PS2 Forum thread on upcoming air changes

For those of you who don't want to go to the above website:


The following is a list of upcoming changes for ESF (Empire Specific Fighter) update.

Please remember everything listed here is just the current plan and everything is subject to change. Also note that some components may be split up into other updates, so they may not all be added at once.

Lock-On Adjustments

We’re making some adjustments to anti-air based lock-on weapons with the goal of making lock-on weapons less frustrating and more interesting for both those using them and those on the receiving end.

Mechanics Changes:

All anti-air lock on weapons will become maintained on lock. The shooter must keep the target locked for the duration.
The closer a lock-on target is, the faster it will acquire a lock.
Lock-on missiles will travel faster
Lock-on missile lifespan will be reduced to around 5 seconds (down from 8 or 10 seconds depending on the weapon)

The above changes are intended to create a more interesting risk vs reward dynamic for lock-on missiles. For example, at point blank range, the weapon may lock on instantly and the projectile be too fast to dodge, while at 300 meters it may take 2.5 seconds + maintaining the lock.

The shorter life span is also intended to remove some of the extra frustration when attempting to dodge a missile only to have it hit you seven seconds later.

Feedback Changes:

The following list are changes we are considering. Some may become standard UI feedback, some may get rolled into certifications:

Players who lock-on to you and fire, will be spotted for you
The lock-on display will show a number indicating how many different sources are locking on to you
The lock-on display will indicate what type of weapon is locking/locked-on
Missiles that are locked-on to you will display on the mini-map
Lock-on indicator will display in third person camera

Other Changes:

We are fixing some lock-on missile bugs and making improvements for lock-on missiles being represented more accurately to remote clients.
Flares: Based on how the above changes work, flares may be adjusted.
The bug with stealth certifications not always granting the lock-on reduction buff will be fixed

Experience Changes

Players will be awarded kills and assists for players that suicide or log out.
The kill will be awarded to the player who last inflicted damage, whether that damage was done to their vehicle or to the player themselves.

New ESF Weapons

Reminder, all the below weapons are works in progress and subject to change.
The weapons below are designed to be air combat options for the secondary (wing mounted) slots. They are intended to supplement the nose cannons.

NS-50 Mass Drivers

Current Description: "Mass Drivers are capable of launching two 50mm rounds accurately and at a high speed. The Mass Driver must reload after each shot."

The intent of the mass driver is to create a long range air to air weapon. Although a single shot is high damage, by itself its damage over time is low compared to a nose cannon. It will have limited usefulness against ground targets.

Coyote Missiles

Current Description: "Coyote Missiles are compact, short range missiles that lock-on to enemy aircraft and inflict light damage. Coyote Missiles can lock-on to targets quickly, but have a short lock-on range and lose established locks quickly."

Coyote Missiles cannot damage as quickly as a nose cannon as it takes several seconds to unload a full volley of missiles.

Locust Cannons

Current Description: "Locust cannons are high velocity machine guns that boast a high bullet spread and increased magazine size, allowing it to engage targets with less accuracy but still score hits. The fire rate ramps up for a short period when it begins firing."

The Locust inflicts comparable damage to a nose cannon and can sustain fire for a longer period. The spin up time is intended to limit its usefulness in a high speed dogfight.

External Fuel Tank Certification Line

We want to make the fuel tanks a more competitive option for the wing mount slot. A certification line is being added that increases the top speed of the vehicle. This stacks with the high speed racer chassis.

Existing Balance Changes

A tuning pass is being done on the default and rotary nose cannons.

Default Cannons
Normalizing Cone of Fire to be the same across each empire
TTK (against other ESFs) between the empires has been brought closer together
Clip Sizes have increased to allow for longer sustained fire
Fall off damage has been added starting at 200 meters
Rotary Cannons

All Rotaries, regardless of empire, can now kill an ESF in a single clip without having to get magazine size upgrades
TTK (against other ESFs) between the empires has been brought closer together
Fall off damage was added starting at 150 meters
On top of that, we’re adjusting the empire distinctions.

Scythe weapons used to just be in between the Reaver and Mosquito weapons and have a slower projectile. Instead, they will have the quickest projectile (instead of slowest) and will reload faster.
Reaver weapons retain a higher damage and faster TTK. They also suffer less from the added fall off damage.
Mosquito weapons retain the quickest fire rate but also receive a larger clip size increase for longer sustained fire/fewer reloads.
Stealth Certifications

We’re planning, for all vehicles, to adjust each rank of stealth so that the final rank removes you from the mini-map while the previous ranks lower the range.
We’re also fixing the bug where stealth would not always slow lock-on times.
Lowering the engine audio is still planned, but not as part of the ESF update.

Fire Suppression Certifications

We’re planning, for all vehicles, to adjust fire suppression so that when activated it will apply a small heal over time for the vehicle. This works at anytime and not just when critically damaged. When activated while in critical damage, it will now set your health to above critical, instead of adding a flat amount to your current health pool

Galaxy Repair & Ammo Supply Certifications

We’re considering Galaxy repair and ammo supply certifications. Giving ESFs and Liberators more locations to re-arm from and more objectives to attack/defend in the sky.

I don't know what to think about the new weapons. I loved the idea of the Mass Drivers until it said it was A2A. I want bombs damnit.

I heard talk about liberators getting a defense buff against ESFs but since no one really liberates anymore I'm sure SOE doesn't care atm.