Player Defined Upgrades

[Sparrow]

Assistance required from WITP Old Guard.

I understand you can increase your aircraft upgrade options by enabling the PDU function.

How is this accomplished? Where is the enable switch? What screen?

Thanks in advance.

This is Sparrow

[MarcA]

ORIGINAL: Sparrow

Assistance required from WITP Old Guard.

I understand you can increase your aircraft upgrade options by enabling the PDU function.

How is this accomplished? Where is the enable switch? What screen?

Thanks in advance.

This is Sparrow

You can find it under the realism options accesible from the main menu screen when you first boot up the game. You need to set PDU's on before you start a scenario, you can't change the setting once the scenrio has started.

[ny59giants]

When you click on the "upgrade" in the middle of each squadron, group, etc., it will give you possible upgrades for that current aircraft and the number of those available. You need at least the equal number available. Since on Allied bombers, there may be up over 10 possibilities, you will need to push "I" and select "Aircraft Replacement" to find out how many of those planes are being built and when they become available. You will need twice the amount of supply needed at that base and close enough to an area HQ for it to happen. The British have to wait until 6/41 and the Dutch till 7/41 before they are able.

If you are playing the Allies, the 7th BG (assigned to the SEAC) will need to be upgraded to LB-30's before others can use those heavy bombers. LB-30's are available only as replacements.
If I missed something, the other "experts" will correct me. [:D]

[Sparrow]

Gentlemen

Thanks for the assitance but for all your help my nightmare persists.

I've trawled the realism options but found nothing that activates the PDU function.

The realism screen options I have are:
Allied Sub Doctrine
Jap Sub Doctrine
Fog of War
Adv Weather Effects
Allied Damage Control
Historical first turn
Vary Seyup
Dec 7TH Surprise
Allied Reinforcement Adv/Delay
Jap Reinforement Adv/Delay

Could I be missing button?
I've reinstalled the game back to 1.21 ..... no change.

I've looked at the Game option screen and this offers no leads.

ANY FURTHER SUGGESTIONS OR IS SPARROW DOOMED TO CODED UPGRADES?

This is Sparrow

[Ron Saueracker]

Pretty sure PDUs came with 1.50.

[Mark VII]

I sorta thought it was 1.6 but could be wrong.

Sparrow: You might be better off not using PDU's as it distorts the airwar to almost being broken! You can change most any twin engine bomber group too four engine bombers once there is enough replacements(which is so much quicker than historical). The Americans will soon have hundreds of 4 engine bomber groups bombing the crap out of anything in range.

[ChezDaJez]

Pretty sure PDUs came with 1.50.

I believe they came with 1.6, Ron. Not 100% sure though.

Chez

[Mynok]

It was 1.6. I waited for them to start my campaign.

[Sardaukar]

It was in 1.6. Button is above Vary Setup and Dec 7 Surprise, if I remember correctly.

[MarcA]

ORIGINAL: Mark VII

I sorta thought it was 1.6 but could be wrong.

Sparrow: You might be better off not using PDU's as it distorts the airwar to almost being broken! You can change most any twin engine bomber group too four engine bombers once there is enough replacements(which is so much quicker than historical). The Americans will soon have hundreds of 4 engine bomber groups bombing the crap out of anything in range.

This is true but it's not all one sided. How many Japanese players trade in there Marys and Sonias for Sallys and then Helens. This weights the beginning game even further to the Japs.

[Hoplosternum]

If you are playing against the AI I would definitely play WITH PDU on. You can just use the default choices if you want to even with PDU. It just gives you a bit more flexibility. You don't have to exploit it or use an extreme build strategy (if Japanese) if you don't want to.

If you are playing vs someone else then PDU will have a huge impact on the game. With house rules or simply both sides agreeing to be reasonable there are few problems and I think it is a great enhancement to the game. You can get into some absurd situations without it, with one side or the other has plenty of fighters of certain types but can't fly them as the squadrons are of other sorts etc.

PDU can be exploited but I think the troublers with air combats come much more from the issues with mass air combat (much too bloody) and people simply using their air units much more than historically was the case.