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Our Current Campaign

Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2018 2:35 pm
by Woop
IL-2 Sturmovik: Cliffs of Dover 'Blitz'

Leaning Forward 'Blitz'

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With ACG becoming a multi-platform Group, completing its first set of Campaigns on IL-2 Sturmovik: Great Battles and the Battle of Britain before that, this post is intended to give you a clear picture of what's on offer, how it all works together, and what you'll need to be ready to rock and roll. The above titles are the game-platform being used, and the name of the current Campaign.

IL-2 Sturmovik: Cliffs of Dover 'Blitz' Image

As we know, 1CGS has partnered with Team Fusion Simulations to codify and improve their previous mod work and make it an official part of Dover. The release of BLITZ is part of the overall plan to release additional products for what we are calling the Dover Series. The Dover Series will co-exist beside our Great Battles Series. The two series will not be compatible with each other and likely cover different theaters of the war for the foreseeable future, but together both series will give you many options for gameplay and awesome content to enjoy.

Team Fusion has spent the past several years improving and fixing issues in the original Cliffs of Dover since it's initial release. Their work has greatly improved performance and fixed serious issues. Earlier this year, 1CGS gave the source code to TFS allowing them to further improve the title. Their work is now officially a commercial product and no longer just a mod. Below is some of what is included in BLITZ.

More information

IL-2 Sturmovik: Great Battles SeriesImage

What does 'BoX' mean?
This sim began life as IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad and has since had two expansions released, these being Battle of Moscow and Battle of Kuban. BoX is a short, catch-all term that refers to 'Battle of X', rather than referring to a particular expansion.

The Modules:
At this time, there are three BoX modules. These are Battle of Stalingrad, Battle of Moscow, and Battle of Kuban, with Battle of Bodenplatte announced for pre-order just recently. Each module contains four aircraft per side, with an option for two extra 'collector' planes.

Battle of Stalingrad:
LaGG-3 Ser. 29
Yak-1 Ser. 69
IL-2 AM-38 (mod. 1942)
Pe-2 Ser. 87
La-5 Ser. 8 (Collector Aircraft)

Bf-109 F-4
Bf-109 G-2
Ju-87 D-3
He-111 H-6
Fw-190 A-3 (Collector Aircraft)


Battle of Moscow:
I-16 Type 24
MiG-3
IL-2 AM-38 (mod. 1941)
Pe-2 Ser. 35
P-40E-1 (Collector Aircraft)

Bf-109 E-7
Bf-109 F-2
Bf-110 E-2
Ju-88 A-4
MC.202 Ser. VIII (Collector Aircraft)


Battle of Kuban:
Yak-7b
P-39 L-1
IL-2 AM-38F (mod. 1943)
A-20B
Spitfire Mk.VB (Collector Aircraft)

Bf-109 G-4
Fw-190 A-5
Bf-110 G-2
He-111 H-16
Hs-129 B-2 (Collector Aircraft)


Battle of Bodenplatte:
P-51D
P-47D
Spitfire Mk.IX
Tempest Mk.V
P-38L (Collector Aircraft)

Bf-109 G-14
Bf-109 K-4
Fw-190 A-8
Me-262
Fw-190 D-9 (Collector Aircraft)


Additional Collector Aircraft:
Yak-1b
La-5 FN

Ju-52/3m
Bf-109 G-6


Battle of Blyat - Weird Russian Version of BoS:
LaGG-3 Ser. 29
Bf-109 F-4
Don't have a lot of information on this one, what I do know comes from Geordie who purchased it on GoG. This version gives you two aircraft from the start and requires you to unlock the rest through singleplayer grinding. Geordie also warned me that 1C may terminate non-Russian accounts using this version. Avoid purchasing BoX through third-party sites like GoG and other CD key resellers to avoid getting stuck with this version.

FAQ:

What are 'Collector Aircraft'?
Collector Aircraft are typically bundled with the 'premium' version of each module, but sometimes are just separate aircraft that serve as DLC of sorts. You don't need to buy the premium version of a module to get the Collector Aircraft, however. Once that module is out of early access, they can be purchased separately.

What does 'premium' mean?
The premium version of each module includes two Collector Aircraft (one per side) and allows early access to the module's content if you pre-order. 'Pre-order' is a sort of funny term in this case. These modules have a fairly long development cycle, during which only the premium version of the module is available for pre-order. This grants you early access which allows you to use the new content as it is added. Once the entire package is complete and released, the standard edition is available to all.

How does all of this work together?
These modules are part of the IL-2 Great Battles series. The first module that you buy (whether that's Battle of Stalingrad, Moscow or Kuban) will serve as a base platform for all content that you buy thereafter. Upon launching BoX for the first time, you will be asked to create an account on the IL-2 website and activate your code for the module you bought. From this point on, all BoX content you purchase will be linked to this account which you will log into every time you play. For example, the first one I purchased was Battle of Stalingrad. I launch this via Steam and have access to all other content linked to my account (BoM, BoK, several collector aircraft). Please note: If you wish to buy Battle of Moscow only, you will need to do this on 1C's website. You cannot purchase Battle of Moscow on Steam without first owning Battle of Stalingrad.

What about content I don't own?
Even if you don't own some aircraft, you can still fly against them, and even man the gunner positions on those that have them. You also do not need to own a map to fly on that map in multiplayer. If you only own Battle of Stalingrad, you could go online and fly the Kuban map no problem, provided the mission includes aircraft from the Battle of Stalingrad planeset (most multiplayer servers have aircraft from each planeset available, so it's very unlikely you'll be excluded for not owning something).

So which one should I buy for the ACG move?
The first campaign we're looking at is planned to be Operation Barbarossa, meaning that the early-war planeset provided by Battle of Moscow is what you're looking for. If you can only afford (or only want) to get one module right now, this is likely to be the one you want. However, we have been and will continue to run regular BoX events that use aircraft from all modules, and while we do make an effort to provide the most inclusive aircraft set possible for these events, you may find yourself with very limited choices if you only own one module.

See https://il2sturmovik.com/ for more information.