Perk pilots will/won't

[F4UDOA]

I brought this up a while ago in reference to the Perk Jocks never dropping below 20K. Which really raises some interesting questions.

1. A/C such as the Tempest have there best performance characteristics under 25K. If these fights range higher, 30K= then they will find themselves at the mercy of "stock" P-47D-25/30's which have perk type performance at those alts. This may force some perk planes to lower alts where their performance shines making it easier to bounce them, but on their terms.

2. These perk planes that have cousins already in the planeset will be at an advantage compared to those that don't. Such as the P-51H will still be identified as a plain old P-51 on the range icon but a Tempest or Arado will standout.

3. Will "Perk Hunter Dweeb" be the new catch phrase of AH? Probably, considering the points from these birds will be higher than most.

4. Range will play a considerable role in the perk world. If you are in a Arado or Me-262 you can run but you can't hide. Your short range will enable people to follow you from a distance and wait for a landing. Then take a kamikaze plunge for perk points.

Anyway it's sounds like fodder for the message board cannons for a while.

[This message has been edited by F4UDOA (edited 01-26-2001).]

[SwampRat]

I don't really think the perks are going to change things all that much with the exception that more folks are gonna have to start flying smarter to:
1) Keep thier ride
2) Earn thier ride
If there are any major changes brought about by perking, I figure they will most likely be good ones.
Swamp

[Kieren]

I happily stand by my comment. I dove my F4U-1D into the big Bish raid on 10 last night (along with AKDjV and one other pilot) and did the best I could against what appeared to be 10-12 F4U-1C's.

Yup, I died. And I would do it again. It was a lot more fun than cruising around looking for just the right person to bounce. Guess I'll never have a perk...

[AKDejaVu]

Yep.. that was fun Kieren.  There was definately no lack of aircraft to engage at A10 during that attack.  BTW.. thanks again for not filling that de-winged spit with lead.  I was in a 1D too and it would have been very easy to deprive me of a kill.

Also, I noticed the "major attack inbound on A10... need help!" message  The only real difference was nobody got on the comms and slammed the rest of the knits for not helping.  <S>

AKDejaVu

[Kieren]

Yes, it was a blast, enjoyed watching you work there!

That is the way I call for help; location, alt, size of raid, etc. I might repeat once in case someone missed the buffer, but after that I feel anyone that is coming is there. No need to yell.  

[Maverick]

Perk points and planes will do more to unbalance the game than have the chog and osty combined. The way it is set up now, the "best AH gamers" (you can use pilots if you wish) will be the ones to get the most rewards. On the face of it, it sounds neat. Think about it a bit though. If you are already one of the best gamers in the game, why would they "need" a perk plane with increased performance? This will simply make those who game the best virtually untouchable.

I have read the blurbs about following a perk plane and catching it as it lands. If you think about it, the perk pilot will not wait for his fuel to get critical before  landing, particularly with refuel / rearm points on every field. They will scream off and land at a base deep in their territory and either go to the tower or take off again before you can get close enough to attack. If there are few "deep" bases they will save the perk ride for later.

IMO the perk system will do nothing but raise the difference between the "good gamers" and those who are new, less skilled or don't care to make the game their life.


Mav

[LJK Raubvogel]

I agree Maverick, I don't have time to fly for 100's of hours a month and rack up thousands of kills. This thing called RealLife® keeps getting in the way.

------------------
LJK_Raubvogel
LuftJägerKorps

 

[This message has been edited by LJK Raubvogel (edited 01-26-2001).]

[TailLights]

I've just excited about Perk planes but after reading this thread, I understand perk system would not easily satisfy everyone.

Still, I'm on the side of perk points and plane.


hmmm... but if perk system can be another 'unbalancing factor' as Maveric pointed... It can be serious problem. (Well, this tour, I could hardly flying 7 hours yet.I won't have any perk-thing to save/ride  

My imagination ...

What if perk points are not limited to his own plane/planeset? what if perk points can be used/needed for mission designs. and ALL Perk planes like P51H, Arado, can only be selected via a Mission.

Who got enough Perk Point can design a mission with perk points, and others can join such a mission will get a perk plane. If those planes are shot down, the flyer/or the mission designer lose the plane, if landed safely, aircrafts or points can be
retained... etc.

Anyway ...
Generally I agree with perk point idea. ... It will enable us to have a little more 'virtual life to save' feeling about hard earned perk planes.

(But It won't be easy to settle down the system ...  yet another headache for HTC?  


tailight
-lyun-

[tom666]

I know I`ll be pissed when my 190D get`s gangraped by a whole bunch of bish dweebers.
I do keep track of my perkpoints,and I try to get them by flying the underdogs.It tends to make me a more competitive pilot,which I think the point is.
But I know when them perkplanes come out,good pilots will have more effect on the game by being called in to hairy setuations,in their perkrides ,to save the day.
Ain`t that the point????

