How to be a successful boat driver

[Sennex 1,903]

(I am stealing this from another BF4 forum I frequent)

 

(I did not write this)

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This is obviously aimed at people who need a leg up on boat driving. It happens to be one of the things I am better at, and I can often quickly determine why I lost a boat battle if I do. If you are also well versed at naval warfare, please feel free to add to this. It is designed to help. Many of these tips are for using my preferred load out. 30mm cannon, TOW and active protection. Some of these are common sense.

1. NEVER STOP THE BOAT

2. See number 1. Now that has been drilled in to your head, a stopped boat is a dead boat. You are open for attack from other boats, planes and engineers on the shore. So is your crew. They are open for sniper fire. There are instances in which you may want to stop, like capping points, and you can and should, but do not idle. Do what you have to do and move on.

3. Your first job as a boat driver is to take out the other boats. If you fail to recognize this fact, they will take you out first. Always be looking for them.

4. Use land to your advantage to conceal your movements and deceive your enemy. Many times, if the enemy spots you, you can change direction behind a small land mass to get the advantage. You can do this to maneuver behind the enemy.

5. Always try to attack another boat perpendicular. T-Bone the sucker if you can. It gives the largest area to attack. This also means he has not seen you and it will be a very short battle provided you don't miss with your first missile. Attacking from behind is almost as good.

6. When attacking, fire your missile first. Then follow up with cannons. Don't waste your cannons by firing way out of range. That just puts you on the radar and depletes your ammo. After practice, you can fire your TOW from a fairly decent range, provided the weather agrees.

7. If you don't get the drop and it’s a head-to-head battle, firing your TOW can be tricky. Wait until you are close. Engage your active protection if you are within 20 meters because he will likely fire at you. Obviously activate it if you see and incoming missile. Being the first to strike in a head-to-head battle is not as important as being the most accurate. Make sure your first missile shot counts.

8. After you pass, circle. Circle around the enemy. Half the time he will stop to fire from behind at you. Continue to circle around him alternating between cannon and TOW. Many drivers seem to forget they can fire behind them as they turn. Most times the enemy driver will just stop his boat or continue to drive it straight. If this happens, and provided you follow this guide, you will win.

9. Aim for the rear. At the very least, if you cannot win, you can take out his crew very easily. They will be aiming for you as well.

10. If at all possible, always travel in pairs. Stick with another boat. When you engage, Go wide and put distance between your ally. Hopefully, if the enemy chooses to attack you, your ally will come in from behind and share the kill.

11. Know when to retreat or not to fight. Try to avoid a 1-2 situation, or a situation in which the enemy boat has helo support. If spotted and you have to flee, make large S-shaped maneuvers until you can get back to friendly seas.

12. If a 1-2 boat battle cannot be avoided, always go for the lead boat and concentrate on it. If the seas are rough, you have a good chance. Remember to circle the first boat. It will make you a harder target for the second. If you finish off the first, move on to the second using the same maneuvers.

13. Help your crew out. They are fodder for aircraft, primarily scout choppers. Always try to maneuver so the chopper is in front or has trouble staying on your rear. Also, your rear takes more damage than your front, which is the strongest point on the boat.

14. Use the mini-map to drive. Keep your eye on it as it can help you avoid beaching yourself.

15. Don't be afraid to retreat to the spawn point if damaged. We can't always have a helpful squad. Sometimes you'll be repaired. Sometimes you'll have to regenerate your own health. Just be sure you don't sit in sight of aircraft.

16. Remember you have gunners! Make sure you attack at such an angle that you at least give one of them a clear shot at the enemy boat. Or that pesky Helicopter that's headed towards you. Many times your gunner will be more effective against a helo than you will, unless you are using your six shot burst canon. Also, when using the Chinese boat, you may if you desire, keep your nose pointed right at the enemy... both gunners have overlapping fields of fire in the front, allowing both to concentrate on the primary target.

17. The captain always goes down with the ship. Never leave the boat. What's worse than an enemy with two boats? An enemy with three boats. Fight down to the last point of health and don't give the enemy any chance to take a damaged boat.

18. On maps where you know a boat spawns at a capture point, make it best practice to head to that point first, allowing one of your crew to take the boat as it spawns. Misery likes company, and two boats are misery for the enemy.

19. As you progress, learn to use TV missiles. They can be helpful on maps with choppy or rough water where it is harder to use TOW missiles. As of now, TV missiles are not detonated by active protection and will not set of your threat indicator. They are very hard to counter.

20. Burst cannon is highly effective against helicopters. Use it if you are highly confident of your missile skills against boats and feel you are less likely to need a canon against them.

21. Get in the fight! Stay in the fight. Want to tick off your teammates? Sit back miles away from any meaningful battles while fruitlessly attempting to take down distant helos with your cannon. Boats can be a game changer. Your cannons can level buildings and destroy infantry. Help your team and stick close to them.

Anyhow, I hope these tips may prove successful for someone out there looking to help themselves out in boat driving. It's probably one of the aspects of BF4 I enjoy the most.