AVA what a diamond!!!

[mbailey]

Well, was in the AVA for the first time last night. All i can say is i dont believe this gem was in game, and it took me so long to check it out!!

I had the pleasure of flying axis last night, got some kills, got killed. It seemed that there was a bunch of guys in there when i showed up (20+), and the arena was balanced well between axis / allied flyers. The vox 200 channel was a breath of fresh air, no complaining,no accusations of (insert any MA bs here) and quite friendly

The no icons thing will take some time to get used too, but i think this is one of the major things i found my self loving about the arena. The arena as a whole (for me anyway) has completely breathed new life into the game.

A big <S> to all the AVA CMs, and all the gents that were in the AVA last night. It really is a diamond, and you all are the reason why 

[CAP1]

Well, was in the AVA for the first time last night. All i can say is i dont believe this gem was in game, and it took me so long to check it out!!

I had the pleasure of flying axis last night, got some kills, got killed. It seemed that there was a bunch of guys in there when i showed up (20+), and the arena was balanced well between axis / allied flyers. The vox 200 channel was a breath of fresh air, no complaining,no accusations of (insert any MA bs here) and quite friendly

The no icons thing will take some time to get used too, but i think this is one of the major things i found my self loving about the arena. The arena as a whole (for me anyway) has completely breathed new life into the game.

A big <S> to all the AVA CMs, and all the gents that were in the AVA last night. It really is a diamond, and you all are the reason why 

check out this website sir. it's got lots of helpful info, some great screen shots, films, etc.
http://avaarena.webs.com/

 as for getting used to the no icons....give it a few hours.........

a couple of things i learned the hard way....

either fly at treetop/wavetop, or above 5k alt. up to about 5k alt, you're in "zoom" range of most enemy fighters, and especially in the european maps, the axis pile-its tend to do this given the chance.
 if the fights are low, this also makes it easier to spot the bad guys. from above...well....camo does its job very well. on the twin rivers map, i was flying treetop, spot the bad guy, then climb to where i want to fight. it's very easy to spot them co-alt, or above you...very hard below you.

 keep popping your map open. although there's no enemy icons, there is still dot dar. this is super helpful finding them.

 the maps are small. these sectors are only half of what they are in the main arenas.

 once you get in close, try to stay in close. out to about 1,000 yards, you can see their wings. past that they become a dot again, and it's harder to tell what they're doing or about to do.

 that's all i can think of right now......i know you already know how to fly plane vs plane...it sounded like the problem was getting an eye on them before they spotted you.


see ya in there soon!!

[68ZooM]

yea great bunch of regulars in there, ive been getting into the Ava thing lately to, the MA's just aint my thing no more, Sad

[Dichotomy]

Good to hear mbailey.  Looking forward to seeing you around 

[CAP1]

Good to hear mbailey.  Looking forward to seeing you around  

i got to break his airplane once.  

shortly followed by my ownb airplane getting broken....

[Dichotomy]

I got a birds eye view watching Strokes and Texican going at it.  Nice long fight too

[captain1ma]

check out this website sir. it's got lots of helpful info, some great screen shots, films, etc.
http://avaarena.webs.com/

 as for getting used to the no icons....give it a few hours.........

a couple of things i learned the hard way....

either fly at treetop/wavetop, or above 5k alt. up to about 5k alt, you're in "zoom" range of most enemy fighters, and especially in the european maps, the axis pile-its tend to do this given the chance.
 if the fights are low, this also makes it easier to spot the bad guys. from above...well....camo does its job very well. on the twin rivers map, i was flying treetop, spot the bad guy, then climb to where i want to fight. it's very easy to spot them co-alt, or above you...very hard below you.

 keep popping your map open. although there's no enemy icons, there is still dot dar. this is super helpful finding them.

 the maps are small. these sectors are only half of what they are in the main arenas.

 once you get in close, try to stay in close. out to about 1,000 yards, you can see their wings. past that they become a dot again, and it's harder to tell what they're doing or about to do.

 that's all i can think of right now......i know you already know how to fly plane vs plane...it sounded like the problem was getting an eye on them before they spotted you.


see ya in there soon!!

hey! stop giving away our secrets!   

[grumpy37]

Well, was in the AVA for the first time last night. All i can say is i dont believe this gem was in game, and it took me so long to check it out!!

I had the pleasure of flying axis last night, got some kills, got killed. It seemed that there was a bunch of guys in there when i showed up (20+), and the arena was balanced well between axis / allied flyers. The vox 200 channel was a breath of fresh air, no complaining,no accusations of (insert any MA bs here) and quite friendly

The no icons thing will take some time to get used too, but i think this is one of the major things i found my self loving about the arena. The arena as a whole (for me anyway) has completely breathed new life into the game.

A big <S> to all the AVA CMs, and all the gents that were in the AVA last night. It really is a diamond, and you all are the reason why  

I couldnt agree more.....

[CAP1]

hey! stop giving away our secrets!   

well...you know...some of the best secrets are right out in the open. 

[dhyran]

but the AVA need more participants during european hours

[CAP1]

this is very true. it seems the busiest times right now, are around 9'ish to 11'ish pm eastern.

 this is a start though. as more and more good pile-its discover this place, other time slots will fill up too.

[grumpy37]

Maybe the Euro squads that are upset about the "CAPS" in the MA should spend a few days in the AvA.  Up to the point the "fight" has been the driving force in the AvA and its been amazing.  I can only imaging if we could get 50+ in there and seriously incorperate the ground attack with the air attack.

[CAP1]

almost forgot. had a great fight against ddg34 i think it was. i followed him for nearly 2 sectors before i caught up to him. thought i was sneaking up on him, so i kept my tanks.
 descended to his six low, lining up the shot, and just as i'm about to squeeze the trigger, he friggin turns HARD...i went up, ditched my tanks, and the fight was on.
 i had him saddled up most of the fight, till he did something....i haven't a clue what the eff he did.......but he nearly got me...........but it was a fun fight though.......

[ImADot]

I've been flying AvA almost exclusively for the past month.  It's lots more challenging than the other arenas, due to the settings (wind, icons, etc.), and the people are much more mature and respectful - all adds up to a better gaming experience and lots of fun.  Plus, you won't see Blue on Blue engagements because there are only two sides and the planesets used.

I can't wait to see if this "practice" will increase my effectiveness in FSO! 

[Dichotomy]

but the AVA need more participants during european hours

A lot of people leave when they pop in if there is nobody in there.  I usually log in earlier in the evenings and often find myself alone.  Generally I'll up a buff or an attack plane and go after an enemy base.  Then,  when people come in, they see a flashing base and come after me.  Once either I'm down or they are I grab a fighter from the nearest base and go hunting them.  

Last night I got on and there was one Allied attacking a VBase so I grabbed a Zeke and went looking for him.  Got a couple of shots at him and I think he ate a tree not much later he came back and started going after the base again, about the time I got in position to fire, his buddy took me down.  An hour later there were 14 in the arena and the count was going up.

Just a thought for you European guys.