UFO combat speed

[KOKON]

I would like all ufos to have an ability to sometimes boost to first cosmic speed (at least).

7.7 km/s (27720 km/h). This is a speed that is required to rech the worst (300 km) orbit.

11 km/s (39600 km/h) is still a speed that won't allow you to escape from Earths orbit.

If the game limits ufos speed to 3000-4000 km/h then it is not clear how do they fly away to orbit.

Also i would like to have hypersonic missiles.

Edited October 28, 2012 by KOKON

[Gorlom]

If the game limits ufos speed to 3000-4000 km/h then it is not clear how do they fly away to orbit.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AcceptableBreaksFromReality

second link in my signature

[KOKON]

Well if you prefer to play Lego Duplo

[Max_Caine]

From your proposal, it sounds like you would like all UFOs to randomly boost to a speed beyond which they cannot be caught by interceptors. This does not sound like fun, and it probably is not what you are proposing. Are you proposing they do it just before they escape the geoscape, or are you proposing they do it whenever.

[KOKON]

Ufo may dissaper from the game when it:

1. lands

2. tracking lost

3. escapes into space

Sometimes (not always) it should boost before you loose it on the map.

You had this behavour in original xcom.

Ufos in xcom were interseptable first with your starting aircrafts then they started to fly at a higher speeds. First they have studied human aircrafts. Then after a year alien scouts often tried to disingage and generally flew at high speeds.

---

P.S.:

- The first thing i propose is not to set a low limit for ufo speed. Ufo may or may not use a higher speed.

This is a different question.

- The second thing i propose is to sagnificantly boost some ufos before taking them from geomap.

- The third thing i propose is to make weak ufos to fly at higher speeds after initial human study is complited.

P.P.S.:

>>From your proposal, it sounds like you would like all UFOs to randomly boost to a speed beyond which they cannot be caught by interceptors.

During the early game the random chance is low

Later on the chance for weak ufos is higher but they can still be interceppted with newer/special aircrafts/weapons anyways

Edited October 28, 2012 by KOKON

[Gorlom]

UFOs doesn't disappear when the UFO land or tracking is lost. As far as the game is concerned they are still there. Plus it doesn't make sense that UFOs can accelerate to those kinds of speeds randomly, but not use that speed to run away when they really need to.

If I recall correctly one of the original X-com series, AfterX series or UFO:Extraterrestrials had the UFOs moving by antigrav engines. Assuming something like that UFOs wouldn't need to overcome earths gravity by velocity/accelleration (as they are capable of counteracting it) and thus doesn't need to reach those kinds of speeds.

Well if you prefer to play Lego Duplo

IF we are going to use that analogy I consider what you want to do to be playing with a mix of playmobile and lego (and possibly playdough thrown in there too). Each may be considered fun on their own, but they don't work that well together.

Edited October 28, 2012 by Gorlom

[Xenophob]

Generaly I like idea and agree with some criticism.

Also first X-COM says, that UFO control system are working with gravitational waves.

UFOs doesn't disappear when the UFO land or tracking is lost. As far as the game is concerned they are still there. Plus it doesn't make sense that UFOs can accelerate to those kinds of speeds randomly, but not use that speed to run away when they really need to.

Well, yes - when UFO enters atmosphere, fly and disappear you can remember its last position, direction & speed, then you can estimate where to intercept it as UFO will not change speed or direction while invisible. And it works well. But all in all UFO can disappear from map completely if not by speed, then by something else. And it is not using this ability to escape from fighter.

I think it will look good, if UFO will accelerate to a hughe speed before leaving map completely. It will be just a graphical effect, nothing else.

As for

Also i would like to have hypersonic missiles.

I even don't know how it can be put in the game.

Or maybe only one type of light UFO class can make some high speed runs to escape from fighter on the global map? Say no more than two jumps. Or it can be some bigger but unarmed ship - it has such ability to balance its defenceless.

Edited October 28, 2012 by Xenophob

[HWP]

If the game limits ufos speed to 3000-4000 km/h then it is not clear how do they fly away to orbit.

UFO don't necessarily orbit, their engines allow for directly negating gravity.

Of course once outside the atmosphere nothing would stop them from accelerating further.

[KOKON]

IF we are going to use that analogy I consider what you want to do to be playing with a mix of playmobile and lego (and possibly playdough thrown in there too). Each may be considered fun on their own, but they don't work that well together.

Lol ))))))

If about hypersonic missiles i simply mean that you have

Stingray, avalanche + some rocket that is 5x faster then avalanche but has a high cost

[TornadoADV]

Hypersonic Missiles are endgame tech.

[MrPyro]

While the UFOs obviously have to be capable of such speeds at some point, they can't necessarily go that fast in atmosphere (or at least where there is enough atmosphere for Earth fighters to operate). As a result, any UFO planning to go to orbit will first fly as high as possible, to reduce atmospheric drag, and then engage its full drive to attain orbital velocity. Since at the point at which the UFO first engages this drive there is absolutely no chance of an Earth fighter intercepting it from that point on, the point of massive acceleration is the same point as we class the UFO as escaping into space. As a result we don't have to show the super high speeds on the map.