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Subject: FALCON pointers from a master pilot
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Poll: FALCON pointers from a master pilot  [closed]
Do Wraith pointers next!:  56%
(27 Votes)
Do Revenant pointers next!:  44%
(21 Votes)
Total Votes: 48

From the author of the Warthog pointers thread ( http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=62712949&v iewreplies=true&postRepeater1-p=1 ), by popular demand, here's a list of pointers for the coolest vehicle in the game... If you find these tips useful, post so the thread stays around for a while for others, or save it so it goes on the side bar.



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These tips are in no particular order and I might add more if I think of them later or if someone else posts a good one.
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-Here's a rendered video of some top notch piloting by Krusty Pigeon where his gunners get 100+ kills without dying. This shows a great example of continuously moving and lining up the targets for your gunners.
http://www.bungie.net/Stats/Reach/FileDetails.aspx?fid=239363 41&player=Krusty%20Pigeon

-Know where the Falcon spawns and how often it spawns on each map that has one. Mastering the Falcon means nothing if you're not the pilot.

-The Falcon is an offensive vehicle, much like the Banshee. Its speed and firepower are well suited for hit and run attacks, ambushing unaware foot soldiers, and terrorizing spawn zones.

-Don't linger in one place for too long, as DMR or NR fire can quickly kill your exposed gunners. DMR fire is much more deadly in BTB than in Invasion, because TU's 85% bloom makes it easier to headshot a gunner. Keep moving around the map, keep your enemies guessing and terrified, and don't give them a chance to bring a power weapon to you.

-Never fly the Falcon around without gunners, unless you're searching for a teammate to pick up.

-Two gunners are better than one, except in some intense Objective games like Invasion Spire, where dedicating half your team to the Falcon may reduce your capacity to capture the core.

-Communication between you and your gunners is key to offense and defense. Choose gunners who have headsets. Constantly scan the map with your eyes and call out targets. As the Falcon's pilot, you are the vehicle's commander, and you should direct your gunners what to shoot. Gunners should also call out targets to the pilot, or to each other if the target is on the wrong side.

-Pay attention to your gunners' shields. If a gunner takes a lot of damage, turn around and let the other gunner engage. You can wiggle the left thumbstick to rock the Falcon side to side and break enemies' aim assist, making your gunners much harder to shoot.

-Priority targets are serious threats to your Falcon, threats to the objective, serious threats to your teammates, and targets of opportunity, in that order.

-The Falcon's machine guns are not hitscan. The bullets are slower than NR needles, they're more like Warthog or turret bullets. Gunners must lead their fire significantly when the target is far away. The guns also have bloom, and are more accurate if you "pulse" them like an AR, which kills distant targets faster. The optimum range is about the same as that of a Warthog.

-Fly close to the target so your gunner can kill it as quickly as possible, and bloom and bullet travel time don't become problematic. However, don't fly so close that you can be easily boarded by a jetpacker or stuck with plasma grenades.

-Be extra cautious about flying too close to infantry in Invasion, because all the Elites have plasma grenades and many have plasma pistols. Needlers are dangerous to a Falcon's gunners, as the tracking makes them very easy to hit.

-Splattering is generally a bad idea since the Falcon can't rapidly change direction and people can jump out of the way. It's too easy to misjudge your speed and altitude, miss, hit the ground or a rock and get stuck, and be boarded. Splattering might work sometimes against an unaware sniper or someone slowed down by an objective they're carrying.

-The ideal place in your field of vision to position targets is between 10:00 and 12:00, or 12:00 and 2:00. Gunners are least vulnerable to fire from the front, and a target that's at 11:00 to 1:00 can be shot by both your gunners at once and killed twice as quickly.

-It's always best to keep all enemies in front of you, so your gunners don't lose situational awareness by having to turn around. Tell your gunners to always face forward and look for upcoming targets.

