Okay. I have no awesome fire-breathing, bringer-of-death credibility in this, or any other, game. I do my best to have fun and think that makes me part of the majority of subscribers.
The Fighter Ace I remember had two long-standing controversies. The first was shaders harvesting baby seals in the beginner arenas. These were easily identified by monitoring their altitude slightly above the 'conga lines' on the deck, but it persisted for as long as I was in the game. Once a 'baby seal killer' was identified, they were mercilessly hunted in all arenas and in real life in a few extreme cases.
The second controversy was the agonizing scarcity of pilots in the 'realistic' combat arena. The one squadron that stands out in my memory as champions of 'realistic' were the Musketeers, some of whom are now long-term members here. The problem with realistic was that it exposed an average or incompetent pilot in a very public way. Everybody has an ego and in my time there it was shunned, generally.
In broad terms, FA was Air Quake at it's best (worst). There were a great number of haters in that game and I saw some really shocking behavior.
The point is that FA is hardly a basis of credibility for most folks here and distracts from the wish.
To the issue at hand: I don't want to know who I'm fighting because, in my personal case, it would alter my tactics. Last week I had a short (and forgettable for him) combat with INK. In the first merge I successfully avoided his awesome horizontal scissors. I lived to try something else - then succumbed by trying to scissor with him. I didn't know it was INK in that combat, but I made a mental note to ask him, in the future, to share his technique other than in the MA. Had I known it was INK, I would likely have maintained altitude and fought a fight I could win (see Boelcke's dicta) elsewhere. A sad, but honest, confession. The net result is that I wouldn't have learned anything (and it's never too late for that).
The point here is I already have adequate information available to allow me to approach INK in that manner and in a learning environment. There are few in AH that will not respond to legitimate opportunities to teach. Pay heed to INK's comment about air-combat. That's about tactics in a realm of reasonably recreated flight models. What you are proposing is fraught with the 'unforeseen consequences' regarding the misuse of knowing your opponent beforehand.
With Respect,
Ratsy
Once "Raider" - FA beta tester and initial cadre - co-founder of "The Devil Dogs of FA" and proud alumni of VMF111 and the Arabian Knights.
