROUGH THE WORLD AND ACT AS THREE-DIMENSIONAL
BEACONS. TARGET AREAS ARE WAYPOINTS THAT INDICATE GROUND
TARGETS HAVE PROGRAMMED INTO THE NAVIGATIONAL COMPUTER.
TO CHANGE A NAVAGATIONAL TURN POINT TO A TARGET AREA
WAYPOINT, CLICK ON [WAYPOINTS] AND THEN ON [MODIFY]. SELECT THE
WAYPOINT THAT YOU PLACED OVER THE REGION WHERE THE GROUND
TARGETS ARE LOCATED. CLICK ON THE WAYPOINT TYPE FIELD AND
CHANGE IT FROM NAVIGATIONAL TURN POINT TO TARGET AREA.
TO ADD GROUND TARGETS TO THE TARGET AREA, CLICK ON [WAYPOINTS]
AND THEN ON [ADD NEW]. CLICK ANYWHERE IN THE MAP TO PLACE AS
THE COMPUTER WILL AUTOMATICALLY MOVE IT TO THE CORRECT
POSITION. TYPE IN A NAME FOR THE TARGET (SUCH AS TARGET1) AND
PRESS [ENTER]. THE WAYPOINT INFORMATION LIST WILL APPEAR BELOW
THE MAP. CHANGE POSITION BASIS TO RELATIVE TO OBJECT. CHANGE
THE WAYPOINT TYPE TO TARGET IN WEAPONS COMPUTER. DOUBLECLICK ON THE REFERENCE OBJECT FIELD. A LIST OF AVAILABLE GROUND
TARGET OBJECTS WILL APPEAR. SELECT THE OBJECT YOU WISH TO BE
ADDED TO THE TARGET AREA AND THEN CLICK [DONE]. CLICK [OK] AND
THE WAYPOINT GROUND TARGET YOU JUST ADDED WILL MOVE INTO
POSITION OVER THE ACTUAL GROUND TARGET.
OBJECT PATHS
PATHS ARE QUITE SIMILAR TO PLAYER WAYPOINTS IN THAT THEY
INSTRUCT OBJECTS WHERE TO TRAVEL. NOT ALL OBJECTS NEED TO
HAVE PATHS. IN FACT, FOR MANY OBJECTS SIMPLY GIVING THEM A
HEADING AND SPEED WILL SUFFICE. FOR MORE COMPLEX MISSIONS, YOU
CAN GIVE OBJECTS SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS ON WHERE TO GO AND EVEN
PATROL.
TO BEGIN PLACING AN OBJECT'S PATH, CLICK ON [PATHS]. CLICK ON THE
OBJECT IN THE MAP THAT YOU WISH TO GIVE A PATH TO. THE
CONNECTED WHITE LINES WILL INDICATE THE CURRENT SELECTED
OBJECT'S PATH. MOVE THE MOUSE AND LEFT-CLICK TO PLACE A PATH
POINT FOR THE OBJECT. YOU CAN ALSO CLICK [-] TO DELETE THE LAST
PLACED PATH POINT. TO GIVE THE OBJECT A PATROL POINT, THAT IS AN
AREA IN WHICH THE OBJECT WILL TRAVEL AROUND AND PATROL, PRESS
THE [P] KEY. WHEN THROUGH PLACING AN OBJECT'S PATH, PRESS [ESC].
USING GROUPS
GROUPS ARE A COLLECTION OF OBJECTS THAT CAN BE SAVED OR
MANIPULATED WITHIN THE MISSION EDITOR. THEY ARE VALUABLE TIME
SAVERS DURING MISSION CREATION. FOR EXAMPLE, YOU CAN CREATE
AN ENTIRE GROUP OF OBJECTS TO FORM AN INTERESTING TARGET AREA,
SAVE IT AS A GROUP, AND USE IT AGAIN AND AGAIN IN DIFFERENT
MISSIONS.
CREATING A GROUP
A GROUP OF OBJECTS IS CREATED BY SIMPLY LEFT-CLICKING, THEN
DRAGGING A BOX AROUND THE OBJECTS TO BE INCLUDED IN A GROUP.
ONLY ONE GROUP CAN BE ACTIVE AT A TIME IN THE MISSION EDITOR.
ADDING AND SUBTRACTING OBJECTS
DEPENDING ON THE “ADDITIVE GROUPS” SETTING WITHIN THE JEDIT.INI
FILE, OBJECTS CAN BE MADE PART OF OR REMOVED FROM THE CURRENT
GROUP. THE DEFAULT (ADDITIVE GROUPS = 1) SETTING ALLOWS THE
USER TO ADD OBJECTS TO THE CURRENT GROUP BY LEFT-CLICKING AND
DRAGGING A BOX AROUND THE OBJECT TO BE ADDED. AN ALREADY
SELECTED OBJECT CAN BE REMOVED FROM THE CURRENT GROUP BY
SELECTING IT AGAIN.
ALL OF THE OBJECTS CURRENTLY IN A GROUP CAN BE REMOVED USING
THE [BACKSPACE] KEY. ALTERNATELY, IF THE DEFAULT GROUP SETTING
IS DISABLED (ADDITIVE GROUPS = 0) IN THE JEDIT.INI FILE, ONLY THE
OBJECTS MOST RECENTLY SELECTED BY THE MOUSE ARE PART OF THE
CURRENT GROUP. ALL EARLIER SELECTED OBJECTS ARE REMOVED
FROM THE CURRENT GROUP.
