I gave it a shot, but screw GSF

[Waktoh]

I'm so frustrated with this part of the game. I've tried over and over and over to be able to contribute. Nothing like diving into the deep end of a game to continuously get farmed by aces and watch half your team sit in the back corner of the map ramming themselves into asteroids. There is no ramp up, no teaching of how to play, just throw you into they fray to be fresh meat for the vets. I've read forums, watched videos, doesn't seem to help. I'm dead within seconds of being targeted. There is no real tutorial, no way to practice, just a confusing ship hanger.

 

/fedup

 

EDIT/UPDATE:

The following thread has a lot of good tips for newcomers. I got a lot of feedback and help. Best piece of advice I would relay is: Find your server's GSF channel, usually /cjoin GSF. Let them know you are new and looking for help, you will likely find some fliers that will group with you and queue into battles. Ask questions, be part of the team. Solo pilots are fodder without a wingman.

Edited April 20, 2015 by Waktoh
Rash wording

[MaximilianPower]

I'm so frustrated with this part of the game. I've tried over and over and over to be able to contribute. Nothing like diving into the deep end of a game to continuously get farmed by aces and watch half your team sit in the back corner of the map ramming themselves into asteroids. There is no ramp up, no teaching of how to play, just throw you into they fray to be fresh meat for the vets. I've read forums, watched videos, doesn't seem to help. I'm dead within seconds of being targeted. There is no real tutorial, no way to practice, just a confusing ship hanger.

 

/fedup

 

Can't argue with anything in your post. The learning curve is preposterously steep; the tutorial is utter garbage; there's only so much you can absorb from other folks' guides/tutorials.

 

That said, I see you're on JC. Feel free to hit me up any time (toon names in sig) and I'll do my best to give you some tips, and hopefully keep you from feeling like you're getting farmed.

 

If you haven't already - I'd also suggest /cjoin gsf - the JC GSF community is generally pretty helpful, and if I'm not on, there are plenty of other pilots who would be happy to help.

 

So, I'd ask you not to give up quite yet - posting here may well be your first step towards a rewarding GSF experience. I hope.

[SWCNT]

If you have the means to I'd recommend recording a few of your matches and putting them on Youtube. It would be the fastest way for people to give you feedback about what you're doing wrong. Ramalina compiled an excellent guide on how to record here http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=729222&page=37

[StrixHiraeth]

Damn, another new pilot throws up their hands in frustration. Sorry to hear about this! Wish there was some way to convince you to keep flying, it really is immensely rewarding once you are able to pilot well.

[Waktoh]

I have to say that I am taken aback. The responses have been inspiring and at least I want to be part of a community that shows this kind of compassion and encouragement. I fear that I will have some head-meets-wall moments ahead. Thanks for the understanding.

 

It was suggested to me that I am not upgrading my ships components. Which is true, since I am currently leveling all my characters to 50, I don't get really far into upgrades. What is the ratio of gear vs skill in this game? (Not saying I'm good skill wise, far from it) I've matched vids on youtube and they make it look so easy.

[DamascusAdontise]

A lot of it is aim related for new players. Even beyond aim there are specific ranges at which blaster weapons have better accuracy, and this is different for each weapon.

 

Burst Lasers, Light Lasers, and Rapid Fire Lasers are for close range (works best at < 2500m - and in some cases like burst the closer the better)

 

Quads are mid range (like 4k-2k m)

 

And Heavy Lasers are long range (6k - 3k or so)

 

(Note: This is over-simplified version, there are little nuances to each weapon)

 

Perhaps you could tell us what ship your using along with its component build and crew list. At least there we can steer you in a right direction.

 

There are certain crew that provide bonus's that will really help depending on what weapon you use (IE: For light lasers I go with an offensive crewmate that gives +firing arc and +accuracy, and who also has wingman as their co-pilot ability - note: wingman provides aoe buff to accuracy for you and teammates - making it much easier to land shots)

 

Anyways hope you stick around, depending on your server there is likely a GSF chat channel where you can coordinate with other pilots or ask questions etc, or you can come here (On bastion its /cjoin GSF)

[nyghtrunner]

I have to say that I am taken aback. The responses have been inspiring and at least I want to be part of a community that shows this kind of compassion and encouragement. I fear that I will have some head-meets-wall moments ahead. Thanks for the understanding.

