How far goes your imagination?

[Olham 164]

When I am flying one of my two most serious and longer-lasting Campaign pilots,

and getting into serious situations, I often experience:

 

- palms of my hands may sweat

- heartbeat getting stronger

- pulse frequency increases

- a general fear arises, that I may lose the fight this time

 

I often find myself breathing short and superficially, making funny noises or groaning.

Also, I encourage myself by saying positive things, like:

- Soon I'll get you!

- Ha, nice try, that! No way...!

- A well centered hit!

- There you got, what you were asking for, basterd!

- Not with me, you clown!

- Take this burst, to shut you up!

 

When I have destroyed the craft of a dangerous opponent, I may even giggle.

 

I wonder, if you guys are doing anything of that, or perhaps something different?

Edited March 24, 2011 by Olham

[Slartibartfast 153]

Having not flown OFF for awhile I have been experiencing riding my bike but I ended up playing bike video game at the weekend and I could have sworn I could have smelt cooking fully synthetic engine oil afterwards...

[Capitaine Vengeur 263]

Beware: "Now I have you!" and "Great shot, kid, that was one in a million!" are George Lucas registred trademark quotes...

[Hasse Wind 46]

It really depends on the pilot. I don't feel much for new and inexperienced pilots - if he goes down, I forget him and create a new one. But when the pilot has achieved something and has flown many missions, everything becomes much more serious. I don't want to lose my best pilots, so flying missions with them can be very exciting and also tiring, if I have to fight hard for survival. When I was flying the DID campaign here (I've been too busy and lazy to do that anymore), the missions were sometimes downright stressful, as I had invested so much in the pilot.

[MikeDixonUK 5]

I sometimes get nervous when I'm about to enter an engagement but mainly my worries come when I'm about to attack something, as I always fear I'm going to end up crashing into them, or having someone crash into me!

 

My thought process is basically:

 

Attack! - Don't crash, don't crash, don't crash, don't crash - Shoot! - didn't crash, didn't crash, didn't crash - Check Six! - Attack! - (repeat)

 

In WW2OL I'm generally nervous for most of the flight before engaging in combat (especially when waiting on the ground) but then when I get into a fight it gets replaced with having to concentrate and not mess up what I'm doing (unless they end up behind me, in which case I crap myself - and start mumbling swear words. ) then after I've landed after a big fight I end up pretty drained for a few minutes, then again in WW2OL it's against real people so you can't really compare it with the feelings of fighting against AI - and there's also the fear of letting your wingmen down, which you can only care about up to a point with the AI wingmen.

Edited March 24, 2011 by MikeDixonUK

[tranquillo 10]

When I am flying one of my two most serious and longer-lasting Campaign pilots,

and getting into serious situations, I often experience:

 

- palms of my hands may sweat

- heartbeat getting stronger

- pulse frequency increases

- a general fear arises, that I may lose the fight this time

 

I often find myself breathing short and superficially, making funny noises or groaning.

Also, I encourage myself by saying positive things, like:

- Soon I'll get you!

- Ha, nice try, that! No way...!

- A well centered hit!

- There you got, what you were asking for, basterd!

- Not with me, you clown!

- Take this burst, to shut you up!

 

When I have destroyed the craft of a dangerous opponent, I may even giggle.

 

I wonder, if you guys are doing anything of that, or perhaps something different?

I'm remarkably calm when flying in OFF. I'm like the above when driving though .

[Creaghorn 10]

since there is finally an ontopic thread i would like to push it a bit and will therefor break my own rule of talking about still living campaign pilots.

