Difficulty settings question..

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Over50

Guest
So there I was (campaign mission, not QC) on the tail of a Albatros DII with my Sopwith just peppering the crap out of it (pieces flying off, etc., some smoke trailing) and he pulls up and comes in behind me - but at a distance - and fires off a few shots and - bam - I'm on my way to the ground. I mean I shot that turkey up big time but he kept flying and then takes me out with a few shots from a distance?..

Based on this am I correct that changing the difficulty settings doesn't dumb down the enemy AI skill and accuracy?

I've been flying at "normal" settings in campaign mode but had to resort to the pilot never dies setting due to the fact I have yet to get beyond (3) missions. I mean, even running away while jukin' and jaggin' to evade I still get shot down. Yet in QC I can survive in a 3 on 3 furball at normal difficulty. This is gettin' discouragin'... :frown:
 
Over50 said:
So there I was (campaign mission, not QC) on the tail of a Albatros DII with my Sopwith just peppering the crap out of it (pieces flying off, etc., some smoke trailing) and he pulls up and comes in behind me - but at a distance - and fires off a few shots and - bam - I'm on my way to the ground. I mean I shot that turkey up big time but he kept flying and then takes me out with a few shots from a distance?..

Based on this am I correct that changing the difficulty settings doesn't dumb down the enemy AI skill and accuracy?

I've been flying at "normal" settings in campaign mode but had to resort to the pilot never dies setting due to the fact I have yet to get beyond (3) missions. I mean, even running away while jukin' and jaggin' to evade I still get shot down. Yet in QC I can survive in a 3 on 3 furball at normal difficulty. This is gettin' discouragin'... :frown:
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I've had various thoughts about this, whether or not the AI gets to 'cheat'.

On first impressions, going by the sound effects, one perceives that one is hit by only a few rounds each time. But I've watched videos where the ticker-tape at the top of the screen (the actual hits you have taken) don't correspond with the audible cues. You think you've taken only a few rounds, but in fact you have been liberally plastered.

Secondly, I have been liberally plastered and still managed to get my kite down onto the ground and survive. Even after a flaming crash-landing in which I received not even an injury.

My personal tactic, if I take more than one burst, is to get down on the deck and run. And land if needs be. Survival is paramount for me. If you've been hit, give it up and get out of there.
 
What ho! Well, I suppose this depends on what sort of experience you're hoping the game to provide. I've only just ordered the game, so what I'm going to say will have limted value. One the one hand, the obvious argument is that life expectancy for a fighter pilot was very short, so three missions (even on normal) sounds pretty much par for the course to me.

If you want to survive longer and have easier kills, then surely it's just a question of adjusting the difficulty level until you find what's right for you. Clearly 'normal' isn't for you, so adjust it all down until you're happier with what you get.

I have to say though that having read the info about level of difficulty and the level of immersion, I can't wait for it to arrive. This sounds like a real feast. I'll be spending a good deal of time getting used to the flight models, practicing tactics and handling of the aircraft before throwng myself into a campaign. Good luck. Toodle pip!

Gresham.
 
The ALB is a very tough bird, failure to put a few, directly into the pilot, the engine or the fuel tank. Pieces can fly off all day long.
 
I too think there's a bit of a double-standard here in favor of the AI. Too many times I've poured streams of rounds into a enemy and NOT been able to bring him down, but just a few hits from someone and I'm too severely damaged to continue the fight.

Perhaps the AI defaults to "strongest" weapons effectiveness? In any case I think this needs to be looked at and tweaked a bit in the next patch please.

f9c709a54888.jpg
 
I'd say the same, Siggi
when you're hit, something might be broken. And that could mean your very end, as you can't rely on your plane as a fighter no more.
Yesterday, I followed a Nieuport, that I had already hit. To avoid my rounds, it danced and jumped and curved - and suddenly, as if a string had gone off - it rolled over and crashed headover into the ground nastily.
Since that, I'm happy with the knowledge, that they also can't perform properly no more.
 
BHAH is not an easy sim. It is, IMO a realistic sim (as far as anyone in 2009 can recognize reality in a WWI craft). The Albatros goes down if you can get close, get an angled shot at the engine and peck away. BHAH is highly variable and results can suprise. I have had E.A. hit somewhat convincingly, start smoking and then later shoot me down. I have also had an Albatros literally explode when hit multiple times at close range. E.A. have burned and gone down, have plunged after one burst (I assume the pilot was killed) and absorbed most of my ammo before I had to turn and run for my life.

IMO, other than a few tweaks to clean up some of the mentioned bugs and maybe to adjust some of the FM to be quirkier/more difficult to fly, there is not much needed to be done to this excellent sim. For the Nth time, thanks to WM and the developement crew for this time machine.
 
I think the real question is does a plane become crippled by virtue of having holes plastered through it's wood and fabric where no critical control mechanism is damaged?

On the face of it, the wires and linkages constitute such a small percentage of the area available to be damaged that loss of any amount of control should be unlikely in even the case of a number of bursts, never mind one.

But then a sustained burst into one area should mess it up so badly (bits sticking into the airflow, loss of fabric = loss of lift) that control would be affected.

And if the sim were modelled any differently would we get any kills at all? Would we ever be shot down ourselves? I've certainly yet to see actual structural failure of a target (wings coming off by virtue of bullet damage). Pilots are hard to hit. 2-seaters give a clue to how hard it could be if scouts were made equally resilient.

Personally, as an abstracted solution (in the absence of per-pixel DM), it 'feels' about right. I don't want to be able to kill ten planes in a single mission, and I don't want to be able to regard hits on my own plane with impunity.
 