 

It was suggested to me that I am not upgrading my ships components. Which is true, since I am currently leveling all my characters to 50, I don't get really far into upgrades. What is the ratio of gear vs skill in this game? (Not saying I'm good skill wise, far from it) I've matched vids on youtube and they make it look so easy.

The gear v skill debate is one we've tossed around here for a long time without a really good... answer? Anyway, the consensus is that in general, skill is much greater than gear. However, that assumes that the skill is already beyond a certain point.

 

From my perspective, gear does matter to an extent, but in most cases, it's what I consider bonuses. The one point where gear makes a huge difference is with regards to charged plating/turrets, and armor piercing.

 

But with that said, gear can be extremely important to a new pilot, ESPECIALLY when it comes to choosing components. There are some components, such as the Rapid Fire Lasers, that come with the stock scout and strike, and those are really just bad, bad, bad. It's going to be one of the first things you'll want to get rid of, or in the case of the strike, rarely use.

 

There's a LOT I could just throw at you with the weapon theory, although Verain's much better at breaking down the math-side of the various components. Suffice to say, that if you choose good components, and get good crew members (which is actually one of the very best things you can do for a new ship), you should start to see a real difference in the ship after approx 40-45k req.

 

Otherwise, I can generally tell you that if you don't know what you're doing with the components, it's almost always wrong to just march right up the tree and work on maxing a single component. Personally, I tend to start more with the defensives, sort out the engine maneuver I want (get the first 2 upgrades there), get the base weapons I want, and then start to build towards something. Usually, that something is either the missile break on Distortion Field, or some form of armor piercing.

 

In the case of something like Charged Plating*, the first 2 upgrades for that are very, very important, with the first, and cheaper, being the more important of the 2. The 3rd tier can largely be ignored up until you have everything else maxed out across the ship. It's a 10k chunk of req that does very little, so it's a massive waste to get it early.

 

So again, if you know what you're doing (we can hopefully help guide you there), you should be able to be at about 75% effectiveness based on the end build after 40-45k req. That's where skill comes into play, and to be quite honest, that's the sort of thing that is very hard to teach, unfortunately. But having friends, and asking questions on the forums or in the GSF channel can help with that. As can flying with people you know are good, since that can help relieve a ton of pressure on you. If your entire team is being farmed, there's nothing any single pilot can do (maybe Tommm, or Drako or the like), but if you go in with capable wingmen, you can make almost any game at the least competitive, and that can buy you the time you need to learn how to fly around, target, fire missiles, and start getting into more advanced maneuvers and such.

 

I pinged you in game, so definitely feel free to hit me up if you want a wingman. Or if you want to ask about components or ships or the like. And definitely join the GSF channel and fire away if you have questions. There are people on both sides who are quite helpful and nice, and I'm sure would be more than happy to help you out with advice or groups.

 

Cheers and hope to see you out there!

 

*EDIT - There are other trap components, or trap upgrades that aren't really all that useful in the grand scheme of things. And also components that you will think are bad until you hit a certain tier. For instance, I've come to the conclusion that it's almost always a mistake to put Interdiction Mine on the Type 1 Bomber (Rampart Mk IV or Razorwire) until you can get the extra mine from the tier 4 upgrade. It's an amazing mine, but only being able to put 1 out at a time really hurts it. So I think it makes more sense to use Concussion mines (the stock mines) until you've dumped 19500 req into the Interdiction Mine, simply because you can put 2 out at a time. I'm not an expert on bombers, but both times I've leveled a naked t1 bomber, I just feel like I notice a serious damage increase just by having access to the 2nd mine. I think in large part it's because the additional slow effect gives me more time to put out more mines, and more chances people will be caught in the blasts. But dumping that kind of req into a component early won't do enough to help the ship overall to justify the expense. Thus, for me, Interdiction can wait for a good long while.

