Honestly guys...the only way to get any better is to play people much better than yourself...get the snot beat out of you....dust yourself off...smile...and beg them to play again....
When I got SFC1 in 11/98...I almost took it back....it took me two weeks to learn how to beat a damn frigate controlled by the AI...the game was so different to anything I had ever played before...I just couldnt get the concept...
When I found M-player...it was demolarizing...After bangin on the AI for month or two I thought I was king...I was in for a very rude awakening...I got my hat handed to me so many times I lost count...again..I almost gave it up...
It was Dennis Green (SFC Shadow) and Scott Bruno (Captain Krumb) who taught me the basics...Taught me to think of SFC as I think of chess...
I got beat by the best of them...over and over...OscottyO..NTDN, sfaret, Crimson Knight, Kirk Jr, the masters...I didnt know at the time they were all the inner circle team...
This is when I decided to concentrate on one race...until I mastered it...as you can see...I'm still flying Klingon...partly because of my fleetmates...partly becuase I still dont feel that I have mastered Klingons...I'm dangerous...but even after ten years...I'm no ace...I still get smacked around a bit..There are guys I've never beaten....but it's a GAME...I have no fear...fear is the mind killer..
If you can get you hands on one of Dennis Greens' strat guides....he has some excellent drills to hone your skills...
If you cant get one or dont have one...I can post some drills in the tactics section...
Another good thing to do is to find a sparing partner, a person with the same skill level, and simply play battles with the same ships...over and over...this is relaxing and much less pressure than trying to get a good game together on the Dyna...
And quite often...some of the guys offer training sessions...Die Hard is an excellent pilot and a master of the federation...Just ask him..he'll find the time to help you guys out...
Much like chess...you will never advance your own skills if you only want to win and play people of lessor skills just to beat them up...
One cannot become a master...unless one can beat a master...
The fun is in the battle itself...not the outcome...
If the only fun I had was winning....I'd have given up long ago...