23 May 2005
BG42

Battlegroup42 1.2 Released

Battlegroup42

Battlegroup42 1.2 Update ( For Battlefield:1942) is released!

Rejoin the war in Europe and the Pacific with Battlegroup42 for BF:1942! The Battlegroup42 team releases the next update to the original Battlegroup42 mod including 16 new maps, a readjustment of the Tiger, IS-2 and Panther-D to BG42 1.0 values, many numerous fixes to armor, AI, and weapons - including further adjustments to the AT weapons and map corrections and balancing of previous BG42 maps.

15 New Maps: The update includes 15 maps from the map makers at Clan MOB, including 9 never-seen-before maps, 2 modifications to classic BF maps, and Battlegroup42 adaptations of 4 maps from the EA Match Map Pack. (The EA Match Map Pack is required to play these last four maps. You can get the pack from EA.) Screenshots from these maps have been shared in earlier news postings, but in addition to screenshots already shown, there are some new ones from Operation U-Go, the last map added to the update.

The British and Japanese battle in Operation U-Go, a map set around the
March 1944 Japanese attack on India intended to seize British supplies in Assam

 

Previously shared screenshots from the new maps, Final at Bizerte, Operation Corkscrew, Battle of Overloon and Raid on Rabaul

The following are the items which have been addressed in this update:

1.2 Change List =============== Release 1.2 provides new maps and a readjustments of some changes introduced in 1.1. It also addresses as many long-standing BG42 known issues as well as significant map re-balancing to several maps. There is a small amount of new content in this build as well. 16 additional maps (9 new maps, 2 modified old maps and 4 conversions from the EA Match Map Pack) thanks to the efforts of Clan MOB's mapping group: ------------------------------------------------------------- MOB can be reached at: http://www.mob-clan.org/phpBB2/index.php (German Forums) http://www.mob-clan.org/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=30 (English Forums) Online (Conquest mode) play exists for the following maps: 4207-kokoda_path 4304-final_at_bizerte 4306-operation_corkscrew 4311-raid_on_rabaul 4403-Operation_Ugo 4410-battle_of_overloon 4410-clash_on_surigao 4503-Cologne 4504-volkssturm berlin_no_tanks stalingrad_no_tanks Limited single player support exists for the following maps from the EA Match Map Pack which requires the installation of EA's Match Map Pack BF1942 maps in order to load. If you do not have the Match Map Pack maps installed, you will experience Crash-To-Desktop (CTD) errors upon map load of these maps. The Match Map Pack can be downloaded from EA at: http://www.fileplanet.com/dl.aspx?/planetbattlefield/bf1942_match_mappack_v1.0.exe faid_pass operation_forager remagen The following EA Map Match Pack map does NOT have Single Player support due to problems with CTD when served as a Battlegroup42 map: the_great_pursuit which has been renamed 4312_the_great_pursuit for release in Battlegroup42. New content: ------------ Infantry changes: ----------------- Fixed deployable MG kit bug where MG could not be picked up and moved Increased pip convergence speed for ALL anti-tank weapons Adjusted #2 Pistol damage to compensate for slower ROF Minor adjustments to PPsh 1.1 Adjusted the ROF on MP18 Vehicle Changes: ---------------- Turret speed adjusted for Tiger, now returned to BG42 1.0 values Land speed for Tiger, IS-2 and Panther-D returned to BG42 1.0 values Increased penetration/projectile damage of T-34 and SU-122 Adjusted hull top and bottom armor of the Tiger to match Real Life specifications of 65mm vs 25mm Corrected Firefly armor to match shermans. Additional mesh corrections to improve performance DSHK now has proper icon JU-87g can now use reverse gears Tweaked the sights on the .50 cal on the Allied M3A1 & M5A1 to permit clear LOS to target Corrected double reload on torpedo planes Corrected LOD on the M10 Achilles Fixed the top of the turret armor on the Cromwell Adjusted Ho-Ni tank projectile Adjusted the KV-85 collision meshes Fixed network code in weasel Fixed aiming offset bug in Lee and DaimlerCorrected pasenger animation in Kettenkrad Adjusted Matilda hull armor Adjusted M18 tracks Adjusted IL 2M3 Bomblets for more effect Gameplay changes: ----------------- Adjusted PAK40 LOD Adjusted Stationery Gun LOD Carriers now rearm planes faster SinglePlayer bots do NOT use deployable MG kits due to crash Updated almost all tanks and SP guns to permit bots fire the hull guns more frequently All artillery adjusted to allow better AI use (adjustment recommendation from MasterChiefRulez) Adjusted Greyhound, Stuart, 105 and Sherman to permit AI to use hull guns Increased splash damage for Bison, BIshop, Brummbaer, Katyusha, M2A1 Howitzer,Nebelwerfer, Nimrod, Priest, Sexton, sIG33, Wespe and Zrinyi Added theater dependent mines (color matches theater) Notable Map Changes ------------------- Anguar: Added Destroyer Carrier is now the Enterprise, with Corsairs instead of Wildcats Adjusted balance by reducing Allied tanks Added more AA guns to balance against the Corsairs Alps: Adjusted bleed Removed PAK AT gun at first flag Battle of Korsun: removed German spawns from outpost on Russian side (known problem: although this is a grey flag, it is selectable as a spawn for Germans. Nevertheless, you can not spawn here unless flag has turned to Germans. Debrecen: Added Heavy Tanks reinforcements for both sides when forward bases are captured in order to assist in break-out Removed Parachutes Added Jeeps to middle bases when Russian base is captured by Germans Dnieper River: Eliminated parachutes Added DVSS conditional heavy tanks to aid either side in breakout Added jeeps when rearmost Russian base is captured Eliminated German armor from spawning at rearmost Russian base Liberation of Caen: Added an ammo box to the bridge CP Adjusted DVSS to help the allied break out Adjusted DVSS for additional British firepower when Germans have all flags Added AT guns or artillery placement for paratrooper defense Market Garden: Added Ostwind to Market Garden Added of infantry rafts on German side Added Artillery on windmill hill, overlooking bunker area on far side of main bridge DVSS conditional stronger tanks for Allies Removed FLAK36 gun by church Nancy: Balancing to even out Allied deficencies Tarp eliminated over Allied M12GMC moved due to interference Omaha Day 1: Removed Anti-Tank Guns (Historical Accuracy adjustment) Made midfield flags capturable by both sides Adjusted midfield flag locations Allied forces may not use Kubelwagons Operation Battleaxe: Adjusted DVSS so that tanks are available when entire midfield is captured by opposing team Operation Crusader: Added more tanks to forward bases via DVSS to reduce boredom of long drives from rear bases Added addtional Capture Point midfield Additional balancing Operation Mercury: Removed APCs Increased Ketterkrad spawn height to prevent damage to vehicles Paderborn: Increased spawn time for King Tiger Swapped two allied tanks for Jacksons Pegasus Bridge: Increased light levels (new nighttime settings) Added new midfield flags Significantly improved AI for CoOp play (thanks to beta tester, -=NC=-Larva) Pointe Du Hoc: Readjusted ticket bleed Stalingrad: DVSS conditional spawn of two tanks and APCs instead of one each for team NOT holding the middle flag. The Swamp: Adjusted ticket bleed Villers-Bocage: Updated map layout to include multiple entry points for Axis Added two kubelwagons when bases closet to Axis base are captured Adjusted British base AT gun to permit firing on bridge

We have been maintaining an updated list of Battlegroup42 installer mirrors. You will need Battlegroup42 1.0 or 1.1 installed in order to sucessfully update to 1.2. As noted above, you will also need the EA Match Map Pack in order to play the four adapted maps.

Discuss this post in our forums.

 

14 May 2005
BG42

Battlegroup42: Pacific Hotfix Release

Battlegroup42: Pacific

Battlegroup42: Pacific (For Battlefield:Vietnam) Hotfix Released - Version 0.11 Patch read for download!

After a busy week following the launch of Battlefield:Vietnams most comprehensive WWII conversion modification, the BG42 Development team is pleased to release our version 0.11 "Hotfix" patch for Battlegroup42:Pacific. The hotfix should be available on most of the file download sites and we're also tracking its availability in our list of Battlegroup:Pacific installer mirrors thread in our forums. Note that due to release logistics, we have decided to get the patch to our fans but have released the patch in a compressed RAR archive. You will need a tool such as the shareware WinRAR in order to expand the files. There is a readme in the root level of the archive explaining how to install the patch, along with a more detailed readme which installes to your /mods/Battlegroup42 folder. For our Linux Server Admins, we have released a Linux Server ready ZIP file along with the Windows files. (The Windows files will work on a client or a server.)

