Interesting how we define a hoard, then we condemn it when a hoard is used as a tool the way we don't like.
If two airfields happen to furball with 20-30 players from both sides, we look at that as the classic iconoclastic air combat scenario Aces High is supposed to be. As long as no one decides to bring a hoard in to flatten one of the fields or a 25k fighter sweep hoard to put an end to the giant furball.
But, some will complain that if 1\3 of those two country's are engaged in a mindless gigantic furball, then that is horrible because it's a misplaced use of resources during that Oh so tiny window of community maximum numbers called "Prime Time". Still that's 50-60 players having fun and not hoarding a field to capture it by someone else's definition of a good hoard.
If 20-50 players mount up and decide to capture as many fields as possible in a short period of time. Then they have also changed in mindset from competitive fighter pilot, to "anything goes to achieve my goals". Base taking is not conducive to good sportsmanship because the act of taking a base require heartlessly trapping players like rats against the ground and slaughtering them. And so the trapped rats respond in kind with like desperation and vicious heartlessness. As a vicious cycle, bringing a bigger hoard is the most efficient tactic to slaughtering the vicious rats. It's also seductive to be part of because it's easy and safe. And where a lot of players gain their huge kills landed strings everyone oohs and ahhs them over.
Very seductive to be ooh'd and aah'd over. And can give newer players a confusing view of how the game is played. And allows self indulgent players to feed their risk adverse needs without paying a price as long as they can be part of a hoard.
For the general population capturing a field cannot happen without ruthlessly slaughtering the defenders. There is no fair way to force the defenders to stop defending other than destroying them. Yes you can drop their hangers. Half the time they spawn in or up from another field and continue to ruthlessly try to exterminate your capture group for daring to attack their property. After a decade of trial and error, the simple solution is to bring more numbers than they have and ruthlessly annihilate them. That's called war.
To complain about hoards is really to make an observation to the obvious that the nature of groups in our game has two primary personalities. Dr. Jekell and Mr. Hyde. You cannot take territory away from others without it being an act of war. Furballing is combat, base capturing is war with all of it's ugliness.
Hitech didn't make us ruthless scumbags when base capturing time rolls around. We followed our peers, our friends, and our squads and acted exactly like we saw them act. He may have tweeked the back end a bit concentrating our scumbagery in a single location over longer periods of time these days. But, we were always the scumbags we are, just in the past we came together in hoards and captured our fields faster. So our scumbaggery didn't evolve to the levels of douchbaggery we see today by metastasizing over stalled base captures hours on end.
