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Radar & TACOPs


Joel Schultz
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OK -- two things.

o What is the difference between active and passive radar and how do you tell if active is turned on (is that when my tactical radar screen grid-lines turn blue?)

o Why do certain blips in my TACOPs screen have rings periodically pulsating outward? My guess is that it has to do with objects that have active radar, but I never see them around my ship regardless of whether my tactical radar lines are blue or gray.

If there are pages in the manual that answer both of these questions, please point me to the page number or section and I will dutifully read them smile.gif"><P>That

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I think it's pages 64 - 66 that deal with tacscan. grey grid = passive. blue grid = active. tacops: those rings indicate things like Radar emissions and SOS signals. look through the manual more.

------------------

Cmdr. Antilles

Spectre Fleet

Spectre Starstation

ICV- Eclipse

Chief Security Officer

Learning is not compulsory... Neither is survival.

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Be careful when examining the color of the grids. The grids are gray when that station does not have focus. In other words, if you last clicked on the CVD (the one on the right), the tactical display will not have focus and be grayed out. Having focus means that the keyboard commands will affect the active (focused) display. Clicking (or pressing the K key) will activate the tactical grid, which will then turn blue to indicate its active state.

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There's not really much difference between going in active or passive mode in BC3k v2.x. BCM does implement fog of war, so that you can no longer see clean across the region. A wise use of the active/passive radar modes will then be crucial to plan your strategies.

As for the blue rings, it means that the target is emitting a distress signal (S.O.S.).

------------------

See you out there, among the stars

Cmdr Nava, GCV Nemesis (Official BC3k tester)

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Hi!

I'm new here and don't know the interface

of any of the BC versions (not anymore ;] ),

but I'll explain the difference between

active and passive radar to you .

You can compare it to a submarine, which

uses sonar instead of radar to locate objects

(the basic principles are almost the same...)

If a sub uses ACTIVE sonar, it means it emits

a loud "PING", and then listenes for possible

echos indicating an object in the water.

The delay between the emission and the return

of the "PING" lets you derive the exact distance between you and your target.

(You'll even find out heading, speed and course if you track it for a while, giving

you every information you need for a firing-solution...).

The advantage of ACTIVE scanning is the increased range, precision and general

detection reliability.

The DISadvantage of ACTIVE scanning is

that you are giving away your exact position

(because you are making noise!), and even if someone was not able to localize you (maybe because the signal was too short to derive anything from it), he will at least be aware of your presence, which means you can consider a deep-core mission like Spy inertion FAILED.

PASSIVE SCANNING means YOU are the one to

listen to enemy radar emmissions, providing

you with target information WITHOUT trading

away your own position (/existence).

The DISadvantage of passive scanning is the

fact, that you won't be able to "hear" things

that don't make "noise" : If a hostile ship

hides somewhere with its radar switched to

"listen-only", you risk being shot at without

even knowing by whom...

So, always remember: EVERY active device emits signals. Signals can be detected.

Detected signals provide your enemies with

a firing-solution or a target-lock on you.

A hostile target-lock is definitely going to

be a pain in your ass.

Best Regards

Cmdr. Steele

GCV Terra Kresta

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Yup, there it is on pg. 64 of the manual -- a short paragraph referring to both rings and the [R] command for Radar. Didn't even make it into the quick reference at the end of the section, though. I guess it will be more useful in BCM -- the only thing it seems to do now is blind you to incoming missiles in passive mode.

Thanks for the help!

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No problem.

------------------

Cmdr. Antilles

Spectre Fleet

Spectre Starstation

ICV- Eclipse

Chief Security Officer

Learning is not compulsory... Neither is survival.

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quote:

I guess it will be more useful in BCM -- the only thing it seems to do now is blind you to incoming missiles in passive mode.

You will find lots of things like this as you discover the depths of the game.

Remember that you are not buying "Battlecruiser: 3000AD - The Game!" You are buying into "Battlecruiser: The Franchise!" And at the ground floor, too! Derek designed many hooks into features that have not yet been enhanced. Battlecruiser:Millenium and BC:Online will grow the franchise exponentially with improvements on technology. Another feature that has not been enhanced yet is the Communications function. We know it's there, but its time will come.

You are arriving at the time when active and passive radar is being enhanced, so you've been spared the agonizing anticipation that the rest of us have endured as the SC has been briefing us on his progress.

If you like what you've found so far, then hold on for the rest of the ride...

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...and the rings in the TACSCAN, indicates that the entity is doing an active radar or AI search.

To filter out all the active pings, go into STT mode.

And yes, in BCM, active/passive radar types have been revised considerably. If you're active pinging, others can see you (if within range). If you're passive, they can't see you, you can't see anyone, unless within visual range or if you bump into each other.

Also, like cloaking, launching weapons or crafts will create an active radar ping which they can use to pinpoint your last known location.

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