Here's what's worked for a group of people I play with:
1) Play the campaign on Elite first, if you haven't. This unlocks Ace difficulty. On Ace, health regeneration is disabled, but you get a lot of points for it in Free Mission.
2) Play the missions Pipeline and Siege first. You can do these on Elite or Ace and probably get an A, Siege is easier on Ace than Pipeline. I did them both on ace in an F-15E but it's up to you. This unlocks Multirole Pilot, which boosts points when you fly a multirole plane.
3) Equip that, and go back and do the fighter/multirole missions in a multirole. If you want, take the Super Hornet and ECM pods to prevent enemies from hitting you - it's worthwhile on some missions, especially when flying on Ace. The combination of Multirole Pilot + Elite or Ace should get you As on every other jet mission. Just use DFM heavily, take out green enemies before red TGTs and those before red TGT_LEADs to maximize your score. Make sure to get all targets in ASM for bonus points, that kind of thing.
For the door gunner and AC-130 mission, it's just straight memorization. Memorize spawn spots and especially where enemies who fire SAMs are. Remember that both the Black Hawk door gun and the AC-130's 25mm can shoot down incoming missiles. You should be going for quick destruction of as many targets as possible. The door gunner one you should do on Ace, as it's very difficult to get above a B even on Elite.
For the Apache missions, I suggest taking any skills you have that boost your MG damage and cooldown, enhance your rocket launchers, and increase your payload. Then just hit everything hard and fast, and don't get shot down. On the first helicopter mission, take AAMs just to destroy Hinds, because enhanced rocket launchers + enhanced MG can take out pretty much every ground target so you won't need 4AGMs as much. However -- on the second helicopter mission 4AGMs are much more useful for hitting hard targets like tanks, letting you cycle between rockets and 4AGMs to clean up everything very fast. You get a better time bonus and chain kill bonus, which can be critical.
And last tip, for Hurricane, you have to shoot down a significant number of the escorts to get this, but if you try to DFM them all, your targets will escape. Instead, take advantage of their unusual lack of aggression, slow down to about 300 knots and weave back and forth - they'll fly in front of you and you can just missile them.
In general though if you get shot down don't worry too much, just restart from checkpoint. You lose your Armor Bonus, but I've successfully gotten As on several missions after respawning. It's best not to get shot down, of course, but it's not a dealbreaker.
Your reward for all this, besides the achievement, is the Ace skill - increases points earned in any aircraft or helicopter. Worth it, especially if you want to chase after some of the 1,000,000 point unlocks.
Here are some per-mission scores to target. These are the lowest scores anyone on my FL has (including me ) whom I know has an A on every mission, rounded off for easier reading. In general, most missions require 2000-2100 points, but the minimum point total is different from mission to mission.
Nightmare: 1800
Inferno: 2080
Red Moon: 2500
Spooky: 1920
Blue on Blue: 2030
Power Play: 2410 (confirmed that a 1912 will B rank you)
Lock and Load: 1710
Pipeline: 2430
Siege: 2240
Hostile Fleet: 2040
Launch: 1920
Motherland: 2130 (a 2076 was a B rank; almost certain the cutoff is 2100 on the dot for this)
Aftermath: 2020
Home Front: 2200
Hurricane: 1900
Akula: 2140
You may get an A with fewer points than these, but they should give you an idea of what's possible. All of these were on Elite or Ace.
28 Comments
This is good I gave it a thumbs up but I urge everyone to use it along with Splatz guide. Hostile Fleet is better done on Elite along with the AC-130 mission and the door gunner mission it is very easy to get an A rank on that mission on Elite
By PanicButton16 on 25 Oct 2011 06:07
for the ac-130 i had done that on ace and im not gonna lie for at LEAST 11 min i kept getting shot over n over n over on the 2nd pass to nab the balloon cuz i was in heavy damage so it only took two missles to kill me and after pron 15min of frustration i beat the level...thinking i got like a D or worse i had actually got A rank, not bad for 10mins of deaths :-D
By N0Way07 on 03 Nov 2011 22:29
For Red Moon and Motherland, the Apache missions, time does not matter that much. Destroy as many green targets, individual infantry, SAM and RPGs as well as vehicles before taking out the RED targets. I did this on ELITE. I suck at helicopters. When I took too much damage, I hide until my health was restored. It took me a while, but I did enough combat damage to score over 2100 on both missions. The time bonus will help big time if you are really good at the helocopter game.
