| | / _| | | | ___| |_ __ _ _ __| |_ _____ ____ _ ___ ___ __ _ _ _| | |_ / __| __/ _` | '__| _/ _ \ \/ / _` / __/ __|/ _` | | | | | __| \__ \ || (_| | | | || (_) > < (_| \__ \__ \ (_| | |_| | | |_ |___/\__\__,_|_| |_| \___/_/\_\__,_|___/___/\__,_|\__,_|_|\__| ____ _ ___ _ _ _ ____ ____ ____ ____ Star Fox Assault |__/ | | \ | |\ | | __ |___ |__| | | Vehicle Riding FAQ | \ | |__/ | | \| |__] | | | |_\| Copyright 2007 TheUnruly1. =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | | \ | | | |_\| TABLE OF CONTENTS =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= 1. INTRODUCTION & OTHERS (inttuon) 2. HOW TO RIDE (htrdmns) 3. WEAPONS (wepsess) 4. RIDER COMBAT (rdvsveh) 5. HOW TO BEAR A RIDER (htbaruo) 6. CHARACTERS TO USE (chartus) 7. CONCLUSION Best viewed in Courier New 10 point. =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 1. INTRODUCTION (inttuon) | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= To quote HAXage: =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= "That's right, riding. Mission 4, mission 7. Only this time, you don't have the Plasma Cannon, you fall off, and your friend doesn't go as slow as Wolf/Falco. And there's always that thought that they might flip you off accidentally, or your opponent might actually do some DAMAGE to you, unlike those dullard Aparoids that fly at you. So! Who wants to try?" =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= And that sums it up very well indeed. It's actually considered by some as a "cheat strategy", but if every little secret in a game was a cheat strategy, well, then competitive SSBM wouldn't be too much fun, would it? =D Of course, that is but one example. __________________________________ / \ --------- ABOUT ME --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Alrighty then, I'll start. My name's Will, and I go by TheUnruly1. I make no claim of being a good player, although HAXage (whom I taught, and true to Star Wars spirit far outgrew my tactical training wheels), in a character profile referred to me in his FAQ as a "Krystal vet". As a matter of fact, I doubt this very statement at the cost of my pride. I am an average player, and I forever will be, in this game. The only thing true of that statement is that my main character is Krystal. (I like Barriers.) I also think of new, fun ways to attack my opponent when the chips are down. As a matter of fact, this manner of thinking helped me instigate a set of common rules about Riding, which is just one of those dangerous things. Anyways, I'm excited, so I'm moving on. __________________________________ / \ --------- WHY RIDE? --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ The reason one would ride is quite simple - to use a form of SFA combat that actually lets you and your teammate work with synergy. Such a team has the advantage of double cover - that is, the rider covers the machine he rides on, and the Arwing pilot keeps the rider safe. Strafes low to the ground from off an Arwing's wing can be easily fatal to pilots on the ground. A fly-by Gatling Gunning of a Landmaster can prove very satisfying indeed in killing something that usually counters an Arwing. Unless you're loaded with Homing Launchers, it takes a great aim and reflex(es) to be an effective rider, and that's discounting the fact that your bearer has to have these as well. __________________________________ / \ --------- SOLO RIDES --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Riding on your own is a weird concept, but the way it works is you get out of your Arwing briefly by pressing Z so you can ride, firing your weapon, and then getting back in. The downside, as compared to team riding, is that while you are outside your Arwing your vehicle will just move in a straight line. However, it can be a good tool for quickly dispatching enemy aircraft if you have the right weaponry. Great sniping tool, too. The OTHER way to use a solo ride is...bailing out - if in trouble, press Z and then press Y. Nothing more. You will fall out through the neon lilac jetstream of your previous vehicle and hope your opponent doesn't notice you did. =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 2. HOW TO RIDE (htrdmns) | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= First off, I've only mentioned in passing how to actually GET RIDING. So, I will now take the time to detail all the major points of riding. __________________________________ -------- THE PREPARATIONS --------- --------__________________________________--------- You should always make sure you have a clear route up and a clear six, because you don't want people ripping you apart as you scramble for the plane. First and foremost, you need the designated rider (no one's drunk here, don't fear) on the wing of choice. Now how much health do your wings have? 59. This makes riding on the fuselage of the plane viable too... on a Wolfen, it's advised, and for an Arwing it's silly (considering you have those two massive wings). Getting up on the wing is tough for Falco, Krystal and sometimes Fox, which makes many people name the higher jumpers in the game the best riders. If you have problems, take a run at it, and try, try, again. (until you are finally silenced after the 10 seconds it takes for the enemy to seek and destroy you.) After that, just get the designated bearer into the plane, and-HEY, COME BACK, YOU DROPPED ME! __________________________________ -------- THE TAKEOFF --------- --------__________________________________--------- The takeoff, as we all agree, is the time where most riders fall off, because the bearer rushes the ascent (but this is about HOW TO RIDE, HOW TO BEAR will be covered later). Anyways, now is when you begin your R-button-holding spree - there's no point in moving much, unless your wing's about to die and you need to hop over to the fuselage. Just hang on, cover the plane's six, and save the real combat for after you have gained a lot of altitude. __________________________________ -------- STAYING ON --------- --------__________________________________--------- During a fight, DON'T PANIC and do not jump off. You act as much needed support for your friend's aircraft. KEEP R HELD DOWN if you're about to fall. If your wing is about to go, you can do one of two things. The first, the simpler but riskier one, is to hug the hull of the Arwing and move to the very edge of the wing (not on the tip, you dorfus, but on the edge where it connects to the plane). When a wing blows, everything but this little tip is removed. You will then be staying on rather dangerously, and could easily be shot off as the unbalanced aircraft teeters and totters. The upside of this is you still get the same features - less chance of hitting yourself - as you would on a full wing (kinda). A reader, whose GameFAQs name is nivlac91, sent me this about the Arwing's wing break area: ============ I found out where the arwings wings break at, if you look at them closely enough you'll see a wavy line (I have 2 pictures as an attached file one is the line and one is the broken wing) near the fuselage it's about peppy's width away from the fuselage, as long as you're stopped it should be easy to see. When your wing is almost gone it will spark there and when it's gone that's where it breaks. ============ I saw this line, but I didn't quite click it that this is where the Arwing wing breaks off, so thank you, nivlac91. The other way, the safer but harder one, is to get your bearer to stop and jump from the wing to the fuselage/hull. This will then allow you to ride the fuselage just like solo riding, but with a movable aircraft. Wolfens, bad luck: your wings get almost completely blown off, and riding on your fuselage is the best option anyways, because your wings are so stubby. __________________________________ -------- RIDING A WOLFEN --------- --------__________________________________--------- Wolfens are a whole new game - in riding, you could say Wolfens are high risk, low return (something you don't want a mode of transport to be, normally). If you are merely sitting on one of the thin Wolfen wings that are menaces to board, you might just walk off without even knowing you let go of R. The fuselage is the only way to go, because as aforementioned, those wings are hard as a week-old kaiser bun to get on and stay on. There is, however a "safe spot" that is near the back: right where either of the upper wings joins with the hull, kind of wedged inbetween the wing and the upper brake on the back of the plane. You're good there, but you can't shoot to many different angles from there; you can only shoot out as if you were a fixed gun on the side of the Wolfen. After this two- paragraph explanation, a simple point is made - the wings, the back, and even the safe spot are worse options than just the fuselage. Also, Wolfens can't stop, and their wings are short, tiny, and pointy, making them very hard to Speedboard (will be explained later) or jump from wing to fuselage, if you got on them already. =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 3. WEAPONS (wepsess) | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= __________________________________ / \ --------- GOOD WEAPONS TO USE --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Well, what weapons does one use when riding? There are two characteristics that need attention: **The weapon won't harm you. This is rather obvious, but we don't want to use Sensor Bombs when riding, do we? **Good control over the weapon is possible, or is offset by a large usefulness. The last bit was added in for the Gatling Gun. Therefore, I have a list of weapons that are useful for riding. The stats showing how many hits the weapons take to break a wing are to help you know when you're going to lose your footing (or when you'll snatch it from your opponent). And by the way, Planes take 1/16 of their HP in damage from hitting something (tested), and so do wings (guess). __________________________________ -------- HOMING LAUNCHER --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo per Item: 10 Max: 99 Lock-on Blow Off a Wing? 2 Hits Well, this is probably the best riding weapon there is. It locks on, comes in bulk, and does a crapload of damage to Landmasters. Not only that, but it's insured that it blows up away from where you are, and it's excellent at killing other aircraft/riders. It's almost like giving the Arwing a second Charge Shot, which is obviously good at dispatching Pilots too. __________________________________ -------- GATLING GUN --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo Per Item: 100 Max: 999 Blow Off a Wing? A mere 4 bullets GATLING GUN? WHAT? It has horrible range and sporadic firing! Why would you ride with one? Well, the reason we use the Gatling Gun, is of course to do tons of damage, kill vehicles in paltry numbers of seconds and whatnot. This makes it a godsend against Landmasters that you can use to swoop and destroy on the annoying tanks. The GGun also serves as your primary pilot killer, although the Homing Launcher can also take this job if you need range. It's good at tearing the wings off other rider-bearing planes as well if you can get close. __________________________________ -------- MISSILE LAUNCHER --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo Per Item: 3 Max: 5 Blow Off a Wing? 2 Hits Okay, okay, the Homing Launcher's the best pick for going after aircraft, but it's just too cool launching a guided missile off a plane and owning a Landmaster with it. Missile Launchers are mostly luxury items, so don't expect them to be your main weapon. __________________________________ -------- SNIPER & DEMON SNIPER --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo Per Item: 10 for Sniper Rifle, 5 for Demon Sniper Max: 99 for both Blow Off a Wing? Both 1 hit These weapons are complete BEASTS when unleashed in a riding setting. The Sniper, on one hand, is awesome against Pilots if you aim (extremely) well, and will take an Arwing down in 2 hits (Landmaster with 3). It is your oyster, and open to whatever purpose you want. The Demon, on the other hand, does only one thing: break stuff. Aim at selected target. Insure you will hit, as ammo is precious. Induce fear into your opponent as you ready the shot. Up in the air like this, you couldn't miss. You fire, annihilating the vehicle and leaving a hapless Pilot to be finished off with the weapon of your choice. That's the Demon Sniper, and that's how it usually ends up. __________________________________ -------- GRENADE --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo Per Item: 5 Max: 99 Blow Off a Wing? 2 Grenades, if you are actually dumb enough to let that happen Explodes after 5 1/2 seconds Yeah, there are oodles of grenade pros out there, saying "they're excellent and do tons of damage!" They are right, but for the average FAQ reader and myself, Grenades are a tool that is difficult to use. Sure, it's very hard to hit an Arwing with 'em effectively, so why in the hell am I recommending them? They can be used in bulk, and drop the hammer on Landmasters. That's about it though. __________________________________ / \ --------- WHAT NOT TO USE --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Wear whatever you like, fellas, but consider ignoring these weapons when choosing your main kicks before taking off. __________________________________ -------- MACHINE GUN --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo Per Item: 200 Max: 999 Blow Off a Wing? 12 bullets "But it's a lot more accurate!" That's very true. However, when we consider the purpose of using it or the GGun while riding (gunning down vehicles or anything at close range) we can easily see that the Gatling Gun does its job 3 times better (4 times if we're talking Pilots) because it does much more damage per bullet. Do, however, get a Machine Gun ready if you get shot down, so you can last longer on foot. __________________________________ -------- BLASTER --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo Per Item: Start with weapon Max: N/A (infinite ammo) Blow Off a Wing? 2 full Charge Shots The Blaster violates the very first rule. Y'know, the one we said was obvious? **The weapon won't harm you. This is rather obvious, but we don't want to use Sensor Bombs when riding, do we? The Blaster will hit yourself with the large chargeup often enough (less so when firing from the wings, however) to cause damage. This is most particularly noticed when you are firing down at something. However, the fully Charged Blaster does quite a significant amount of damage, and it's definitely possible to have a great riding run using your Blaster to own Landmasters - I just don't recommend it because of the charge time that wastes your valuable airtime - yet another reason why high jumpers make the best riders. __________________________________ -------- SENSOR BOMB --------- --------__________________________________--------- Ammo Per Item: 5 Bombs Max: 99 Blow Off A Wing? 2 Hits (or maybe 1) The only practical use of these while riding is doing a plane-to-plane transfer (will be explained), dropping them and transferring back, and who the hell is good enough to regularly do that? =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 4. RIDER COMBAT (rdvsveh) | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= __________________________________ / \ --------- UNITY AND ALL THAT --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ When you're riding, there's one thing that should be the first one in your mind: YOUR UNITY between you and your plane CANNOT BE BROKEN. Why? If you get shot off, lose a wing, get mauled but miraculously survive, whatever, it's a hassle to get back together. You are then left not with a unified vehicle but with an aircraft and a pilot, separate. The sturdier you stand, the greater chance of survival your unified vehicle has. The longer you last, the more you can whittle your opponent down. This means no going off into your own little world, but instead shooting down whatever threatens your plane. Your opponent, likely thinking that if your plane goes down, you go down, will break the bond by wrecking the plane. Thus, you protect your plane - the bonding force - over saving your own life. If the plane goes down, you effectively both go down. __________________________________ / \ --------- AGAINST THE LANDMASTER --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Landmasters pose huge problems for any aircraft. With an extra set of guns, the threat is rather diminished, because you can use stuff like Grenades, Homing Launchers, and most of all Gatling Guns. Using a swoop attack that involves the Arwing pointing down and firing, you can simultaneously charge Landmasters with Arwing fire and Rider fire. This will likely destroy the Master before it can even hit you with a second Charge Shot, allowing you to go heal yourself of pain. MAKE SURE you are close before you start GGunning - you don't want to waste precious ammo and have to go get some more. Alternatively, you can annoy them by gaining lots of altitude, briefly swooping down into the range of the Homing Launcher, firing, and boost away. Doing this means that in about 3 hits, you'll wreck the Master. But you get the basic idea - since the tank is grounded, use your altitude advantage to keep yourself safe, and attack in bursts. __________________________________ / \ --------- AGAINST AN AIRCRAFT --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Well, what do Pilots normally use against Arwings and stuff? Homing Launchers. This same principle applies here too, because several of your other weapons (GGun, Grenades) are unusable. Homing Launchers will always be the anti-air weapon of choice, but since you're flying at their level and all, Snipers (and definitely Demon ones) become a very viable weapon. The reason for this phenomenon is because being up an the air with a plane bearing you eliminates the flaw of trying to Snipe an Arwing from the ground - it can't evade you as well anymore. Height no longer will work as an escape, and neither will Boosting off. Previously, it was like this... ----------------------------------------------------- |--------| | ARWING | <--------------< *MISS!* |--------| B O O S T S ^ H ^ O ^ T ^ |--------| | SNIPER | |--------| ------------------------------------------------------- Now, it's like this... ------------------------------------------------------- |--------| B O O S T | ARWING | <--------------< |--------| |--------|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<| RIDER | *BOOM* SNIPER SHOT |--------| -------------------------------------------------------- That explain it? Snipers are one of the weapons of choice for riding against aircraft. Missile Launchers aren't practical against Arwings, because not only are they luxury items that you will rarely find, they do almost twice as much damage to Landmasters. Still, if there are no Landmasters around, go ahead. Another thing about aircraft to use for your advantage: planes take a while to turn around, so if you get on their six you can start hammering them. If the aircraft tries to mix it up by doing a Loop, put on the brakes and try either of two approaches. For one, you could probably get off 2 free Homers. Or, if you're looking for the more complete ownage type attack, you could try and Snipe it as it comes out of the Loop...hard to pull off, but deadly. __________________________________ / \ --------- AGAINST PILOTS --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Pilots are kinda hard to fight, because the height advantage actually HINDERS you. Not only that, but they're small as a pinhead, so Sniping is hard. What's the solution? Go really low. This too is dangerous because it leaves you open to GGuns and the like, which are the same kind of weapons that you should be using on them. Thus, it's basically whoever goes down first. Or it would be, but I'm forgetting that the Arwing has attacks too. Arwing swoop attacks are fatal to Pilots, let alone with an extra set of guns on your back. Use it. This does NOT mean that you should do an almost vertical Dive-Bomb; that's a nice way to lose your rider. Instead, you need to boost in and start from a long way away. After, pull out quickly (to avoid GGun damage), circle around in a large arc and repeat. So, let's recap, the main idea with Pilots is to use your noodle and your vehicle's mobility to outclass the munchkins. If Homing Launchers come your way, which they undoubtedly will, seek to destroy the guy (next time you dive) in one round of battle because you don't have the luxury of time (you'll get Homered). This is plenty easy to accomplish if you can get your Arwing bearer some upgraded lasers. Then the one Homer that they get on you won't pose a long term problem and can be shrugged off with a ring. Well, if you wanted to be cheap, you could use Homing Launchers every now and then while staying high so he couldn't hit you. But let's have fun, right? =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 5. HOW TO BEAR A RIDER (htbaruo) | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= "I'm awake, I'm awake!" Okay, ladies and gents, this is the section teaching you how to be a big, predatory furry animal commonly seen as dangerous to wandering hikers. So, this whole time we've been discussing the Rider, but never the Bearer, right? Bearers are still half the job, and must not be ignored. Besides helping with combat, Bearers do plenty of things. __________________________________ / \ --------- MOVES AND STRATEGY --------- --------- --------- \__________________________________/ Your powerful ally, riding on your wing, is your main asset and is what gives you an edge. This person is also a weapon to be deployed - upon mutual agreement, there are several tactics to be employed letting you divide and conquer, or even just conquer. __________________________________ -------- SPEEDBOARDING --------- --------__________________________________--------- Speedboarding can be defined as two things. One is slower, the other one truly is SPEED-boarding. Anyways, they both entail a rider boarding an aircraft without it having to land. The first method involves your ARWING (not Wolfen, it won't work) braking to a stop and letting the rider jump on, just like landing (but not actually landing). This is hard except for Peppy/Slippy, really, and will usually end up making you take some damage. This is handy if you don't have the time to land, but daredevils have another option. The rider jumps, you fly towards the rider, and pick them up. Sounds insane, right? It's wicked fast if you do it, and you won't be wasting a moment in getting the rider on your wing. Again, good for high jumpers. __________________________________ -------- THE CATAPULT --------- --------__________________________________--------- WHEEEE! This is always fun to do and never gets old. It's a perfect way to either drop your little spy via airplane into enemy territory or to send him flying to new heights. Hell, you can even make it up Katina Tower or the Spire in Titania without booster packs. Get your rider on a wing and simply barrel roll pointing the control stick to the wing opposite the one they're on. WHEEE! You just sent your rider flying as the wing rolled upwards. Often done accidentally by reflex; TheUnruly1 is not responsible for injuries caused by mad riders after doing this by accident. When done right, though, it's pretty cool. __________________________________ -------- MIXING IT UP --------- --------__________________________________--------- Be sure to switch positions once in a while, it surprises your opponent - especially if you have very different sets of weaponry. Get one person to pack heavy weapons and missiles, the other one packs GGun and Grenades. The switch can be performed simply by the plane pilot pressing Z and then the rider pressing Z: AT LEVEL FLIGHT. (Although, sometimes it is fun having two riders on one plane at once. Can you say...battle on the planetop?) For fun, you could even drop your rider onto an enemy plane for a little sabotage. You may think that packing Motion Sensors is a good idea, but they will only hurt yourself. (The Sensor Bombs often fly off the plane anyway.) For this kind of battle, the best weapon is the GGun, because you're confined to the space of the plane. Just point down, hold A and watch the plane die. __________________________________ -------- TRANSFERS --------- --------__________________________________--------- Here is, everyone, the ultimate in gosu-skill indulgence; the plane-to-plane transfer. This is, in fact, the way to pull off the above paragraph. A plane flies high above another, which is slightly behind it. Jump while holding the control stick forward, and you just jumped from plane to plane. Can be perfected for use in almost any environment. You can also do something I call a catapult transfer by basic term, and a more real-sounding thing for specific term. When done with a Landmaster I call it a Defense Turret. In this, you are flying above a Master, braking to a halt and Catapulting your rider down to the vehicle who gets inside posthaste. I named it such because this is exactly what you're doing. You are quickly and efficiently deploying an Arwing counter to destroy someone who's following you. So, I call it a catapult transfer/Turret because I don't like the ring of "Quick Deployment of Rider to Arwing Countering Vehicle by Barrel Roll". A catapult transfer can also be done with an Arwing, but this is basically just doing a fast P2P transfer. __________________________________ -------- PLAN Bs --------- --------__________________________________--------- Sometimes, for the rider's sake, ya gotta know when to quit. If your plane is smokin' purple, it's good to not go down together. Get the rider off you and go suicidal. Although you probably already knew that, there are signs you can read as to WHEN to start thinking of a Plan B. 1. Your wings are gone. Not very rider-friendly, and your plane will teeter and totter a little. If it's just the wings, chances are you can keep going, but it's likely your body will be shot up too. Get a new plane for either of you. If it's just wings, then go find a laser upgrade...they heal your wings, strangely enough. Then you're good to go. Not one of the real problems that can stab you in the back, but it happens a lot. 2. Your rider has no Barriers and little health. Barriers are lifesavers when that Arwing flies at you shooting Rapid-fire lasers at your wing. If you get on without a Barrier to begin with, it's a little troublesome. But you can get over it. When the rider's health is low and with no barrier for backup, they're as good as gone from the enemy's next attack. The solution? Bail him out onto the ground by a vehicle. This way he can have another chance at life. 3. Your rider beigns to run out of weapons. DO NOT LET THIS SHUT YOU DOWN. The enemy will love you for that. Say your rider runs out of GGun. Does he still have ANYTHING to use against the enemy? Grenades, say? If not, then he always has the Blaster, right? Although if your only option is the Blaster, there's a far better solution; pack weapons yourself and let him fly the jalopy. If you wanna read about that, look above in "Mixing It Up". __________________________________ -------- MACHINE GUN FIRE --------- --------__________________________________--------- The infamous MG (and GGun) pose problems for the Riding system possibly more than anything else, except maybe the Homing Launcher. You can't Barrel Roll, Loop or U-Turn to avoid it, so how do you safeguard your rider from MG or GG fire? Let's fly away. Well, that only works if the person you're fighting is on the ground. Your Arwing attacks have longer range than an MG, and even more so for a GG. Strafing runs beginning from far away work well, and Homers will save your butt by killing them from long range. Of course, you could always outgun them, but you'll be licking your wounds after that. __________________________________ -------- THIS IS MY BOOMSTICK! --------- --------__________________________________--------- Haha...a category about Bombs. As you may already know, one of these badasses will wreck both you and your cargo in about a second. The way to go against this is switch your positions, since you have more health from being covered in the plane. This might be the time where you... __________________________________ -------- GET ANOTHER PLANE --------- --------__________________________________--------- It happens! No one lives forever in SFA/life! Should the purple smoke arise, bail and find a new prize, be it plane or Landmasters. Get both people out of the plane immediately. The way to do it: The Pilot flies above a vehicle, brakes, and Catapults the rider down to it, who gets in immediately. (Also known as a Defense Turret if done with Landmasters. HA! MEMORY TEST!) The guy still left in then seeks out another fresh vehicle OR a Ring/Platinum Star to refresh the one he's in if you've got the time. __________________________________ -------- LANDMASTER RIDING --------- --------__________________________________--------- WHAT? Yes, you can do it, have someone standing atop your Landmaster being an extra set of guns. It may not be as useful as Arwing riding, and it may be hazardous to the rider's health now and then but it can be done. It saves both your butts if you're plane's going down and you would otherwise both need to Defense Turret or do something like that. It's definitely easier to jump on top of one. The key of Master riding is to stay away from 1: the cannon, and 2: the wheels. The cannon is for obvious reasons, and the wheel is so you won't get hurt as if you were run over when you touch them. The perfect spot is on top of one of the two protrusions on the back of the Landmaster, on either side. You're behind the cannon and above the wheels. Weapons? Since you're slow and low, MGs or GGuns are the weapons of choice. If not, Snipers work well (just not as well as from a plane), Grenades are of course more viable and the blaster could also work. The awesome Homing Launcher, as you know, works anywhere. ---------------------------- Now you see the Bearer's huge role? Maybe this FAQ should be called the Bearing FAQ. =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 6. CHARACTERS TO USE (chartus) | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= An OPINION BASED list on who is the best rider in the game, who is 2nd best, who is... ------------- --> Slippy Toad and Peppy Hare #1 ------------- WHAT THE HELL? People think this toad is the worst player in the game, but alas, he is one of two best riders, and I'm gonna prove it. Is Peppy better? No. Slip's jump is but one less than Peppy's, and this still lets him do boardings with ease compared to others. His running is a little better, too. Slippy is small, and can't be seen easily, although the reticules take this advantage away often. Your enemy might not realize you were there if you position yourself behind something on the plane, though. The speedy chargeup time for the blaster is again not as spectacular as Peppy's but still gets the job done if you ever have to use it. There are two more trump cards I haven't mentioned yet. The first? Slippy OWNS at Defense Turrets with his five stars in Landmaster. The last, everyone, is the health - just look, bigger than anyone's but the cheapo that is Wolf. That'll help you survive a lot, since Slippy can survive two Grenades/three Homers/ten GGun bullets/two Bombs. An awesome asset for a Rider. If skilled, Slippy surpasses all else on top of a plane with his only disadvantage being the low crosshair size. Health bar sizes might be overrated statistics that don't matter to skilled pros, but even discounting the fact that most of you aren't, it sure helps in riding to have lots of it. Then again, so are crosshair sizes... =D Peppy seems to have no disadvantage at this, since he makes it all seem so damn easy. A five star jump, the fastest blaster charge in the game and the largest of any Pilot crosshair size means even someone with horrible reflexes can play well as Peppy as a rider. You can board with ease by tapping Y and soaring sky-high. Defense Turrets and other maneuvers like that can be done well, but not as well as with Slippy. And there's the two best. ------------- --> Wolf O'Donnell #2 ------------- Wolf is Falco with a crapload of health, an even faster run and a slightly better jump. Thus, 'tis general consensus he is really cheap, and people don't like him. I guess it makes sense why he's #2, then, right? Wolf can even live out a Sniper shot if someone hits you while you're riding. (which means in a very stupid way Wolf will last as long as the freakin' PLANE ITSELF when it comes to Snipers.) ------------- --> Fox McCloud #3 ------------- A team of two Foxes can pull off any maneuver they like, because all across the screen their stats are even. A Defense Turret could work as well as an abrupt position switch, since they have high score in Arwing, Pilot and Master alike. Not much more to say here than that, this position is earned for being able to do anything with a four-star crosshair size. ------------- --> Krystal and Falco Lombardi #4 ------------- Now that I've finished my Slippy rant, I don't have too much more to say. Maybe I'm biased here, but Krystal is my main character above all else. Her stats suck, but that's alright, 'cause she's got Barriers to spare, an invaluable resource during an all out assault (heh...Assault is the name of the game, after all). She thus has the best chance of survival if shot down. But tell me this, is it really bias putting your favorite character in FOURTH place and not first? Falco does not have the health for riding...and also not the jump. Neither does Krystal, but this is more blatantly extreme with Falco. He may be one of the better characters (and hands down the best bearer character) in the game, but not under these circumstances. He just gets killed a little too easy. Mind you, this is if you actually manage to board with his (and Krystal's too) weak jump. =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 6. CONCLUSION | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= Question answering time: HOW THE HELL DID I DISCOVER THIS? Well, it started with a friend of mine who introduced me to the game. On the second ever time I played it, you could guess I wasn't that great...I tried to bail out of my plane in mid-flight, to see what would happen. I joyfully found I was still astride my plane, with a machine gun in hand. I then said "Look! Here comes something new!" and shot up his plane with my MG. He turned to my screen, saw me standing atop my Arwing with a machine gun finishing him off and asked "How did you do THAT?" I explained. Something like that. I then looked around online and saw I wasn't the only one doing this. Now, I wrote a guide to it. That's all the questions, look me up at the-unruly-1@hotmail.com for more questions. Include something about Star Fox Assault or Riding in the title, or through the spam filter you'll go on my direct order. See you at my next guide! TUn1 =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= ____ _____ _____ ____ |__/ |____ |___| | | 7. COMMENTS | \ | | | |_\| =-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-==-_-= Sender: nivlac91 I found out where the arwings wings break at, if you look at them closely enough you'll see a wavy line (I have 2 pictures as an attached file one is the line and one is the broken wing) near the fuselage it's about peppy's width away from the fuselage, as long as you're stopped it should be easy to see. When your wing is almost gone it will spark there and when it's gone that's where it breaks. I saw this line, but I didn't quite click it that this is where the Arwing wing breaks off, so thank you, nivlac91.