Tips for a crappy dogfighter?
- Thread starter Bajau
- Start date
On my Cobra, I have 2x Class 1 Burst lasers on fg1 and 2x Class 2 Multicannon on fg2. All are gimballed. Drop shields with the lasers and chew hull with the M/C.
Keep throttle in blue and learn how to use pips for eng wep and sys. Arena / CQC is a great place to practise. Or low intensity RES.
Learn to run before you practise fighting.
Keep throttle in blue and learn how to use pips for eng wep and sys. Arena / CQC is a great place to practise. Or low intensity RES.
Learn to run before you practise fighting.
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If you are flying a cobra don't forget the weapons don't converge so well and the shields aren't super great. You have to lift the nose slightly to make the lower hardpoints count. Two things the Cobra does well are silent running and top speed. Although the Cobra isn't a combat specialist it can handle itself in a scrap with most things it's size if you use the speed to your advantage.
Next time your shields go down switch to SR and get out of weapon range. Pop a heat sink and restore your thermal signature to get shields up. Then go in again.
I hope you enjoy the learning curve you are on. Some of the folks who have commented so far are very skilled pilots so I'm sure if you follow their advice you will see some improvement soon!
Next time your shields go down switch to SR and get out of weapon range. Pop a heat sink and restore your thermal signature to get shields up. Then go in again.
I hope you enjoy the learning curve you are on. Some of the folks who have commented so far are very skilled pilots so I'm sure if you follow their advice you will see some improvement soon!
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Vindicator Jones did a few videos about combat that can be helpful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjYeCs5MA18
Combat can be pretty complicated, so it's hard to just give a few tips. In general, try to stay out of your enemy's fire arc (In front of them, usually), while maximizing their time in your fire arc. If you're in a small ship, fly evasive and try not to get hit. If you're in a large ship, try maxing out your shields and fly in reverse to keep your enemies in your cross hairs.
Don't get caught just pulling up all the time. You're fighting in space- try to think more in terms of what complete freedom allows you to do.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjYeCs5MA18
Combat can be pretty complicated, so it's hard to just give a few tips. In general, try to stay out of your enemy's fire arc (In front of them, usually), while maximizing their time in your fire arc. If you're in a small ship, fly evasive and try not to get hit. If you're in a large ship, try maxing out your shields and fly in reverse to keep your enemies in your cross hairs.
Don't get caught just pulling up all the time. You're fighting in space- try to think more in terms of what complete freedom allows you to do.
1. Don't fly in a straight line. You'll die. Use rolls, turns, thrusters, boost and FA-Off all at the same time. Spiral through the sky using roll and thrust down/up/sideways and boost - it makes you harder to hit especially when running for your life!.
2. Fit Point Defence systems to your ship! PDs have a firing arc. If you fit them to the front they can't defend you against missiles coming at you from behind.
3. Fighting NPCS - Listen, and understand. That NPCs are out there. They can’t be bargained with. They can’t be reasoned with. They don’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And they absolutely will not stop ever, until you are dead.
4. Most CMDRs are better combat pilots than NPCs (see point 1).
2. Fit Point Defence systems to your ship! PDs have a firing arc. If you fit them to the front they can't defend you against missiles coming at you from behind.
3. Fighting NPCS - Listen, and understand. That NPCs are out there. They can’t be bargained with. They can’t be reasoned with. They don’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And they absolutely will not stop ever, until you are dead.
4. Most CMDRs are better combat pilots than NPCs (see point 1).
Wait a minute. Does OP want to dogfight to try out combat or does he just want to survive hairy situations like getting interdicted when trading? Very different scenarios.
If it's the former, practicing with a cheap combat ship and following the stuff recommended so far is a good way to get the skill up.
If it's the latter, tank up your ship for maximum survival and focus on escaping. If you have valuable cargo, don't head to your destination in a straight line. NPCs will stupidly warn you on comms when they're coming to get you. Take a longer route and keep an eye on the radar. Enemies have to get behind you to interdict, so adjust course based on your radar to keep them off your 6. If you get interdicted and don't think you can win the interdiction minigame, just submit. Your FSD cools down much faster than if you lose the interdiction. As soon as you're out of supercruise, face your attacker and boost past so your enemy has to waste time turning to face you. Then either repeat till your FSD is ready and jump out, or if you're in a faster ship than your attacker just keep running in one direction. Probably not the best ploy against a Clipper, but if you're facing an Anaconda in your Cobra, the Annie will be a speck of dust in your rear view mirror before it can destroy you.