MOVING A GROUP
WHEN ANY OBJECT WITHIN THE GROUP IS MOVED, ALL OBJECTS IN THE
GROUP MOVE WITH IT. THEY WILL MAINTAIN THEIR POSITIONS WITH
RESPECT TO ONE ANOTHER. ALSO, ANY GROUND TARGET LOCATIONS
WILL MOVE WITH THE OBJECTS THEY ARE ASSOCIATED WITH. PLEASE
NOTE: DO NOT TRY TO MOVE A GROUP OF OBJECTS BY SELECTING A
GROUND TARGET LOCATION WAYPOINT. ONLY THE GROUND TARGET
LOCATION IN THIS CASE WILL MOVE. ANY SUBSEQUENT MOVEMENT OF
THE OBJECT THAT IT IS TIED TO WILL CAUSE THE GROUND TARGET
LOCATION WAYPOINT TO MAINTAIN ITS PRESENT POSITION WITH RESPECT
TO THE OBJECT IT IS TIED TO.
UN-CREATING A GROUP
ALL THE MEMBERS OF A GROUP CAN BE REMOVED USING THE
[BACKSPACE] KEY. ALTERNATIVELY, IF THE “ADDITIVE GROUPS”
DEFAULT IS ON, YOU CAN REMOVE ALL MEMBERS OF A GROUP BY
SELECTING THEM AGAIN WITH THE MOUSE. IF “ADDITIVE GROUPS” IS OFF,
THEN ALL THE MEMBERS OF A GROUP CAN BE REMOVED BY SELECTING
AN AREA ON THE MAP WITH THE MOUSE THAT DOES NOT CONTAIN ANY
OBJECTS.
SAVING A GROUP
THE ABILITY TO SAVE A GROUP OF OBJECTS IS VERY HELPFUL AND A BIG
TIME SAVER. BY SAVING AN ENTIRE GROUP OF OBJECTS, YOU AVOID
HAVING TO REPEAT THE CAREFUL POSITIONING OF OBJECTS THAT IS
OFTEN REQUIRED TO CREATE INTERESTING TARGET AREAS. ALSO, WHEN
GROUPS ARE SAVED, THEY RETAIN ALL OF THE CUSTOM SETTINGS THAT
YOU HAVE APPLIED TO OBJECTS. YOU MAY EVEN FIND IT USEFUL TO
SAVE A “GROUP OF ONE” OBJECT THAT HAS PARTICULAR SETTINGS THAT
YOU USE OFTEN.
GROUPS OF OBJECTS CAN BE SAVED TO A FILE USING THE [SAVE
OBJECT(S)] BUTTON AFTER A GROUP IS SELECTED. YOU WILL BE
PROMPTED FOR A FILE NAME (THE DEFAULT IS THE NAME OF THE FIRST
OBJECT IN THE GROUP). THE MISSION EDITOR THEN SAVES A FILE WITH A
.GRP EXTENSION IN THE C:\JF3\MISSION\ DIRECTORY.
LOADING A GROUP
A GROUP SAVED AS A .GRP FILE CAN BE LOADED INTO THE MISSION
EDITOR BY SELECTING [OBJECTS], FOLLOWED BY [LOAD]. YOU WILL THEN
BE GIVEN A LIST OF .GRP FILES. SELECT ONE OF THESE FILES, CLICK ON
[OK], THEN CLICK ON THE MAP WHERE YOU WANT TO PLACE THE GROUP.
THE MISSION EDITOR WILL RENAME ANY OF THE OBJECTS IN THE GROUP
TO PREVENT NAME CONFLICTS. THE LOADED GROUP WILL THEN BECOME
THE CURRENT GROUP AND WILL ABOLISH ANY GROUP THAT WAS
CURRENTLY ACTIVE (REGARDLESS OF THE “ADDITIVE GROUPS” SETTING).
NO FURTHER COPIES OF THE GROUP CAN BE PLACED UNLESS THE
“LOAD” BUTTON IS USED AGAIN.
GROUP ‘HOT KEY’ FUNCTIONS
THE ARE THREE HOT KEYS THAT ACT AS TOGGLES TO DISPLAY AND
REMOVE OBJECT DATA FOR THE WHOLE GROUP. THE [G] KEY TOGGLES
LABELS INFORMING YOU OF ALL THE OBJECTS THAT ARE CURRENTLY
SELECTED FOR THE GROUP. THE [R] KEY TOGGLES THE DETECTION
RANGE DISPLAY FOR THE GROUPED OBJECTS. THE [;] KEY TOGGLES THE
OBJECT HEADING ARROW DISPLAY FOR THE GROUPED OBJECTS.
CREATING EVENT BOXES
EVENT BOXES ARE POLYGONAL AREAS ON THE MAP THAT ARE USED TO
TRIGGER THE INITIALIZATION OF OBJECTS WHEN THE PLAYER FLIES INTO
THE DEMARCATED REGION. YOU CAN CREATE UP TO FOUR EVENT BOXES.
EVENT BOXES ARE USEFUL IN TRIGGERING EVENTS WITHOUT CONCERN
OVER HOW MUCH TIME THE PLAYER TAKES TO FLY THE MISSION.
