Matrix Games Forums

Recently i have been running patrol missions and I have to admit that I am starting to get in over my head. Over the last two missions, I have had to tackle 4 ship attack groups three different times in the same mission. Needless to day, I run out of missles and decoys very quickly like that. How di I defeat a missile when I am out of decoys? Slowing down dosent work, and speeding up dosen't always work, what do I do?

Also, when is it best to end a mssion? Like the above mentioned mssion, should I quit and accept results during a lull, when I am out of missles/decoys or just keep fighting until I can fight no more? I always try for the mission accomplishment, but sometimes I am not sure how long I should keep fighting.

ORIGINAL: Rogue187
Recently i have been running patrol missions and I have to admit that I am starting to get in over my head. Over the last two missions, I have had to tackle 4 ship attack groups three different times in the same mission. Needless to day, I run out of missles and decoys very quickly like that. How do I defeat a missile when I am out of decoys? Slowing down dosent work, and speeding up dosen't always work, what do I do?

Request backup and create nav points in the mission briefing to bring cap ships in the area.

Evasive maneuvers are your only option, basically, turn and burn. Combine this with radical maneuvering and you might shake a missile...

BIG emphasis on the might.

ORIGINAL: Rogue187
Also, when is it best to end a mission? Like the above mentioned mission, should I quit and accept results during a lull, when I am out of missiles/decoys or just keep fighting until I can fight no more? I always try for the mission accomplishment, but sometimes I am not sure how long I should keep fighting.

A good pilot has to be conservative and radical, along with knowing when to be one or the other...or both.
Don't jeopardize losing your men or your ship unless absolutely necessary.

and be advised...commanders prefer when you RTB with your multi-million dollar, (or euro) spacecraft.
They understand if you run out of fuel and have to hitch a ride though...

We can't win the war in a day...live to fight another day.

I feel so guilty when I scrub a mission because I ran into some fighters before I was able to get anywhere near my objective.  However, If I wind up getting hammered on by a frigate who is unleashing pairs of MK7 interceptor missiles on me, I turn tail and run, remaining ordnance or mission objectives be damned.  You may have ten decoys, but you only have one hull.

Noticed a little something interesting in the manual.. If you are trying to avoid a missile and launch a decoy, avoid hitting the augmenter as the missile will ALWAYS ignore the decoy in favor of your afterburner plume. I guess it makes sense when you think about it but in the heat of battle, instinct instructs you to get as far from the decoy as fast as possable. I guess thats why I didnt do so well with the fighters..

The augmentor also helps them lock onto them, or so I've noticed. In battle, I rarely use it.

Oh yeah, decoys are quite effective (at least 90-95%) if you're facing the missile and not using your augmenter.  They're less than 5-10% effective (dead reckoning) if you're engaging full burn. =)

If you're being assaulted by missiles, however, sometimes it's just wiser to turn tail and run.  Cut the augmenter when the missile warning comes in, drop a decoy, and wait until you hear the splash before hitting the augmenter again, and you should be able to get out of range before you have to use all of your decoys.  Obviously the strategy changes depending on the weight of your fighter and ordnance; trying to burn free of a light fighter in a Thunderbolt is like trying to escape from a pool of quicksand by flailing wildly.