Still no luck on Silverstream

[Kansas]

No probs mate.
Now go get that Firestar track! :)

Still no luck on Silverstream.

I noticed that the track demands absolute perfection. If you mess up on just one corner, you're relegated to fourth or fifth.

I also found myself flying completely off the track on Silverstream on some corners, but my ship somehow just whipped back to the track...

[Space Cowboy]

Its a nasty track but I love it :) Its one of the most gorgeous looking tracks in the first game.

[Task]

Still no luck on Silverstream.


Here's something that I found extremely helpful: Fly FEISAR on Silverstream.

It's the perfect craft for that track. We're talking serious airbraking here, and making all the right turns all the right ways. There's a section (at the end of the short icy cave) where you've got a double boost pad before the turn on the inside, and another one after the turn, again on the inside. You can hold down the airbrake on the first set of boost pads and hug the inside of the turn and make it around the corner pretty slickly.

That track is easiest to learn (and perhaps even fly) in the mighty F. Try it.

[Kansas]

Thanks, I'll have to try that.

However, I tried using Feisar in the Championship, and although I never hit anything, I always ended up 2nd or 3rd.

I switched to AG Systems and started doing a lot better.

[element42]

I also found it impossible to win with Feisar; I got through venom & rapier with Ag-sys. I still haven't managed to win Firestar though, with anything. mind you, i haven't tried particularly hard :oops:

[eLhabib]

the most important thing to win on silverstream is to take the high road on the first split (means LEFT) and the low road on the last split (also LEFT). those are definitely shorter and faster than the other parts. I used to take the right road on the last split, simply because I loved that big jump, and I noticed that even though i maneuvered it perfectly, I would lose positions. When I started taking the left road, I immediately got gold.

[Task]

This topic definitely required splitting.

Anyway, what I wanted to say of relvance was that the first split is the same length on both sides. You take whichever side works better for you. I always go right on the first split myself, I've never been able to do the left side faster.

It's the last split where the left is considerably shorter. The other splits are even.

[bakkufu]

i have to agree, I take the right hadn turn at the first split because the entry to that section is easier, giving you more time to take the sharp left, whereas the sharp right on an incline is a bit harder to do.

The second split's left lane is shorter, but i seem to remember there are more speed pads on the right, giving you similar times if you dont smack the walls after the jump.

Got gold on firestar too, the main problem with that one is the tricky double corners before the start / finish, and the split with speed pads at the decision point. You have to know which way you are going before you get there, trying to laneswap while going over a speedpad just ends up with your AG pinballing off the walls.

[Brother Laz]

On Silverstream I can fairly consistently get 2nd or 1st place by the end of lap two and the remaining lap is just cruising. :twisted: Usually I'm already in a medal position by the end of the first lap.

Yes, it is easier to fly with Feisar. The problem is that you'll lose so much time due to being in a Feisar in the first place that you'll struggle to catch up no matter how good you are.

Critical points are:
· The first hill and especially the descent. It is quite possible to overtake three ships before the chicane from hell in the ice tunnel.

· Try not to airbrake into the split or you'll crawl up the hill like a Feisar, causing you to crash down nose first at the other side after which the speed arrows will catapult you into the wall. Etc.

· Hitting the hill at high speed will shoot you into the air, saving you the hassle of dealing with the speed arrows at the bottom at a bad angle, and you may even be able to cut the chicane a little.

· Don't actually ignore the speed arrows though, or they'll shove you sideways into the wall. Aim for the apex wall at the right and they will help you on the correct racing line.

· That little left hand kink into the tunnel should be taken by tapping the airbrake early and sliding into the corner. You should still be going at high speed. You do have to airbrake, the common sense approach of cutting into it and not airbraking will result in a very bad racing line for the chicane from hell, costing you much more time than you gained.

· You should be heading for the chicane from hell at high speed. If you go slow or swerve from left to right due to excessive airbraking, you pretty much lost the race because you're bound to crash at the chicane.

· It is crucial you approach the chicane from hell from the center of the road. Too much to the left and you'll have to mash the airbrakes to avoid the apex at the chicane, and this will probably cause you to drift into the outer wall. Too much to the right and the act of tapping the airbrakes itself causes you to swipe the outer wall.

· The chicane from hell. This is actually easier with the AG-S than with the Feisar. The problem with the Feisar is that the first corner slows you down to about 10 kph and everyone else either flies by, or hits you and causes you to crash.

· The trick with the AG-S is to approach it from the center of the road, drift slightly to the right, tap the airbrake early and hug the apex. You can almost cut the first corner with an AG-S. Ignore the second corner for now.

· You're now at the right hand side of the track approaching the second hairpin, heading for disaster. Hit both airbrakes (yep) to slow down, then press and hold the right airbrake to take the corner as tightly as possible. This costs a lot of speed, but enables you to hit the very important speed arrows on the straight and gives you a good racing line for the next critical left hand corner.