THE CREATION OF EVENT BOXES IS NOT COMPLETELY STRAIGHT
FORWARD. THIS WAS DONE MAINLY TO ALLOW FOR A WIDE VARIETY OF
BOX SHAPES. BASICALLY YOU PLACE A SERIES OF BOX ‘CORNERS’ IN A
CLOCKWISE FASHION. FROM THREE TO SIX CORNERS CAN BE PLACED TO
CREATE THE POLYGONAL AREA.
(NOTE: WAYPOINTS CAN NOT BE GROUPED AND MOVED AS A UNIT. IF YOU
MUST MOVE AN EVENT BOX, EACH BOX CORNER MUST BE MOVED
SEPARATELY. THE USER MUST TAKE CARE TO MAINTAIN THE CLOCKWISE
NATURE OF THE BOX CORNERS TO AVOID ANY COMPLICATIONS FOR THE
GAME ENGINE TO DETERMINE THE BOX SHAPE.)
TO CREATE AN EVENT BOX, FIRST SELECT [WAYPOINTS], [ADD NEW], THEN
CLICK ON THE MAP. YOU CAN THEN ENTER THE NAME OF THE FIRST BOX
CORNER. WE RECOMMEND USING THE FOLLOWING NAMING CONVENTION:
“BOXA1”. SUBSEQUENT BOX CORNERS CAN BE NAMED BOXA2, BOXA3,
ETC. A SECOND EVENT BOX CAN BE NAMED BOXB1, ETC. ONCE YOU
HAVE TYPED IN A NAME AND PRESSED [ENTER], YOU ARE SHOWN THE
GENERAL WAYPOINT VARIABLE SCREEN. SELECT “WAYPOINT TYPE” AND
CLICK ON THE RIGHT ARROW UNTIL THE MESSAGE “BOX #1 CORNER”
APPEARS. THIS IS THE WAYPOINT TYPE TO BE USED FOR THE FIRST
EVENT BOX. (FURTHER RIGHT CLICKS BRING UP CORNERS FOR BOXES 2
THROUGH 4.) CLICK THE [OK] BUTTON TO COMPLETE THE BOX CORNER
CREATION.
THE REST OF THE BOX CORNERS CAN NOW BE EASILY CREATED USING
THE [WAYPOINT], [COPY] FEATURE. WHEN PLACING NEW BOX CORNERS,
BE SURE TO PLACE EACH SUBSEQUENT CORNER IN A CLOCKWISE
MANNER ON THE MAP WINDOW. HIT [ESC] TO EXIT FROM THE COPY MODE.
IF YOU HAVE PROPERLY PLACED THREE TO SIX BOX CORNERS, YOU CAN
NOW VIEW BOX #1 BY PRESSING AND HOLDING THE TOP-ROW [1] KEY.
LINES WILL BE DRAWN TO EACH BOX CORNER IN THE ORDER THEY WERE
CREATED WITH THE LAST CORNER BEING CONNECTED TO THE FIRST. IF
YOU CONSTRUCTED THE EVENT BOX CORRECTLY, YOU SHOULD SEE THE
BOX CORNERS CONNECTED TOGETHER IN A MANNER SUCH THAT NO
CONNECTING LINES CROSS ONE ANOTHER. IF THIS IS THE CASE, YOU
HAVE A VALID EVENT BOX. WE CAN MAKE NO GUARANTEES ON WHAT
REGION IS DETERMINED BY THE GAME ENGINE TO BE THE EVENT BOX IF
THE CLOCKWISE CORNER PLACEMENT IS NOT FOLLOWED.
OBJECTS IN THE GAME CAN NOW BE SET TO A DELAYED INITIALIZATION
DEPENDENT ON THE PLAYER FLYING INTO THE EVENT BOX. OBJECT
INITIALIZATIONS BASED ON EVENT BOX 1 ARE SET BY LEFT-CLICKING ON
THE OBJECT WHILE PRESSING AND HOLDING THE TOP-ROW [1] KEY. THE
INITIALIZATION STATUS OF ALL OBJECTS IN THE GAME CAN BE
DETERMINED BY PRESSING THE “GOTO OBJECT” BUTTON. OBJECT
INITIALIZATIONS FOR BOXES 2, 3, AND 4 ARE SET BY LEFT-CLICKING ON
THE OBJECT WHILE PRESSING AND HOLDING THE TOP-ROW [2], [3], AND [4]
KEYS RESPECTIVELY. AN OBJECTS INITIALIZATION STATUS CAN BE
RESET BY LEFT-CLICKING ON THE OBJECT WHILE PRESSING AND
HOLDING THE TOP-ROW [0] KEY.
SAVING AND FLYING YOUR MISSION
ONCE YOU HAVE CREATED A MISSION, YOU WILL WANT TO SAVE IT TO
DISK AND TRY IT OUT. BECAUSE MISSIONS ARE STORED IN ONE FILE,
THEY ARE EASY TO EXCHANGE WITH OTHER JETFIGHTER III USERS.
