TMissiles help.

[Litcube]

Does anyone actually know the effect of the "Heat Seeking" flag?

There seems to be an incorrect assumption that these missiles are non-targeting missiles, which is incorrect. You require a target for heat seekers (Thunderbolt). But I can't discern the difference between an Image Recognition missile (Rapier) and a Heat Seeker (Thunderbolt).

Heat seekers, also dispite popular belief, do not automatically accquire a new target once their primary objective is destroyed. This feature is reserved for those missles with the "No Lock Required" flag (and the "No Guidance" flag UNchecked).

Does anyone know what Heat Seeking does?

[imperium3]

I *think* (but don't quote me on this) that that flag is actually broken, like the multi warhead flag (which seems to make a missile disappear when it gets close to the target, it's probably intended to split into a group). So heatseeking does nothing at all.

[Litcube]

Awesome.

[imperium3]

Though I do recall something about swarm missiles acting oddly if they're heatseekers: rather than swirling in circles (the way swarms do, you know?) they just head straight for their target. If you've ever fired a wraith, you'd know!

[Litcube]

Yeah, I know what you mean.

I'd bet the heatseaker does something in the way the flightpath is detirmined, but who knows what it does to assist the player.

[Litcube]

I have a definitive answer to this question, that isn't on the forums yet.

The heatseeker flag actually targets the engines of a ship.

!

Seriously.



So in effect, it makes the missiles target tracking more difficult. They'll miss more frequently, I've seen.

[akruppa]

I noticed that auto-targeting lasers (AI turrets or player-controlled with auto-aim mode on) like to aim for the turrets of capital ship. Since the turrets are often on an edge of the model, this frequently causes the shots to miss when aiming for the center of the model would have been a certain hit. That made we wonder if the idea of being able to destroy enemies' turrets and engines was planned for X3:TC/AP, but was not finished until X:R. The fact that there are heat seeker missiles that go for the engine would fit into this scenario.

Edit: there was a missing

[imperium3]

I have a definitive answer to this question, that isn't on the forums yet.

The heatseeker flag actually targets the engines of a ship.

!

Seriously.



So in effect, it makes the missiles target tracking more difficult. They'll miss more frequently, I've seen.

Today I learned.

This makes me wonder if you could abuse this to make a "decoy missile." Swarm, fairly high speed and HP, heatseeking and low manoeuvrability so it just flies around the target confusing its turrets while the real threat closes in for the kill. The sort of thing the Kha'ak might do.

[Tom5Cat]

I think, with the introduction of missile ships, the devs created a missing link in the absence of shaff and other decoy systems. Actually, it should have been introduced even before missile ships, imo even as soon as the birth of the very first missile in the x-universe. Why do the one and not the other? Indeed, sea carriers and destroyers use turrets to destroy incoming missiles, but fighters certainly don't, they use decoys to get the missile homing in on them of their back.

Also, what about a self-destruct capability for launched missiles? Seeing one of your missiles homing in on a ship that flees through a gate and thus knowing the missile is going to hit the gate without being able to do anything about it?

Concerning the heat-seeker... I once read something on the forum about it being better suited for heavy clouded sectors. No idea if it's actually true though.