I can't understand why people keep resurrecting dead threads.... necrophilia?
That said, I wanted to avoid another lengthy post, but I can't. I don't agree with a single word of the following....
Originally posted by A8Hunter
Generally a HO in this game is the result of two pilots, both arriving at a point in the sky and both realize that to turn gives the other a distinct advantage.
That's absolutely not true! You arrive at that point only if you want to! Let's clear what I mean: I can think of 3 possible HOs... the one that occurs in the middle of a big furball, with lots of planes, the one that occurs in an already begun 1 vs 1 fight and, finally, the one that occurs at the first merge, usually with planes running straight on at one another with guns blazing.
Of all these 3, only the first one could fit your statement and it's the only kind of HO I can accept. When you are in the middle of a furious furball, you have to take any shot you can, especially if you're alone or outnumbered. But in the other 2 situation, a HO gives NO real advantage of any type. It's just the most easy, skill-less shot you can take.
And more than that, in the third situation I outlined, it's only detrimental, for, if your opponent don't go for it but try to get angles on you, he will eventually win the fight. In fact, I can't really figure out a situation in which a HO can occur where turning will give your opponent a distinct advantage... it is the exact contrary!
The experience level in this game is seriously less than that of fighter pilots who have been trained well by some of the best.
There are threads in this BBS where this matter has been discussed... they surely had a deeper knowledge of flying and fighting from a theoretical POV, but we have a lot more of hours of both, and, most of all... we don't die, so we can try whatever we want and that gives us more "experience" than they had.
As a result, we find ourselves in situations that the head-on merge is our best option. We would all love a 180 degree deflection shot but in our attempts to gain advantage on the other guy and fill our sights with bogey we tend to neglect closure rate, AOA, AOD, and all other important stuff needed to survive the 1st pass if we don't kill the guy.
Again, as I said above, you find yourself in a HO situation only if you want to. Or if you don't know what you're doing or what to do. In fact, talking about neglecting the basics of A2A combat, you talk about yourself, I think... there are a LOT of good pilots in this game and on the BBS those subjects have been discussed lots of times... we do pay attention at them when we fight. Maybe that's because we don't HO and we kill our prey mostly from the rear sector.
Originally posted by VERTEX
In the beginning, all you want is to get a kill, any kill. My first kill was la7 vs la7 HO shot and I won. I was very excited. Then all you want is two kills so you can see your name in lights. Then you want 5 then 10. Then you want to land kills all the time, every sortie if possible. Vulching exites you. Then when that becomes boring you become a cherry picker. Eventually that becomes tiring and you start flying more difficult planes. Now you live for the fight, and love it no matter what the outcome as long as it was a good one.
Yeah, that should be the path... alas, not everyone agree with that or have the b..ls to quit HOing and vulching to go on and become a better pilot.
