1,982 [ALL41] Skyfaller Beta Testers, In AlfaTesters 2,854 posts 12,319 battles Report post #1 Posted February 3, 2021 WG, How about changing spotter planes from being ones that circle around your ship and give you an elevated aiming view.... to being scout planes (the actual purpose of many aircraft launched by non-carrier ships)? 1. Scout Plane: Scout plane consumable is greyed out (unable to use). Player goes into MAP view and clicks once on a map grid , which highlights it. When map grid is highlighted, the SCOUT PLANE consumable becomes usable. Player presses the SCOUT PLANE consumable keybind, which launches the Scout plane from cruiser/battleship. Scout plane flies to selected map grid center at very high altitude and starts circling.. the circle is as wide as the map grid. Circling lasts for 1.5 minutes. Scout plane returns to ship after that. SCOUT PLANES can only detect cruisers and battleships/cvs. It cannot spot destroyers. 2. Elevated Aiming View: Give ALL ships access to the ELEVATED AIM view as an AIMING option but with a few changes. - Player accesses the 'elevated aim view' by holding down the SHIFT key. So 1xshift = enter/exit normal aim mode, Shift+hold = enter elevated aiming view mode, release shift would leave the aiming view mode. - Elevated view mode is different in altitude per ship type. DDs get the least, BBs the highest. This emulates the main mast crows nest type advantage larger ships have. Highest would be about 25% higher altitude than current elevation..that way cruisers get to use the current elevation and DDs get slightly lower elevation. - When guns are fired while in elevated aim mode, the guns receive a 25% delay in reloading. Why this? Simple: It gives ALL ship types, including those that now do not have spotter plane access, to be able to aim behind certain terrain features when there is no visible target for the guns to lock on to for range data. This is something a ship IRL would easily be able to do just by changing the elevation of the guns or the gunpowder charge amount (or both). The delay in refire is a penalty for using an advantageous firing view and also emulates any possible gunpowder charge change from default. It is a 'special' shot. 3. Bonus: Secondary Guns 'Fire at Area' (manual). When using any AIM VIEW MODE ... player can have secondary guns fire at where he is aiming by pressing a keybind. Secondary guns will keep firing where the player's aim point is in the aiming view mode until he either exits the aim view mode or presses the keybind a second time (toggle). If the aiming point is inside the range of his secondaries, they will fire at that location using the standard dispersion (the manual secondary target skill bonus does not apply) . Secondary guns do not receive a refire delay penalty from elevated aim view mode...and it just keeps things simple. Why? Many times a ship knows a DD is stealthed inside his secondary gun range or is behind terrain undetected yet within secondary range. This command allows the player to have the secondary guns spray the area. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
3,590 [PVE] IfYouSeeKhaos Members 10,582 posts 28,076 battles Report post #2 Posted February 3, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, Skyfaller said: WG, How about changing spotter planes from being ones that circle around your ship and give you an elevated aiming view.... to being scout planes (the actual purpose of many aircraft launched by non-carrier ships)? 1. Scout Plane: Scout plane consumable is greyed out (unable to use). Player goes into MAP view and clicks once on a map grid , which highlights it. When map grid is highlighted, the SCOUT PLANE consumable becomes usable. Player presses the SCOUT PLANE consumable keybind, which launches the Scout plane from cruiser/battleship. Scout plane flies to selected map grid center at very high altitude and starts circling.. the circle is as wide as the map grid. Circling lasts for 1.5 minutes. Scout plane returns to ship after that. SCOUT PLANES can only detect cruisers and battleships/cvs. It cannot spot destroyers. 2. Elevated Aiming View: Give ALL ships access to the ELEVATED AIM view as an AIMING option but with a few changes. - Player accesses the 'elevated aim view' by holding down the SHIFT key. So 1xshift = enter/exit normal aim mode, Shift+hold = enter elevated aiming view mode, release shift would leave the aiming view mode. - Elevated view mode is different in altitude per ship type. DDs get the least, BBs the highest. This emulates the main mast crows nest type advantage larger ships have. Highest would be about 25% higher altitude than current elevation..that way cruisers get to use the current elevation and DDs get slightly lower elevation. - When guns are fired while in elevated aim mode, the guns receive a 25% delay in reloading. Why this? Simple: It gives ALL ship types, including those that now do not have spotter plane access, to be able to aim behind certain terrain features when there is no visible target for the guns to lock on to for range data. This is something a ship IRL would easily be able to do just by changing the elevation of the guns or the gunpowder charge amount (or both). The delay in refire is a penalty for using