WWII Fighters lesson 3: Basic Combat

Dude Joined: Jul 21, 2003 Posts: 12 Location: USA

Lesson 3: Basic Combat Tactics

This is lesson 3/6, to help new pilots get a handle on how to be successful at playing Jane's World War II Fighter's. If you are new, don't even think you're going to get good with these tactics quickly. This is just a starting place for people who get as mad about loosing as I do. Tactics are not maneuvers. Graphical illustrations of basic combat maneuvers can be found doing an internet search.

I'm not affiliated with HyperLobby or any squad, and surely you'll disagree with at least some of material in these lessons because everyone has their own style and bias. Mine is from over 4 years of doing the unconventional, that is "Turn-N-Burn" fighting in a P-47. My motivation is that since I'm not in a squad, my wingmen are mostly new pilots (though I do have some favorite veterans). So it is to my advantage to improve the fighting abilities of new pilots. Plus, as people get better, it makes the game tougher, forcing me to get tougher. I'll talk more about more of the specifics and finer points of each tactic in other lessons. But before I get into too much detail, you should know some of the basics.

Situational Awareness:

It is okay to have a favorite tactic, but you need to develop all your skills, and learn to recognize when you're in a position of strength or weakness. You have to learn to use all the tools available in this game. If your only tool is a hammer, then every problem starts looking like a nail. Situational Awareness is knowing the "who, what, when, and where" of your threats or opportunities. It is foundational to the rest of these lessons, and THE most important advice I can give you.

First of all, you can't hit what you don't see. So if you are getting "blindsided" because you don't have a great setup, go back to the lesson about setting up your ww2 configuration and ww2keys files. Once you've reached the point of being visually aware, you will have to be able to instantly determine your greatest threats or opportunities, and automatically know the "how" to deal with the situation.

This comes with practice and repetition. Many times there just is not enough time to remember and think. Instantly and correctly evaluating the whole situation and then executing the right move, starting your turns before the enemy does, makes you look like you're turning faster and can be quite intimidating. Mastering total situational awareness (who, what, when, where) is as much of a skill as any flight control or textbook maneuver. So get a setup that works for you, and practice it. Knowing the "how" to deal with a given situation means knowing your plane, its condition, and your style, compared to the enemy's current strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes you have no choice, but you need to be disciplined enough to keep yourself in situations that play to your strengths, never the enemys.

Margin of Victory:

In many ways, this game is like a dynamic three-dimensional chess match. A lot of things are relative to one another. And when someone makes an aggressive move, many times they leave themselves vulnerable somewhere else. Practice is very important because the margin of victory can be VERY slim, even if you do everything right. Some of the best pilots on the Internet will not let you make a single mistake. And nothing confirms to you what works (or doesn't) like practice. It is pretty ironic that with these planes covering such vast distances, most wins (and losses) come down to a matter of inches. Sometimes you get a kill outright, but many times, you'll just barely wound someone each pass, then eventually get the kill.

Tactical Styles:

Basically there are two styles of fighting TNB (turn and burn) or BNZ (boom and zoom). For both tactics, precise smooth plane movements, sharp-shooting, and good situational awareness pay huge dividends. Every good pilot in this game prides themselves on all these skills. TNB is tricking a slower turning plane into letting you get behind them. BNZ is all about getting yourself in an advantageous position, shooting the enemy, then running when you loose the advantage or the shot. The decision to use the TNB or the BNZ tactic is relative to what plane you are flying, what plane you are up against, and the current condition of each. In either case, be patient. Sometimes it is best to get the kill in one pass. Many times it is best to go for a few dings, then make the kill on another pass.

Example, P-51 Mustang versus Spitfire MkIX:

All the planes have inherent strengths and weaknesses, but these differences can change given the pilot, and the plane's current condition (speed, altitude, health, etc). Let's say you're a P-51 pilot. If you keep your speed up, you can turn with anything but a Spitfire. But if do end up engaged with a Spitfire, you'll last longer and are more apt to win if you BNZ with your superior speed and climb rate. However, if you have a healthy P-51, and you've just severely crippled a Spitfire, you can easily out turn that broken bird. They've lost their turning ability, and are hoping that you will run off, turn around, and give them their only chance to win; that being a Head-To-Head shot. In other words, keep aware of the current situation and react accordingly.

Airplane Performance:

I have a table of what these planes will do as far as speed at different altitudes, turn rates, climb rates, weapon ranges, ammunition delivery rates, etc. But honestly, after all this time, I'm still learning and reluctant to stick my neck out by posting that data. You'll learn much better if do your own homework.