 

my current, and so far best campaign pilot started in may of 1916 in the marine jagdstaffel, fyling rolands. i avoided fighting enemies, especially when deep in enemy territory, only concentrating on the recon job.

that means when reaching the intended area, and it's cloudy, i have to fly low to be under the clouds to have a good look at the ground.

one thing i noticed over and over again is that beeing deep behind enemy lines, even without beeing attacked by scouts, is more thrilling than beeing attacked by hostile scouts over own territory . those AA explosions around you are more scary when beeing behind enemy lines than being over nomandsland, knowing you can at least crashland on your own side. especially with the roland i was always doing one sigh of relieve when reaching own lines, and another when landing on my airfield without crashing (not an easy task with the roland).

especially it's thrilling when beeing attacked over enemy lines by scouts. when there were too many of them, i abandoned mission and flew back asap, trying to gain height to stay always higher then the scouts stalking me, trying to endure it at least until reaching own lines. if they caught up, then i turned with them, making one pass, hoping to make them evade, and then trying to continue flying towards my lines until they have refocused again.

once it happened that my gunner and i got hit by AA in enemy territory, but not too far away. but i had to glide back, hoping to have enough height to reach my side. especially with the roland as a rather bad glider. over the trenches i was quite low. very thrilling to hear enemy bullets from the ground, feeling the hits and knowing not beeing able to do anything against it. i crashlanded and was out of comission vor about 5 weeks (dice roll honor mode).

 

in late november 1916 i switched to the marine jagstaffel, residing on the same airfield.

while beeing a hunter it was thrilling the first several months, but i numbed up within the time. just trying to not get surprised, which is rather easy over own territory. since the jagstaffel moved to coolkerke, which is rather close to the lines at the coast, almost on every sortie, the first couple legs are over enemy lines. that's the part where i'm alert the most. beeing sometimes relatively low, being shot at by AA and not having warnings by own AA to indicate enemies nearby.

also i'm more alert when some offensive starts and there is more action to expect. especially in later 1917 when we are always outnumbered and also have to fight against better AC. sometimes it's even tough to get off my airfield without having enemies nearby. the thrilling part here is to be very picky when to fight and when to let them go, hoping they haven't seen you.

now it's june 1918 and i have something less than 600 hours flight with 33 confirmed kills, and finally my squadron received the fokker DVII's which makes me think much more offensive when patroling. i hope that doesn't make me careless because feeling more secure in the fokker DVII and therefore lacking SA. we will see .

[Olham 164]

Good one, CapitaineVengeur! I'll have to be careful about the copyrights, I guess!

 

...over the trenches i was quite low. very thrilling to hear enemy bullets from the ground, feeling the hits and knowing not beeing able to do anything against it.

Von Richthofen described that as a nasty feeling - you could hear the numerous rifles being fired, like the sound of making popcorn.

 

...the thrilling part here is to be very picky when to fight and when to let them go, hoping they haven't seen you.

That is the part I was always wondering about - how you manage to avoid enemy contact. You mustr have better eyesight.

 

...now it's june 1918 and i have something less than 600 hours flight with 33 confirmed kills, and finally my squadron received the fokker DVII's

which makes me think much more offensive when patroling. i hope that doesn't make me careless because feeling more secure in the fokker DVII and

therefore lacking SA. we will see

Wow - you have almost managed to survive through the whole war! You must be the first one of us!

Congratulations, Creaghorn! - even if you still have some time to go - no one got that far yet, I think!

 

But now I still want to hear something about your physical and emotional effects during flights, as I had asked above?

Edited March 24, 2011 by Olham

[Slartibartfast 153]

But saying what I have said I must admit when flying in OFF the I have a rag prepared to dry my hands and brow just in case and not forgetting the medicinal alcohol for when I make it back alive... its Doctors orders honest must admit I was tempted to go for the Castor oil dispenser to make it feel more lived in now wheres the one for Cordite...

[Hellshade 110]

There's a lot of yelling and screaming when I fly. After my wife leaves the room though, not so much.

 

Just kidding. She does not complain at all but I couldn't pass it up.

 

Hellshade

Edited March 24, 2011 by Hellshade

[Creaghorn 10]

That is the part I was always wondering about - how you manage to avoid enemy contact. You mustr have better eyesight.

 

part of the trick is probably having a 26" monitor with 1920 x 1200 resolution. also i use nhancer with "combined" setting, which makes the enviroment look more realistic and less like graphics. depending on weather and daylight i can see specks very far away. also i have clouds on 5, so when i see specks in great numbers and i don't want to find out what they are, because curiosity can sometimes kill you, then there are more clouds and cloudlayers i can hide or at least pass them unnoticed.

