The video evaluates the effectiveness of ballistas and countermeasures like flares against various missiles and torpedoes in Star Citizen 4.2 PTU, revealing that flares are currently highly effective, especially against EM missiles and cross-section torpedoes, often making evasion too easy. The hosts suggest that missile mechanics, particularly for torpedoes, require balancing adjustments to improve realism and gameplay challenge.
In this video, the hosts conduct detailed testing of missile and countermeasure effectiveness in Star Citizen 4.2 PTU. Sax, a knowledgeable industry expert, joins the host to demonstrate how different missiles and countermeasures perform against various threats. The focus is on understanding how well flares and decoys can defend against EM missiles, cross-section missiles, and torpedoes, with a particular emphasis on the current balance and potential issues in missile evasion mechanics.
The testing begins with EM missiles, specifically size three, and the host demonstrates that deploying four flares is sufficient to deflect all incoming EM missiles at close to medium ranges. Using fewer flares results in some missiles hitting the target, but four flares consistently succeed in defending against the attacks. The effectiveness of flares diminishes at longer ranges, but at close range, they prove highly reliable. This indicates that flares are currently a strong countermeasure against EM missiles in PvP scenarios, making missile evasion relatively straightforward with proper flare deployment.
Next, the focus shifts to ballistic missiles like the Ballista and larger torpedoes, such as size five. The hosts test the Ballista at various ranges, noting that at closer distances, it becomes more difficult for the missile to lock on or be evaded. Using six flares at close range successfully deflects and destroys incoming missiles, but at longer ranges, the missile can still hit the target despite flares. The tests reveal that the missile’s behavior is somewhat inconsistent, with some missiles being easier to flare off than others, especially cross-section types, which surprisingly turn out to be very easy to evade with a single flare.
The most concerning findings involve torpedoes, specifically size five, which are intended to be more challenging to evade. The tests show that even a single flare can often deflect or destroy these torpedoes, which contradicts expectations that cross-section torpedoes should be harder to evade. The host notes that this imbalance makes torpedo gameplay less realistic and more frustrating, as the current mechanics heavily favor flares over other evasion techniques. The ease of flaring off these missiles suggests a need for rebalancing to make missile evasion more skill-dependent and realistic.
In conclusion, the hosts discuss their overall impressions of missile and countermeasure mechanics in 4.2. They acknowledge that while flares are currently highly effective, especially against cross-section missiles, this may not be ideal for gameplay balance. The video suggests that missile mechanics, particularly for torpedoes, need further tuning to better reflect real-world behavior and to ensure engaging combat. They emphasize that missile gameplay should be a vital aspect of both PvP and PvE, and hope that CIG will continue to tweak these systems to improve balance and realism in future updates.