 

Similarly, on a Type 2 Scout (Flashfire or Sting), while I personally like Booster Recharge a lot, I think it is just inferior to Targeting Telemetry (the stock option on that ship) until you master the component, and can get the instant 20% booster pool on active. Even then, it's debatable as to which is better, and I think depends on the overall build, but I think it is a flat out mistake to use booster recharge over targeting telemetry until it is fully mastered, regardless of circumstance. And as such, if you're of the mind to use Booster Recharge, you should simply wait until the rest of the ship is largely complete before working on it, because it's such a req sink.

 

And I guess finally, some component slots just don't really do enough to dump req into early. Sensors are like that. Damping Sensors, Range Sensors, and Comm Sensors are pretty irrelevant. Damping or comm can be nice, but they're not really worth it, especially early. So I don't really even bother with them on ships that have that component slot until near the very end.

Edited April 16, 2015 by nyghtrunner

[Zharik]

And this is exactly why when my side is facing a lot of 2 shippers, that I ask them to "take it easy" on them. Some ******s insist on going full throttle regardless and this is the general result.

 

To the OP:

Find a pilot willing to help on your server and learn from them. That's the best advice I can give at the moment.

[Ryuku-sama]

OP. Which side are you flying??? I'm planning to make a new toon (again) likely on Pubside... I'm in queue fairly often and can fly rather well.

I've found it easier for new pilots to fly with a low geared ace simply because they can see what a stock ship can do and normally tend to try harder without the "it's just gear" excuse.

 

Anyway... Hit me up if you want a wingman starting another new character.

 

 

PS I'm kinda sure I have slaughtered you on Nämëlëss a few times.. Sorry about that but I tend to follow the "red = dead" rule.

[gsummers]

OP. Which side are you flying??? I'm planning to make a new toon (again) likely on Pubside... I'm in queue fairly often and can fly rather well.

 

Hooray! Finally Nameless will be on my side rather than repeatedly blowing me out of the stars!

 

That said, I too have been where you are. I hated GSF for a long time but kept doing it for conquest points. For me, upgrading the ship made all the difference. I think when my main ship got to be about halfway upgraded I started noticing that I could survive longer and I started getting a kill or two. Its all uphill from there. I agree that for new pilots, gear is key, because getting the gear will give you a little more breathing room in matches and that will give you time to build your flying skills.

 

Also, use your purple req. to buy a gunship and bomber and try those flying styles out. My wife absolutely hated GSF as well, but once she upgraded her gunship and bomber a bit, she started to enjoy it, and now queues as much if not more than I do. So part of it is finding the ship type that fits a playstyle you are comfortable with.

[Waktoh]

I really appreciate all the feedback. I wish I could change the title heading for the thread as I was nerd raging at that time but what's done is done.

 

Currently I'm on Pub side while I level my Guardian, so Leo is where I'll be for the next few weeks until I finish the Knight story. Then I'll be off to Imp side to finish the class stories on my Chiss Operative. I have only been flying on my last 3 characters, and only on my last one, my BH, did I really start queuing more frequently for dailies and conquest.

 

My natural playstyle is tank-like (my favorite classes so far are AP PT and Jugg), which might not work well in dogfighting combat. I spend most of my time on scouts because I prefer the mobility, I have a tendency to mash the spacebar all the time. I am getting better at switching power levels, meaning I usually don't forget to switch to weapon power after charging in from spawn.

 

I only read yesterday that rapid fire was crap, so I upgraded to light laser before I signed off last night on the basic scout. My Flashfire doesn't seem to have as much thruster time as the other scout, not sure what that is all about, but I am liking the short lock on of cluster missiles. I also asked in /4 GSF channel about newb ships and getting a bomber was suggested, so I purchased the 2500 req Bomber. I haven't played it yet since the match I jumped into was deathmatch and the other team was all gunships, scouts, and strikes; so I figured that they knew something I didn't.

 

I don't have much experience with the flight crew, I switched to the lady (don't remember the name) as my co-pilot for some reason. I think I saw it on a video.

