TychoCelchuuu

So. You've got yourself a comfy little spot in a helicopter, or maybe even one of those coveted Lay-z-boys that they stick in a bomber. Congratulations! Time to mess some stuff up. Today, we're going to learn all about the TV Guided Missile, or TV Missile for short.

What You're Seeing:
Go ahead and switch to that missile (right click, at least in a chopper). Eeew! It's okay: you'll get used to it. You're seeing a grainy, small, black and white picture of the battlefield, pointed at an odd angle from whatever vehicle you're sitting in. What are those hatchmarks on the side? Are those things buttons? It's pretty freaky. Don't despair, though. From this rather ugly location, you can dispense all manner of pain. There, in the center, is your crosshair. This thing's really freaking important. You've also got a little box around the crosshair. That's basically decoration. Try moving your crosshair around all 4 corners, to get a feel for how far you can aim.

What You're Doing:
What? You're admiring the pretty scratches on the TV lens? Stop that! Unless you've got some sort of hot-shot pilot who never takes damage nor uses ammo, you're never going to use up all your TV missiles before it's time to repair/reload (you don't have a lot, but they take a while to reload). So guess what? Whether you've just taken off, or you just realized you're a gunner (maybe you were AFK or something, heh), you're going to fire a missile. "But Tycho!" you say. "I have no target!" Shut up and shoot, soldier. Aim vaguely in the direction of wherever you think the bad guys live. This will be a reconaissance (aka "French word I can't spell") shot, and a chance to learn how to use the missile.

So You've Fired Your First Missile:
Weee! Zooming around is fun, eh? If anyone happens to be spectating you right now, they get a pretty neat 3rd person view of your missile flying around. Isn't that neat? Anyways, you're heading really fast, probably towards the ground and hopefully towards the enemy. That's good. You're going to hit the ground soon, though, and we want to fix that. Aim a bit above the horizon (or as close as you can get), and click. Wowee! Course correction! Let's talk a bit about this in depth:

Steering Your TV Missile:
Once a missile is fired, you can aim in any direction you choose and click. This will steer the missile in that direction. You can do this in rapid succession: aim up and click a whole lot, and your missile will attempt a vertical 180 (good luck). There's probably a limit to the number of clicks you get to steer a missile with, but you generally don't run into it. Why? You're going to hit something first.

Back to The Present:
Okay, so you can steer this thing. Hopefully you're no longer about to crash. But now you're at the enemy base, right? Quick! Start looking at things! If you see anything big and juicy, like a stationary tank or a pyramid of men (unlikely), try to steer yourself into one of them. Mostly, though, you're here for recon. Tell your pilot what you see. If it's empty, you guys can ignore it, or if you're in at attack helo you can even try to capture it. If there's stuff there, well, alert your pilot. It's time to start doing the real work.

It Also Kills Things: The TV Missile Unleashed
Screw scouting! Let's get to fightin'. Once you're close enough to a target, such as a tank, you'll be able to see it before you fire your missile. All you really have to do is aim and click. If it doesn't look like you're going to hit your target, aim again and click again; you'll steer right to that sucker. Practice makes perfect. Stationary targets aren't so bad, but don't expect to hit enemy helicopters with your first couple of missiles. Don't worry, you'll get better. There is good news though: all you have to worry about is accuracy. You want to know how much damage this does? I'll tell you how much damage this thing does.

The TV Missile Does About A Bazillion Damage
Yeah, uh, that pretty much sums it up. This kills anything you feel like hitting. It probably kills commander assets too, but I feel sort of dirty doing that. Don't worry about killing something as flimsy as an M1A1 Abrams Tank. It's dead meat.

Communication Is Key
We've got damage and aiming out of the way, so all that's left is basic TV ethics. Communication with the pilot is key. You want the missile to be headed in the right direction the second you fire it, instead of relying on subsequent course corrections. Since your aiming window is rather small, you'll have to call out to your pilot which direction to go. I generally say something like "enemy armor on our left" and he either goes left or does some crazy 156 degree flip to avoid a jet that I didn't notice. You could also try "take me left or I jump, I swear it" or "I've always harbored secret feelings for you deep inside my heart" but I find it's best to keep it simple and free of thinly-veiled homoerotic sexual innuendo.

Stop Worrying and Love the Missile
And last of all, chill. It might not feel powerful the first couple of times you send one of these babies hurling into a tree (I swear, I was aiming for that AA gun), but this missile is a heck of a force multiplier. As a gunner, you don't even have to worry about evasive moves. Just sit back, aim, and fire. Sure, things can get frantic (more so if your target is about to launch heat seeking missiles at you), but as far as Battlefield 2 goes, your job is pretty well defined. There are few unknown variables. It's just you, your pilot, and your missile. So godpseed. Or at least, rocket speed. Those things are freaking fast.

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MrPaladin-TPF-

I've seen some very nasty uses for the rocket on Wake... the enemy helo just kinda hovered up high in the middle of the map... anytime an armour gets called the pilot turns, the gunner fires and pop, scratch one armour...

popping a full apc is always a joyful event

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Kilrogg

Just don't click too much, that's one error most people do. Don't think of the TV view as you driving the missile, think of it as a sort of map and where you click is where a missile will hit. If you want to hit something that you see don't click a bunch of times till the target is on it, you'll most likely turn too much and miss. Just take one accurate click on the thing you want to blow up and let the missile go (unless the target is moving, then you can correct it before it reaches but again don't click a million times, just click on the target once.

EyeSeePeeDude

that thing is uberfast - I've had mixed results -- I've hit a full APC and Blackhawk (*on the same map no less*), and then I've hit trees, buildings, heck, I've even hit water a time or two... I just wish that the AI pilots in single player were a little better so that I could practice a bit more...

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WhiskeySix

good stuff tycho..


the only thing i might add is in line w/ what kilrogg said... each click designates the target... meaning, the pixel you click is the new destination for the missle.

for moving targets, a common mistake I see people make is to shoot AT the target, and then try to steer the missle as the target moves. what's better is to treat the missle as if it's unguided with your first click - by that i mean, you're first click should be where the moving target is going to be when your missle get's there... if the tank's rolling up the road, make your first click a little way up the road in front of it - then you can do one fine-tuning click if you need to as you approach.

same w/ helo's - if they're flying in a direction, make your first shot ahead of them so they fly into the missle...

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Zephyr

I've piloted for bodofooko on Dalian Plant and basically no one can ever get across the expanse of water to the base with his TV missile accuracy. He'd say point in -direction- and I would and his missile would fly away and five seconds later five people would die. Basically, communication makes a TV missile pilot even more deadly than ever. Always be on the lookout for a good pilot too, they make or break your game.

Zephyr

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Kilrogg

I'm gonna have to go with Alapo for most accurate TV missile gunner I've seen so far. Haven't played against/with him a lot but the few times I have he didn't miss a single missile and it pissed me off :P.

ChIck3nL3gz

I've been practicing with Shafik and Shirk with the attack chopper. They usually pilot while I'm gunner and I've gotta say, I love that TV missle. I'm not dead on accurate but I can usually get it close enough to where it does maximum splash damage and the occupants of whatever vehicle I aimed at are forced to bail. Although while Shafik was piloting a Blackhawk I did manage to shoot him down twice with the TV missle.

I'd like to get some more gun time on that chopper and learn how to accurately and effectively use that TV missle.

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TychoCelchuuu

Leading is actually a pretty big problem to wrap your head around. The TV Missile moves so incredibly fast that you don't want to lead your target much, but not leading AT ALL guarantees you're going to have to steer the missile en-route to your target. There's a tradeoff involved, and each person has to make their own decision: do you aim far forward and trust your skills at leading a target, or do you aim at the target and trust your skills for steering a missile? I think the best way is to start out by aiming directly at the target and guiding your missile in, then, as you grow more familiar with the speed at which the missile moves, start to lead your target more and mroe until you're able to hit without guiding often.

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Bodofooko

I find it much easier to lead the target. Its easier to steer into the target than try to chase it by steering behind it (especially true for enemy choppers). But thats just my opinion.

5dollar

Anyone who inverts their mouse settings will realise that this does not apply to the TV guided. The cannon is inverted but not he TV. It's really annoying trying to master the TV when your natural instinct to direct it is screwed!

millipede777

That is probablly the most important thing to remember when using TV missiles. I used to do that and I could never hit choppers, maybe a stationary tank, but never anything moving or airborne. As soon as a quit doing that I can get about 60% accuracy on attack helos and 80+% on everything else.

If you want to fly with a good pilot then try to get into a helo squad with Bhack. He is freaking awesome. In one game I gunned for him my score was over 200. (Here's the screenshot) FbMantis is a good pilot too. I've flew with him in several games a few days ago and did pretty darn good.

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freekyE

+rep for the Dr Strangelove reference (i cant believe no one else caught it)

Anziano

Man this is good stuff!!! I know this sounds a bit "newbie" but I just found this group. I can't believe there are so many people that know so much more than I do about playing this game! I've felt like I'm pretty damn good, but now I realize that you all are playing at such a higher level than I. I specifically remember killing a few of the names I've seen posted here, I don't know how I did it with all your strategizing!
This tip about TV missles is great. I've tried so hard to master them without luck. I never clicked! I'd just shoot and move my mouse toward the target only to land 100m away. I knew there had to be a better way! Thanks for your advice, I can't wait to start trying some of the tactics I've read here.

Rick_the_new_guy

yeah that was good teaching from the vets. The recon tips were very educational. The one or two clicks was informative. I was playing last night and learned some good stuff from phonixfire and Killrog. I felt like i did an o.k job and was given some good instructions. I wished i could have ducked my head so the pilot could see better.
Indeed Anziano, i was lucky to find this group also. Without TG, the game would be frustrating playing online without MICS and horrible unit integrity.
P.S., practice with the Mod in single player mod to get used to the kits and the gameplay (shooting without sites) be disiplined and not use the uav and other things from vanahilla. i.e. start booby traping armor and what notes at controllabe bases instead of getting inside them. think and stragies so that when the mod goes mainstream you will be ahead of the curve.

Have a good'n