Iwo Jima: Pre-Invasion Version

A small update...

... about the MR Marianas-Volcano Islands-Bonin Islands-B-29 related project.

Still working my way up to the northern edge of the mesh supplied by JP. The Northern most island group in the Bonins- the Nakanoshima Group- will be the last little group included.

At the moment I am busy developing and polishing up the Ogasawara Island Group- specifically Chichi Jima Island: Futami Harbor and Susaki Airfield. This kind of a nice break from those big huge B-29 airfield complexes.

Still have a way to go at ChiChi Jima. Then I will head back down to Iwo and do a very rough and ready B-29 version. Then back to Pagan to further develop and finish the airfield happening there.

Find attached the usual gratuitous screen shots!
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Really nice...without a doubt.

I can understand the switchover to a single airstrip being a relief Mask.
The work you did on the B-29 bases I imagine were a real brain bender. :mixedsmi:

Looking forward to 'em.

Dv
 
I am doing an ETO install. No wonder I keep buggering it up, looking at this stuff! Well, after I get it installed, I am heading straight back to the PTO. Man, those photos made me homesick! Thanks, Chris, you sure are churnin' them out! A+++, as always. :salute::ernae:
 
Thanks guys. Yeah, this Mariana/Volcano/Bonin Islands project has really been fun.

After a rather lengthy scenery building layoff this project has been a great way to get back in the groove. Lots of different/new kinds of problems and challenges. I have learned a lot.

And as always, there are lots of knowledgeable, talented, generous and appreciative people around SOH!

MR
 
Amazing!

Geeeeze, MR!

It doesn't even look like CFS2 anymore! What textures are you using, the ones converted from FSX uploaded here at the begining of June?

The fact you are working also on a pre-invasion Iwo version just gave me an idea:

How about keeping a set of your sceneries less built up, much as you did with the two Milne Bay versions few years ago?

I am still using them with two CFS2 installs: early and late Pacific Theatre.

Am I right when I say that most of your sceneries are mid-late 1944 onwards? I am talking about having a CFS2 theatre reflecting an intermediate period between stock CFS2, that is the geographical situation during the Guadalcanal campaign in late 1942, to about the year of 1943.

It shouldn't double up your work, just set aside what you did up until that time-frame as a separate scenery and then continue until you fill your scenery with all the runways and infrastructures necessary to represent late war airfields.

Two at the price of one without extra work involved, or am I thinking of something very dumb?

Cheers!
KH :ernae:
 
kelticheart said:
Geeeeze, MR!

It doesn't even look like CFS2 anymore! What textures are you using, the ones converted from FSX uploaded here at the begining of June?

The fact you are working also on a pre-invasion Iwo version just gave me an idea:

How about keeping a set of your sceneries less built up, much as you did with the two Milne Bay versions few years ago?

I am still using them with two CFS2 installs: early and late Pacific Theatre.

Am I right when I say that most of your sceneries are mid-late 1944 onwards? I am talking about having a CFS2 theatre reflecting an intermediate period between stock CFS2, that is the geographical situation during the Guadalcanal campaign in late 1942, to about the year of 1943.

It shouldn't double up your work, just set aside what you did up until that time-frame as a separate scenery and then continue until you fill your scenery with all the runways and infrastructures necessary to represent late war airfields.

Two at the price of one without extra work involved, or am I thinking of something very dumb?

Cheers!
KH :ernae:
Click to expand...

Jeez, KH, I apologize for the lateness of my reply to your post. It totally slipped right by me! Sorry, buddy.

WRT: the textures I am using: they are the PacTex Version 1 textures. The water textures are the stock CFS2.

WRT: pre-invasion Iwo and your very excellent thought of doing less developed/more deveoped early/late war versions of each airfield. Yes, the idea is a very good one. Iwo jima happen to veryy accidentally get thown into the mix on this "Mariana" project because I wanted to make full use of the mesh supplied by Jean Bomber- which goes all the way North to the Chichi Jimas.

Iwo happened to be there and thus it was a perfect opportinity to rework my old original version of Iwo from way back when.

I wish I could claim as much foresight and comprehensive contingency planning that you flatter me by thinking I might have. LOL! But I have to tell ya that I don't have any particular time frame in mind on the airfields I make. It really is a wide, location to location variety of considerations that determines what the final product ends up looking like.

