PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:23 AM
 
            Strategy and Tactics for Lucasfilm's
             "Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe"
  
     Lucasfilm's Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe affords WWII
  air combat aficionados the chance to sail through the skies
  of the Third Reich, viewing the pockmarked fields of Europe
  from the cockpit of both the Yanks and the Krauts. In SWOTL,
  players not only test their flying/fighting skills, but they
  also test their analytical abilities, directing either side
  of the conflict in the first true operational air campaign
 
  conducted by man against man.
     The U.S. Eighth Air Force initiated and pursued their
  side of the campaign with a little help from their friends
  (the British), but not much. It is from the perspective of
  the Mighty 8th that the following discussion of tactics and
  operations comes. May the reader enjoy, and soar.
  
  The Way it Should Be (Allied Strategy)
     Step One: The first target in any air campaign is the
  enemy air force. Attack the most capable Gruppen first, Me
 
  229, Me 262, Me 163, FW 190, Me 109, in order. Concentrate
  on nothing but occupied Luftwaffe airfields until only 2 or
  3 Gruppen remain (unlike the Iraqis, the Luftwaffe has no
  place to run). Every turn thereafter, attack all occupied
  airfields with at least one Bomber Group.
     Step Two: Destroy the enemy economy. With the Luftwaffe
  down and out, attacking the German economy becomes both
  feasible and profitable. First off, destroy the enemy's
  research and development centers. This will prevent a
  disadvantageous technology mismatch later. Don't panic,
 
  there's plenty of time.
     Now, go after the industries affected by the victory
  conditions. Attack the high pay-off (largest percentage of
  industry) targets first. Don't trust the available campaign
  intelligence. The summary and map aren't reliable. Both have
  out-dated or incomplete information. The only good source of
  information is Ultra and, as in history, it is used
  sparingly to prevent discovery.
     Note that keeping track of one's own results is a must
  (see Chart A, Example Target Results Tracking below). Don't
 
  attack old targets unless the initial attack yielded poor
  results or several turns have passed. Expect targets to
  regenerate themselves (one building every turn or two) and
  recognize that flak fully regenerates each turn. Don't
  forget to check and attack all occupied Luftwaffe airfields,
  <<each turn>>. Otherwise, the Luftwaffe will regenerate and
 
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PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:23 AM
 
  the player will suddenly be intercepted again. Once the
  enemy is down, keep him down.
  
  Table A:Example Target Attack Results (Mission 2, 26 Aug'43)
 
  ----------------------------------------------------------- 
        Groups     |        Target       |        |
  Bomber |  Escort |   Name       Type   |  Bombs | Buildings 
  ----------------------------------------------------------- 
     2   |    1    | Nordholtz  Airfield |    7   |     7     
     3   |    1    | Bremen     Airfield |   10   |    10     
     2   |    1    | Deelen     Airfield |    7   |     7     
     2   |    1    | Zeist      Airfield |    9   |     9     
     2   |    1    | Venlo      Airfield |    7   |     7     
     3   |    4    | Haren      Airfield |    0   |     9     
 
         |    1    | Mooseele   Airfield |        |     4     
  
  Aircraft Shot Down: total 6; player 2.
  Buildings Destroyed: 13, all by player.
  Points: 540.
  Force Losses: US, 3 bombers; Germany, 6 fighters.
  
      Group     | Groups Before/ |    Pilots  
      Type      | After Mission  |   Remaining
  --------------------------------------------
 
     German     |      13/7      |      64%   
   US Bombers   |      11/5      |      96%   
   US Fighters  |       5/5      |      98%    
  
  The Personal Touch (The Mission)
     Step One: Destroy the enemy air force. Fly the P-47 in
  the close escort role (maximum firepower, ammunition and
  accuracy). Attack the closest occupied airfield, (fuel/time
  over target consideration). Put 3 bombers in one flight
  group and 4 escorts in two more (if more than 4 escorts are
 
  used, there will be an endless stream of interceptors which
  makes it very difficult to attack the target). Use high
  point NPC pilots (they reduce losses and improve target
  effects). Start the bombers at 20,000 feet and the escorts
  at 22,000. Go out to take on the first group of
  interceptors, then stay close to the bombers until they're
  no longer threatened. Don't dump the drop tank(s) when
  escorting (the enemy is after the bombers, the player will
  be just fine as long as he doesn't get in front of him).
     After there are no more enemy interceptors, release the
 
