This is a very effective tactic especially for freighters with multiple turrets. Though to really work well you have to attack each and every attacker at the same time as they come in for an attack- run, so you can't concentrate your fire on one target. But if you are good at this, you can really defend your freighter well...

Best Regards
Christian "Bargib" Koerner
Editor in Chief, The Lancers Reactor

Very good question. So it's sort of like defending a B-17 where you only attack those comming into range? Do they AI use a boom and zoom type attack? Or do they just take up a position behind you and blaze away?

Do the turrets also have an auto-fire mode of any type? I recall the Archamedian (sp) Dynasty (a similar free-trade type of submarine combat game....very good) had an option to buy more advanced AI software for the turret's auto-fire modes. It was a nice little touch and gave you somewhere else to sink extra cash to keep your ship a step above the others.

From what I've read, this isn't the case in FL...but it might be a nice addition.

Far as i know, and has been discussed here alot, no. The reasoning (good one, imo) was that you would just cruise about while your 6 turrest pick off the enemy...Not very challanging

I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the darkness at Tan Hauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain. Time to die.

One thing I noticed on my heavy fighter I can use one turret and 5 lasers/missles. Normally I had the 5 straight on weapons and when I aded the turret it could shoot in turret mode but when flying normally it also shoots straight ahead with all of my other guns too. I thought that was really cool.

The rhino I think can have 3/5 lasers/turrets so I think that is some pretty good fire power even just in turret mode.

I was under the impression that you fired turret weapons from a third person perspective. Then you could set one or all turrets to fire at the same time, but only the turret mounted weapons that were able to hit the target actually fired. Does that make any sense?

This is just based on what I have been reading lately - which is quite a bit (borderline obsession with this game at this point)

What about that idea being toyed with where you could have
three players in one ship... one flying two in turrets etc.. has that been implemented?

Sorry but that didn't work. Being a gunner is actually quite boring in most games.

I remember WC2 where you could man the turrets. It wasn't worth it. You'd be flying the Broadsword and there's guys on your tail so you go back to fire the rear turret. Meanwhile, no one's flying the plane. Supposed, the turrets would fire automatically while your were in the cockpit but I don't think they ever hit anything. The turrets in FL seem to work much better.

Let's get those missiles ready to destroy the universe!!

Your right about turrets and WC2 Ugnaught. But they were very effective in Privateer and judging by the answers I have seen to my original question..they will be very effective in Freelancer. Cool! I think I know the direction I will take at the beginning in Freelancer.

The Auto-Fire thing could be done so that it was an additional tool, not your main arsenal.

1) Make turret weapons the main target of attackers (I know what I'd be shooting at if 4 or 5 turrets on a freighter were blazing away at me....)

2) Make the turret weapons a bit easier to damage (I'd say when in auto fire mode and the percentage would be based on the power of the weapon...stronger weapons would take more damage per hit when in auto fire mode). This is an optional game balancing nerf...might not be needed.

3) Make each weapon that goes off line have some (cumulative) percentage chance of crashing the entire auto-fire system. That alone would make flying by auto fire alone a less than intelligent move.

4) Make the AI SW to run the auto fire system VERY expensive (based on accuracy of course). If the auto-fire system get's fried (per 3 above)...so does your SW.....DOH!

Just some thoughts.

I think one of the reasons there is no autofire in turrets is so that you can't just park yourself in the middle of a group of enemies and just wait for them to die.

I can see the points raised here both for and against automatic turrets.

In Archimedian Dynasty mentioned by @Brother Grimm, the turrets were not as effective as if you were firing them. Even with the biggest and best guns, all they really did was keep attackers at bay to stop them creeping up from behind while you were busy with someone else etc.

NPC AI can be programmed to keep hits to a minimum if there's too many. The auto turrets can be discounted in SP.

Online Gaming would be a different matter and if a single player gets into a firefight with 20 or more other players he doesn't stand a chance. This is where the auto turrets would come in handy and unless someone was stupid enough to stay on your tail, they are only likely to have a couple of bars knocked off their shield strength by one or two hits.

AI turrets should target the nearest or most convenient target if two or more are the same distance. It takes a second or so to swivel around to the next so you can see there is a way around it for Online Gaming but it requires some piloting skill even for a large group. This stops the "Mass Attack" strategy employed by the lamers online with no piloting skills at all.

It is one of the things that put me off Online Gaming. I am the first to admit to having few piloting skills since I've only ever flown against AI but I don't get a chance Online because I am jumped too often by gangs of lamers trying to clock up their scorecards. Not even an Ace can fight 20 or more at once.



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My idea of an OS is one that operates the system, not a self contained package of every piece of software ever invented.

Archimedian Dynasty was also heavily influnced by torpedo combat. Taking out an enemy with only guns was a challenge in itself. A well placed torp shot was worth 10 turrets....as I recall the highest ship only had 3 (top/bottom/rear).