Very important link here: http://www.ne.jp/asahi/mitoro/page/ac04/data/ Updated link: http://www.mitoro.sakura.ne.jp/

This is a comprehensive collection of data & strategies used by the Japanese score attack community. Even though it's focused on ILs, the TECHNIC(general tech), MOBILE POWER COMPARISON(aircraft performance) links, and various maps are very useful. The FLIGHT RECORDER link will also list videos of various records, which is where I picked up most of the "new" strats.

To start the run I'd recommend to play on 'Very Easy' for various reasons. Unlike other AC games, VE in this game allows you to kill any enemy with just one MSSL. The tracking on the missiles is pretty bad, so having another shot to can really help with consistency. The AI also seems smarter / harder to kill on higher difficulties. However you can still be compeititve if you choose to play on a higher difficultly for some reason.

#ROUTE: M01-06: Stick with the F-4E + UGB Buy the MIR-2000 & F-14 M07: MIR-2000 M08: F-14 M09: F-14 M10: Doesn't Matter (I use the MR2K) Buy the EF-2000 M11: EF-2000 M12: MIR-2000 M13-17: EF-2000 M18: MIR-2000

This route is with real time in mind, so with minimal trips to the shop (Although you really don't need to use the EF-2000 either, but the F-14 turns like a pig so...). The MIR-2000 is preferred over other ground attackers as it has the highest acceleration in the game by far. If you don't want to bother with the stalling strategy on Farbanti, buy the SU-37 so you can QAAM spam the Yellows instead.

##GENERAL POINTERS:

• The acceleration / decel in this game is much lower then in the later AC games. Keeping your speed up is key.
• The physics are also pretty driftty. Basically, be careful during ground attack, as it will take a little bit for the plane to respond after pulling up out of a dive.
• You can fly really slowly, which helps a bunch when taking out multiple ground targets with just guns & missiles. Just be careful as you still drop decent amount of height.
• You can skip the end of mission dialogue for every mission (hit start). Don't wait for the 'Mission Complete' box either.
• The bomb pipper (aiming circle) uses the selected target for aiming data. Make sure the target you're attacking is at the same altitude as the currently selected target, otherwise the pipper will be inaccurate.
• Weapons inherit your velocity, so missiles shot while going fast will give enemies less time to react.
• The altitude ceiling is pretty high, and going too high will lower your speed, so the ceiling skipping strat won't work here like it does in the later games. According to Mitoro's data the optimal travel height is 26300 feet / 8000 meters, although I'm not sure if this changes with other planes.

#MISSION-BY-MISSION

##M01 - SITTING DUCK: Due to the slow acceleration, sluggish steering, and inaccurate missiles, you need to take wide passes from side-to-side in order to shoot down the bombers from behind while maintaining a decent speed.

• To start I generally turn left until there's only one notch to the right of the N on the compass.
• At around 1500 ft I turn towards the bombers, sometimes letting off the throttle depending on how late I turned.
• For the second pair of bombers I brake at around 1200 ft, and accelerate shortly after the shot. Try to keep the speed over 700 mph.
• On the final pair, brake just before firing the first shot, then try to be as close as you dare to the last bomber when your second shot reloads. Make sure to spam Start as soon as the mission ends to skip the end of mission dialogue.

##M02 - IMMINENT THREAT:

• Turn slightly left & climb a bit.
• Aim for the far TGTs first. Drop 1 bomb in-between the left-edge of the tarmac & the hangars on the right.
• Aim downwards at the 3 TGTs spread in a line. Drop 2 bombs: One at the left-edge on the vertical gray strip, the other to the right of the cluster of normal targets.
• Aim left & drop 1 bomb in-between the neaby trio of TGTs.
• Aim back upwards and shoot your remaining bombs at the last trio. If you want to play it safe you can drop more bombs at the eariler TGTs, although you'll have to wait for your bombs to reload before attacking the last few TGTs.

##M03 - THE NORTHERN EYE:

• Turn slightly right & climb.
• Make sure to select the targets that you're bombing. Use bombs on all but the right-most TGT (missile it). Take your time aiming here as it's pretty easy to miss due to how hard it is to see against the white background.
• Climb afterwards. Aim for the closest TGT, then go right to left for remaining ones (use bombs on all). You don't have much time to aim here if you hold full throttle. Aiming short is better then having your bombs overshoot over the mountain completely.
• Be careful not to overturn / overclimb as you exit. Obviously skip the landing as soon as you cross the return line.

##M04 - BLOCKADE: Not much to say. You should be able to see the TGTs visually from pretty far away (check directly underneath the E-767 for the 2nd TGT).

##M05 - LIFELINE: Although it's a score attack mission, you can still save time at the end by being as close as possible to the south before the escape sequence. Give yourself time to gain speed & altitude to setup for the brief amount of time the game lets you travel south before the Yellows appear. The game will reset your speed & altitude after, but not your X/Y position.

##M06 - INVINCIBLE FLEET: zzz

##M07 - DEEP STRIKE:

• Drop bombs on the first TGT and farthest TGT. Missile the Solar Tower TGT (in the small crater with panels forming a circle).
• Turn back & climb to 26.3k feet. The first attack from Stonehenge doesn't do damage so don't worry (The devs didn't want players getting surprise killed during their first encounter I guess).

##M08 - SHATTERED SKIES: zzz... Make sure to catch the SR-71 at the start flying @ 30k feet. Also you can wait quite a bit before you have shoot down the bombers (you can wait to at least 2 mins remaining).

