Dan Verssen

Hmm... I'll see if I can "open" the windows when I re-do the SBD animations. If anyone has any specific aircraft that they would like to see added, please post them here.

I have found that some of the defensive/denial skills are now very handy, like -1 Bursts, -1 Attack card, -1 Performance, etc.

Here's the math for the Leader deck that has 76 cards. The wingman deck has 69 cards so the math is a little different. For the Leaders... 76 cards in the deck 1 card is an IMS2:D 24 cards are other IMS's So about 1 in 3 cards in an IMS With a Heavy Cannon 1, each IMS has a 10% chance to be converted to a IMS2:D So, if your leader gets 6 cards a turn due to Horsepower, leader skills, and wingman skills, he will draw roughly 2 IMS's per turn. This means a leader will convert an IMS to an IMS2:D a little more than once every 6 turns, or about once or twice per game. The leader will also probably draw the normal IMS2:D once per game. So, over all, he should see 2 or 3 per game. There will of course be exceptions, but if the cards are tracked over several games they will even out.

But... I'm thinking they were produced in large numbers. And, by that stage of the war the German pilots were of a lower quality than early war pilots due to lack of training. And, the Mustangs were flying escort missions, so the bandits were more likely to put themselves in bad positions in return for getting shots at the bombers. And, by that time in the war the Allies had a significant advantage in air superiority.

Maybe people on insight on the idea that the P-51D "was the best fighter of the war." I also grew up with this idea in mind. However, when I compare stats for speed, horsepower, weapons, etc. The Mustang comes out about even with other late war fighters, and sometimes inferior for weapons. The only area that I can see the Mustang having a real edge in is range. Which, given the role they needed to fill, was vital. But, in a straight head to head fight, I don't see their superiority based on numbers. Any thoughts on this?

From a straight realism point of view it should, but the gunners are already so weak that I didn't want to penalize them any farther.

Are all the hang-ups happening during bot times to act?

Well, I'm not sure about revising the system, but you did catch an error. The Spitfire XIV should be rated at 1/+1/0. I will send an updated spreadsheet to Brian.

Here is how the Wingman deck was adjusted for how many cards there used to be, and how many there are now... IMS1:1 - 9 -> 7 IMS1:2 - 4 -> 2 IMS2:2 - 6 -> 5 IMS2:3 - 2 -> 1 IMS3:3 - 3 -> 2 IMS2:D - 1 -> 1 OOTS1:2 - 1 -> 1 OOTS2:3 - 1 -> 1 OOTS3:4 - 1 -> 1 Total - 28 -> 21, so a 1/4 reduction

I like the filter and friends ideas. I'm thinking they would either have to be manually coded, or maybe we could use some kind of pre-made package. Brian would have to be the judge on how best to do something like this.

The update will change the game in subtle ways. The first change you'll notice is how aircraft will feel different, and in turn, how that will affect your tactical decisions. What I really like about it is that it adds very little complexity, but much more variety to the game. For example, under the current system, both the P-47 and the Raiden have 2 bursts, so there is no variety. Under the new system, the P-47 has 2 Bursts with +0 Damage, and the Raiden has 0 Bursts with +2 Damage. I flew a dogfight a few days ago and the two planes felt very different. The P-47 was firing bullets all over the place. The Raiden was firing very few times, but when it fired it was for heavy damage. By the end of the dogfight, both sides had lost one plane. The credit for the new Burst/Damage system goes to Bob "Tomb" Jones. He was the one who came up with the idea of dividing the Burst rating. He also came up with a way of making it both easy to understand and flavorful. Many thanks Bob!

Ed, You might be right. Any ideas on a way to convert people from being pirates to paying customers?

I have that book! I think it is called "Air Combat" by Bill Gunston. Very informative.

It looks like some of the Soviet planes were well armed. Also, Brian has been deep in the coding dungeon crafting the newest treasures for the adventurous to discover. They should be ready for the light of day soon. I can almost hear him hammering away now... (CLANG)...(CLANG)...(CLANG)...

This is all still up in the air still, but the plan is for an expansion to include: 1) One new nation with all the aircraft it needs to be equal with the first 4 nations. 2) A few new planes for each of the 4 current nations. 3) A half-dozen or so campaigns. 4) About a dozen new pilot skills.