My dream, after this project, is to completely redo all of the PI, Formosa and outlying- none mainland- Japanese Airfields airfields from my older work- the ones that have never been GSLized.

The idea about the less/more developed is a great one and believe me, I have considered doing just that. However, at this stage of the game the best I can think of is offering the scenery with less and more intense scenery object lay outs. And when I think of that I think- yes- but that is something that the end user can easily accomplish on their own. Hehe. So, let it be so!

WRT:
It shouldn't double up your work, just set aside what you did up until that time-frame as a separate scenery and then continue until you fill your scenery with all the runways and infrastructures necessary to represent late war airfields.
Click to expand...

Yeah, unfortunately it wouldn't be as simple as that. It really would be more of a doubling up of the work.:frown:

This reminds me of that over heard conversation in some Woddy Allen movie where two Hollywood types are discussing business:

Right now it's only a notion, but I think I can get the money to make it into a concept, and later turn it into an idea.
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LOL!
Chris
 
MaskRider said:
Jeez, KH, I apologize for the lateness of my reply to your post. It totally slipped right by me! Sorry, buddy.
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It's perfectly OK, MR! I only got to read it today, first time on the pc since I returned from my vacation.

MaskRider said:
WRT: the textures I am using: they are the PacTex Version 1 textures. The water textures are the stock CFS2.
Click to expand...

Well, I'll be.....I always thought PacTex 1 looked too light and sometimes sun-baked like an African environment! And CFS2 stock water to boot! I am speechlees about the end result!

MaskRider said:
....However, at this stage of the game the best I can think of is offering the scenery with less and more intense scenery object lay outs. And when I think of that I think- yes- but that is something that the end user can easily accomplish on their own. Hehe. So, let it be so!
Click to expand...

Sounds good. With MB's built-in GSL tools it shouldn't really be difficoult, other than the runways and taxiways net cannot be reduced as well, as they are part of the scenery textures. But it's a good idea, indeed, thank you! Are you thinking to release your new Marianas anytime soon?

Cheers!
KH :ernae:
 
Hi KH

other than the runways and taxiways net cannot be reduced as well
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Yes, well, I wish it were as convenient as it sounds! :) I am not adamantly opposed to such a notion. But the thought of it doesn't leave me breathless with excitement and enthusiasm either! But I do appreciate the nudging.

Let me ask, do you have any particular airfields in mind?

Are you thinking to release your new Marianas anytime soon?
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Well, I am working steadily on the project. All of the islands included in Jean Piere's extended mesh are completed/rebuilt as are the airfields and facilities found among them at various locations: Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands (Japanese occupation version); Chichi Jima (Bonin Islands): Susaki Airfield and Futami Harbor; Haha Jima (Bonin Islands): Oki Harbor; Pagan Island Airfield (Northern Marianas).

Instead of stopping as first planned at Iwo on the way back down to do an Emergency B-29 version, I instead continued south and am now heavily engaged at Isley and Kobler Fields, and Tanafag Harbor facilities, Saipan.

I was thinking of doing an interim release of everything so far- just as a link posted here on this thread perhaps. Probably should go ahead do so as there are an awful lot of files that could use some sorting out and forgetting about- not to mention some beta testing feedback.

I have also been tweaking the already released stuff to take advantage of new road and shoreline textures supplied by Jean Pierre and Fibber. In particular, JPs road and sandless wave textures have really come in handy. I also tweaked the ground texture at Tinian so that I am better satisfied with it now than when it was initially released. So I have been busy.

Any interest in an interim release of the pack as it stands now? It would be very helpful to me as a beta testing run.

Gratuitous screenshots: offshore reefs at Saipan; Chichi Jima- Futami Harbor (left) Susaki Sirfield (right); Chichi Jima Futami Harbor detail; Haha Jima- Oki Harbor
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A note of appreciation: Xavier's pier and breakwater object pack is truly a work of art. Really makes harbors look like something. Thanks Xavier!
 
kdriver said:
Yes please MR, I would be happy to test the scenery with all these new B-29s.
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Ok. Thanks kdriver. I think its a good idea. I will get something put together and uploaded in the next day or so.

