Post by magnifiscent on Oct 23, 2013 10:53:35 GMT -8
A series on Boelcke's Dicta, continued:
Rule #5
In any type of attack, it is essential to assail your opponent from behind
This rule is concerned with making it easier to shoot your opponent. Firing at an enemy plane that is traveling across your path is called a 'deflection shot' and requires you to 'lead' your target. Because of the high speeds involved, you are basically trying to make the enemy plane fly into your bullets, rather than simply shooting at them.
The closer to 90 degrees this angle of deflection is, the longer lead you need and the harder the shot is. Bullet drop, spread, and dispersion play a huge role in this aspect of the fight as well. If you're firing at an enemy plane 400 meters away, but aiming at a spot 200 meters in front of them, you're talking about a dispersion pattern closer to a 600 meter shot than a 400 meter shot. Leading your target also forces you into a "lead pursuit" (see the BFM section), which will inevitably cause you to over-take your target.
You are most likely to hit a target that is traveling directly at you or directly away. You need no deflection to hit this target. However, a head-to-head pass exposes you to your enemy's guns - you're just about as likely to die in the exchange as the enemy. That left the head-to-tail shot as the optimal situation.
Few people can really aim well during high-deflection shots. Most people are lucky to be able to out-fly their target and calculate the appropriate lead for their shots. Forget targeting specific sections of the enemy plane. Attacking an enemy from the rear reduces the number of factors you have to manage during your attack, meaning you can devote more concentration to picking out specific parts of the enemy play to target - cockpit, engine, rudder, flight control surface...
Machine guns and cannons behave very differently from each other during deflection shots. Machine guns fire much faster and are likely to score more hits during high angle attacks. There are fewer gaps between each bullet that the enemy plane can fly through. Conversely, cannons are typically very slow firing (comparatively) and leave large gaps that an enemy plane may slip through.
Knowing your plane's weapons is important. Planes with faster firing, or larger numbers of machine guns are more likely to be effective with high deflection shots. Wing-mounted machine guns are also going to be more likely to hit than center-mount machine guns; you are effectively casting a wider net. Cannons will be less effective for high-deflection shots. The larger the cannon, the slower it is likely to fire and the less ammo you'll be carrying. Save the cannon for those optimal moments.
In arcade you're provided with a small circle ahead of the target that is intended to help with your aiming. This is an adequate place to start. It's not always perfect, but generally it'll tell you where you place your shots. This does not exist in Historical Battles, so as you get a feel for gunnery, you might want to start aiming for yourself instead of relying on the target circle.
A quick rule of thumb I learned many years ago for calculating the deflection I needed to hit in combat goes like this:
Watch the enemy plane fly and anticipate the lead you'll need, then double that distance and you'll be pretty much on target.
Rule #5
In any type of attack, it is essential to assail your opponent from behind
This rule is concerned with making it easier to shoot your opponent. Firing at an enemy plane that is traveling across your path is called a 'deflection shot' and requires you to 'lead' your target. Because of the high speeds involved, you are basically trying to make the enemy plane fly into your bullets, rather than simply shooting at them.
The closer to 90 degrees this angle of deflection is, the longer lead you need and the harder the shot is. Bullet drop, spread, and dispersion play a huge role in this aspect of the fight as well. If you're firing at an enemy plane 400 meters away, but aiming at a spot 200 meters in front of them, you're talking about a dispersion pattern closer to a 600 meter shot than a 400 meter shot. Leading your target also forces you into a "lead pursuit" (see the BFM section), which will inevitably cause you to over-take your target.
You are most likely to hit a target that is traveling directly at you or directly away. You need no deflection to hit this target. However, a head-to-head pass exposes you to your enemy's guns - you're just about as likely to die in the exchange as the enemy. That left the head-to-tail shot as the optimal situation.
Few people can really aim well during high-deflection shots. Most people are lucky to be able to out-fly their target and calculate the appropriate lead for their shots. Forget targeting specific sections of the enemy plane. Attacking an enemy from the rear reduces the number of factors you have to manage during your attack, meaning you can devote more concentration to picking out specific parts of the enemy play to target - cockpit, engine, rudder, flight control surface...
Machine guns and cannons behave very differently from each other during deflection shots. Machine guns fire much faster and are likely to score more hits during high angle attacks. There are fewer gaps between each bullet that the enemy plane can fly through. Conversely, cannons are typically very slow firing (comparatively) and leave large gaps that an enemy plane may slip through.
Knowing your plane's weapons is important. Planes with faster firing, or larger numbers of machine guns are more likely to be effective with high deflection shots. Wing-mounted machine guns are also going to be more likely to hit than center-mount machine guns; you are effectively casting a wider net. Cannons will be less effective for high-deflection shots. The larger the cannon, the slower it is likely to fire and the less ammo you'll be carrying. Save the cannon for those optimal moments.
In arcade you're provided with a small circle ahead of the target that is intended to help with your aiming. This is an adequate place to start. It's not always perfect, but generally it'll tell you where you place your shots. This does not exist in Historical Battles, so as you get a feel for gunnery, you might want to start aiming for yourself instead of relying on the target circle.
A quick rule of thumb I learned many years ago for calculating the deflection I needed to hit in combat goes like this:
Watch the enemy plane fly and anticipate the lead you'll need, then double that distance and you'll be pretty much on target.