How could I deny the UK players the use of the MIGHTY Buffalo?! I think the advertising from the company would go something like... "Why fly into battle in a Mustang, when you can have a Buffalo! Buffalos are huge, and they have horns, and they snort. All very manly stuff. Mustangs just gallop in circles and eat grass. Kind of girlie, don't you think?"

Here's my own personal point of view on piracy. This does not reflect any thoughts of Battlefront or the other members of the DIF development team. Many people feel justified in pirating a game. It might be that they paid for a game in the past, and the game was buggy. Or maybe the game was supposed to be supported and the publisher dropped it, etc. There are many possible reasons. Deep down, I think everyone realizes that using a commercial piece of software without buying it is theft. People must know that a team of people devoted long hours, lots of love, and tons of effort to bring a product to market. In return, the people who invested their time and effort would like to be compensated. Nothing new or surprising here. So, here's my thought. If you pirated the game, installed it, played a few times and didn't like it, that's okay. You probably won't play anymore so the fact that you stole the game doesn't really matter. However, if you pirated the game, and you're playing it on a regular basis because its fun, then please buy it. Everyone on the team has a day job and we work on the game as time permits. Well, the more sales we get, the more time we can afford to devote to future updates.

I just made the update.

One idea that has worked well in the past is to go to the lobby and ask to play a 'training' game with an experienced player. During the game, ask them for tips on what you should do, and they will tell you why they are doing things based on their cards and the situation. Like any card game, there is some luck involved, but the better player will win most of the time.

Tour-na-ment! Tour-na-ment! Tour-na-ment!

I've changed one element of Hurricane Is to Buffalos in Singapore.

I've updated the Daylight 1944 campaign by swapping out an element of Bf-109Gs and Fw-190As for Me-410s.

My email seems to be working okay. But, you never know when dealing with the AOL email system.

I've edited the original post to make it clear that you create an element of pilots, and that you can fly any aircraft that your XP can unlock.

NOW HEAR THIS. Down in Flames is proud to announce the first non-campaign related tournament. Tournament name: TILL DEATH DUE YOU PART Date: Saturday, January 14th, 2006 at 12pm Pacific Standard Time Type: 1 vs 1 Prize: Bragging rights, a cool icon for winning pilot, and a big wet kiss from Jessica Simpson (well thats if you can find her and she wants to kiss your ugly mug) MUST SIGN UP BY JANUARY 11th. Late applications will not be accepted! SIGN UP BY EMAILING sixxkillersquadron@hotmail.com and posting created pilots name, your full name, and DIF login name. Rules 1. YOU MUST create a NEW element of pilots from any of the countries in the game (US, UK, GERMANY, or JAPAN) Your pilots will start out with 200 experience points. Use them wisely! REMINDER JAN 11th DEADLINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2. YOU CANNOT PLAY this pilot until January 14th, and only then in the tournament. Anyone who does will be disqualified IMMEDIATELY. 3. Player will show up on time and must be able to stay for the duration of the tournament. Anyone who cannot stay for at least 3 hours shouldn't apply. 4. PLAY WILL CONTINUE until all but one pilot is left alive. 5. ESCAPE DEATH will be stripped from your initial skills, so in theory, you can be out first round. 6. Players MAY BUY any skills (including target pilot) or draws (redraws included) or playable cards (ie Ace Pilot, OTS3:4...) if they accumulate enough experience points. 7. Players can start with any plane type that 200xp will unlock, and will be able to use an upgraded plane if they accumulate enough experience points. 8. Players will suffer fatigue on the same basis as in regular ladder play. (IE 36 points of fatigue for being shot down, 18 for being damaged, 9 for flying a mission w/o being shot down or damaged) 10. Players will all have the same number of missions flown. In case one player doesn't have the same amount as his opponent, he will fly against the tournament official(s) in a non shooting click-through where he will incur 9 points of fatigue per mission until he is caught up. 11. Any person missing a turn will be removed from the tournament. (Its only fair since your opponent could have shot you down anyway) 12. Any disputes will be handled by the tournament official in the fairest manner possible. 13. WINNER of each fight will report if his opponent's leader was killed. 14. Players will be picked at random who they will face. 15. Play will be conducted at VETERAN DIFFICULTY (but you may agree beforehand to use ACE difficulty if you wish) This is so the tourney can be played and concluded as quickly as possible. 16. Any disconnects will still count as a game and if the AI finishes you and you die we cannot bring your pilot back to life. 17. GOOD LUCK! [ January 09, 2006, 12:30 AM: Message edited by: Dan Verssen ]