seekers w/ speed 0 = chaff

[Spoo]

I have a component idea for any modders that wish to borrow it: chaff for fighters.

It's a seeker componet with speed 0, range 1 or 2, damage 1 (doesn't matter), and a decent damage resistance. I've tested this in the combat simulater and it works. The seeker stays where it is. It will not harm enemy ships, even if they enter the same sector as the seeker. However, it will soak up PDC fire.

[dumbluck]

Another way to make fighers Last longer would be to make PDC damage decrease with range (ala APB). Explain it away as the increased difficulty to get your "wall of lead" to connect with small, fast moving targets at increased ranges.

EDIT: Spoo, are you suggesting this as a fighter "weapon", or Ship-based? Can Fighters even carry seeker weapons??? I've never seen it, even in a mod.

[ August 24, 2002, 06:48: Message edited by: dumbluck ]

[Deathstalker]

"EDIT: Spoo, are you suggesting this as a fighter "weapon", or Ship-based? Can Fighters even carry seeker weapons??? I've never seen it, even in a mod"

Yes, fighters can use seekers (have it in my D-ModGold, fighter seeker missiles, very effective I might add ).

And Spoo, very nice idea!!

I can see the applications already (different levels of tech giving different ranges of 'Chaff' and 'Chaff' having increasing damage resistance) and maybe even a 'drone' chaff that has a movement rate of 1 so it will follow a ship and soak up any PDC it has.. I had chaff in a modd once but it was a Rate of Fire 30 PDC cannon that destroyed one missle per hit, I like this (your) idea much better. Now if only we could control how long the chaff will stay in play.......

[ August 24, 2002, 07:27: Message edited by: Deathstalker ]

[Pax]

Originally posted by Deathstalker:

I can see the applications already (different levels of tech giving different ranges of 'Chaff' and 'Chaff' having increasing damage resistance) and maybe even a 'drone' chaff that has a movement rate of 1 so it will follow a ship and soak up any PDC it has.. I had chaff in a modd once but it was a Rate of Fire 30 PDC cannon that destroyed one missle per hit, I like this (your) idea much better. Now if only we could control how long the chaff will stay in play.......

I had a similar idea some week or so ago, but I had thought to give the "chaff" seeker a range commensurate with PDC of an equivalent research cost, plus one. IOW, where PDC are range 2, the counterpart "Chaff Dispenser" would berange 3 ... allowing it to be fired just outside of PDC range, and then absorb fire from teh target's PDC, covering the fighters as they made their approach.

My own concept was a 1kT or 2kT, 1-damage, Rate-of-Fire 1 or 2, seeker component for fighters; I hadn't considered one for ships; in GOLD, I'd make an equivalent for Drones too. 8)

In fact, something similar absolutely is going ot be included in my mod (if I can ever straighten out the tech trees, argh ... a la Monty Python, "my brain hurts!" ... heh!).