Thread: Regarding the Attack Helicopter and Being a 'Problem Player'

This will be my first post to TPG and it's a long one, which I apologize for.

I was told that I had been reported as part of the 'problem player' thread and came to look at it because I was curious. I'm actually left with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, not only because I apparently was reported as a 'problem player' but because members of this community (of which I have actually grown to really like) dislike the way that I play Battlefield 3.

Fact is, I love to gun and fly the helicopter and, you know, I'm pretty good in it; with some variation, I'm within the top 250 players in the world between all platforms. On maps that have the chopper, I normally feel that I would be more of an asset to the team in the chopper than ground pounding towards flags and my KPD (on the TPG server) on these maps shows at least some proof to that claim -- I average on chopper maps between 2.0 KPD (Wake Island) to 5.21 KPD (Sharqi). I always fly with a gunner or a pilot that I can communicate with in TeamSpeak, generally nnFlame, Brass, or Ky -- if that option isn't available, I grab my trusty L85A2 and medkit and hit the ground.

With those of you claiming the Attack Helicopter is 'overpowered', it really depends on the map. Canals (as US) and Sharqi (as RU) it really is a little much, since those maps have either less or no jets to counter. I might point out that the tank on Seine or the IFV on Bazaar or all of the armor on Karkand is also 'overpowered' in this regard; with nothing to counter them, they can be unstoppable. Really, all of these vehicles are incredible force multipliers; you can win the round because of that single tank at C on Seine or the IFV going in circles on Bazaar, but only if you have a squad of people that are willing to help repair and a team of people that can hold flags.

It takes teamwork and skill to keep the chopper up in the air (just like any vehicle) and even more teamwork and skill to actually kill people with it, particularly since this last patch, with the buffs to AA missiles and stingers. Remember that two people have to be flying in the thing, in constant communication, to have the kind of rounds that are described as 'proof' (namely, rounds that I have gone up to 20-30 KPD in) that the chopper is overpowered. It should take some amount of teamwork and skill to take it down. Many players on TPG have been great about taking choppers with me in them. Blood has proved to be effective at getting us with the RPG on a regular basis, which takes incredible amounts of skill. Squads lead by effective players like Hytec, Gato, or Tholis will grab stingers/IGLAs and just wreck us. Tholis or Brass in a jet often take us down six or seven times in a row without us getting more than a couple kills off. And when that happens we are often forced to grab rifles because the chopper isn't helping the team anymore.

The recent buff to TV missile (which is being nerfed again in the upcoming server patch) has unbalanced it in some regard as well on maps like Caspian, Kharg, or Firestorm but the base game is now fairly balanced in regard to the chopper on most maps. While a team of players like myself and nnFlame can get a bunch of kills and thin out the armor coming to the points, players on the group still decide the game. If I'm circling the antenna on Caspian and my gunner is taking out people that spawn left and right, it just doesn't matter unless we get someone to go get the flag, which is often hard to do. Our performance in the air doesn't matter if we don't have boots or treads on the flag radius.

That kind of ends my rant on the helicopter. Oh, and I'm actually somewhat hurt by this comment by a member of this community (with over 1600 posts!).

The guy is a chopper hoe, and with armor regen on attack choppers basically own all. Outside a chopper the guy is a joke so if your calling hacks I find it hard believe.

Outside of a chopper, as infantry (I am almost never in ground vehicles), I am almost always in the top three players on my team and often time in the top three players in the server. If I am leading a squad, I am proactive in assigning orders and communicate often in TeamSpeak; if I am not, I follow orders and continually PTFO. I average a KPD of more than 1.3 on non-air maps and generally have a KPM of 1.3 to 2.0 as infantry. Fact is, outside a chopper, I am not a joke, not even close.

Don't worry about it. People tend to get annoyed when they get killed by the same person the same way time after time again, and I think someone just got pushed a bit too far this time. Everything has its place on the battlefield, and if you like to use the chopper, use the chopper. If people have that big of an inferiority complex that they feel the need to come out and bash you for taking advantage of the chopper, then maybe they should go play an infantry only game.

Originally Posted by loki2158

Adapt and overcome. That is what I tell people that complain that a vehicle is over powered. They are suppose to be over powered. They are mobile weapon platforms. It takes team work to bring down a good crew. If a helo is wrecking your team, grab an AA, Jet, or armor and start laying into it. Learn to counter and adapt to the situation. It won't always be fun or easy but you will become a better player for doing so.

yep. Plus, it's not like choppers or jets where as powerful as they were in bf2.