 

Wow - you have almost managed to survive through the whole war! You must be the first one of us!

Congratulations, Creaghorn! - even if you still have some time to go - no one got that far yet, I think!

 

thank you very much sir. i'm sure there are other quiet souls out there who have managed similar things (or some not so quite souls. hi louvert ). i'm just the only one who is mentioning it here. actually i almost feel a bit like a braggart. that's not my intention. my pilot was hospitalized twice, had several vacations, had one prolonged vacation (4 weeks) after receiving the PLM. so there are busy times and less busy times. however, he didn't survive so long without any scratches. many times he also had more luck than brains. but having luck until it runs out probably belong to survivors.

 

But now I still want to hear something about your physical and emotional effects during flights, as I had asked above?

 

physical effects are that i'm often tired after a sortie. at least when flying in the nighttime after all real life stuff is done. when having spare time and i fly in normal daylight, then i can fly up to 4 sorties or so. sometimes i'm getting very tired during a sortie, so i simply want to get home to my airfield without doing any miracles. lol, i even experienced once or twice sudden vertigos during a sortie, while searching the skies for specks.

 

emotional effects i have rather between sorties when reading the newspapers (heeresbericht) about the happenings from the day before, reading about victories of other historical aces etc. i was even touched when reading about boelckes death, and the day later about the circumstances and funeral etc. when reading that julius buckler was promoted to leutnant, not because of emergency exam as many others did, but sheer because of doing his duty.

also when you fly with your AI wingmates, there are some who quickly die, but there is also a core which lasts for months or years, where you know their names without having to look at, seeing how their killtally slowly rises. once, in early 1917 coincidentally there appeared in the squadron a pilot with the same surname as my pilot. i imagined him to be my alter egos brother. when they flew sorties together i was always trying to take extra care about him. but since all AI planes have the same skins, it's easy to lose him in the actions. then my pilot had a week vacation for getting the EK1. during my vacation (manually advanced time) suddenly the brother was first missed and then declared dead. i somehow really felt pain because it happened during my time advance.

also there are several AI pilots i have flown with for many months, and who now are no more. i still remember their names and their kill numbers. like alrich wolfer, who had 16 kills when he died in may 1917.

also it is emotional when you see how the frontlines change. when you see barrages on ontouched surface on german side. when reading the news that russia has surrendered and that forces are now free to help the western front, i was happy and optimistic although knowing the history, but that's really how i felt. i was even more happy when finally the german offensives begun and the frontlines moved deep into the west. but now, june 1918 since the offensive is over, and i see the scattered fronlines some mud 2 years old, some other mud new, i can really feel how senseless all this is. nothing is won and probably everything is lost. just surviving stupidly day after day.

and that's although i know the real history and know how it all ends etc. but with having those roleplay elements, i'm really immersed and want to see the news, the other pilots, the battles. that are my emotional effects, olham .

[Olham 164]

part of the trick is probably having a 26" monitor with 1920 x 1200 resolution. also i use nhancer with "combined" setting,

which makes the enviroment look more realistic...

Great! I "only" have 1680 x 1050. Perhaps I should try Nhancer. When you came up with it, I had too much other setup stuff to manage.

Could you guide me there again? Where to download it? Does it work with ATI cards?

 

thank you very much sir. i'm sure there are other quiet souls out there who have managed similar things (or some not so quite souls. hi louvert).

i'm just the only one who is mentioning it here. actually i almost feel a bit like a braggart.

Why should you regard it as bragging, to report, that your pilot almost made it through the whole war?

And if it still feels like bragging to you - damn, we're all bragging here for lesser reasons.

Why not regard it as part of the exchange here on the forum - showing the others, that it IS possible?

And so make them try even better?

 

physical effects are that i'm often tired after a sortie. at least when flying in the nighttime after all real life stuff is done.

when having spare time and i fly in normal daylight, then i can fly up to 4 sorties or so. sometimes i'm getting very tired during a sortie,

so i simply want to get home to my airfield without doing any miracles. lol, i even experienced once or twice sudden vertigos during a sortie,

while searching the skies for specks.

