Dogfighting

[Comet]

Can a reaver compete with a scythe and misquito in a dogfight if kitted out to be an air-air craft? Or do the NC just stink at air-air fights?

I have never played PS1 but am an old tribes player and love the look of PS2. The NC looks amazing IMO and I'd love to start an air styled outfit but it'd be disheartening if we couldn't achieve much in a dogfight against the other factions.

My understanding is the scythe is the most maneuverable but is it also the weakest hitting craft? Any light someone could shine on this is great. Also, do they plan on making the aircraft more balanced between factions and make it more loadout oriented (did you load out for air or ground attacks?) or is one aircraft always better than the other no matter what the outfit.

Thanks for any help anyone can provide on this!

[SKYeXile]

This has been discussed in various air - air threads, but in summery: we don't know.

they might not be now, but they surly will be.

[Baneblade]

With any luck it will be actual dogfighting and not the silly hoverball game PS1 calls dogfighting.

[Comet]

I agree, I hope it's actual dogfighting that has many variables that can be manipulated by the pilot to help ensure a victory :)

[SKYeXile]

With any luck it will be actual dogfighting and not the silly hoverball game PS1 calls dogfighting.

In the biz we call this turreting.

[jepaul]

"if one craft, can well you know, shoot the other craft more times, and it the craft doing the shooting doesn't get hit, it will, you know, most likely win. We call that a touchdown." John Madden

[Comet]

In that case though, the other team still has a chance if they had equal skill so that analogy doesn't really fit for what we're talking about...

Sounds like we'll have to wait for beta to really see where this sits :)

[maskedskull]

They will be once the balance is worked out, they will just have a slightly different way of doing things (most likely with harder hitting weapons because thats how we roll)

[FPClark]

Come over by the Vanu base Ill teach you how to fly ;)

[Maltodextrin]

This has been a concern of mine as well (though given I'll only be flying captured ones, less so.)

Basically there are three kind of dogfighters. Energy fighters, Maneuver fighters, and Dead fighters.

Energy fighters are pure speed, they surprise the enemy, attack, and get the hell out of there.

Maneuver fighters can out turn their opponents, getting out of their opponent's fire arc, and drawing a bead on their opponent.

The goal of each fighter is to engage the enemy on their terms. Granted, that's the goal of all combat, but for fighters, it's especially pertinent.

My theory is that the Reaver probably falls into a middle ground on the fighters. It can best Scythes in the energy fight, and out turn a Mosquito. Of course it may mean that it is a more difficult craft to pilot (you have to get good at two dogfighting methods, instead of one.) But that's the only real way I can see the Reaver being competitive in the skies.