· A coward or Feisar pilot will probably attempt to steer through the second corner 'properly', and end up missing the speed arrows, as if the Feisar wasn't already slow enough. That or come to a near stop trying to take the second corner tightly. Or exit the chicane at the left hand side of the road, attempt to sideshift over the arrows and get launched into the right hand wall. Etc.

· If you have a shield, now is a good time to use it. Just don't let it distract you and cause you to crash at the next corner. Getting hit by anything on this short straight (and it happens often) is almost guaranteed to cause a crash, whether by screwing up your controls or just by slowing you down enough so you hit the apex at the hairpin.

· The hard left before the hill is very important, because any slowdown (or god forbid, a crash) leaves you crawling up the hill. After the previous speed arrows, you are on the right racing line. Said Feisar pilot on the left hand side is now faced with a full right-left chicane instead of a hard left with a little right kink before it. Laugh at him while he's still in your rear view mirror.

· Stay on the right side, steer right a little bit, airbrake hard left and aim for the apex to slide round the corner. Don't overdo it, or you'll do a near 180° skid and hit the outside wall. Pulling the nose up the whole time helps. You'll need to do so anyway to get up the hill.

· This corner is easier than it looks, the problem is you don't want to steer too hard right or you'll hit the outer wall, and also I often try too hard to avoid the apex and hit the outside wall instead. The speed arrows are angled slightly to the right and help you avoid the apex anyway. Actually aiming for the apex results in the best racing line.

· If you have a turbo, the hill is an obvious place to use it, but only once you are going straight and level or you will bounce up and down, swerve or shoot yourself into the outer wall. This is the easy but slow place to use a turbo. If you are Lance or Evil Knievel, hang onto it.

· If you are using a turbo, do remember about the little left hand kink at the top. You may think you can correct for it in the air, but the wuss wagon grabs you the instant you leave the road at the right hand side. Lost a race this way.

· There is no real way to avoid hitting the ground and bouncing at the bottom. Pulling the nose up only slows you down even more. I actually lose most of my turbo advantage here, and the faster you go, the worse it gets.

· Left hand road at the first split is better. The problem with the right hand road is that the transition into the second split is only 'more or less' straight and any wrong move causes you to hit the wall. Left road is a millisecond slower, but much safer. It also avoids the risk of colliding with an AI ship at the crossover and getting pushed into the wall or onto the 'sucker road'.

· Hope the guy in front of you goes right at the second split. If he does, laugh at him. If not, try to shoot him down in the tunnel so you don't tangle with him at the chicanes. I find even just having someone in front of me causes me to crash more often (and firing weapons or having a shield up makes it even worse!).

· The curving tunnel is a great turbo spot! It helps much more than using turbo on the hill. You don't lose all your speed immediately (from crashing down like a meteor at the bottom of the hill) and almost always gains you a position over some poor fool on the other road. Do make sure to point your nose towards the inside first before you hit the turbo or you'll slowly drift into the right hand wall no matter how hard you try to steer left.

· The icky chicane after the tunnel. Again, Feisar loses a lot of speed here and/or crashes, while with AG-S you can just zip through without much speed loss. Start at the left hand side of the track, then shortly before the chicane (when you can see a gap between the apex of the first corner and the apex of the second one), turn right and zip through in a straight line.

· This would of course launch you straight into the right hand wall after the chicane, so when you are at about the apex of the first corner, turn and airbrake hard left and release the accelerator. The airbrake turn will swing you right into the straight pointing in the right direction, and if you do it early enough, you can almost scrape the left hand wall! This saves an enormous amount of time.

· This can be summarised as 'drift slightly right without airbrake, then hard left with airbrake'. Tricky business, but even if you do clip the second apex, you'll often sort of crash through with little speed loss. Don't make a habit out of this though.

· Try not to drift too far to the right when the track rejoins the right hand 'sucker road', or you'll have a bad racing line for the upcoming hairpin.

· It is important not to lose too much speed at the final hairpin. It is quite easy and the speed arrows help you avoid the apex, but try to take it as tight as possible or you'll have a longer distance to travel and the guy in front of you will get away. Again, ignore the apex and let the speed arrows handle it for you.

· Try not to overtake anyone on the right side at the starting line; they may take the 'sucker road' and push you into it as well.

· Turbo time! The start/finish line is a place where the AI will get away from you even if you don't do anything wrong. Turbo evens the odds, and shoots you up the hill faster, allows you to shortcut the downhill bend, etc.; you can benefit from it until the chicane from hell if you are careful. Be careful, the AI will try to get in your way here when you use a turbo. Even without turbo, the AI will attempt to push you off the road in front of the crowd... not a good way to have your contract renewed in 2053.

· You don't need airbrakes to get up the hill. If you airbrake here, it will cost you a lot of time and you can certainly do without. Unless you're going to crash, but even then, just take the risk and pray for mercy. The difference in speed is huge.

......

Now Firestar is a tricky track, mostly because you have no idea how fast you are going and the little kinks and bends can cause you to crash. Also if you don't overtake everyone on the first lap, you'll never see them again. The blind corners at the splits are the key to victory.