-The "transport Falcon" may be a myth, but you can still transport an objective, if the carrier surfs on top of the Falcon. This is useful for quickly bringing the core carrier to the Pelican on Spire, or capturing flags on Abridged. On Abridged, you can even fly sort of "under" the map to safely and stealthily bring a flag carrier home or a bomb carrier to the base.

-If someone's surfing the Falcon, you can go full speed and he won't fall off, but sudden turns might toss them off. If they walk into the rotors they'll die and you'll get a betrayal.

-The spinning rotor blades will instantly kill anyone - friend or foe - who touches them, no matter how fast the Falcon is moving. Be extra careful not to splatter/betray your teammates on Spire as they take the giant man cannons.

-If you pick up gunners with Jetpacks they can jump out from high in the air and ambush enemies ODST-style. If you're high enough, the enemies won't see them coming on radar.

-On Spire, you can safely fly "below" the side of the map slightly under the cliff's edge. This is great for dodging rockets and plasma blueberries, and taking a breather to refresh everyone's shields. It's also a great way to surprise enemies near the core capture point, nobody ever sees this coming. You can also do this on Abridged, or even fly under the main bridge. Like Foehammer says in Halo CE, they'll never expect an aerial assault from underground...

= WEAPON THREATS TO THE FALCON =

-The Spartan Laser is the deadliest threat to a Falcon. You can't counter it or get far enough away to escape it. Just make sure your team controls it.

-The Sniper Rifle is a threat, but it takes 6-8 shots to blow up a Falcon, and you should be able to take cover or shoot up the sniper in that time. As you approach, keep the sniper in front and wiggle side to side so he can't pick off your gunners.

-The Plasma Launcher is a deadly threat. There's almost no way to dodge those little blue mofos except getting behind cover. Four bolts will destroy the Falcon, two will kill just the gunners.

-Rockets from the Rocket Launcher or a Hog can be dodged, if you change your direction quickly at the last second. But, they might keep their lock, and circle around to hit you again.

-If you get EMP'd by a PP or GL, don't give up and jump out. The Falcon will fall to the ground very slowly and might even regain power before it hits.

-The Focus Rifle does next to nothing to a Falcon's armor, but can easily kill gunners if you don't move around.

-Concentrated DMR or AR fire will wear down your armor just like it will on any vehicle, so don't hang out in one place or out in the open for too long. When a scattered team is all pinging you with DMRs, wipe them out one by one. A Falcon has slightly more health than a Warthog.

= VEHICLE THREATS TO THE FALCON =

-Warthog: an even fight. Their gun is more powerful than either of yours but not both of them combined. Line it up so both your gunners can shoot it at once. If you fly directly enough above the Hog, its gun might not be able to turn high enough to hit you, although your guns can still hit it.

-Rocket Hog: hard. Fly close and erratically so they can't get a lock on you.

-Scorpion: nope. You're not going to beat a Scorpion unless you kamikaze hijack it from midair. But the two vehicles don't appear on any of the same maps in Matchmaking.

-Falcon: an even fight. The pilot with more gunners and better evasive maneuvers wins. Keep the enemy Falcon at 12:00 so your gunners can both shoot it at once. Falcon guns can't aim very high, so if you're flying higher than the enemy it won't be able to shoot you at all.

-Ghost: very easy. Their plasma does almost nothing to you and their armor is weak. If they're smart they'll just run away.

-Wraith: very easy. Fight it from very far away and you'll be able to dodge all their slow moving blasts. The only danger is it's so tough that it takes a long time to kill and you might lose track of what else is going on. It's so big that the gunners can shoot it from extremely far away without worrying about bloom or leading.

-Revenant: easy. You can easily dodge their blasts and they aren't much tougher than a Ghost. Hover above it and it won't be able to hit you at all.

-Banshee: very hard. Your guns can kill it quickly but a smart Banshee pilot will use the up-flip and get so high up that your guns can't even aim at it, and then bomb you. You can dodge the homing bombs just like rockets though, but it's tougher. Make sure you're always higher than the Banshee.



