Newcomer / Intro Dogfighting: Vertical & Lateral Thrusters

Ernest_Balls

E
I am a competent dogfighter. While dogfighting I usually roll and pitch to follow my target, I use yaw to strafe or to fine tune my aim.

I find lateral thrusters a little too slow to dodge ships trying to ram me, unless they are at more than about 600m, and they are easier to avoid by other means at that range.

In particular...
I've been experimenting trying to increase my pitch rate with vertical (ie: up or down) thrusters, but it doesn't seem to make any significant difference. So after a lot of trial and error I hardly use lateral or vertical thrusters, except for docking.

Can somebody offer me some advice please? How do you use thrusters during a dogfight? :S
 

LeetNoob

LeetNoob
I find using vertical thrusters in the opposite of pitching helps a lot with my pitch. It would help to know what ship you’re flying too, some have better weight to thruster ratios (like the Viper)and so thrusters are much more affective.
Three pieces of advice I can give

  • More pips to engines also means more power to thrusters, so if you want to turn quick put power into engines
  • Upgraded thrusters perform better, so have you upgraded form the E rated thrusters that come as default?
  • Boosting also affects thrusters, so believe it or not, trying to avoid ramming or missiles headed straight for you, it can actually be better to hit boost then thrust vertically, and you strafe much faster.
 

TarkinLarson

T
I've found them really helpful (especially vertical thrusters) when I'm targeting a power supply or other sub targets. You can get a better angle on them to shoot at them, rather than just following them directly behind them or jousting head on.
 

Enon

E
Well for the most part using thrusters when pitching up or down will increase or decrease your turning circle. This helps you to either get behind or on target faster or else it lets you open up the gap without letting the other target get behind you so easily as if you simple speed away.
 

Werppa

Werppa
I kinda figured that thrusting to the opposite direction you're pitching makes you pitch better, I've never been sure if it actually was the case.
 

doughnut001

D
309

I'm not a great dogfighter but I've found that thrusters make it much easier to get some seperation between you and your target without having to face away from them.

It means you can bring your guns to bear on target more often and you don't have to worry about more maneuverable fighters flying rings round you and staying on your 6.

I tend to only use the vertical thrusters though. The lateral ones I only use in docking.
 

krysohmyz

K
Thrusters are great. While pitching in dogfight, you can straighten or tighten your turn by verticals and nothing is better for destroying the enemy's modules by strafing past them and keeping the crosshair at the target. :)

And laterals are invaluable for dodging the missiles. :)
 

Rhaedas

Rhaedas
Trashberg drew up a nice diagram not so long ago:

PitchUp-DThrust.jpg

PitchUp-UThrust.jpg

Effectiveness is of course ship and ship module dependent.
 
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Ernest_Balls

E
Thanks guys, I'm going to keep trying! Hope to get the knack of it eventually. My previous experiments were mostly in viper with A3 Thrusters, but I've heard vipers don't pitch as fast a cobra, so I've recently switched to a cobra and I've got B4 thrusters, and frankly it seems like I have a better pitch rate than in my old viper. It feel much easier to get around on an eagle faster.

When using vertical or lateral thrusters is there an optimal amount like bow/aft thrusters (the blue band), or is wide-open the best?
 
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