 

One thing I think will help me, that I have to look into is lowering my mouse sensitivity while in GSF, I tend to bounce back and forth a lot after turning to an enemy.

 

As for anyone killing me over and over, I don't blame anyone for doing so. It is the same in PVP, with a choice between attacking the level 32 Marauder or 57 Sage; its the level 32 every time. I tend to just tab target and find the closest person to attack until I find that I went way too far into enemy territory and I don't have any engine power left... Then someone is going to 'help' me back to my spawn point.

[Ryuku-sama]

LLC is amazing but very hard to use. On the Novadive, you'd be better served with LC. And on the Flashfire, BLC or Quad. I'll contact you in game sometime this evening if you're on I'll probably be on a lvl 1 toon freshly created Probably gonna gunship too. I gotta kill Quldane

[Ramalina]

You don't want to try tanking damage in GSF. Ideally you treat everything like avoidable aoe damage that has a high chance of one-shotting you.

 

That said, bombers and the type 3 strikes ( Clarion/Imperium ), have limited ability to soak damage. The bombers can only do it if they're close to cover to LOS with. The T3 strikes aren't quite as tough, but they're free to get a bit farther from cover (though they still benefit from it quite a lot).

 

T1 and T2 scouts can also do evasion tanking, but it's very defensive cooldown based, can run into problems with RNG, and you implode if you mess up or the cooldowns wear off at a bad time. You also need all sources of evasion to be maxed out before it works really well.

 

 

 

Keep in mind that at the beginning, if you do it in the right ways, just staying alive can contribute to the team.

 

In domination, if you're close to a satellite and preventing it from turning, or even just preventing turrets from respawning on an enemy sat, you're being useful to your team.

 

In TDM as long as your kill:death ratio is greater than one, you're helping your team, and even with a 1:1 or 0:0 at the very least you're not hurting your team. Scores like 0 2 12 for kills, assists, and deaths are what you want to avoid if possible.

 

In general for a beginner, I'd say if in doubt run and LOS. Worry about what you can shoot when nothing is shooting at you.

[nyghtrunner]

A lot of good advice in here. And I'll also agree with Ryuku that you may very well be better served with basic Laser Cannons over the Light Laser Cannons. The LLC is a very, very good weapon in capable hands, but they are hard to use, as you need to keep your target pretty close to center for them to really shine, and if you're still learning how to fly, that's not as easy.

 

By all means, since you picked them up, give them a try, and see how you like them, just know that they reward players who keep targets centered and close, and punish players that don't/can't. If you can keep someone in that line, though, you can absolutely face-melt them.

 

Also, if tanking is your thing, I would definitely look at bombers and the Clarion/Imperium (Type 3 Strike). You have to worry about armor penetration, mainly from gunships (and a lesser degree, BLCs from a 2 Scout), but building out Charged Plating builds on the T1 bomber or the T3 Strike can give you a HUGE leg up against players who don't know exactly what they're doing. Mines become a minor annoyance unless they slow you, almost all laser weapons outside of HLC or BLC with Armor pen become ticklers, which means you're not taking as much damage, which means you're able to learn to fly. It's an awkward component depending on the meta (lots of gunships and T2 strikes on the field reduce the effectiveness of Charged Plating a lot), but it's an insanely powerful component in the right matches. I liken it to god mode in a world without armor pen. And it's at about 80% effectiveness buy buying the component and first upgrade (3500 req).

 

Also, while in general, a TDM isn't a place for a bomber, they can be pretty good there as well. The drone carrier (Legion/Warcarrier) is usually the better of the two for TDMs, because you can outfit it with healing drone, and give it Rail Drone, which along with Seeker or Concussion mines, allows you to set up a "nest" for your teams gunships.

 

And I will say that as much as I sometimes hate the tactic (I'm a scout pilot, so hate all things bomber... ), it is INSANELY effective if you can provide your gunships cover from opposing scouts and strikes.

