The greatness of Crimson Skies

Rekkon · Post by **Rekkon** » 2007-04-04 08:50pm

Anyone ever play the Crison Skies clickytech game? The mechanics were very similar to Blue Max/Canvas Eagles, but you used tiles instead of a hex map.

I absolutely hated the Xbox games. Same with what they did to MechWarrior with MechAssault. The original PC game was a ton of fun though. I was in a clan for a while, but online play always ended up as Devastator rocket fests.

The Bloodhawk and Hellhound were my favorites. The former since I liked speedy and nimble interceptors, and the other for just being badass. And Focke-Wulf. I do not recall seeing any Messerschmitt planes come to think of it...

The Dark · Post by **The Dark** » 2007-04-04 10:25pm

Bounty wrote:
You can download the stuff in that website? How? I need to know!
File->Save Page As. Rinse and repeat...at least, that should work for the text files.

And for the pages you can't normally do that with (the pop-up windows), just read the page name and manually enter it. You can pull those pages as standard HTML files.

I wish I could find the original box game. Clicky-tech isn't a gaming format I really like, and you can't design your own planes for it (which is half the fun anyway, for me).

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-04-05 12:09am

Does anyone know how to fix the garbled text problem?

EDIT - Sigh, texture problems. So now TWO of my old games I've tried to play again don't work - and AvP was awesome.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-05 03:57am

Stark wrote:Does anyone know how to fix the garbled text problem?

EDIT - Sigh, texture problems. So now TWO of my old games I've tried to play again don't work - and AvP was awesome.

What's the problem, exactly? There's something in the readme about running adobe products messing with text.

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-04-05 06:43am

No no, it's the old 'new cards don't like non-power-of-two textures' thing. In hardware mode the text is 'rainbow random textures' and it crashes trying to draw any text-heavy screen (like the instant action screen). And software mode is the uber suck.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-05 07:08am

Stark wrote:No no, it's the old 'new cards don't like non-power-of-two textures' thing. In hardware mode the text is 'rainbow random textures' and it crashes trying to draw any text-heavy screen (like the instant action screen). And software mode is the uber suck.

So my crappy old laptop can handle a game that the newest ubercards choke on?

Bwahaha

Sorry, that just made my day. Who knew that a Radeon Mobility could ever be good at something...

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-04-05 07:10am

Yeah, and I think it's a primarily Nvidia thing too. Many older games have *some* textures non-power-of-two, so some things aren't textured (like Arx Fatalis for instance). Apparrently it's an optimisation (power-of-two textures are easier to work with) but the side effect is it has a shit with crazy-sized textures. BAH!

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-06 10:39am

I'm on the blasted duel mission and it's insane. A Ford autogiro with a single .30 cannon against an entire wing of air pirates? I don't even think you have enoug bullets to shoot them all down

I'm trying to get the invincibility cheat to work, but I'm not having any luck with it. Help?

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-04-06 02:52pm

Khan's location is random, so you could perhaps restart the mission if you don't find him at the very first spot you check. That way you can avoid having your armour stripped-off by the couple of fighters that always appear in locations where Khan isn't. You could also just skip it, after getting shot down five times in a row that option is given to you.

I don't think it's impossible, you just have to take advantage of the Gyro's strengths to overcome its weaknesses. A skilled pilot in an Autogyro can make a turning fight into a losing proposition for anyone that tries it against him. You need to use your superior agility to put the enemy aircraft in your sights and keep them there. The other thing to keep in mind is, if there's someone on your tail, turn around and give them the business. You do not doggedly stick to one target, to do so is death. Your target should always be whoever last shot at you.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-06 03:13pm

Khan's location is random, so you could perhaps restart the mission if you don't find him at the very first spot you check.

I could try that.

You could also just skip it, after getting shot down five times in a row that option is given to you.

I know, I did play The Nefarious Trap

you just have to take advantage of the Gyro's strengths to overcome its weaknesses

It's got a tight turning circle and a low stall speed. That's it. I can dogfight in it - Khan himself is never a problem once he's softened up with flak and I can take on at least two of the Brigands - but after that the Gyro's Swiss cheese. I understand what you're saying about switching targets, I do that already, but I still think that mission is grossly unfair especially since my Peacemaker turns tight enough for the turns in that level...and it has 50 armour all over and .60 guns.

Throwing in the Hoplite seems like a cheap trick to make the level harder. The others - apart from Nefarious Trap - all made sense, why can't this one?

Netko · Post by **Netko** » 2007-04-06 04:27pm

I can already see you'll enjoy the one where you have to follow a Hoplite through the New York skyline - Hollywood fly-through-very-small-holes mission style. Thats probably the most annoying mission in the game.

Nephtys · Post by **Nephtys** » 2007-04-06 08:31pm

Netko wrote:I can already see you'll enjoy the one where you have to follow a Hoplite through the New York skyline - Hollywood fly-through-very-small-holes mission style. Thats probably the most annoying mission in the game.

That mission was awesome! Just like the holywood one. Hell, I did the stunt course with a Brigand for kicks.

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-04-06 09:53pm

Netko wrote:I can already see you'll enjoy the one where you have to follow a Hoplite through the New York skyline - Hollywood fly-through-very-small-holes mission style. Thats probably the most annoying mission in the game.

Umm, you don't have to follow the Hoplite through the New York skyline. Following it over the skyline is perfectly acceptable if you don't mind Nathan Zachary losing a bet about flying skill.

And as Nephytis says, that mission is awesome. A Fury or Bloodhawk is perfect for it.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-07 08:02am

Well, I got fed up with the mission and was about to skip it when I thought, "hey, I'm a pirate. I don't have to play fair!"

