Arena Etiquette Confusion

[Bruv119]

kill or be killed. 

I hope he burned all the way down.      - Mick Mannock.

[Paladin3]

I do not frequent the DA but in the MA I usually position myself to intercept any bandit. If there is a 1v1 going on I will ask if they want help. If they don't answer and the fight is not a threat I will go on by. If They do not answer and I feel the bandit might cause me trouble later (they are at medium or high altitude or are a particularly high end aircraft) I will position myself to engage but stand by. Some folks do not have mics (drives me nuts) and want help but cannot type while in a knife fight.

I also run into problems when I try to help a friendly asking for assistance and give them directions to position the bandit for a strike but they do something silly like jerk 180 degrees in the other direction. Usually this is followed by them getting shot down as I cannot make the turn and engage fast enough in the ride I am in.

[nrshida]

Interesting how Mick Mannock died.

[Bruv119]

live by the sword and die by it. 

No whining that way   

[BaldEagl]

Just about anything goes in the MA.  If you want to be nice you can ask before jumping into a one-on-one but it's not a requirement.  I occasionally have people ask if I want help in a one-on-one.  Generally I don't answer or I tell them to do what they want (it is the MA afterall).  Ocasionally I'll call them off.  Despite that I do sometimes get upset when a great one-on-one is taken away by a second pilot.  On the other hand I rarely ask myself before jumping in (it is the MA afterall).

In the DA, furball lake anything goes.  Away from furball lake it's one-on-one's or structured engagements.  If people are trying to fly one-on-one's at furball lake they need to take it to the side fields.

[Kovel]

Expect everything in the MA.

Build your own etiquette.

Do you feel satisfied killing a smoking enemy making its final on the runway? Does your ego grow chasing one fiter one whole sector and not attacking him until he is flying at 110 mph gears down trying to land? Go for it. Different food will breed different kind of egos. It's up to you while you are building your own etiquette.

When you have flown here for a long time, you can read enemy's minds and see what kind of food feeds their egos. Different egos will result in different etiquettes.

Don't get too serious what other people p.m. to you. Bunch of people whine about attitudes which they'll do theirselves later on.

I've realized no matter how you kill people with good etiquette, they wont say a word to you. It's the people who (after you killed them) whine, the ones who have less etiquette.

I'd try to find your own style and fun of the game, and don let yourself be influenced by what others say.

[dbh991]

Just about anything goes in the MA.  If you want to be nice you can ask before jumping into a one-on-one but it's not a requirement.  I occasionally have people ask if I want help in a one-on-one.  Generally I don't answer or I tell them to do what they want (it is the MA afterall).  Ocasionally I'll call them off.  Despite that I do sometimes get upset when a great one-on-one is taken away by a second pilot.  On the other hand I rarely ask myself before jumping in (it is the MA afterall).

Yes.  That seems reasonable and do-able when dealing with a team mate.  But when I'm in an interesting 1-on-1 with a con and then one or more of *his* team mates enters, well no one asked me how I liked that.  They just do it and then I deal with it.

Maybe this is a bit like taking head on shots.  I have learned to never try it (not worth the risk and really not much fun or skill involved), and I have also learned how to avoid getting hit when a con tries to head-on shoot me.  I do not get upset when someone tries to head-on me, or turn my 1-on-1 into a 2-on-1 without asking permission.  I just deal with the situation as it develops.

In the DA, furball lake anything goes.  Away from furball lake it's one-on-one's or structured engagements.  If people are trying to fly one-on-one's at furball lake they need to take it to the side fields.

Agree 100%!  Such a simple solution and in my observation this is widely respected.

-Doug

[deadstikmac]

As long as you conduct business with the highest regard for your enemy and fellow pilots' worry not what they say. The animosity in the virtural sky will allow the worst to shine in some, and the best in others. Maintain your morals and like water off a DUX, let everything roll off your shoulders.

[Aspen]

Asking before jumping in a 1v1 is good.

Asking to be left alone if you are in a 1v1 you want to stay that way is good.

Expecting either to happen or be honored in a furball consistently is unrealistic in the MA.

Getting upset about anything that happens in a video game is silly.

When flying against bigger numbers in a furball, generally its accepted that the idea is to clean out as many as possible to even it up. Still nice to ask, but often too busy to expect that to happen.

Everyone in the game has their own set of "rules" and there are too many versions to keep track of.  The guy that never gangs might be fine spawn camping.  The guy that picks a lot may never want help when he ends up turning in a 1v1, but might be HO'er at every chance.  The guy that gangs, picks, HOs, bomb****s, camps, runs, stick stirs, and vulches is often the guy that complains about it the most.

One guy might have fun killing radar and ords, then running home unscathed to continue on some base taking plan.  The next guy wants to dive into a sea of red and see how long he lasts.  Fly and let fly.  

[Debrody]

live by the sword and die by it. 

No whining that way   

you know whats my opinion.

[zarkov]

This business of treating 1v1's as something you shouldn't "interrupt" except without permission is strange to me.