 

Also, Ryuku is a very, very good player, and I've seen him help lots of people both in game and on the forums. If he offers help, I would absolutely take him up on it, as he knows all of the components and ships quite well. That translates into him knowing what to go for and what to avoid build-wise better than most. For instance, I can talk about the T2 Scout all day long, since it's my favorite ship, and I have probably close to 2k matches spent in one. But I can't tell you too much beyond the basics on bombers and gunships, because I've not spent enough time in them, and even with scouts, I think Ryuku knows the components and builds better than I do, especially when it comes to the Novadive/Blackbolt, and Spearpoint/Bloodmark.

 

EDIT - Ryuku is also an extremely strong wingman, and someone I'm never sad to see on my team. He's definitely one of those I mentioned in my prev post, who can demand a lot of attention from enemies, which makes your life easier.

Edited April 16, 2015 by nyghtrunner

[NeuroniaSW]

It is super frustrating to start out with. Even moreso since my favourite ship was the Scout, which is basically paper in space. I will say though, that if you upgrade your shields and weapons and learn to use your environment then you will survive more.

 

I used to die a ton and now I die much less just by zig-zagging around obstacles and so on. Now, getting kills still isn't happening for me, but I write this off to not mastering the "closing and leaving" attack patterns.

But yes, GSF is super hard to learn, as opposed to unranked Warzones where you can get some kills and laughs and contribute somewhat even when not totally tricked out.

 

I recommend you just do the dailies/weeklies and upgrade shields, maneuverability and read Stasie's guides. They may not be up to date but they halped a ton with my builds.

[Ryuku-sama]

Also, Ryuku is a very, very good player, and I've seen him help lots of people both in game and on the forums. If he offers help, I would absolutely take him up on it, as he knows all of the components and ships quite well. That translates into him knowing what to go for and what to avoid build-wise better than most. For instance, I can talk about the T2 Scout all day long, since it's my favorite ship, and I have probably close to 2k matches spent in one. But I can't tell you too much beyond the basics on bombers and gunships, because I've not spent enough time in them, and even with scouts, I think Ryuku knows the components and builds better than I do, especially when it comes to the Novadive/Blackbolt, and Spearpoint/Bloodmark.

 

EDIT - Ryuku is also an extremely strong wingman, and someone I'm never sad to see on my team. He's definitely one of those I mentioned in my prev post, who can demand a lot of attention from enemies, which makes your life easier.

 

I'm not THAT good. I'm good enough to be annoying as ****. I know what I'm doing. But I'm using way too many lesser builds or all out trolling builds to be considered as a top pilot.

 

But I have to admit I do know most of the decent builds one can try to use. I've flown most of them (except on the Clarion) so I know what to not do.

 

I'm also one of the most accurate pilot on the server.. But I don't have the carry potential of some others.. Like Kronzed, Nyghty, Zucky, Seavius, Keenz or a few others.

Edited April 16, 2015 by Ryuku-sama

[JediMinerBob]

Until I read your sig the "ramming themselves into asteroids" part made me think you were on Shadowlands!

 

My four-step plan has always been:

 

1. Learn to fly.

2. Learn not to die.

3. Learn to shoot.

4. Learn how to contribute.

 

(Yeah, it rhymes on purpose.)

 

Too many of us new players try to jump straight to step 4. Doesn't work. My friend is that way and he feels more frustration than I do. So, here are the goals for each of the steps.

 

1. How many times did you self-destruct? Lower that count until it is zero each mission, for three missions in a row. Go for goal 2.

 

2. How many deaths do you average? Get it consistently to three or less per mission. When you also get a 0 death mission, move on to goal 3.

 

3. Time to warm up those blasters and missiles. Not that you haven't been shooting up until now, but that should not have been your focus. Can you get to a kill or assist? How about three? How about five? Did you know they give an achievement for ten assists in a single mission? Get that and go for goal 4.

 

4. Understand what actually contributes to victory. I would speak more about this, but I just finished goal three so hopefully a veteran will step in at this point...

 

Just my two credits.

