Flight Plan (Warhammer Community)

[Fire Golem]

The Arvus is adorable. 

[Burni]

Great to see the Arvus! The Navy is really coming along, would love to see the Collosus at some point.

[Arendious]

Arvus seems big, at least compared to the "Starfleet Shuttlecraft" size I thought it had in 28mm.

 

I think that locks down all the currently extant Imperial (non-Astartes) flyers.

[duz_]

This image has me excited :D

 

 

[Dark Bjoern]

Yeah, can´t wait to get the Lightnings.

[Arendious]

Yeah, I'm liking the Lightnings, even with what must be an extremely complex engine arrangement. (One giant intake feeding two engines)

 

Interestingly, this is another Imperial aircraft without centerline or fuselage hardpoints. Also, I'm a little surprised we haven't gotten any drop tanks. Granted, you would usually prefer to, ahem, drop them prior to a dogfight, but they're quite iconic.

 

Edit: Just saw the third wing hardpoint. Come to Papa, my little Skystrike spammer...

Edited March 31, 2020 by Arendious

[klisof]

I'm looking forward to the lightning, but I am a bit disappointed by the loss of the long barrelled autocannon.

 

Hopefully the lightning will be cheap enough that it's easy to fit 3 pairs is missiles on it.

[Mandragola]

I can see the lightning being a 2-hull plane and very cheap to start with - perhaps even less than a dakkajet. Armed with just a twin lascannon it doesn't look that useful until you stick other ordnance on it. Am I right in thinking that autocannons are an option for wing hardpoints on a lightning?

[Beren]

I believe they are in their 30k/7th rules.

[klisof]

They are able to take wing mounted autocannons in the 30k rules, but that is a primaris-lightning strike fighter, a more advanced version than the lightning in use in 40k.

The 30k version is able to take a ton of different weapons options.

 

The 40k version only had 2 loadouts:

1. The lightning fighter with twin lascannon plus a central mounted long barrel autocannon with space for 4 missiles/bombs

2. The lightning strike variant that swapped the autocannon for 2 more missiles/bombs.

 

That was based on the original lightning design FW made, the 30k primaris version is based on the redesigned model made for 30k.

 

Given that the AI model is based on the redesigned lightning rather than the original version the weapon options may be opened up to be closer to the 30k version.

[Arendious]

The redesign does fit the "Imperial Aesthetic" better, admittedly.

 

None of the artwork or previews of the models have shown non-expendable hardpoint options for the Lightning. (Or the T-bolt, for that matter.) I'm inclined to think that will be the purview of the AM airframes - Vulture and Valk, and maybe the Avenger. (Which would emphasize it's CAS role, now that Furies have stolen it's bolt-cannon thunder)

[Burni]

Based on the GW email I just got with all the AI novels listed, I think Taros was meant to be out this week :(

[Firedrake Cordova]

Based on the GW email I just got with all the AI novels listed, I think Taros was meant to be out this week

It was down as "April" originally (according to Warhammer Community), although they've said no new releases until May due to the obvious.  I did see they published and pulled a video on weathering AI models (using Thunderbolts, Lightnings, Dakkajets and Fighta Bommerz) the other weekend ...

Edited April 6, 2020 by Firedrake Cordova

[Firedrake Cordova]

Dunno if anyone's seen it already, but Goonhammer has a write-up on the Taros reveals: https://www.goonhammer.com/bogies-incoming-aeronautica-imperialis-wave-two/

 

They're basically relating what the rules were in first edition to second edition, and trying to translate that to the second edition rules.

[duz_]

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2020/04/21/flight-plan-big-guns-never-tirefw-homepage-post-4/

 

 

Looks at the Avenger and Tiger Shark rules

No new mission because of lock down though

Edited April 21, 2020 by duz_

[Firedrake Cordova]

Gotta admit, I'm not a fan of the Avenger due to the engine placement (it'd have been better with the engines placed next to the fuselage, like the Thunderbolt, IMHO). Handling 2+ on looks interesting... :)

[Beaky Brigade]

Interesting rules, I would have thought it would more durable than the Thunderbolt, not less, but I guess they've got to balance the dakka.