If you want to be in a 1v1, why are you in the MA?  For that matter, why are you even playing a MMOG and paying out money per month for the privilege of doing so?  There are boxed sims out there which have on-line play enabled where you don't have to play a subscription fee to play.

The reason I play on-line is because of the fact that the situation you're in is always fluid and can evolve.

A 1v1 that you know with an absolutely certainty will STAY a 1v1 is somewhat sterile and uninteresting except as a classroom exercise.

[dbh991]

This business of treating 1v1's as something you shouldn't "interrupt" except without permission is strange to me.

If you want to be in a 1v1, why are you in the MA?  For that matter, why are you even playing a MMOG and paying out money per month for the privilege of doing so?  There are boxed sims out there which have on-line play enabled where you don't have to play a subscription fee to play.

The reason I play on-line is because of the fact that the situation you're in is always fluid and can evolve.

A 1v1 that you know with an absolutely certainty will STAY a 1v1 is somewhat sterile and uninteresting except as a classroom exercise.

Outstanding point and extremely well put!  I believe this was my gut feeling from the get go: that is when I entered the 1v1 "uninvited", this morning.  The curse-you reaction was a surprise to me.

Thank you for putting into words what I could not.  If he wants privacy while flying he should do as you say, or take it to the DA or training arenas.  My opinion.

-Doug

[The Fugitive]

Outstanding point and extremely well put!  I believe this was my gut feeling from the get go: that is when I entered the 1v1 "uninvited", this morning.  The curse-you reaction was a surprise to me.

Thank you for putting into words what I could not.  If he wants privacy while flying he should do as you say, or take it to the DA or training arenas.  My opinion.

-Doug

OH I see you weren't looking for an answer per-say, you were looking for validation for picking an easy kill. Next time just ask the real question and we won't need all these post and opinions 

[Tilt]

Alls fair in the MA............

do as you would expect to be done unto........... 

dont expect others to do as you do............

[Tank-Ace]

(Air-to-air Fighter combat issue) While in the Late War Main Arena(MA) this morning I engaged with a team mate that appeared to be having difficulty with a con.  They were 1-on-1.  I dispatched the con, at which point my team mate voiced  (literally) "G@d D#mmed noob!" and continued to express his extreme displeasure with me.  Well, I am confused because 1) I have had numerous occasions in the MA where this exact same thing has happened to me.  I didn't mind.  This is war and you help your team mate, right?  Also, expect a 2nd con to join in if *you* are 1-on-1.  No big deal, or so I thought.  2) If one wants to practice 1-on-1 dueling why not go to the Dueling Arena or the Training area?

So I am quite confused by this guy's extreme displeasure with my action.

Closely related issue:  I have seen it posted somewhere, can't find it now, something to the effect that the Dueling Arena(DA) has "devolved into something bad where etiquette is not observed and it's just one big fur ball" or words to that effect.  I don't agree, having spent a lot of time in the DA.  I find the DA as it is to be an excellent way to quickly get in some quality air time to keep my situational awareness and gunnery skills sharp.  I don't mind going 1 vs 2 or more(me being the 1).  That happens in the MA and I appreciate the skills practice.  Besides, if people want to use the DA for private 1-on-1 dogfights that is easy to do by just getting a reasonable distance away from the lake.  (Or take it to the Training area.)  Still on the topic of the DA:  It appears there are times when everyone there agrees to just do 1-on-1 dogfights even on the lake.  Sunday mornings are popular for this I gather.  When one logs in to the DA then one is politely informed it is "1-on-1 time only" and to tune to a channel where everyone in the DA can communicate.  Great, no problem.  Clearly communicated.  I did this a week ago and it was working just fine.  I liked it as a nice change of pace.  But after awhile, after clearly calling out my intention to engage 1v1 a specific aircraft, I was shot down from behind by someone else.  He is an "old hand" at Aces High and far more experienced than I.  He will remain nameless in this post.  I asked him why he did that and his reply was a glib "I felt like it".   

So.  Back to the subject of this post.  I am now thoroughly confused over proper "etiquette" in both the MA and the DA.  I have no desire to make others angry.  But it seems we are not using common sense and playing by the same rules.  I have competed in various activities all my life and hold the concept of "sportsmanship" very highly and would rather lose using proper sportsmanship than win by violating the same.  But it is not possible to maintain sportsmanship when we aren't all playing by the same rules of conduct, in my opinion.

Sorry for what appears to be a bit of a rant, and also sorry if this has been covered before, but I really felt the need to express my frustration and try to get some guidance from those more knowledgeable than me.  I *want* to play by the rules and practice good sportsmanship.  I just don't know what the rules are.  Do I need to call out "Mother May I, Please is it OK if I pull the trigger now?" each time I fly in any arena? 

-Doug

Unless its a furball, or base defense, I always asked.

Now regardless of if you should expect a 1v1 in the MA, its still polite to respect people enjoying a good fight. Base taking is only an engine to drive combat, no more, no less. Combat is the main focus of the game, and should be respected