[Edited on 02.21.2012 9:13 AM PST]

  • 12.06.2011 3:29 PM PDT

Great tips. As a pilot I say bravo to you.

  • 12.06.2011 3:33 PM PDT

I want my elephant back.
Give it to me now!
(Please?)

Me.

lol

Nice post, but 1 gunner to me is better, that way you can keep your focus on one side. This way, you can give them an even area so they can see all they need to see.

The Banshee is actually easy. Their bombs are slow moving and easy to dodge, and their plasma cann on can barely do much.

  • 12.06.2011 3:36 PM PDT

It only takes a simple question to change everything.

Incredible tips. I normally only have one gunner because I can give them a very wide view point. Also, hovering in one place during invasion normally works out well for me. Just make sure you are far away enough to dodge stickies and plasma pistols.

  • 12.06.2011 3:57 PM PDT
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Always up for REACH customs!


Posted by: Boberson1234
Incredible tips. I normally only have one gunner because I can give them a very wide view point. Also, hovering in one place during invasion normally works out well for me. Just make sure you are far away enough to dodge stickies and plasma pistols.


It's true that Elites are less dangerous than Spartans to your Falcon at long range because their NRs do basically nothing to vehicle armor.

  • 12.06.2011 4:26 PM PDT

Great tips.

I prefer the 1 gunner though; I fly my falcon in circles like a chopper gunner in black ops. Then When I'm done, I move to a different spot.

But it's just a falcon style

  • 12.06.2011 5:13 PM PDT
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About ICanHasRofl being a host booter.

Lawl.

Posted by: nicksta14
He's told me he does, you're acting like he's afraid to own up to it. Which he isn't.

good post

  • 12.06.2011 5:44 PM PDT

First in social ranked firefight campaign competitive and ODST goose splatters.
My other account is UrbanTwisticle
20,000+ total matchmade goose splatters

Check out my YouTube Channel

You can splatter a falcon with a mongoose so it should be under vehicle threats.

  • 12.06.2011 6:05 PM PDT
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Always up for REACH customs!


Posted by: analbumcover
You can splatter a falcon with a mongoose so it should be under vehicle threats.

Huh? Source?

  • 12.06.2011 8:38 PM PDT

Can I have a pursuit warthog? (red&blue flashing lights, siren, black and white paint job, gull-wing doors, no turret but a truckbed cap where the turret assembly should be, and the ability to arrest players :)

A police falcon would be great as well... (Black&white paint job, flashing red & blue lights on the wing struts and tail, no turrets and doors that open and close similar to the republic gunships in Star Wars. Kick... Ass.)

Police pelican would be cool too!!!


Posted by: Echo 318
Great tips.

I prefer the 1 gunner though; I fly my falcon in circles like a chopper gunner in black ops. Then When I'm done, I move to a different spot.

But it's just a falcon style

This. Effective, less strain on the pilot( me usually ), and allows you to focus on giving that gunner a great AoA. Funny thing is, I seem to live outstandingly longer if I fly in drunken circles around an enemy. It's as if they can't turn around that fast.

But for the gunners in relation to the pilot, 8-11 o' clock or 1-4 o' clock shooting positions seem to work the best for the gunners. Wide tolerances for the gunners to finish their jobs.

Oh yeah, and edit vs scorpions. It's survivable. Don't fly in a straight line for more than a second. Been there, done that on one of my custom games.

[Edited on 12.06.2011 9:22 PM PST]

  • 12.06.2011 9:00 PM PDT

Show a video of you in one so people can actually see how you do it.

  • 12.06.2011 9:02 PM PDT


Posted by: noegiP ytsurK

Posted by: NinjaLord77
Show a video of you in one so people can actually see how you do it.
http://www.bungie.net/Stats/Reach/FileDetails.aspx?fid=239363 41&player=Krusty%20Pigeon
here is some good falcon gameplay...