And about the tutorial, the challenge missions get really hard. I don't think you need to do all of them to be a competent combat pilot.
If it's the former, practicing with a cheap combat ship and following the stuff recommended so far is a good way to get the skill up.
If it's the latter, tank up your ship for maximum survival and focus on escaping. If you have valuable cargo, don't head to your destination in a straight line. NPCs will stupidly warn you on comms when they're coming to get you. Take a longer route and keep an eye on the radar. Enemies have to get behind you to interdict, so adjust course based on your radar to keep them off your 6. If you get interdicted and don't think you can win the interdiction minigame, just submit. Your FSD cools down much faster than if you lose the interdiction. As soon as you're out of supercruise, face your attacker and boost past so your enemy has to waste time turning to face you. Then either repeat till your FSD is ready and jump out, or if you're in a faster ship than your attacker just keep running in one direction. Probably not the best ploy against a Clipper, but if you're facing an Anaconda in your Cobra, the Annie will be a speck of dust in your rear view mirror before it can destroy you.
And about the tutorial, the challenge missions get really hard. I don't think you need to do all of them to be a competent combat pilot.
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You want him to fight Kzinti?!?!?!
Username checks out.
I’m old and slow but can hold my own in the hottest CZ’s, mainly because two things.
I don’t engage unless I’m in well equipped and engineered ship. And I run away if things look tricky.
I also leave the clever fixed weapons stuff to the real fighter aces. All that extra damage only counts if you hit. Gimbals and turrets for me.
If I were to go fighting in a Cobra I would be going in with engineered shields, thrusters, armour and hull plating.
I don’t engage unless I’m in well equipped and engineered ship. And I run away if things look tricky.
I also leave the clever fixed weapons stuff to the real fighter aces. All that extra damage only counts if you hit. Gimbals and turrets for me.
If I were to go fighting in a Cobra I would be going in with engineered shields, thrusters, armour and hull plating.
If your only fighting NPCs you should be able to win interdictions, unless your in something like a type 9 or a Cutter. In the Cutter, just run, in the Type 9, you need good defences in your shields and hull to just tank till you can jump.
Against PvP god modded FDLs, just hit escape or accept your dead, it's just broken.
Oh and before you ask, yes even in PvE it's wise to have shields, and not D rated ones at that. Oh, and if your bad at interdictions....I got nothing, sorry, just confusion.
Against PvP god modded FDLs, just hit escape or accept your dead, it's just broken.
Oh and before you ask, yes even in PvE it's wise to have shields, and not D rated ones at that. Oh, and if your bad at interdictions....I got nothing, sorry, just confusion.
Thanks for all the advice Folks! [up] The Egosoft Forums for all the X games showed me just how useful these boards can be at times.Relevant replies below.
B
- Over the years I've played Elite, Freespace, X, X2, X3 and now am back to my 'roots.
- Have always been a Trader and Builder rather than a Fighter. I usually avoid conflict until I'm driving a Tank with weapons out the Wazoo.
- Flying a Cobra MkIII at the moment and have upgraded most of the modules to A-Standard but I'm still not too sure on weapons, fire groups and combat flight.
- I played the tutorials and killed the first opponent (the harmless git that didn't shot back) but got my backside handed to me in a bucket from the next bloke...
- Am relatively familiar with the radar but will try to improve if it's really important. In all the other games it was just a way of seeing who's in the vicinity.
- I've not looked into the Engineering side of the game yet. Will look up some tutorials.
You could start by giving us YOUR loadout... I mean seriously... it helps a LOT to know in what and how it's fitted.
Coriolis : https://coriolis.edcd.io/outfit/cobra_mk_iii
Or In Game screen shots are apreciated... I'm somewhat a Pro Cobra Pilot... so i can help you getting good on the ship
You could start by giving us YOUR loadout... I mean seriously... it helps a LOT to know in what and how it's fitted.
Coriolis : https://coriolis.edcd.io/outfit/cobra_mk_iii
Or In Game screen shots are apreciated... I'm somewhat a Pro Cobra Pilot... so i can help you getting good on the ship
If he's A rated it, he should just be able to outrun all NPCs. Heck, how does he even lose an interdiction in a Cobra 3?
