Aircraft payload multiplier selector

[DeMatt]

In the "Request proposals for new aircraft" window, I would like to suggest a new selector:  "payload multiplier".  This would have three settings:  "None", "Light", and "Medium".  What this would do is the following:

• None:  creates an aircraft with e.g. 1x250/1x500/1x1000 payload - none of the payloads are multiplied.
  
• Light:  creates an aircraft with 2x100/1x500/1x1000 payload - the "Light" payload is multiplied.
  
• Medium:  creates an aircraft with 4x60/2x250/1x1000 payload - both the "Light" and "Medium" payloads are multiplied.

Essentially, I'd like to see more multiple-shot payloads, particularly for the Light and Medium levels.  I feel this would give further utility to Light (and Medium) payloads by giving them more hit chances, compared to Heavy's "one big boom".

Doing this in the RFP window is, I think, the simplest way to implement and grants the most player agency.

[alsadius]

Making it a player-controlled setting probably isn't the right call. If you want to do this, change the odds of different bomb loads on plane designs instead.

Also, the advantage to lighter loads is more range.

[mycophobia]

While player shouldn't necessarily dictate the exact number of payloads, having an additional design priority as "Payload numbers" that increase the amount of bomb carried, isn't a bad idea. The range advantage of light load currently just don't matter given the spawn distance of fleets as well.

[Blothorn]

Except for land-based air, at least. Although the impossibility of making separate payload/reliability-focused carrier designs and range-focused land designs greatly reduces the use of land-based DB/TBs outside of the Mediterranean and similar close quarters.

[DeMatt]

Jul 2, 2019 8:41:09 GMT -6 alsadius said:

Making it a player-controlled setting probably isn't the right call. If you want to do this, change the odds of different bomb loads on plane designs instead.

This DOES "change the odds of different bomb loads on plane designs". Once the plane is designed, the player can't change it.

I expect that, should the plane designer generate a payload that can't be divided per the selection, it wouldn't divide the payload. -/1x100/1x250 would stay as-is (unless there were 50lb bombs, in which case -/2x50/1x250 would be possible with "Medium" selected).

Jul 2, 2019 8:41:09 GMT -6 alsadius said:

Also, the advantage to lighter loads is more range.

I'm aware of the difference in range, but I've yet to find a time when the range difference was actually important. I don't want my aircraft loitering; if I've launched them to the wrong place, I want them to fly back and get correct coordinates. As I said, this is partly intended to give more value to Light and Medium settings, instead of always going for the biggest boom.

Jul 2, 2019 12:04:50 GMT -6 mycophobia said:

While player shouldn't necessarily dictate the exact number of payloads, having an additional design priority as "Payload numbers" that increase the amount of bomb carried, isn't a bad idea. The range advantage of light load currently just don't matter given the spawn distance of fleets as well.

Maybe I should have mentioned that the tradeoff of this design priority is "number of bombs" versus "size of each bomb". Light would still have less payload and more range than Medium, and Medium less payload than Heavy. It's just that (in the example given) Light payload would go from 1x250, to 2x100 (or 2x125, if those exist), to 4x60, depending on which level was selected.