Hi, I just dug out my copy of HCE again and was looking for some info on game mechanics, the best source I could find was for H3.

Specifically regarding air to air missiles

 

"The probability of an air-to-air missile hitting the target depends greatly on the geometry of every situation, as well as which kind of missiles and targets are involved. Many factors will increase or degrade the probability of a hit or a miss. A common occurrence of this is when a missile is fired at a target that is moving away (an opening shot). Another common situation occurs when non-dogfight capable missiles such as the AIM-54 Phoenix are employed against nimble fighters. These missiles are designed for shooting down heavily laden, unsuspecting bombers, and as such, don't work very well against most modern fighters. Other factors that affect missile hit probabilities include target speed and altitude, maneuverability, ECM, the image signature of your target (i.e. does it have a highly visible radar cross section), weather conditions (affects optically guided missiles), and many more. As you can see, firing a missile at a target doesn't necessarily mean that you are going to paste it!"

 

Does this apply to HCE ?

 

and also does range have an effect on PH

 

Thanks

Hi, I just dug out my copy of HCE again and was looking for some info on game mechanics, the best source I could find was for H3. Specifically regarding air to air missiles

 

"The probability of an air-to-air missile hitting the target depends greatly on the geometry of every situation, as well as which kind of missiles and targets are involved. Many factors will increase or degrade the probability of a hit or a miss. A common occurrence of this is when a missile is fired at a target that is moving away (an opening shot). Another common situation occurs when non-dogfight capable missiles such as the AIM-54 Phoenix are employed against nimble fighters. These missiles are designed for shooting down heavily laden, unsuspecting bombers, and as such, don't work very well against most modern fighters. Other factors that affect missile hit probabilities include target speed and altitude, maneuverability, ECM, the image signature of your target (i.e. does it have a highly visible radar cross section), weather conditions (affects optically guided missiles), and many more. As you can see, firing a missile at a target doesn't necessarily mean that you are going to paste it!"

 

Does this apply to HCE ? and also does range have an effect on PH

Thanks

 

Its a complex question, with lots of intricacies, and not all of the real world conditions come into play in the computer code, but the short answer is "Yes". Raw hit probability (pH) of the missile, the defensive ATA (DATA) rating of the target aircraft, the effects of any defensive ECM (DECM), etc, are all factors.

 

Range doesn't have an effect on pH in the sense that the value degrades with range, but of course, shooting at a target already at maximum range won't do much for your pH if the target turns and runs away.

Thanks for the prompt reply

Hi, I just dug out my copy of HCE again and was looking for some info on game mechanics, the best source I could find was for H3.

Specifically regarding air to air missiles

 

"The probability of an air-to-air missile hitting the target depends greatly on the geometry of every situation, as well as which kind of missiles and targets are involved. Many factors will increase or degrade the probability of a hit or a miss. A common occurrence of this is when a missile is fired at a target that is moving away (an opening shot). Another common situation occurs when non-dogfight capable missiles such as the AIM-54 Phoenix are employed against nimble fighters. These missiles are designed for shooting down heavily laden, unsuspecting bombers, and as such, don't work very well against most modern fighters. Other factors that affect missile hit probabilities include target speed and altitude, maneuverability, ECM, the image signature of your target (i.e. does it have a highly visible radar cross section), weather conditions (affects optically guided missiles), and many more. As you can see, firing a missile at a target doesn't necessarily mean that you are going to paste it!"

 

Does this apply to HCE ?

 

 

Most of that applies to HC, at least in a broad sense, similar to how it applies to H3. That paragraph reads more as a tactics manual than a description of the exact capabilities of either game.

 

Here's a quick overview of the CheckAirMissileHits function in HC that gets called when the missiles get really close to the target.

1. Missile shouldn't hit if target is above or below missile min/max altitude rating.

 

2. Give SARH missiles that are in Inertial mode a 5% chance of hitting (very generous as in most cases they should just self destruct or wander off if not being guided)

 

3. Apply ECM to the PH

 

4. Bump up hit chance if more than one missile was fired per target.

 

5. Trim hit chance if target is travelling > 1300 kts.

 

6. Take Snap Up/Down into account.

 

7. Trim hit chance if target is physical size VSmallAir

 

8. Compare ATA of missile and DATA of target with the above factors and add up the number of hits.

 

 

Before it gets to CheckAirMissileHits the missile actually has to make it close to the target. That is where maneuvering, stealth, and deception come into play. Not to mention that whole SARH thing again if the firing platform is destroyed before the missile gets near the target. In very broad terms the missile will have a better chance of hitting if there is a firm sensor fix on the target the entire time.

 

Thanks for asking the question!