PawlaczGMD Posted November 22, 2023 Share Posted November 22, 2023 In the first mission (practice one), the opponents often seem to be breaking the hard deck, and also crashing into the ground. On this track 2/3 fights, they crashed. Additionally, maybe I'm a noob, but they maneuvers they make while I'm on their tail seem impossible. They take sharp S-turns/scissors, and I follow them in full AB, predicting where they go and cutting them off short. As a result, they are taking much sharper turns than me, and they change altitude more. I still cannot catch up to them close enough for a good shot. I can sometimes make these snap shots, but not often enough to kill all 3 (out of ammo). I don't understand why I'm not closing the distance in this situation. In case I just suck here, any advice on how to close in for the kill when I'm on their 6? Does it look like they are UFOs to you, or is it my lack of understanding of energy management? bfm.trk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabre-TLA Posted November 23, 2023 Share Posted November 23, 2023 The AI is still a work in progress by ED and appears to change with each update. Positively it has improved from it's initial implementation but more work is still needed to get them to fly more like an actual human and not do dumb stuff. That being said there are a few good youtube videos showing BFM with the F-5E but I agree that it is much harder than in the F-15C or FA-18C for example. You can see the difference if you try our other campaigns (shameless product plug): F-15C Aggressors BFM FA-18C Aggressors BFM BFM is both an art and a science and there are many references for both however practice is the best advice for improving your skills. Here are some links to some notable youtube videos that we have found helpful: Art of the Kill Ward Carroll - Dogfighting 101 JamBockSydy - DCS F-5E Similar BFM Kills A very good (but lengthy) book to read is Fighter Combat Tactics and Maneuvering by Robert Shaw and there are many other useful documents on the internet that you might be able to get access to. It is a challenging skill to master and I think is one of the reasons why only a few pilots make it to TOPGUN as instructors. 2 MapleFlagMissions - Read Our Blog for Updates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PawlaczGMD Posted November 23, 2023 Author Share Posted November 23, 2023 6 minutes ago, Sabre-TLA said: The AI is still a work in progress by ED and appears to change with each update. Positively it has improved from it's initial implementation but more work is still needed to get them to fly more like an actual human and not do dumb stuff. That being said there are a few good youtube videos showing BFM with the F-5E but I agree that it is much harder than in the F-15C or FA-18C for example. You can see the difference if you try our other campaigns (shameless product plug): F-15C Aggressors BFM FA-18C Aggressors BFM BFM is both an art and a science and there are many references for both however practice is the best advice for improving your skills. Here are some links to some notable youtube videos that we have found helpful: Art of the Kill Ward Carroll - Dogfighting 101 JamBockSydy - DCS F-5E Similar BFM Kills A very good (but lengthy) book to read is Fighter Combat Tactics and Maneuvering by Robert Shaw and there are many other useful documents on the internet that you might be able to get access to. It is a challenging skill to master and I think is one of the reasons why only a few pilots make it to TOPGUN as instructors. Thanks for the material! I do have your F-18 campaign, but haven't gotten around to learning that plane yet. Admittedly, I have a lot to learn when it comes to BFM. I will study up... It just felt like the AI is cheating particularly bad in these fights. In other campaigns I've played, they often rate fight you, and the performance feels believable. But these aggressive scissors the F-5 engages in here seem impossible for me to replicate in the same plane. I know that DCS AI/ flight model is responsible and it's not your fault. I do wonder if these guys are scripted to fight differently though? I've not really seen such maneuvers in other campaigns, and they are also really consistent in doing this here. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PawlaczGMD Posted November 24, 2023 Author Share Posted November 24, 2023 PS the hard deck is definitely not obeyed, and breaking it doesn't result in termination. Is this a bug? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabre-TLA Posted November 25, 2023 Share Posted November 25, 2023 No we actually had to remove the trigger because the AI kept breaking the HD too often and ruining the BFM experience. You can read about it here. Hopefully as ED continues to update the AI they will make it more immune from diving for the deck and/or crashing into the ground. Ideally we would like to see a minimum altitude setting for the AI that can be controlled in the mission editor but nothing has been implemented in this regard yet. 1 MapleFlagMissions - Read Our Blog for Updates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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