Performance characteristics of the planes in this game are SOMEWHAT based on historical data. Some actual imperical data and tactics are valid for this game, some are not. This game, like all the others, has "Balanced" the planes. For whatever reason they changed the performance characteristics. It is something you'll have to accept. One major difference between history and the planes in this game is in their speeds at altitude. In actual flight, as long as your engine will perform, higher thinner air allows increased airspeeds. But not the in this game, the lower you are, the faster your plane will fly. The turning rates for the airplanes in this game have been also been exaggerated. In reality, none of the planes in this game could come close to turning with a Spitfire. For whatever reason, the designers of this game made the Spitfire turn twice as fast as they actually did in WWII. But then again, all the planes turn faster in this game than their historical counterparts.

Something else that is greatly different from historical data is the rate of fire. The eight 50-cal's on a real P-47 fired a total output of about 107 rounds per second (rps). But in this game, the P-47's 3,400 round ammunition loadout are dispensed in 17 seconds, which is 200 rps! If this game was historically correct, its my opinion that the P-51 Mustang would be much too dominant (now it is almost a dog). Anyway, this game has been balanced so that a disciplined pilot in any plane can defeat any average pilot.

Many new pilots ask what is the best plane. There isn't a "best" plane. The keys to success are your knowledge, practice, and skill. Each plane is just a tool. Learning the strengths and weaknesses of each plane will keep you from trying to pound on a screw with a hammer, or turn a nail with a screwdriver. To get a bunch of tools for your toolbox, fly and fight with ALL these planes, until you've learned their relative speeds from high to low altitudes, acceleration rates, how apt the are to stall, their instantaneous and sustained turn rates, roll rates, firepower, relative durability, etc. Then fly the plane that matches your style.

Aircraft Control:

LEARN AND USE ALL OF YOUR FLIGHT CONTROLS!!! All the top pilots use every single tool in the game. Trust me, they are killing you by just a few inches. They do most all of the right things at just the right time, and all it takes to win is get a few bullets in you before you can shoot them. ENERGY Management is the name of the game when fighting with in a propeller driven aircraft. Every time you move the nose of your plane, you're expending energy. Whoever learns to manage their energy in every situation will eventually be able to bring their guns into play before their enemy.

Flaps, Auto-Trim, Rudder, and the throttle all effect the flight properties of your plane. Some have more of an effect than others. So failure to use one of them will not make a huge difference. HOWEVER, it does not take a huge difference in performance to be the first pilot to get a few dings in on an opponent. Once someone is damaged, it is only a matter of time before they are dead. So learn what effect each of the controls have, and when to use them all.

Stalls are a loss of control. Your controls are only effective if your airspeed is high enough to have a sufficient amount of air moving across the control surfaces. For each plane, there is a different stall speed, at different altitudes. It is possible to stall both wings, or one wing at a time. For instance, to roll into a banked turn, your ailerons increase the lift on one wing, and decrease lift to a relative stall on the other one. Many aerial combat tactics are designed to lure your opponent into going for a shot right away and risk a stall, which will allow you to shoot them a little later.

Flight Control Input:

In the first lesson on Situational Awareness, I suggested you get a Joystick that twists for rudder control, but I would like to correct that statement: DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT FLYING WITH A JOYSTICK THAT DOES NOT HAVE RUDDER CONTROL. Under many situations, the only difference between a win or a loss is with the use of your rudder in the turns and rolls. Without rudder control on your stick, you're stuck using your < > keys to activate the rudder. In a slow hard turn, one touch of those keys can get you killed.

With a joystick that twists left-right for rudder control, you get to feather your rudder with a lot more feel. In a hard banked-turn, the rudder is actually more of an elevator. Just the right amount of rudder in a hard turn keeps your nose down and your thrust vector pointed toward the opponent. If you're using the < > keys, all you get is full rudder one way or the other. Too much rudder combined with full elevator deflection in a hard turn is begging to stall. Hint: Stall = BAD THING!

Using the rudder can improve your roll-rate. Something else, one of the more advanced techniques of Head-To-Head shooting, is "skidding" to one side of the enemy's bullet stream. For example, just the right amount of sustained Left-Rudder with a slight Roll-Right might be all you need to get the win by deceiving your opponent. But none of that is possible using the < > keys.

