Altair advice - new player

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Originally posted by jimmyBB
I'm struggling to get to Coalition space without getting lynched somewhere in Mandar. Every time I get close to the Gurm or Gladius jumpgates, a couple of squadrons of nomads CD me (seemingly immune to CM's) and proceed to kick the snot out of me. I'm sliding and boosting like a nutter, but them 'mad's (and the DK gunboats) hit hard. Can take 4-5 of them down before running totally out of NB/SB and being unwillingly humped to death.

My question is :

What kind of ship / shields / guns etc is required to make that trip? Im flying an 'Abraxis' with lv10 shield, 2xDIAMONDBACKS, 2xBLUE BLAZE(? I think - wreck guns from X) and some fairly naff lv8 outcast guns to fill the lv9 mounts. Is this enough? or should I scout around and trade a bit more before trying to get there?

It sounds as though you have some experience... sliding, decent equipment, etc. Here are a couple more ideas to consider:

• In Single Player (SP), a rugged ship is more important than a highly maneuverable ship, unless you plan to mostly avoid fights. Multi Player (MP) is completely different. There, the winners prize maneuverability highly.
• I have been experimenting with three ships recently that are quite interesting: the Bullpup Mk3 "Assault Freighter", the APC Armored Transport, and the Serafina "Smuggler/Pirate Freighter". All have more guns than a fighter and huge cargo space.
• The Bullpup Mk3 has two thrusters, which is awesome for running away. The tradeoff is that it turns slowly compared to the other two. But, who cares, if you can thrust faster than they can? The Bullpup Mk3 also has 9 guns, while the others have 8, and more armor than any VHF. You can get this ship very early in SP (from New York).
• The APC has double the armor of most Very Heavy Fighters (VHFs), 8 guns, and maneuvers quickly for a freighter. It is what I am currently flying, and it rocks.
• Tip: I think you know that running away is sometimes better than fighting. You don't need to cruise to get away... just use thrusters and drop mines behind you.
• Sometimes sliding backwards while aiming your guns at pursuing enemies is enough to make them evade... which increases your chances of escape.
• There are some upgrades that you may want to keep an eye open for: shield and armor upgrades, better guns, and thrusters that give you a few extra kph... all the better for running. Earth is a good place to shop for equipment, as is Planet Crossfire. Oh, and the Bundschuh usually have top gear, too (Bruchsal and Outpost Delta).

Yes, and also... buy Phoenix Project cannons from Earth, until you find the Inner Core- Dm kavahs sector systems, where you can loot from the aliens the bst weps you've ever seen hehe

jimmy u have a pm;)

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Originally posted by jimmyBB
I seem to get too easily flustered in combat these days, and end up boosting back through a pack of enemies..

In vanilla Freelancer you can kill all of the enemies on every mission. In Crossfire, I am not sure that is possible... it certainly is not cost effective!

"We aren't running away. We are evading!"

hmm question there...

I am a NoOb and i want to know what is that "sliding" technique you're talking about?

if you'd please tell me... !

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Originally posted by brouss
hmm question there...

I am a NoOb and i want to know what is that "sliding" technique you're talking about?

if you'd please tell me... !

Don't worry, you aren't the only one, brouss! You should give King a good kick in the pants for not teaching you to slide during Mission 1. I think there is a rumor that mentions it, but the game never really tells you how important the technique is.

Press the "Z" key to kill your engines. Your ship will now continue to move due to inertia -- sliding. You can turn faster while sliding, then use your thrusters to accelerate without breaking the slide.

Just use your engines or press "Z" again to stop sliding.

I usually press "Z" before combat and slide through most battles. The exception is that, when chasing very quick light fighters, it is sometimes easier to use a slower engine speed (like 40-60 kph) and then use thrusters to close the gap to your target.

Sliding is handy for many things (flying backwards, for example). It is really critical when attacking stationary or slow-moving targets (battleships or gunboats). By sliding in a circle around your target, you avoid taking much fire while keeping your guns mostly aimed at the target.

Good luck!

hey thanks a lot there BullWinkle, mean i really apreciate it ! And don't worry, i already told king he's an "arsch" when he shot that civilian ship! Lol

Thanks for the tip!

1. Do not fly straight (way point is a good option, but think how CPU/server thinking about ur presence in a game;) )
2. When they try to disrupt ur engines u use CMs(Counter measure)
3. When u see NPCs, use engine kill while cruise in a full speed, and just say "bye bye"
4. Use EK if they disrupt u, and fly sliding backwards in opposite direction(be aware some alien's weps has a very good fire range.
5...
6...
7...
8...
.....

I don't want to spoil ur in-game fun anymore

well im a noob too i just wanna know how to match speed

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Originally posted by Hellraiser
i just wanna know how to match speed

Oops!

Sorry, that's my bad. "Match Speed" is common in space sims... but it is not a normal Freelancer command. (I never use it... obviously!)

