Posted by: RC Clone
This is why
Jetpack
This ability was intended by the developers to be used as a stand in for the Gravity Lift Equipment of Halo 3 and therefore only used to get a player to higher level on the map and only that.
In practice this ability is used to fly above the entire map and use the height advantage found there to rain death on players that have stayed at ground level.
The ability can also be used to get to high points that are not ground accessible which can then be used to wait and regenerate shields because ground level players can not attack you or be used as a high vantage point from which to shoot players on the ground accessible level of the map.
To stop these uses maps have a return area that can be placed on maps and will kill players when they stay out of bounds to long. This solves the problem of Jetpackers using high areas as vantage points for long periods, but this does not stop them from hiding in these areas for a short while to recover shields or stop them from flying over the map and firing on those on the ground.
Being able to fly over the maps and shoot at those on the ground allows the Jetpackers to completely ignore the flow that a map was designed to have because a Jetpacker can fly over all the structures that make up the map. This also highlights another problem with the maps. The cover on Reach maps was not designed with this evolved use of the Jetpack in mind.
Jetpacks and Cover
Cover on a map comes in two common forms. Obstructions meant to block players from shooting you while at the same elevation as you. Rocks, walls, and other small Forge objects or map scenery are examples of this type of cover.
Rooms are the second common form of cover in most Reach maps. Rooms usually block off the player the area from attack of any direction.
Jetpacks easily get a player over obstructions, which were made as ground level cover. The problem with this is that a player most often uses obstructions as cover to keep themselves safe from ground level enemy fire while they wait for their shield to regenerate. A Jetpacker can just fly up into the air and just for this reason alone can probably catch at least one player unaware who has a low shield and was waiting for it to regenerate.
There are two way to avoid being caught off guard by Jetpackers and neither is a good option. The first is to constantly be looking in the air. This will let you see players that are jetpacking, but now you are no longer focusing on your own level and that leaves you vulnerable to the jepackers teammates.
The second option is to only take cover in rooms, but this cuts you off from being able to help your team and rooms are extremely prone to grenade spam giving the other team an easy solution if they feel the need to kill you or flush you out.
Both of these types of cover interact badly with Jetpack. When you go behind an obstruction you can be shot from above and when you run in a room you are safe, but cut off from your team and risking grenade spam.
Countering Jetpackers
So what is the way to counter players using these advantages Jetpack has over staying on the ground?
It is simple really. The most effective counter to players making the map geometry, cover layout, and map based strategy irrelevant is to join them and also use the Jetpack. At this point the game will devolve into the frustrating gameplay of players on each side Jetpacking as high as they can go and shooting any other Jetpackers they see. They do this because, as I have already said, sticking to the ground while the other team is using Jetpack in a manner that exploits the problems with the maps puts the team on the ground at a severe disadvantage.
Basically Jetpack ruins skill based team strategy and forces gameplay to devolve into uncontrolled and uncoordinated jetpacking.Convincing argument. The problem you are facing is new tactic the halo franchise is not used to, vertical fighting. Possible solutions to this are large vertical maps or the rarely used drop sheild because it gives you complete cover while you wait for your sheilds to recharge.