That's what I wanted to know. So even a well trained sportsman like you does feel all this, what I observed for me.

 

emotional effects i have rather between sorties when reading the newspapers (heeresbericht) about the happenings from the day before,

reading about victories of other historical aces etc. i was even touched when reading about boelckes death, and the day later about the circumstances

and funeral etc. when reading that julius buckler was promoted to leutnant, not because of emergency exam as many others did, but sheer because

of doing his duty.

Yes, I think I know what you mean. A true emotion can creep up your spine, or hit you in your heart, when reading this.

After so many years, still... I enjoyed Julius Buckler's book at least as much as Udet's. A modest and honest soul, that's my impression.

 

also when you fly with your AI wingmates, there are some who quickly die, but there is also a core which lasts for months or years, where you know

their names without having to look at, seeing how their killtally slowly rises. once, in early 1917 coincidentally there appeared in the squadron a pilot

with the same surname as my pilot. i imagined him to be my alter egos brother. when they flew sorties together i was always trying to take extra care

about him. but since all AI planes have the same skins, it's easy to lose him in the actions. then my pilot had a week vacation for getting the EK1.

during my vacation (manually advanced time) suddenly the brother was first missed and then declared dead. i somehow really felt pain because it

happened during my time advance.

...and now you felt, "als hätte ich ihn im Stich gelassen" (as if I had abandoned him). Lothar felt that about his brother, although he was in hospital

and so he couldn't have helped Manfred. I know this feeling. It may be the reason for my often mad actions, trying to help a man out of a hopelessly

outnumbered fight. I lost many pilots that way. It is not logical, it is stupid. Emotions. But I develop more and more, to lead my flights careful enough,

that we do not get into such situations so easily anymore.

 

also it is emotional when you see how the frontlines change. when you see barrages on ontouched surface on german side. when reading

the news that russia has surrendered and that forces are now free to help the western front, i was happy and optimistic although knowing the history,

but that's really how i felt. i was even more happy when finally the german offensives begun and the frontlines moved deep into the west.

but now, june 1918 since the offensive is over, and i see the scattered fronlines some mud 2 years old, some other mud new, i can really feel how

senseless all this is. nothing is won and probably everything is lost. just surviving stupidly day after day.

and that's although i know the real history and know how it all ends etc. but with having those roleplay elements, i'm really immersed and want to see

the news, the other pilots, the battles. that are my emotional effects, olham

Thank you for your detailed answer. You are right - OFF is also a role player sim, if one wants it to be, and if you have the emotional openness

and are willing to get into it so deeply. I feel very much the same about - and within - "Over Flanders Fields".

Edited March 25, 2011 by Olham

[Creaghorn 10]

btw. one funny (actually not so funny if it would be real) thing happened in my campaign.

i know that the AI pilots inside the squadron have different skills.

when a new pilot arrives, i mostly erase his kills to zero, so he has to earn it like everybody else.

in summer 1917 a new pilot appeared, i forgot his name. he was a rookie, in the formation flying at the end.

it was the second flight he was in my formation. we got attacked by Se5's and i missed one and found myself suddenly being shot at by one of them. i couldn't shake him and expected the end of my campaign.

suddenly the Se5 turned away smoking because this rookie pilot chased him along and away from me, shooting him to pieces. very aggressive attitude.

in another flight as often as he helped, as much he caused dangerous situations by simpliy diving in front of my eyes, almost colliding with me or suddenly appearing in front of my guns, taking over the enemy although i was shooting at him. a real hotshot. aggressive and dangerous, sometimes for both sides.

 

some days later i thought about renaming him to "olham", but he didn't survive long enough. a shame because i felt he was a real good character in my squad

[Olham 164]

Was that a compliment, or a nasty critic, Creaghorn?

 

I don't fly like that so much anymore. I often even observe the beginning of a fight, before I join in myself.

I advise my wingmen, who they should attack, etc.

I lead my flight more carefully.

I don't run for each and every chance for a fight, like I used to; but rather keep the mission task in mind.

 

My main weak spot still is though: when I am in a furball, I fight like mad, and forget the danger of collision.

That's what you meant, I think - the hotspur.

