Instigating a furball. How does this phenomenon occur?

[bustr]

1. Time to the fight. 1 sector or less(.75) distance for bases. 1.5-2 sectors is more time than many are willing to invest.

2. Proximity of useful bases to the fight. Each side needs at least one additional base within 1-.75 sector at an angle to the fight to escape to and to up from for that safe or sneeky feeling.

3. Enemy GV spawns need to be 1/4-1/3 sector from the bases in the fight. Disgrunteled players will kill the momentum by revenging with a whirbel or tank.

4. Nothing can be done about the fun police bomber drivers. Unless the muppets want to teach "all of the fun police" the secrets of furball acm mastery. They will show up to teach the furballers who rules the fun in the game. That old joke about the brain and the kester deciding who rules the body......

5. What seems to work:
-Islands with 3 bases in close proximity
-Locations separated by one sector of water with 3 bases on the edges.
-2 bases funnled by a topographic feature down a broad valley.
-Isolation of sides like the Trinity map's mountain ranges and most bases 1-.75 sectors from each other.

6. The old Pizza map and Trinity have good base spacings. Pizza had some great topographic features.

7. The current generation of players will hoard roll bases setup for good furballing and reset the map in hours if it's not a giant map as is the vough these days. Fester you scare the heck out of them when you show up to fight. But, smaller maps with closer bases and topographic features aimed at funneling furballs will work. Just give the GV'ers a tank town to play in thats 1.5-2 sectors from the nearest airfeild.

8. Move all near shoreline airfeilds back just far enough that a CV can't be parked close by as a 3k altitiude supressor. 5 miles I think. Bomber pilots are more likely to take out a furball CV to retaliate for the altitiude control during a furball. In WW2 I don't think many japanese airfeilds were parked on the water. Makes them hard to defend from water born attackers.   

[bj229r]

Distances between bases is a huge factor too. Interesting way of looking at it. A furball is its own ecosystem with its own food chain.

yup, there is a magic distance in play, a distance which seems shorter on the smaller maps (mebbe it's only my perception) Certain areas on each map always seem to be the furball spots, and never seem to get captured....this is where the psychology thing comes into play

[bj229r]

Distances between bases is a huge factor too. Interesting way of looking at it. A furball is its own ecosystem with its own food chain.

yup, there is a magic distance in play, a distance which seems shorter on the smaller maps (mebbe it's only my perception) Certain areas on each map always seem to be the furball spots, and never seem to get captured....this is where the psychology thing comes into play

[Guppy35]

I find that backing off, letting folks get their gear up, out of the ack and a little bit of air under their wings helps tons.  That and talking on 200 can bring folks to the fight. 

Hanging up high and hitting folks before they can get in a spot to give you a decent fight <gasp..cough..fester>  tends to kill what chance there is for an ongoing good furball in a hurry

Carrier off shore can create a good one in a hurry.  Even if they are after the base, if you can get your own guys not to sink the carrier, it tends to keep going and not be a one crew up high, one down low fight, but a low alt brawl.  A good one of those will go back and forth with the carrier crowd pushing it inland and the base crowd pushing it back.

When all else fails I find that "38s otw to <insert base number here> at 5K and looking for a fight" will sometimes draw a crowd.

[Hopper]

A furball has been known to occur when Silat flies over an enemy field, broadcasting a comely "you-hoo boys".  If that doesn't work he drops a garter.

Silat is a better choice than princess

[BnZs]

4. Nothing can be done about the fun police bomber drivers. Unless the muppets want to teach "all of the fun police" the secrets of furball acm mastery. They will show up to teach the furballers who rules the fun in the game. That old joke about the brain and the kester deciding who rules the body......

Completely untrue.

1. Perk/eliminate the formation. One person, one plane.

2. Make gun positions realistically killable. I can't tell you how many times I've lit up the tail-gunner position on a B-25 or 26, with literally enough .50 or 20mm rounds on target that the gunner should be unpleasant bits of hamburger that will have to be hosed out of the plane on RTB...and it keeps firing.