SAVING YOUR MISSIONS
SIMPLY PRESS [SAVE MISSION] TO SAVE THE CURRENT MISSION. THE
MISSION WILL BE SAVED UNDER THE CURRENT FILE NAME. IF YOU WANT
TO SAVE THE MISSION UNDER A DIFFERENT FILE NAME, YOU CAN USE THE
[SAVE MISSION AS] BUTTON.
MISSIONS ARE STORED IN THE JF3\MISSION\ SUBDIRECTORY. YOU CAN
SEND YOUR MISSIONS TO FRIENDS SIMPLY BY SENDING THEM THE .IMF
FILE THAT YOU CREATED. YOU DON’T HAVE TO SEND ANY OTHER
INFORMATION, ALTHOUGH YOUR FRIEND MUST HAVE A COPY OF THE
MISSION EDITOR IN ORDER TO RUN THE MISSION.
FLYING THE MISSION
TO FLY THE CURRENT MISSION, SIMPLY PRESS THE [FLY] BUTTON. IF YOU
HAVE NOT SAVED YOUR MISSION, YOU WILL BE PROMPTED TO DO SO
BEFORE FLYING IT.
WARNING
IT IS POSSIBLE THAT YOU MAY CREATE A SITUATION IN YOUR MISSION
THAT THE SIMULATOR DOES NOT UNDERSTAND. WE HAVE TRIED TO
INCLUDE WARNINGS ABOUT SITUATIONS THAT WILL CAUSE THE
SIMULATOR TO “CHOKE” ON A MISSION, BUT THERE ARE CERTAINLY STILL
SOME WAYS TO “CONFUSE” JETFIGHTER III WITH A STRANGE MISSION
SITUATION.
IF YOU CREATE A MISSION THAT CAUSES THE SIMULATOR TO “HANG”
WHEN YOU PRESS [FLY], YOU WILL NEED TO TRY TO TRACK DOWN THE
OFFENDING CONDITION AND REMOVE IT. IT IS A GOOD IDEA TO TEST FLY
YOUR MISSIONS OFTEN DURING DEVELOPMENT. THIS WILL LET YOU
“DEBUG” THE MISSION MORE EASILY.
OTHER FEATURES
MISSION EDITOR SETTINGS
CLICK ON THE [CONFIG PANEL] BUTTON TO HIDE/REVEAL THE OPTION
BUTTON PANEL ON THE JETFIGHTER III GRAPHIC. THESE ARE THE
VARIOUS SETTINGS THAT CAN BE MODIFIED:
GROUP ACTIVE
WHEN A GROUP IS SELECTED, THE LIGHT WILL BE ON. CLICK ON THE
LIGHT TO DE-SELECT THE ACTIVE GROUP.
MAP HOTSPOT
WHEN ACTIVE, WILL CREATE A 3X3 HOTSPOT AROUND OBJECTS THAT
MAKE THEM EASIER TO SELECT.
AUTO ATTACH
WHEN ACTIVE, PATH POINTS WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY ATTACHED TO
NEARBY WAYPOINTS.
PATROL DEFAULTS
WHEN ACTIVE, DEFAULTS WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY USED TO DEFINE AN
OBJECT'S PATROL RADII AND REVOLUTIONS.
OBJ TYPES
OBJECT TYPES WILL BE DISPLAYED ON MAP UNDER THE OBJECT NAME.
GROUP STATUS
IF OBJECT IS A MEMBER OF THE ACTIVE GROUP, THIS WILL BE DISPLAYED
ON MAP UNDER OBJECT NAME.
KEYBOARD CONTROLS
SOME SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE MISSION EDITOR ARE AVAILABLE ONLY
THROUGH KEYBOARD CONTROLS. BE SURE TO CHECK THIS LIST OF
CONTROLS FOR FEATURES YOU MAY FIND USEFUL.
[CURSOR
UP]
[CURSOR
DOWN]
[CURSOR
LEFT]
[CURSOR
RIGHT]
[HOME]
[END]
[DELETE]
[PAGE
DOWN]
[{]
[}]
[F7-F10]
[M]
[PAGE UP]
[T]
[G]
[INSERT]
[BACKSPAC
E]
[~]
[-]
[+]
[R]
[;]
[1-4]
[0]
[5]
[6]
[LEFT SHIFT]
[RIGHT
SHIFT]
[/]
[K]
[F1-F5]
SCROLL MAP NORTH
SCROOL MAP SOUTH
SCROLL MAP WEST
SCROLL MAP EAST
MAP PAGE UP
MAP PAGE DOWN
MAP PAGE LEFT
MAP PAGE RIGHT
ZOOM MAP IN
ZOOM MAP OUT
AUTO ZOOM LEVELS (300, 175,
25, 1)
BRING UP WORLD MAP (MAX
ZOOM)
TOGGLE OBJECT NAMES
DISPLAY
TOGGLE OBJECT TYPES
DISPLAY
TOGGLE OBJECT GROUP
MEMBER STATUS DISPLAY
TOGGLE OBJECT EXTENTS
DISPLAY
RELEASE GROUP
TOGGLE INFO DISPLAY
WAYPOINT CYCLE BACKWARDS
WAYPOINT CYCLE FORWARDS
TOGGLE GROUP DETECTION
RANGES
TOGGLE GROUP HEADINGS
ASSOCIATE OBJECT(S) TO
EVENT BOX 1-4
DISASSOCIATE OBJECT(S) FROM
EVENT BOXES
RANDOM SAM/AAA FIRING RATE
(EASIER)
RANDOM SAM/AAA FIRING RATE
(HARDER)
LONGITUDINAL AXIS LOCK
LATITUDINAL AXIS LOCK
DROP SURVEY MARKER
REMOVE BATTLE GROUP
CONFIGURATION TOGGLES
[C]
TOGGLE CONFIGURATION
PANEL
MISSION CREATION CHECKLIST
THE FOLLOWING CHECKLIST CAN BE USED AS A GUIDE TO MAKING
MISSIONS WITH THE MISSION EDITOR. THIS OUTLINE WAS PUT TOGETHER
BY OUR MISSION DESIGNERS AND GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF HOW TO
APPROACH CREATING A COMPLEX MISSION.