Forget that I said anything about "match speed". Just slow down so that you don't over-shoot when they put on the brakes ("X" key) or when they do a sliding turn in front of you. Use the thrusters to fine-tune your distance to the target.

I use the scroll wheel on my mouse to control engine speed (when I am not sliding).

oh thx i thought that there was a key for match speed.........cool op can put something like this right?

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Originally posted by Hellraiser
oh thx i thought that there was a key for match speed.........cool op can put something like this right?

> Forget that I said anything about "match speed".
> (I never use it... obviously!)

With a little more practice, you will never use it, either.

By the way, I know that Mission 1 in Single Player is notoriously a long grind because the Starflier is ultra light and comes with those lame Liberty Lasers.

However, it is worthwhile to slug your way through it a couple of times. It forces you to become a better pilot.

And you WILL get better with practice. I play Crossfire (SP) with difficulty set to 2.0. But I have played more Freelancer than any other game -- mainly because there has not been a better game made.

Which is why we all love Crossfire so much! It expands the Freelancer experience in almost every way (except one -- mod-ability). But I cannot complain... OP really has made the world a better place by investing an extraordinary effort into Crossfire.

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Originally posted by Bullwinkle
Forget that I said anything about "match speed". Just slow down so that you don't over-shoot when they put on the brakes ("X" key) or when they do a sliding turn in front of you. Use the thrusters to fine-tune your distance to the target.

I use the scroll wheel on my mouse to control engine speed (when I am not sliding).

There are other ways to do this too Bullwinkle, like using left or right strafe to slow down quickly or using reverse thrust to stop instantly. Usually I'm always in "engine kill" mode with normal Newtonian space physics/intertia using the afterburner to chase targets and hitting the L/R strafe to slow down and get a bead on them when they hit the brakes or in some cases use engine reverse to pummel them when up close and they are moving very slow trying to use evading movements. The only drawback to that though is you better have some good shields or a good wingman to keep other hostiles from destroying you while you're attacking thier wingman all while you're effectively at a dead stop in space.

Regardless, there really needs to be a good "Freelancer Crossfire 1.8 Flying for Dummies" guide out here somewhere for rookie pilots on how to best use thier controls to do some fancy flying on Freelancer and utilize better dogfighting manuvers in space, since Crossfire has a new set of controls at a pilot's disposal, like the new up and down strafe and roll controls, clockwise and counter-clockwise. Since I was never taught these things, I had to figure them out the hard way, learn on my own and discover them, which has taken effectively 5-6 years of playing Freelancer to figure them out LOL! There also needs to be told how to use the L/R strafe, afterburner, thrust, engine kill, engine reverse controls effectively as well. I won't even get into using the weapons/weapons groupings and some techniques I employ with them here as well... Personally, I'm still trying to figure out how to best utilize the barrel roll to evade a huge hostile wing of fighters. I see NPCs doing it all the time trying to fake fleeing in a dogfight only to turn around and making a offensive run and it definately makes them a tough target to hit when they barrel roll.

To all new pilots:

IMHO the best way to survive Altair is to learn the mechanics of flying your ship, it's controls, how to dogfight more effectively, then get the best gear you can find/afford to be most effective. Even the best gear in this game is no substitute for poor flying ability, focus on your skills first! Hope this helps!

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Originally posted by Ryleous Arkane
[Use] left or right strafe to slow down quickly or using reverse thrust to stop instantly. ...

Excellent suggestions, Arkane!

What kind of a controller do you use? I like to keep combat buttons to a minimum, so I usually skip strafing during combat. Everybody has to find their own style.

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Originally posted by Ryleous Arkane
there really needs to be a good Freelancer Flying for Dummies guide ...

There are approximately 16 zillion FAQs, Walkthroughs, and Tips pages -- each a little bit different from the other. If we really want to make a high quality and comprehensive guide, we're probably going to have to write it ourselves.

On the other hand, many of these tips are in the Freelancer manual. Nobody reads that, so how are we going to get them to read our Beginner's Guide?

Now that you mention it, I am a little bit surprised that there is no sticky thread with tips for newbies. That would be a great place to answer a lot of the common questions that I see.

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Originally posted by Ryleous Arkane
Personally, I'm still trying to figure out how to best utilize the barrel roll ...

Barrel Roll?! That's what airplane pilots have to do because they could not slide (until recent vectored thrust and rudderless-fly-by-wire aircraft), isn't it? If airplane pilots could slide, would they ever use a Barrel Roll?

In any case, moves like that are only likely to fool a human pilot -- and only the first couple of times. The NPCs have inhuman reaction times (because, well, they're not human).

Also, Freelancer does not have the instrumentation required to do really nice barrel rolls. A horizon indicator would make it easy.

But you could practice and get close enough, I think. You would have to time your roll at specific speeds in specific ships, but I think that you could do it. It would probably be easier with engines than while sliding.