By Luckydog77777 on 13 Feb 2012 13:19
What is the best flight mode for this, optimum or original? I switched to original due to playing AC6 but have only just started the game.
By Shin Gatsurai on 02 Oct 2012 02:40
If you've ever played an Ace Combat game, Original. Always original. You made the right choice.
By notPsion on 01 Dec 2012 00:28
In the mission where you flight with AC-130, if you shoot at an rpg missile you will destroy it. So, you don't have Flares but you can use this trick to increase your defense. (Sorry for the bad English)
By StillMiralo on 29 Dec 2013 21:59
just wasted a good 10 hours completing avery FREE MISSION on elite....that doesnt unlock ACE mode. Restarting the campaign now, to do it again...
By Basanakin on 17 Mar 2014 02:35
I've been trying the Lock and Load mission now for a while.. and I CAN'T get over 1500 points!!!! I'm doing it on Ace, completing it, killing everything in sight... I don't know what is going on........ chaining kills, keeping LT in all the time.. this is really stupid..
By Shadow 00 Fox on 22 Aug 2015 20:20
Finally got it! 1712 points.. somehow I got massive chain bonus compared to usual.. and the armor bonus helped too. Did it on Elite!
By Shadow 00 Fox on 22 Aug 2015 21:37
lol... just beat Hostile Fleet in 35 minutes... using the Su-34, was on critical damage for the entire last cruiser battle... just flew circles about 1-200 feet above the ocean, launching my LAGM's then when those ran out taking potshots with my regular AA missiles.. that eventually worked. Died so many times... 2051 and A rank though!
By Shadow 00 Fox on 22 Aug 2015 23:10
I have no idea why, but on Hurricane I got a massive enemy destruction score using the Rafale.. 6AAM setup. 2,010 points for enemy destruction points! I only got a 150 point bonus with a 8:39 clear time though, so I wouldn't try to speedrun this one.. my total score was 2400.
By Shadow 00 Fox on 24 Aug 2015 23:52
My final score was 2078. Finished in 20:30 minutes, with a 120 point time bonus. The rest was battle points. I had no DFM Chain Kill bonus points. 240 DFM quick kill points. I think 38? cannon bonus points, and 1680? destruction points. I hope this helps someone, that was the dumbest flight sim mission in a very long time.
By Shadow 00 Fox on 25 Aug 2015 21:42
If you get A ranks in co-op will it count?
By KilldbyNecropsy on 27 Aug 2015 03:36
I believe that is definitely No... co-op is completely separate from Free Mission... the missions are slightly different, etc. There are 16 campaign missions, and only 8 coop missions.
By Shadow 00 Fox on 27 Aug 2015 05:40
Ok, I was getting skills for A ranking co-op mission (some good ones at that) and was t sure if that translated over.
Having a hell of a time with the blue on blue mission. No matter how quickly I kill everything and how crappy a jet I choose I get no love.
By KilldbyNecropsy on 02 Sep 2015 00:25
Did you see my comment above on that mission? I had a terrible time with it until I Finally got it as I wrote above :-)
By Shadow 00 Fox on 02 Sep 2015 02:22
Motherland can be A ranked with the Hokum, using the UGB, on Rookie with points to spare. I managed to get 4471 points. I spent so much time trying to A rank it on Ace/Elite for no goddamn reason.
By Orthodoctus on 15 Feb 2017 07:28
Power Play: 2364 = Rank A
By Duran on 15 Aug 2017 06:02
Power Play: 1914 = Rank B
By Duran on 15 Aug 2017 06:03
On home front I got A at 2058
By JM0ney Justin on 05 Aug 2020 13:08
A tip for Pipeline and Siege: Use the PAK-FA with the "Experimental Weapon" (Trinity).
Machine guns as much as possible on ground units, quick DFM kills on planes. Use Trinity on the fortress (Pipeline) and the large groups of ground forces rushing the airfield (Siege) at the end of each mission. Trinity splats all the things. Went from ~1550 to ~2450 just by doing that: machine gun bonus + time bonus.
By The Globalizer on 07 May 2022 21:30
I just nailed A rank in 'Blue on Blue', scoring 2061.
