Sequoia

HOLY MUTHER #$%^&# @#*^!!!! A SHIP?! A HELICOPTER?! UNREAL! INCREDIBLE! That's beyond anything I ever thought possible! GREAT WORK, man! I am blown away! Truly a massive evolution in mods! I am running out of exclamation points!
 
Mord.

Would look great with Normandy beach landings and Anzio scenarios. Hell I don't even need for any of these models to do anything but look sweet sitting in the background. The atmosphere these things can/will bring are just incredible.
 
Mord.

Train Engine Car (combine with the Train Box Car to build trains)

Again this minor texture distortion. Sure it can be mad less noticeable by modifying the texture but it becomes goddamn annoying.

You should hear the Airborne Ranger song they taught us to sing while running in formation in basic training. I'm sure I'd get banned if I posted it.

I tried to get the free educational license of 3DS Max in order to open .max models to convert them to the free format obj for Blender. For some reason I didn´t hear back from them. Perhaps my initial attempt to register as "John Dong"  wasn´t the best idea and they blacklisted me now.
 
If one owns 3DS Max here (or has more luck with registering for the free edition), I would be glad if he could convert this model here from .max to .obj. Its a matter of seconds.

http://www.cadnav.com/3d-models/model-10539.html

You are correct, I just tested tagged models to be sure and it does work!

With regard to the cover aspect of flavour objects (specifically hard cover), I have spent some time running tests. Placing a wall, building or defensive work inside a flavour object does not appear to result in the flavour object taking on the cover aspects of the object. So much so that I believe that code governing hard cover is hard-coded into those particular objects and it is probably identified by the name of the .mdr file (for example only bunker.mdr will have the hard cover properties of a bunker). Any cover and concealment properties that may be experienced with flavour objects are governed by the soft cover code that apply to terrain & doodads (i.e. number of objects in an action square). Naturally I could be wrong about all this too, I'd be interested to see any tests that challenge my present deductions, or cast a better light on this.

 

Medium Airliner:


As you can see there is an issue with the texture when I export it to .mdr. I had the exact same issue with the Huey helo. I hope one of you can find the root of this problem as I have no idea whats the cause. The complete project folder with .mdr and blender file are in the online clouds.
I noticed on this model that the invisible shelter1.mdr primer is especially hard to "hit" with the cusor in the editor in order to move/rotate the model. In the future I will check the other shelters if they´re better suited.
And it would be definitely great if BF would add some "extra slots" for custom flavor objects (with good draw distance etc.). For the time being we have to use the modtag system.
Creating a dead corpse or a "group" of them as an flavor object is perfectly doable with this method. I recommend to keep the bodies in a neutral appearance so that it doesn´t become so noticeable that it is always the same flavor object. Despite the visualization of a deadly battlefield, this could also come with some interesting options for scenario designers. This could be utilized for scenarios ala "we´ve send a squad an hour ago to check the Northern woods and didn´t hear back from them. Find out what happened to them" or as an ambush/killzone hint for players. AFAIK flavor objects are always visible but if one replaces an unimportant vehicle or emplacement with the fallen soldiers and (then sets the vehicle to "destroyed" and) places it on the map, the fallen soldiers need to be spotted.

CM3 is as far beyond my imagining as the future CM2 had been back when I was playing CM1.
Wishing blindly for stuff this way, you're liable to either go 'too small' (make mere CM2-appropriate suggestions) or 'too big' (impossible fantasy suggestions). Something that's always been on my wish list has been 'super flavor objects'. Huge dominating flavor objects like locomotives or dockyard cranes or electrical power pylons. On the scale of things to wish for that might be considered 'chump change'. Like walking into a Michelin starred restaurant and ordering a burger and fries.

Depending on model and practice some can be converted in a couple of minutes.
Ironically it was what seemed to be the easiest job that gave me the biggest headache - the CMA Kamaz ZSU which ends up with its gun shooting backwards when being model swapped for the Pickup ZSU.
1) What the finished model has to look like in the 3D editor

 
2) Sekrit Formula?
 
