Update 1.9.5 brings a completely redesigned Crew development system. Now each Crew member can be trained in a way that allows the new Skills to complement an individual play style and emphasize the unique characteristics of aircraft as much as possible.
Also, the game client was optimized and now the Hangar works even faster!
We've improved the mechanism of automatic Flight searches and increased the reward for completing aircraft anniversary missions.
New Crew Development System
- The Crew development system was completely reworked. Now Pilots and Rear Gunners can be trained with new Skills to suit an individual play style and emphasize the strengths of an aircraft.
- Pilot Skills are divided into two types: 12 universal Skills that are effective for the course of the battle and six special Skills that are automatically activated in certain situations. For example, a player who has mastered the "Fire Fighter" Skill can extinguish a fire by actively maneuvering. Rear Gunners can acquire eight universal Skills. Most of the Crew Skills available in the previous Crew system are inherited with some changes by the new system.
- Unlike the previous system, the effect of Skills increased with each level, Skills of the new system take maximum effect once they are mastered.
- The new Skills system introduces Skill points that are earned by receiving Crew experience in battle. Skill prices range from one to five points depending on the effect a Skill has on different situations in battle.
- Now proficiency of the Crew transferred from a standard aircraft to a Premium aircraft is automatically trained to 100% without Crew retraining. All Crew experience earned on a Premium aircraft is used for earning Skill points. Crew flying Premium aircraft earn 20% more Crew experience per battle.
- Once the update is released, all Skills trained before will be reset. Each Crew member assigned to an aircraft and in Barracks will receive Skill points, the number of which depends on the experience spent on training Skills.
- The Crew interface is updated according to the new Skills system.
Balance Changes for Aircraft and Weapons
- IL-40 and IL-40P: reduced performance of the 23mm АМ -23 rear gun.
- Increased blast radius of 1,600lb bomb mounted on the F2G Super Corsair.
- Changed blast radius of 100lb bomb mounted on the Hawk III, 500lb bomb mounted on the XP-75 Eagle, 500lb bomb mounted on the Mosquito Mk.26, 250kg bomb mounted on the J7W1 Shinden, J7W2 Shinden-Kai, and J7W3, and 250kg bomb mounted on the J4M Senden in accordance with the parameters of other bombs of the same level.
New Aircraft
The North American Mustang IA, a British tier VI fighter, has been added as a new reward aircraft!
Limited Time Offer: Kostikov 302
The update brings a limited time offer for the Kostikov 302, a Premium Soviet tier VII fighter. This warbird features a rare combination of a liquid fuel rocket and ramjet engines! It'll appeal to players who prefer lightning-fast close-range attacks and high speeds.
The aircraft comes with a unique paint scheme that gives a 5% bonus to top speed, along with nose art and an emblem. The Kostikov 302 bundle also includes 20 Automatic Fire Extinguishers.
New Consumables
Two new consumables for increasing the Credits or XP earned in a battle have been added. Ground Verification increases credits earned in battle by +50%, and Aerial Verification increases experience earned in battle by +25%. These consumables can be purchased only with tokens at a price of 1 token each. The consumables are automatically used when a battle ends.
Optimization
- Optimized performance of the "Upgrades" tab. Hangar interface processing and 3D aircraft model loading are handled in different threads. Now all upgrades, research, purchase, and mounting operations are performed significantly faster.
- Optimized performance of the "Service" tab. Operations with ammunition belts and consumables are performed significantly faster.
Improved Near-Ground Flight System
A new auxiliary mechanism is designed to facilitate ground assault and aircraft control at ultra-low altitude.
- Enhanced ground effect close to terrain surface.
- Pull-up at utlra-low altitude is easier to perform now.
- Improved aircraft behaviour above a sloping surface.
- Changed control system behaviour when maneuvering near the ground:
- When taking a sharp yaw at ultra-low altitude, an aircraft pitches up and rolls to maneuver in a more efficient way.
- When performing dangerous maneuvers at ultra-low altitude, an aircraft realigns with the surface.
- Added visual effects to make a flight at ultra-low altitudes more realistic: different particles (splashes, dust, sand, and the like depending on the surface) will fly towards the camera and trails of raised particles will trail behind an aircraft.
- Modified damage caused by collisions with trees. Now these collisions cause damage in percentage depending on the maximum durability of an aircraft, which makes them equally dangerous for aircraft of all tiers. For aircraft of low tiers, therefore, collisions with trees are more forgiving. The number of hit points an aircraft loses if colliding with a tree now depends on the aircraft tier. Attack aircraft receive the least damage from collisions with trees thanks to a rigid airframe.
- Changed damage caused by the contact of wings or chassis with the surface and static objects. Now these collisions cause damage that is not deadly for an aircraft. Any accidental contact does not destroy an aircraft. Now, the damage is not caused all at once, but gradually so prolonged contact with the surface can cause serious damage to an aircraft or even destroy it. If a fuselage collides with the surface or an object, the aircraft will be destroyed anyway.
Bots
- Fixed some drawbacks of the algorithm used by bots on attack aircraft for choosing a flight route.
Aircraft Anniversary
- Added a third award for completing anniversary missions in aircraft celebrating the first and the second purchase anniversaries.
Flight Improvements
- Changed and improved mechanics of automatic search for Flight.
- Changed the logic of selecting a Flight member and added the option to filter aircraft by tier.
- Added an option to manually select a Flight member from the list of players who want to play in a Flight.
- Simplified option for manually assembling a Flight: the readiness status for both players in a Flight and selected aircraft is displayed.
- Removed the ability to assemble a one player Flight.
New Camouflage Schemes
Addition of new realistic camouflage patterns, which reflect long frontline service at the (scratches, repair traces, etc). List of aircraft:
- Ilyushin Il-2 (t)
- Ilyushin Il-10
- Ilyushin Il-20
- Messerschmitt Bf 110B
- Messerschmitt Bf 109B
- Messerschmitt Bf 109E
- Messerschmitt Me 410
- Supermarine Seafang
- Mitsubishi A6M5 Zero
Bug Fixes
Fixed a bug with the "Improved Fire Extinguisher" and "First Aid Kit" consumables that prevented the 15-second immunity from working.