 

I'm in a bit of a weird place at the moment with the obvious spanner in the Hobby works, but I'm glad to see more about the new models, even if they may not be available for a while.

[duz_]

The engine design does remind me of the pod racers from starwars

I keep going back and forth whether or not I like the design kinda like the Lightening :sweat:

 

I mean I won't say to having either in AI or 40k :D

[Arendious]

<sigh> I want to hate the Avenger, but I can't. It's like a pug - nothing about it is correct for what it's supposed to do, but it's also sorta adorable because of that. (Though, unlike the Marauder, at least there isn't an enormous T-tail eating up the gunner's field-of-fire.)

 

Anyone remember if White Dwarf is taking fan submitted articles...

[Mandragola]

I find that I don't particularly like either the Avenger's model or it's rules. Can't like everything, I suppose! I was also thinking it has a pod racer vibe. Sort of a cross between a stuka and a pod racer. 

 

Rules wise it seems to just be a thunderbolt with one less hull. I mean it's very slightly different - it can go at speed 1 and not quite as high, but otherwise it has more or less a thunderbolt's firepower, speed and manoevres - and cost. That just doesn't seem very good at all in my opinion - which is based on no real experience beyond watching some batreps. If you give it any extra weapons it quickly starts to approach the cost of a marauder destroyer, which just seems way better.

 

The tiger shark is kind of bizarre. I guess you can have them do ground attack missions by just sniping targets dead from miles away. It's not clear if the drone weapons have a cost or if you just pick one.

[Arendious]

Rules wise it seems to just be a thunderbolt with one less hull. I mean it's very slightly different...

 

That was basically my concern when the Fury first appeared. Both on the tabletop, and in-universe, why would I bring an Avenger when I could have a Fury? I'd hoped to see some of the additional ordnance available, to help differentiate the two.

 

I guess you can have them do ground attack missions by just sniping targets dead from miles away.

If you're not doing this, you're airpower-ing wrong.

[Mandragola]

 

I guess you can have them do ground attack missions by just sniping targets dead from miles away.

If you're not doing this, you're airpower-ing wrong.

[Fajita Fan]

I keep missing the Community updates to this game.

[Arendious]

 

 

I guess you can have them do ground attack missions by just sniping targets dead from miles away.

If you're not doing this, you're airpower-ing wrong.

Well yes, true. Tau aircraft have some capabilities that bring them almost towards the effectiveness of a modern plane. It would probably be a completely unfair fight against imperial or ork planes if someone turned up with proper supersonic fighters armed with missiles.

 

There something sort of silly about dogfighting still happening in the far future, when it’s been long obsolete in reality. But that’s fine - a game in which drones picked each other off from many miles away wouldn’t be a ton of fun.

 

 

Not necessarily as silly as it sounds, really. Dogfighting isn't actually obsolete today, much to the chagrin of Western nations' doctrine-writers (and the delight of their fighter pilots). And over in "Red Air Land", dogfighting is still the preferred combat venue. <This is totally an ambul-hole I'm happy to dive down, though *this* isn't really the thread.>  Dogfighting in the far-future is easiest to reconcile (for me) with a Watsonian assumption that something, or a collection of somethings, is driving these engagements to this close range. 

 

There's a way to make a fun "drones with missiles at 50 miles" game - Battlefleet Gothic has a bit of that when you get a lot of torpedoes on the board. (And I would totally play a 40k Beyond-Visual-Range Combat game!) 

[Fajita Fan]

This book was fascinating, it directly deals with dogfights vs relying on missiles.

https://www.amazon.com/Topgun-American-Story-Dan-Pedersen-ebook/dp/B07F667DK8