The F/A-18C Early shown in game is a 1989 aircraft at the earliest, it is the version of the F/A-18C that was used during the Gulf War and as such should get the AIM-9 that was used during that period.
Not only would this be historically accurate, it would also make the aircraft more appealing to buy as the AIM-9M is a much more competitive missile
This change would also serve to differentiate it from the F/A-18A in the research tree as from how I understand it currently both aircraft are going to be 12.7, however the premium one is just better, though if I’m wrong about that please correct me
Do you think the F/A-18C Early should receive the AIM-9M?
TWS is only helpful for finding target and getting the 7P in range. It’s NOT an ARH missile, and TWS doesn’t fully guide it in. You need a hard lock for that. It’s just a Sparrow that can loft and has datalink. TWS is nothing new, it’s on aircraft such as the F-20A, F-14A, etc.
SARH missiles need an STT lock to be used, the advantage the 7P brings is that if you lose lock, you can reacquire, but you can’t realistically direct multiple missiles at the same time with it.
It’s equivalent to the R-27R, maybe a bit better, so nothing particularly amazing
It will be in the top tier bracket for a few months at most, then top tier will move to 14.3 and we’ll be free of it anyway, after that having 9Ms will be nothing but a boon since you’ll always be fighting F-15As and SU-33s anyway
Using the full uptier matchmaker is a very short-sighted argument against something
I mean, answer this question.
Will the Current one at 12.7 have an easier time against F-15Cs and SU-27SMs, than the one I’m suggesting will have against the Typhoon and Rafale? I don’t think it will
Top tier will eventually expand above 14.0, you’re right, but there’s no reason people can’t petition to give it 9M’s and the 13.0 bump then. We have examples in the past of snail changing weaponry / BR’s of premiums down the line, it wouldn’t be unprecedented.
I get the short term pain long term gain menality, it’s valid, and honestly, i’m not going to buy/play this thing so my stakes here are minimal. I’m mostly just worried about all the newer players who will buy this en-masse, and at 13.0… they’re going to have an especially awful time.
Put out like that, both are pretty grim options, but i would still rather be at 12.7.
In my experience, 1.3BR beneath max BR is the best BR to be at in the game, simply because you see a disproportionately high amount of downtiers, due to the max BR vacuum effect.
A 13.0 is going to face 14.0 far more often than a 12.7 has to face 13.7, because all the 13.7’s in the queue are being dragged up to fill 14.0 matches lol.
Voted no. Id rather the F-18A be 12.7. 13.0 and above with aim7f like missiles, even if the aim7p gets datalink and inertial guidance will be a pain at 13.0 and above.
R-27ER work well, but aim7f kinematics is just garbage
Unfortunately changes like that, much later on are quite rare unless it is a new weapon coming to the game, which this isn’t, so from my point of view this is a now or never change.
I understand your perspective, but like you said, short term suffering for long term gain, if I’m spending money on this, I want it to last, I want it to still be fun to play in 2 years.
And as far as right now, it’ll be similar to the F-15A which while not great, is quite playable, as opposed to the F-16ADF which even now I find awful to play most of the time thanks to the 7M being the only viable weapon on it.
Anyways, I’m not here to change your mind, I understand your reasoning, just wanted to explain mine a bit
Then I vote to remove it entirely lol. Thats incredibly greedy of gaijin and will ruin the entire matchmaking. It will make top tier the new 12.0 matchmaking with full retard teams
As if the F-20 didn’t butcher that BR range anyway, now there is this, and it’s iconic enough that every single american timmy with his mother’s card will own one by the end of next month
Nah, i get where you come from, and it’s valid. I’m just kinda playing devils advocate a bit.
I would also just add though, when we eventually do get 14.3, who is to say that the current eurocanards will actually get moved up there? What if they stay where they are, and its the better tranches of those aircraft who occupy 14.3+?
Against our current crop of 13.7 & 14.0’s, F-18C Early is going to be hopeless in BVR. All it can really do is fly defensively, multipath, and hope to make it to the merge where, against 13.7’s you mention like F-15C / Su27SM, it’s agility should be good enough to actually put up a challenge. Against 14.0 Eurocanards though? This thing is going to get cooked alive in BVR and WVR.
There’s a very real risk that putting this thing at 13.0 could see it facing those Eurocanards in full uptiers indefinitely. 12.7 at least guarantees an enjoyable short term and a much less risky long term. Whereas 13.0 is guranteed to be awful short term with a real gamble on that changing or not long term.
I wouldn’t say that, 12.7 isn’t the most fun BR if you don’t have IRCCM, at least that what I’ve found
The real hope is that we get some decompression, but IDK what that would look like so I’m not going to bank on it going in my favour either way
I do want to bring up another point though, with 9L and 7P, everyone is going to be running primarily AIM-7s, it’s just the better of the two missiles, but with the 9M, there is a distinct tradeoff between choosing the 9M or the 7P, and I think loadout would then depend more on playstyle, that’s just my take on that anyway