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Thread: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

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    Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    Like some others I have been frustrated by the inability to put custom skins on static aircraft, and to place them where you want (they seem to spawn in the most ludicrous places if you try to spawn them in set to 'parked/idle' etc). Here is a slightly fiddly but workable solution (apologies to those experts who may have worked this out already but it could be useful for beginners like me!)

    Custom skins - it's well known that you can use flyable aircraft, dress them in your custom skin, set waypoint to 'take off' and fuel to zero - they will of course appear on the runway but can't move.

    However, screenshot makers often want to re-create iconic BoB photos, such as 32 sqn Hurricanes and 610 sqn Spitfires parked around the airfield at Hawkinge. This is how I've done it using runways:

    1. At, say, Hawkinge, create several airfields, each with a runway, one each per static aircraft. Place each runway where you want a static aircraft.

    2. Set each runway length to a small value (say 2 meters) and the width to very wide (say 2000 meters - this is so those annoying yellow boards disappear out into the countryside well out of the way). Position the centre of each runway where you want each static aircraft to appear.

    3. Place one aircraft dressed in your custom skin on each runway, waypoint set to take-off and fuel to zero.

    4. A combination of adjusting the runway direction with the numpad keys, and fiddling with wind direction, will enable you to have your aircraft facing in the direction you want.

    5. Very important - having created your mission, exit the game, delete cache and re-start game. This is because if you moved your runways around before finally saving, the yellow boards may appear where they were after a previous save - exiting and re-starting seems to clear some kind of a yellow board cache. After hours of bafflement when moving runways around resulted in yellow boards multiplying with each test of the mission, I finally hit upon the exit/re-start solution!

    I seem to recall someone (was it BOBC?) wanting to re-create photos of custom-skinned Jg26 109s parked amongst the trees - this might be a way of doing it.

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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    Hi Carbolicus,
    yes t'was me and I am excited to try this,:

    have you any screen shots showing 109s in amongst the trees to show the results. ?

    We share the same passion to recreate dispersal as it was, very photogenic and non sterile, BoB realism instead.
    Can we taxi out from those locations ...or is this for photographic recreation only ? happy either way but taxiing would be great, but zero fuel maybe not possible !
    Have we (our gods at ATAG) got access to coding to overcome this impass ?
    To have Luft groundcrew in the scene would be the next challenge, (not the army).
    Next would be good to be the view from the pilots eyes get out of chair walk to aircraft climb in and start up !

    BOBC.

    Quote Originally Posted by carbolicus View Post
    Like some others I have been frustrated by the inability to put custom skins on static aircraft, and to place them where you want (they seem to spawn in the most ludicrous places if you try to spawn them in set to 'parked/idle' etc). Here is a slightly fiddly but workable solution (apologies to those experts who may have worked this out already but it could be useful for beginners like me!)

    Custom skins - it's well known that you can use flyable aircraft, dress them in your custom skin, set waypoint to 'take off' and fuel to zero - they will of course appear on the runway but can't move.

    However, screenshot makers often want to re-create iconic BoB photos, such as 32 sqn Hurricanes and 610 sqn Spitfires parked around the airfield at Hawkinge. This is how I've done it using runways:

    1. At, say, Hawkinge, create several airfields, each with a runway, one each per static aircraft. Place each runway where you want a static aircraft.

    2. Set each runway length to a small value (say 2 meters) and the width to very wide (say 2000 meters - this is so those annoying yellow boards disappear out into the countryside well out of the way). Position the centre of each runway where you want each static aircraft to appear.

    3. Place one aircraft dressed in your custom skin on each runway, waypoint set to take-off and fuel to zero.

    4. A combination of adjusting the runway direction with the numpad keys, and fiddling with wind direction, will enable you to have your aircraft facing in the direction you want.

    5. Very important - having created your mission, exit the game, delete cache and re-start game. This is because if you moved your runways around before finally saving, the yellow boards may appear where they were after a previous save - exiting and re-starting seems to clear some kind of a yellow board cache. After hours of bafflement when moving runways around resulted in yellow boards multiplying with each test of the mission, I finally hit upon the exit/re-start solution!

