Hi all, I play Vanu and am learning how to fly the Scythe. I currently have two builds: AG: Light PPA + Dual Photon Pods (LPPA w/ thermal) Fire supp. 2 NAR 1 Hover frame 1 AA: Saron A2A pods Fire supp. 2 NAR 1 Hover frame 1 Here is my profile (stats aren't great, don't judge): https://www.planetside2.com/players#!/5428011263286850081 I would like to start with more AV and AA versus anti infantry. I'm thinking about Hornets, the Antares LC, and Coyotes. I have 2000 certs in the bank. Any ideas or suggestions?
Antares is pretty crap imo. I'd recommend sticking to the Saron. A2A pods are cheesy and don't help you develop skills as a pilot. Hornets are good for AV. It's best used by flanking behind the enemy tanks, coming up behind them hitting n' running. Try going for the smoking tanks, if you hit both missiles into any tanks sub 60% usually nets you a kill Coyotes are bad too. Good accuracy with the saron will out DPS coyotes. Coyotes only really good for running with PPA as a way of fighting enemy air if they show up. Plus afterburners will let you **** and close gaps better. I'd recommend you finish certing NAR and Fire supp and possibly(not 100% here, better to ask scythe mlg pros) get racer frame.
Thanks for the help. I would like to stick with A2A pods for now, without them I am just cannon fodder. I'll buy Hornets and spend the rest on fire suppression and NAR then.
You should also look at wrel's / mattiaces videos on youtube for tips and tricks on flying particularly getting into flying now. It's pretty vicious with all those high BR's out there.
finish out your hover airframe, nar and fs, then start dumping certs into weapons, find a good pilot whos willing to beat your face in 2000 times, AG loadout might be better with ppa and ab tanks, for survivability sake, unless your dead set on going after armor. A2A missiles will net you some easy kills, but practicing with a nosegun will be far more rewarding in the long run.
You should definately learn to deal with ground first, you can't go wrong with hornets, they're easy to use and can net you a lot of kills, come up behind tanks and hit them in the rear armour, usually leaves them with about 20% health. For anti infantry purposes I reccomend using the ppa and afterburner tanks, it allows you to fly in, get a couple of kills and boost out when you start taking fire. For A2A you should cert up fire suppression to max, then 2 or 3 ranks of nano repair and then swap your lock ons for coyotes. They provide you with much better defence against air at close range, which is where most dogfights happen. Always fly as an engineer, the benefits far outway those of flying as a light assault. Find a friend or outfit mate to practice dogfighting with (this should be done on the test server to prevent interference from other fighters.) The ESF is by far the hardest thing to master in this game, you will die, a lot. But the end result is definitely worth it.
Saron seems to be the favorite Scythe A2A Nosegun right now. It's the most used and performs well, as you can see here. The few stats it seems to underperform are very likely misleading, as the higher BR (player level) being used on the other guns is boosting their results (since it's better players getting better results). MattiAce (a top ESF player) prefers Saron as his Scythe A2A Nosegun, as he related here. This is a common statement, but I do not believe it is true. A2AM can be very effective depending on your playstyle and/or the situation. Also, flying in Gank Squads (Squad of ESFs that hunt the map for weaker Air Prey) with A2AM and A2A Noseguns can be a good way for newer players to figure out the basics of flying, including how to aim and lead with their Nosegun. Once these pilots have the basics down, they can then work on developing their game beyond A2AM and Gank Squads. I agree with that. But for new pilots who don't have the basics down, flying within the protection of an Air Zerg and using crutch weapons along with getting time on their A2A Nosegun, can be good to get down things like basic aim or leading. It also helps to build an understanding about how to best fight against A2AM used vs. them. Hornets are currently the most effective AV weapons on the ESF, as you can see here. Hornets are also decent against Infantry (AI Nosegunes are the best vs. Inafntry, Rocket Pods are next, and Hornet are after that), which greatly extends their usability beyond just Ground Vehicles. Despite the numbers listed by gary the sewer hobo and Morti, the actual Hornet vs. Tank (MBT and Lightning are the same) numbers are: Back: 4 hits to kill (~30% damage per missile) Top: 6 hits to kill (~18% damage per missile) Front: 7 hits to kill (!12.5% damage per missile) That said, you almost always want to be killing a Tank with dive attacks from above it (directly or at an angle). Because you don't want to have to deal with its Turret being able to target and hit you. *IF* the tank does not know you are there, then you can do a a fast strafing attack run on it's back for good opening damage and then finish it from above once it knows you are there. If you are fighting an NC tank, be wary of *other* Vanguards around which can get you in their Turret's firing arc and OHK you. The best targets for Hornets are MBTs, non-Skyguard Lightningts, AV Base Turrets, and Infantry. Other good (but less frequent) targets are stationary Harassers, stationary ESFs, stationary Valkyries, and abandoned or 1-man-and-also-moving Sunderers. Hornets give an edge vs. AA Base turrets relative to ther ESF weapons (5 hits to kill, they won't be alerted by the attack until the damage is on target, and can deal a big damage punch which most Turret users will not think of as possible so you get more kills on players in Turrets). Hornets are bad vs. Libs, Gals, and deployed and occupied Sunderers: damage is low, time to kill is long, and these targets are too resilient and dangerous. It is better to go for the Infantry around a busy Sunderer, than the Sunderer itself (unless you have ally firepower support), and bail when it gets too hot. For these tougher targets, if you want to take them out, Q-Spot them (or /region or squad chat) and bring allies to take them out or help take them out. I currently am using the Hornet the most, and this is my Scythe Hornet Loadout: A2A Nosegun (your choice) Hornet Racer Frame Fire Suppression Stealth As Morti said, I also like to use Coyote with my Scythe Light PPA loadout. I do not like the Fuel Tank with Light PPA as gary the sewer hobo and Geddes said, because it leaves you helpless vs. enemy ESFs. (I've flown Light PPA with both Coyote and Fuel Tank, I started with Fuel Tank then I switched to and stayed with Coyote) I used the Light PPA a lot in the past, and this is myScythe Light PPA Loadout: Light PPA Coyote Racer Frame Scout Radar Stealth I will say that Certing Mag Size for the Hailstorm and (less impactful but still very good) the Saron make a big difference in the effectiveness of those weapons. Mag Size in the Light PPA and Antares are not as big a deal. Likewise, reload speed in the Hornet can provide a big boost in what you can do with the weapon. I recommend using Enchanced Targeting Implant whenever in an ESF. It is especially useful vs. Air and Ground Vehicle targets in order to see how much health they have, and help you figure out if its worth going after them.
