I kinda like Bparker. He gets mad and says stupid stuff now and then but so do I.. I'm flawed that way. It's one of my many human failings.
The HO's have to go Bparker!
Well, you gotta realize that I myself have no problems with him either. (Un?)Fortunately, I really don't have any issues with hardly anyone... I only posted this topic because he
told me to, and even gave me a 1 hour deadline...
I was busy fighting while we were typing back and forth on 200, and couldn't really manage to give long responses... I have enough trouble simply flying straight and level, add "fancy" flying and typing, and I'm pretty well maxed out. When I typed "Film?" I was actually offering to email it to him, not post it in public. Although, I don't think he knew that...
From my perspective, both of those fights were pretty low-key, low-stress, done-and-over deals. I was not "worked up" in the least. I wouldn't have complained or had anything negative to say on 200. Had the situation been reversed, and had he shot me, that would still be the case.
I didn't, and don't, have any problems with any aspects of those fights, including the "HO" thing. My opponents are welcome to fire on me any time at all. I actually want them to do so. If they can send me to the tower with something as simple as an HO, I need to work on my technique... Personally, I consider the HO to be a valid technique. Simple, yes. Glamorous, no. IMO, any fight that can be ended with a simple HO is a sham, and shouldn't be allowed to continue.
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Here's how I look at HO's, in an analogy- I'm playing chess with a friend. Very quickly in the game, I have the option to win through a "check-mate", but decide to be a "gentleman" and let the "fight" continue. Now, say he wins in the long haul- is his win "valid"? IMO, no. He "lost" early on, and I just allowed him to continue... His "win" is false. Simply avoiding the shot he gives me may be the one thing that puts me out of position to win later on. Now, if I end up winning in the long haul, I've actually won the same fight twice... If he says "Man, that was an awesome fight!", in the back of my mind
I consider that fight to be "tainted", "false", "manufactured", etc, and by complimenting the fight in a sense I'm lying...
In that sense, if a fight can be ended in an HO, I don't want to waste my time allowing it to continue. If you can kill me with a simple HO, do it. Send me to the tower, so I can stew on it and correct the problem next time.
By announcing the HO tactic on vox, I'm not belittling the pilot who uses it. I'm warning others that the pilot is willing to use it, so you'd better be careful. Consider it a "Check 12".
For a pilot to whine about another pilot using the HO is nuts to me. As an inexperienced player, realistically, a 50/50 shot may be the best opportunity you have to fly away the "winner". Look at those two films; the HO was his best and only opportunity. Take it away from him, and he zero hope to win. Sure, I might have screwed up; I do that all the time. But then he isn't taking an active roll in beating me, so much as just surviving long enough to land a hit
if I mess up.
Now, I'm not advocating we make an effort to teach HOing, etc. Fortunately, we don't need to do that. The HO is practically instinctual. Point your plane at the bad guy, and shoot! If that fails, pull hard on the stick and try to turn around as quickly as you can for another try! I consider TnB fighting and HOing to be about as basic as fighting can get. Anything beyond that requires more knowledge, skill, and thought.
And, the beauty of the HO is that it's self-limiting. You'll never do much better than a 1/1 K/D with it, if you can even manage that long term. In order to improve, you need to step away from it, and learn more "stuff". Think about it, would you or I be happy with a statistical 50/50 chance in a fight? No! The very act of holding fire on the HO, and maneuvering into a "safer" shot proves that. But, early success with a few kills is what keeps folks interested and keeps them from getting frustrated and leaving. If they need the HO for that, I say let 'em have it. If they never progress beyond that, that's fine too. 'Course, they'd better expect to have their scalps dangling from my lodge pole more often than not, if that's the case.
Personally, I seldom HO (yes, I do it on occasion). Not because I don't consider it valid. Because it's (a 50/50 shot) not good enough for me. I'm greedy. I want the kill with no damage to myself. I'm also somewhat conceited, and always think I'm going to win, lol! I'm often wrong, but it never really sinks in.
From a "glory" cowardly/bravery POV, I look at "good" aerial fighting to be rather cowardly. We are, after all, doing our best to stab our opponent in the back, from a position where he's helpless to inflict any damage upon us... "Real men" square off face-to-face, don't they? Could you imagine the laughs if two boxers pranced around trying to punch each other in the back!
Ganging? If the guy I'm fighting can't beat me 1v1, isn't it "fair" if he has a friend to help?