  wingman back to base and dive down to the target. After the
 
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PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:23 AM
 
  bombers attack, finish off the enemy airfield. Attack the
  flak towers first, one at a time, from outside the airfield
  perimeter, out of range of all but the target tower. After
  destroying all buildings on the primary target, take out as
  many buildings as possible at other target locations. Repeat
  until the missions are no longer intercepted (either the
  Luftwaffe withdraws out of escort range or is reduced to 3
  or fewer Gruppen). Expect heavy bomber losses in the first 2
  or 3 missions (like losing all of them before they reach the
 
  target).
     Step Two: Destroy the enemy economy. When enemy Gruppen
  are no longer a threat, switch to V weapon and economic
  targets (see Chart B, Target Description). Use seven P-47s
  in the dive bomb and strafe role. Put the maximum number of
  aircraft (6) in the flight group (pilots not in the player's
  flight don't do as well as those with him, even when high
  point NPC pilots are assigned). Start at 100 feet when
  attacking flak defended targets. Once all the buildings in
  the target area are destroyed, release the wingmen back to
 
  base (they don't add anything in subsequent attacks and may
  run out of fuel) and go on to destroy more buildings. Each
  turn, attack a fresh target.
     V-weapon targets are undefended and thus the most
  vulnerable. V-2 sites are recognizable from altitude and
  distance as yellow patches on the country side, V-1 sites as
  black patches. Drop your bombs on the tough buildings,
  strafe the others. Pick a primary target in the vicinity of
  several others (this ensures running out of ammunition
  before fuel).
 
     When attacking economic targets, personally attack the
  flak positions while the flight attacks the target. From the
  sky, flak batteries appear as bright green patches in cities
  and dark green patches in the country. Note that if the
  player stays below 200 feet, the flak can't shoot. Once the
  flak is destroyed, it is possible to finish off the
  buildings the flight missed.
     When planning a mission against an economic target, use
  high magnification and range circles to identify threatening
  flak batteries (flak batteries have a range of 3 miles, so
 
  the actual target area extends beyond the map symbol). Begin
  the mission where the highest threat flak batteries can be
  attacked first (those with the greatest target area
  coverage).
     Attack the guns, from the side. Ignore the building (fire
  control center?) behind the guns. Each gun counts as a
  separate building for the player's personal score. When the
 
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PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:23 AM
 
  flak stops shooting in the target area, one can turn to
  finish any remaining buildings.
     High point NPC fighter pilots in one's flight group (see
 
  Chart D, Pilot Rank Points) will continue to attack the
  primary target until it is destroyed or they exhaust
  ammunition or fuel. High point NPC fighter pilots in other
  flight groups and average-to-low point NPC fighter pilots in
  the player's flight group will make a single bombing pass
  and a single strafing pass, then return to base. Using high
  point NPCs allows one to circle the primary target while
  one's flight takes it apart, saving one's own ordnance for
  subsequent targets.
     General Notes: Don't assign rockets to any NPC aircraft
 
  (NPC pilots do much better with bombs). Use wing bombs and
  drop tanks for distant targets. Pick the closest target
  (allows carrying bombs rather than fuel). Pick the target
  with the fewest flak guns defending it. Each turn, make an
  attack on a fresh target. Avoid flak and airfield towers on
  the way home.
  
  Table B: Target Description (Part 1)
  
                        |     # and Size of Buildings      |
 
  Target Type           | Total | Lrg | Med | Sml | Other  |
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  Ball-Bearing Factory  |   4   |  2  |  2  |     |        |
  Research Site         |   5   |  3  |  1  |  1  |        |
  Aircraft Factory      |   8   |  2  |  1  |  5  |        |
  Oil Refinery          |  10   |  1  |  1  |     | 8 Tanks|
  Aircraft Engine Fact. |   6   |  3  |  3  |     |        |
  Munitions Factory     |   5   |  2  |  1  |  2  |        |
  Rail Center           |   9   |  4  |  4  |  1  |        |
  Airfield              |   7   |     |     |  1  | 2 Hngrs|
 
  (Dogleg Runway)       |       |     |     |     | 4 Twrs |
  Airfield              |   9   |     |     |  3  | 2 Hngrs|
  (L Runway)            |       |     |     |     | 4 Twrs |
  V-1 Site              |   7   |     |  3  |  3  | 1 Ramp |
  V-2 Site              |   7   |  1  |  2  |  3  | 1 Pad  |
  
  Table B: Target Description (Part 2)
  Bombing Orientation lines up the largest number of buildings
  for a single aircraft attack run. Note that some targets
  have underground buildings not mentioned in the
 
  documentation, which means that a bombing mission can
  destroy more buildings than are visible.
 
