Newcomer / Intro I'm kinda discouraged

[HackDevil]

Just bought the game and I have to say I am a little discouraged. It is very hard to get used to the controls. Its very annoying trying to hit the enemy when they're a tiny dot. and when you close in their behind you.

So your constantly doing turns trying to find them. then their super hard to hit because its hard to control the ships aiming.


sigh... i feel like i lost $60

 

[HarlequiNQB]

Stick with it, play around with configurations and you'll get it - the roll and pitch style of aiming does take a little getting used to, but think like you're flying a biplane rather than a space ship and getting your head around it will be easier. Small ships do tend to becoming dots in the distance fairly quickly, but larger ones, well, they aren't - huge things they are.

Are you using Mouse and keyboard or a stick? I've heard people have a lot more success with M and KB if they set the mouse to control yaw instead of roll, and then set roll to be on the KB. I know one guy who has the roll on the LMB and RMB and then has a thumb button set to firing primary (I have no idea how he does secondary). seems mad to me, but works great for him.

 

[Joe Spivey]

Highly recommend you first watch the tutorial vids at the frontier youtube site. then do the training from the login screen. Also, feel free to ask questions here but I can't help you with combat because I don't do any There is quite a steep learning curve, but it becomes second nature very quickly.

 

[Fatdaddy]

Just bought the game and I have to say I am a little discouraged. It is very hard to get used to the controls. Its very annoying trying to hit the enemy when they're a tiny dot. and when you close in their behind you.

So your constantly doing turns trying to find them. then their super hard to hit because its hard to control the ships aiming.


sigh... i feel like i lost $60

Hello and welcome to the community.

I can understand where you are coming from it does take a bit of getting used to but it's worth it in the end imo.

If you have just started I assume you are still using the fixed pulse beams supplied with your starter ship. If so this is perhaps your problem.

The less painful course is to do some BB missions, transporting data or small trade missions to get some build up some credits. Then you can either upgrade you weapons to gimballed versions, they auto track the target when in you line of sight, best option for new players and old farts like me. Or you can wait and upgrade your ship fairly quickly, either way makes combat a lot easier and more fun.

Good luck and hope you start to enjoy the pleasures of the universe.

 

[HackDevil]

Thanks guys, your advice all seems to be helpful.

I'll try changing the controls around, and see if I can get rid of the pulse lasers.

I'm thinking about getting a stick and see if that'll help me enjoy the game more too

 

[Dommarraa]

Gimbled ftw. Also keep your throttle in the blue zone, fast is not good

 

[Faded Glory]

Hi. A joystick and a throttle are a good idea for this game. It can be played with mouse and kb, and some do, but I would definitely recommend a good HOTAS. Also, as others have said, invest in some gimballed lasers or cannons or whatever you feel like shooting. Less powerful, but at least you can hit things. I played Frontier for ages with mouse and keyboard (and fixed weapons for that matter), but couldn't do so in this game.

It takes a while, but it's great when you start to get it. Also, don't be frightened of trying to avoid interdictions to begin with, and get some credits so you can upgrade your ships and systems without having to do combat until you feel ready. Good luck, and have fun with this game, it's a learning curve, but worth it, I'm sure.

 

[Scimiter]

Just bought the game and I have to say I am a little discouraged. It is very hard to get used to the controls. Its very annoying trying to hit the enemy when they're a tiny dot. and when you close in their behind you.

So your constantly doing turns trying to find them. then their super hard to hit because its hard to control the ships aiming.


sigh... i feel like i lost $60

Keep the throtttle in the blue zone most of the time, but use reverse and pull back hard on the stick that will get you behind them if they are outurning you, go into combat practice and hone your skills, use gimballed weapons, they will aim for you.

 

[Dommarraa]

I didn't fight anyone until I was in a cobra. Plenty of learning to do without the fire button

 

[kilvenny]

I would heartily recommend the combat tutorials, I know it feels like its a step back, but they give the option to rinse and repeat. You need 4 things to feel comfortable.

