Missile Guidance

[Charlie Beeler]

Instead of cutting back fuctionality, expansion would be better.  

Missiles with active, thermal, or em packages are assigned target id's by the fire control. If the missile can 'see' the assigned target it can launch.  If it can't, then it can be given a waypoint to travel too ballisticly, if the target is in range when the waypoint of reached then it's tracked too and attacked.  If not then the missile self distructs. Later generations of missile guidence can gain capabilities such as braking from ballistic course if target deteched before waypoint, self assign valid targets after IFF interigation, etc.

Missiles without self guidence packages function as today.  Add in a chance of the missile not being able to maintain tracking if the fire control changes targets.  

Fire control sould probably be a seperate system to activate.  That would allow for active scan to not be a hostile action but have active fire control be a hostile trigger.  

Possibly expand to thermal and EM missile fire controls that handshake with missile with those guidence packages.  

My 2 credits

[Steve Walmsley (OP)]

I was getting ready to respond to the "no mid-flight course correction" in here to say that I think it's a bad thing, since a reasonable tactic (and common one in torpedo warfare, at least in reading Clancy) is to use waypoints to avoid giving away the bearing of the launch platform.

Then I internalized your last two sentences - this sounds very like what I just said to Kurt; if you prevent loiter at a waypoint (you'd have to change fire control somewhat so that you could specify a waypoint and a final target, which could either be a ship or another waypoint, and which would cause the missile to discharge), then you'd get the best of both worlds.

I have made the changes to missiles I described above. Fire controls can now change targets after firing without affecting missiles in flight. Missiles without onboard sensors (for now) cannot change targets in flight. If a missile does have onboard sensors and the original target is destroyed or disappears, it will head for the last known target location while looking for new targets using its own sensors (this situation is very similar to inertial guidance/active homing). If you fire a missile at a waypoint and it contains a second stage, the second stage will automatically release on arrival at the waypoint. If a missile with no onboard sensors cannot locate its target, it will self-destruct. If a fire control is destroyed then any associated missiles will have their target set to nothing, which will result in self-destruction for those with no onboard sensors. Buoys and mines will function as they do now. All of the above means that assembling a large salvo and then sending it on to the target is no longer possible.

I have fought a snallish battle with the new rules which I'll post it in the fiction section in the next day or so. The results did feel more realistic. I have also added detection of secondary explosions and atmosphere loss, so you will have some idea of the effectiveness of your fire against alien ships.

I will probably revisit the mid-course guidance change at some point, although it will likely require some type of system on board the missile to make such a capability a choice vs more speed or a larger warhead. Another option is as you described. A final target but with a waypoint en route.

Steve

[IanD]

If a fire control is destroyed then any associated missiles will have their target set to nothing, which will result in self-destruction for those with no onboard sensors.

Steve, just a check to see if this is working as intended. In a recent engagement I had 12 missile frigates, of which 2 had search sensors, 5 fast attack sensor craft and 23 laser armed FACS. When in missile range I fired off all my missiles. I then started taking incoming missiles, which eventually destroyed all my FGs, and of course their fire controls. I still had search sensor cover from the FACs. I lost about 300-400 missiles associated with about 4 or 5 of the destroyed FGs, but the rest (about 600) kept on going, killing 2 of the precursors and severely damaging another. I conclude by this that the FAC search sensor substituted for at least some of the FG fire controls. This seems to contradict your statement above.

Regards

[Kurt]

If a fire control is destroyed then any associated missiles will have their target set to nothing, which will result in self-destruction for those with no onboard sensors.

Steve, just a check to see if this is working as intended. In a recent engagement I had 12 missile frigates, of which 2 had search sensors, 5 fast attack sensor craft and 23 laser armed FACS. When in missile range I fired off all my missiles. I then started taking incoming missiles, which eventually destroyed all my FGs, and of course their fire controls. I still had search sensor cover from the FACs. I lost about 300-400 missiles associated with about 4 or 5 of the destroyed FGs, but the rest (about 600) kept on going, killing 2 of the precursors and severely damaging another. I conclude by this that the FAC search sensor substituted for at least some of the FG fire controls. This seems to contradict your statement above.

Regards

Based on your statement above, I think you are talking about two different things.  There is "Detection", which is done by search sensors, and "Targeting" which is done by fire controls.  When your FG's were destroyed, and took their fire controls with them, the associated missiles self destructed.  Because the FAC's still provided "Detection"  with their search sensors, the other missiles associated with still-existing fire controls, did not self destruct.  In this case, the FAC search sensors were substituting for destroyed FG's search sensors, not their fire controls.  

Kurt

[IanD]

Based on your statement above, I think you are talking about two different things. There is "Detection", which is done by search sensors, and "Targeting" which is done by fire controls. When your FG's were destroyed, and took their fire controls with them, the associated missiles self destructed. Because the FAC's still provided "Detection" with their search sensors, the other missiles associated with still-existing fire controls, did not self destruct. In this case, the FAC search sensors were substituting for destroyed FG's search sensors, not their fire controls.

But there were no other missile fire controls, they had all been destroyed, the FACs had beam fire control with a range of 48000k and were well out of range, that’s why I was surprised. In a second engagement I had nine FGs of which six were destroyed, but I only lost 5 missile salvos as the ships broke up, even though there were 3 "spare" missile FCs on the surviving FGs. (I lost the rest of the missile salvos when the target moved out of range. These precursors are getting far too cunning ). I had 2 sensor FACs present during the engagement.

Regards