Hi,
When using regular main guns, like Pulse, Bolt or Plasma for example, your typical Fighter, when ordered to attack a Capital Ship, can generally be seen attempting to shoot Surface Elements. With weapons like plasma, they may not hit, but the superior damage of Plasma means it'll do a lot f damage anyway. With more precise weapons, like the Bolt, sniping modules - especially turrets - can really help with attrition.
With this in mind, I fitted a squadron of Fighters - Ares - with 2x Bolt and 2x Heavy Smart Missile and sent them against a marauding Xenon I. They're attacking the target just fine, but every single missile they've launched so far, has been against the CENTRE of mass of the Xenon I, they're not targetting surface elements.
Against the shielded hull of a Xenon I, they're not particularly effective of course, against surface elements, they'd be devastating. Why, when using Missiles, do fighters NOT aim for surface elements like they do with regular weapons? Deliberate choice? Bug? My Pilots are too low level (they're all one Star, directly from my Wharf)?
When I use them personally, Missiles are almost exclusively used for module sniping. However, when it's me, I'd generally use Dumbfires rather than guided. The Ares are all using the Heavy Smart Missile Mk1.
[7.0 Beta 3] Missiles use: Fighter vs. Capital Ship (Feedback)
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Re: [7.0 Beta 3] Missiles use: Fighter vs. Capital Ship (Feedback)
Sorry, hit Submit rather than Preview again by mistake...
What's particularly interesting about the Fighter's behaviour is that after they've launched their missiles at the Core of the ship, they then will use their Bolts to attack Surface Elements. So, they are perfectly capable of engaging surface elements, they just don't use their Missiles on them. This make this particular load-out, pretty useless in the role they were created for. Likely 4x Plasmas would be far more effective, even if they miss a lot. Indeed, 4x Bolts would likely be better too, as that's double the damage actually hitting the Surface element vs. 2x Bolt, 2x Missile.
What's particularly interesting about the Fighter's behaviour is that after they've launched their missiles at the Core of the ship, they then will use their Bolts to attack Surface Elements. So, they are perfectly capable of engaging surface elements, they just don't use their Missiles on them. This make this particular load-out, pretty useless in the role they were created for. Likely 4x Plasmas would be far more effective, even if they miss a lot. Indeed, 4x Bolts would likely be better too, as that's double the damage actually hitting the Surface element vs. 2x Bolt, 2x Missile.