Air Units: Can anyone tell me exactly how these will work?

[Jason Beaudoin]

Anyone? --thanks!

[General Ludd]

Nope.

My guess would be pretty much the same way. Otherwise Firaxis would probably by shouting about "improved aerial warfare" or something.

[General Ludd]

Originally posted by Zanzin
- Air combat: "air units have operational ranges within which they can execute air missions. The primary bonus of this is that air units no longer function like super fast ground units".

Nothing more then that is known

[Jason Beaudoin]

That article quote really doesn't say much. So... can Firaxis elaborate a little?

[The diplomat]

My guess is that you will right-click on an active air unit and be able to select the mission based on what enemy cities are within your range. Once you select the mission, the air unit automatically carries it out.

[Gramphos]

I guess you will have to wait and see.

[TCO]

Will we have air transports...finally?

[Gramphos]

Originally posted by GP
Will we have air transports...finally?

I doubt that. We will be stuck to airlifting by 99% security.

[Roman]

Originally posted by The diplomat
My guess is that you will right-click on an active air unit and be able to select the mission based on what enemy cities are within your range. Once you select the mission, the air unit automatically carries it out.

In that case, how will you attack units outside of cities?

[Roman]

Actually, I thought of a way. Perhaps it will be analogous to the system of nukes they are using. You will simply select what square is to be attacked with the click of a mouse.

[Alfonsus72]

I´m really not sure, but what we´ve heard is that you select a target that is atacked in that turn.

But I guess than then some things have to be checked:

-Defensive air units in range to "scramble" and defend the attacked target. But attacks could be a tramp to destroy your air forces, you should have 2 commands (lets say S sentry and F fortify), one to "scramble against attacks in range" and other to "keep cool and don´t scramble except if you are the target".

-Maybe some AA fire could be avaliable, but I haven´t seen and anti air unit in the screenshots.

-Fighter of the attacking civ should "scort" that badly needed bomber from the defensive fighters.

Well, guess we have to wait and see....

[Ralf]

Originally posted by Roman
Actually, I thought of a way. Perhaps it will be analogous to the system of nukes they are using. You will simply select what square is to be attacked with the click of a mouse.

But how do one intercept/shoot down enemy bombers with fighters? Yes, maybe the attacking bomber almost always loose out if theres a modern fighter in the target-city. But how can your fighters actively move out and chase down bombers if air-combat is reduced to target-city/unit mouse-clicks?

Hmm. I guess some further official info is needed before we can clear this one out.

[tuckson]

It would be nice if units (including air and sea units) could be set on "quard", which means they would stand ground and attack anything within a certain range. This way you could really guard things. In civ2 it still requires an action of you to attack. And if you set a unit fortified, you wouldn't even notice an enemy passed by.

[Admiral PJ]

I believe I have seen a 'Flak AntiAir' artilerry gun on an early screen shot though it could be a land based one, perhaps this can attack air units with a 2 or so range like land artillery. Perhaps it could soften up bombers to reduce their attack on cities etc.
If it was a flak gun, it was outside the city in its border.
It will be interesting if they have fighters like bombers, with 2 moves over 2 or more turns, so they can fly over a unit /square and defend it from air attack primarily, this seems the best way
to do air combat missions in my opinion maybe if you defend/fortify over a nearby square you could stay there without running out of fuel and do a 'aircover' mission (also useful for recce scouting) , with separate planes in your unit automatically refueling back to base(you don't see this)
I hope you can bomb empty land squares (destroy infrastructure) or empty cities too.
Realistically only later on were there proper combined Fighter/bomber aircraft(in jets at least) perhaps this will be simulated more realistically.

As long as things are highly editable we can make it to suit us
Drunk PJ

[Skanky Burns]

Originally posted by Alfonsus72
-Maybe some AA fire could be avaliable, but I haven´t seen and anti air unit in the screenshots.

Theres a picture of an Anti-Aircraft Gun here

[Inverse Icarus]

that "aa" was from an old shot, to say the least.

it was also rumored to be a "deployed" cannon / artillery, but i bel;ieve that theory was abandoned and no one thinks there are deployable units.

the way i see it, air units will operate like this.

you have a fighter. you have an area, say 10x10 from wherever the fig is, that you can attack in. it attacks and returns to the base/city.

but will figs only be able to attack one?

can we kamakazie figs? attack as many units as movement allows?

[shum00]

Originally posted by GP
Will we have air transports...finally?

Check out the new Firaxis site. On the Civ page there is what looks like a transport helocopter. (In the animation)

http://www.firaxis.com/games_civ3.cfm

[Jason Beaudoin]

Ya... I saw that copter... that would be nice to be able to land one of those babies on a beach as part of a surprise amphibious assult.

I really do hope that fighters and bombers are totally automated because I really hated how they were implemented in previous civilization titles. They should be automated and given orders to scramble, attack, defend, etc. It would do so much for game play! It would also make an airforce very important.

If they are, I wonder if there will be some kind of graphical representation of the area in which the aircraft can cover in a single mission?... like what you see when building a city.

[Daoloth]

I read in what o these barrages of news that air units can do strike missions- where they bomb a select unit or city improvement (i.e. barracks, market, regiment of tanks, etc). It would be pretty cool to do an airstrike on your enemies glorious palace....

[Inverse Icarus]

air transport is a neccessity.

it's just flat out a major part in modern warfare.

we can airlift infanrty, artillery, and anything else we want right onto a clearing on the battlefield, why cant we do it in civ?

maybe you could only land it on plains or grassland.

or

maybe it's too late and i should stop thinking.

[Roman]

Originally posted by Ralf


But how do one intercept/shoot down enemy bombers with fighters? Yes, maybe the attacking bomber almost always loose out if theres a modern fighter in the target-city. But how can your fighters actively move out and chase down bombers if air-combat is reduced to target-city/unit mouse-clicks?

I am not sure, but perhaps the bomber stays above its target after the attack for one turn - just as in Civ2.