Items Addressed in Battlegroup42:Pacific Hotfix 0.11:

• Fixed: AT Grenades now have a weapon icon (They are on the kits with the anti tank rifles)
• Removed Shadow from buried landmine
• Fixed: Arisaka with Bayonet + Arisaka ammunition is now linked
• Fixed: Arisaka with Bayonet now reloads in clips, instead of bullets
• Added additional HUD so now you can read how many bullets you have while you're wielding an Arisaka with a Bayonet or a Garand with a Bayonet
• Katana reach has been lowered (damage and kill zone same)
• Removed Rifle Grenade from Japanese Deployable MG Class
• Nambu now has the pistol whip ability (new animations, not using the one that the colt is using)
• New animation for pistol whipping while Prone
• Changed Pistol whip animation for colt when the player is lying down
• Adjusted effects for less lag
• Fixed: Airplane launched rockets will now hurt vehicles
• Fixed: Airplane launched rockets now have splash damage
• Fixed "Q Map bug", Iwo Jima Tunnels and Pearl Harbour now work
• Fixed M1 Carbine reload animation (ending was wrong)
• Edited a few maps to have the correct name in the browsing window
• Fixed M3A1 Greasegun's reload animation (ending was slightly wrong)
• Altered spawn points for Wake + Peleliu
• Removed static smoke effect from Tarawa (Much less Lag)
• Added Static Crosshairs to all weapons
• Fixed RifleGrenade bug (exactly like Engineer Landmine bug)
• Increased splashdamage area for US Grenade
• New Animations for Japanese Type 100 SMG (Reload, Walking, Idle, Firing)
• Changed Type 100 SMG sound from that rifle(Type 5 I believe it was) to MP40
• Fixed bug where life rafts from PT boats weren't dieing as they should have been, this caused unneeded lag

If you're holding back from downloading the mod, perhaps a theme from our forum visitors may help you make your decision. Many early downloaders weren't sure whether or not Battlegrou42:Pacific would be just an expansion on EA's WWII mod. As the team expected, they were pleasantly surprised at the amount of vehicles, planes, tanks, weapnos, classes and maps -- not to mention the great feel of WWII gameplay that Battlegroup42:Pacific has brought to the Battlefield:VIetnam engine.

We've started a game screenshots thread in our forums and would like to share a few screenshots shared by player XSniper044.

We'd love to hear your comments and see your screenshots! Please come by the Official Battlegroup42 Forums and join the discussion!

 

9 May 2005
BG42

Battlegroup42: Pacific Update and Hotfix News | Battlegroup42 for BF:1942 Update

Battlegroup42: Pacific

Battlegroup42: Pacific ( For Battlefield:Vietnam) Releases last weekend. Commemorate V.E. day - 'Re-enlist' for THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC!

Although we have had a very successful release with 2000 downloads and player levels around 100 over the weekend, we would like to apologise for the original delay in making the files available. We had set release for 1800GMT and the first downloads for players were not available until midnight. We are sorry for any inconvenience or disappointment caused.

We have been maintaining an updated list of Battlegroup:Pacific installer mirrors. There are three installers available, the stand-alone client (you do not need EA's WWII mod to play BG42:Pacific), a Windows server-only installer, or a Linux server-only installer. (You do not need the server in order to play BG42:Pacific in CoOp or Single Player mode.) For ease of access, We've put a partial list in this news posting.

As anyone who has been on our very busy forums has noticed, the team has been paying careful attention to feedback and the performance of the game. We have a Hotfix in the works and plan on releasing it this weekend. Watch for our announcement of when the Hotfix will be available!

One of the exciting new features of BG42:Pacific is the inclusion of 'iron sights' on most of the weapons. This is a feature available for the first time in a Battlegroup42 mod and while we're happy with the results, we'd love to hear your thoughts about this new immersion detail for gameplay. Join us in our forums to discuss the iron sights.

 

New 'iron sights' for most weapons add new levels of realism to WWII combat in the pacific!