[Kieren]

I am not against perk points. I am not for them. I just don't care either way.

I am only going to get a few hours a month flying total, nowhere near enough to ever accumulate enough perk points to even earn an uber ride. Even if I do manage somehow to do it, I won't have enough time online to use it in the way described above, and even if I did, it isn't the way I like to fight. In short, it doesn't fill any particular need for me. It doesn't hurt my needs either, so what do I care? It gives the guys who do care something to work for, I suppose that is cool.

Now, if it makes everyone start flying 30K to be above any possible contact, and it therefore becomes impossible for the low-time pilot to find action, then I think the sim in general is in real trouble. I suspect there are enough people like me that won't participate in that type of game all the time, so there should be fights enough to find. No harm, no foul.

[PakRat]

I agree completely with fscott.

The major complaint you hear all the time is how people fly without regard for dying - something that was to be avoided if at all possible in real life (death?). Perk points and perk rides will change that.

I also think that it will promote smarter flying and more team efforts - another very positive aspect that fscott mentions.

And, I guarantee there will be seek and destroy missions to catch the perk rides taking off from rear bases.

I think the perk system will probably polarize the arena a little bit. I think the more experienced and "mature" pilots will welcome the perk planes and prize them when they earn them. The quakers won't care or understand.

But at least there will be an element that flys more realistically, carefully, and with more reason. It will cut down on the number who launch at a capped field only to bleat about getting "vultched". It will also add to the strategy element.

And the last thing is we *still* don't know how much the planes/items/vehicles will cost. These planes may be very precious and expensive. I think the lower-tier planes won't cost that much - for example, the ones that have brothers already in the arena - but ones like the Arado probably will cost.

And that is how it should be. If you trivialize the perk planes, then they aren't really perk planes and the same Quake-style fights will prevail. Make them valuable and capable and there will be a whole new style of fighting show its face. A smarter and more challenging style.

Gotta remember - there will be perk planes on all sides and every perk pilot will be especially hunting other perk pilots.

I think it's great.

------------------
Rape, pillage, then burn...

[BUG_EAF322]

After i lost my 3000 perkpoint crate.
there will always be the P38 to fly with
 

[MrSiD]

Some players have a special way to play this game already.

Players who, lets say, meet co-alt + E on their own territory you in P47 him in a pony, alt 22k. What he does is not starting to fight, but hard dive down at compression limit.. Dive that continues about 1 minute untill he's ground level and reached the airfield. At this point he finds courage to turn around and attack (assuming that the attacker was foolish enough to follow.)

He makes 1 pass at you, misses, and surprisingly doesnt seem too agressive even though he's semi-protected by his ack.
The explanation comes about 20 seconds later with spotting the a6m that just took off from the field.. He simply waited to have the stall wonder as his backup untill fighting. Then, together, he obviously wasted the P47 like a piece of cake (although the zeke died to the bullets of the P47, it was enough for him to gain advantage.) The pilot who was taught this hard lesson was me at my 1st trial week..

After the fight I was dumbfounded by the pilots cowardice and checked his score to see if he was some newcomer scared to fight me fair. He had something like 200:45 K/D ratio... Everyone can figure now how he obtained that score. I dont want to see that individual getting to a perk plane.. no way.

Of course everyone has their own style of playing the game.. But this kind of heroism ticked me off enough to log off for the night. I generally don't like getting into a fight where the other player will make his best to avoid fighting untill its downright unfair to the opponent. You may say that the point in air combat is to deny the opponent of a fair chance to kill you.. But IMO there's a fine line with superior tactics and with plain cowardice.

There, now I've said it..

Aces High is a great game, to bad you have to deal with the people that play it...  

- MrSiD

[Kieren]

I have often read RWY argue that furballing vs. strat is not an intelligence issue, and I agree. Pak, with all due respect that was pretty condescending stuff. Your choice though, so be it. It does illustrate the point that started this thread; that, while furballers are perfectly willing to play without trying to change the way stratters play, the converse is hardly true. In any event, I'm going to play the game any way that is fun (and fair) at that particular moment. If it isn't fun, it isn't play, right?

MrSid, you sure do see guys like that. Let them have their inflated scores and egos, it doesn't matter for anything in real life. There are plenty of pilots that will give you great fights, like Hangtime, Westy, any of the AK's, etc. I have even run into a new one in the last few days, Ametz. Had the funnest F4U-1D vs. F4U-1D turn fight, 10K to the deck, each waiting for the other to screw up. We've pretty much traded kills, and it is a pleasure to find him.