Having said that I'm not sure there isn't another problem which seems to crop up sometimes with other short range ground attack wepons and that is the attacking plane going backwards and forwards seemingly not able to get close enough for a shot. Has any one come across that and knows what's happening?

Don.

Yes, I've observated the same effect a lot of times, but I don't know why, I was thinking was an effect of my particular hardware/software combination.

And other times, in the few cases I was in a dogfight only with guns (I'm very limitated in time this year, because job matters), I'm almost sure I'm in gun range, but the game engine question me about the necesity of a close-up for use the guns.

Brains, Brad, and I just threw around a bunch of ideas on IRC and came up with a work around for the unintended strafing runs. That workaround is to remove the air to ground capability from the majority of modern aircraft cannon. So for instance Brad will in HCDB remove air to ground capability of the Vulcan 20mm carried on the F-22. He also has the flexibility to leave air to ground fun capability on most WWII aircraft.

 

It isn't in any way an ideal solution but it does return us to something better than parity with past builds. No doubt the AI needs to be smarter but this gets us to a more useable game again.

 

 

Some of the ideas we discussed singly and in combination:

1. Only allowing strafing with certain loadout types, i.e. CAS. This isn't easy since the game internally only tracks 14 loadout types and none is specific enough to be classified as CAS (the CAS loadouts in the DB are understood by the game as UNGUIDED, a much more general category).

 

2. Looking at known target disposition, if AAW range is >= 2 x gun range, RTB instead of continuing the attack, same deal if new defenses are detected on the ingress, abort as the default behavior, only close when all appears safe.

 

3. Adding DB field to loadouts indicating if they can be used for strafing or not.

Brains, Brad, and I just threw around a bunch of ideas on IRC and came up with a work around for the unintended strafing runs. That workaround is to remove the air to ground capability from the majority of modern aircraft cannon. So for instance Brad will in HCDB remove air to ground capability of the Vulcan 20mm carried on the F-22. He also has the flexibility to leave air to ground fun capability on most WWII aircraft.

That sounds fine to me. By the way, has anyone seen planes with air to air cannon exhibit the same desire for blood at all cost?

It isn't in any way an ideal solution but it does return us to something better than parity with past builds. No doubt the AI needs to be smarter but this gets us to a more useable game again.

Perhaps (I had this thought while talking to my goats) there can be some sort of setting introduced that the scenario author can make when writting the scenario, perhaps when setting up a group to launch (could also be available for player) Could be maybe a strafing capable toggle or a defensive/aggressive balance value (I'd like that). Maybe tie in with the warning re entering AAW range (AI just scarpers if not close to fire point)??

 

Don (jumping and happy I can still strafe flak in my beaufighter)!!

AND that means Brad gets all the work and Tony can put his feet up (Sounds sus to me Brad, did they gang up on you?)

I know we have a fix in the newest notes, but is this something we may want to look into adding back in at some point in the future?

I know we have a fix in the newest notes, but is this something we may want to look into adding back in at some point in the future?

 

Yes, I'd think so.