    I seem to recall someone (was it BOBC?) wanting to re-create photos of custom-skinned Jg26 109s parked amongst the trees - this might be a way of doing it.

  3. #3
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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    Hi BOBC - Sorry about delay in responding, been moving house!

    Yes, I do have screenshots, e.g. 109s parked and realistically dispersed at Caffiers, complete with custom skins and historical tail markings, just need to find a way of posting them!

    And yes, you can taxi out etc in one a/c; to keep the others parked you set fuel to zero, otherwise they will automatically take off straight ahead.
    Last edited by carbolicus; Oct-05-2018 at 12:49.

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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    109's parked at Caffiers to demonstrate to BOBC and anyone else interested how you can place aircraft with custom skins where you like. (Hopefully the attachments will work...)
    Attached Images Attached Images

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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    Carbolicus,

    This is the best bit of news all year, it is my aim to replicate this.

    To be then able to taxi out is the ultimate goal as well.

    Have you this as code to open into Full Mission Builder so I might analyse it. see where the invisible runways are, something to check with as I create mine from scratch.

    Would love to see what photogenic realistic dispersal scenes others manage now.

    Just to check, these are CUSTOM skins, not default skins, so a good mix of created skins can give a really realistic scene.

    BOBC

    Quote Originally Posted by carbolicus View Post
    109's parked at Caffiers to demonstrate to BOBC and anyone else interested how you can place aircraft with custom skins where you like. (Hopefully the attachments will work...)

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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    BOBC - Yes, my own custom skins with historical Luftwaffe tail markings, easily created using MS Paint.

    No FMB coding as such, I have no idea how to do that, just placing runways 1 meter long and 2000 meters wide for each aircraft (see my post on this).

    Best of luck with this, some great historically accurate screenshots can be made!


    Quote Originally Posted by BOBC View Post
    Carbolicus,

    This is the best bit of news all year, it is my aim to replicate this.

    To be then able to taxi out is the ultimate goal as well.

    Have you this as code to open into Full Mission Builder so I might analyse it. see where the invisible runways are, something to check with as I create mine from scratch.

    Would love to see what photogenic realistic dispersal scenes others manage now.

    Just to check, these are CUSTOM skins, not default skins, so a good mix of created skins can give a really realistic scene.

    BOBC

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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    Hi Carbolicus, and all those trying this out,

    Its Christmas and the thing I have looked fwd to the most, apart from pressies and a lovely meal or two, is brushing aside the tasks of life and doing this, placing aircraft with full accurate markings amongst the trees !

    Do I have to use the spawn area aircraft list to tell the sim what aircraft I am placing on the runway or can I skip the spawn area stage.

    My steps are:-
    1. object browser>airfield with airfield runway option chosen
    2. Ctrl click the airfield which already has a runway set up, and get a second airfield.

    Q1. Not sure if I have to move the 0 spawn point anywhere or leave it at due west of my click.

    3. ctrl click again amongst trees and get a runway, make its width 2000m and length 2m

    Q2. not sure if I do what they do in tutorial videos such as Boyezee or Phil Style and delete all aircraft from spawn list then add Bf109E1 to allowed list. Do I need this lost to allow my creation of a Bf109E1 on the runway ? I am not spawning as such am I ?

    4. go object browser select aircraft and ctrl click on the icon at centre of this very thin runway.
    5. select the aircraft and make its object browser settings take off, fuel zero, choose its unit and markings.

    Q3. do I make it player, that way I could open the canopy for a better effect.

    Q4. If so, when I have added a few more, can I select each one and make it player and open canopy or will others shut back up ?

    8. to create a second aircraft I need to create another airfield, and repeat steps above.
    Is that correct, or can an airfield have many runways ?

    Q5. How do these aircraft get to taxi from the trees and take off down the airfield runway, the runway that was already set up on Caffiers by me a few months ago ?
    surely they will try and take off on their 2m long runway and fail ? How will they cope if their 2m long runway is in the rough area on the perimeter of the airfield ?