an advantageous firing view and also emulates any possible gunpowder charge change from default. It is a 'special' shot. 3. Bonus: Secondary Guns 'Fire at Area' (manual). When using any AIM VIEW MODE ... player can have secondary guns fire at where he is aiming by pressing a keybind. Secondary guns will keep firing where the player's aim point is in the aiming view mode until he either exits the aim view mode or presses the keybind a second time (toggle). If the aiming point is inside the range of his secondaries, they will fire at that location using the standard dispersion (the manual secondary target skill bonus does not apply) . Secondary guns do not receive a refire delay penalty from elevated aim view mode...and it just keeps things simple. Why? Many times a ship knows a DD is stealthed inside his secondary gun range or is behind terrain undetected yet within secondary range. This command allows the player to have the secondary guns spray the area. Gotta point out how OP a ship (DDs especially) that can smoke & launch a plane to spot for it is (whether torp DDs or gunboat DDs). There might be other outcries I'm missing (the rest doesn't seem too bad...especially like the ability to toggle out of spotter plane mode) but that 1 for sure is a no go I'm guessing (hoping actually). Smoke & radar has been kept to a minimum on account of the ability to spot for yourself in smoke for just that reason. The 2ndary idea would need at least a reload penalty & maybe even an ammo cost penalty (just while blind firing w/out a spotted target) to balance it out so ships are not just constantly having their 2ndaries firing non stop for area denial...you have that ability w/your main battery at the cost of reload time...a constant 3 second reload of area denial in an area would just be a bit OP & annoying for a ship (potential target) to need to constantly keep an eye on constantly dodge incoming fire every 3 seconds...especially if there are a group of ships all using the skill at once because you're known to be there due to radio location. Edit: Not to mention being able to pepper a ship in it's smoke w/constant 3 second reload. Edited February 3, 2021 by IfYouSeeKhaos 2nd edit to put the "edit" in the right place...lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
388 [OPG4] Boomer625 Members 1,181 posts 2,544 battles Report post #3 Posted February 3, 2021 USN DD’s t6 and below are going to have a super hard time now as they rely on islands and ambushes to use their 5.5-6.4km torps the spotting plane will be very annoying since BBs trying to run away will be constantly lit up. The current player base seems to hate this idea of constantly being lit up as seen in the CV hate. also, i think the free elevated aiming view will anger those that have spent quite a bit of time mastering firing at ships behind islands maybe thats my speculations on player base reactions Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
1,982 [ALL41] Skyfaller Beta Testers, In AlfaTesters 2,854 posts 12,319 battles Report post #4 Posted February 3, 2021 57 minutes ago, IfYouSeeKhaos said: Gotta point out how OP a ship (DDs especially) that can smoke & launch a plane to spot for it is (whether torp DDs or gunboat DDs). There might be other outcries I'm missing (the rest doesn't seem too bad...especially like the ability to toggle out of spotter plane mode) but that 1 for sure is a no go I'm guessing (hoping actually). Smoke & radar has been kept to a minimum on account of the ability to spot for yourself in smoke for just that reason. The 2ndary idea would need at least a reload penalty & maybe even an ammo cost penalty (just while blind firing w/out a spotted target) to balance it out so ships are not just constantly having their 2ndaries firing non stop for area denial...you have that ability w/your main battery at the cost of reload time...a constant 3 second reload of area denial in an area would just be a bit OP & annoying for a ship (potential target) to need to constantly keep an eye on constantly dodge incoming fire every 3 seconds...especially if there are a group of ships all using the skill at once because you're known to be there due to radio location. Edit: Not to mention being able to pepper a ship in it's smoke w/constant 3 second reload. I did not say the DD launched a plane. I said it elevated its aim point. If it cant see out of smoke then it wont see anything if elevated. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
3,590 [PVE] IfYouSeeKhaos Members 10,582 posts 28,076 battles Report post #5 Posted February 3, 2021 4 minutes ago, Skyfaller said: I did not say the DD launched a plane. I said it elevated its aim point. If it cant see out of smoke then it wont see anything if elevated. My bad...I missed the "2" & thought the elevated aiming view was an extension of the scout plane idea...doh Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
392 [MUG-T] frankfletcher_1 Members 823 posts 4,502 battles Report post #6 Posted February 23, 2021 On 2/3/2021 at 2:10 PM, IfYouSeeKhaos said: Gotta point out how OP a ship (DDs especially) that can smoke & launch a plane to spot for it is (whether torp DDs or gunboat DDs). USS Pringle when? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites