DCS - Rookie needs recommendations.

[Someone]

Ahoy!

I've wanted to give DCS an honest try for a good while, but I don't know where to start. I've always loved the concept of flying and I fly in basically all games that allowe me to, but I've never flown in a flight sim before and DCS has always seemd like such a hassle. I've got a x52 pro, a set of saitek cessna rudder pedals and recently bought me a TrackIR. I got all theese toys and I feel as if it's time to dust them off and try my wings, but where do I start?


I know that I don't need any modules to begin flying, but it feels as if it would be easier to "force" myself to learn the game, had I invested some money into it and since the modules are on a 30% sale I might aswell get one before the end of the sale.

I don't have a single hour in DCS as of today (downloading the game right now), but are there any modules which you recommend to newer players?
I've tried to google some and the main modules people seem to recommend for newer players are Flaming Cliffs 3 and A-10C. I've always had a crush on the A-10, but the A-10C module seems really complicated in DCS. Did anyone here begin with A-10C? How difficult was it? Should I get Flaming Cliffs now and A-10C later? What do you guys think?

//Someone
 

[zissou]

If you're starting out and don't want to jump right in the deep end then I'd go for flaming cliffs 3,you'll get f15, a10a, mig29, su27 su24s and su33 so a good mix of different aircraft types some easy to fly others not so much. The a-10a will give you a good intro with simplified avionics that may whet your appetite for the complexity of the a-10c.

Once you have it watch a few tutorials on YouTube, open up the editor throw a few targets around and blow some shit up.

Download the key maps and have them close by (phone or tablet).

And have fun

[Pastry]

I started out with the A-10C, it was a heck of a learning curve since as you rightly stated, it is very complex. To begin with, i practiced the start up sequence with guides until i could do it alone without referencing a pdf every second step! Even that in itself is really rewarding, knowing that the jet is all ready to go and you made it like that. I believe the hoggit server runs a 'Tuesday Noob Night' (US time) where you'll definitely be able to get some good pointers if you do go for the A-10.

 

Find a decent profile for your HOTAS too and you can tweak it to your hearts content.

Just keep watching videos and you'll learn the systems soon enough. I've even heard of people that manage to get a hold of the actual A-10 manual for studying in their spare time (such dedication).

 

If you're looking for something more casual, as said above, go with Flaming Cliffs, it gives a good assortment of jets that you can zip around in with a slightly more arcade-like feel in the cockpit and systems while still retaining a realistic flight model. The F-15C is a case of pressing 2 or 3 buttons and your engines will spool up and you're good to go, the A-10C on the other hand... Well you'll be there for a while.

 

I don't have rudder pedals, but i wish i did for DCS, the track ir is brilliant though!

[Someone]

Ended up with buying the Flaming Cliffs 3, havn't flown much yet (about an hour of derping around in instant action with the F-15C and the Su-27) but it look, sound and feel amazing. The sound and feel of the F-15C engine when you give it some throttle - amazing.

Seem to be quite the pain to set everything up though, so manny options and not knowing what most things are, in combination with a really lackluster default keymapping to the HOTAS. They only appear to have mappings for the most basic flight controls of the x52 by default. Rudder, pitch up, pitch down, roll, switch to cannon and fire, that's basically it.

I presume it's possible to download control profiles that other's made? I'll have to look that one up, and see how I'll manage to get everything set up.
Also it seems like I have to set everything up for every aircraft, is that correct? There doesn't seem to be a way to set up a "general" control scheme and then have it carry across the other aircraft. Basically, zooming with scroll wheel was "default" on the F-15C, but I couldn't with the default settings zoom like that in the Su-27 an had to lean in with my TrackIR to zoom. Configuring the keys for the Su-27 to have the same zoom shouldn't be that hard, but it's weird that it isn't done in the same manner by default. Such simple and basic things should carry across all jets, but perhaps that's just my opinion..

Some fiddling with the controls will have to be done, but all in all I'm really amazed by this game ^^

[Pastry]

Yeah as I said above, you can simply download a profile for your HOTAS and edit it to your liking.

Good choice on the FC3, some nice aircraft in that pack!

[Someone]

I'm most pleased with my choice. The FC3 seems like a much better kit for new players, as you get a little bit of everything and it is more than complex enough to keep it interesting.

Everything seem so immersive and there is so much to learn. Lights blinking, warning sounds and gauges to keep track of. I did a quick Google search and found a 149 page long pdf on how to fly the F-15C, so there is much room to grow as a pilot. Somewhat intimidating, but one step at the time I assume.

Can't wait to get home, figure out how to set up a profile and get flying again ^^

[Dingo]

welcome to the world of aircraft pokemon  gotta catch 'em all

 

best way to set up keybinds for the FC3 planes is to start with one plane say F-15 and once you've set up how you want

copy all the input folders for the keyboard, mouse, joystick and Track ir, from this C:\Users\*yourusername*\Saved Games\DCS\Config\Input\F-15C

to the input folders of the other aircraft then tweak the others to suit the individual aircraft needs, or download profiles from the website,

however not alot of these are current or updated for 1.5 or 2.0 yet so may need tweaking anyway.

 

I'd change the zoom option fr Su-25t for track ir and set it to a slider on a stick or mouse,

it can get really anoying when trying to track a target having it twitch in and out of zoom 

 

do this by setting the Tir's Z axis to longditidual shift instead of zoom, this will now be the same as the F-15 and you head will move forward and back in the pit rather than zooming

[razgriz33]

Start with the L39 for actually learning how to fly a fighter jet

 

Start with the KA50 for a rotary challenge of advanced systems and a forgiving, sturdy helicopter

 

Start with the flaming cliffs package if you intend to be a more casual pilot.

 

short and simple

 

edit: just observed that i am late for the party, oops!

[Someone]

Thank you Dingo, I'll have to give that longditidual shift thing a try!

After some digging on the internet I managed to find some predone profiles for the jets and I've begun to modify them to my liking. There's just so much to learn right now, even simple things such as where everything is on the HOTAS, what info is displayed at what gauge, or that you have to keep your throttle at 0 to be able to turn on an engine which you've accidentally turned off. You know, smaller things

I've basically decided that I will print a PDF file with my controls and have next to me as I begin flying, I think that will help untill I understand where the basic controls are. It's alot easier to accually manage once you've learned where you have your flaps, airbrakes, drouge parachute, wheel brakes etc. One of my most amazing "misstakes" this far has been to accidentally eject instead of selecting the target, did not expect that and it was hilarious ^^

And no worries raz, your answer still helps ^^

I'll begin with the Flaming cliffs jets, learning the basics and then, when I feel ready I'll try to move on to more advanced jets. I havn't flown that much, only a few hours, but I'm still amazed by the game. I'll most likely end up buying more aircrafts down the line, as I've been really impressed by what the game has had to offer thus far