Outrun is not as fun as blowing the enemy up.... maybe some people are just tired of being a COWARD, I can take any ship in a Viper or Cobra, even PvP to a certain Degree.
Except the OP has stated they aren't a fighter. I presume they only want to know combat as they keep dieing from being bad at running away. In which case combat won't help them as a good combat pilot also knows how to run away.
Heck when I get blown up nowadays doing bounty hunting, I'm not salty, becuase generally it means I was bad at running away when I needed to. But I'll admit sometimes, say in a CZ, you just get outnumbered, but that's a very specific and I don't think the OP will generally have to worry about that, and even if they do, only God tier pilots (or God tier engineered ships), have a hope of winning if outnumbered and outgunned.
So. Much. Good. Advice!!!!
I worked out where I was goofing the interdictions (was accidentally submitting when I was trying to slow down and keep aim on the escape vector). Oops...
I'm mostly A-rated but thrusters and power distribution are still C and D. I've been cruising the boards for Weapon loadouts to suit my crap piloting too.
The cheap fighter and Nav Beacon idea might be the best idea. I need the practice. RSLG works for me but trying to turn around and fight with a reasonable degree of confidence will be a good thing.
I worked out where I was goofing the interdictions (was accidentally submitting when I was trying to slow down and keep aim on the escape vector). Oops...
I'm mostly A-rated but thrusters and power distribution are still C and D. I've been cruising the boards for Weapon loadouts to suit my crap piloting too.
The cheap fighter and Nav Beacon idea might be the best idea. I need the practice. RSLG works for me but trying to turn around and fight with a reasonable degree of confidence will be a good thing.
You could start by giving us YOUR loadout... I mean seriously... it helps a LOT to know in what and how it's fitted.
Coriolis : https://coriolis.edcd.io/outfit/cobra_mk_iii
Or In Game screen shots are apreciated... I'm somewhat a Pro Cobra Pilot... so i can help you getting good on the ship
Does this help? I didn't has as much A-Stuff as I though when I had a good look...
[Cobra MkIII, Blind Ferret II] [+1]
M: 2F/G Pulse Laser [+1]
M: 2F/G Pulse Laser [+1]
S: 1G/G Multi-cannon [+1]
S: 1B/FS Seeker Missile Rack [+1]
U: 0F Electronic Countermeasure [+1]
U: 0I Heat Sink Launcher [+1]
BH: 1A Military Grade Composite
PP: 4B Power Plant
TH: 4B Thrusters [+1]
FD: 4C Frame Shift Drive [+1]
LS: 3A Life Support [+1]
PD: 3A Power Distributor [+1]
SS: 3A Sensors [+1]
FT: 4C Fuel Tank (Capacity: 16)
4: 4E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 16)
4: 4E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 16)
4: 4C Bi-Weave Shield Generator [+1]
2: 2E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 4)
2: 2G Planetary Vehicle Hangar [+1]
2: 1E Basic Discovery Scanner
One of the best tricks for stupid NPCs is to go FA off while at full speed, flip her around and nudge the throttle to allow your opponent to close distance (this also separates small, fast movers from big lumbering titans so you can take them on one at a time). Since you're moving in a straight line, the NPC will follow you basically in a straight line, and you can fire away. If you're getting the worst of it, it's easy to flip it back around, FA on and boost away. Keep doing that to let your shields regen.
Get that 1st big hit in as well. Engage on your terms, if you can. Sucker punch the opponent with the biggest weapons you have, get right under it and target a module, then just open fire. If you're being interdicted, submit and thrust, drop some mines.. FA off, flip around, watch the show.
Get that 1st big hit in as well. Engage on your terms, if you can. Sucker punch the opponent with the biggest weapons you have, get right under it and target a module, then just open fire. If you're being interdicted, submit and thrust, drop some mines.. FA off, flip around, watch the show.
Buy a cheap ship, like an Eagle, something that you can afford to rebuy a 100 times etc.
Go to the CGs and look for wanted commanders, in fact you probably wont have to even look before you get interdicted.
Then its practice practice practice. Use Fixed weapons to improve your flying further and try experimenting with FA On/Off and boosting turns.
Go to the CGs and look for wanted commanders, in fact you probably wont have to even look before you get interdicted.
Then its practice practice practice. Use Fixed weapons to improve your flying further and try experimenting with FA On/Off and boosting turns.