 

In the rush to make the release available we also forgot to include the music playlist details and an up-to-date Map details with CoOp support noted in the read me file. Here is the information about the Maps and the music tracks along with a download mirror list as of May 9, 2005. Check the forums for the latest mirror list.

Map List (CoOp support and level noted) 07Dec41-Pearl Harbor (with limited bot support) - by =AB=EDO 08Dec41-Wake (with bot support) 22Dec41-Philippines (with bot support) 08May42-Coral Sea (with bot support) 04Jun42-Midway (with bot support) 07Aug42-Guadalcanal 08Aug42-Gavutu Islands - by Mac/Truppo/BG42 (with bot support) 12Sep42-Henderson Airfield - Rubber_Dog 20Nov43-Tarawa - by KMan (BG42 alumni) 15Sep44-Peleliu - by Brenil 17Sep44-Angaur 19Feb45-Iwo Jima (with bot support) 20Feb45-Iwo Jima Tunnels 26Mar45-Phlippines Liberation - by Op Anubis mod   Download Mirrors for Client (As of 9-May-2005) Servers & Updated List Here North American Sites BFV Files/File Front BFWorld GamersHell DX.AmpedNews PlanetBattlefield/FilePlanet Info to download from Clan {DM} Drunken Masters German Sites: BattlefieldVietnam.net

Here are the various music tracks included in the mod: Marine Playlist (ground vehicles): Bless 'Em All Honey Baby (I don't wanna B.A.R.) Gee, I Wanna Go Home (back to Quantico) The Man In The Moon The Marines Hymn United States Marines Wake Island US Forces playlist (aircraft and ships): American Patrol - Glen Miller and His Orchestra, 1942 A String of Pearls - Glen Miller and His Orchestra, 1942 G.I. Jive - Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five, 1944 In The Mood - Glen Miller and His Orchestra, 1939 On the Sunny Side of the Street - Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra, 1945 The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy - The Andrews Sisters, 1941 Japanese playlist: Awa Odori Hanagasa Ondo Kagoshima Ohara Bushi Soran Bushi Tanko Bushi Main Battlegroup42 Theme: Sickle Shaped Moon by John 'Hoolak' Hudson Map Theme Music: 07Dec41-PearlHarbor: In The Mood 08Dec41-Wake: Wake Island 22Dec41-Philippines: Honey Baby 08May42-Coral Sea: American Patrol 04Jun42-Midway: The Man In The Moon 07Aug42-Guadalcanal: Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy 08Aug42-Gavutu Islands: Bless 'Em All 12Sep42-Henderson Airfield: Marine Hymn 20Nov43-Tarawa: Gee, I Wanna Go Home 15Sep44-Peleliu: Kagoshima Ohara Bushi 17Sep44-Angaur: G.I. Jive 19Feb45-Iwo Jima: US Marines 20Feb45-Iwo Jima Tunnels: Tanko Bushi 26Mar45-Philippines Liberation: On The Sunny Side Of The Street

Discuss this news posting at our forums.

Battlegroup42 for BF:1942 Nearing Release, New Map Added!

With all the excitement around the release of Battlegroup42:Pacific for Battlefield:Vietnam, we haven't stopped moving forward with our newly renamed Battlegroup42 1.2 patch. Keep checking back, we expect a release date any day now! The fine folks at clan [MOB] have outdone themselves and have added yet another new map for the Battlegroup42 1.2 patch: 4403 Operation U-Go, a map set around the March 1944 Japanese "attack on India intended to seize British supplies in Assam, inspire a rising by the Indian populace against British rule and to take pressure away from the US advances in the Western Pacific" (credit Imperial War Museum text). Operation U-Go brings up the count of new BG42 for BF:1942 to 15 (9 brand new, 2 classic maps with no tanks, and 4 from the EA BF:1942 Match Map Pack - which will required to play these 4 maps.)

Discuss this news posting at our forums.

4 May 2005
BG42

BATTLEGROUP42 PACIFIC: ISLAND ASSAULT
COMPLETE WORLD WAR TWO PACIFIC ACTION COMES TO THE BFV ENGINE!

It's time to fight the bloody Pacific campaign from the skies over Pearl Harbor to the tunnels under Iwo Jima!

