Yearly "what ship do I want" thread.

[NaffNaffBobFace]

Haha, one can NEVER have too many Sentinels. Just ask Zion.

Yeah, I'm leaning towards a larger ship, as the smaller ones will be easy enough to grind out in game.
Just which one...lol..

It's a tough one. I know the bigger ships are going to be a ballache to get in game, but I also know with the Multi-crew concept they are probably going to be a ballache to run for a single person too.

My issue is for the forseeable future I'm only going to get an hours play here, an hours play there... Getting a crew of four other players together and heading out to make some phat credits is going to piss my maties off when I have to bugger off to work after 60 minutes.

I can only hope a single person can run a ship that size, with the industrial stuff just taking a bit longer to run between stations to activate.

Failing all else I'll sell the thing to Crazy Bobs Used Ship Sales and live off the proceeds haha:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0_aJxPDYPE

 

[Blind Owl]

My issue is for the forseeable future I'm only going to get an hours play here, an hours play there... Getting a crew of four other players together and heading out to make some phat credits is going to piss my maties off when I have to bugger off to work after 60 minutes.

Exactly. Which is why I want a good balance of soloable ships. I have no idea how much time I'll be able to devote to the game and group play.

I can only hope a single person can run a ship that size, with the industrial stuff just taking a bit longer to run between stations to activate.

Yeah man. Dare to dream! I pray that my Carrack will do fine with a couple NPCs.

 

[AntiSqueaker]

Isnt the "surprise ship" from Drake the Kraken Privateer aka K-Mart? Replaces like 80% of the cargo hold with shops so you can be a mobile, bizarrely heavily armed travelling bazaar.

 

[Blind Owl]

Isnt the "surprise ship" from Drake the Kraken Privateer aka K-Mart? Replaces like 80% of the cargo hold with shops so you can be a mobile, bizarrely heavily armed travelling bazaar.

Yeah, I think it is. Which is a bummer. sounds like they didn't wanna put time into something big and new, haha. Which is fine, considering how much time the big ships are taking.

 

[Cugino83]

Well looking for a savlage craft at this moment you don't have many choices: either the Valture or the Reclaimer...
Considering that, apart for the Pisces, you dont' have a small ship I'll suggest the Avenger that is a relly enjoyable ship witha lots of versatility (coulf fit the trasnport role, small combat and BH).

Another option is going into the personal trasport, so a 600i touring or a Starliner are a good option.
A third way could be to enter the BIG hauling with a Starlifter: the basic variant will be good to move large cargo both being that comodities or veicle, like the tank or the ballista, or the military one, with less cargo but more caracther...

 

[Richard Bong]

My fellow TESTies,

I have a dream. A dream in which Owl finally has the ships he didn't know he wanted, and is satisfied with his fleet.

Hahah yeah right!

Ok, so my core fleet is here to stay:
Carrack with Pisces Expedition
Vanguard Sentinel with Harby BUK
Mercury StarRunner
I'll buyback my Dragonflies at some point, but no rush on that.

So here's the thing. I have about 450 credit kicking around, and I really, really have no freaking clue what I want. The professions I think I would enjoy are below, along with the ships I have that I feel for those roles.
Privateer: Sentinel
Smuggler: Mercury, Carrack
Information broker/espionage: Mercury, Sentinel
Explorer: Carrack, Pisces
Combat pilot: Sentinel
Salvager:

I'm looking to fill any gaps in game play, and I'm turning to you to throw ideas at me, because I fear I've pigeonholed my thinking. I'm not tied to those trades, so ideas for other aspects of gameplay are also appreciated.

I really like the Redeemer, and I can't wait to see what she ends up being. I would love a salvage ship, but something slightly bigger than the Vulture. Thinking medium sized.

What gaps do you see? What would compliment the fleet I have. What roles or trades would fit nicely into the professions I've mentioned?

You don't have a carrier based fighter. Hornet Wildfire, Super Hornet or Sabre depending on your flight style. You and I believe range is important, but this is Test Squadron and people are going to need carried fighters.

I already mentioned a general purpose starter ship.

