No point in getting good in flying :((

taraluga · 2013-09-12, 11:09 AM

So I was practicing for a few days and got really good at flying the aircraft.

Then I started practicing to fire and kill targets.
To my surprise it took ridiculously long to kill just about anything.
I tried upgrading the guns which did not really make much of a difference.

Then, a bit annoyed, I landed my Schyte, exited and started shooting at it with my basic light-assault gun.
I destroyed the Schyte in seconds.

Am I missing something here, or is aircraft ridiculously imbalanced, given the amount of effort it takes to actually be able to fly??

Reithan · 2013-09-12, 11:14 AM

ESF are basically made of paper...but it's really FAST paper... so...

Wahooo · 2013-09-12, 12:24 PM

Part of being good at flying is being able to hit stuff before it sees you, or being able to fly in such a way you can still land rounds on target while taking minimal damage.

I'm not a good pilot, BUT I like to shoot at them, and have to say if it is taking you a ridiculously long time to kill anything besides a sundy or MBT you are doing it wrong.

Selerox · 2013-09-12, 12:48 PM

Not to be funny or anything but saying "You're doing it wrong" is hardly helpful...

Methonius · 2013-09-12, 12:59 PM

Attack tanks from the rear with rocket pods. You can kill them twice as fast.

PredatorFour · 2013-09-12, 01:01 PM

Keep at it, it took more than a few days for me to get decent at flying. It takes time and you can't instantly be good at it.

Wahooo · 2013-09-12, 02:06 PM

Originally Posted by Selerox

Not to be funny or anything but saying "You're doing it wrong" is hardly helpful...

Yeah, it is. If I could say how to do it right I probably would, I just know it is possible from getting ROFLPWNed by good pilots. The TTK of rocketpods vs a skyguard is still silly. And the ability to pick and choose when to fight ground troops is more in the favor of the pilot. Coming from a weird angle and taking a lighting to half health with a nose gun and flying away before they can even get a bead on you then coming back to finish them off while taking minimal damage. Its possible. Not by me but I've been on the receiving end of it enough to know some pilots can cause a lot of damage and just not take that much in return, enough so that it seems strafing and reverse maneuvers glitch flak to not explode.

Taramafor · 2013-09-12, 01:24 PM

You can never be good at it with keyboard and mouse it seems. A joystick would get in the way with me and there's no way I'm ever using a gamepad. And you can't aim with the mouse. Up and down but not side to side (unless I'm missing it in options?). Seriously, just set it so the craft rolls a bit when you aim sideways and let me use keys to compensate for the rolling. I'd aim a lot better that way.

PredatorFour · 2013-09-12, 01:30 PM

You really can fly well and kill lots of things with keyboard and mouse. Like i said, it takes time

Taramafor · 2013-09-12, 02:51 PM

Originally Posted by PredatorFour

You really can fly well and kill lots of things with keyboard and mouse. Like i said, it takes time

Without rockets? Flying a default mos is no fun when trying to line up shots against infantry.

Reithan · 2013-09-12, 03:46 PM

Originally Posted by Taramafor

Without rockets? Flying a default mos is no fun when trying to line up shots against infantry.

Nope. Still fun.

Varsam · 2013-09-12, 06:07 PM

It takes a lot of time to master, but flying in this game is one of the most enjoyable experiences to be had. Don't give up - once you get there, you won't regret it.

Also - there is no real need for weapon upgrades (except maybe rotary mag upgrade). You should be concentrating on frame, defense, and utility upgrades instead. Honestly, you don't even need rocket pods or A2AM, most experienced pilots these days fly with AB fuel tanks. It allows you to get out of sticky situations, which is the real skill you should be focusing on developing - not getting into those.

No need to target infantry when 1 ESF kill > 5 infantry kills.

Originally Posted by Wahooo

Yeah, it is. If I could say how to do it right I probably would, I just know it is possible from getting ROFLPWNed by good pilots. The TTK of rocketpods vs a skyguard is still silly. And the ability to pick and choose when to fight ground troops is more in the favor of the pilot. Coming from a weird angle and taking a lighting to half health with a nose gun and flying away before they can even get a bead on you then coming back to finish them off while taking minimal damage. Its possible. Not by me but I've been on the receiving end of it enough to know some pilots can cause a lot of damage and just not take that much in return, enough so that it seems strafing and reverse maneuvers glitch flak to not explode.

You should've said that then, instead of essentially saying, "L2P".

Zadexin · 2013-09-13, 12:02 PM

Originally Posted by Reithan

Nope. Still fun.
http://youtu.be/8bUfQoIBrrY

Nice video.

I gotta say I envy you pilot guys a little bit. PS2 looks incredible from the air. I have never been able to able to really get the hang of flying with mouse and keyboard.

Reithan · 2013-09-12, 01:48 PM

TBH, even though I know Keyboard/Mouse is how most of the 'ace' pilots fly, there's a lot to be said for not being able to swap from roll/yaw on mouse/keyboard to it being keyboard/mouse.

In a PERFECT world, I'd like to be able to make it so JUST when I'm zoomed/scope in while flying, it inverts yaw/roll to be mouse/keyboard so I can aim with just the mouse. That would make me so happy. [/Butters]

Obstruction · 2013-09-12, 07:04 PM

i think in this case L2P itself is a valid answer. the tenor of the thread, and the immediate reaction frpm those of us for whom it has taken hundreds of hours justifies it. it is important to note that because of this it is not an insult intended to belittle or question the ability or authority of the OP, in the manner of "do you even lift?"

if someone is trying to learn to skate or surf, and they are not controlling their center of gravity, they will be unable to stay on the board and fall. they are the definition of not doing it right, or in this case doing it wrong. they need to understand that before anything else can be taught.

just because a particular answer is cliche to the point of being a meme does not make it invalid under all circumstances.

that said, OP needs to spend more time flying against live targets and remember that you don't always have to kill everything you shoot at. most of the time fixation on a particular target will lead to over-extension and death.

if i were the OP i would save certs from some other method of earning them; for example playing medic can be very lucrative. then i would invest those certs into my ESF timer up to about the 200 cert rank (i think rank 7?) after that i would pull that ESF and fly it as much as i could against live targets, all the while upgrading the ammo on the rotary, nanites, and flares. airframe can come later, again probably earned from other avenues of cert income.

i'd also recommend watching some twitch streams from the really good pilots out there. the first one i recommend is NoXousX from Connery's Future Crew. you can learn a lot watching him fly, among others.