1) The controls - The default ones didn't work for me. I was happy with roll on the mouse but some people prefer yaw - dead zones were not set correctly
2) The impact of the blue zone on turning
3) The pips systems/engines/weapons and moving them during combat
4) Practice

I must have done the sidewinder combat mission 50 times

 

[Pizz001]

not sure what your using for controls etc but if your using a joystick like the x52 etc it's great but the in game pre-set for it to my mind suck's as every ones said have a pay about with your own custom set up ,

also a quick tip ...in a dog fight use your reverse speed button as your always be able to target ships even like eagles very very easily as they move about and kill them np , btw keep the pulse lasers or swap to burst lasers ( beam's take loads of heat and power) but it well worth getting some multi cannons to damage the hull after using the lasers to burn the shields off on small ships keep fixed weapons but on large ones gimbles are better if the mounts are on the wings etc ans stay with a 500mtr-1000mtr for best damage

for things to do , here's a few links to some posts that may give you a few idea's as to what to do once your gotten a bit of flying behind you and a get tool to help make money trading


https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=136703 (a few ideas of what to do next)

https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=136428

https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=76081 ( slopeys tool)

 

[paul1828]

Get a stick,,,,,. Struggling with KB and mouse isn't fun.....I use extreme 3d pro....its relatively cheap.... Once you have set it up as you like it you will very quickly be making loads of money ....I guarantee it ......

 

[Jaiotu]

The controls do get easier over time. There are a lot of different functions to remember. The key is: Don't give up! Just get out there and fly... don't worry about making in-game progress just take the time to learn the basics. Once you feel comfortable reset your game save and come back at the galaxy with a vengeance!
AND: Gimbaled weapons! Not all of us can be Luke Skywalker. Forget the force. The targeting computers in the gimbaled weapons make combat much more accessible.
Good luck out there Commander!

 

[cmdr lowest]

You should replace the stock fixed pulse lasers with gimbled pulse lasers as they will auto track.

The downside to gimbled weapons is that they are a little smaller (due to the gimble) so don't do as much damage as a fixed version. However, if you continually miss with fixed lasers like I do then you will actually do much more damage with gimbles.

When I discovered this on the first day it was a complete game changer for me.

 

[GeneralIdea1964]

The controls do get easier over time. There are a lot of different functions to remember. The key is: Don't give up! Just get out there and fly... don't worry about making in-game progress just take the time to learn the basics. Once you feel comfortable reset your game save and come back at the galaxy with a vengeance!
AND: Gimbaled weapons! Not all of us can be Luke Skywalker. Forget the force. The targeting computers in the gimbaled weapons make combat much more accessible.
Good luck out there Commander!

From basic sidewinder .. as others has said.
Learn to dock/land.
Don't get into combat too early. Earn a bit of money trading/courier work
then buy gimballed weapons either burst or pulse lasers (burst do a bit more damage, but overheat more quickly)
When upgrading ship remember to earn enough to upgrade that with better lasers also. You only get fixed pulse lasers as standard.

Also I've never used silent running, it's pointless. You have no shields while it's on and they take time to recharge once switched back to normal. Leave that for the experts.

Regarding controllers. I've gone with a cheap Hotas stick. These have a limited life, but don't cost £100+
You'll still need keyboard for various functions.
The two best cheaper sticks on the market both are very good and with a bit of DIY repair/cleaning can serve well for quite a while.
I'd customise the controls to suit the most common functions you use.

 

[hawkenfox]

The one trick I can think of is to study the radar and know exactly where the enemy ship is positioned around you.

In elite the way you should turn your ship is pretty specific ... frontier designed it to be so. Basically you should roll

your ship until it parallel to the enemy's wing roll then use pitch to turn. So roll your ship then pitch to turn.

REMEMBER to set your throttle to 50% while turning your ship. Any slower or faster your ship goes, your turn rate

will be slowed down. Always hit the 50% throttle , set it up in your control option. I have mine set on the "F" key

in the keyboard. Also allow time for your ship to speed up or slow down to 50% before gaining turning speed.


A more advance way to turn even faster is to use flight assist off while turning ... and second is to use lateral thrust down while

pitching up for 5 secs ... releasing the thrust will increase your turn rate. When pitching downward use lateral up thrust.


Most of all anticipate your opponent's motion and turn in that direction half a sec before he whizz by.


This will almost keep you always on your enemy tail.


