How are more casual players supposed to compete with experienced ESF pilots?

Discussion in 'PlanetSide 2 Gameplay Discussion' started by Ned, Aug 22, 2014.

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  1. Colt556

    That's actually wrong. While I don't personally use them (because I simply don't fly) I love the concept of lock-ons. Instead of the stupid ******* ballet you get with "MLG pro" pilots such as yourself you get something more akin to ACTUAL air combat. It looks ******* amazing when you have a large air battle and there's smoke trails from all the missiles and flares everywhere.

    I, for one, wish this game didn't have vtol aircraft and players had to actually dogfight properly instead of dancing around like idiots. The air game would be infinitely better if it was more ace combat and less spastic ******.

    Also, for comments like yours I'm tempted to pull lock-ons and go kill all the BR100 mlg pro pilots and laugh at their hate tells. If you think dancing around like a spaz using your rotary is good and fun, good on ya. But I find missile spam ace combat style dogfighting far more entertaining, and if it generates hate tells that's even better.
    • Up x 2
  2. Verviedi

    False. Weapons such as noseguns require tiny adjustments, quick reactions, intelligent usage of the keyboard, situational awareness, and good aim to use. You can use lockons 1 handed, and circle spam coyotes without any skill whatsoever.
    The element of skill makes the game challenging, which makes it fun.
    • Up x 1
  3. MotionBlured

    It sounds like you've never used A2A missiles.
    • Up x 4
  4. Verviedi

    Give me a second to write the reply, the amount of new posts froze my browser...
    First of all, the unique flight model of Planetside 2 is what makes the airgame fun. I am not interested in WW2 flippy flippy on your 6 crap. I want exciting, fast paced combat. Also, it is impossible to counter crutchweapons like lockons without flares, which I will never take over my engagement radar or Fire Suppresion. Smoke trails from missiles may look pretty to you, but there's a reason I don't play flight sims.
  5. Verviedi

    I own them, and the lock radius is so huge I can maintain a lock through a damn mountain.

    Edit- I am going to sleep. I will be back in approximately 9 hours.
    Edit Edit- Screw sleep. More coffee.
    • Up x 1
  6. PKfire

    No, but it helps if your level of skill connecting nosegun shots isn't keeping you alive.

    Honestly competing in the air is much akin to competing in any other aspect of the game. Players who have invested a great deal of time in their particular field of interest are going to hold the card of experience (which usually coincides with skill) over you. This is true for infantry, tanking, and flying alike.

    The aspect that makes the air game less accessible to new and inexperienced players is the one attribute that sets it apart from the rest; three-dimensional combat. First, you need the ability to graduate beyond the (usually) horizontal awareness of ground play or you will continually fall prey to jumping. Second, you must familiarize yourself with maneuvering within a three-dimensional landscape with the craft of your choice; this is often considered the most difficult part of becoming adjusted as Planetside 2 has some unique flight models, both loved and hated, that you won't experience elsewhere. After you have a grasp of those two things you will be better at a2a than a majority of the players who take flight.

    All that remains beyond that is what I mentioned earlier, experience. Your aim will sharpen, your feel for your movements will become more refined, and most importantly, the familiarizing yourself with enemy pilots/crews and judging whether it's a fight to engage in or avoid. All similar to any other facet of the game.

    It's not wrong to say the less you play the slower and more difficult your progress will be, but it is wrong to say this doesn't ring true about anything else in this game and beyond.
    • Up x 2
  7. TTex11

    Find a group of people to fly with and your survival rate will go up. The new air meta is roving wings (as it should be) and solo pilots are extremely vulnerable to being ganged up on, no matter how skilled they think they are. Fly with what you want to fly in this group setting, as every role has a place. Want to use a nosegun and afterburners? Be a person that tackles targets and keeps the pressure on while your buddies line up their missile shots. Want to hang back and support with Tomcats or Coyotes? Perfect for helping out your tacklers.

    Use what you wanna want, and if you get *****ed at for using lock-ons, ignore them for the irrelevant ragings they are. It's already been said. A kill is a kill.
    • Up x 1
  8. Pineapple Pizza!