You need to YouTube that. I don't have Bungie Pro

  • 12.06.2011 9:11 PM PDT
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Posted by: Achronos
It isn't our shiznit anymore.

For beginner pilots I would add precision piloting to the list of things to practice. For example, try to fly through Breakpoint's tunnel without hitting the walls or ceiling. Sometimes you as a pilot need to maneuver the Falcon low to the ground (around the rock pillars on Spire) if you are evading fire or transporting a flag carrier.

Also practice projectile evasion. Can you dodge a rocket? How about two rockets? Multiple times? Can you put yourself into a position where you don't have to dodge rockets multiple times? The next time a rocket is coming straight at you, fly straight towards the rocket and drop your altitude as fast as possible. You will miss the rocket every time and if you are close enough to the ground the rocket won't have enough space to turn around and will crash into the ground.

Great guide.

Also, I had a mini-guide somewhere dealing with the Falcon...
Here it is

[Edited on 12.06.2011 9:24 PM PST]

  • 12.06.2011 9:22 PM PDT

First in social ranked firefight campaign competitive and ODST goose splatters.
My other account is UrbanTwisticle
20,000+ total matchmade goose splatters

Check out my YouTube Channel


Posted by: the pib

Posted by: analbumcover
You can splatter a falcon with a mongoose so it should be under vehicle threats.

Huh? Source?
I am the source. Mongooses can splatter the following vehicles under normal circumstances - Warthog, revenant, banshee, falcon and ghost. You can splatter a wraith or another mongoose only under extreme circumstances and with a few of my tricks. I have not been able to goose a tank.

I am working on a vid so sorry I will not tell you how just yet.

  • 12.07.2011 12:55 AM PDT
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I had one pilot pissed that his turrets weren't killing someone, over and over, and what he was doing was aiming directly at them, rather than turning one side enough to be able to actually see them...

  • 12.07.2011 2:01 AM PDT
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Posted by: NinjaLord77

Posted by: noegiP ytsurK

Posted by: NinjaLord77
Show a video of you in one so people can actually see how you do it.
http://www.bungie.net/Stats/Reach/FileDetails.aspx?fid=239363 41&player=Krusty%20Pigeon
here is some good falcon gameplay...


You need to YouTube that. I don't have Bungie Pro

Rendered video's don't require bungie pro to watch, and non-rendered videos can be watched on your xbox. Rendering them is what required bungie pro, but you can render things without b.pro now anyway, so in any case your statement does not make sense.

  • 12.07.2011 2:04 AM PDT

If you're in invasion you can use the spawn system quite cleverly, if both partners and another player are on the falcon.

If your partner dies, the other guy's teammate can spawn in, if one of the other fireteam die then your partner can do the same.

That way you won't need to risk getting murdered looking for fresh gunners and you shouldn't need to retreat or land.
Could make all the difference in an Inv. Slayer gametype.

  • 12.07.2011 2:24 AM PDT

none of this really matters since theres no competitive/Ranked BTB in Reach.

  • 12.07.2011 2:33 AM PDT

Now then, tell me. What did Miggs say to you? Multiple Miggs in the next cell. He hissed at you. What did he say?


Posted by: S0ULJA PHARAOH
none of this really matters since theres no competitive/Ranked BTB in Reach.


Wahaaay, and there it is. I was just about to say that there is so much love and positivity in this thread until I read this post. Well done troll.

On topic. Good tips.

  • 12.07.2011 2:40 AM PDT


Posted by: Claude Spunkton

Posted by: S0ULJA PHARAOH
none of this really matters since theres no competitive/Ranked BTB in Reach.


Wahaaay, and there it is. I was just about to say that there is so much love and positivity in this thread until I read this post. Well done troll.

On topic. Good tips.


how am i trolling? im just saying that the falcon isn't utilized

  • 12.07.2011 2:44 AM PDT

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