My 'Gunslinger' skill-set on the Mirage 2000:
- Multi-role Pilot
- Quick Turn
- Boost & Turn
- Enhanced Machinegun
- Machinegun Cooldown (Standard)
- Sharpshooter
My two-cents:
- DFM everyone.
- Green TGT first. Red TGT next. Save either Bear 2 / 3 for last.
- Solely use the machinegun on Green TGT.
- Hit red TGT with one precision missile and finish it off with the machinegun.
- When the opportunity presents itself during DFM, switch to 4AAM for combo-kills.
By Hudson 826 on 14 Jan 2023 10:59
The mode that allows you to do a full roll. It is the mode that gives you the warning about advanced or experienced Ace Combat players. You pull tighter turns and can roll into and follow other planes better. There is no lag when turning and while in DFM. It takes a bit of getting used to but like anything its becomes natural after getting used to it. I strongly recommend playing in this mode. I was able to get A ranks a whole lot easier then in the arcade mode.
By Soldier 4 I AM on 28 Oct 2012 00:49
Thumbs up, good general guideline on getting the achievement. Just wanted to add, although you want to take out as many enemies as possible as stated in the guide, there are some missions where time to complete is more important as there just isn't enough enemies in the board to give you enough points to get A rank. In those missions, you really need the time bonus and/or armor bonus to put you over the top. I found in particular, blue on blue, aftermath and home front, the time bonus was critical so for these missions, make sure you have a 4aam or 6aam special to spam with and take out enemies quick. Don't worry about using DFM on every single enemy you see. Sometimes you can even take out the TGT_LEAD target with a 6aam salvo and don't have to waste time in a scripted chase where the target is invincible.
By Superflee2 on 02 Aug 2013 03:13
I'd like to share a few key points I discovered while playing Aftermath on Ace to get that rank. There are tree sections; in the first one you will have to take down a bunch of cruise missiles. If you use the afterburner all the time you will be in the midsts of them and save time. There are four planes that accompany the missiles. You can easily get them after you shot down the two first groups. Use skills to improve your DFM to initiate it at nearly any angle and you will have no problem with the missiles. For some quick and easy points, target the last one in the group of four missiles, enter DFM and shoot it down. Now before entering DFM on the second to last missile, get a lock, fire and enter DFM just before the missile hits and you will get some Quick DFM Kill points.
The second group spawns four fighters before you get to the bombers. Try to get one head on but if not, ignore them. Try the same as you approach a bomber with its escort. I always used the Rafale and its 6AAM loadout. Those missiles will come in handy here. Just try to get a good spread between bombers and escorts and you can net some good kills before taking down any bomber. If there are not enough escorts left, killing a bomber will spawn more and net you more kills. Also, leave two bombers and damage them a bit and wait for more escorts to spawn. Your 6AAM can make quick work of the bombers should they get near the city. Remember that your wingman may take out a bomber as well. Plan for that.
The last section is a pain. You will be heading head on towards your enemy, Dodge Markov's missile and target the bomber. Wait till the escorts are off screen and quickly switch to your 6AAM which should all target the bomber. Fire, switch to regular missiles and fire again. Now these 8 missiles should take care of the bomber head-on. Should they not, turn around and try to enter DFM on the bomber using your 6AAM. Should you not destroy it head on you can use some flares in this section to get clear of enemies.
The fight with Markov is pretty straight forward and if you made it this far in the game you probably know all about countering and DFM. The strangest thing happened to me though; in all my runs trying to get the achievement, only on the one where I finally succeeded did 4 planes spawn in the Markov fight netting me more points for taking them down.
My loadout of skills included Enhanced MG and MG Cool Down which meant I could use it nearly indefinitely. Enhanced Missiles are of course a must and the three remaining skills were Multirole Pilot , Quick Assault and Enhanced DFM.
By Epsilon Theta on 19 Feb 2012 11:23
For Blue on Blue!!!! I would like to say that I got this almost first try after well over 10 tries with lots of other weaker planes with higher multipliers. The key is NOT to get a super fast time, but instead to get a high score with the PAK-FA always firing missiles right as DFM engages to get an easy Quick Kill! I shot down everything I could everywhere, including all green planes, as fast as I could. Also, I always aborted the scripted cutscene through the cannon by exiting DFM mode and finding another target. I had Heavy Damage at the end because of some silly missiles, otherwise it went really smoothly.
