Just wanted to say a quick hello. With 3 days of play, after work of course, I've gotten 50 kills with these beginner planes, which isn't easy considering most of the competition is faster and more experienced. As far as practice, I've made it through mission 5 and getting better at 6. I will say I'm getting better at dodging bullets and out maneuvering the competition. Most of my gameplay has been with cars, but my knowledge of aircraft is definitely paying off. I look forward to seeing you in the air, but you may not want to be in my cross hairs when I get a faster plane.

Happy flying to you all.

Daytona 1

Enjoyed flying with you yesterday. Definitely a good Pilot. Could see you improving all through the game. Don't sweat about a higher tier plane, it's a small percentage of the game. You were doing just fine in the monoplane. Blue Fighter has a really good thread with some tips and advice for newer players, check it out sometime!

You were hanging with some pretty stiff competition today. I liked what I saw from you:

1. You're not just getting intimidated, and hiding or dropping out of the match.
2. You're flying smart. You're watching, learning, and experimenting.

I agree with [M]Skyripper, don't sweat about the higher tier planes. It does make a difference, but it's what you do with the tools you have that makes the difference. I get plenty of kills in my lowly tier 2 plane off of more experienced pilots in tier 5-7 planes . . . 60% of the time it's because they rely too much on their uberplane, they get overconfident, and they get sloppy.

The flipside to that; Donald Trump took me to school today in a tier 1. I'm use to him goofing off, and he was only in a tier 1 . . . an experienced pilot repeatedly put me in the ground in an allegedly "inferior" plane, because I took him for granted.

The airspeed increase from a bomb drop was a big help. Not quite so boring. Helped in maneuverability as well. Got a few more kills with it.

Daytona 1 wrote: The airspeed increase from a bomb drop was a big help. Not quite so boring. Helped in maneuverability as well. Got a few more kills with it.

Yes you did.

Dropped me like a hot rock.

You also did a good job of picking your fights. An ace in a tier 7 is as easy to take as a novice in a tier 1 if you catch him concentrating on someone else.

You just about took the flag a couple times (the object of the mission), while the rest of us were dancing around in mid field. GG
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Thanks for the invite. It means a bunch to earn the respect of a squad this early. I think I'll wait just a little bit and play with other members of the squad to see if they feel the same way and to further my skills with these beginner planes. I think there's a little bit more in it. Getting a controller might help.

Is there a particular benefit for joining a squadron? Is it a way to show your a respected player, or put a bulls eye on your back for other squadrons?

Both! See our page one to learn about our squad and for instuctions on the application process. Also see my thread titled: open border policy

Daytona 1 wrote: Is there a particular benefit for joining a squadron? Is it a way to show your a respected player, or put a bulls eye on your back for other squadrons?

I agree with GHOSTRIDER1, read M.O.M.'s page one, but I would also suggest you read several squadrons' page 1/recruitment pages. Also, start paying attention to what squadrons the pilots you fly with/against are in. Each squadron has it's own personality; some you may fit in with better than others, some might not be your style at all.

I though about M.O.M. when I was looking at squadrons; I'm not that mean, but I am an old man . . . but I got to know more GI pilots first, and their latrines were cleaner. On the flipside, I don't think I would fit in with the THUGZ, and ALL THAT CAPS LOCK ABUSE WOULD GIVE ME A HEADACHE IF I WENT WITH J.A.F.
.

The forum is here when you need a break from the game. Find those who share the same interests as you. Don't be hasty, and it's not for everyone, but joining a squadron gives Dogfight it's fullness. When your ready, check out all the squadrons page 1, and go from there.

Mums the word Big gunzzz Pleasure flying the other day.

I'm starting to find the full potential of the beginners. They like 160 in a dive, and can almost out maneuver higher tier planes in a death spiral, which is where I've gotten most of my kills today. Up to 72. Being picky about which ones helps. I did find out my bushwacker tactics aren't very popular amongst some.

As far as squadrons, seems like the rules are pretty much the same, outside of a few different kill quotas. I like the rules about no spawn killing. So frustrating. Looks like most of the players are either MoM's, Misfits, Wolfpack's, or GI's.

Daytona 1 wrote: . . . Being picky about which ones helps. I did find out my bushwacker tactics aren't very popular amongst some.

