I'm considering resurrecting our attempts at something more formal with War Thunder. My efforts here were inspired almost entirely from Deathwatch's previous efforts here: http://www.theskjaldborg.com/index.php?threads/schlachtgeschwader-2-sg-2-immelmann.7019/ (all sincere kudos to Deathwatch for his efforts) The only major issue I had with the previous attempt was that the ideal planes we were to use were difficult to unlock quickly (and the Stuka was a bitch to dive bomb for new players in Realistic mode). This created a bit of a hurdle for newer players. With that in mind, I decided to give this another try, but this time with a decidedly more viking flavor; what could be more appropriate than to fashion ourselves as a Swedish-Finnish unit from the Winter War (and early stages of the Continuation War)? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_Air_Force NOTE: Please don't be turned off by the Finnish use of the swastika. It pre-dates the Nazi movement by a wide margin. Hitler just stole it for his own use because he had a hard-on for so-called "aryan culture". I chose this for many reasons: some practical, some for fluff. For starters, the selection of planes is fairly easy to attain and some are actually quite good (ie Buffalo, Hurricane, etc.). Second, even if we fly German planes (Tier 2 or later), we get to shoot down Russian aggressors in defense of Ukrai... I mean Scandinavian liberty. Nothing wrong with that! I'm not extremely hung up on authenticity, but it would be nice if we limit our plane choices a little so we can have a nice little formation going. So here is a simplified list of planes I'm looking at right now... Winter War (Tier 1 only) Any F2A Buffalo (The F2A-1 is historically accurate, but any Buffalo is fine) Any P36 Hawk (at least one of these is historically accurate) Hurricane Mk I (historically accurate) Gladiator Mk II (historically accurate) Blenheim (historically accurate and easy to use for bombing) Beaufort (because torpedo) Continuation War (Tier 2 or higher) Any BF109 (the G models are historically accurate, but any is fine) Do 17 (historically accurate heavy fighter) Ju 88 (historically accurate and much easier to bomb with than the Ju 87) Really any Tier 2 or Tier 3 German plane is fine (we will consider non-historic models to be a "special delivery"). We can dabble in both Arcade and Realistic, but the main focus would be on developing teamwork and good wingman skills (which should also help in Star Citizen later). ===== Related fun fact: So polite, those Nords. UPDATE: War Thunder post on Finnish Airforce http://warthunder.com/en/news/594-Historical-The-ragtag-Finnish-Air-Force-en Fascinating interview: http://www.sci.fi/~fta/finace01.htm
Whatever we pick, I want to keep to something historical that fits with our use of lower tier planes (again, to help newer players get started). Based on your suggestion, Dihm, this is what I was able to find: No. 300 Polish Bomber Squadron: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._300_Polish_Bomber_Squadron Wellington (1940) Lancaster (1944) No. 301 Polish Bomber Squadron: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._301_Polish_Bomber_Squadron Wellington (1940) disbanded in 1943 No. 302 Polish Fighter Squadron: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._302_Polish_Fighter_Squadron Hurricane (1940) Spitfire Mk V (1941) No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._303_Polish_Fighter_Squadron Hurricane (1940) Spitfire I (1941) Spitfire II (1941) Spitfire V (1941) Spitfire IX (1943) The 300 and the 303 seem like the best options (the 303 in particular was very active from what I can tell). However, this is a significantly shorter list of options though than before. Also, no flying vikings. Having only Spitfires and Hurricanes will also force us into using only turn fighting tactics. Spitfires are good, but I'm not sure how well they will hold up against enemies with good energy fighting skills. Perhaps the most important issue, though, is the Spitfire's relatively low ammo supply compared to the BF109s and Fw190s. Per gun, the Spitfires get roughly only 1/2 the ammo of their German counterparts (the first couple of Spitfires with cannons have only a measly 60 rounds per gun). In the average realistic game, that could potentially be a huge problem. I will leave it up for people to discuss.
Sounds interesting. Any plans for expanding this to tanks? I know it's still a bit early for that since we've only got the two countries to pick from right now.
I do remember enjoying the P36s a lot, almost as much as the P40E. Don't recall using the BF109 G series much. I guess I'll have to update and try the tanks out.
both of those sound great! tanks are definitely in. Schnell! Okay cool. Sounds like we will run with the Finnish Army/Airforce. I will probably be writing a revised synopsis later, but for any interested here is some more info on some of the planes: The P36 is a very flexible aircraft and a good platform for beginners to practice different tactics on the same plane. It doesn't excel in any one area, but when you get good with them, you will be able to identify an enemies weakness and safely use the P36 to exploit said weakness. If I recall correctly, the F2A is still one of the fastest planes in Tier 1. Biplanes (even Chaikas) can't catch it for shit. The F2A-2 has a great combination of speed and firepower. It can even turn fight to a limited extent but that depends on your enemy. Either way, it is a good trainer for the Bf109 and Fw190. The Bf109 and Fw190 are both excellent planes. Although they appear to have a limited loadout, all their guns are centerlined (more accurate), which makes them hit roughly just as hard as twice that amount mounted to the wings. These planes are fast and extremely effective in energy fighting tactics and they outclimb almost everything else out there. ==== If you haven't noticed, I'm leaning towards energy fighting as our preferred tactic over turn fighting. To less experienced players, this may feel awkward at first, but I will ask you to trust me and work with me on this. There is a reason why speed is more important than turning ability. It is for the same reason that militaries have progressively moved more towards speed since WW2. Simply put, if you fly faster, dive faster, and climb faster than your opponent, they are entirely at your mercy when and where the fight begins; by having a speed and altitude advantage, we can stack the odds in our favor. Remember what I said about practical reasons for the selection? The Bf109 and Fw190 will make these tactics all the easier to pull off.
I think this is a fabulous idea and it has my support 100%. May join myself if I get back into War Thunder.
