Hitech, what about this idea?

[Kazaa]

Bring back the Main Arena

[Ghosth]

I have to admit I'd like to see some changes tried in a either an existing or new arena.

After all, what does it cost them but some time to set it up?

Heck open up a contest for the best "New  arena idea".
Then take the top 5, and try them, see what actually works, and what doesn't.
What do we have to lose?

[xBishsquaddie]

Originally posted by Max
Given the 9 months time since you've changed the arena format, it's been pretty well established that the EW + MW arenas are usually populated by low numbers of players. The EW is generally a mish mosh of milkrunners, and those who enjoy killing them. Mid-war seems to see a little more dogfiting but really not that much.

Nothwithstanding the never-ending gripes about LW hordes in Blue and Orange, there seems to be a genuine desire from those who seek pure dogfighting. To that end I would suggest combining the EW and MW arenas into one and replacing the void with a pure and simple air combat venue. No GV's, no bombers, no "war to win" just a map a la Donut with half a dozen bases for each chess piece to up from. It could be done with a rolling plane set or all aircraft; your call.

My guess is something like that would make a lot of folks happy. Worth a try on an experimental basis, no?

Max, that is a wonderful suggestion.  HiTech take notice.

[Toad]

How about a "throwback" arena, like when the baseball teams wear old uniforms from the past once in a while?

Could we have an "old times" arena that presents a fight like we had in Beta (and in AW and WB in the past)?

Back then, you captured a field by successfully landing and exiting on the enemy airfield.

Bombers took out the ack and fighters tried to gain air superiority long enough for someone to land. Of course, the enemy might land right behind your guy and the field would switch back in seconds.

There'd have to be some adjustments. All the troops in the maproom stuff would go away, there'd have to be some sort of controls or even elimination of most of the GV's.

I'd just like to see those mad, crazy fights for conquest that we had on the Beta map. Those were absolutely some of the best times in AH.

How could it hurt to do that every once in a while?

Even if the setup was what we had in late Beta, the dropping of 10 troops on the airfield, that would be OK too.

I've said this before and I'll say it again. The evolution of the game has been to make field capture ever more difficult and complicated. More ack, moving the maproom to a distant city, etc., etc., etc.. While this stuff made the win the war aspect more complicated, it didn't really make it more fun. In fact, IMO, it made it significantly less fun.

There should be a place to just rock and roll in the old simplified Beta environment for those of us that think the added complexity just added boredom.

Note I'm not calling for any elimination of what we have now. Rather, I'm asking for an opportunity to once again play the game in what I consider it's purest fun form.

Everyone can still mob the LW's. I'd just like the chance for some like minded souls to meet in the old Beta environment and relive the fun.

My .02.

[duddini]

Would someone please give me a brief history/explanation of the now defunct "fighter town" ? Was this an area of a larger map where there were no bombers or vulchers? I know we no longer have this area, but it seems like a lot of the old hands refer to this fondly.

Thanks for cluing in a noob.

[Max]

Originally posted by Stoney74
I'm not slammin' the idea, because I understand where you're coming from, but...

Don't we already call this the Dueling Arena?

Yes and no. From my perspective, a lot of folks I know use the DA for specific training purposes or to resolve grudge matches a la ch 200.

Xtyger mentioned bringing back maps with Fightertown. Trouble is those maps are too big, even for the 400+ LW's. Fact is though, when Donut was in rotation, Fightertown as a very popular place to fight. That suggests to me that there's a lot of players who prefer air combat over the other aspects of the game. Hence my suggestion. I know it won't make everyone happy but judging by the never-ending grief posts regarding hordes and milkrunners, those players who subscribe primarily to match wits in the air with other players, would have an arena specifically geared to that purpose.

[Max]

Originally posted by duddini
Would someone please give me a brief history/explanation of the now defunct "fighter town" ? Was this an area of a larger map where there were no bombers or vulchers? I know we no longer have this area, but it seems like a lot of the old hands refer to this fondly.

Thanks for cluing in a noob.

There used to be a map named Donut in the rotation. It was a rather large map shaped like a donut. In the center was a lake and each country had one base at the lake. The lake was surrounded by 20k mountains which discouraged bombers. Hence, the folks who are ardent air combat fans would wage war over the lake.

That's the long and short of it.

[duddini]

Originally posted by Max
There used to be a map named Donut in the rotation. It was a rather large map shaped like a donut. In the center was a lake and each country had one base at the lake. The lake was surrounded by 20k mountains which discouraged bombers. Hence, the folks who are ardent air combat fans would wage war over the lake.

That's the long and short of it.

Thanks Max, that clears it up very nicely for me. With a 20K mountain wall around it, I bet bombers were very rare indeed. I like the furball aspect best myself, I'm sorry I missed out on fighter town, it sounds like a place I would hang out alot (and die alot )

[jaxxo]

guess again..griefers went way outta the way to take the bases at ftr town..they saw it as a challenge, well after they flew in 20k lancs and destroyed all the hangars..

[Lusche]

I fondly remember all that screaming on countrychannel about that "furballers who are just wasting our resources in FT" - As If fuel or ammo suddenly had been  rare commodities or the other countries had no players in FT

[Toad]

True; it was the classic "play the game our way" with all that "wasting our resources" crap.

I remember one guy sinking a CV where there was a great fur going on and he lectured us on country channel that we needed to stop wasting resources and join the war effort.

I switched sides and shot him down.

[duddini]

Originally posted by Toad
True; it was the classic "play the game our way" with all that "wasting our resources" crap.

I remember one guy sinking a CV where there was a great fur going on and he lectured us on country channel that we needed to stop wasting resources and join the war effort.

I switched sides and shot him down.

Now this is a man I can respect

[Simaril]

Originally posted by duddini
Now this is a man I can respect

You may not realize it, but you have just qualified for balcklisting by the war winners.

For those who live and die by "teh war," side switching proves lack of moral fiber, and a traitorous willingness to desert the nation of one's birth  to aid the perfidious enemy. There are  some squads that will eject and lifetime ban members for switching sides even once, even in a minor arena.

On the other hand, welcome to the family of guys who just wanna have fun. There are great people on all 3 countries, and IMHO you miss a lot by rejecting their comradeship just because of the shape of their chesspiece!

[duddini]

Originally posted by Simaril
You may not realize it, but you have just qualified for balcklisting by the war winners.

On the other hand, welcome to the family of guys who just wanna have fun.

Thanks. I can't stand whiners and cry babies. I just hope one day I have the skill to do something about it, like Toad. With his earlier post, he just jumped to the top of my "good guys" list.

[Krusty]

Forget the rolling planeset. For 1 we don't have the holes filled to pull that off. If, however, we just combined EW+MW planesets it would be sweet (test it out, why not? If folks can't live without their uber lgays and runstangs then enable them later, but try it out capped at MW first).

Oh, and I'm not one that cried over the radio, but I totally see the point when your team was outnumbered 2:1, being ganged up on by both other teams, and of your players 60% were mindlessly furballing at the center lake.

Kinda stupid ifluff'n ya ask me.

Anyways, I hated donut because the fields were at 5K artificial drop-offs so that any reupper can just dive into the fray with 500+ MPH without having to worry about climbing, building speed, and those that have already bested somebody (already have a kill or have survived af fight) are now low and slow. It basically bred cherry picking nonstop. I'd rather have 1.5-2k starts and a GENTLE (read: NOT 45 degrees) slope to the shore of the lake. That would be infinitely better.