Hi,
I actually intended to make these videos about how to be a good pilot (as opposed to be able to do technical manoeuvres), but it's hard to build up to that without laying the groundwork first. That's why I made these two videos to start with. Future videos will be made, but it'll take longer to make 'em as I'll need to fraps some footage on public servers and I don't have much hard drive space right now. A lot of people fail to understand the difference between being good at controlling a chopper and actually being a good pilot. Put it this way: If you have total control of your fists in a fight, but all you can do is repeatedly punch yourself in the balls, it won't do much good. I always want to rip somebody's face off when I get in a chopper and the pilot starts rolling and spinning and weaving like it's an airshow mod, then he flies straight into a triangle of IGLA sites with mobile AA and two choppers in the centre, then we inevitably die (i.e. he's good at controlling the chopper, but he doesn't know what he's doing). That was the whole reason for making these videos, but I haven't broached the main topic yet. I'll get there. Eventually.
A good pilot is always the most important ingredient for getting big scores and dominating the other team. The proof's in the pudding, as the axiom goes. Put a shit-hot gunner in a chopper with an average pilot and the pilot will likely get the chopper killed by making bad choices. Put a great pilot with an average gunner and the pilot can more readily manage the risk. On many maps, the pilot can take (fewer) risks or line up shots according to the gunner's skill. E.g. Many months ago I got some dude a 70 killstreak on sharqi -- he was a very low rank and didn't know much, but I could still get him a nice score by altering my flying style and letting him use the cannon. Also, I had some really bad gunner in my chopper on wake a few weeks back and even though this guy literally could not hit a boat(!) with the TV, I still managed to get him amongst the infantry and he ended with 60ish kills. Now switch roles. If the pilot had been poor to average and I had been gunning (I'm good with the cannon in any chopper and less so with the TV) there's no way in hell we would've got so many kills. Ideally you have a good pilot & gunner and both contribute and complement one another, but I'm just trying to emphasise the fact that the pilot is the weakest link so it's hugely important that you know how to fly 'smart' and make the right choices. Of course, if the enemy chopper team are both good, then you'll get wrecked regardless of which of the pilot/gunner isn't up to scratch, but the point remains.
Anyway, the importance of making good choices as a pilot is the difference between a 20-40 kill round and a 90 kill round. How do I know this? Because I've flown for and with a lot of chopper whores. The good pilots immediately stick out because, despite being in the thick of the action, you find yourselves in fewer situations where you're odds-on to lose and, come the end of the round, you're sitting on 40+ kills or, if the map lends itself to attack choppers (dalian, wake, sharqi etc.), more like 80+. Good pilots also modify their style and aggressiveness based on what the enemy is doing. I'm sure you've all had rounds where it seems EVERY SINGLE .50 CAL in the entire bloody map is trying to shoot you down. I'm sure you've also had rounds where it's like the enemy has just given up and lets you have free reign over them. A good pilot will recognise this and adjust their style accordingly (to ward off the threat while staying alive and to capitalise, respectively). I want to go into all of that, too.
Thanks for the comments. It's nice to know the videos are of use and I can build on them. Cheers to E7IXER for posting them here as I hadn't really thought about it (though I do like this site as it has the nicest stats layout).
Inimicus_7: Yes, that's something I hope to cover in the next video. I see a lot of chopper pilots who focus on one point and constantly circle it or point at it, and that's often a big no-no. Circling at a constant rate is also dangerous because what's fast-moving to one person is slow-moving or stationary to another (e.g. trying to shoot a 100m sprinter is easy if he's running straight towards you, regardless of how fast he's moving!) If I see a chopper doing really consistent circles, I usually try and nail it using the TOW just for kicks (getting shot down by a TOW is like the ultimate insult -- it either says "you are stationary/a dumbass" or "your movement was very predictable or you were barely moving from my perspective".
I also see a lot of pilots who will home in on one thing and just spiral towards it really slowly, then wonder why their gunner (who is looking at another target nearby that the pilot isn't focussing on) isn't shooting at it... and then they get hit by 3 AT rockets and die. I nearly always focus on wide areas as opposed to individuals or points (so that all of the targets in the area will feel threatened and won't have time to line up a shot so easily without fear of being shot, and I'm not as predictable as I would be when orbiting a single point and, finally, it doesn't matter if my gunner doesn't see a specific target as he'll have the whole area to choose from [unless it's a specific threat like AA / .50 cal / Tank etc. in which case I will point it out via voice]). I hope to explain a lot of stuff like this in future, I just need to find the time to make more videos
Last edited by Arnie_Ze_Austrian (2007-07-04 15:58:40)