Changes like this would go along way to making intercepting bombers BEFORE the hangars get dropped a realistic and non-masochistic option, and also go along way to making it necessary for escort to be an actual nessecity for succesful buff operations, which in turn would lead to some more interesting fights. So something *can* be done but I doubt it *will* be done due to the notion that its vital for gameplay that any two weeker be able to up and stand some chance of actually penetrating enemy territory successfully, as opposed to the snow-ball's chance in hell a noob has of actually upping a fighter and landing kills without doing ALOT of climbing on the learning curve.

[mtnman]

I've found it pretty simple to start furballs, but sustaining them is a different matter.

To start one, just take a friend and head to an enemy field nearby where there's already some action (take 100% fuel).  Then split up, staying out of icon range of each other (but on vox) and loiter at about 5-7K.  Stay close enough to the field to keep it blinking.  When a pilot lifts, let him get out of the ack, and climb to your alt, or until he's comfortable enough to come after one of you.

Fight him, and kill him 1v1.  You have to kill him once or twice without dying yourself, or he'll just land and go elsewhere.  Often, he probably doesn't even have fuel to do much more...  You (or your friend) need to stay out of icon range and leave you alone.  Let your opponent have a good chance.

When he dies, 9 times outta 10 he'll lift and try again.  Repeat the process.  Eventually, a 2nd, 3rd, maybe 4th plane will lift.  Continue the process, but take it further from the field.  Regardless of the temptation, do not chase them to the ack.  Let them go if they want it.  Let them have it as a safe zone.  No vulching!

At this point, dar will be building, and I can't remember the last time this happened and there wasn't a stream of friendlies on the way to allow your egress for fuel.

The key to it is a steady stream of players from both sides.  No big missions.  A big swarm with a "purpose" will kill the fight.  They'll arrive with the enemy too spread out to do much, and will overwhelm the fight.  Once the furball has been going on for 10 minutes or so, heavy fighters and bombers are a real plus, as long as they aren't in it to shut the field down.

Leave a few hangers up.  Leave the GV hanger up.  Leave the radar up...

Two guys can start a furball with little trouble.  Eventually, it'll get squashed, but it was fun while it lasted!  Go start another...  Once a furball dies, it's the easiest time start another.  All of the players are still around, they just need to see another fight begin!

[bj229r]

I've found it pretty simple to start furballs, but sustaining them is a different matter.

To start one, just take a friend and head to an enemy field nearby where there's already some action (take 100% fuel).  Then split up, staying out of icon range of each other (but on vox) and loiter at about 5-7K.  Stay close enough to the field to keep it blinking.  When a pilot lifts, let him get out of the ack, and climb to your alt, or until he's comfortable enough to come after one of you.

Fight him, and kill him 1v1.  You have to kill him once or twice without dying yourself, or he'll just land and go elsewhere.  Often, he probably doesn't even have fuel to do much more...  You (or your friend) need to stay out of icon range and leave you alone.  Let your opponent have a good chance.

When he dies, 9 times outta 10 he'll lift and try again.  Repeat the process.  Eventually, a 2nd, 3rd, maybe 4th plane will lift.  Continue the process, but take it further from the field.  Regardless of the temptation, do not chase them to the ack.  Let them go if they want it.  Let them have it as a safe zone.  No vulching!

At this point, dar will be building, and I can't remember the last time this happened and there wasn't a stream of friendlies on the way to allow your egress for fuel.

The key to it is a steady stream of players from both sides.  No big missions.  A big swarm with a "purpose" will kill the fight.  They'll arrive with the enemy too spread out to do much, and will overwhelm the fight.  Once the furball has been going on for 10 minutes or so, heavy fighters and bombers are a real plus, as long as they aren't in it to shut the field down.

Leave a few hangers up.  Leave the GV hanger up.  Leave the radar up...

Two guys can start a furball with little trouble.  Eventually, it'll get squashed, but it was fun while it lasted!  Go start another...  Once a furball dies, it's the easiest time start another.  All of the players are still around, they just need to see another fight begin!