If you like the original concept of the Redeemer, you might consider the Valkyrie. It flies almost as well as a Vanguard and is the combination Gunship/Drop ship the Redeemer was supposed to be. As I mentioned in another thread I don't have a place for it in my fleet because my Retaliator should fill the roles, but it is making me consider going from 4 ships to 5. :)

 

[Blind Owl]

You don't have a carrier based fighter. Hornet Wildfire, Super Hornet or Sabre depending on your flight style. You and I believe range is important, but this is Test Squadron and people are going to need carried fighters.

I already mentioned a general purpose starter ship.

If you like the original concept of the Redeemer, you might consider the Valkyrie. It flies almost as well as a Vanguard and is the combination Gunship/Drop ship the Redeemer was supposed to be. As I mentioned in another thread I don't have a place for it in my fleet because my Retaliator should fill the roles, but it is making me consider going from 4 ships to 5. :)

Yeah brother, I was going to restrict myself to 4 ships, but I'm looking at either 2 smaller/medium ships or one larger one. There are limitless combinations though. I may do Redeemer and a fighter. Or Redeemer and a Cutty. Or just a Valkyrie. Or, or, or....hahaha dammit

 

[Talonsbane]

Yes, from what I understand, the Privateer is a Kraken that has had its internal bays & a large chunk of its cargo storage swapped for internal shops. The questions on my mind will be how much cargo capacity will be left & will that be balanced out by being able to have ships land on the flight pads to show wherever in space?

 

[Stevetank]

The Crucible is a hidden gem!

 

[Richard Bong]

Yeah brother, I was going to restrict myself to 4 ships, but I'm looking at either 2 smaller/medium ships or one larger one. There are limitless combinations though. I may do Redeemer and a fighter. Or Redeemer and a Cutty. Or just a Valkyrie. Or, or, or....hahaha dammit

Avenger and Valkyrie fits in your store credit. :) With AI blades all of the Valkyrie guns should be able to be pilot slaved. That would be something nobody wants to get in front of. Or the turrets can be put on point defense with blades.

 

[Talonsbane]

I just sacrificed my Emerald Phoenix bundle to upgrade my Terrapin into a Polaris. Depending on how the rest of the week goes, I'm thinking about getting a Scoundrel Pack & using some of the leftover creds to upgrade the Cat to a C2 Starlifter as well as snag a few other CCU upgrades that I haven't decided on yet.

 

[Black Sunder]

If Owl would get on discord we could help him.

 

[Bambooza]

You don't have a carrier based fighter. Hornet Wildfire, Super Hornet or Sabre depending on your flight style. You and I believe range is important, but this is Test Squadron and people are going to need carried fighters.

I already mentioned a general purpose starter ship.

If you like the original concept of the Redeemer, you might consider the Valkyrie. It flies almost as well as a Vanguard and is the combination Gunship/Drop ship the Redeemer was supposed to be. As I mentioned in another thread I don't have a place for it in my fleet because my Retaliator should fill the roles, but it is making me consider going from 4 ships to 5. :)

Indeed a ship that would fit on the Idris, Javalin, and Kraken would be recommended for every Testie. While the few million UEC needed to buy one in-game shouldn't take more than a month being able to join up and dock on the test fleet from the launch of beta would be priceless. The arrow and Gladius are a joy to fly, while the Super Hornet and Sabre hold no punches.

From Citizencon it looks like the multi-group missions are going to have many parts and look to span across both space and ground but it is still too early to see how far they are going to take it. But given Theatres of War, it looks like they are going all-in on the idea of epic space battles followed by ground combat. Or the reverse trying to run a blockade to escape.

 

[ColdDog]

I had to buy something to say I'm still here... I bought the Tank.

 

[Blind Owl]

The Crucible is a hidden gem!

She's still on my list. Dammit. Haha

 

[Blind Owl]

Avenger and Valkyrie fits in your store credit. :) With AI blades all of the Valkyrie guns should be able to be pilot slaved. That would be something nobody wants to get in front of. Or the turrets can be put on point defense with blades.

That does sound like a nice combo. Shit. Haha

If Owl would get on discord we could help him.

Just got out of work brother. 2120 hrs, and I'm back in the office at 0630. . .
So yeah, I can hop on discord shortly. Just gotta shower.