[Creaghorn 10]

Was that a compliment, or a nasty critic, Creaghorn?

 

I don't fly like that so much anymore. I often even observe the beginning of a fight, before I join in myself.

I advise my wingmen, who they should attack, etc.

I lead my flight more carefully.

I don't run for each and every chance for a fight, like I used to; but rather keep the mission task in mind.

 

My main weak spot still is though: when I am in a furball, I fight like mad, and forget the danger of collision.

That's what you meant, I think - the hotspur.

 

maybe both olham .

that's when after the sortie the CAG first yells at him, and when he's done yelling he adds a thank you though. .

maybe a bit like maverick in top gun.

 

strangely i never advise my wingmen whom to attack. i just hit the attack button several times until all groups turn for attack and usually they know by themselves whom to attack without 5 AC chasing a single enemy, while there are other unmolested enemies. usually everbody picks his opponent. but maybe it depends on the qualitiy of the squadron. elite, average, good etc.

[Olham 164]

strangely i never advise my wingmen whom to attack. i just hit the attack button several times until all groups turn for attack

and usually they know by themselves whom to attack without 5 AC chasing a single enemy, while there are other unmolested

enemies. usually everbody picks his opponent. but maybe it depends on the qualitiy of the squadron. elite, average, good etc.

That is interesting, cause I haven't done that for a long time.

Maybe better sometimes, when being in a haste.

 

On the other hand: when I engage Nupes, they all have the tendency to dive down to the deck, where they can play their ace

card of being more agile. So, when a flight of Nupes comes down on us, I always advise my wingmen to attack those, who

remain highest of all. That way they don't get "smoked" so quickly.

Also, I sometimes find there are two or three enemy craft, which fight so well, they might be aces.

Then I send my wingmen to attack those first - otherwise those aces may eliminate my whole flight too quick.

 

But I'll try it your way today, and see how that works.

 

Oh, and as for the "Maverick" in Top Gun - I think I have advanced quite a bit from there, I'm sure.

Not yet far enough, may be.

What I need to control better, is that I get into an absolute rage, when I witness an enemy craft peppering one of my men.

Then I forget everything else and try to get at that guy as quick as possible. I want to kill him under all circumstances,

and I won't stop, before that is achieved - even if that means, that his wingman behind me demolishes my own kite.

A bit of insanity I must overcome.

 

I'm working on it!

[Hasse Wind 46]

Excellent work, Creaghorn. I'm sure your pilot is among the most longest-lived pilots ever to fly in OFF. And you are correct in that other people also have pilots that reach high numbers of flight hours. Call it superstition or something, but I don't like to talk about my best pilots too much.

[Creaghorn 10]

Excellent work, Creaghorn. I'm sure your pilot is among the most longest-lived pilots ever to fly in OFF. And you are correct in that other people also have pilots that reach high numbers of flight hours. Call it superstition or something, but I don't like to talk about my best pilots too much.

 

you were one of them in my mind when talking about the "quiet souls", sir

[carrick58 23]

When I am flying one of my two most serious and longer-lasting Campaign pilots,

and getting into serious situations, I often experience:

 

- palms of my hands may sweat

- heartbeat getting stronger

- pulse frequency increases

- a general fear arises, that I may lose the fight this time

 

I often find myself breathing short and superficially, making funny noises or groaning.

Also, I encourage myself by saying positive things, like:

- Soon I'll get you!

- Ha, nice try, that! No way...!

- A well centered hit!

- There you got, what you were asking for, basterd!

- Not with me, you clown!

- Take this burst, to shut you up!

 

When I have destroyed the craft of a dangerous opponent, I may even giggle.

 

I wonder, if you guys are doing anything of that, or perhaps something different?

 

mmmmmmmmm Plams sweat. Heart Races, Blood pressure rises, General Fear of what might happen. ? then I just write the check and get over it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

t

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

b

[tranquillo 10]

What I need to control better, is that I get into an absolute rage, when I witness an enemy craft peppering one of my men.

Then I forget everything else and try to get at that guy as quick as possible. I want to kill him under all circumstances,

and I won't stop, before that is achieved - even if that means, that his wingman behind me demolishes my own kite.

