Rallying the Troops

Hello and welcome back to another update of Forgotten Hope. This week have many renders to show off, including the P-47 Thunderbolt, the M2A1 105mm Howitzer, and some more vehicles skinned in the Panzergrau paint scheme.

But before we start with the update, we'd like to welcome Guderian to the FH2 mapping team! Guderian created the map called Villers-Bocage of which we will show new screenshots later in this news update.

And then there's two announcements to make:

First of course, the holidays have arrived. The Forgotten Hope 2 Development Team wishes you happy and safe holidays!

Second, the 2009 Mod of the Year Awards are finally upon us. Last year, Forgotten Hope 2 made it to the second round of voting, but received only an honorable mention.
This year, armed with the recent release of version 2.2, we hope to take home first place! As only the first round of voting has started, you may vote for as many mods as you would like, however, if you register with the website, your vote will count even more. Click on the MOTY logo below to go to the Forgotten Hope 2 page, and cast your vote!

To kick off this week's update, we have a brand new fighter plane for the Allied Air Forces. The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt.

The P-47 Thunderbolt was one of the biggest and heaviest single-engine fighter planes operated by the Allies during WWII. Nicknamed the 'Jug' because of its huge size, the P-47 first flew on the 6th of May, 1941. Weighing in at 9,900lbs, the plane was powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp two-row 18-cylinder radial engine which produced 2,000 hp. It came standard with four .50 caliber machine guns on each wing, and could be loaded up with additional unguided rockets, bombs, and external fuel tanks.

The Thunderbolt, although effective in an air-to-air and escort role, earned its claim to fame destroying enemy ground forces over Normandy and the Pacific islands. The all metal hull of the plane allowed pilots to fly low and engage ground targets while braving anti-aircraft fire. From D-Day to VE Day on the 7th of May, 1945, P-47 pilots destroyed a total of 6,000 armored fighting vehicles. However, tanks and halftracks were not the only targets that fell victim to the Thunderbolt, trains, trucks, and enemy troops also claimed by these pilots.

The 'Jug' was extensively used by the Allied forces, especially during the later years of WWII. It was flown in every active combat theater by many air forces including the USAAF, the RAF, and the Red Air Force. In total, 15,686 P-47 Thunderbolts were produced, and the last of them, flown by the Peruvian Air Force, were retired in 1966. In addition to the standard fighter variant, players will also be able to find P-47s armed with 10x 5" rockets, or a single 500lb bomb. The P-47 Thunderbolt was modeled and skinned by Bender64 and coded by Gunnie.

Next, we have one of the most requested items since the initial Normandy release. The American M2A1 105mm Howitzer, and with it the 3-inch M5 anti-tank version.

The M2A1 105mm Howitzer entered production in 1941 and was the standard light field howitzer during WWII for United States military forces. It saw action in Europe against the German Wehrmacht, but it was against the Japanese Army in the Pacific that the howitzer earned a reputation for being accurate and hard-hitting. Capable of firing a wide variety of ammunition types, the M2A1 was able to put shells on target at a range of 12,200 yards (11,270 meters).

However the 105mm would not see action only as a field howitzer. The barrel of this powerful gun was mounted on many tracked vehicles as well, including the M26 Pershing, M24 Chaffee, and the M18 Hellcat, giving each tank a substantial upgrade in firepower. A mobile version of the howitzer was also engineered (M7 Priest), which served the Allies well across Africa, Italy, and Western Europe.

The 3-inch M5 on the other hand, was essentially a 76mm barrel mounted on the carriage of the M2A1 105mm Howitzer. This anti-tank gun was first produced in December of 1942 when the need arose for an even better weapon to destroy enemy tanks. This variant of the M2A1 Howitzer was issued exclusively to US tank destroyer battalions in 1943 and saw combat in both Italy and Northwestern Europe. The M2A1 105mm Howitzer and the 3-inch M5 anti-tank gun were both modeled and textured by Darren01.

Up next, we have a brand new map! Last week we had shown you a map that was originally created for the Forgotten Honor tournament. This week, we bring to you a map that was first created for use in the World at War tournament by Guderian. It has since then been tweaked and edited by Guderian and Natty Wallo. Without further ado...Villers Bocage!

"D-Day +7. The British are advancing toward Caen and are coming to a grinding halt by the elite German Panzer-Lehr Division at a town called Tilly-sur-Seulles. The British 7th Armored Division is ordered to flank southeast around the Germans through the town of Villers-Bocage and capture the high ground beyond, called Point 213. The British advancing through the area are being opposed by Michael Wittmann, commander of the 2nd Company in the 101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion. Wittmanns orders are to position his unit behind the Panzer-Lehr-Division to cover their open left flank. At approximately 0900 hours, Wittmann's Tiger emerges from cover to the surprise of the entire advancing British column thus opening the battle for Villers-Bocage."

Finally we have some more vehicles that have been re-skinned in the Panzergrau ('armor gray') paint scheme. This week we have the 2cm Flakvierling 38, the Panzer II Ausf. C and 3.7cm Pak 35/36. These re-skins were once again done by Toddel.

That's all for this week, but be sure to come back next time for another update. Until then, feel free to visit our IRC channel and our public forums to discuss this update and other news.