At long last the eagerly awaited opportunity of fighting WW2 with wide ranging accurate U.S. and Japanese weapons, tanks and planes on the currently most advanced Battlefield engine has arrived! This Friday, Battlegroup42:Pacific is released for the Battlefield:Vietnam engine. This is the first release of the Battlegroup42 Historical Accuracy and Teamwork Mod on the BFV engine, and this release concentrates on the Pacific theatre. Besides content from BG42 and specially built items for this release, it not only includes all the DICE BF42 Pacific maps but also converted Battlegroup42 BF42 maps, community BF42 maps and a bunch of new BFV WW2 maps. It also incorporates content from the Battlegroup42 (BF42), The Lost Battalion and Operation Anubis mods.

Highlights include:

• Maps include Midway, Coral Sea, Gavutu, Angaur, Pearl Harbor, Iwo Jima Tunnels, Tarawa, Peleliu and Philippines Liberation.
• 3D ironsights on small-arms.
• New US small-arms including the Grease Gun, M1 Carbine and deployable Browning HMG.
• New Japanese small-arms including the Katana sword, Arisaka, MP18 and deployable Woodpecker HMG.
• New US vehicles including M3 Stuart light tank, Sherman Ronson flamethrower tank, LVT4 amtrac, LVT(A)1 amphibious tank, M3 Scout car,
  M50 Quad 50cal, M16 mobile quad 50cal, M3 tank destroyer, Long Tom coastal defence gun, Jimmy truck, open topped M3A1 halftrack with
  sidemount 30cals.
• New Japanese vehicles including Ha-Go light tank, Ho-Ni tank destroyer, Te-Ke tankette, 8inch coastal defence gun, Ho-Ki personnel carrier, Isuzu truck.
• New aircraft including F4F-3 Wildcat, rocket firing P-38 Lightning, B5N Kate and G4M Betty. Also napalm-carrying Corsair on Iwo Jima
  (one of the first combat uses of the bomb).
• New ships including the Essex and Taiho.
• New effects including vehicle exhausts, tank flamethrower, vehicle headlights on night maps, breath condensation on cold maps, smoke grenades,
  smoke columns from burning vehicles, and dogfighting smoke trails.

Your country is calling you!

Enlist at 1800GMT on Friday 6th May 2005 on a server near you.

Server admins who would like to have a server running for this release please post in our server thread on our forums.

 

Discuss this post at our forums.

Already have BG42 for BF:V?, come by our forums and let us know your thoughts!

2 May 2005
BG42

Release date set for Battlegroup42 For BF:V | Development Team Update

Battlegroup42 for BF:V

Work continues on all fronts with the development team. While we're tightening up a few things on BG42 1.2 that we've discovered while beta testing, we've exciting news regarding BG42 for BF:V. We're happy to announce that BG42 for BF:V is in final beta testing and we expect to to post the first release of this exciting new version of BG42 this Friday!

While developing BG42 for BF:V, we've been happy to work with a more advanced Battlefield engine. This week, we thought we'd share with you some of the exciting new animations we've worked into the gameplay. We feel these not-so-little details contribute greatly to the BG42 style of gameplay. The following low-resolution videos are in Quicktime format for this news posting.

As with all pre-release media, these should be considered works in progress and we will certainly continue to refine and improve upon the work to date!

Bobton's work on the Heavy Machine Guns (Browning 50cal shown)
incorporates realistic dust kicking up as the gun fires.

 

Bobton has improved our damaged plane and exploding plane animations.
Air kills have never been so satisfying!

 

Of course, there's always the other side of things...
here's the airplane animation when you are on the receiving end.

 

Bobton has added random debris from shell impacts.
Our demonstration here is from the shoregun.

 

This clip shows the effectiveness of the Rifle mounted AT Grenade against the
relatively weak armor of a Japanese tank. Check out the end,
though, at Bobton's pillar of smoke from wrecks. These pillars last long
enough that you may see 2-3 of them in heavily contested areas!
(Note that we are working on the final coloration of this animation.)

 

We'd like to finish up and show our BG42 for BF:1942 fans how the mortar works in the BF:V engine.
Our mortar is, for the time being, close to the DICE mortar but we have ideas for future improvements.

 

Development Team Update

The BG42 Development team welcomes Mindfly to the development team. We also welcome Colonel Angus to our ever-growing ranks of beta testers.

Discuss this post at our forums.