    Is fire-suppression really THAT much better than flares? I can't recall the number of times I've popped top-level players from the ground with my peasant lock-on while they retreat from flak...it's honestly shocking.
  9. Colt556

    And yet 90% of the playerbase hates PS2's air game for a variety of reasons. You may enjoy your honorable samurai hover duels but most players don't. You may enjoy hovering over the base and spamming rocket pods and your rotary but most players don't. While people like you may be upset I think a far greater number of people would prefer this game with actual VTOL aircraft, takes off vertically but is more like a harrier than a weird *** helicopter thing. Not only would it allow for more people to enjoy flying as it's far easier to understand how to fly a normal plane, but ground forces would likely enjoy it better as well since ESFs wouldn't just hover around spamming rockets.

    There's a reason you don't play flight sims, but then there's a reason almost no one flies in PS2 either. There's also a reason almost everyone hates sky knights riding around on their chariots. I, for one, love it when you get a nice pilot who works with the team and isn't just some idiot looking for honor duels, I had one the other week and I ******* loved him. But most pilots now days are insufferable and ruin the game with their attitude, if simply using a decent flight model instead of the spastic ****** ballet removes all these sky knights I'd be 100% behind it. I'd actually fly in that case too, since that's the thing. I want to FLY, not spaz and flail about in my honorable samurai duel.
    • Up x 5
  10. Devrailis

    Are you speaking for him or are you speaking for yourself?
  11. bordomcom

    Reavers are OP reavers are OP, I hate their goddamn nose cannons when they shred a mozzie in seconds from massive distances. It sucks in a mozzie too when we have "high manoeuvrability and speed" - yes we can turn but why are we so slow compared to a boxy reavers, scythes I'm okay with, most of the are better than the average NC pilot. Rage a little every time I see a reaver :eek:
  12. Ripshaft


    ESF arguably takes far less time to figure out than infantry, the only difference is many skills from other games you've played are transferrable to infantry play, while very little will prepare you for the airgame in ps2.

    Can any new player go toe to toe with a highly skilled player? hell no. Want to? You work you way up to it. It's a harder ride with air due to resource costs, but the process is the same no matter what. If it's what you want to do, go do it, get good at it. If you don't feel strong enough to invest the time then I'm sure you can find other options.

    Also as I'm sure has been pointed out there's a large body of resources for people looking to get into the air game - lots of great videos and websites to drastically speed your learning process.
  13. Ned

    I'm glad to know a lot of people are in the same boat as me, I really dislike the ESFs in this game due to the VTOL, would have been better if they could not stop and hover
    • Up x 3
  14. Jinjo

    By pulling A2A lockons and hit/running behind their zerg's battle line heh.
  15. Verviedi

    Which server are you on?

    Myself and hopefully him as well.
  16. PKfire

    Could we move this thread to the Vehicle Forums?
    • Up x 3
  17. Verviedi

    Oh wait...
    • Up x 3
  18. Flag

    You're cruel PKfire.

    Very cruel.
    • Up x 6
  19. PKfire

    At least we have those six infantry forums, right?
    • Up x 3
  20. quatin

    ESFs in PS2 is the most ridiculous game play I have ever tried.The only way you can counter at all is to invest in lock ons. Try tomcats from a far and rotary up close or coyotes up close and needler from afar. This way you have some practice with the nose gun. If you use lock ons the entire time, you'll never get better with the nose guns.

    The MLG pros think lock ons and coyotes are boring and too easy to use, because they've spent more time with an ESF nose gun than we have playing the game. For the rest of us, the lock ons actually aren't a guaranteed hit at all. Even then, any MLG pro will still out DPS you with their nose gun.

    You also need a lot of certs to even get started playing with an ESF. Max fire suppression and max dogfighting/hover is required. Dogfighting will give you immediate benefits by letting you aim easier with your keyboard. Hover is if you eventually want to play skynight hover duels. Don't even bother playing ESFs, until you get either frame maxed. This way you get used to how the aircraft handles with only 1 setting.
    • Up x 1
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