Flying for anything but stats......

[Jumoschwanz]

Originally Posted by dimlee

Personal code is so... personal indeed.
I have developed my set of rules in early years of IL2 that included, for example, no shooting at paratroopers and at those who landed with lights on or smoking .

I never paid much attention to those who switched their lights on. Point-whores often would switch their lights on in the middle of a fight if they took a little hit or ran out of ammo etc., and they expected to be let go to land to get their precious points, too bad for them if I was around. If you start a fight you don't get to leave it just because you switched on lights.

Shooting those who bailed out, I probably did that too as it could also be abused by point-whores who were trying to get half their points instead of 10%. Of course there are also those who actually disconnect to avoid being shot down.

After you flew so long you knew who deserved mercy and who did not, at least by your code anyway.


Of course "shoulder shooters" need to be mentioned, they are scum. More than a few times if someone on my side was shooting past me at my target I would shoot them down points be damned especially if they passed by while they were shooting and got in front of me.

Those who got clean kills or ground attack points flying hard settings, covered the tails of their mates and then got back to their base or at least back over the line before crashing or landing. That is always most impressive to me.

Even if someone really sucked at flying IL2, they could still be my hero if they stuck out flying the hard settings and flew with some sort of honor, flew for some reason besides racking up points.

[dimlee]

Underdogs were mentioned above...
One of the greatest fun was to stick to "worst" craft types on a map and tried to perfect survival tactics and score some victories, if possible. Pe-3bis on 1942-1943 maps, for example. Or Bf-110 in late war scenarios.
I remember spending dozens (or hundreds?) hours on one server with the only Summer3Online map flying exclusively I-153 surrounded by 104Fs, 190-A4s, Yaks, etc. I thought I developed some kind of 7th sense as I learned to turn just split second before being pounded by another boomzoomer. Eventually, Bf and FW drivers on that server upgraded their skills and I moved (reluctantly) to P-39...considered as another underdog by many.

[Jumoschwanz]

Flying "underdog" aircraft is cool, although they are not always really underdogs.

I was one of the first online to fly the 109g2 regularly even on late-war servers. It did not seem like an underdog to me just because it had little less top speed. It ran cooler and turned better. I flew it on Sarah-Zoom server and was shooting everybody up in their stupid I-185s, La-7s etc.. and Sarah said something about it, I said I had a secret weapon, brains. I never liked her or her server and I would just go in there to shoot her and her I-185 down and then type the "sprinkles flowers" thing in the chat bar as she always did to others.

The 109f4 or f2 were always good even against late-war aircraft.

The last few years I often fly older aircraft against a late-war plane-set just because I don't think I could like myself anymore if I flew around in a 25lb spitfire or an La-7 even if everyone else had them.

Just as Dimlee pointed out, any good pilot knows they can do well in a late-war rocketship, so why not make it interesting and rewarding and jump into some older or oddball aircraft.

Knowing the opponents plane choice and flying technique can often let you pick some oddball aircraft that fits the situation and will let you get the job done.

A lot of guys like bombers. If you get to alt your gunners point out where attacks are coming from, and if you are practiced at manning a defensive gun, you can often beat up an attacking fighter so it quits or goes down.

Soon I want to put a track up of a mission I flew ten years ago in a Stuka B2. I had three BSS squad P40s and a P-39 attack me. I got the P-39 and one p-40 smoking, another P-40 crashed in a "maneuver kill", and I blew the other P-40 up with the tail gunner. Yes, they shot me to pieces but I think I could have landed except I ran out of fuel and that put me into the ground hard enough to see the aircraft explode and hand the victory to the smoking P-39, oh well....

[dimlee]

Bombers and their gunners...

I loved Me 163 as it gave me feel of invincibility for 10-11 minutes. Did not have many problems with bombers subject ammo was available. But then there was one incident I never forget. B-24 flying at about 5000 m, clear weather, no escort. I noticed him from below, I had enough fuel to speed up and to blast that brewery wagon from the skies. What could go wrong... His belly in my gunsight, distance about 500 m, I prepared to shoot and - my Komet blew up. Ball turret gunner did it and he was not AI. My jaw dropped. I managed to compose myself and saluted that smart bomber.

And recently I failed to shoot down very skilled Ju-88 over Norwegian waters. I attacked him in P-38 at speeds over 500 kmh from different angles, but he turned right at the moment I opened fire. He did that four times in a row winning enough time for 2 fighters to arrive. They chased me off, damaged and shot me down later.
I do respect bombers who know how to survive.