So I fitted the Hoplite with 4x dual .70 Goliaths with HE ammo, four hardpoints per wing with 32 flak rockets total and 60 armour all round. Whaddayaknow, that mission became a breeze

andrewgpaul · Post by **andrewgpaul** » 2007-04-07 09:02am

The Dark wrote: I wish I could find the original box game. Clicky-tech isn't a gaming format I really like, and you can't design your own planes for it (which is half the fun anyway, for me).

Here you go: Ebay auction.

There's also a few linked to on Boardgame Geek.

Also, there's quite a few of the supplement books available: list of auctions. I recommend Beyond the Crimson Veil (for additional rules) and The Airman's Gazeteer (for info about the rest of the world).

Now, if anyone can direct me to a copy of the Wizkids Black Swans squadron pack, I'd be most grateful.

The Dark · Post by **The Dark** » 2007-04-07 12:33pm

andrewgpaul wrote:Now, if anyone can direct me to a copy of the Wizkids Black Swans squadron pack, I'd be most grateful.

I've never seen it, but I'll check my local gaming store today. They have every other pack (which I have).

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-04-07 01:34pm

Bounty wrote:Well, I got fed up with the mission and was about to skip it when I thought, "hey, I'm a pirate. I don't have to play fair!"

So I fitted the Hoplite with 4x dual .70 Goliaths with HE ammo, four hardpoints per wing with 32 flak rockets total and 60 armour all round. Whaddayaknow, that mission became a breeze

How did you do that? You have to use a very specific stock Hoplite that you can't do modifications to.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-07 01:45pm

Adrian Laguna wrote:
Bounty wrote:Well, I got fed up with the mission and was about to skip it when I thought, "hey, I'm a pirate. I don't have to play fair!"

So I fitted the Hoplite with 4x dual .70 Goliaths with HE ammo, four hardpoints per wing with 32 flak rockets total and 60 armour all round. Whaddayaknow, that mission became a breeze
How did you do that? You have to use a very specific stock Hoplite that you can't do modifications to.

That you can't officially make modifications to

You can open the /savegames/[username]/status.dat file in a hex editor and mess around with all named planes (ie, your own designs plus the ones you commandeer or are given during the game)

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-04-07 10:30pm

Oh that's cool. I'll remember to make the best Hoplite I can then copy the stats over to the stock hoplite you get for that mission. You know, so that it's a possible combination.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-08 04:57am

Adrian Laguna wrote:Oh that's cool. I'll remember to make the best Hoplite I can then copy the stats over to the stock hoplite you get for that mission. You know, so that it's a possible combination.

There's a hex editing guide over at Gamefaqs. Copying the stats would still leave you with the weight limit, if you do it manually you can put >20.000 on a plane, easy

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-04-08 07:30pm

Keeping the weight limit is the point. I want a custom Hoplite that's still a possible Hoplite. Otherwise is outright cheating rather than compensating for one of the game's weaknesses.

Darth Yoshi · Post by **Darth Yoshi** » 2007-04-08 09:09pm

Adrian Laguna wrote:Khan's location is random, so you could perhaps restart the mission if you don't find him at the very first spot you check. That way you can avoid having your armour stripped-off by the couple of fighters that always appear in locations where Khan isn't. You could also just skip it, after getting shot down five times in a row that option is given to you.

I don't think it's impossible, you just have to take advantage of the Gyro's strengths to overcome its weaknesses. A skilled pilot in an Autogyro can make a turning fight into a losing proposition for anyone that tries it against him. You need to use your superior agility to put the enemy aircraft in your sights and keep them there. The other thing to keep in mind is, if there's someone on your tail, turn around and give them the business. You do not doggedly stick to one target, to do so is death. Your target should always be whoever last shot at you.

I've done the mission multiple times (going for stunt pics). The key is to not approach the Kestrels (IIRC) from the front or the rear. The front is obvious, as the Hoplite has no armor whatsoever. But the rear turrets on the Black Hat planes will chew you up just as badly. Always approach from an angle, using your crazy maneuverability to stay out of reach. Think of how the Hollywood Hoplites fly and copy that.

My best fighter is a custom Fury that sacrifices some of the rockets and downgrades the cannons for nitrous and armor. It's rated good all around, and explosive rounds work just as well as rockets. I really don't use rockets anyway, except in a head-to-head pass or on ground targets.

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2007-04-08 10:07pm

I'm good enough with rockets that I use Seekers as soon as I get them. It's harder to score a hit with them, but they do tremendous damage. A single seeker can turn a pristine aircraft into a smoking ruin that's barely flying.

Nephtys · Post by **Nephtys** » 2007-04-08 11:58pm

Instead of fighting Black Hat Kestrels, have you tried crashing them? Attempting Stunts in a hoplite has gotten me several kills because the big bombers can't keep up with your tight-quarters agility. Try using it at the rail yard and the Devil's Horn, to see if you can even get multiple enemies to crash.

Bounty · Post by **Bounty** » 2007-04-09 04:05am

Keeping the weight limit is the point. I want a custom Hoplite that's still a possible Hoplite. Otherwise is outright cheating rather than compensating for one of the game's weaknesses.

It's a great way to get free money, though.

I have to say, the last few missions were a bit of a disappointment. Manhattan is cool and the mission where you rescue the accountant was great, but I wish they hadn't made all the NY missions take place at night. I can understand why the raid on the warehouse took place at night, but the other missions would have been so much better during the day, when you can actually see three feet in front of you.

The raid on the mansion has got to be my favourite of the bunch. All I need to do now is finally finish Nefarious Trap...