For the weapons I suggest 50% laser and 50% multicannon ... cause you don't know what sort of ship shield/armor setup you

might encounter... if you solo out. If you do wings with friends then make sure the weapons have variety. Yes use gimballed for

start out ... fix weapon are harder on mouse keyboard setup.


Logitech Extreme Pro Joystick highly recommended ... cheap and accurate. Be gentle with it though.

You be having a great time if you follow these advice... I guarantee.


My Cobra MKIII have these set up

All gimballed weapons
2 x Beam Laser (Class 2 and Class 1) Fire group 1 button A (Heats up fast make sure your ship cools fast)
2 x Multicannon (Class 2 and Class 1) Fire group 1 button B

Shield Cell (Shield Cell button set up in control option)
Shield Booster (Class 0 A)

All modules are class A the first modules that needs upgrade are the guns to gimbal for your case.

Personally I love the mines for transport ship ... it forces the opponent to not fly in a straight line.

Made about 1.2 million on my last pirate hunting at Resource extraction site.

 

[Pizz001]

You should replace the stock fixed pulse lasers with gimbled pulse lasers as they will auto track.

The downside to gimbled weapons is that they are a little smaller (due to the gimble) so don't do as much damage as a fixed version. However, if you continually miss with fixed lasers like I do then you will actually do much more damage with gimbles.

When I discovered this on the first day it was a complete game changer for me.

you only need gimbled stuff on bigger ships clipper size or cobra's with large wing spans with the hard points are very spaced out upwards

(unless your a really really bad pilot , Please note i'm not trying to flame anyone on this point as flying is something we all have had good days with and bad days)

one of the best tricks in a dog fight is to learn to fly backwards and stay on target as it means you can easily use fix lasers + muilt cannon's for hull's which do more damage and have better heat loss also using less power and cost less etc

it's the same as i've seen players in cobra's using turrets for gods sake , it's a total waste of money when your starting out or even after you've played the game for a bit

 

[Jaiotu]

you only need gimbled stuff on bigger ships clipper size or cobra's with large wing spans with the hard points are very spaced out upwards

(unless your a really really bad pilot , Please note i'm not trying to flame anyone on this point as flying is something we all have had good days with and bad days)

HEY! I resemble that remark! I can fly okay but getting a bead on my target with fixed weapons drives me crazy. I wasn't the best combat pilot in Elite '84 back when I was a kid and I'm certainly not the best now that I'm in my 40's and wondering if bifocals might help me improve my aim. Frontier gave us the gimbaled weapons specifically to help folks like me to find the game more approachable... If the OP is having trouble touching the target I say there is no shame in pulling out gimbals.

 

[Pizz001]

HEY! I resemble that remark! I can fly okay but getting a bead on my target with fixed weapons drives me crazy. I wasn't the best combat pilot in Elite '84 back when I was a kid and I'm certainly not the best now that I'm in my 40's and wondering if bifocals might help me improve my aim. Frontier gave us the gimbaled weapons specifically to help folks like me to find the game more approachable... If the OP is having trouble touching the target I say there is no shame in pulling out gimbals.

Lol

as i said not towards you or other's i myself have used them when starting out until i got the hang of dogfights

( and we seem to be of the same age as i wasn't that great on my bbc b+ when elite was first out but i did do a great job of rearranging my front room in to a cockpit much to the displeasure of my mum lol ),

i just wanted the op to know what should be used in the future and how you should pick your weapon types for best effect as they get in to the game

and so they don't waste money on useless items

but i also give you +1 fish for giving me a good giggle

 

[Dark Skies]

I would heartily recommend the combat tutorials, I know it feels like its a step back, but they give the option to rinse and repeat. You need 4 things to feel comfortable.

1) The controls - The default ones didn't work for me. I was happy with roll on the mouse but some people prefer yaw - dead zones were not set correctly
2) The impact of the blue zone on turning
3) The pips systems/engines/weapons and moving them during combat
4) Practice

I must have done the sidewinder combat mission 50 times

Here speaks a man of wisdom.
stick with it I spent the first three days sorting out the controls. This is best done in the combat tutorials especially the first target practice one. Start mission press esc change a key binding test it.
I'm still tweaking.
as said look at changing your mouse settings as the default is tricky.
You will soon be flying like a boss.