I ended up with: Battle Points: 1917 Clear points 300
Battle Points: Enemy Destruction Points 1407
Machine Gun Bonus: 30
DFM Quick Kill Bonus: 420
DFM Chain Kill Bonus: 60
Clear Points: Time Bonus: 150
Armor Bonus: 150
13:23 time.
By Shadow 00 Fox on 24 Aug 2015 21:11
Finally finished the worst mission since Heroes Over Europe final boss mission on hard.. Akula is DONE. I ended up doing it completely my own way after trying for several days to do it according to all sorts of other guides. My method that eventually worked was on Elite. I went for maximum kill points ignoring time. I used the PAF-FA with QAAM missiles and these skills: Enhanced Missiles, Multirole Pilot, Enhanced DFM, Quick Assault, Wide Range MG, and Enhanced MG. I shot down ALL green aircraft as fast as possible, going for the cheat DFM quick kill bonus by firing missiles as DFM is engaging... then I went after red TGT aircraft, disengaging if ANY green aircraft showed up and shooting those down first. I also tried to use cannon as much as possible for cannon bonus but it didn't do much. I went through the first stage like that. 2nd stage, I just fired whatever QAAM's I had left oncoming at the bombers(I think about 3 QAAM's that actually hit and a little cannon can take down each of the first 5 bombers--otherwise 6AAM's can take a bomber down in one salvo if they all hit). Once all bombers were down I went into the scripted sequence with Markov and succeeded first try. This was my 2nd attempt using the PAK-FA for this trying for maximum kill points; the first time I missed A-rank by less than 100 points. Don't bother trying for armor bonus, but try to avoid too many checkpoints. I have no idea if reloading checkpoint subtracts Destruction points or not, I don't think so... so it might not matter since time isn't a problem at all! For the Markov fight, I'm going to write another comment..
By Shadow 00 Fox on 25 Aug 2015 21:26
Most important tip!! If Akula gets on your tail, it is VERY easy to lose him. Make sure you have at least 2000 elevation, then do a full brake inverted pull-up turn, where you go inverted then pull up at the ground at an angle so you end up level about 45-90 degrees from where you started. Akula almost always is close enough for the counter maneuver and he won't hit you with missiles you can do it so fast.The thing to remember is you DO NOT have to shoot anything at him during scripted sequences, and most of the rest of the time as well! If you have a 4AAM or 6AAM loadout, it makes it MUCH easier to keep him in your sights. CHEAT ON AKULA.... when he fires his stupid... !@#$(&*@#(*%& missiles, try to make sure he's in the center of the screen then quickly exit DFM with
then immediately reenter with
. That will make his missiles all lose you if you do it right! Try not to do this when he's off the screen otherwise quite likely all his new missiles will hit you no matter what you do. Also, he will sometimes fire 4 missiles in a row up to 4x! There are 4 major stages. FIRST STAGE: Akula does a slight flyby of the pentagon right near the start. Expect him to do a Counter-Maneuver right afterwards! Damage him a little now...until SECOND STAGE: Major flyby of Pentagon and low over the water.. Damage him some more and expect several Counter-M's and having to chase him down and have him do stupid 600mph 180* turns... until THIRD STAGE: Akula flies over the river and blows stuff up... then does a prompt counter or two. Damage him some more, as much as you can, and KEEP ON HIS TAIL or you're dead. He likes to fire a lot of missiles in this part so get ready to cheat on them!! FOURTH STAGE: Akula does a very close flyby of the Washington Monument(I think he even shoots it with a missile lol) then dodges over the Capitol building. You're almost done, but this part has killed me many times. He will counter you 1-2 times normally, AND fire a LOT of missiles. I've had a set of 4x4 missiles here! If you damage him and counter him quick enough, he'll go to the final stage shortly--STAGE FIVE. VERY easy. Just shoot him up with missiles and cannon. LAST STAGE--shoot the Trinity rocket with rockets and cannon as fast as you can. I failed this only the first time I played the mission. The game wants you to do a left circle during this part to keep shooting at the missile. You don't have to.. and you're done.
By Shadow 00 Fox on 25 Aug 2015 21:37
notPsion
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