Guests:

• Yogi Klatt, Principle Vehicle Programmer
• Richard Towler, Lead Game Designer (Vehicle Experience team)
• Mattia Monticelli, Game Designer III

TL;DW:

• Heavy Fighter are intended as fighters with lower manoeuvrability and more armour. They think the current issue with HF performance has less to do with their tuning and more with the cross-class balancing.
• According to Yogi HFs currently feel "too tanky" compared to other fighters, their HP will be re-evaluated once the new flight model drops (it may or may not change things).
• "Not all ships are suppose to be balanced" - some will act as stepping stones.
• Quantum Experience showed during CitCon two years ago was exactly like how it was in Squadron 42, that design changed since then. Currently the design consists of: Quantum Experience, Space Flight Model, Control Surfaces.
• In the future flight speeds will be split into: jumping (between planets), Quantum Boost (between POI, replaces NAV mode), SCM speeds.
• New flight model will allow them to tune ships in more ways then currently possible.
• Despite the fact they're constantly waiting for new features throughout the years (various flight models, blades, armour, ship crafting etc) the team still believes balancing efforts in the meantime provide useful knowledge for the future changes - even if most (or all) of it will end up being scrapped.
• Updated flight model talk:
  • Non-spheric velocity space (different movement speeds depending on which way you fly).
  • Jerk (slightly slower acceleration/rotation instead of instant 0 to 100).
  • Currently we have "IFCS on training wheels", we'll be able to toggle more things in the future. Even turn it off.
  • No top speeds in the way they currently exist, more power to engines will increase max speed of the ships based on engine strength, ship weight etc.
  • Unassisted aerodynamic flight (how ship behaves in atmosphere). Allows for gliding, controlled crash landing.
  • "NAV mode will die" - just point and quantum boost (if quantum drive is powered).
  • Most of the Squadron 42 FM features are already ported to SC but won't be enabled until everything is ready.
  • Ground turbulence present in patch 4.2 was suppose to be released 6 months ago but didn't due to a in-game time disparity between dev and live environments.
  • Capital ship behaviour in atmosphere probably won't change until the new flight model comes online. Thrust vs gravity ratio will affect ship's ability to fly, even to the point of not being to hover or take-off after landing (in extreme cases).
  • "Space flight model is done, aerodynamic stuff is halfway done (still needs AI to be able to use control surfaces)".
• They're waiting on more medium range weaponry to make the turrets more effective as a deterrent against attackers. Reminder that once the armour system comes in the future some of the weapon/ship combos used to attack industrial and larger ships won't be viable anymore.
• Weather (coming in 4.2) affects your ability to fly, less effect on larger ships.
• Upcoming change to the torpedo arm range is calculated based on torpedo's and ship's position - if you fly with the torpedo and won't let it get 1.5km away it won't blow. This is not the intended way of how it'll work in the future (it will be distance travelled by the torpedo).
• Ground vehicles still need more work in terms of how they feel. They also want to give them more purpose through weapons and other systems available for them.
  Throttle control for GV is on the TODO list but marked as low priority.