Over50 said:
So there I was (campaign mission, not QC) on the tail of a Albatros DII with my Sopwith just peppering the crap out of it (pieces flying off, etc., some smoke trailing) and he pulls up and comes in behind me - but at a distance - and fires off a few shots and - bam - I'm on my way to the ground. I mean I shot that turkey up big time but he kept flying and then takes me out with a few shots from a distance?..
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Couple of things... When you say "Sopwith" are you talking a camel, 11/2 strutter, pup or triplane? Keep in mind that an Albatross with twin spandaus will be pumping a lot more lead into you at a much higher rate of fire than you can pump into him with one vickers.
Second thing: I believe the AI does get some breaks. Just yesterday I got hammered by an eindecker (an EINDECKER!!) while I was pulling a twirly dive out of the fight in an N17. He hit me so bad I had to retire from the fight and crashed on landing. There was no way that I could have flown the Eindecker and stayed on a Neuiport in that kind of dive with the player flight model we have.
Third thing: You payed your $50 bucks like everyone else. Set it up so you are having fun, if you have to increase the effectiveness of your guns and decrease the effectiveness of theirs, who cares?. You don't have to answer to anyone about the way you want to play your game :friday:

RR
 
It also depends on who is shooting you, but you will see with care you can reduce how many bullets you shoot with, how many guns the enemy has, where your weak spots are etc.. so many variables. BUT the whole idea of the DM is it's not a fixed number of hits to kill anything, it depends on your aim, and luck, .. i.e 5 bullets pilot dead... or 100 or 200 or 500 or 800 as MvR fired at Hawker for example.
 
Polovski said:
It also depends on who is shooting you, but you will see with care you can reduce how many bullets you shoot with, how many guns the enemy has, where your weak spots are etc.. so many variables. BUT the whole idea of the DM is it's not a fixed number of hits to kill anything, it depends on your aim, and luck, .. i.e 5 bullets pilot dead... or 100 or 200 or 500 or 800 as MvR fired at Hawker for example.
Click to expand...

While I appreciate the comparisons to the way it was and/or rationale for this or that and so on, my unanswered question remains:

Am I correct that changing the game difficulty settings does not effect the enemy AI skill and accuracy as well?

Or put another way, does selecting "easy" and/or "easiest" difficulty settings reduce enemy AI gun accuracy and effects proportionally?
 
aust3298 said:
BHAH is not an easy sim. It is, IMO a realistic sim (as far as anyone in 2009 can recognize reality in a WWI craft). The Albatros goes down if you can get close, get an angled shot at the engine and peck away. BHAH is highly variable and results can suprise. I have had E.A. hit somewhat convincingly, start smoking and then later shoot me down. I have also had an Albatros literally explode when hit multiple times at close range. E.A. have burned and gone down, have plunged after one burst (I assume the pilot was killed) and absorbed most of my ammo before I had to turn and run for my life.

IMO, other than a few tweaks to clean up some of the mentioned bugs and maybe to adjust some of the FM to be quirkier/more difficult to fly, there is not much needed to be done to this excellent sim. For the Nth time, thanks to WM and the developement crew for this time machine.
Click to expand...

Funny I've seen none of this. I was just watching a P3 beta video that was up at WWI air combat and it showed a Albatross flame from a very short burst. On the rare occasions I do get one to flame, it's after pumping a ton of ammo into the targets nose. Additionally I've never had an enemy plane fall out of control. Everyone of my kill happens one of two ways. Make a firing pass and the E/A loses a little agility. Make another he loses a little more. Make another he loses a little more. He's still trying to fight but you can tell his plane has lost most of it's maneuverability. This continues until with wings level nose high he drifts gently down and explodes when he hits the ground. The other is after pummeling the hell of an E/A at some point he goes wings level slightly nose down and either goes in after what looks like a long slow glide or he goes in at such a shallow angle he lands but then blows up when he eventually runs into a tree or building. I often hear the death scream of the pilot but he keeps right on flying, guess you can get the scream even if you just nick him :)

Scott
 
Panic! That is the scream. It is the fear of death! But I´ve been killed once in the seat, and my plane was levelled. So we were flying straight ahead until sim ended the flight! "You were killed"
 
ftgc said:
Funny I've seen none of this. I was just watching a P3 beta video that was up at WWI air combat and it showed a Albatross flame from a very short burst. On the rare occasions I do get one to flame, it's after pumping a ton of ammo into the targets nose. Additionally I've never had an enemy plane fall out of control. Everyone of my kill happens one of two ways. Make a firing pass and the E/A loses a little agility. Make another he loses a little more. Make another he loses a little more. He's still trying to fight but you can tell his plane has lost most of it's maneuverability. This continues until with wings level nose high he drifts gently down and explodes when he hits the ground. The other is after pummeling the hell of an E/A at some point he goes wings level slightly nose down and either goes in after what looks like a long slow glide or he goes in at such a shallow angle he lands but then blows up when he eventually runs into a tree or building. I often hear the death scream of the pilot but he keeps right on flying, guess you can get the scream even if you just nick him :)

Scott
Click to expand...

Exactly as I've been experiencing...except after pumping all that lead into him while riding his tail the E/A pulls up and - from a distance - I get hit multiple times dead on while I'm evading in every way I can but still sending me to the ground all shot to pieces - again, not on my tail but from a distance. Apparently the enemy AI ammo round is not only the size of a flash light but explosive as well....and has a magnetic, wood and flesh sensor built it to boot...
 
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