This is not meant to be a flamebait thread, I'm genuinely curious as to what the community thinks. Are any of these shoots or maneuvers really that underhanded? Have I unwittingly wronged a dear friend of mine? Or perhaps someone is projecting their damaged ego onto others after a set of light hearted Match play fights?
Regardless <S> Shane, I still say you're a good competitor and look forward to all our futures fights to come.
For me the whole thing boils down to what type of fight you are looking for. Some players only want the kills, some players want the fight.
In a fight for "kills", all shots are valid even HOs, because you are fighting for a kill. The first one to kill wins period.
In a fight for "the fight" the point is to work over the other player to force him into a position where he/she is out of options and THEN you kill them. This option I believe takes more skill. Both players are playing chess and are working to get the other player backed into a corner.
So you just have to ask yourself "what kind of fight am I looking for?" Even in the MA its easy to figure out what type of fight the other player is looking for. If the other guy is HOin and picking then they are only in it for KILLS, fight him accordingly, all shots are valid. If they come in and dont fire on a head on/front quarter merge odds are pretty good that want to tangle, fight them accordingly by pushing for that shot where they no longer have an option other than dying. In the DA I would think if you werent going for the quickest kill you'd talk that over before the first flight. Otherwise Im sure that is all you are going to get in there, hence the unwritten rule "no firing on the first merge but after that its on"
I have always preferred the fights where you push a player until they are out of options. That is most likely why I hate HOers and pickers so much. I find that those "chess match" fights are ALWAYS the nailbitting fights that get your heart pounding and you spend 10 minutes in the tower after the fight, win or lose, patting each other on the back while you catch your breath before you can roll again.
So, if dueling talk it out before you roll. In the MA, you have to go more with the flow. Either your going for kills, or your looking for a fight. Its up to you which you call it.