Flaps (F-Key to activate the four settings, V-Key to retract): These controls increase the lift of the wings, delaying a stall, allowing you to safely fly slower. The increased lift also makes your turns tighter at all speeds. However, turning too tight is not always faster because you might be on the edge of a stall. To turn tighter, extend your flaps as your air-speed will allow. First you'll get the "Combat" and then the "Red Line" flap settings at the first two clicks of the F-Key. But to get "Takeoff" or "Landing" flap settings, and the greatly increased lift and turning rates that these settings provide, you'll have to drop your speed to about 150 mph (250 kph) or less.

There are five ways to cut your air-speed. Toggle the engine off, throttle down, drop your landing gear, turn sharper, or climb. Mostly, I climb and/or toggle my engine off and on with the E-Key. It is easy to forget you've throttled down, and if you drop your Gear at high speed, they may lock in place. The tradeoff is that flaps will slow you down even further, and decrease your stability. Then if you don't retract them before you reach high speeds, they'll malfunction and lock in place (just like your landing gear). Locking your flaps converts you into a TNB plane. But do what it takes to get this current kill, you may not get another chance.

Auto-Trim (S-Key toggles on and off): Trim-On increases your stability for speed and long distance shooting. Generally, Trim-Off allows for maximum maneuverability. There are exceptions, so keep an open mind. By accident, I found the 47 turns better sometimes with Trim-On.

Shooting Skills:

Without great flight control skills, you can forget about becoming a good shot. Your turns have to be crisp. Turning past your enemy, then over-correcting, etc. will waste energy and bullets. Learn to roll out of your bank slightly before you get pointed at your target. For long distance and complicated shots, you have to deliver a steady stream of ammo. This means managing your energy, keeping your speed up, and your flight path smooth.

If you are in a stall or have locked your flaps, forget about making consistent long shots. When you're chasing someone, the maximum gun range for all the planes is about 3,300 feet (1 kilometer) on a straight shot. For Head-To-Head shots, double that number. Angled (deflection) shots are usually much less than that. Tiny stick movements make all the difference. Be sure your .GunnerDifficulty is set to 0. Practice, practice, practice. Try practicing off and online with .RealSize set to Yes. Use an alias for online play if you are getting hammered and embarrassed.

Learn when to shoot dead-on, when to lead the enemy 6 plane lengths, as well as the effects that speed, altitude, and distance have on bullet trajectory. For lead-angle shots, when possible, its best to start shooting well ahead of your target, then decrease the lead-angle until you see damage. Once you get your short-range small lead-angles down, then you can learn how to hit those long-range high-speed compound-lead-angle shots. Making those shots is AWESOME!!! If you have lost your feel for the angles, try playing offline with AutoPilot on. This will show you the basic angles, but the AutoPilot generally takes very short bursts, and only from close range. So using AutoPilot for online play is not only non-sportsman like, its putting you as a disadvantage.

Another trick to learning the correct shooting angles is to watch the online game-lag. For some reason, the game will sometimes cause the planes to flutter around the sky right when there is a correct firing solution. It is very frustrating, but at least you can use the lag as a learning tool.

Aside from ruining someone's day, another by-product of becoming a crack-shot, is knowing the shots you're giving away to your opponent. A well-timed tip of the wings may give you one more pass, and your wingman just enough time to save you. Getting the reputation as a deadly shot gives you a mental edge as well.

From the seat of your P-51 firing 104 rps (historical rate was only about 80 rps), if you go up against a P-47 that fires 200 rps, most of the time you cannot out-gun them, so you'll be better off trying to get behind them with TNB tactics. But lets say you did get that 47 in a hard turning fight, then they rolled into a dive with Landing Flaps extended and locked them. They've lost their top speed, a lot of their stability, and thereby the ability to accurately shoot long distances. Now the tables have completely turned, because if they're smart, they desperately want to stay in a turning fight with your P-51. If you have a safe exit, its best to use your speed, come back for a few dings, then break away, and make pass after pass until they're too wounded to fly. In this game, the correct thing to do at any given time, is relative and dynamic. So as stated, be aware and flexible enough to always play to your strengths and exploit the enemy's weaknesses.

Head to Head (HTH):

The P-47 has the best firepower and durability. So against ANY other plane in this game, it has an advantage in Head-To-Head (HTH) contests. Most of the top pilots this game (again, there are exceptions to that), will avoid going HTH with a 47 unless they are in one themselves. In the hands of a sharp-shot, the 47 in a HTH battle will almost always bring the other guy down, and since the 47 is so tough, many times it will survive the encounter, even if they get badly wounded.