A bit of insanity I must overcome.

 

I'm working on it!

 

I'm like that, Olham. I find that i put myself at risk far too much, taking silly chances and this is only exacerbated when I see one of my wingmen getting hit. When I see that I tend to go ballistic and go all out to shoot the perpetrator down with little concern for my own safety.

If I'm in a furball and don't notice any of my wingmen suffering then I'm fine - quite calm about the whole thing - and only mutter obscenities when the enemy gets on my six. Like Creaghorn I let my wingmen get on with it - just keep hitting the attack button. Seems to work OK.

 

If I've been especially busy with work during the day then I can find a long mission very tiring and find myself not seeing the enemy 'till it's almost too late. That bit tends to get the adrenaline rushing though.

Edited March 25, 2011 by tranquillo

[Javito1986 14]

I just (barely) survived my 45th mission of the RFC campaign. It's been running since November '10, and in-game from March to June '17. When I first started this squadron was based in England! And while that may seem like quite a bit of time to survive, before you think I'm extraordinarily skilled please keep in mind

 

A) I only have 10 kills. Most missions don't result in contact with enemy aircraft, the most dangerous and hated assignment by far is balloon busting. I've only had to do that twice so far this campaign because God is great.

 

2) I tend to be pretty cautious, and only attack when it favors me. Although I suppose I was just now almost killed engaging an equal number of enemy fighters at equal altitude, but it was balloon defense and that was what the job called for. If I'm artillery spotting or flying escort or bombing a railyard I do not go out of my way to engage enemy fighters, and will in fact actively avoid them.

 

Point is over those 45 missions (which have comprised about March - June 1917) there has formed a core group of AI pilots in my squadron who have survived and prospered. My flight leader in June is the same one who led my flight when we flew from England to France in March. I've had the exact same wingman this entire time. The Major I designated as Squadron Commander when I first started this campaign in November is still here. In addition, out of a core group of replacements that joined the unit around the end of May, two are still alive and well and consistently fly in my flight.

 

So you definitely roleplay after a while because it's hard not to. You see these names over and over, and you fly with them all the time. I've personally seen my wingman shoot a German off my tail on several occasions, I think you naturally assign a personality to him in your head. If he goes on leave I think to myself "Oh great, lazy blighter just went on leave three weeks ago. Now who's going to help me out when i start pressing H?" There's a fellow in my squadron, Tock Alfred, who's been there since the beginning. And each time I start a mission Tock is the second SE5 after mine to take off and gain altitude. There was a period of time when he went missing for a day or two before coming back (I like to think his engine stopped a bullet over the lines and it took him a while to make his way back) and I missed him quite a bit.

 

Similarly a few days ago I was stunned when I saw my squadron's top ace get blown to smithereens by a flak burst while on a balloon bust. This was another fellow who'd been there since the start, who's name I was accustomed to seeing and who was always racking up kills. There one moment, gone the next. The OFF Manager didn't register his death, but I can't tolerate such things and manually edited his pilot file to KIA him. I felt bad doing it as I could have just ignored it and let him be, but it wasn't me you see, it was the flak and I saw him blow up with my own two eyes, and had labels on to confirm the identity.

 

Things like this crank up the immersion factor tenfold. At this point I'm not so much just flying one RFC campaign, I'm actively taking part of the history of 56 Squadron in 1917. Here's hoping I don't die any time soon

Edited March 25, 2011 by Javito1986

[Olham 164]

Similarly a few days ago I was stunned when I saw my squadron's top ace get blown to smithereens by a flak burst while on a balloon bust.

This was another fellow who'd been there since the start, who's name I was accustomed to seeing and who was always racking up kills.

There one moment, gone the next. The OFF Manager didn't register his death, but I can't tolerate such things and manually edited his pilot file

to KIA him. I felt bad doing it as I could have just ignored it and let him be, but it wasn't me you see, it was the flak and I saw him blow up with

my own two eyes, and had labels on to confirm the identity.

I have done a similar thing, Javito - feels bad, but I also thought, there just was no other way.

I wish your pilot "Hals- und Beinbruch" (Break a leg! / Good luck!).

