There is NO reason that NC and TR tanks should be able to shoot aircraft out of the skies.

Sounds like someone is just a ****** pilot.

As someone who has stuck with ESF despite the numerous, numerous nerfs with nothing positive to show for it, if you're getting taken down by tank main guns it is your own damn fault.

A tank shell can't hit an aircraft anyway. This **** doesn't happen in real life. Tanks should not be better at anti air than actual anti air tanks and anti air maxes.

So the general consensus is that only stupid, greedy or very unlucky pilots get taken down by tanks.

What say you, original poster, which category do you fall into?

In real life aircraft don't hover 10 meters from a tank, spamming rockets into them and expecting a kill. If you want to play like an utter noob, hoverspamming all day, you get punished for it. Learn to fly.

Sniping ESFs with the Vanguard's default is fun as hell. I love it when the rocket-podders come in slowly looking for free kills. Easy shot.

Here's a tip that many have probably said already: Keep moving.

You should not be hovering... if they can hit you and if they hit you... you goofed up and or they are damn good at aiming at that angel.

OP IN NUTSHELL: Cries about NC and TR sniping air out of the skies:::Saron on the Swagrider has been doing it since launch. CRY MOAR OP.

OMG! Totally!!!! ...Well...except...there is ONE REASON...being an AWFUL pilot, hovering in one place and believing you're an invincible lolpodder. That's a reason.

Aircraft also don't hoverspam for long durations of time with heavy enemy presence around them either

I can understand the gripe with our (TR) Striker. I get that.

I can understand people whining about the Scythe's ramming capabilities. Sure.

I can understand anger with the Raven/Fracture being decently capable in AI roles. Gotcha.

But precise/lucky tank shells hitting air vehicles? Really?

Yes, I've done it in my Prowler and even in a Lightning. If there aren't any other enemy ground vehicles around, I shoot up at ESFs/Libs/Gals in an attempt to at least scare them off. Not even to destroy them. Although if I spot a slow, low-flying noob I'll definitely nail him (lots of tank sniping in BF3 does good for the soul). That's the only case where I actually attempt to kill them, though.

Now if I see a GOOD pilot, like Thundahawk or Banu or whoever the hell happens to be ******** on my day at the time, I won't bother lobbing shells in the air because they're better than that.

This is a ridiculously late answer, but yes.

Most modern armor today makes use of what is known as a Dual Purpose round. While I don't know the full functionality, I've learned that it grants most armor on the ground the capacity to engage targets approaching to attack them.

Notice I said approaching to attack. Today that requires most low-altitude such as helicopters to approach from angles that they can survive, which happens to be every angle that a tank can orient their main cannon to match. The only craft that seem to avoid this make use of long-range guided air-to-ground missiles, which...last I checked....ESF's don't have.

You're unfortunately in a very sad position, as you are precisely in the comfort zone of what modern armor would consider easy killing. Modern armor tracks with more than just hand motions, and their kills are considerably more assured. What you should be doing, is engaging from the angles where real tanks couldn't get you - from directly above. Which brings me to ask-

...why would you say...

...if you were being hit by that tank at angles requiring you be anywhere except 'almost directly above it.'?

Funny this popped up i shot down a scythe and a reaver tonight with prowler ap rounds both were one shotted since they were already at half health they were not bad at piloting i just got extremely lucky in the leading of them. Very satisfying though.

That is all I have to say

Its easier for the VG with AP due the velocity, Prowler still needs 2 shots but then again its got greater velocity unanchored, FPC for the magrider got the meager 225 velocity but 1 shots ESF's aswell, takes time to get used to each guns velocity, even going from the regular PC(Heat 200vel) to the FPC(AP 225vel).
Mosquitos in particular is a f*cking pain in the a*se to shoot due to the incredible mini size

OP: Honestly it sounds like you're flying low and they caught ya, and shot at ya and got lucky... Or more likely you're hovering and they caught ya... and shot at ya. I've used the Magrider main cannon and you're right, it's not easy. However, when there are ESF's low enough and hovering, it's pretty easy. Or bombers, now they're big fat targets and they're super easy to hit. Heck, I find a ridge to prop my mag rider up on and give myself a lot better view of the air space.

I do agree a tiny bit. The TR and NC tank turret sits higher on the vehicle, and I am pretty sure it has a higher attack angle... And sure, speed. Though I don't think it ranges into OP levels at all.

So, I think you need to chalk it up to other factors about this game that make it easy. That namely being that these planes of ours are not designed like planes at all. That is to say, they work more like helicopters that switch to airplane mode when need be, and they're more effective at low altitudes when dealing with ground targets then they are at high altitudes. This will result in them being shot down by tank zergs more often... which does indeed suck. Honestly, partaking in air is not really fun of late because we're extremely fragile and easily pushed off the field. No one really gets that, except those of us who fly... and they claim "But you get to live!" ... so... what... woooooo hoo! I get to ... be agile and make no XP for dodging stuff but look like a dancing butterfly to you! Yay... fun... loads. "But you should fight air!" Ya, we fly onto your side to try and deal with air... get FLAKed, run to our side to recover with air chasing us... They get FLAKed... =p OH OH OH! Or we run up against the BEST anti air vehicle out there... The liberator... One shotting us out of the blue from no where. Or nearly putting us into red if we're a liberator, and it's to late to react after that first shot so the second one kills you.

There's some good air fights here and there though, for sure. It's not all cry =) But that's the gist of air combat right there unless you found an un protected squad.

Also, to those people who say "Pilots suck if they're flying low where they're not suppose to be, which is why you get tank shelled." I don't know if you honestly fly Liberators or ESF's at all. Flying low is essential to being effective at attacking the ground forces, even if you're a liberator. The dalton liberator is the only one that can be high in the sky and a real threat. Else you need to be low for any of your weapons to be effective against their targets due to render distances cutting out infantry. As a liberator I like flying with the zepher and staying about 150m off the ground. This is well within tank shelling angles and it happens a lot.

Because its completely impossible in real life, it makes no sense, because people use aimbots in a game, because it happens when you are under full afterburner and curving, not just when hovering, should I go on? Are you stupid?

HE rounds on a vanguard do not actually down aircraft unless they already had some damage to begin with and must be lobbed due to relatively high drop and low velocity.

I'm not sure what you are talking about.

You can't aimbot with tank shells unless the target is relatively stationary and less than 50 meters away (which if you need aimbots to hit that then you fall under the special needs category). The bots do not calculate the target's vector, the distance to target, firing angle, shell velocity and drop.



I have hit several ESFs performing the maneuver you just described. It's not as hard as you might think if you know how to guesstimate speed and distances.

Yeah, if you are being shot down by a tank, you are a terrible pilot!



By the way, that was before the velocity increase too.

Nope, that's not a valid reason when discussing gameplay. It takes skill and a fair bit of luck to land those shots so they should be rewarding.