multi-role puzzlement

[blue_yonder]

I have a question, probably stupid, about multi-role planes in the latest DD. I'd have asked it there, but it's already past the 72-hour shelf-life in which those threads stay interesting and active.

from the DD: "there are no stat differences between, say, a fighter that has a set of 4 Heavy MGs in the Primary Weapon Slot and bombs in a secondary weapon slot, and a CAS that has the bombs in the primary weapon slot and the MGs in the secondary slot - but one goes into Fighter Airwings and the other goes into CAS Airwings."

Fair enough. But in that case, what's the point of investing in small bomb bays for those planes that will only ever be used for superiority/interception? You can't ever persuade them to go on CAS missions, because their primary weapon slot [guns of some sort] decides their one and only role? I'm missing something I'm sure, but at the moment it seems it would be mad to design anything other than specialist planes for one particular job.

 

[MinhowMinhow]

Well, airplanes will have access to different missions depending on their installed modules. Depending on current missions they will have different modifiers to better represent these.

From what I read, if a MR is engaged on AS mission, their CAS modules will be disabled at time, but if you switch the missions, the CAS ones will be enabled. This is represented by modifiers, it seems.

The primary weapon defines the main role of plane, but seems, if a planes has a balanced number of slots, it become a MR plane, that was defined as a new type of plane, but at this point is more speculation.

 

[blue_yonder]

I guess we'll have to wait and see, but if we take the DD at its literal word, a plane's purpose is decreed at birth. If slot A = gun, then it is sent off to a fighter group; If slot A = bomb, it's automatically a CAS, with no say in the matter. Perhaps both roles become possible and that's logical, but if so, that was not explained in the dev diary.

 

[BeauNiddle]

The equipment toggles which missions are available for that plane wing.
Each air combat tick the wing will fly ONE of it's assigned missions. Left to right priority (so air superiority first)

So if you have a multirole with guns & bombs you can potentially assign it to airsuperiority, interception and CAS. If you do all 3 it will always do AS since that has priority so it will never use bombs. If you assign it to intercept and CAS then it will attack bombers if there are any, otherwise it will CAS if there are any battles close enough. You can, of course, assign the wing to just one of those three missions so they will always fulfil that role.

So a multirole aircraft simplifies your production at the downside of extra plane wing micro to make sure it's doing the right mission.
Single role aircraft are less plane micro at the downside of more production. (also potentially better planes)

If you can afford the production cost then single role aircraft are probably the way forward. Mid to late game, when you think you will have guaranteed air superiority then maybe multirole planes are a good idea as you can assign them to CAS but they are a reserve in case you misjudge and do need that extra force on air superiority at any point.

 

[Eruth]

I guess we'll have to wait and see, but if we take the DD at its literal word, a plane's purpose is decreed at birth. If slot A = gun, then it is sent off to a fighter group; If slot A = bomb, it's automatically a CAS, with no say in the matter. Perhaps both roles become possible and that's logical, but if so, that was not explained in the dev diary.

Roles can be unlocked by weapons in any slots— the primary slot just determines what the equipment is categorized as. Fighters with guns and bomb bays can perform Cas and air superiority. CAS with bomb bays and guns can perforcas and air superiority. However, these aircraft cannot be placed in the same air wing, nor could a fighter with cas missions be placed in an air wing with fighters without them.