AA is Completely Broken at its Core

To be replaced with what?

Your post would make at least sense if ESFs didnt had rocket pods, you know those weapons that are a one-size-fits-all weapon as you described that are effectivy against everything.But it dosent stop with them having such weapon, they are the fastest and most mobile unit in the game and can decide whenever to engage or avoid any fights, and AA got nerfed with the AA Maxes changes.While alot of the complain and "excuse" to nerf maxes AA was because they could be revived, hide in buildings and switch between AI/AV/AA at will (mind you i agree with these complains), they got nerfed but the skyguard (which those complains do not apply in any way or form) was not buffed enough.

Driving a skyguard is a chore like the OP said.You make yourself a huge target because you cannot deal with armor or infantry and at the same time your just a deterrant for air.It is not powerfull enough to kill ESFs as it stands, you will get them to run away or get an assist, but unless your firing at a dumb/new pilot or someone messes up and gets greedy you aint getting any kills. A Liberator on the other hand can take quite alot of hits from a skyguard find it and still take it down without any problems, unless you got 2-3 skyguards at least focus firing on said liberator your toasted because he can outlive you, i know liberator is a 2 man vehicle (it aint a 3 man cause nobody ever uses it like that) but it can deal with all sort of enemies including air, i just dont think it is right for a liberator to sit and take the damage head on and win a battle of endurance against a vehicle designed to take down air.

Thoughts on AA, Skyguard ONLY:

Am I one of the few who thinks the Skyguard is actually in a pretty decent place as far as AA goes? My statements below are mostly from a view of a single Skyguard, not multiple groupings of AA.

Personally I think it does a nice chunk of damage to ESFs while still giving them the time gain some intelligence and RUN away. If it did more damage to ESFs than it currently does than it would most likely be considered OP to most. I know the ESF pilots out there might have a different opinion and state that they are already to powerful, even as a solo player. The requirement for multiple ESFs (or just one experienced pilot) to take down a single Skyguard seems fairly balanced due to that being our sole purpose as AA. ESFs die INSANELY quickly if there is a large grouping of AA equipped players, I can admit that.

Liberators on the other hand, can solo a Skyguard in a matter of a couple seconds. A fast Tank Buster pass and a couple rounds from the rear gun and bam, Skyguard is gone and barely stood a chance. I don't think this is unfair to the Skyguard by any means (and boy have I had my fair share of deaths to a Lib). No Skyguard should expect to do a large amount of damage to a Lib alone. Learn to coordinate with other groupings of AA, or prepare to die....that's that.

To those saying that Skyguards don't do enough damage to ESFs....learn to play Skyguard. Please don't expect to sit hundreds of meters away from enemy pilots and kill them every time you see one. If they're attacking friendlies then send some shots their way to scare em but otherwise time your attacks to allow them to get close to you. Place yourself in positions that give you an opportune line of sight and a be patient. Do I shoot ESFs that are far far away? YES, but I don't expect to do much to them other than scare them. Let them get close to you and start making a pass, then light em up....by the time they realize what's hitting them they will be trying to make a turn to escape, and that's when your time arises to shine. Could the Skyguard use some changes? I guess....sure. Is it UP by any means? H*LL NO.

"but Skyguard is boring! It's like a job" Then stop playing as a Skyguard and your problem will be solved. If you don't enjoy playing it then don't play it, stop trying to force yourself to like it over time. Is Skyguard the most flattering role to play? Not really. Does it provide a huge amount of certs just rolling in? Not really, unless the enemy faction just continues to send horrible pilots out one after another. Are you a sitting ducks for enemy MBTs and such? Most of the time, yes....but that's the choice you made for being one of the strongest AA weapons in the game. Don't go lonewolfing and you'll be fine. This is coming from someone who is NOT in an outfit, practically ONLY lonewolfs, and I've still handed Magriders their ***** from time to time. Do I die alot of those tanks who flank me? YES....should I be where I was at alone? NOPE. MY CHOICE THOUGH.


tldr; To those whining about Skyguard, learn to play it! Skyguard is fine just the way it is and does a great job as AA. It is not OP nor UP, get over it.

I find AA to often be "worth it" from a certs perspective.

I'm kind of a dedicated AA jock and like my skyguard, it's pretty well balanced in my opinion. You shoot down the dumb and overconfident pilots and scare off the better ones.

I do however would like to see the walker buffed. I run that on my harasser and it's quite reliably sh*t.

Then just play infantry in bio labs or other places where air cant hit you. EASY

I dunno, I think the walker is pretty decent, and it can shoot down phoenixes easily. the ranger needs some modification though, the muzzle flash when firing partially obscures your view, making it difficult to aim/lead properly. :/