Several pilots have mastered a Horizontal Corkscrew maneuver. This forces the BNZ pilot to take difficult compound-deflection shots, and/or turn for the shot. If you have wounded someone severely enough that they can barely fly, do not go for a HTH shot, the situation has changed. Re-evaluate, if all they can do is fly straight, no matter what plane you're in, you're now in a TNB plane, so have some fun and don't let them do the only thing they can do. But if you're badly wounded, break off early, run off farther because you'll need more room to turn around, or just try to ram someone! The effectiveness of BNZ is knowing when and where to run. Just don't spend a lot of time trying to fly a carcass in a large fight. Your wingmen will end up having to fight your opponent as well as their own. So give up the kill, and then revive.

Fighting one style against another:

The most important thing in either style, TNB or BNZ is to keep the fight where you want it. If you are both healthy and high on energy, then stick with running and gunning, or turning and burning as the case may be. But keep a weather-eye out for changes in the situation. If you've severely wounded a Spitfire with your P-47, go ahead and turn and kill them as fast as you can, but just make sure they are wounded bad enough. A crafty pilot in a lightly wounded Spitfire will fake some stalls, tricking the 47 into a turning fight.

Sometimes a TNB pilot will try to get pointed at the BNZ pilot for a quick "snap-shot" before the pass. Then they will try to turn quickly and shoot the BNZ again before the exit zoom. If the TNB pilot tries this, they will give the BNZ pilot a chance at a close range shot on the initial pass, though it will be quick.

Other TNB pilots won't even let a BNZ pilot get a shot at them, they will completely corkscrew around in front and to the side, actually starting their reversal turn (called the "early-turn") even before the pass, then try to get in a few dings before the BNZ pilot can get out of range. In the world of TNB, this is called a "stern-conversion". To combat this, the BNZ pilot has to roll with them to get a high deflection shot, and that will not be easy. As soon as the shot is gone, but before the pass, the BNZ pilot has to turn and roll to just the right direction for a safe exit. If the BNZ pilot turns too much or wastes ammo, they're bleeding out of two holes.

The best hunters are very patient. If the BNZ pilot spends too much ammo, energy, or gets bored and frustrated, they may try something stupid and the TNB pilot has them (that may sound familiar). If you are just behind a healthy TNB pilot, and they start into a hard bank, but you just don't have the shot, things are probably not going to get better. Get out while you still have an exit. Breaking away from a death-spiral only works when they are at your 1 O'clock, not at your 3 O'clock. So, if you can't get a good shot at a TNB pilot very quickly, don't push a bad position, better to extend, and retire your aircraft for another pass (where have you heard that?). Get back to a position of strength, then start another BNZ attack. Do not get greedy, you almost got them. Learn how you almost got them, and try again.

Generally, the Head-To-Tail range of all the weapons on these planes is about 3,300 feet (1 kilometer), so if you are BNZing with a faster plane, once you reach that distance, you should be safe. The key to Horizontal-BNZ is to be slightly out of their gun range just when they get pointed at you. If you end up with a larger safety margin when you make your exit, then you can spend a little more time turning with them on the next pass. Funny thing, it seems to work better trying to estimate how much longer you can stay in a turn on the next pass, then to wonder how much sooner you should have exited when you are all shot up and on the ground, hehe.

Chasing:

When you're on the run, watch the plane with your target window, and roll your wingtips to the opposite of the chase plane without touching the elevator (bank turning). Note: If you're looking at the chase plane in the target window, this will look like you are rolling to the same orientation. Rolling 45 degrees will cost you very little speed, but it keeps your wings out of the horizontal-plane of your chaser, decreasing their target.

If you have a wingman, slowly bank toward him, this will greatly cut the distance for your wingman to close on your enemy. Wingmen should vector to intercept their buddy in the lead plane and not chase the enemy plane directly.

If the two of you are chasing one plane, split up side by side a few thousand feet apart. If the target turns on you, break away from him and your wingman before he gets in gun range. If they continue to chase you, it will give easy shot to your wingman, and it keeps the target from getting a double kill. If both of you chase him directly, it is not too hard for one pilot to make a quick reversal and shoot two planes that are closely lined up.

In a big fight, a lot of the time I just wound people, and let my wingman finish them off. Then I look for the next most dangerous guy, so that my team wins. Conversely, if an enemy is 2 miles away and fighting to keep their plane in the air, consider letting them go. Think about helping your wingman. Another plus is that you will save your energy and put yourself in an advantageous position for the next engagement.