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PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:23 AM
 
  
  Target Type           | Bombing Orientation
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  Ball-Bearing Factory  | N-S (2 Large, 1 Med.)
  Research Site         | E-W (3 Large)
  Aircraft Factory      | E-W (3 Small, 2 Large)
  Oil Refinery          | E-W (3 Tanks, 1 Large)
  Aircraft Engine Fact. | N-S (3 Med.)
 
  Munitions Factory     | NW-SE (2 Large)
  Rail Center           | NW-SE (2 Large, 1 Med.)
  Airfield              | E-W (2 Hangers)
  (Dogleg Runway)       | 
  Airfield              | E-W (2 Hangers)
  (L Runway)            | N-S (3 Med.)
  V-1 Site              | NW-SE (1 Med., 2 Small)
  V-2 Site              | NW-SE (1 Med., 2 Small)
  
  Table B (Part 3)
 
  
  Target Type  |   Location    |     % of     |  Within 1943
               |               |   Industry   |  P-47 Range?
  ------------------------------------------------------------
               | Schweinfurt   |      81      |      No
  Ball-Bearing | Berlin        |       9      |      No
  Factories    | Stuttgart     |       4      |      No
               | Steyr         |       4      |      No
  ------------------------------------------------------------
               | Peenemunde    |      45      |      No
 
  Research     | Lechfeld      |      27      |      No
  Sites        | Augsburg      |      18      |      No
               | Gottingen     |       9      |      Yes
  ------------------------------------------------------------
               | Regensburg    |      15      |      No
               | Augsburg      |      15      |      No
               | Bremen        |      12      |      Yes
               | Leipzig       |      10      |      No
  Aircraft     | Johannisthal  |       7      |      No
  Factories    | Brandenburg   |       6      |      No
 
               | Kassel        |       5      |      Yes
               | Oschersleben  |       5      |      No
               | Warnemunde    |       5      |      No
               | Wismar        |       5      |      No
               | Schwabish-Hall|       5      |      No
  ------------------------------------------------------------
               | Leuna         |      13      |      No
               | Duisburg      |       9      |      Yes
 
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PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:24 AM
 
               | Bohlen        |       9      |      No
               | Hamburg       |       9      |      No
 
               | Lutzkendorf   |       7      |      No
               | Dortmund      |       6      |      Yes
  Oil          | Essen         |       6      |      Yes
  Refineries   | Wesseling     |       6      |      Yes
               | Bremen        |       4      |      Yes
               | Brux          |       4      |      No
               | Magdeburg     |       4      |      No
               | Poelitz       |       4      |      No
               | Ludwigshafen  |       3      |      Yes
               | Regensburg    |       3      |      No
 
  ------------------------------------------------------------
               | Genshagen     |      16      |      No
               | Spandau       |      12      |      No
               | Marlenfelde   |      12      |      No
               | Dessau        |       9      |      No
  Aircraft     | Magdeburg     |       9      |      No
  Engine       | Basdorf       |       9      |      No
  Factories    | Brunswick     |       7      |      No
               | Altenbeuna    |       6      |      Yes
               | Kiel          |       6      |      No
 
               | Munich        |       5      |      No
               | Kothen        |       2      |      No
  ------------------------------------------------------------
               | Dortmund      |       8      |      Yes
               | Essen         |       8      |      Yes
               | Berlin        |       8      |      No
               | Duisburg      |       7      |      Yes
               | Hamburg       |       7      |      Yes
               | Dusseldorf    |       7      |      Yes
  Munitions    | Frankfurt     |       7      |      Yes
 
