Perk system: consider this.....

[Swoop]

Perk everything!


Well, almost everything.  Ya can leave dogs like 202s, spit Mk1s, C47s, etc free.


Give everything a minor perk cost (like: 1 for a LA5, 2 for a LA7, etc) and issue every player with 200 perks to spend each month.  This way, pilots that have a hard time getting kills and earning perk points (due to either limited time spent online or lack of ability) get the chance to fly the high price stuff.   I know guys who've been playing AH for years but only get on a few nights a month......can take 6 months to earn enough perkies for a 262.

See the problem is with these players that spend well over 100 hours a month flying and get pretty good......and go earn emselves 1000s of perk points.  This is why things like the 262 have to be expensive.......but on the flip side, the pilots who dont spend days online at a time and dont earn a great deal of perk points also dont get much of a chance to get used to the perk planes.....so when they do finally earn enough to take up the plane they promptly get shot down cos they aint used to it.  At least getting a "ration" of perk points would give the newbies a chance. (check out any newbies stats - in the 1st two weeks most newbies look like: 200 sorties, 5 kills......if they lucky).


It also means a minor reduction in the numbers of N1ks, LA7s, etc that seem to come up every time a field is attacked in force.


Just an idea, feel free to flame as much as ya like.

[eskimo2]

At least 80% of all rides in the MA need to cost nothing in perks.
If a newbie is forced to drive only 109E, spit-1, hurri-1, 202, etc, they will get slaughtered even worse than they are now.  A lot of newbies would have 0 points often even if they flew planes that only cost 1 point.  The perk system needs to limit only the late-war-uber-planes (262, Temp, etc.).

One idea would be to allow free perk planes at the rear-most base owned by that country.  The "cost" of flying the perk plane would be the time it takes to fly it to the front.  This is fair because Fester and 367638 (Newbie # guy) both would spend the same amount of time to get it to where it is useful.  
2nd tier perk planes might be free at bases located 25 miles from the rear-most base owned by their country.

My biggest concern of how perk points are implemented/awarded, is how it impacts newbies.

262s everywhere would ruin the game.
Newbies are the Future of AH, they need to be given a fair chance.
A ballance between the two can be tough.

eskimo

[Swoop]

Eskimo,

read my initial post again.



A newbie wouldnt have zero perks and only be able to fly 109E's, etc........a newbie would have 200 perk points rationed to him and again at the start of the next tour and the tour after that.

A single kill of something late war in a 109E will give ya the perks for around 5 flights in a LA7.......for example.  I dunno, I havnt thought about specifics......only the shell of the idea.


Anyway, forgetting the 'perk everything' idea for a moment.....wadda ya think of the rationing of perk points idea?  That'd give newbies a chance......

[J_A_B]

The "good" planes already DO "cost" a few perks to fly them, but the system is designed that it only charges you if you're successful in said plane.  Indeed, the better you do the more you get charged.  

How does it work?  It's called ENY value--get 5 kills in a P-51D, then get 5 kills in a 205.  You'll see quite a difference.   There's utterly no need to further limit the "good" planes.

J_A_B

[Swoop]

JAB,


thats a very good point, I never thought of it that way before.......



However, it doesnt help those that dont fly much......it can still take months to earn enough perkies for a 262.

[J_A_B]

You're right--it took me almost 3 months flying AH to get 200 points.  I don't fly much to begin with, and I fly a low ENY plane.


I don't really care though; none of the perk planes interest me beyond whimsy so I don't really care if I can fly them or not.  A "spend it or lose it" bank might not be a bad idea.

J_A_B

[eskimo2]

Swoop,
Give them any amount of perks and they will lose them down to 0.  Then they are screwed.  
Giving them free perks is a fine idea.
Perking most planes would screw newbies more than anyone else though, IMO.

eskimo

[Replicant]

Since we're all looking at a different way of classifying Perk planes then how about some of these suggestions:-

1)  Each month every player gets 'X' amount of hours of free perk plane use.

2)  The ratio of hours per perk plane could be set to its current value.  e.g.  if you had 'two hours' left you could spend the two hours in a Ta152 or 'one' hour in a Spitfire XIV (30:60 perk point ratio, 1:2 hour ratio) - hope this kinda makes sense?

3)  After the free time has expired then all perk planes slowly increase in price every time you take a sortie.

4)  'X' amount of rearms/refuels will count as a new sortie as far as the perk price is concerned.

5)  'Free hours' could also apply to high perfomance non-perk planes (10-20 ENY).  If you go over 'X' amount of time in these planes then they start costing you perk points.  This could be set at a very high free hour usage and again in proportion of its current ENY value.  e.g. 20 hours in a ENY 20 plane might only be worth 10 hours in a ENY 10 plane.  

I hope I've explained the above clearly enough.  I think if this was introduced it would allow both rookie and veteran an equal share and use of the higher value perk planes.  It will also mean that if you are an experten in a perk plane then you will only have so many hours to fly it - a variable could even be set so that if you get so many kills per sortie in a perk plane then your time runs out quicker or its price is increased sooner etc.  Of course, you could always spend your perk points on the plane as soon as your time as run out, though the price might be slightly higher than its current price to reflect the 'free usage' facility.  This would allow more fun usage; currently if you're in a perk plane then you might run to the deck if you lose the advantage all because you're worried of losing your perk points.  It will also mean that you should be seeing a very wide cross section of aircraft in the MA, especially if high ENY planes are affected too.  

Anyway, like I say, just an idea and please feel free to add constructive critism.

Regards

NEXX

PS  I know the above would be pretty difficult to introduce but I think it would be worth the hassle.

[LePaul]

I like the idea that every month, all players get, say, 100 perks in both categories.  Sure, its not enough for a 262, but it certainly gives them a good head start.  Hang around for a few resets and they'll have one in no time.  Or, if we allow perks to accumulate per month at a rate of 100 per month, in 2 months, your rank newbie can cruise the skies in their new 262.

I'm pretty frugal how I spend my fighter perks because it takes me forever to accrue them.  I've yet to fly the Tempest or the F4u-4, for example.

Also, can partial points be awarded for assists?

I agree that the ever-present La7s and N1ks are annoying at times, but I've just accepted it as part of the Main Arena.  I'll usually skip an enounter with an La7 but go out of my way to tangle with a 205, since that's a more challenging encounter *in my own opinion*.

As for newbies, the 3 or 4 people I've introduced to Aces High, I've suggested they start with the Spit 9 and than sample all of the planes from there.  My latest favorites are the P-47 D30 and F6F Hellcat....and this from a buff guy  

[lazs2]

so you would like to see that it was not worth playing AH unless you were willing to dedicate a large portion of your life to it?  or.... do you simply feel that people like to have the challenge of knowing that they are starting out with a huge disadvantage every time they log onto a "game" that they play casually?    Might be good for some players but I doubt it would be good for HTC
lazs