1. CHOOSE A LOCATION BY CLICKING IN ONE OF THE RED HIGHLIGHTED
AREAS ON THE MAP.
2. CLICK ON THE CONDITIONS BUTTON TO SETUP THE ENVIRONMENTAL
CONDITIONS. HERE YOU CAN CHANGE THE DEFAULT SETTINGS FOR
TIME, CLOUD ALTITUDE, CLOUD TYPE, MISSION AUTHOR, MISSION
TITLE, AND MISSION DESCRIPTION. CLICK OK WHEN FINISHED.
3. DECIDE IF YOU WANT TO START IN THE AIR OR ON THE GROUND. YOU
CAN SET UP THE PLAYER AIRCRAFT EITHER IN THE AIR OR ON THE
CARRIER.
I. PLAYER AIRCRAFT STARTING IN THE AIR.
A. CHOOSE OBJECT / ADD NEW BUTTON.
B. CLICK ON MAP TO PLACE OBJECT AND GIVE IT AN
APPROPRIATE NAME. (PLAYER)
C. NOW SELECT ONE OF THE PLAYER AIRCRAFT FROM THE
OBJECT LIST. THIS CAN BE AN F/A-18, F-14, OR F-22. CLICK
OK.
D. USE THE MOUSE TO SET THE HEADING AND LEFT CLICK.
E. SET ALTITUDE (BY DOUBLE CLICKING AND TYPING A VALUE
OR BY USING THE ARROWS).
F. SET SPEED (BY DOUBLE CLICKING AND TYPING A VALUE
OR BY USING THE ARROWS).
G. SET THE WEAPON LOADOUT FOR THE PLAYER BY DOUBLE
CLICKING ON THE WEAPON FIELDS AND ENTERING VALUES.
TO FINISH CLICK OK. PLEASE CONSULT THE JF3 MANUAL
FOR INFORMATION ON SPECIFIC WEAPON LOADOUT
INFORMATION.
II. PLAYER STARTING ON THE CARRIER.
A. CHOOSE OBJECT / ADD NEW.
B. CLICK ON MAP TO PLACE OBJECT AND GIVE IT AN
APPROPRIATE NAME (CARRIER).
C. NOW SELECT NIMITZ CLASS CARRIER FROM THE OBJECT
LIST. CLICK OK.
D. USE THE MOUSE TO SET THE HEADING AND LEFT CLICK.
E. SET SPEED (0 TO 40 KNOTS).
F. SET RELATIONSHIP TO PLAYER TO A FRIENDLY.
G. SET POSTURES TO DEFEND AGAINST FOR ALL TYPES.
H. SET WEAPONS CIWS TO 2000 AND SAM TO 4 SO THE
CARRIER CAN DEFEND ITSELF WITH SAM MISSILES IF
HOSTILE AIRCRAFT FLY INTO THE AREA.
I. CLICK OK.
J. CLICK ON PATHS. IF YOU GAVE THE CARRIER SPEED IT IS
NICE TO GIVE IT A PATH TO FOLLOW AS WELL.
CLICK DOWN WAYPOINTS FOR THE CARRIER TO FOLLOW.
PRESS [ESC] WHEN FINISHED.
L. NEXT CLICK ON CARRIER DECK.
M. USING THE ARROW BUTTONS, SELECT A CARRIER
CATAPULT POSITION TO TAKE OFF FROM.
N. SET THAT POSITION TO ONE OF THE PLAYER AIRCRAFT
TYPES USING THE RIGHT AND LEFT ARROW BUTTONS.
CLICK OK.
O. CLICK MODIFY.
P. SET THE WEAPON LOADOUT FOR THE PLAYER BY DOUBLE
CLICKING ON THE WEAPON FIELDS AND ENTERING VALUES.
TO FINISH CLICK OK. PLEASE CONSULT THE JF3 MANUAL
FOR INFORMATION ON SPECIFIC WEAPON LOADOUT
INFORMATION.
Q. YOU CAN ALSO PUT DOWN SCENERY OBJECTS ON THE
CARRIER BY CLICKING THROUGH THE DIFFERENT
CATAPULT POSITIONS AND SELECTING AN OBJECT TO
PLACE IN THAT POSITION.
4. GIVE THE PLAYER A WINGMAN.
I. WINGMAN STARTING IN THE AIR.
A. CHOOSE OBJECT / ADD NEW.
B. CLICK ON MAP TO PLACE OBJECT AND GIVE IT AN
APPROPRIATE NAME (WINGMAN).