The arrow and Gladius are a joy to fly, while the Super Hornet and Sabre hold no punches

How viable are the light fighters when it comes to a dog fight? I have an Arrow package from last year, but I've never flown her. And I think the Gladius is bar-none the best looking fighter there is.
I'm fond of the SH and Sabre. I sworn I'd never get rid of my Sabre, yet my hanger is empty of it, lol.
When it comes to combat ships, I think I need to get in and fly before I decide on which one. I feel like I'd love the fast and zippy Arrow or Galdius (arrow has fuel scoops, no?), But I also think that my style is more tank, a la SH. I guess what I'm saying is if have to do a voyage of discovery to see what feels right for me, especially with the new flight model.

 

[NaffNaffBobFace]

My Connie Taurus and Hornet Ghost kinda flew too close to the sun and became a Starfarer.

I've got the SF as a loaner for my Endeavor and more and more found it to be the go-to for carrying anything and making trade runs. As soon as I found out it should be able to swap those fuel tanks out for more cargo pods it was a no brainier for me. I'll get a Taurus again one day, but the 'Farer seems to meet my needs right now and having a ship I can eventually fuel up my Capital with just seems like good sense too.

 

[Blind Owl]

My Connie Taurus and Hornet Ghost kinda flew too close to the sun and became a Starfarer.

I've got the SF as a loaner for my Endeavor and more and more found it to be the go-to for carrying anything and making trade runs. As soon as I found out it should be able to swap those fuel tanks out for more cargo pods it was a no brainier for me. I'll get a Taurus again one day, but the 'Farer seems to meet my needs right now and having a ship I can eventually fuel up my Capital with just seems like good sense too.

Ahhhh, the ol' Beerfarer. She's a beauty eh?

 

[Bambooza]

That does sound like a nice combo. Shit. Haha

Just got out of work brother. 2120 hrs, and I'm back in the office at 0630. . .
So yeah, I can hop on discord shortly. Just gotta shower.

How viable are the light fighters when it comes to a dog fight? I have an Arrow package from last year, but I've never flown her. And I think the Gladius is bar-none the best looking fighter there is.
I'm fond of the SH and Sabre. I sworn I'd never get rid of my Sabre, yet my hanger is empty of it, lol.
When it comes to combat ships, I think I need to get in and fly before I decide on which one. I feel like I'd love the fast and zippy Arrow or Galdius (arrow has fuel scoops, no?), But I also think that my style is more tank, a la SH. I guess what I'm saying is if have to do a voyage of discovery to see what feels right for me, especially with the new flight model.

It really depends on your combat skills. The light fighters are all about outmaneuvering your victim but do not give you much protection if you make a mistake and get shot at. The Hornet is just a brawler and can easily take a few hits while returning significantly more punch but its maneuverability compared to the lights is lacking. Maneuverability is not as big of a factor when starting out farther apart or in clear space and only factors in when dealing with ground combat or around large bodies like asteroids, so the Arrow and Gladius would have a hard time getting close to ships like the Sabre and Hornet to even utilize their agility without coming out of a support craft like the Idris or engaging in an asteroid belt. The Sabre, while not packing as much of a punch as the Hornet nor having as much armor, has the advantage of larger missiles and stealth which cuts down on the ability to be locked by missiles.

I enjoy flying all of them and as the game matures each seems to have very distinct advantages which makes the experience all the richer. Aesthetically I am not at all a fan of the Hornet and greatly prefer the Sabre and Gladius as my primary fighters.

But that's not to discount the Buccaneer and 300 series I just don't fly any of them to be able to say how they are. As my favorite combat ships are the Sabre, Gladius and Freelancer MIS.

 

[Bambooza]

My Connie Taurus and Hornet Ghost kinda flew too close to the sun and became a Starfarer.

I've got the SF as a loaner for my Endeavor and more and more found it to be the go-to for carrying anything and making trade runs. As soon as I found out it should be able to swap those fuel tanks out for more cargo pods it was a no brainier for me. I'll get a Taurus again one day, but the 'Farer seems to meet my needs right now and having a ship I can eventually fuel up my Capital with just seems like good sense too.

Ahh, the lumbering beast. I have to say doing all of those long hauls from Hurston to Port Olisar has given me a new appreciation for her. Until I try and find my way to a bed or attempt to slow down after coming in too hot for a planetside landing. (honestly, love that the retro thrusters are weaker then the main so spinning around has saved the day many times)

But she just doesn't compare to the look of the Hercules. So I'll enjoy her as a loaner and I am sure parting will be sweet sorrow but I am looking forward to other ships becoming flight-ready.