The New Radar Icons

[Chalenge]

Bruv brings out some good points, but I always understood that the original Radar system Britain used gave them the number, course and altitude of the "boogies" . Don't see this as much different.

The number was by sighting and estimation. The altitude was through the use of sighting devices and a lookup table (math). Radar of the time could not do either one.

[JimmyC]

and the sector clock..

[Devil 505]

and the sector clock..

What's the purpose of the colored wedges?

[diaster]

Wow, we have gone from squirrels with cameras to squirrels with radios snitching on people........

If you turn off icons then don't ever look at your map, you should be very happy shift8. Maybe wish for Hitech to add a toggle to the map to turn off friendly\foe icons. Then you can tell everyone over ch200 how gamey the rest of us fly......

in other games, especially a  1st person shooters,a player tracker is usually a hack. just a thought, called..esp

[Zoney]

The problem with bombers is that a player can go afk for a dump while his buffs climb to 30k. There is no penalty for such altitudes. And even if you had a buff icon within a dar ring it is nigh on impossible to deal with them. Then they have the advantage of the simple bombsight alignment, and a 3 plane formation to deal with.

Maybe AH3 will bring more clouds, even something as simple as cloud layers obscuring bombsights would even things out a lot.

No it's not.  it's no more impossible than it is for them to climb up there.  YOU have to be willing to invest the time to be up there, just like they have.  They are most likely trying to mask their path and sometimes you will need to mask your interception so they won't know for sure you are up there waiting.  It's like a chess match.

[Zoney]

I am not sure that the new radar icons are a good idea. I think that they give people far too much information and are too "gamey." Not that the original radar icons were ever all that realistic, but the new ones take things to a whole new level. The new radar icon system allows for the real time directional tracking of each individual plane, and on top of that tells you what type of plane you are tracking. The old system with just the dots meant that you had to spend time watching a contact for some time to determine its direction because it only updated periodically. You also didnt know what kind of plane you were looking at. This was a much better system for maintaining a veneer that are getting general information about enemy formations relayed to you from ground radar. The dots gave you a general impression of the size and disposition of certain cons. Not immediate 360 degree exacting data on single airplanes. This is especially problematic for bombers, since people will now know exactly which cons to gun for when they take off etc.

You're not going to be able to "Lone Ranger" a milkrun across 30 sectors while just placing one bomb on each town for points.  That's going to be the biggest difference.  You will now have to fly in a formation with other bombers and escorts if you want to fly across the map and have any hope of making it home.  Your escorts likely won't be willing to help you milkrun if it isn't helping the war effort.  Yeah, a few things will have to change with how you fly.  Things that will make it more realistic, certainly not less.  Or you can ignore all that and I will be up there, waiting.

[JimmyC]

What's the purpose of the colored wedges?

Copy and paste...
Aircraft position was recorded along with the colour of the triangle beneath the minute hand at the time of sighting. This was reported to sector headquarters, where counters of the relayed colour were used to represent each air raid on a large table with a map of the UK overlaid with a British Modified Grid. As the plots of the raiding aircraft moved, the counters were pushed across the map by magnetic "rakes". This system enabled "Fighter Controllers" to see very quickly where each formation was heading and allowed an estimate to be made of possible targets. The age of the information was readily apparent from the colour of the counter. Because of the simplicity of the system, decisions could be made quickly and easily.

Essentially easy to see time flow..seems to have been very effective as they kept the system for so long..simple but effective

[shift8]

I think the new system will help promote combat. 

You can prepare for bomber attacks quicker, prevent them from closing bases and be at sufficient height to attack before they bail out.

Bustr is right pork the radar along the front before your run if your scared of attackers.   I'd also have a wish to go alongside by making the radar tougher to kill.

This does not promote combat in general. This promotes a very specific form of combat: the crap-shoot fur-ball. This sort of thing negates the advantages of certain planes and otherwise legitimate tactics and strategy. It artificially shoehorns players into certain types of engagement geometry instead of letting the various aircraft characteristics organically create the conditions of combat and their associated rules.

Adding on that you would want the radar to be further hardened is even more preposterous. I mean seriously, why don't you guys just demand what you really want?

Screw all this MA stuff right? If you want to "promote combat" how about we just have one nice short canyon with a concrete roof. Just like the DA canyon but with no escape! Then we can remove every airplane in the game except the Ki-43! Then we can cram 600 players into this death tunnel and everyone can dance around each other like fly's next to a light pole. 

That, or we can just tether all the airplanes together with cables and fly around in circles till someone gets bored. 

[Drane]

Watch the movie "Angels One Five". A 1952 British film that shows what a RAF war room was like in WWII.

[Latrobe]

This does not promote combat in general. This promotes a very specific form of combat: the crap-shoot fur-ball. This sort of thing negates the advantages of certain planes and otherwise legitimate tactics and strategy. It artificially shoehorns players into certain types of engagement geometry instead of letting the various aircraft characteristics organically create the conditions of combat and their associated rules.

What? 


A planes strengths and weaknesses is in no way, shape, or form affected by how a radar station works.


It almost sounds to me like you want other people to play this game how you want them to. Either that or you're one of those players who only does the sneaky flying stuff onto undefended bases and then high-tails it out of there when trouble arises.

If you don't like combat then go play in the offline mode. You won't have to worry about other players in there and it's FREE! 

[Wiley]

I am not sure that the new radar icons are a good idea. I think that they give people far too much information and are too "gamey." Not that the original radar icons were ever all that realistic, but the new ones take things to a whole new level. The new radar icon system allows for the real time directional tracking of each individual plane, and on top of that tells you what type of plane you are tracking. The old system with just the dots meant that you had to spend time watching a contact for some time to determine its direction because it only updated periodically.

A few seconds, depending on population and proximity.  Plus, you still have to watch the display on the new system to see if it's flying straight or turning.  The only new information is certainty whether it's a fighter or a bomber, which can be guessed with a fair degree of accuracy already by how the dot behaves.

The game will survive this.

Wiley.

[Ack-Ack]

The radar will probably undergo some setting changes when the AH3 soft launches this week.  Don't everyone get their panties bunched up in a wad before they see how the radar is after launch.

[save]

I think the new system will help promote combat. 

You can prepare for bomber attacks quicker, prevent them from closing bases and be at sufficient height to attack before they bail out.

Bustr is right pork the radar along the front before your run if your scared of attackers.   I'd also have a wish to go alongside by making the radar tougher to kill.

+1 both ordnance and radar should present a much harsher treatment to go down.

[USCH]

A few seconds, depending on population and proximity.  Plus, you still have to watch the display on the new system to see if it's flying straight or turning.  The only new information is certainty whether it's a fighter or a bomber, which can be guessed with a fair degree of accuracy already by how the dot behaves.

The game will survive this.

Wiley.

I agree. Only noobs can't see what our current red dots are as far as fighter of bomber just by its airspeed moving accrost the map.

You would be better off asking for hitec to add more of a delay to the icons ( witch is currently available already and used in special events).

[Shuffler]

If you climb hard in a fighter you have much slower forward motion. By climbing hard I mean a little more than optimum. It causes you to not climb as quickly but it can also make you look like a set of buffs to the...ummm trained eye.

Of course some consider my fighter a buff anyway.