Piloting and Tactics

 

We just printed our new ship. So how do we actually fight it?


Each pilot will develop their own way of fighting. Experience can’t be transferred via text. Instead we will give a few tips and basic tactics.





General stuff

  • Checklist

  • The enemy ship


Tactics

  • Sniping

  • Holding S

  • Jumping

  • Dodging

  • Dogfight

  • Painting

  • Buddies

  • Don't run



General Stuff


Perform a quick checklist before battle 

  • Shields at full health.

  • Test fire all guns via override and shoot: on.

  • Check ammo.

  • Check fuel.

  • Check reactors.



The enemy ship

Zoom in on the enemy ship and check what weapons he has. With this info you can set the modulation of your shield. If they have 10 gladius, perhaps modulation to 160% energy or more can be a good thing.



Tactics



Sniping

With the MAC cannons you can snipe an enemy from 20km away. For full effect, use 2x MAC 8 and 8x MAC 9. The defense versus sniping is fortifying your shields, and modulation towards kinetic. This is standard when scoring points at KOTH.


Holding S

Going backwards forces the enemy to chase you. His gun fire is likely to be less effective, while he runs into yours. 


Jumping

Jumping on top of an enemy that has not seen you yet can cause confusion. This is best done when the enemy is already in visual range. It is also a counter for enemies going backwards. Jump in front of their path.


Dodging

Certain weapons can be dodged. 500mm fire slowly, and the shells can be spotted. Try to rotate, or move up/down, left/right.


Dogfight

Two enemies circling each other, each trying to get behind the other, is called a dogfight. Try to keep your nose pointed at the enemy. Sometimes it is best done in 3rd person camera mode. Dogfighting is advised when the enemy has guns with slow bullets and you have guns that have a high hit chance.


Painting

Once you checked out the enemy ship, try to paint specific guns or weakpoints. Having a few guns on painter mode can quickly reduce the enemies firepower. This works best with guns that have a high hit chance.


Buddies

Use your faction mates well. Most large group fights start with faction mates bunching up at KOTH, waiting for an enemy to come. Safety in numbers. The security of the herd…


So what does an experienced player see when this happens?


Dinner.


Try to devise tactics you can do with your numbers. For instance, having a few ships waiting some distance away, ready to jump in. 


Don't run


Sometimes it is wise to abort a fight you can not win, in order to save your ship. Pick the right moment to do it. If you are close to the enemy, and suddenly turn and run, you are most likely to be destroyed as now the weakside of your ship will take fire.


You could try: going backwards / jumpdrive / flying straight at the enemy and then going past.