Boy howdy... let me tell you there is a big difference between a skilled pilot and a complete neophyte.
There have been numerous times where me and my Gunner have literally been the defining factor in winning a round. You know when more engineers are taking SAAWs instead of Plums (Yes, Plums... Not Pilum, PLUMS!) or the AV rockets that you're really owning it up. A good Pilot/Gunner combo can literally shut down all vehicular activity, they can even do asset denial better than any Recon could.
Now, a gunship in the hands of a neophyte? Sure, he might be able to shoot down transports, maybe an errat gunship or two. Possibly kill a tank or APC that's pre-damaged enough to have wasted its shields. Include a neophyte gunner and you can chalk up a few infantry kills based on a certain timeframe. But you can bet that this gunship is gonna explode at the drop of a hat by a Rorsch or even a Sudnik, and will absolutely cry for mother should a Walker spot it.
Now, let us look at the middle grounds.
An experienced pilot, with a neophyte gunner. Assuming the gunner even attempts to use the RGMs, it's not a bad combo. More often than not, i'll take a bad gunner than no gunner at all. (I seem to go up against a LOT of infantry when I fly...) Granted it isn't too hard to solo RGM if you have gunner experience or the right technique (Or if your name happens to be FAST... -_- ) but it can stil be risky if you get overconfident.
The inverse... Neophyte pilot, experienced gunner. Because most neophyte pilots lack the 'gunner sense' of any experienced pilot would, all the gunner can really do is take pot shots at anything lighting up in the RGM view and mow down any targets of oppourtunity with the guns. Still, better than the Neophyte/Neophyte.
I've already mentioned the dual experienced combo above.
Now the roles. The Pilot, by far, has the hardest job. He has to worry about... *Deep breath*
The other gunship(s)
'Hunter' (Aerial) Transports
Ramming spite transports
Ramming transports in general
Walkers
Tank MGs
Tank shells
Plums
Mitchells
Sudniks
SAAWs
Titan AA
Titan ground cannons
Lightpoles (Best Gunship AA in the game)
Rorsches
Terrain hazards
Elevation changes
Pods (Both Titan and APCs)
APC EMPs
APC mortars (They can snipe you out if you're not careful.)
Hachimotos
Locating and lining up RGM targets
Maneuvering so as not to get shot down when hunting infantry
Shield managing
Accidental TKs (Both giving and recieving)
Motion mines (Both on the Titan shield (If applicable) and when flying low.)
AND Death locking.
If any one of those things above that doesn't involve offense isn't handles correctly? Boom, game over, please wait 2 minutes to get your gunship back.
/Rant?
Last edited by ZCaliber (2007-07-21 02:05:29)