Starfighter Combat

Tactics and Maneuvering

I've read several books on atmospheric fighter combat and as far as I can figure space combat will not resemble it in the least. Upon consideration of my earlier comments on the development of new tactics for space combat in an inertial simulation, and after reading a note about the gravitic drive that the Minbari use, I started to see many possibilities for the games development and play:

1. Starfury vs. Starfury battles are going to be the most interesting, in that they will require the development of entirely new ship to ship tactics. In open space you will have combatants converging and retreating, while keeping their ships pointed together. The one thing you will never see a pilot do more than once is retreat while pointing in his direction of motion (perhaps the ability to use the multifunction display as a wireframe rear view would be advantageous). In the vicinity of other, larger ships or the station itself there will be a lot of popping behind cover, only to emerge for an instant to fire a quick burst on approaching craft (this form of combat could look like a 3 dimensional Quake deathmatch... cool).
   
2. Gravitic ships are going to be a completely different challenge. Some of those ships are extremely fast but not as maneuverable as a Starfury. Any combat with a gravitic ships is going to look more like conventional aircraft combat. If the Starfury pilot is in pursuit he is going to use a lot of fuel to constantly chase after his target and the use of the "Flight Direction Autopilot" will be essential. Taking shots at the backside of his target and possibly evading any rearward firing guns with quick bursts of the lateral/vertical thrusters. When he is in retreat he will be forced to jink blindly while at full acceleration or, if that isn't an option, to turn and fly backwards while taking shots as his tormentor screams toward his now slower (forward thrusters are less powerful than rear) craft. And at the last minute a quick game of chicken to see who will veer off first to avoid the disastrous impact (always hoping that they don't pick corresponding vectors).
   
3. Against less powerful ships like the atmospheric Raider craft, that are very fast but less maneuverable as the maneuvering thrusters are an expensive compromise on a ship that requires lift surfaces, the key will be in avoiding your targets five mates who have just lined up behind you. You have the advantage in pursuit though because any rear quarter shot that hits without killing will result in loss of thruster power and a slower target.
   
4. In larger Capitol Ship battles, the Starfury pilot will not be taking on the Big mother ships themselves but helping to take out individual defensive weapons, and defending your own Cap Ship from incoming missiles and enemy fighters. Trying to avoid the smooth moving WhiteStar class ships as they open up on the target. A collision warning system is vital for avoiding those great chunks of debris that have just been blown of enemies and friendlies alike.
   
5. When facing craft that fight like the Narn you are constantly engaged in every fighter pilots favorite (sarcasm, the success rate of head to head passes is approximately 33% with 33% resulting in mutual destruction. Kinda makes you wonder about the aggressiveness of those Narns eh?), the head on attack. Guns defense becomes a real issue here because while losing your cockpit canopy is not the end of the world, flying in a pressurized suit can’t be easy and then you are down to on layer of defense that isn’t overly rugged or repairable (you take a debris hit to the leg of your suit and you are toast). Your best bet is to retreat backwards as the attacker comes at you, do a quick roll as it passes (in whatever direction you are least likely to pass out in), and open up on your retreating target (the "Nose On Target Autopilot would be most useful here).
   
6. When fighting Centauri type craft there are other issues to deal with. While the craft is less maneuverable than the Starfury, it does not have to ease its attack due to pilot fatigue or injury. They also tend to fight in greater numbers so you must rely on you squad mates to defend your rear while you pursue your target.

Herding

Without having to deal with the restrictions of gravity fighters will perhaps behave more like infantry who can be herded/forced into situations that allow the large barrage guns of space stations or destroyer class ships. This is likely to work against them though as those ships may be less accurate than the guns of a fighter.

Guns Defense

Guns Defense for a Starfury pilot is going to be mostly evasion, with the addition of rotating the craft to take impact on less critical systems. If you see a flash of light coming directly at you your best defense is not to be there when it arrives. Your second best is to spin your craft to avoid taking it in the cockpit. This is where a segmented damage model comes in to play. If I take a nasty hit to my upper right nacelle, it is better than getting my cockpit breached but I certainly could have done without the damaged exhaust ports that my computers must compensate for by dropping my maneuverability down a notch. And if Pilot health becomes an issue I sure don’t need to be slammed against my harness yet again.

Certain craft that have a form of Stealth technology would render some of the target oriented autopilots completely useless and force us to fly by hand.I doubt that fighting these particular battles would be appropriate in the universe and time that the game is set but these can be taken as example for the myriad of surprises awaiting us. The end result could be a very realistic flight engine and a game that could offer so many types of play/combat that you really have a lot of room to experiment.ArbadacarbaGettin' goose bumps just thinking about it.

G Threshold

It must always be in the pilots mind that the ship he is pursuing may have a higher G threshold than he or his ship does. In this case he will have to be prepared to turn a lead pursuit into a lag pursuit at a moments notice just to remain conscious. It may in fact be to his advantage to break off the pursuit and attempt to acquire the more complex firing solution. This option of course has its draw backs when you are dealing with a race that has stealth abilities superior to your targeting computer.

Ramming

Ramming in a StarFury is never a prescribed tactic, however under certain circumstances, when your craft is too badly damaged for survival or rescue the pilot may opt to use his mulion credit, state of the art Starfighter as a projectile. Your primary goal is to attain maximum velocity with which to impart as much force on the impact point as possible. If your ejection mechanism is functional you might want to accelerate and turn 90 degrees from your target to eject and blow yourself clear of the impact. It's not perfect but it will increase your chances of survival.

Formation Flying

Formation flying has its benefits and its draw backs in space as well as in atmospheric combat. On the one hand it serves to frighten your opponents, bolster your own confidence and allow each fighter to provide cover for others. On the other hand a group of fighters bunched tightly together make an inviting target for large quantities of weapons fire, and your wing man can becom another thing you have to avoid in combat.

Basic formations are primarily used to allow the pilots to keep their eyes on each other until they engage, and then they tend to break off into pairs. In space the free for all or loose goose is more likely to be the result of any match between equal sized groups of fighters.

Title Stolen from the preeminent textbook by Robert L. Shaw, "Fighter Combat Tactics and Maneuvering"