C. NOW SELECT AN AIRPLANE TYPE FOR THE WINGMAN.
D. USE THE MOUSE TO SET THE HEADING AND LEFT CLICK.
E. SET ALTITUDE.
F. SET SPEED.
G. SET RELATIONSHIP TO PLAYER TO A FRIENDLY.
H. SET WINGMAN ATTRIBUTE TO 1 (BY CLICKING THE RIGHT
ARROW BUTTON).
I. NOW SET THE FORMATION FOR THE WINGMAN (USING THE
RIGHT AND LEFT ARROW BUTTONS).
J. SET WEAPONS.
II. WINGMAN STARTING ON THE CARRIER.
A. CLICK ON CARRIER DECK.
B. SELECT A CATAPULT POSITION FOR THE WINGMAN TO
TAKE OFF FROM (USING THE UP AND DOWN ARROW
BUTTONS).
C. SET THAT POSITION TO ONE OF THE AIRPLANE TYPES
(USING THE RIGHT AND LEFT ARROW BUTTONS).
D. CLICK MODIFY.
E. SET WINGMAN ATTRIBTUE TO 1 (BY CLICKING THE RIGHT
ARROW BUTTTON).
F. NOW SET THE FORMATION FOR THE WINGMAN (BY USING
THE RIGHT AND LEFT ARROWS)
G. SET WEAPONS FOR WINGMAN
5. DECIDE WHAT KIND OF MISSION YOU WANT TO MAKE. FOR OUR
EXAMPLE WE WILL BE MAKING AN AIR-TO-GROUND MISSION WITH TWO
GROUND TARGETS AND TWO AIR TARGETS OVER THE TARGET AREA.
K.
THESE DEFENDERS WILL NOT SHOW UP UNTIL THE PLAYER GETS WITH
IN A CERTAIN RANGE OF THE TARGET AREA.
6. WAYPOINT PLACEMENT MUST TAKE THESE FACTORS INTO
CONSIDERATION.
A. LOOK ON THE MAP FOR A GOOD PLACE TO HAVE YOUR ENEMY
BASE. LANDING STRIPS, RIVERS AND VALLEYS MAKE GOOD
PLACES FOR BASES.
B. DISTANCE IS A FACTOR, AS MISSIONS THAT ARE TOO LONG
BECOME BORING, ESPECIAL IF THE SCENERY IS UNINTERESTING.
MAKE SURE TO SURE TO PLACE WAYPOINTS BETWEEN 10 AND 80
MILES APART. ANY SHORTER AND THEY SEEM POINTLESS -- ANY
LONGER IT GETS BORING. A LONG TRIP WITH MORE WAYPOINTS
IS MORE FUN THAN FLYING 200 MILES FROM ONE WAYPOINT TO
THE NEXT.
C. PLAN OUT A GOOD PATH FOR WAYPOINTS VARYING THEM SO
THEY DO NOT HAVE TO FLY THE SAME PATH TWICE. FLYING
STRAIGHT TO YOUR TARGET AND STRAIGHT BACK IS NOT
ALWAYS THE MOST INTERESTING WAY TO FLY OR THE MOST
STRATEGIC PATH, EVEN THOUGH IT IS THE SHORTEST ROUTE.
D. USE THE SCENERY TO PLAN YOUR WAYPOINTS, SUCH AS HAVING
THE PLAYER FLY LOW THROUGH A VALLEY TO AVOID SAMS.
E. REMEMBER TO PLACE A WAYPOINT DIRECTLY OVER THE BASE
THAT WILL BE ATTACKED. IT WILL SERVE AS THE TARGET AREA
DESIGNATOR.
7. PLACING WAYPOINTS.
A. CHOOSE WAYPOINTS / ADD NEW.
B. CLICK A SPOT ON THE MAP TO PLACE YOUR FIRST WAYPOINT.
C. ENTER A NAME FOR THE WAYPOINT (WPT1).
D. THIS WAYPOINT WILL NOT BE RELATIVE TO ANOTHER OBJECT.
LEAVE AS ABSOLUTE.
E. SET ALTITUDE RELATIVE TO THE GROUND.
F. THIS WAYPOINT WILL BE A NAVIGATION TURN POINT.
G. CLICK OK.
H. NOW CHOOSE WAYPOINTS / COPY.
I. CLICK ON YOUR FIRST WAYPOINT.
J. PROCEED TO PLACE THE REST OF YOUR WAYPOINT JUST BY
CLICKING ON THE MAP. IT WILL AUTOMATICALLY INCREMENT
THE NUMBER OF THE WAYPOINT.
K. REMEMBER YOU WANT TO PLACE A COUPLE WAYPOINTS
LEADING TO THE BASE AREA, THEN PLACE A WAYPOINT NEAR
THE BASE TO SERVE AS THE TARGET AREA DESIGNATOR, AND
FINALLY A COUPLE WAYPOINTS LEADING BACK (BUT NOT
INCLUDING) TO THE CARRIER.
L. TO CHECK DISTANCES ON THE MAP, POSITION THE CURSOR
OVER ONE END-POINT ON THE MAP. PRESS THE [/] KEY TO PLACE
A DISTANCE MARKER. PRESS THE [~] KEY TO CYCLE THROUGH
MODES IN THE INFO DISPLAY BOX IN THE UPPER RIGHT CORNER
OF THE SCREEN. THIS INCLUDES LAT/LONG, TERRAIN ALTITUDE,
AND DISTANCE FROM MARKER INFORMATION.