 

Jedi Miner Bob

[Waktoh]

Wow, lots of great advice and info. I have read (skimmed) a couple of those mentioned threads before, but I can only soak up so much before I start to forget my name. #lowbuffer I'll keep going back and looking for more nuggets as my experience increases.

 

I look forward to meeting up with a few of you in the future. I only get a few hours a night after work, and then only after I have completed 'wife reputation' dailies. I have already given her warning that its double xp weekend so I'm going to be preoccupied.

 

I don't feel like I am the worst player, on 'good' games I'll find myself floating around the middle of the pack on end of game rankings. Bad games, well yesterday when I wrote this my dmg was so bad I didn't get any medals.

 

For TDM, I try to find our 'murder ball' (new term, I can read), and fly around there. For objective games, I usually charge C and cap before other team, unless someone actually suggests otherwise in chat. ITs worked a few times lol. I have gotten up to 6 kills in a match, but never killed more than I died. I believe I got the 10 assist achievement, I think that is all rapid fire lasers are good for.

[nyghtrunner]

4. Understand what actually contributes to victory. I would speak more about this, but I just finished goal three so hopefully a veteran will step in at this point...

Honestly, everything you already listed counts as contributing. I would say that step 4 is to get to the point where you can largely do steps 1-3 in every single match. When you're there, you're contributing in every single match. Maybe not as much as you would like, but you are contributing.

 

I guess for me, the true "contribution" point is where you start to react without thinking to situations because you've seen them before, and starting to preemptively do things to help you out, even if you're not sure they will help you out. I know for myself, if I'm in the open, and focused on a target in front of me, and I know there are gunners "around", I will sometimes pop Disto before I take ANY fire from anyone, because I just "feel" like it's a good time to do it. Sometimes, it's a wasted defensive CD, but if your target is in your sights, rather than the other way around, you will probably not need it for a bit anyway. And I can't tell you how rewarding it is to pop disto, just to see a rail shot go across your bow.

 

Other things like this will be learning your surroundings/the maps, and taking different flight paths that offer you more cover when chasing your target. You get to a point where you don't really even notice yourself doing it, you just do it.

 

I'll also say this. Myself, and a LOT of the other vets I know are INCREDIBLY tolerant of new players. There are some who rage at their team for being bads, and I've actually gone off in match on people doing things like spamming, "You all are so terribad, you should never fly again" etc. That sort of thing is incredibly counter-productive. If you're new, don't be afraid to tell your team at the beginning. Whenever I see someone say that at the beginning of a match, I tell them to not worry about it, and focus on learning the flight mechanics and surviving. In doms, stay close to controlled satellites, and practice maneuvers if no one else is around to pressure you. I'll even go so far as to try to keep an eye on any person who self IDs, and make sure that they aren't getting farmed to death. It can be harder to do, since those matches mean I pretty much have to keep moving in order to win, but I try to do it. And to you, or ANY new player out there reading this, feel free to drop me a line after a match. I'm always happy to share ideas, build advice, flight feedback, etc., and pretty much every long term vet I know operates the same. Drako offers to bring people into his voice chat, and fly games with them to try to help, and answer questions real time. Tommm, if you find him online (I never know which server he's on anymore), can come off as aloof(?) at points, but he's friendly if you're friendly to him, and I know he's done videos on accuracy and such that are very well done. Zuckerkorn (Maximillianpower on the forums), Ryuku, Rickdagles, Verain... Even Saevius has surprised me at points in how much help he's willing to offer to players who ask questions... He often comes off as pretty stoic, but I think there's a heart in there somewhere!

 

The point is that you should never, EVER be afraid to ask for help in the GSF channel or these forums if something is going on that you don't understand, or need feedback on things. In general, the community for GSF is very friendly, inviting, and understanding. We've all taken our lumps, and understand how hard this module is when you first start, and how inadequate the tools to teach you are.

 

I guess to me, the ultimate goal of step 4 is to get to the point where steps 1-3 are second nature, and you can truly fly and start to learn. That's when the world opens up. The close matches, even those that are losses, are absolutely the best matches to fly in. As I've said before across the forums, that's the only reason I'm still flying. Outside of a few records I've got my sights on, I've got nothing left to prove with this module, so it's the community and the close games that keep me even getting in the cockpit. Hell, I've tried to step away a few times, and after a couple of months, hop in a game or two, and I've got the fever again.