[Wayfarer 5]

The thing that gets me the most nervous is landings. I am a quite hamfisted individual who could never have flown an aircraft in real life. Even with something as forgiving as a BE2 I can still make a terrible mess of it, and this is when the the toungue starts to stick out between the teeth, and the hand tightens vice like onto the joystick, which, of course, exactly makes things worse until I can consciously tell myself to relax it. I am also liable at these times to voice the odd expletive. As I quite often am using headphones to avoid interfering with family TV watching, and don't realise how loud I am, this can earn some disapproving looks.

 

In combat I fear I am lacking in aggressive spirit. I put trying to protect my flight members as a high priority. A combination of my innate lack of coordination plus the lack of a sight on the BE means that my shooting is singularly ineffective (I have hit things but never had one claim). Often, therefore, I use the less subtle but more effective tactic of heading for the enemy machines and forcing them to evade (hopefully!). Early on, however, this lack of lethal intent put me in mind of an old lady shooing a cat off her roses ... and I got the sillies. Consequently, I have to admit that I frequently dive to the rescue with a quavering cry of 'Hey, get away from my men!'

Having read this thread I realise that I am seriously going to have to work on that one.

 

 

[Bullethead 12]

I get very mentally "into" my sorties. As I approach the lines, dread begins to build up as the rumble of the constant barrages gets louder. The whole time I'm on the other side, I feel like I'm walking in a minefield, and it's always a great feeling of relief when I get back to my side.

 

I find that just flying along is usually more noticeably stressful than the actual combat. I'm always worrying about when I'll meet the enemy, what the odds and situation will be, etc., and praying I see them before they see me. I find it rather unnerving to see a streak of smoke plunging down in the far distance when I can't even see the dots of the planes, and not knowing whether it was friend or foe, only that there are definitely enemies over there and wondering if there are enough of them left to come bother me. But once a fight starts, everything is instinct and the habits of decades of simming. I don't think, I just act. That's not to say combat isn't stressful, it's just that I don't notice it until afterwards, if I survive. Then I realize how sweaty my palms are, that I feel exhausted, etc.

 

During fights, I often notice, in a detached sort of way, that I'm tensing up my belly and grunting during high-G maneuvers. I also mutter under my breath a lot, mostly urging my kite to produce a bit more performance, to hang on her prop just a tad longer, to come out of a spin despite the shot-off wingtip. "Come on, bitch, FLY FOR ME!!!" I also curse when bad things happen, like when I get hit or I see a wingman die. And I cackle evilly when I shoot down an enemy, especially if he burns.

 

Assuming I make it back safely, I find it difficult to fly another mission immediately, even if it's supposed to be the same campaign day. Each sortie makes me rather tired and I like to take some time off between them. So normally, 1 sortie per night is enough for me. I thus found the DiD thing rather trying, because I HAD to fly 2 mission in a row (weather permitting) to keep myself in time with the campaign date.

 

 

[Javito1986 14]

I get very mentally "into" my sorties. As I approach the lines, dread begins to build up as the rumble of the constant barrages gets louder. The whole time I'm on the other side, I feel like I'm walking in a minefield, and it's always a great feeling of relief when I get back to my side.

 

 

 

 

Oh man can I ever related to this. My #1 greatest hatred/fear is being assigned a balloon busting mission, but #2 is crossing the line. I hate going over there. Partly because I have a minor case of "flak-phobia". Everyone else seems to just ignore it, "Oh it's inaccurate they say". Balls I say, my current pilot has been knocked around by near misses (one of which killed his engine like 2 minutes later), I have lost pilots to archie in the past, have seen wingmen blown to bits by direct hits, and I harbor no illusions. Partly it's because I know Olham and his friends are out there in their Albatrosses waiting to pounce, and I always get such a sick feeling in my gut when I see those Huns dropping out of the sky at you like bats. And partly because one damn hit to the fuel tank and I won't be able to make it back to my aerodrome. This is why when I'm over there my first priority is maintaining altitude, so that I have a better chance of coasting home if my engine decides not to work anymore.

Edited March 26, 2011 by Javito1986