- the pib
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- Veteran Legendary Member
Always up for REACH customs!
Poll: FALCON pointers from a master pilot [closed]
| Do Wraith pointers next!:
56%
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(27 Votes)
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| Do Revenant pointers next!:
44%
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|
(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]