The fact that is does happen at all is WRONG.
Yeah ok conceptually it's "wrong" to do such a thing in the DA. Again, I've seen it happen once, and I'm not even sure the country de-acked the field. And quite frankly the reason it stopped was probably because it was "shameful".
People do try to shame other players into flying a certain way - especially against vulchers. I see no point in it, people will fly the way they want to. With no written rules and no coded rules, how are you going to prevent it? For some people the shame of being derided as a vulcher in the DA is probably better than the shame of dying all the time.
This is not something you can control. I'm starting to agree with mechanic here. Stop trying to control everything - you simply can't. You can give your reasons and we can all look and agree they're legitimate, and then we can try and do something about it, but in the end people will fly however they want to, shame or no shame.
From what you've said here, it seems like you want a "perfect" environment tailored to suit your idea of a good fight. Not gonna happen unless you have power of administrator. Me? I acknowledge that the environment is less than perfect and just deal with it.
I like not being at the same alt ... in the same plane ... heading directly at each other. I like the complete randomness of a fight as it starts when you first see the enemy. I like to see how I can do when I have the alt ... I like to see what I can do when I don't have alt ... I like to see what I can do when I have superior/inferior speed. I like to see what I can do in my FM2 against superior planes. I like to see how I can do when my enemy is at all the various "o'clock" positions and starts an attack (not just starting from my 11 to 1 o'clock position). To me, "dueling" takes out a lot of variables that you can use to your advantage. Believe it or not, but what you may perceive as an advantage over me (alt and speed) at engagement, I see as an advantage for me.
Sure, I see where you're coming from. But then, it isn't at all fair then is it? Why make any pretense about respecting a fair fight? I'm not saying you are trying to get undue advantages - even if it's unfair against you when it comes to planes position/alt, it's still UNFAIR. If you enjoy having the "advantage" of the other person having alt/speed over you, then how could you not enjoy turning the tables on the vulcher who tries to kill you during your initial climbout?
You don't really make sense on this bud.
The intent of a "furball" to tax or over-tax one's SA ... the better you get at SA ... the longer you survive ... the more kills you get. You never go into a furball with the intent of living ... it's "how long will you survive and how many will you take with you".
BnZing a furball does nothing but piss off the furballer's. Here they are engaged in the middle of all that mess trying their best to maintain their SA to survive against all the others who have jumped in feet first and some goober comes swooping down and picks you ... or worst yet, picks the guy you just worked your arse off getting into position for a guns solution all the while dodging 3 other guys (who are in the furball) tyring to get on your 6.
If your BnZing a furball ... you are a "griefer" and should never consider yourself a "furballer" ... it takes less skill to BnZ a furball and get kills than it takes to win an HO. I have more respect for people that HO than I do for those who sit high on their safety perch in a Tempest and pick a furball and then power zoom back up to safety. At least the HOer did take a chance at possibly dieing.
Before I address the argument and topic you bring up...
Once again there you are trying to shame everybody else to conform to your definition of what somebody should or should not do. Convincing? No. Good psychological warfare? Maybe - if it works, we all fight the way YOU like. Taunting RunStang is the same principle. But this is exactly why the people in this thread have reacted so negatively to you and others who do the same. You are trying to enforce a code of conduct mostly by shame. Again, I will fly how I want to simply because I want to. Particularly, I fly the 190D9 (not a Tempest) and I do not ever try to stay completely safe by regaining all my altitude/E after every pass. Instead I try to keep enough energy to gain reasonable closure on whatever targets I want to in the furball. Any more than that is a disadvantage. Because of this, I am at as much risk of getting picked as anybody else (because of the constant supply of new threats in the DA). So while my SA is not taxed to the breaking point, I'm not exactly "safe" either. Now, all of this about "how I fly" is just information. I'm not concerned with your respect, but I am concerned with you having an accurate image of what I do before making your judgment. No sense in having hostility based on miscommunication or errant assumptions.
On the topic:
1) The intent of a furball is whatever each pilot makes of it. To say the purpose of a furball is to "tax SA" is simply your opinion. Lots of guys furball to get kills and land them. You thinking that this is completely ridiculous is again simply your opinion. In the end, everybody is just there to have fun. Whether you want to see how many you take with you before you go down or you want to hone your dogfighting skills or you want to get kills and land, it's however you have fun.
2) Pissing off the furballers by BnZing - depends. The way I've seen my country fly, we typically try to work as a team in the furball (if you're talking about FFA furball, that's a completely different story). We watch each others' backs, give each other check six', and clear each others' tails if we get into a bind.
Again if you're talking about an FFA furball (which btw does NOT EXIST in the DA - you'll have to complain to HTC about this one, the players have no direct control over killshooter), I can certainly see what you're saying about "Trying to take as many of 'em down before I go down". Since everybody's your enemy, there's no point in even trying to escape and there's no point in picking either, other than making yourself feel better as you aren't really benefiting a "team".
As it is, I prefer the team furball (I flew a few FFA furballs way back in the day). It allows you to not fly only the turn-fighters. It allows the BnZ planes to have some type of purpose other than to piss everybody off and/or run when the Spit gets angles on you. It lets you work on teamwork. It serves somewhat as a vague simulation of the MA.
FFA furball has its purpose and I wouldn't mind seeing it reinstated, but given a choice between the two, I'd have to say I like team furball better.
3) Less skill to BnZ than HO? Are you kidding me? Have you ever tried to BnZ? I'm not disputing that there's less risk of dying, but simply because a tactic carries less risk does not mean it takes less skill. By your reasoning, flying straight into the ground takes the most skill because it carries with it 100% chance of dying.
Let's look at everything you have to account for in a BnZ pass. By assumption the BnZer has a good overhead of E over the average in the furball but not so much that he is unreachable -
a) Trying to reduce angle off tail so your shot isn't otherwise terribly hard.
b) Wildly maneuvering unpredictable targets
c) Trying to find a crossing shot point on said wildly maneuvering unpredictable target
d) Actually judging lead/deflection etc during the shot attempt
e) Managing your energy/position so that you don't lawndart during your pass
f) Managing your energy so you can climb far enough out of the furball that you can regain your SA and perhaps come back for another pass
g) Managing new incoming threats and dodging them.
h) Evading any threats that do happen to lodge themselves on your tail.
Let's look at everything you need to think about for a HO pass. By assumption the two planes are already on a merge course.
a) Pointing your nose at a target accurately.
b) Pulling the trigger.
Now which one looks more difficult to you?
