Why the proposed version of Below Radar is a gift to toxic players

Battlefield 2042 marked the return of a modern setting and with that the return of lock on weapons which had been absent from the last two installments given the era which they take place. 2042, like BF4, made the correct decision at launch to omit the inclusion of Below Radar. Now it appears that the Battlefield vehicle team is poised to commit the same error as in BF4 and re-introduce this gameplay degrading "feature" into 2042.

First, let's establish the mechanics of Below Radar as described in this recent post

• Takes effect at < 30m

• Makes you immune from any lock-ons from lock on missile weapons emanating from vehicles (both air and ground)

• Does not negate an existing lock-on nor does it prevent the locking player from firing a missile based on that pre-existing lock

• Does not appear to affect infantry based lock on AA weapons

• Unknown whether/how it effects SOFLAM locks

So what are the arguments for Below Radar?

• Allows aircraft to get relief from vehicle based AA missiles by tactically making use of low altitude air spaces with the caveat that it puts them into range of both conventional non-tracking weapons as well as MANPADS (infantry held AA weapons)

• Allows "elite" pilots to negate a legitimate tactical weapon so as to prevent anyone they perceive as less skillful than them from defeating them. This despite the fact that pilots can be effective using both guns and AA weapons. They are not mutually exclusive.

And now to why Below Radar, as planned to be implemented, is such a dismal gameplay function. To do that we need to understand that there are 2 core vehicle AA missile types: IR missiles and Radar missiles. Within the IR missile type there are 3 different types (dependent on the vehicle) and although they appear similar, they are actually somewhat different. Those three are:

• Wildcat - Slow speed, long range, easily dodgeable by Nightbird

• Jet - Short range, Missile Speed is inherited by vehicle so if fired while in hover mode then the missile is slow and easily dodgeable by Nightbird. If fired while in regular flight then the missile is quite fast and nearly impossible to dodge.

• Helicopter - Short range, Fast speed, nearly impossible to dodge by any aircraft

Vehicle fired IR AA missiles (which make up the overwhelming amount of vehicle fired AA missiles since Radar missiles are Jet only) already have a limited value proposition:

• They cannot be dumb fired

• Requires line of site to lock

• They take about 1.5 seconds to lock on only work against aircraft

• They can be spoofed 100% of time via timely countermeasure use

• Unlimited supply but slow reload

• Cannot use other weapons while locking on

• High damage against most aircraft

• Relatively easy to gain and hold lock

• You sacrifice A LOT of anti-ground capability by choosing IR AA missiles

As you can see, there are already plenty of restrictions to using IR missiles. And aircraft themselves don't have a survivability problem; They're quite well balanced in that regard. Countermeasure times are relatively short and you've also got a self-repair system that can instantly begin repairs upon activation. Jet's have fast speeds while Nightbird's have small hitboxes and can even reliably dodge Wildcat fired AA missiles.

With the variables established, we can see that what Below Radar does is take a weapon class that was reasonably well balanced and dramatically reduces it's usefulness. It completely negates the ability to establish a new lock on to aircraft below 30m allowing them time to recharge their countermeasures only to emerge from low altitude and able to negate the AA missiles. True, you can switch to guns and finish off the aircraft but then what's the point in choosing AA missiles? I'm sacrificing AG power for AA and now my missiles are totally negated at low altitude. Furthermore, in the case of say a Attack Heli vs Nightbird unless I'm at close range the 30mm gunner cannon can be tough to hit a small target. This is precisely one of the main reasons why I choose an AA missiles: To enhance my performance against other aircraft at level that is commensurate with the opportunity cost of losing the Air to Ground capability I would have had, had I chosen an AG weapon instead.

Proponents will cite that flying low is hazardous and therefore this mechanic is justified. While there certainly is danger involved with flying low, the level of inherent danger is vastly overstated. The amount of infantry using AA weapons at any given time is, by nature, limited. And even if you happen to be in range of them it still requires that the infantry (or tanks tanks for that matter) both notice you and have line of site in order to fire. This line of thinking also omits that there are already tangible benefits to flying low like breaking line of site using topography/buildings and camouflage against the ground to reduce your opponents accuracy. Another tactic is to bait your opponent to flying into your friendly AA.

Some will also, with a straight face believe it or not, state that the skill required to fly at >30m justifies or partially justifies the VAA missile negation. Anyone who's spent more than a handful of hours in a Battlefield aircraft will recognize this to be 100% Grade A certified crap. Flying below 30m is a trivial matter for anyone with even basic flying proficiency.

Rather than completely negating the ability to lock onto aircraft, a more sensible solution would have been to have Below Radar increase lock times by 2.5x. This would provide a significant impact on gameplay without the draconian effect of total lock negation. In this format it would be a technique of desperation that skillful pilots good use if they are on the brink of CM reload and/or in the process of retreating towards friendly units ready to ambush the pursuer.

I am a vehicle player myself and love all vehicles. I want to see them balanced against themselves and against infantry. A fact lost upon many players is that the game is not purely vehicle vs infantry. Vehicles play a big role in keeping other vehicles in check and vehicle based AA missiles currently contribute significantly to those efforts.

Below Radar will unnecessarily extend engagements and lead to more instances of infantry farming. I hope DICE reconsiders its implementation, but if it has to come as proposed then I hope they will at least lower the ceiling to 20-25m and make an option in Portal to turn it off so that custom games can have the option of operating without this dreaded mechanic.