Two more gratuitous screen shots: Tinian showing ground texture tweaking ( might not be able to tell) and changed road texture; Guam showing how the new road texture looks there. I am working to created a new road texture that will have a sand/crushed coral using JP's asphalt texture as a guide.
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MaskRider said:
......But the thought of it doesn't leave me breathless with excitement and enthusiasm either!
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Hi MR, by all means, your work had always been trailblazing for all of CFS2 addon scenery work! I always been waiting eagerly any release of your sceneries, when other people started employing your blended-scenery tecnique I jumped with joy!

Don't worry, mine were only ideas if a possibility was there, but you clearly stated it would mean a more complex and heavier job, which is simply rude and unkind to ask to anybody offering free-time work for everybody else to enjoy.

MaskRider said:
Let me ask, do you have any particular airfields in mind?
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No, not particularly. The idea came up when you talked about Iwo pre-invasion version and I recalled flying some Guadalcanal early campaign missions a while ago with your fully developed Henderson and surroundings installed and thinking I had to re-install a more undeveloped, almost stock-like scenery library in order to match the late 1942-early 1943 period I was flying in.


MaskRider said:
I have also been tweaking the already released stuff to take advantage of new road and shoreline textures supplied by Jean Pierre and Fibber.
Click to expand...

I probably missed them. I did a search here at SOH, but I couldn't find them. Where are they uploaded?

MaskRider said:
Any interest in an interim release of the pack as it stands now? It would be very helpful to me as a beta testing run.
Click to expand...

Yes, it would be nice doing some beta testing for you. Thank you!

Cheers!
KH :ernae:
 
Hiya KH,

Thanks for the posting. Lets see now:

The MR Marianas project is still very much ongoing. I am releasing it as attachments to threads.

First off below are links to the most recently released version of this Marianas Project- from back on July 18.

The name of the zip is mr_marianas_b-2a.zip. It contains all of the new Guam and Rota airfields along with Tinian which had been added to the original beta release of Guam and Rota.

Link to "Tinian" thread started on July 15

Link to post in Tinian thread containing link to mr_marianas_b-2a.zip, the most recent version of the Mariana Islands project.

I will be releasing a newer beta version of the MR Marioanas pack in a day or two.

It will be named mr_marianas_b-2b.zip.

mr_marianas_b-2b.zip will contain everything in mr_marianas_b-2a.zip along with total rework of all the islands north of Saipan up thru the Volcano and Bonin Islands. This will include brand new airfields at Pagan, Iwo Jima, Oki Harbor (FB facilities only) in the Haha Jima Group and finally Futami Harbor and Susaki Airfield in the Ogasawara (Chichi Jima) Group.

The next big release will be the mr_marianas_b-2c.zip.

mr_marianas_b-2c.zip will contain everything in mr_marianas_b-2b.zip along with 4 airfields on Saipan: Kobler, Isley, Kagman (East) Field and Marpi Point; and misc Saipan harbor facilities. Working on Isley right now.

Sometime after the release of mr_marianas_b-2C.zip will come the release of mr_marianas.zip.

mr_marianas.zip will be the final in-the-can version of this project and will be uploaded to the archives here at SOH. It will contain everything in mr_marianas_b-2C.zip, along with West Field, Tinian; the harbor facilities on Tinian and a B-29 version of Iwo Jima.

Now if all that that isn't clear as mud, then I don't know what to tell ya! :icon_lol:

Thanks KH, you are helping to keep me organized! I will get mr_marianas_b-2b.zip uploaded as soon as possible for beta testing- thanks for the offer to help out.

MR
 
Got it!

MaskRider said:
...Now if all that that isn't clear as mud, then I don't know what to tell ya! ......
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Crystal clear instead!

Just downloaded, thank you. Now I have to clean up my PTO install to have your scenery installed in a scenery conflict-free environment.

Jean's mesh and Fibber's coastlines are already in your pack or they must be downloaded separately? If so, can I abuse of your kindness asking you to post a link to them, please? :redface:

Cheers!
KH :ernae:
 
Hi KH.

Fibbers dirty shoreline texture is not included in the mr_marianas_b-2a.zip.

It along with several new shoreline textures by JP (Jean Bomber) will be included in the upcoming mr_marianas_b-2b.zip, described above. In fact JP may already have released these same shorline bmps in some of his previous sceneries. If so then whatever comes with mine will just over write whatever you already have installed.

MR
 
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