How to get the most out of your AA MAX.

gonnagetyou · 2004-02-24, 08:35 PM

Instead of bitching about how vulnerable MAX units are at the moment, lets talk about how you can actually survive and get some kills in. To keep this from being too long I'll just stick to AA MAXs for now.

All 3 AA MAXs offer the most bang for the buck at the moment. I've had really good success with all three and pretty much all my characters are or have been certed in them. To get the most use out of them, focus on killing aircraft. This sounds obvious, but a lot of people seem to get distracted and shoot at anything and everything.

Don't hang around inside or on top of the base or tower if you can help it. This is especially true for NC and TR MAXs which aren't as mobile as the VS with their jumpjets. If you do you will become the focus for way more enemy fire than you can handle. Instead I recommend you figure out a way to position yourself somewhere nearby that allows you to cover the base or tower and prevents the enemy from spotting you right away at the same time. I often use autorun to quickly move to a nearby hill and try to hide as best I can. Also, be sure your position isn't right along the route enemy ground units will travel.

When using autorun, first pick a destination not too far away and move in spurts. Scan around first to make sure no aircraft or enemy see you, then run a short distance, stop, look around and then run again. You don't want to be caught autorunning with a Reaver nearby. I often autorun from one peice of cover to the
next.

An effective strategy for a solo AA MAX is camping friendly/enemy airtowers. Enemy airtowers near the action will get regular visits from wounded or ammo short aircraft and you can really put a hurting on enemy aircover and just in general be a big pain in the ass. If you do this, you need to change positions often. Any pilot you kill is going to want to come back and collect some payback. You don't have to move too far, just enough to make him have to look for you if he does come back. Friendly airtowers are also good spots, because you can not only protect wounded friendlies, but usually enemy aircraft are the first to show up and try to retake them. Camping the closest enemy bases airpad is another tactic that may seem cheesy, but if you can deny them from even taking off, you're helping your team. Camping a base though is extremely hard, because there are most likely plenty of infantry or vehicles there as well that can hunt you down. Only try this if you have a good defensive position to fire from to begin with.

Starfires and Sparrow MAXs work best if you allow the enemy to move in close before you lock on. Try to keep your aiming reticule away from your target until they are close. Don't give them any reason to afterburn away by getting lock too soon. Don't let them know you see them until it is too late. If you haven't been seen yet, you can often use autorun to get a little closer before you open up. The only reason to fire early is when your target is engaging your team mates or you're the one being targeted. He will be distracted by focusing on a kill and your sudden lockon may even cause him to break off his attack which may save your teammates from going back to the spawntubes.

TR MAXs should not lock down if there are multiple aircraft in the area or you have been spotted. It only takes one reaver to survive and catch you immobilized. Typically I only lock down when I catch a single aircraft hovering within range. A hovering aircraft is pretty much a sure kill for a locked down burster. Enemy aircraft will often hover just within sight of your towers or base so they can scope out the area from what they think is a safe distance. If you spot one of these guys, just lock down and let rip. You can unload an entire clip before the first round strikes your target and they won't have any time at all to react before 24 more shells slam into them.

Always be prepared to move at a moments notice. I often have pilots come back looking for revenge and instead of shooting me with their aircrafts guns, they bail and try to use decimators. As soon as you see the blue streak of a guy bailing or infantry getting too close, then hit autorun and get out of there. Better safe than sorry, and heck even if you didn't kill him, you made him put another 5 minute wait on his aircraft.

I love to take my AA MAXs out and hide somewhere in between two bases. Pilots are often lazy and take the most direct path between point A and B. Be there waiting for them. They often don't even see you and will fly straight over your position. If you can kill them before they even get to your base then that's even better. Just be on the look out for enemy ground units and keep your distance.

Above all, constantly check around you 360 degrees. You never know when some sneaky pilot or infantryman will try to get the jump on you. Being constantly on the alert and changing positions often will keep you alive and kicking.

