Captain_Rownd, on 16 August 2019 - 06:01 AM, said:
Ahhh, I see you're trying to give me a pep talk for the next grueling level of pain in the Fw 190 tech tree saga
Trust me on this: Before the nerf, the Ta-152 was a God in the Skies. You could just, plain DELETE other planes. It wasn't very turny, but it didn't need to be. Bombers were cold meat. I could stand away from most T8 bombers and peck them to death, and they couldn't touch me. Long gun barrels, Marksman I + Marksman II, Ultimate sight = DEATH. I was regularly flying around getting 15-18k PP.
Then, WG giveth and taketh away. They took away the thing that made the Ta-152 so unique - the ability to wipe out a plane at 1300m. Now, you have to close within 900m to make those guns do much of anything. But, WG gave it more roll and a better base turn circle, so now at least you can dice it up with the Germans and the Americans. The altitude is still fantastic, and the energy retention great, so you can dive without boost, flash in at 700kph, zap a Spit or Mustang and fly away laughing. The Ki-84 II is a bag of XP for this plane. A7M? LOL, GT-F-OH. Heavies are toast, and most MRFs (the Tempest can turn on you - do NOT get in a turnfight with a Tempest - it is even better than a Mustang in turning.) Again, stay high, fly up top, drop down, HULK SMASH, then fly away...
But, the thing about closing to 900m got me to thinking about this plane and how you outfit the guns. If the thing can't do anything at 1350m like it used to do, why run those three 30s? Example: I stood off from a Ju288C a couple of nights ago, at 1100m Well outside of it's defensive gun range. It's not going anywhere, and I have clear skies to shoot this guy down. With sniper view activated, I "missed" 8 of 10 shots. From dead astern, no deflection, speed matching. With ultimate sight and Marksman I. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over? Knocking down ADA was a hit or miss affair, literally. Yes, every so often, I'd judge the angles right and get an exploderation of joy. But not often enough to have effect on actual battles. The nerf REALLY nerfed this plane, a plane I specialized about the fastest of any plane I have in my barn. IIRC, it's the first plane in 2.x that I got a Marsailles in.
Fast forward. These days, if I crack 7k PP, I feel like I've done good work. A win is a bonus!. The plane handles like a dream, but that DAMN GUN TRIO really ticks me off. So, drop out of specialized, and try a new gun combo. (Specialized requires you to run the 3x30mm). Monkey around with my equipment, and maybe my pilot skills, and see where we're at. I may even move my Batplane pilot back into the Ta-152 for the grind. My new gun combo showed some promise in initial testing, but we'll have to see how that shakes out over the long term.
The altitude, speed and energy retention are still there. It is still a great airplane to fly. But figuring out the gun combo is important. After the Dora, you will be glad to play this plane. I still love the Dora for what it can do, but always getting downtiered makes its utility less. Top tier, you can carry in the Dora. Bottom tier, hello support role. So, after the Dora, the Ta-152 might surprise you with how well it can do, among T8 LFs.
Or, you can start the Batwing line, which is so fun, it's hilarious. I liked the T8 plane, but the T9 Batwing is LOL-fun to play. "Oh, so you think a head-on is a good idea? EAT SOME ROCKETS!!!!" ;)