    So as to see what happens by ignoring spawn area list, I have added an Me109E1 made it player, 6_JG51 skin. Play mision and its sitting out on the airfield runway. exit sim and delete the runway and airfield that went with it. play and still its out on the runway. Also its a strange pale desaturated colour, and bright green and red fiery blobs about the cockpit.

    mission files attached here.

    How do I stop it sitting out in middle of airfield ?

    BOBC
    Last edited by BOBC; Jan-06-2019 at 18:17.

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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    Hi BOBC - I don't mess about with spawning, it's simpler than that. I've got to dash off now but watch this space over the next few days and once I've got some thinking time I'll answer your questions and add a few more screenshots.

    There is good news though, it can be done and I've been creating screenshots like the one you're after many times. I shall almost be disappointed once they fix it so you can put custom skins on static a/c! - although it will become a lot easier!

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    Re: Static aircraft custom skins and placement - useful tip for screenshots

    To answer questions:

    1. Leave spawn point where it is as you're not spawning anything and it does no harm.

    2. My method doesn't use those tutorial methods although they gave me the idea.

    3. Any a/c can be the player one, the non-player ones will just sit there and the engine will stop as no fuel (otherwise they will of course try to take off). Simple matter to shift/F2 to any a/c, then alt/F1 into the cockpit and open the hood to taste.

    4. Yes - you can go to any a/c, open the hood and it will stay open. However, if you move the control surfaces to get an effect, once you shift/F2 away from that a/c the elevators droop again.

    5. Also, only ONE a/c per little 'runway' - if you have a two-a/c formation they sit themselves out of the edge of your 'runway - 1000 meters away (right by the annoying yellow flags you have banished to the countryside by making your 'runway' 2000 meters wide!)

    Everybody's probably wondering if all this hassle is worth it - depends how badly you want a static screenshot of parked a/c with proper markings, open hood and a pilot sitting in it!

    Quote Originally Posted by BOBC View Post
    Hi Carbolicus, and all those trying this out,

    Its Christmas and the thing I have looked fwd to the most, apart from pressies and a lovely meal or two, is brushing aside the tasks of life and doing this, placing aircraft with full accurate markings amongst the trees !

    Do I have to use the spawn area aircraft list to tell the sim what aircraft I am placing on the runway or can I skip the spawn area stage.

    My steps are:-
    1. object browser>airfield with airfield runway option chosen
    2. Ctrl click the airfield which already has a runway set up, and get a second airfield.

    Q1. Not sure if I have to move the 0 spawn point anywhere or leave it at due west of my click.

    3. ctrl click again amongst trees and get a runway, make its width 2000m and length 2m

    Q2. not sure if I do what they do in tutorial videos such as Boyezee or Phil Style and delete all aircraft from spawn list then add Bf109E1 to allowed list. Do I need this lost to allow my creation of a Bf109E1 on the runway ? I am not spawning as such am I ?

    4. go object browser select aircraft and ctrl click on the icon at centre of this very thin runway.
    5. select the aircraft and make its object browser settings take off, fuel zero, choose its unit and markings.

    Q3. do I make it player, that way I could open the canopy for a better effect.

    Q4. If so, when I have added a few more, can I select each one and make it player and open canopy or will others shut back up ?

    8. to create a second aircraft I need to create another airfield, and repeat steps above.
    Is that correct, or can an airfield have many runways ?

    Q5. How do these aircraft get to taxi from the trees and take off down the airfield runway, the runway that was already set up on Caffiers by me a few months ago ?
    surely they will try and take off on their 2m long runway and fail ? How will they cope if their 2m long runway is in the rough area on the perimeter of the airfield ?


    So as to see what happens by ignoring spawn area list, I have added an Me109E1 made it player, 6_JG51 skin. Play mision and its sitting out on the airfield runway. exit sim and delete the runway and airfield that went with it. play and still its out on the runway. Also its a strange pale desaturated colour, and bright green and red fiery blobs about the cockpit.

    mission files attached here.

    How do I stop it sitting out in middle of airfield ?

    BOBC

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