[JudgeMental]

I've brought this up before, and I don't know if it's been brought up again, but I remembered this idea.  Why not have some fighter beams (perhaps, in a campaign, they could be considered new tech) that track and sweep with a fighter/bomber without bothering with the three stationary fires.  For the actual method of the beam tracking, I was thinking you could have tbl tags comparable to the tags that control the tracking/correction time of the missile targeting reticle.  That way, any Joe with the tbl's can change how hard it is to dodge the beams.

In the end, the effect would remind you of phasers in ST.

Kind of as a counterpoint, perhaps to put things back into more balance, a command (in FRED, and in the ships.tbl to indicate the default) to prevent beams (at least anti-fighter beams) from penetrating the shields, and just damaging the shields instead.  I suppose the balance could be worked out as we go...

A third idea I just had might be handy for the latest in stealth/covert craft...  Perhaps a type of countermeasure could be added.  This countermeasure, instead of just fooling missiles, would produce a sensor ghost of the original craft for a few seconds.  Because it wouldn't be a visual decoy (I'm kinda repeating myself here), it would be handy only for fighters with low visual profiles, and fighters in nebulas.  Just to make it cooler (and to give more automatic use, even if minimal, to AWACS), it might be coded so that the decoy is ineffective within a certain range of enemy AWACS.

Just some ideas:)

[Sesquipedalian]

Suggestions one and two can already be done.  

In the table entry for any AAA beam, under its $Beam Info string you will find a token called +Shots.  Every original FS2 AAA beam has this value set to 3.  Change that to 1, and increase the fire time, and it will do what you are looking for.  For increasing and decreasing the effectiveness of the beam's targetting, either try increasing the AI of that turret, or play with the numbers in +Miss Factor (higher numbers=miss more).

Making a beam that damages shields before penetrating to the hull is a matter of adding "no pierce shields" to the beam's list of flags.  Be aware, however, that this option seriously reduces the effectiveness of AAA beams.  To remedy that, turn up the beam's $Armor Factor to 1.3 and its $Shield Factor to 3.0.

[JudgeMental]

News to me:-P

I'll fiddle with it, to see how it is.  But, from the uses you described, it sounds a little more limited than I like...  Especially the no-pierce-shields.  I wanted to see something on the craft end.

Perhaps instead of straight damage, a ratio could be set...  When the shields are at full strength, most of the damage is delivered to the shields.  But, as the shields weaken, more energy gets through, and while it does less damage to the shields, the damage to the hull gets higher.

I am seeing another problem though...  Damage is done in "spirts."  Damage is caused two or three times a second.  If it could be delivered much more smoothly...  I dunno.  I'll fiddle with the above suggestion first.  Comments on that to come...

But I WOULD like to have the ability to set the shield piercing end of things from the ship.

Anyway, what thoughts on the third suggestion do ya have?  Maybe I'll make a thread on that one too...

But, I'll probably find out it's been suggested and done:-P

[Liberator]

I tried the beam thing on a Fenris and set it against 2 waves of 12 honked off Maras.  The beams didn't sweep they just fired for in one place for the five seconds I specified as the fire time.

Also, so what if the beam damage is done in spurts?  Usually the player is to busy to check it the beam is causing damage continuously or not.  That is hurts should be enough.

[Bobboau]

try useing a fighter beam (on a turret) with a fire wait of 0

[Knight Templar]

couldn't we just get a new beam type? An anti-fighter slash? T'would make things easier...

[Galemp]

For you, perhaps, but not for the coders.

[Knight Templar]

true. I know nothing of coding. I guess it just sounded like you could copy the slasher coding, but then make it an AAA beam, then give it a 6th beam type or make it replace that one type. meh.

[Bobboau]

or you could try my idea, it should work sort of like you want