An ideal practice setup would be two computers and two ships, so that you could watch yourself from an external perspective. Or practice with a flight instructor.

But maybe an easier approach is to just fly in a circle when you need a couple of seconds to recharge. That makes you hard to hit, and is easier to perform than a real Barrel Roll.

there IS no such thing as a horizon in DEEP SPACE only VERY CLOSE to planets or inside them

oh..right thx for info

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Originally posted by Bullwinkle

Excellent suggestions, Arkane!

What kind of a controller do you use? I like to keep combat buttons to a minimum, so I usually skip strafing during combat. Everybody has to find their own style.

Hey Bullwinkle! Thanks!

Nothing special, just the same ole' mouse n' keyboard like most Freelancers. However, my keyboard layout and mouse button assignments are a little different than stock, I utilize a 5-button MS mouse though, as it helps with my weapons loadout. I treat my controls on Freelancer alot like I do my controls for first person shooters, mouse handles pointing/shooting/weapons, the keyboard handles moving, manuveuring, items, etc, etc., the only exception is that the keyboard also controls my weapons grouping.(more on that later...)

Basically, my setup is like this, I'm usually in "engine kill" mode when in combat,(my D key) therefore my left hand on the keyboard handles all afterburner/axis thrustering aka "strafeing"(left, right, up and down, just like the Q,W,E, S keys for most FPS shooters controls) and reverse/full stop thrusting. (A key) Since in engine kill mode, the afterburner(TAB key) is my main directional thruster, however I can still do crazy directional thrustering(with Q, W, E, S keys) all at once while still floating in space in another direction due to engine kill. Now from time to time, almost all the ships in the game will drop out of engine kill at some point and I have to re-engage it mind you. But once you learn how to "vector thrust" while in engine kill mode with a very fast, quick turning nimble ship(like the Shroud equipped with the weight reducer for example) you will quickly become a VERY hard target to hit and easily outmanuveur almost all NPCs and even some human pilots, save skilled human pilots.

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Originally posted by Bullwinkle There are approximately 16 zillion FAQs, Walkthroughs, and Tips pages -- each a little bit different from the other. If we really want to make a high quality and comprehensive guide, we're probably going to have to write it ourselves.

On the other hand, many of these tips are in the Freelancer manual. Nobody reads that, so how are we going to get them to read our Beginner's Guide?

Now that you mention it, I am a little bit surprised that there is no sticky thread with tips for newbies. That would be a great place to answer a lot of the common questions that I see.

Indeed, there are alot of resources out on the net Bullwinkle, but none of them really focuses on the expanded controls of Crossfire 1.8 and how to utilized advanced piloting techniques available with those expanded controls either.

Perhaps I'll break down and try to write something with input from anybody willing to contribute as a good piloting "primer" for n00bs to Crossfire in the future when I've got some free time to do so.

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Originally posted by Bullwinkle Barrel Roll?! That's what airplane pilots have to do because they could not slide (until recent vectored thrust and rudderless-fly-by-wire aircraft), isn't it? If airplane pilots could slide, would they ever use a Barrel Roll?

In any case, moves like that are only likely to fool a human pilot -- and only the first couple of times. The NPCs have inhuman reaction times (because, well, they're not human).

Not necessarily Bullwinkle, barrel rolls make a craft a very difficult target to hit, because in some cases, the center of the craft is constantly moving along with the exterior parts utilizing the most movement, this is all of course if you're in a aft position of the target which is usually the case when I see this in-game with NPC targets. Every time I've had a lock on a NPC while they were in a barrel roll from a distance, I've always scored less direct hits, every time, so the technique has merit, albiet only in the use of trying to flee your enemy IMHO. Since currently the barrel roll can only be used while out of mouse flight mode, i.e. typically in cruise mode, it only makes sense it would be used when you're trying to get the hell out of Dodge anyway!

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Originally posted by Bullwinkle Also, Freelancer does not have the instrumentation required to do really nice barrel rolls. A horizon indicator would make it easy.

But you could practice and get close enough, I think. You would have to time your roll at specific speeds in specific ships, but I think that you could do it. It would probably be easier with engines than while sliding.

An ideal practice setup would be two computers and two ships, so that you could watch yourself from an external perspective. Or practice with a flight instructor.

But maybe an easier approach is to just fly in a circle when you need a couple of seconds to recharge. That makes you hard to hit, and is easier to perform than a real Barrel Roll.

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Yes, Freelancer would greatly benefit from some additional controls/improved controls/horizion indicator to make barrel rolls more useful. Yes, again, for now the barrel roll's only real use is when you're trying to evade and flee while charging your cruise engines to escape! If I wanted to evade fire more effectively but stay in the fight, I'd stick to my previous engine kill and thrust vectoring as mentioned above. With the right ship and use of engine kill/thrust vectoring, I can outmaneveur most targets before they can even put a target reticle on me.

As the wise Mr. Myagi once said, "The best way to block punch is to no be there."