The Setup:
When you first begin attacking capital ships, you will need to pay attention to this phase as it is what will determine the feasibility and success of the actual attack run. The purpose of the setup is to allow you to assess your situation, and position yourself for an attack run. This phase is where you allow yourself to put the situation under your control. It is imperative that you dictate the flow of combat at all times as you are the underdog in these confrontations.
The setup phase has several stages of execution - analysis, testing, and positioning. Generally, you will only test on your initial close-in strafing run.
In analysis, you will gather information on your target ship and your surroundings, primarily the presence of any other hostile forces which would affect your attack. You need to know if your target ship is moving, and if so, at what speed. If the target is moving, it will affect how you execute the attack, break, and retreat phases of the attack. This is achieved by flying out of range from the target’s defensive systems and having your flight computer match the speed of the target. This may be done by pressing [Enter] on the keyboard. In addition to the target's speed, you also need to be aware of the target's orientation and if it is likely to change. Capital ships generally will not change their orientation unless following a flight path or moving to engage a particular target. It is important that you be aware of its orientation relative to you, as this affects its defensive position against you. It may expose more defensive positions to you, or, most common, put you in the firing plane of its defensive emplacements. When gathering information on your surroundings, this includes, but is not limited to other capital ships, defensive fortifications, and enemy fire that may hit your warheads.