##M09 - OPERATION BUNKER SHOT: Another score attack mission with timesave at the end. Once the first 10 mins are up, the A-10 TGTs will spawn on particular position on the map. This means you can basically spawn camp them. My setup for this is to wait over the "ridge" at the slowest possible speed, and then hit the throttle & fly towards the spawnpoint with 12-11 seconds remaining. Now unfortunately they fly surprisingly fast (630 mph / 5500 ft), so even if you're right behind them they'll still have enough time to dodge. I seem to get the best results by firing on the 3rd beep. If you miss, make sure to not let any of them escape and continue towards the beach, as they'll be long gone by the time you finish up with the other TGTs.

##M10 - TANGO LINE: zzz

##M11 - ESCORT:

• Climb at 20 degrees. Try to keep full throttle throughout most of these maneuvers.
• When AWACS says "10-4", roll 90 degrees right and push forward so that the Sun is in the middle of the HUD ladder (use enough rudder to keep level with the TGT).
• Pull back to turn towards the target at 5:03.5 on the clock. If you did it right you should be directly behind, and just within missile range.
• Turn slightly left after firing, and dive at around 10-15 degrees to meet the 2nd group. Use the 4 markers in front of your plane on the mini-map to gauge when to maneuver (connected together they make a box). When the TGTs pass over the far points, roll over. When they pass over the close points, pull back to do a half loop to get behind. Fire XLAAs asap.
• As soon as you fire turn back to your 5 o'clock position & pull straight up (You can let off the throttle here). Fire on the next trio - the sooner the better, although be prepared to miss at least one.
• There's two ways to deal with the last wave of TGTs: First way is to just go after the closest TGTs. Try to fly to the right of the first few so that when you fire, the missiles will track from the rear, instead of trying to cut them off. Second way would be to fly back in the opposite direction of the airliners for a little bit before turning back. Basically your waiting for the TGTs to line up behind the airliners before you start spamming XLAAs from behind.

##M12 - STONEHENGE OFFENSIVE:

• Don't worry about the explosions, they don't damage you.
• Easiest way to bomb to the TGTs is to just to keep going straight as you'll line up with the middle cannon. Attack in a clockwise pattern. Since the Mirage's UGBS has 6 shots, feel free to spam.
• Keep bombs selected after the first phase. Climb to 8000 ft before the update. The update will reset your speed & altitude, but it won't reset Yellow Squadron's altitude, and they'll spawn at whichever alt. you were at before the update.
• They'll try to outclimb you at the start. Aim for the one right of middle (keep bombs selected), and quickly switch to missiles when the 'WARNING' box pops up. As long as you spawned them at the right alt. & didn't switch to missiles too early, this should work everytime.

##M13 - SAFE RETURN: The TGTs that appear at update spawn based on your position & altitude, so ideally you just go as fast as possible before the update so that you can reach them quickly when they spawn. The simplest way to take them on is just fly at a normal altitude, and fire XLAAs at them head on while going fullspeed. Sometimes this gets them all, and sometimes not. They're pretty separated, so the window to lock-on to the far guy, while not flying past the close guy is pretty slim. You could also use the stalling trick that's used on the Yellows in Farbanti here, although the setup for it is slightly slower then just firing off XLAAs & praying.

##M14 - BREAKING ARROWS: From what I understand the TGTs in this mission all fly in set paths, so there technically shouldn't be any randomness here. Although due to the way the first group will subtly jink, it can be frustratingly inconsistent.

• Turn left at the start so that the compass is right inbetween NW-N.
• Turn towards the TGTs once they pass you on the mini-map & fire. You should probably slow down though, as you'll most likely miss a few.
• Once the first group is downed, turn to intercept the 2nd group. Get behind & fire XLAAs, then fire 2 MSSLs before they split. Hope that neither of the groups is larger then 4. Ideally you take out the left split first, and then the right one. Keep in mind that you want to be as fast & as close as possible to the final TGT before the last TGT in the 2nd group dies.
• The final TGT flies in a set pattern. If you positioned yourself right you should be able to fire off a XLAA from max range and have it connect. You want to be able to shoot when it's near the apex of it's upwards climb. When it's at the bottom of the following dive it's vulnerable. If you miss this then you'll have to wait until the cycle loops back around to this point.

##M15 - EMANCIPATION: The Blackjack's spawn at 6500 feet, and go very fast - so it's easier to fly really slow, and shoot them as they overtake you.

##M16 - WHISKEY CORRIDOR: zzzzz

##M17 - SIEGE OF FARBANTI: Yellow Squadron spawns based on your position & altitude. However they start off at a set speed, so if you fly high enough they'll just stall and be left helpless for a while.

• Fly at 41000 feet
• Turn north at the update.
• Nose straight down when the TGTs appear on the mini-map.
• Pull up on Yellow 13's line: "No single ship attacks". You should be right below them - fire XLAAs and hope 1 or more get hit.
• Continue straight up and let the stall from the altitude cap spin you around right behind them. The next XLAA shot should finish them off.

Off course alternatively you could just buy the SU-37 and spam QAAMs at them until they die.

##M18 - MEGALITH The MIR-2000 is fastest plane you can use on your first playthrough so yea. Be careful as it's accel is so good that you can screw yourself if you throttle up too early in a turn.

• Take the left tunnel first. Brake as you enter inside.
• Shoot & exit up through first possible opening
• Carefully shortcut through the latest possible opening on the right tunnel.
• Turn right as you exit, and fly into the sideways trench.
• Turn back left when you exit the trench. Use Megalith's shadow to lineup straight. You can use the transition from open to closed ceiling on the nearby tunnel (the left one when you first approach), to tell when to turn into the last tunnel.