You are observant, and you learn fast, that is what is going to make you a dangerous pilot to face here. Ignore those that complain about your bushwacker tactics. It was good enough for Manfred von Richthofen and Oswald Boelcke, it is good enough here.

The ones complaining are probably guys flying tier 5-7 planes, and looking for an easy kill to pad their stats.

I will usually tell a newer guy not to drop if I notice that they did. It's not for my benefit, it's for their own good. If I notice that a player drops then so will I. Now if it's a newer player in a slower plane they have no chance of killing me and are guaranteed to die. At least if they hold their bombs and I keep mine they have a good chance of putting me down in a head to head. Getting into a turn fight against a top player in a much better plane is not something you will want to do. I think most vets here will agree with the same thing I just stated.

D93 Big Gunzzz wrote: I will usually tell a newer guy not to drop if I notice that they did. It's not for my benefit, it's for their own good. If I notice that a player drops then so will I. Now if it's a newer player in a slower plane they have no chance of killing me and are guaranteed to die. At least if they hold their bombs and I keep mine they have a good chance of putting me down in a head to head. Getting into a turn fight against a top player in a much better plane is not something you will want to do. I think most vets here will agree with the same thing I just stated.

One thing I would add to that is that, you can get a temporary advantage over the superior plane due to your planes lack of speed.

They might beat you in a "Lufbery Wheel" (defensive circle) 99% of the time, so avoid that. If you are making slight, abrupt turns and changes in altitude, however, a fast mover will often overshoot you. As long as you don’t bleed off too much power, your lowly tier 1 plane will handle the slower pace, and the faster plane will have to make adjustments to his full throttle attack, or he just won’t be able to keep you under the crosshairs.

How temporary your advantage is depends on the pilot you’re facing, but they will pick up on in quick enough, so use his miscalculation quickly. Once he manages to adjust, he will either fly on past and reengage from a distance, or more carefully force the Lufbery . . . then you’re probably his.

From flying against you, I would say you've already picked up on this.

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Looks like speed doesn't affect the turning radius too much of these beginner planes, just on loops. I'll have to keep it in mind when I upgrade to faster planes, which is coming up quickly. I just need to decide whether to upgrade axis or ally first. As far as the bomb drop, most of that happens around the enemy base, either to bomb a hangar, or if caught, get away quickly. However, I have dropped around my own base to get a better chance of protecting it, which puts me even with those that are close to bombing my base. So, yes, I'm playing fair in that department.

As far as fighting in circles, I've figured out a few techniques for slowing down and staying on their 6. As far as defensive, I've found that it's best not to even bother getting in a circle. There are better methods of survival.

Any idea what controller will plug into a laptop? It's hard to hit all the buttons to do all bfm at once. Also, it'd be nice if this game had a z axis. A little rudder input would help, especially lining up for bombing run.

Thanks for all the advice.

I'm still wrestling with the keyboard as well. Way back when, I used to use a Trustmaster joystick for flight simulators. If I squeeze the funds out of my gaming bankroll (more like change purse), that's probably what I'll go with.

There is way too much politics in this game. It's unnecessary and unhealthy.

Had a nice game against a bunch of rookies in similar aircraft. My first double digit kdr. 16:2 It was nice not getting shot up as much. Helped the bank account too. And no, I stayed tail heavy.

S. E. Dailey wrote: I'm still wrestling with the keyboard as well. Way back when, I used to use a Trustmaster joystick for flight simulators. If I squeeze the funds out of my gaming bankroll (more like change purse), that's probably what I'll go with.

I ponied up. It makes a big difference. It does take some getting used to. Just need to relearn how to kill now that I know how to evade.

Daytona 1 wrote:

S. E. Dailey wrote: I'm still wrestling with the keyboard as well. Way back when, I used to use a Trustmaster joystick for flight simulators. If I squeeze the funds out of my gaming bankroll (more like change purse), that's probably what I'll go with.

I ponied up. It makes a big difference. It does take some getting used to. Just need to relearn how to kill now that I know how to evade.

Which one did you go with?

Name brand X box controller. Afterglow. Lights up blue. Doesn't have brakes. Still have to use keyboard to stop. Price: $30. Left handed people will have an advantage with it. Left side has the steering inputs.

Leveled up to 10 with nothing but beginner planes. Woohoo!