What's detonating my ECM-hardened missiles?

[Davidtq]

How do you know that the missiles you zap first shot of the ecm arent hardened ones with a lucky role?

I'm not zapping hardened missiles with the first shot of the ECM - I wish that I was! But somehow the pirates are. Time and time and time again....

How do you tell the difference between a hardened and non hardened missile being launched at you? I havent yet noticed any indication of wht it is being launched at you just "incoming missile" and then my main thought is on spamming the ecm.

Statistically you are very unlucky if you arent regularly zapping hardened missiles first time with the ecm.

I have no idea how npc ecms dither from player ecms, I know npc shields are calculated differently I know that ships have a value "has_ecm"which gives them a chance to have an "ECM" but theres no guarantee from the plist I can edit that the ecm runs the same code as the player ecm. of course Ive not seen anything anywhere to suggest that they dont run the same code.

Naval ECM's are available for 13500 credits from the sol system I believe , thats about 50.8 light years galactic north, north east from lave but thats in Frontier ,

As far as I can see theres two possible versions of the ecm in the game a player one and a npc one, all npc ecms should be behaving in an identical manner, theres no value "has_super_ecm" its one value for all ships has far as I can see. Of course no telling what people may have added through oxp's Im not familiar enough with all the oxp's out there to know what people can add.

EDIT:-

After posting this I realise ahruman laid the issue to rest there is only one ECM shared by both players and npcs.

[LittleBear]

If a missile runs out of fuel it self destructs. This is a Health and Safety Requirement imposed after a missile that had been drifting through space months after it was fired crashed into Diso's southern continent wiping out a small village.

[Cmdr James]

Out of interest do dead missiles "float" around in space after they've run out of fuel? Or does oolite clean them up?

Most missiles detonate when they run out of fuel. OXP weapons do whatever is scripted. I often used to see torpedoes floating about, giving an easy kill when I shot them.

[TGHC]

I quite like the idea of a naval ECM, one of Oolites likeable features is the armaments development race. In Elite with just ordinary missiles, you could always zap them. I would think hardhats ought to still have the edge over a naval ECM, but by as much as on ordinary ECM.

[JohnnyBoy]

Two, ECM effectiveness depends on range (the four ECM blasts have different ranges, so more distant hardheads are less likely to be affected). It is quite likely that you’re firing missiles from a closer range than NPCs.

Thank you Ahruman, you've cleared this up.

I always make sure that I'm very close to the rear of a Basilisk or a Hydra, because I don't want to be at the other end - for obvious reasons. By contrast, NPCs tend to fire their missiles at a much greater range, and that's why my ECM doesn't appear to be as effective.

Now that I know this, I can shape my combat strategy accordingly.

[Thargoid]

I quite like the idea of a naval ECM, one of Oolites likeable features is the armaments development race. In Elite with just ordinary missiles, you could always zap them. I would think hardhats ought to still have the edge over a naval ECM, but by as much as on ordinary ECM.

Ah yes, but Elite also had the ECM jammer, one of you human's sneaky tricks for using missiles against our glorious warships...

[Eric Walch]

I always make sure that I'm very close to the rear of a Basilisk or a Hydra, because I don't want to be at the other end - for obvious reasons.

When I remember right, had C64 Elite a short delay before ECM started working. To fire missiles at NPC ships equipped with ECM you had to fire at very close range to hit the ship with a missile before the NPC pilot could hit the ECM button. But maybe I just never tried this tactic in Oolite.

[Frame]

When I remember right, had C64 Elite a short delay before ECM started working. To fire missiles at NPC ships equipped with ECM you had to fire at very close range to hit the ship with a missile before the NPC pilot could hit the ECM button. But maybe I just never tried this tactic in Oolite.

Yeah you are right, there was this short delay, i used it to kill that craft with that stealth ability. Had todo this cause i had a pulse laser, i sold my military laser in GAL 8, by buying it... to afford a galactic drive.. talk about being unlucky...

i must admit i can´t remember if you could take damage from your own missiles on the C64, but i think we where invulnarble to our own missiles. so that was a tactic that worked there, since NPCs would often dive right under you to avoid collision. while they couldn´t collide with anything else... than the player... and ofcourse player missiles that targeted them...

Ah yes, but Elite also had the ECM jammer, one of you human's sneaky tricks for using missiles against our glorious warships...

Actually the ECM jammer was backward engineered from captured Thargoid technology, so its one of your own devices that is actually not used against Thargoids as i dont recall ever seeing a Thargoid Warship firering a missile., so your reply makes little sense.

[Captain Hesperus]

I always make sure that I'm very close to the rear of a Basilisk or a Hydra, because I don't want to be at the other end - for obvious reasons. By contrast, NPCs tend to fire their missiles at a much greater range, and that's why my ECM doesn't appear to be as effective.

Now that I know this, I can shape my combat strategy accordingly.

As for that, why, when you are sitting up a Basilisk or Hydra's exhaust, are you launching missiles? Neither of these ship are really that nippy that they can out-turn many ships (I can keep up with a Hydra in a Python) so why, after avoiding the guns, are you wasting Cr350?

Captain Hesperus

[JohnnyBoy]

As for that, why, when you are sitting up a Basilisk or Hydra's exhaust, are you launching missiles? Neither of these ship are really that nippy that they can out-turn many ships (I can keep up with a Hydra in a Python) so why, after avoiding the guns, are you wasting Cr350?

Overheated lasers...

[Thargoid]

Ah yes, but Elite also had the ECM jammer, one of you human's sneaky tricks for using missiles against our glorious warships...

Actually the ECM jammer was backward engineered from captured Thargoid technology, so its one of your own devices that is actually not used against Thargoids as i dont recall ever seeing a Thargoid Warship firering a missile., so your reply makes little sense.

It was a sneaky way to allow you humans to use missiles against our warships when we dragged them out of witchspace, to beat our standard ECM systems. ECM was ours, but ECM jammers were yours

[ClymAngus]

I always make sure that I'm very close to the rear of a Basilisk or a Hydra, because I don't want to be at the other end - for obvious reasons. By contrast, NPCs tend to fire their missiles at a much greater range, and that's why my ECM doesn't appear to be as effective.

Now that I know this, I can shape my combat strategy accordingly.

As for that, why, when you are sitting up a Basilisk or Hydra's exhaust, are you launching missiles? Neither of these ship are really that nippy that they can out-turn many ships (I can keep up with a Hydra in a Python) so why, after avoiding the guns, are you wasting Cr350?

Captain Hesperus

Overkill? That satisfying sub-space gravity fluctuation that you can only feel when a hardened missile flies up an exaust plume, impacting the burner into the witchfuel tank, then exploding?

We call it lollypopping, and it makes me warm and cozy just thinking about it. Mmmmm strawberry