M. AFTER PLACING ALL YOUR WAYPOINTS USE THE + / - KEYS
ALONG THE TOP-ROW TO CYCLE THROUGH THE WAYPOINTS TO
LOOK AT THEM AND MAKE ADJUSTMENTS. USE THE WAYPOINTS
/ MOVE AND WAYPOINTS / DELETE BUTTONS TO DO THIS.
N. AFTER SAVING, CLICK ON THE FLY BUTTON TO MAKE A DRY RUN
OF THE WAYPOINTS. DURING FLIGHT NOTE ANY CHANGES YOU
WOULD LIKE TO MAKE IN POSITION OR ALTITUDE. VARY THE
ALTITUDE OF THE WAYPOINTS A BIT TO MAKE IT MORE
INTERESTING.
8. CREATING AN ENEMY BASE WITH A HANGER AND A HARDENED
BUNKER.
A. USE THE TOP-ROW +/- KEYS TO GET TO THE WAYPOINT THAT YOU
WANT YOUR ENEMY BASE LOCATED.
B. NOW ZOOM IN BY PRESSING THE [F-7] KEY. THE [F-10] WILL ZOOM
YOU ALL THE WAY OUT WHILE [F-9] AND [F-8] ARE MEDIUM ZOOM
SETTINGS. THIS WILL ALLOW THE WAYPOINT TO BE AT THE VERY
MIDDLE OF THE SCREEN AND ZOOM YOU IN ENOUGH SO YOU CAN
SEE THE RELATIVE GROUND POSITIONS OF THE BUILDINGS THAT
YOU ARE ABOUT TO PLACE.
C. CHOOSE OBJECT / ADD NEW.
D. CLICK ON MAP TO PLACE OBJECT AND GIVE IT AN APPROPRIATE
NAME (HANGER).
E. NOW SELECT TYPE HANGER FOR YOUR FIRST BASE OBJECT.
F. USE THE MOUSE TO SET THE HEADING OF THE BUILDING. THIS
WILL CHANGE THE FACING ANGLE OF THE BUILDING.
G. SET RELATIONSHIP TO PLAYER TO AN ENEMY.
H. SET MISSION GOAL EFFECT TO OBJECT MUST BE DESTROYED.
THIS PARTICULAR OPTION LETS THE SIMULATOR KNOW THAT
THIS OBJECT MUST BE DESTROYED TO DISPLAY THE MISSION
COMPLETE MESSAGE.
I. NOW REPEAT THE ABOVE STEPS TO CREATE A BUNKER.
POSITION THEM SOMEWHAT CLOSE TOGETHER.
J. WITH YOUR TWO GROUND TARGETS PLACED PRESS THE [INSERT]
KEY TO BRING UP A BOX AROUND EACH THAT REPRESENTS
HOW BIG THIS OBJECT IS.
K. YOU CAN NOW REPOSITION THEM HOWEVER YOU LIKE BY
CLICKING ON THE OBJECT / MOVE BUTTON THEN ON THE OBJECT
YOU WISH TO MOVE. CLICK AGAIN TO PLACE IT ON THE MAP.
L. BY CLICKING ON THE HEADINGS BUTTON AND CLICKING ON AN
OBJECT ON THE MAP YOU CAN ROTATE THE OBJECT.
9. ADD YOUR GROUND TARGETS TO THE TARGETING COMPUTER.
A. CHOOSE WAYPOINTS / MODIFY.
B. CLICK ON THE WAYPOINT DIRECTLY OVER YOUR ENEMY BASE
C. SET THE WAYPOINT TYPE FIELD TO TARGET AREA. IN THE
SIMULATOR WHEN FLYING THE MISSION THIS WILL MAKE THE
WAYPOINT OVER THE BASE RED IN THE NAVIGATION COMPUTER
ON THE HUD. THIS DESIGNATES A GROUND TARGET AREA IN THE
SIM.
D. NOW THAT YOU HAVE YOUR TWO GROUND TARGETS AND YOUR
TARGET AREA SETUP YOU NEED TO ADD THE TARGETS
THEMSELVES TO THE TARGETING COMPUTER. THE FIRST STEP IN
THIS PROCESS IS TO CREATE A NEW WAYPOINT WITH THE
WAYPOINTS / ADD NEW BUTTON.
E. CLICK ANYWHERE ON THE MAP BECAUSE ONCE YOU SET IT UP IT
WILL POP TO THE CORRECT POSITION.
F. GIVE IT A NAME (TARGET1).
G. SET POSITION BASIS RELATIVE TO OBJECT.
H. SET WAYPOINT TYPE TO TARGET IN WEAPONS COMPUTER.
PLEASE CONSULT THE JF3 MANUALS FOR THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN GROUND TARGETS IN THE NAV COMPUTER AND
WEAPONS COMPUTER.
I. DOUBLE-CLICK REFERENCE OBJECT AND SELECT HANGER.
CLICK DONE.
J. CLICK OK AND THEN THE WAYPOINT YOU JUST CREATED WILL
POP TO A POSITION RIGHT ON TOP OF YOUR TARGET.
