Using+Mr.+Jelly's+Loadout+Editor

Using Mr. Jelly's Loadout Editor

by Rotton50 and Crashin' Jack NOTE:When Rotton50 released his weapons mod (available here: http://www.sandbaggereaw.com/rotton50add.html ), it required the use of Mr. Jelly's Loadout Editor. The Loadout Editor didn't have much for instructions, so Rotton50 wrote a simple explanation in an email that is the basis for this tutorial. Once you understand how to use it, the editor is quite flexible, and a lot of fun to play around with! Cheers! Crashin' Jack The Loadout Editor is available here: http://members.aol.com/bakerinnodesign/MrJellysLoadoutEditor.zip

INSTALLATION After downloading the program, unzip it into a folder of your choice. You should have the following files: LOBinEdit.exe Loadout.dat Locations.txt Mounts.txt Planes.txt Weapons.txt The loadout editor can be installed anywhere you like. Be aware that if it is installed in the EAW main directory and OAW is in use, most of the files will be deleted when the "Reset" button in OAW is used. I like to put it one level above the default install, i.e. C:\Program Files\MicroProse Software. At this level, I can have several installs in the MicroProse Software directory and access them with ease. Also, the text files can be edited to your liking. If your flying in the Pacific, or instance, you could change all the planes’ names to reflect that theater, though it’s not necessary. Cut and paste the file "Loadout.dat" into your main EAW directory. The default for this is C:\Program Files\MicroProse Software\European Air War. This is the file you will actually be editing. Now, right click on "LOBinEdit.exe" and choose "create Shortcut." Drag or cut and paste this to your desktop so it's handy. Now you are ready!

USING THE EDITOR When you click on the shortcut to open the program, the first thing you see is a directory window. Navigate to the main EAW folder containing the Loadout.dat you want to edit. Highlight the Loadout.dat file and click the open button. This closes the directory window and opens the Loadout Editor itself. The Editor has two tabs at the top labeled "Choose Plane" and Loadout Data." On the "Choose Plane" tab, you will see a list of aircraft on the left and an area called "Section #2 Data." We'll talk about the data section in a bit. There is also a light blue box that tells you which file in which directory you are editing, so you are sure to be in the right one. Many people have more than one install of EAW, and it can get a bit confusing at times. On the right side you will see four buttons. "Exit" will close the program, "Load Loadout" will allow you to select another loadout file without having to restart the program. "Insert a block" inserts a new aircraft in the list, and "Delete a block" should remove one from the list, but doesn't seem to work. Looking at the aircraft list, you will note there are multiple instances of most aircraft. Each listing represents a different loadout for the aircraft. The P-47s have many listed, for example, because there are so many loadout options.

SELECT A PLANE TO EDIT - Doubleclick on the first listing of any plane. This will automatically open the "Loadout Data" tab. Once again, you will see a light blue box across the top telling you which file is loaded for editing. To the right of this is the "Exit" button. Clicking on this button will exit the program without saving any changes. You will also see a bright yellow box warning you that this is the default "no loadout" record. In EAW, the first selection for any aircraft is always no loadout. This slot may normally be empty, but it can be used, and I see no reason to NOT use this slot - otherwise, after creating a custom loadout you will have to go to the arming screen to select it. If you use this slot, it will automatically be loaded as your default loadout. In the light orange box you'll see the plane and loadout selection number that is being edited. This is the same as the aircraft you originally slected to edit on the "Choose Plane" tab. The + and - signs on either side of the light orange box toggle you backward and forward to the next loadout option and eventually to the next plane. You can cycle through all the planes and their loadout options right in this box but it's faster to go back to the "Choose Plane" tab and scroll down to the new plane you want to edit and then double click to select it.

EDITING THE LOADOUT - The number of blocks in the gray box next to the light orange box refers to the hardpoints where the ordinance will hang. For example, if you want this selection to have a drop tank on the belly and a 500 lb bomb under each wing you would set this block to 3. you can have up to 5 different points. Also, remember that the model you want to hang these from has to have corresponding hardpoints in the 3dz model for the weapons to show. If not, the weapons will work but they won't show on outside views. Next are the white boxes where you select the number for each ordinance on each hardpoint. Mostly it's for the rockets because they're the most likely to have multiple mountings. For bombs and drop tanks most times this number will be 1, with an exception - if you have the bombs set for internal rather than the underwing mounts, you can have multiple bombs because they're in a bomb bay.

Next is the light green box where you actually select the weapon. You can select any weapons you want here. You can put axis weapons on allied planes and vice versa. Next is the light blue box where you set which "rack" will be displayed for the weapon. All regular bombs and drop tanks use the "simple mount" option. The rockets use the correct corresponding rack. For example, if you selected three 5" HVAR rockets in the light green box you would select the "Rocket Rail 5"HVAR X 3 rack. The yellow box sets the position where the weapon will show on the outside view. CAUTION, these do not always work as expected. The only way to get the weapons to view properly is to set them up and view them inside the game. I've seen positions all the way up to "error 8" viewable in the game. The light purple box at the bottom sets the delay between weapons release. For example, the 5" HVAR rockets launch in a ripple pattern, not all at once and if you watch a B-17 unload its' bombs they all don't come out at once. No one has been able to explain to me what the light orange box at the bottom does. That's it for actual editing of a loadout. There are some additional buttons in the top right area of the "Loadout" tab. The most important is the "OK: Binary Edit!" button. Click this when you are done editing and it will save your changes. You can delete a record if you want. Just toggle to the one you don't feel you need and hit delete. You can also, add a record the same way. Click on the pink "insert a record here" button and you'll have duplicate of the record you were on. You can then edit the new record. I don’t know what the "Save ***.lox" button is for, though I suspect it's for OAW. Now, back to the "Choose Plane" tab. The "Section #2 Data" box sets the priority that the game will use to select a loadout for each different type of mission. For example, the P-47's have a lot of selections but you don't want to be carrying bombs if the mission is "escort" so you set the priority for drop tanks, which might be loadout option #3 on a P-47 to the first priority for escort missions. Or, if the mission was interdiction, you would want bombs and rockets so you find which loadout number had bombs and rockets and make it the first priority. This is only really important until you are the squadron commander, then you can select the ordinance you want on the ordinance screen.

NOTE: On all these boxes on both tabs, you need to hit the insert edit values button or "OK Binary Edit" button each time you make a change. If you move to another selection it won't remember the change. HINT: As noted above, if you add ordinance to the first record you will have that ordinance as the "default" loadout. This can be handy for helping boost your score when you are assigned a fighter sweep. Add 2 500 lb or 250kg bombs to the default loadout. When you first engage the enemy there will be an airfield nearby. Aim for the center of the field and drop the bombs. You should get credit for a destroyed airfield (255 points) before the action begins. If you get assigned an escort mission, just jettison the bombs over empty terrain.

February 18, 2007