Originally posted by TequilaChaser
about this time, when I had seen and had enough and been beat down again, one of the Avengers gave a I gave a right back.
Wow.
I mean, wow. We've seen plenty of meltdowns in the past, but I never really thought I'd ever see anyone make TC's head explode. Figures it would happen on a night I wasn't there.
May I throw a few thoughts out there into the blood and teeth I see on the floor?
Thought One: With the possible exception of the DA, I think that the AvA has the most long-lived list of unwritten tradition. Can't really expect that those without any exposure to that tradition would promptly conform to standards that, in the minds even of many veteran AH players, might be considered unusual.
Thought Two: There was a time when AvA play was identical to MA play; only the plane sets (and the absence of a third side) were different. When the numbers died - and there have been many discussions as to why the numbers died - those who remainded adopted behavior expectations that were intended to enhance the fun of the aerial combat. This meant trying to balance sides when numbers were off, not strafing people who were trying to take off and climb into a fight, things like that, so that one side wouldn't simply be overwhelmed and then leave in disgust - thereby even FURTHER reducing the numbers. Pretty basic sportsmanship stuff, really. In the MA war game arenas, "sportsmanship" might be a debatable value, but in an arena that often measures its player numbers in single digits, it's a value that has real meaning.
Thought Three: The AvA may, as Dedalos and Kong and some others fear, return to the no-holds-barred MA standards of yesteryear. For that sort of AvA to work, though, it has to have enough people on both sides to keep the fights fun. Until it does, if ever it does, I suggest that squad operations ought to be conducted with a certain sense of balance. I appreciate that squad members want to fly together, but I don't think it has ever killed any squad to split off a few people if side imbalancing becomes obvious. The Mongrels, the 880 people, the 78th, and certainly the JG54 folks all do this, and they continue to exist, and there is rumor that their members continue to enjoy the game.
- oldman (my brain hurts)