Whats up with AA defense?

[Spaceman]

I don't know about you but my AA defense recently has not shot down many VTOL's.

I'm not quite sure when it started, but someone has it in for air defence. Whirlwind, and flac based defenses (I can't name names) don't seem to have any affect on aircraft, I have like 12 of these things and they do jack all for my protection (apart from slightly damage my opponent). This is normal these day's even if I don't think it should be.
But (more) recently missile based defenses have also been crappified (for use of a better term and spelling). I swear missile based defence's were homing not guided in previous version's.
I get that somethings have to been downgraded in order to balance the game, and we can't just keep upgrading things in order to balance it otherwise we may run out of numbers. But air defence is still necessary. This is starting to annoy me especially in T3.

[themousemaster]

It's known. 2.1 seems to have scrweed up flak based AA.

If you are playing MP, just get to SAMs quickly... and if you are playing Singleplayer... well, be extra careful with your experienced units until Gamma5 when SAMS become available .

Making VTOLs with TK weapons in the meantime, slowing the gamespeed down to minimum, and using them to intercept incoming attack VTOLs is a good idea in the meantime.

[Skrim]

I get that somethings have to been downgraded in order to balance the game

It's not balancing. It's a bug.

[ouch]

yes, vtol with weapons that work against other vtol is the way to go now at the moment. (They changed the way everything targets enemies. Seemed to work great for everything, but the anti-air stuff seems to have been overlooked in the change...)

But save yourself the trouble and build a vtol sensor tower, then assign the vtol to that. Or simply put the vtol on patrol. There is no need to slow the game speed down.

[Skrim]

The VTOL Radar Tower and Patrol mode don't work properly if there are ground targets in the area. Your fighters will go after those ground targets and ignore incoming enemy aircraft.

For a region where there are no enemy ground entities, the Radar Tower works well.

[GiGaBaNE]

im having no troubles with AA base defences. I do not build hurricane or cyclone, but work on machine gun tech as a top priority and get whirlwinds which seems to work fine as a wall of turrets, then lasers are a great replacement if your game lasts that long.

if you work really quick you can get the machine gun based AA before they ever destroy a building via vtols.
best of luck.

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[GiGaBaNE]

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As you can see, there is very little use of the previous versions of AA base defence and they are just a waste of resources.

[themousemaster]

I see your screenshots.

The reason those AA turrets are so effective is because, at the point where the VTOL's fire their payload and turn around, they are directly over your AA guns.

in version 2.1.X, being "directly over" an AA gun and slowing down the plane's speed is about the only way that AA can reliably take a plane down.

So you just happened to have excellent and lucky placement of your guns for that specific incoming attack wave.


If the attack wave had come from the East, they would have fired, turned, and gone home with no difficulty. Your AA guns would have fired, but caught not more than air.



...



Unless that whole "multiplayer's AA is better than SP's AA" thing from the other thread is in play here, then all bets are off.



And what's up with that Bunker wall? Stock AI only? Cause 4 early flamers would rip that all to shreds ;p

[GiGaBaNE]

So you just happened to have excellent and lucky placement of your guns for that specific incoming attack wave.

I put them there specificaly to catch that particular threat.

And what's up with that Bunker wall? Stock AI only? Cause 4 early flamers would rip that all to shreds ;p

Yes it was stock AI, but i use the same tactics for AIvolution. its part of my Turtle shield which i will post a piccy of in my next post. as you can see i was under attack, i should have posted a screeny of the 20 or so lancer tanks that were pummeling me a short while before.

Bunkerbusters are my bane that early in the game, but once my wall is complete i only lose an occasional MG bunker during a full on assault.

maybe the fact that i invest so heavily in wall strength research is why its viable.

[themousemaster]

wall research or not, if someone showed up early with just a handful of flamers, that bunker wall would be scrap in a hurry.

Or are you still playing 2.0.X? Cause I'm just talking 2.1.X's weapon effects.

[banson]

i just got done playing a skirmish that was on normal mode and the 2 player map for starting. for me the aa works fine after some upgrades. i had like 6 near the borg factory they were attaking and they would shoot down like 1 or 2.
but when i was using varois light and med and heavy bodys on the enemy in my vtols, i saw that once they got the cyclone my units got killed fast.
maby cyclones work good for us 22 i know the second aa gun does alot better then the first u can use.
my game didnt last long enough for me to use missles but the enemy did and they were deadly..

my advise it seems that we need to build aa in base and out infront of it to hit them as they are coming in