 

I'm not THAT good. I'm good enough to be annoying as ****. I know what I'm doing. But I'm using way too many lesser builds or all out trolling builds to be considered as a top pilot.

 

But I have to admit I do know most of the decent builds one can try to use. I've flown most of them (except on the Clarion) so I know what to not do.

 

I'm also one of the most accurate pilot on the server.. But I don't have the carry potential of some others.. Like Kronzed, Nyghty, Zucky, Seavius, Keenz or a few others.

Regardless of what you think, I still consider you a top pilot. The fact that you often choose to play troll-y builds to increase your own enjoyment has nothing to do with it. I get what you're saying, but if you truly min-maxed, and went for it, I think you would do some serious damage. You know the game, the components, and the situations quite well, and even in your troll builds, outperform others who are trying to min-max. I think Kor'vith is similar. He loves messing around with sub-optimal builds across his army of toons, but he knows what he's doing, and if he's got a mind and a ship with a good loadout, I've seen him carry matches and put up numbers that shocked me out of him. I think in large part, he's happy putting along and trying to win with exotic builds because he loves to tinker (my speculation), and likes the challenge. But that's also a totally different topic.

 

My major point is that I think when it comes to situational awareness, and knowledge of the game, you're pretty high up there.

[nyghtrunner]

For TDM, I try to find our 'murder ball' (new term, I can read), and fly around there. For objective games, I usually charge C and cap before other team, unless someone actually suggests otherwise in chat. ITs worked a few times lol. I have gotten up to 6 kills in a match, but never killed more than I died. I believe I got the 10 assist achievement, I think that is all rapid fire lasers are good for.

For a new pilot, those are the best things you can do. There are times I'm willing to go right at a swarm of enemies and do the whole, "I'll take you all!" thing, but I have a lot of games under my belt, and know largely when it's time to break off and fade into the background to catch my breath, heal up, etc. Even then, I make mistakes, and enemies capitalize on them, and I get vaporized. And I very much know what I'm doing.

 

Also, even in the absence of a true murder ball on your side, one of the best things you can do as a new pilot in a TDM (deathmatch) is provide peels for your team's gunships, so finding and sticking near them helps out a lot. And the best gunners will start to notice this over time, and return the favor. "You got the ship I was running from to leave me alone or die to you, so here's an Ion rail to that ship to help you finish the kill! :D" isn't really a hugely uncommon sentiment. Or "That guy's going after my protection! To heck with that!" *charges guns*.

 

Anyway, good wingmen/squadmates relieve an enormous amount of pressure from you, and allow you the time to start learning. So to you, or any prospective pilot, I'd just offer the advice of "ask".

 

What times do you usually fly? I don't think I can tonight, but maybe over the weekend, we could organize a small group, and I can drag Ryuku, Zuck, or Kor'vith along with me, and we can all group up and try to get you feeling more confident in a cockpit.

[Ryuku-sama]

Well... I'll post here my new Slinger toon here.. I'm likely gonna redo Amy'atha and her Quarrel Just because I miss facerolling in a Sheep

 

EDIT : Search for Snap'py

Edited April 17, 2015 by Ryuku-sama

[aakrea]

If you are flying on JC look at the server forum there is a thread titled "space pvp shoutouts" if you haven't seen it yet take a look so you know who to stay away from, or test your skills if you are feeling ambitious. I don't fly there often since I switched servers (was basically told i wasnt wanted there). I still do go back sometimes. So if you see orrunell (pub) or temota (imp) I will be happy to help, tho I started in January so I'm relatively new also. A couple people that you should watch for are averann (GS) and tenure (bomber) if they are still there since they usually fly ships that you can easily stay close to, they probably wouldn't mind the support.

[tunewalker]

Read 1 thing in your second post that I wanted to note on.