3) What appears ingame

In the course of dozen playthroughs and experiments with Blender/CM2 Tools (http://community.battlefront.com/topic/118928-combat-mission-modding-tools/) several assets were created which I want to share with the community:
Big Cargo Ship

 
BF109

 
Radar Station

 
Downed Blackhawk

 
Fire Truck

 
Ambulance

 
Barricade + optional Smoke/Burn Stash (Wreck, an invisible alternative is created by 37MM)

 
Barricade (three sizes)

 
Humvee V3 Woodland (Randomized Gear)

 
Humvee V3 Desert (Randomized Gear)

 
Humvee V2 Geardo Desert (Permanent Full Gear) 

 
AFRICAN UNCON (now also including conventional African Forces conversion by 37MM, original work by MikeyD) 

 
Falklands War Scorpion, Scimitar, and Argentinian LVTP-7 conversion

 
Makeshift VBIED

 
Humvee Wreck

 
Uncaged M2 Stryker

 
Marines to Army Special Forces or Navy SEALS conversion skins (including work of mjkerner, Combatinfman, Blimey)

 
BMP1/2 to BMD1/2 conversion (with corrected hatches)

 
Desert KAMAZ Skin

 
Marines frankensteined Armored MTVR Skin

 
New Syrian Special Forces and Woodland vehicles (based on the work of various modders)

 
Syrian Winter Mod (just terrain and partial "winterization" of vehicles, created for a Hasrabit Campaign playthrough)

 
PK Pickup to PK UAZ conversion

 
Russian Forces (original work Euroscape + various modders)

 
US Army & Marines Woodland Forces (original work Euroscape + various modders)

 
All these mods and many more can be found in this Dropbox:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1tviryry89g6py7/AAAJpSvGH6u1iEx4WzwVLSnJa?dl=0
Credits to modders, 3D-Artists, and Battlefront.
For better quality footage and more information about 3D custom models check out the recent videos & descpriptions here:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeK7fSyoEE8aorVLlVfNcAQ
The custom flavor objects have a "crate1" box placed into their center. Click it to interact with its placing. Zoom into the model if difficult. There are some FOV issues with bigger flavor objects can perhaps fixed by making the original "crate1" box bigger in Blender/CM2tools. Combine flavor objects with "visible/invisible" wreck objects to give them obstacle characteristics.
Good free library of 3D models you could use for importing. .max does not work with Blender. There are others.
http://www.cadnav.com/
Tutorials on Blender and CM2Tools can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkbTOSIrNV0&feature=youtu.be
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXVAMaELSao&feature=youtu.be
The main intent was to explore the possibilities of this method. As I see this as accomplished I´ll step back now and hope it will motivate others to get into it. Prior getting into custom CM models I had absolute zero experience in 3D modelling, Blender or whatever but found my way into it in a short period of time and once you figure out the specifics it is not that difficult. Give it a try.  Anyone interested in custom CM models can reach out on Discord.
Happy wargaming.

A  line from the recent Spiderman movie. Which is only a minor spoiler:
 Spiderman: " Where am I? You all speak English so well! 
Dutchman: "Welcome to the Netherlands!"

A  line from the recent Spiderman movie. Which is only a minor spoiler:
 Spiderman: " Where am I? You all speak English so well! 
Dutchman: "Welcome to the Netherlands!"

I don't mean to stir up a hornet's nest as apparently this has elsewhere. I've not heard of this new analysis by British historian Ben Wheatley and German historian Karl Heinz Frieser, but it has been received with much contention in Russia where understandably there is still a lot of hostility towards the Germans about the war.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48963295
 
 

There fixed that for ya

Really appreciate the screenshots. Any chance for a shot of Indian troops and Moroccan Goumiers ? 
Thanks!
 

Yes, and it should be Fulda Gap!

Probably need the Sdkfz7 in the game before this one.

Yes, and it should be Fulda Gap!

Yes, and it should be Fulda Gap!

Yes, and it should be Fulda Gap!

You can also use them to jump over barbed wire fences during escape attempts as long as they're not too big.

🤕

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism

Yes it does and in pretty good depth. There is a considerable amount on the British Force commitment and differing strategies driven by Whitehall versus the Multinational force command.  The debacle of the British withdrawal from Basra is covered in detail in volume 2.  Though it is a US army analysis it is not a “US Army” history. It is an analysis of the entire Iraq conflict and covers geopolitical analysis as well including some very brutal assessments in the failures of US planning at all levels. Fascinating coverage of what things were done right, what weren’t and very transparent criticisms for example of US commanders who were apparently punished for their actions in the long term even though they were very clearly right and ahead of their higher level commanders at the time. No good deed goes unpunished as they say.  The level of detail on the insurgency itself is really fascinating. Also the extent of Iranian involvement and the inability of the US to ever address that at a strategic level is covered in a lot of detail including analysis of the actual Iranian commanders involved and specific actions the Iranians were behind at different points.  It is a very long read  (the  combined volumes are some 1400 pages)  it is by far the best read I have comes across on the war to examine from strategic and operational perspectives.  
The most depressing part is the betrayal of the Anbar awakening by the Maliki government and it’s direct consequence - ISIS  
and it is free
https://ssi.armywarcollege.edu/pubs/display.cfm?pubID=1373