I think that's the biggest thing, but for a different reason. If you have 4-5 guys fighting THEIR 4-5 guys, (soon-to-be 6-7, 8-9...) getting ever-closer to their base is gonna start getting your people popped by the new uppers, as their return to the engagement is soooo short (and stuff like Lgays reach combat speed in nothing flat)

[Zazen13]

To understand the dynamics of how a furball comes into being and persists, you have to first understand the methodologies of the individual constituent components, the fighter pilots. A healthy furball has to have a various types of fighter pilots fullfilling specific roles in specific relative proportion to one another and their equivalent on the opposing side. Allow me to explain...

I am arbitrarily going to assign names of the different types of pilots in order to generalize them simply to fascilitate explanation. You can catagorize and label them anything you wish, but the result is the same. Bear in mind one individual can drift between categories throughout the engagement depending on variety of factors including fuel load, weapon loadout, relative E state & altitude, etc.

1) Bottom Feeders-they get to the fight fast, near the deck and engage the first thing they come across, usually in turning birds and/or "nose-up fighters" (ie: p38, La7, any plane with great climb and acceleration)

2) Scrappers-These guys climb out directly to the fight settling for whatever altitude they happen to achieve prior to engagement. They tend to be a little more discriminating in their engagements, but fairly quickly most end up at the strata of the bottom feeders, generally being reluctant to let the fight go to re-alt at any point during the engagement.

3) Pickers- These guys specifically achieve a target altitude prior to engagement depending on plane type and opponents' average altitude, they tend to be very disciminating due to their self-imposed rules of engagement, at least initially. The very disciplined ones won't devolve to scrappers because they tend to dis-engage periodically to re-gain altitude, but most will eventually.

4)Porkers- These guys are not interested in engaging until they have delivered their ordnance to the opposing base. Most will never drop ordnance prematurely unless under direct fire and most will end up as bottom feeders shortly after release. The threat to each others' bases by the porkers attracts fresh defenders to the area.

So, to understand a furball you must visualize it in three dimensions, each type filling an altitude strata. This is important  because the strata are like positions on the  food chain of a furball. The higher strata tend to feed on those equal to and below it, but rarely above it.

A)Pickers engage other pickers and feed on the scrappers.
B)Scrappers  engage other scrappers and feed on the bottom feeders.
C) Bottom feeders feed on each other .
D) Everyone gets an opportunity to feed on porkers at some point.

To avoid being victimized by the strata above them, a pilot usually will usually dive away and doing so effectively demoting themselves to the strata beneath them , at least temporarily.

So, for a furball to work long-term there has to be relatively equal proportions of the various strata within a team and relative to the other team.  You will notice when a furball breaks down, usually due to significant disparity in either type or quantity, one team will lose their higher strata sequentially in top down fashion. First they will lose their pickers, then they will lose their scrappers. This will continue until all they have left is bottom feeders then the weight of the enemy turns the bottom feeders into vulchees and the furball is over.

[Lusche]

<- disciplined picker 

[Muzzy]

We need a simulation to examine this phenomenon.  Yes, a simulation to examine a simulation. How meta is that?

[BaldEagl]

Geez, in the old days all you had to do was fly to the VOD for a 24/7 furball.  Now it's all so complicated.

[Zazen13]

<- disciplined picker  

Better a picker than a porker or vulcher. This is why I have general disdain for porkers and vulchers. They effectively short-circuit the evolution and persistence of a furball. At any point, too many porkers and/or vulchers will kill a burgeoning furball. A furball can sustain an overabundance of all the other types to a moderate degree, without its life cycle being markedly disrupted. But, just a few too many porkers and/or vulchers and BAM the furball is no more.

[Lusche]

Better a picker than a porker or vulcher. This is why I have general disdain for porkers and vulchers.

Oh, when I find nothing to pick I transform into a vulcher too. Even worse: When I see someone sitting on rearm pad I often go for him no matter if there are "better" targets airborne or if the field ack is up 

[Zazen13]

Oh, when I find nothing to pick I transform into a vulcher too. Even worse: When I see someone sitting on rearm pad I often go for him no matter if there are "better" targets airborne or if the field ack is up  

Most will do that, that's what makes a furball so delicate. If the opponent becomes bereft of targets in or immediately below their strata, the furball degenerates rather quickly. Once, the crushing weight of the higher strata munch thru the bottom feeders and descend upon a field, vulching begins and the furball is dead. Thus my life-long anti-vulching crusade....