 

1. do NOT always Immediately swap to guns after your first boost is gone from spawn. It can often be very helpful to only spend about 3/4 of your engines and then wait till you have near full power to boost again. Also Swapping to weapons is not needed until you are near firing range and have the guys in your sights. Think "I have you now" is when the weapons swap happens and you open fire. Remaining on Engines when they are not full can give you a huge advantage when you start getting into a dog fight, as you have more energy for Engine Maneuver missile breaks and to Boost to cover when you need it.

 

 

2. Do NOT short boost when you are out of energy UNLESS it is going to get you behind something while you are running. All other times, like when traveling, do a long boost then wait for energy to come back and then do ANOTHER long boost. Regen works similar to other games regen mechanics. After you have used it, it regens slowly for a short time, but after that it regens very fast. If you continually use it as you get it you will keep your self perpetually in "recently consumed" regen rate, which is massively smaller then the Normal Regen Rate, thus causing all around massively less energy efficiency.

 

 

3. You likely have Quick Charge Shields on everything right now (except the flash fire). They help for boosting longer (the reason your Nova can boost longer then your Flashfire) but are some of the weakest defenses in the game. Some ships can litterally sneeze on you and turn you into space debris. If you like boosting a lot, but dont want to be a wet paper towel, my recommendation is stick with the Engine Overcharge on your Nova for a while, while you learn to fly and shoot with LC and Rocket Pods but change your shields to Distortion Field as soon as possible and try to get it maxed in the midst of getting the first 2 engine upgrades (cheaper and more often essentially) and the first upgrade for Rocket pods (Armor Pierce) then focus on the thrusters Minor component (you want regen if you are looking for better engines) and pretty much with that you will get a good feel of being semi survivable with good CD usage though you may still struggle with kills do to Engine Overcharge not being great for kills. when you are comfortable with your Engine power management, go ahead and swap to Target Talem. and you will see much more pain. The Flash Fire is good for the Target Talem build, especially with the help of Burst Lasers.....

Edited April 17, 2015 by tunewalker

[Waktoh]

From memory here is what I normally run:

Flashfire

LLC/Cluster MSL

Retro Boosters

Distortion Field

Copilot evasion move

Something else I can't remember

 

Lightweight armor

Large reactor

C2n2 in engineering

 

I got a lot of feedback in game last night. Couple of you grouped up with me and we ran missions. Another thing I realized I need to work on is spacious awareness. At some points I don't even know what direction I'm facing or which way is back to safety. Ended my final death match last night as 3/8/1, Paxjedicron kept stealin' meh killz.

[BlackflameSeven]

The list of priorities was a very good basis. A player with no kills, two assists and two deaths is likely to have been far more useful to his team than one with a handful more kills/assists and numerous deaths. Unless he just hid...

 

One thing that I haven't seen mentioned is to watch for requests in the game chat during the match. Ignore ranting idiots but it's becoming more common to see comments like "4a" appear in the chat box. Short and to the point, it means 4 ships incoming to satellite A, and whoever is there needs help. So even if you are in a weak ship, even if you are learning, just getting to that point, and hugging the satellite will likely contribute more than trying for kills. There's plenty of vets that need to learn this lesson still, racking up kills, but letting the game slip away in the process.

 

In deathmatchs, it become even more relevant. If you see comments about 'holding back from gunships', at least think about what's going on. The murder ball (think I've seen it referred to as a gs/bomberball as well) will destroy inexperienced players who charge it. It has a good chance of doing that to anyone. So try to help those who are talking, work with them and you can learn both from their example and from staying alive.

 

In a match last night, three of us spent much of the match begging our team to work with us. Two listened and ended up with a handful of kills and fewer deaths, so a positive contribution. Three didn't and died 25 times between them for zero kills, and surprisingly, we lost that deathmatch. And before anyone says 'we need to learn somehow', yes, we all do, but charging gunship groups teaches nothing. Flying escort to your own team's gunships and chasing off anyone who comes to harass them might not be as glamorous as getting the kills, but it can be the difference between a win or a loss, and earn your teammates respect.