K. REPEAT THE ABOVE STEPS TO ADD THE BUNKER TO THE
TARGETING COMPUTER AS WELL.
L. NOW YOU HAVE TWO GROUND TARGETS IN THE TARGETING
COMPUTER THAT MUST BE DESTROYED IN ORDER TO COMPLETE
THE MISSION. AT THIS POINT IN THE MISSION YOU SHOULD BE
ABLE TO HIT THE FLY BUTTON AND FLY YOUR WAYPOINTS AND
DESTROY YOUR TWO GROUND TARGETS AND GET THE MISSION
COMPLETE MESSAGE.
10. ADDING ENEMY PLANES.
A. SELECT OBJECT / ADD NEW.
B. CHOOSE A PLACE TO PUT YOUR TWO ENEMY PLANES. CLICK ON
MAP TO PLACE THE FIRST OBJECT AND GIVE IT AN APPROPRIATE
NAME (BANDIT1).
C. NOW SELECT AN AIRPLANE TYPE.
D. USE THE MOUSE TO SET THE HEADING AND LEFT CLICK.
E. SET ALTITUDE.
F. SET SPEED.
G. SET RELATIONSHIP TO PLAYER AS AN ENEMY.
H. SET WEAPONS.
I. CLICK OK.
J. CHOOSE THE PATHS BUTTON.
K. PLACE ALL BUT THE LAST WAYPOINT.
L. POSITION THE CURSOR BY THE ENEMY BASE. INSTEAD OF LEFT
CLICKING PUSH THE [P] KEY WHICH WILL ORDER THE PLANE TO
PATROL AROUND THIS LAST WAYPOINT.
11. DELAY THE ENEMY PLANES WITH THE USE OF AN EVENT BOX.
A. THE ENEMY PLANES WILL NOT BE INITIALIZED UNTIL THE PLAYER
ENTERS THIS BOX. PICK A PLACE BETWEEN YOUR TARGET AREA
WAYPOINT AND THE PREVIOUS WAYPOINT TO SETUP YOUR
EVENT BOX.
B. CHOOSE WAYPOINTS / ADD NEW.
C. CLICK A SPOT ON THE MAP TO DEFINE THE UPPER-LEFT CORNER
OF THE EVENT BOX.
D. ENTER A NAME FOR THE WAYPOINT (A1).
E. SET WAYPOINT TYPE TO BOX #1 CORNER.
CLICK OK. YOU NOW HAVE THE FIRST CORNER OF YOUR EVENT
BOX MADE.
G. NOW CHOOSE WAYPOINTS / COPY.
H. CLICK ON YOUR FIRST WAYPOINT.
I. THEN PROCEED TO PLACE THE REMAINING EVENT BOX CORNERS
JUST BY CLICKING ON THE MAP IN CLOCK-WISE ORDER.
J. NEXT PRESS AND HOLD THE [1] KEY. YOUR BOX WILL SHOW UP
OUTLINE. NOW WHILE HOLDING THE [1] KEY DOWN, CLICK ON
THE TWO ENEMY PLANES. THIS WILL ATTACH THEM TO THIS BOX
AND DELAY THEIR ACTION UNTIL THE PLAYER ENTERS THE BOX.
K. YOU CAN CHECK WHICH OBJECTS ARE ATTACHED TO WHICH
EVENT BOXES BY USING THE [GOTO OBJECT] BUTTON. IT WILL
LIST EACH OBJECT IN THE GAME AND TELL YOU IF IT HAS
DELAYED INITIALIZATION.
12. EXTRAS
A. CLICK ON THE BUILD FLEET BUTTON AND THEN CLICK ON THE
CARRIER OBJECT. THIS WILL BUILD THE BASIC CARRIER GROUP
THAT IS NORMAL SEEN ACCOMPANYING THE CARRIER.
B. ADD SAMS AND AAA ALONG THE PLAYER’S WAYPOINT PATH AND
AT THE TARGET SITE USING THE OBJECTS / ADD NEW BUTTONS.
C. ADD SCENERY OBJECTS THAT HAVE NO DIRECT BEARING ON
MISSION OUTCOME BUT MAKE THE ENVIRONMENT MORE ALIVE.
F.
MISSION CREDITS
MISSION EDITOR PROGRAM
DANIEL KAUFMANN
FLIGHT TRAINING
MISSIONS 1-13
THOMAS PHILBIN
OPERATION HURRICANE
MISSIONS 1-10
BRIAN BOUDREAU / SCOTT SLATER
OPERATION CAGED SAINT
MISSIONS 1-65
DANIEL KAUFMAN / BRIAN BOUDREAU
OPERATION SEWARD’S GHOST
MISSIONS 1-10
BRIAN BOUDREAU / SCOTT SLATER
OPERATION DRAGONSLAYER
MISSIONS 0-4
ROGER RAY
MISSIONS 5-39
ROBERT WHITNEY
MISSIONS 40-63 ROGER RAY
OPERATION FALSE DAWN
MISSIONS 1-10
ROGER RAY
OPERATION GORDIAN’S KNOT
MISSIONS 1-15
ROBERT WHITNEY
MISSIONS 16, 20, 24, 28-32
ROGER RAY
MISSIONS OF THE WEEK
MISSIONS 800-807, 810-813, 817-818 ROGER RAY