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General FreeSpace => FreeSpace Discussion => Topic started by: blowfish on January 12, 2008, 12:27:30 pm

Title: A Question about Beams
Post by: blowfish on January 12, 2008, 12:27:30 pm
Does the fire wait for beams include the warmup and warmdown times?  For instance the BGreen has a fire wait of 30 seconds, and a warmup and warmdown of 3.5 secs each.  So would it actually wait 37 seconds between shots, or are the warmup and warmdown part of the fire wait?
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Wanderer on January 12, 2008, 01:44:40 pm
IIRC (could be wrong though) only the firing time and firewait time count. The warmup and warmdown times are just there 'for the show'.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: eliex on January 13, 2008, 07:44:31 pm
 It'd be great if Alpha 1 goes over to knock out a Hecate's forward beam turrets and then WHOA a beam blasts him out of nowhere . . .
with no warning at all . . .  :(
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Man-Whore on January 13, 2008, 09:05:02 pm
It'd be great if Alpha 1 goes over to knock out a Hecate's forward beam turrets and then WHOA a beam blasts him out of nowhere . . .
with no warning at all . . .  :(

It'd take some serious skill to actually get hit by an anti-cruiser beam.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Retsof on January 13, 2008, 10:40:21 pm
Trust me, being insta-vaped by a beam out of nowhere isn't much fun, especially when you're about a second from completing the mission!  :ick:
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Dark Hunter on January 13, 2008, 11:22:12 pm
It'd be great if Alpha 1 goes over to knock out a Hecate's forward beam turrets and then WHOA a beam blasts him out of nowhere . . .
with no warning at all . . .  :(

It'd take some serious skill to actually get hit by an anti-cruiser beam.

What, that's never happened to you? I've gotten vaporized by anti-capship beams occasionally when I forget that I'm between the ship and its intended target.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: FUBAR-BDHR on January 13, 2008, 11:25:54 pm
Never hit by a cruiser beam?  Man I bet you've never had a cap ship jump in on top of you either.  Someone's either extremely lucky or not playing on a high enough difficulty level. Try insane. 
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Gamma_Draconis on January 14, 2008, 12:22:42 am
Seriously? I've gotten fitted by friendly fire beams so many times. It's so annoying, you think the gunner would be able to aim a bit below your fighter.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Prophet on January 14, 2008, 01:57:52 am
"Avoid the beam and you won't get hit, pilot!" -Insight from Command :rolleyes:
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Man-Whore on January 14, 2008, 08:41:13 am
Seriously? I've gotten fitted by friendly fire beams so many times. It's so annoying, you think the gunner would be able to aim a bit below your fighter.

Actually, when I'm around corvettes (damn them!) it happens quite a bit. It's amazing how they often completely miss their target (something BIG) and swat me straight out of the sky.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Man-Whore on January 14, 2008, 08:43:18 am
Never hit by a cruiser beam?  Man I bet you've never had a cap ship jump in on top of you either.  Someone's either extremely lucky or not playing on a high enough difficulty level. Try insane. 

Oh, no. I get popped by anti-fighter beams all the time. I meant the big inaccurate ones that, if they do hit you, take you down in one hit.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Prophet on January 14, 2008, 08:59:08 am
I once saw a slash go trought a formation of bombers... :shaking:
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Wanderer on January 14, 2008, 10:03:29 am
Yeah.. without modding in the normal beam-freed situation all beams prioritize bombs above all other targets. This means that even mighty BFred will aim at the first bomb it sees if it just can and only if there are none then it might shoot at enemy cap ships. If there happens to be bombers behind the bomb that the beam targeted... well.. tough luck.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Prophet on January 14, 2008, 12:03:23 pm
Honestly, I never saw that all that much... And I did quite a lot of fiddling and spent much time just ""observing" battles. And the beams firing on bombs phenomena I'd say was rare. Then again, my bobs used to be a bit faster than stock FS "little-more-than-useless-snail" class bombs...
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Dark Hunter on January 14, 2008, 04:40:04 pm
I've seen anti-fighter beams shoot bombs a lot, but never slashes or anti-capship beams...
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: FUBAR-BDHR on January 14, 2008, 04:46:31 pm
Never hit by a cruiser beam?  Man I bet you've never had a cap ship jump in on top of you either.  Someone's either extremely lucky or not playing on a high enough difficulty level. Try insane. 

Oh, no. I get popped by anti-fighter beams all the time. I meant the big inaccurate ones that, if they do hit you, take you down in one hit.

The big ones don't always kill you.  I've been hit several times and ended up really damaged and very far away from the battle.  Might as well have died.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Desert Tyrant on January 14, 2008, 04:49:05 pm
I've seen anti-fighter beams shoot bombs a lot, but never slashes or anti-capship beams...

It's rare, but it happens.  I tried shooting a Stilletto at the Hawkwood in The Sixth Wonder and it used its slasher beam to shootdown the stilletto (and me in the process)
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: blowfish on January 14, 2008, 05:02:11 pm
I doubt that it intentionally shot down the stiletto, it was probably just in the beam's path (as well as you), though I have seen heavy weapons target the player occasionally (like fusion mortars and the Beleth's LRed in Bearbaiting ( I can't think of any other reason why I was consistently being hit by it).
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: FUBAR-BDHR on January 14, 2008, 05:10:46 pm
I was working on a mission a few months back.  Had the cap ship battle all done.  Added some bombers on both sides and all of a sudden all cap ship beams went after the bombs.  So much for that cap ship battle.  That was even with retail FS2
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Wanderer on January 14, 2008, 05:15:10 pm
Yeah. Its called 'beam jamming'. Friendly bombs (but not bombers) can buy a lot of to friendly cap ships in heavy beam-freed combat.

This helps with it though... http://www.hard-light.net/wiki/index.php/Ai_profiles.tbl#.24huge_turret_weapons_ignore_bombs:
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Killer Whale on January 14, 2008, 11:12:57 pm
That's off subject though,  :p

I think the answer was that the wait is the only time, the warmup and cool down are both included in the wait.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: blowfish on January 14, 2008, 11:30:58 pm
Well, at least I got a straight answer.
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: blowfish on March 01, 2008, 03:15:50 pm
:bump: OK I'm still confused.  How do you figure out the firing cycle of a beam?  The LRed fires for 7s and waits 10s, but its firing cycle is usually 13-14s.  Does anyone know? :confused:

EDIT: Spelling
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: blowfish on March 01, 2008, 11:56:27 pm
Anyone? :(
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: Wanderer on March 02, 2008, 01:08:09 am
Do you calculate the firing cycle from the actual beam firing or from the warmup/cooldown effects?
Title: Re: A Question about Beams
Post by: blowfish on March 02, 2008, 01:13:40 am
Do you calculate the firing cycle from the actual beam firing or from the warmup/cooldown effects?

I want to know the length of the entire cycle, eg. from the start of one warmup to the start of the next