[General Battuta]

Why? AAAf beams are an extremely potent deterrent to bomber and fighter attack, and thin antifighter defenses are probably the number one killer of destroyers.

I don't think that deprecating antifighter defenses is going to help.

The answer to a fightercraft is another fightercraft. This is implicit in the existence of interceptors. Fightercraft are not somehow seperate from a destroyer's armament; they are integral parts of it. I am not in favor of deprecating the antifighter defense, I want to see the emphasis shifted off the destroyer's hull; anti-bomb point defenses rather than trying to stop the attack unassisted. After all, how many escort missions have you played where the ship you were escorting killed more enemy fighters than you and your wingmates? (Aside from the convoy in ST:R when I was testing it, I admit I have not played the finished campaign, I can't think of any.)

Oh, by no means are fightercraft useless, but the fact is that if destroyers could get the same density of flak and AAA coverage as corvettes and some cruisers do, that'd be a real boon to survivability. And since these defenses all prioritize bombs, it's not going to hurt point defense.

If we got more ultraAAA and TAG setups, for example, bombers would have a much harder time.

Consider 'Slaying Ravana' (on Insane, the most realistic.) Those fighters preying on you are certainly difficult to handle, but the Ravana's flak and AAA are not by any means pushovers either. The two together make a deadly combination.

[Androgeos Exeunt]

Fightercraft are necessary for any large ship. There have been quite a few real-life examples, such as the case of the Prince of Wales and the Repulse.

No fighter cover = [size=9]DIE[/size]

[eliex]

No fighter cover = [size=9]DIE[/size]

QFT

[TrashMan]

Fightercraft are necessary for any large ship. There have been quite a few real-life examples, such as the case of the Prince of Wales and the Repulse.

I wouldn't use that sea analogy really.
For one, the PoW and Repulse didn't have jump drives (the abillity to almost instantly jump to a friendly base).

Secondly, the were attacked by every fighter and bomber the japs had in the area. Which was a LOT. They still took quite a few fighters/bombers down and lasted surprisingly long, given the strength of the attack.


Either way, ships like the Aeolus are really effective agaisnt AI fighters. Not so much against human pilots, but then again, if you had human gunners on the Aeolus, it would be far more deadly too.
It depends on what is attacking you and in what numbers. But having a fighter cover is definetaly a GREAT boon to your defense.

[Snail]

4 Artemis vs. 1 Aeolus


Winner: Artemis.

[TrashMan]

I beg to differ.

[Snail]

Orly

[Enigmatic Entity]

I thought the Artemis class was "GTB Artemis"? AI fighters are different.

[TrashMan]

Orly

[Enigmatic Entity]

Yes,

Orly

I'm too tired; can't be bothered with some senseless argument about fighters and bombers are different...

[Snail]

Run a few tests. Almost invariably, the Artemises will win.

[pietraz]

Artemises, yes, but they are bombers (and FAST bombers at that). Meaning, they carry anti-cap weapons.
Throw four fighters (Hercs, Myrmidons, Perseuses) and they will be wiped out without a fuss...

That is when AI controls both the cruiser and the fighters. Like TrashMan said, the tables would turn if we put human gunners/fighter pilots in the ships. Four players in Myrmidons can wipe the Aeolus out without a problem. And it's safe to say, that 4 human gunners in Aeolus (anti-fighter beams, flak) would send AI Artemises to oblivion in no time.

Wasn't it all about fighter cover anyway?

[Snail]

Try 6 Hercules Mark II with Hornets vs. an Aeolus then.

[TrashMan]

That's a closer match.

But you must not forget, that FS2 is a game where the player is a fighter pilot. If the player was a capship pilot, the game would be balanced quite differently.

The FS2 universe and FS2 game balance are 2 completely different things.

[pietraz]

6 is too much.

I just tested it and 5 wipes out the Aeolus, though barely (only 1 Herc II survived)

[jkalltheway]

Remember to run multiple tests.

[Androgeos Exeunt]

How about five wings at once?

[General Battuta]

Do it on Insane!

[pietraz]

Yes yes, it was on Insane. Aeolus gets pummeled. Sometimes more than one fighter remain (depending I think on how close to the blast they are when the cruiser goes down).

5 wings? Boring. The cruiser would be down withoug destroying a single fighter.

[Snail]

Basically, the thing is, a cruiser is no match for fighters/bombers.