  Factories    | Mannheim      |       7      |      Yes
               | Munster       |       7      |      Yes
               | Hannover      |       6      |      Yes
               | Wilhelmshaven |       5      |      Yes
               | Kiel          |       5      |      No
               | Stuttgart     |       3      |      No
               | Nurnburg      |       3      |      No
  ------------------------------------------------------------
               | Schwarte      |      12      |      Yes
               | Frankfurt     |       8      |      Yes
 
               | Koblenz       |       8      |      Yes
               | Cologne       |       8      |      Yes
               | Mainz         |       8      |      Yes
 
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PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:24 AM
 
               | Hannover      |       8      |      Yes
  Rail         | Mannheim      |       7      |      Yes
  Centers      | Magdeburg     |       7      |      No
               | Leipzig       |       7      |      No
               | Saarbrucken   |       5      |      Yes
               | Kassel        |       3      |      Yes
               | Rouen         |       3      |      Yes
 
               |Juvisy-Sur-Ogre|       3      |      Yes
               | Munich        |       3      |      No
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  
  Other Touches (Secondary Missions)
     Results of secondary attacks depend on the number of
  buildings destroyed on the primary and subsequent targets.
  For maximum points make the primary attack on the nearby and
  undefended V weapon sites. Ensure all buildings on the
  primary target are destroyed, then destroy as many other
 
  buildings as possible.
     Assign secondary attacks to the tough targets. A single
  Bombing Group or Ground Attack Group will completely destroy
  a secondary target if the primary target is completely
  destroyed and 4 or 5 more buildings are destroyed on
  subsequent target(s). Allocate 2 attacking groups on the
  most important secondary targets to ensure destruction (i.e.
  Preenemunde Research site, Schweinfurt Ball Bearings plant).
  
 
  In The Rear With The Gear (Deploying Reserves)
     Deploy reserve fighter groups to separate forward
  airfields. Groups on separate airfields give maximum
  flexibility in creating flight groups. Forward airfields
  give maximum escort/fighter bomber range.
  
  Leading Little Boys (Pilot Management)
     Before starting a campaign, personal expertise and
  experienced pilots are needed.
     Use the MS-DOS MkDir command to create a pilot save
 
  subdirectory, call it PILOTSAV. Use the Historical Missions
  and Tours of Duty to build one high point NPC fighter pilot
  and one high point bomber crew. Fly the easier (lowest
  numbered) historical missions repeatedly. Save the NPC
  pilot/crew to the PILOTSAV subdirectory every 2 or 3
  missions. If a pilot or crew is lost, copy the file out of
  the subdirectory back into the SWOTL directory.
     As an alternative to the Historical Missions and Tours of
  Duty, build the pilot/crew's score using the custom mission
  builder. Don't add defending fighters, but concentrate on
 
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PRODIGY(R) interactive personal service         07/30/92         9:25 AM
 
 
  hitting buildings. Initially pick targets near England. Drop
  bombs individually. Attempt to destroy one building with
  each bomb/bomb release. For the fighter pilot, fly the P-47
  with bombs. Strafe after bombing until out of ammunition.
  Attack different types of targets to become familiar with
  the layout of each. Don't forget to get back over England
  before ending the mission.
     Continue to fly individual missions until a full colonel
  fighter pilot and bomber crew are developed. Then, use the
  MS-DOS copy command to clone the 2 colonels into other NPCs.
 
  Make as many as desired. Save them all to the PILOTSAV
  subdirectory. As pilots are lost, resurrect them out of the
  sub-directory.
  
  Table D: US Pilot Rank Points
  
  ----------------------------------
  Low-Point   | 2nd Lt. | 0-500
     NPC's    | 1st Lt. | 500-1500
  ----------------------------------
 
  Average     | Captain | 1500-2500
  Point NPC's | Major   | 2500-3000
  ----------------------------------
  High-Point  | Lt. Col.| 3000-6000
  NPC's       | Colonel | 6000-12000
              | Br. Gen.| 12000+
  ----------------------------------
  
  The Final Word
     Hit the Luftwaffe with everything on the first turn. One
 
  group, bomber or attack can and should be assigned to each
  and every occupied Luftwaffe airfield. Then, all one has to
  do is fly fast and shoot straight. If the first mission is
  successful, the rest of the campaign will be a breeze -- one
  might even win in 5 or 6 turns.
     For further discussion of LucasFilm's SWOTL please see
  the appropriate topic in the Computer Club bulletin board.
  Fly low and take no flak. CGW.
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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