This is how I use AA MAXs and rather than dying, I often find I have to go back for more ammo and get a few repairs instead. The key to being a successful AA MAX user is surprising your targets and being exactly where they don't expect you to be. A good Skyguard crew can use the same tactics and be just as annoying and deadly. AA MAXs are a good way to get BEP and are a lot of fun for a soloist or even team player with an evil streak and sneaky character.

TheN00b · 2004-02-24, 08:40 PM

All in all, very well done man. This will be very helpful for people new to the AA MAX, and might even help vets. Are you writing up similiar guides for the AI and AV MAXes?

Jaged · 2004-02-24, 08:44 PM

good post

gonnagetyou · 2004-02-24, 08:53 PM

Ill try to do the other MAXs, but I want to get some more play time in with all the new changes. AI and AV are taking a good beating at the moment and I'm still coming up with new tactics to compensate. We'll see in another week or so.

Fenrys · 2004-02-24, 10:17 PM

If all you are interested in is XP, find a fight between nearby neighboring bases with hills/mountians in the middle. Find a peak that is just behind the front lines, and hide on the friendly side of it.

..................................you............. ...........
nmeBase__________/\__________yourBase

This way the nme will not have a line of sight to decimate you from, and you'll be shooting down aircraft from behind as they fly over you.

Using this technique, I've frustrated pilots enough to have an OS called down on my otherwise-abandond position.

The rim of the Searhus crater is an awesome place to camp as well. There are only a few passes low enough for aircraft to fly over, allowing you to create AA chokepoints.

gonnagetyou · 2004-02-25, 03:20 PM

Fenrys. I discovered last night that you can't spawn at an AMS you are bound to if you are wearing a MAX suit. All this time I had never actually tried that one, but it sounded like a great idea. Learn something new every day. I deleted my own mention of it in my post.

dscytherulez · 2004-02-25, 03:33 PM

I never knew you couldn't spawn at ams in max suit, though I guess I never tried. Oh well, knowledge is power I suppose

Well written BTW.

Uberpimp · 2004-02-25, 04:35 PM

Nice post!

Gigabein · 2004-02-25, 05:17 PM

It would be cool if PSU had a section for forum member hints tips and guides. This thread should definitely be in something like that.

Uberpimp · 2004-02-25, 05:20 PM

Wait we don't?! I could've sworn there was one.... oh well.

Gigabein · 2004-02-25, 05:21 PM

nm, I just found it, under the deceptive title "Articles"

gonnagetyou · 2004-02-25, 06:28 PM

One thing I'd like to add for solo AA MAX users who roam the battlefield. If you are spotted by a pilot, 9 times out of 10 they don't know if you are an AA MAX or not until you open up. I have lured many pilots into attacking me by not actually locking on or shooting as soon as I see them. This is very effective with Starfires because you can wait to the last moment and jump out of the way of the typical Reaver rocket spam. TR an NC not being so mobile can't do the same thing, but you can still lure them into a false since of security sometimes if you play your cards right.

A good Starfire pilot can easily take on multiple targets due to his better mobility. I once killed 2 reavers and 3 mosquitos that attacked me all at the same time. In about 30 seconds I wiped out all 5 aircraft and the only reason I died was because one guy bailed at the last second and nailed me with a decimator. These were all undamaged aircraft and I had no friendlies nearby helping. Use those jumpjets sparingly.

I don't think I would ever be able to do that with a TR or NC MAX. Sparrow MAXs need to focus on one target at a time and prioritize them based on threat level. Bursters can sometimes take on more than one if the enemy is dumn enough to bunch up but that doesn't happen often, except around airtowers when they are healing. In that case, with no lockon warning and a quick lock down, you'll sometimes catch 2 or 3 at a time.

Happy hunting!

WritheNC · 2004-02-25, 06:53 PM

I like to stand on air pads and the edge of the roofs on the outer walls of bases.

What I do is stand on the very edge of the stairwell roof or air pad. If any rockets start heading my way, I just walk backward a step and I am on the base floor, out of harms way very easily.