I'm on chapter 4 of Prelude (scouting mission where the ghost targets keep appearing and disappearing).
It take > 6 mins of conversation before the fighting starts and then I'm killed immediately (10-15 seconds) every time. Since this is so early in the game I don't know what I should do? So three questions:
1) Is there a better way to learn combat rather than doing the Prelude?
2) Can I skip through the 6 minutes of chatter to get to the action. I know the conversation off by heart now! It's all so sloooow!
3) Any tactics advice? I think I'm getting missiled so I try launching counter measures but I don't know (again how can I learn what the warning sounds means?!). I hit the after burner to try and escape the guy shooting me but I don't know if that works? Should I avoid attacking the enemy and just fly around trying to save my sorry self?
The game truly is an amazing achievement! So I hate to be a moan, but I'm on the border of giving up!
I've encountered a few missions where a sudden burst of activity will tear you apart. If you've been jumping ahead of your wing to attack, try staying with them until you're closer to weapons range (say 10k). An Im-Rec missile will lock before you're in guns range, so pick a target that your wingman isn't targeting (the target box will have a red dot on the right for each fighter targeting the craft) and light off a missile when in range to put them on the defensive. Then maneuver to avoid anything they pop off towards you.
There are two sounds associated with locks and missiles. There's a softer "digital growl" that indicates someone is tracking you, and one of the lights on the right side of the HUD (right there by the targeting circle) will light up. A missile launch is indicated by a "red alert" tone, a text warning at the top, and the other light on the right side lighting up. There will also be a steadily increasing beep as the missile closes.
There isn't much you can do if four fighters fire at you at once. Remember though that the cats use similar weaponry, and thus a light or medium fighter is probably going to be firing a heat-seaker at you from behind or an Im-Rec from in front. If it's from the front, begin your turn, drop the CM, and then punch the burners to clear, turning again towards the enemy so as not to present your tail to them. If from behind, drop a CM and turn 180, which will help the heat seeker lose it's lock on your pipes. If you punch the burners to pull away after you drop the CM, it'll track your hotter engines rather than the CM.