So you've made it into AFS and to our forum, and you're probably asking "What now?"
Well, first of all, if you haven't done so yet, Do the training missions.
Once you've finished the training missions there is a gigantic amount of information available to you, and the more you read and understand the better off you'll be. For now though, you should start with the most important topics.
Start by getting familiar with the AFS program. Go read the introduction (link) if you haven't already, and after that check out the list of mentors for AFS. These are the people who are specifically here to help you, and you should always go to them first if you have any questions. Never be afraid to ask a mentor any question! They are there to help you!
Then once you're ready, you can begin your reading on the wiki. Click here to get started. You can use the menu on the right of that page to read other AFS-related pages on the wiki or just get started on Week 1.
Feel free to post any of your questions in this forum, that's what its here for.
Getting Started
Tips and Tricks
Along with the reading material linked above, here are some general tips you should keep in mind when playing:
1) Read this page on the wiki (link). In there is a great list of mistakes new players make and things they should watch out for. Some of them will be reiterated here for emphasis, but you should read that entire page when you get the chance.
2) If you're going to ask a question on all chat, make sure you don't have the lobby muted first. Allegiance mutes the lobby by default, but it will stay at whatever setting you choose in the options menu. Bring that up by hitting escape, then go to Game, then Mute/Filter and check the lobby filter setting. It should say "Don't filter chats sent from lobby", otherwise change it so it does. You can also use the shortcut keys for the menu (Hit Esc, G, M, L) but be careful because the lobby filter has three settings, not two.
3) Don't respond to trolls. You're going to hear a lot of smack talk going around during a game, after a game, and on the forums, and some of it may be directed at you. The best advice is to ignore it and keep learning from your mistakes. If you can grow a thick skin towards commentary then you're already ahead of most new players.
4) Read. The. Chat. There are mods to make the chat window bigger that you can look into, but unless you're busy doing something critical (such as evading fire or nanning a bomber) you should keep informed as to what your team is planning to do. You will also hear a lot of contradicting orders. Sometimes people on the team have a better clue than the commander, but for now remember this rule of thumb: When in doubt, do as the commander says. Once you've got a better grasp on the game then you'll know when somebody comes up with a better idea.
5) Don't try to play hero. We've seen far too many people, especially new players, try and defeat a full bomb run on their own rather than wait for their teammates trying to catch up from behind. Not fighting when you're outnumbered or when your opponent has a high KB (Kill Bonus) is always a good idea as a new player. Leave the glory hunting to the veteran players, your job is to work with your team.
6) Pick up pods. This goes hand in hand with #4. If you're left alone after a bomb run just destroyed your base, get away and pick up friendly pods. Chances are you aren't going to stop the bomber alone if most of your team just got podded by it, so pick everyone else up and you can save the next base its heading towards.
7) Don't jump on turrets unless the person is calling for gunners in the chat. There are a number of ships in this game where the turret is either not required or a waste of a player. Fighter-Bombers are a good example of this. On the same note you should not be sitting in base hoping somebody needs a turret soon. Unless you're in or near base when a call for turrets is made, make yourself useful somewhere else. Probing, nanning and scouting are all good tasks for this.
8) Get yourself a good reticule. The huge circle that comes with the default install is a piece of junk. Head on over to Mesial's site (link) and look around. Two of the more popular ones are The Man and TheBored's. You should experiment with different ones to see which kind you like though. Mesial also has a number of other modifications on his site you can check out.
Along with the reading material linked above, here are some general tips you should keep in mind when playing:
1) Read this page on the wiki (link). In there is a great list of mistakes new players make and things they should watch out for. Some of them will be reiterated here for emphasis, but you should read that entire page when you get the chance.
2) If you're going to ask a question on all chat, make sure you don't have the lobby muted first. Allegiance mutes the lobby by default, but it will stay at whatever setting you choose in the options menu. Bring that up by hitting escape, then go to Game, then Mute/Filter and check the lobby filter setting. It should say "Don't filter chats sent from lobby", otherwise change it so it does. You can also use the shortcut keys for the menu (Hit Esc, G, M, L) but be careful because the lobby filter has three settings, not two.
3) Don't respond to trolls. You're going to hear a lot of smack talk going around during a game, after a game, and on the forums, and some of it may be directed at you. The best advice is to ignore it and keep learning from your mistakes. If you can grow a thick skin towards commentary then you're already ahead of most new players.
4) Read. The. Chat. There are mods to make the chat window bigger that you can look into, but unless you're busy doing something critical (such as evading fire or nanning a bomber) you should keep informed as to what your team is planning to do. You will also hear a lot of contradicting orders. Sometimes people on the team have a better clue than the commander, but for now remember this rule of thumb: When in doubt, do as the commander says. Once you've got a better grasp on the game then you'll know when somebody comes up with a better idea.
5) Don't try to play hero. We've seen far too many people, especially new players, try and defeat a full bomb run on their own rather than wait for their teammates trying to catch up from behind. Not fighting when you're outnumbered or when your opponent has a high KB (Kill Bonus) is always a good idea as a new player. Leave the glory hunting to the veteran players, your job is to work with your team.
6) Pick up pods. This goes hand in hand with #4. If you're left alone after a bomb run just destroyed your base, get away and pick up friendly pods. Chances are you aren't going to stop the bomber alone if most of your team just got podded by it, so pick everyone else up and you can save the next base its heading towards.
7) Don't jump on turrets unless the person is calling for gunners in the chat. There are a number of ships in this game where the turret is either not required or a waste of a player. Fighter-Bombers are a good example of this. On the same note you should not be sitting in base hoping somebody needs a turret soon. Unless you're in or near base when a call for turrets is made, make yourself useful somewhere else. Probing, nanning and scouting are all good tasks for this.
8) Get yourself a good reticule. The huge circle that comes with the default install is a piece of junk. Head on over to Mesial's site (link) and look around. Two of the more popular ones are The Man and TheBored's. You should experiment with different ones to see which kind you like though. Mesial also has a number of other modifications on his site you can check out.
Last edited by Xeretov on Mon Nov 16, 2009 11:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
-
Zero_Falcon
- Posts: 413
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2008 5:14 am
- Location: Singapore
Reminder: Use the mouse (or joystick) to steer and shoot, never ever the keyboard. The mouse gives greater control over your ship steering and the extra buttons on the mouse/joystick frees up more keys on your keyboard.
To activate mouse flight, use numpad 0 (numlock must be on).
Under Options, I recommend that you use the mouse using Linear Control Response (for more 1:1 mouse movement and onscreen movement) and smallest deadzone.
To activate mouse flight, use numpad 0 (numlock must be on).
Under Options, I recommend that you use the mouse using Linear Control Response (for more 1:1 mouse movement and onscreen movement) and smallest deadzone.
-
Archangelus
- Posts: 2376
- Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 7:36 pm
- Location: Paradise City