The Apollo is the ship that originally brought me into Starcitizen, although I missed the concept sale it was the first ship I got at my first Expo event!I was just thinking of Apollo the other day, as it is one of the least appreciated ships coming in game. The other two up there get plenty of loves, but the Apollo deserves an advocate as people get the chance to pick one up.
I'm really hoping to develop a deep strike team flying out of a secret base inside Vanduul territory. To pull that off you have to restrict enemy access to their own territory in some manner and the only way to do this is to look for wormholes that you can use and they can't. That means you're restricted to small and medium ships, so you can jump through small gates the Void Bombers and such cannot.
Apollo makes a great addition to such a deep strike group since though it is considered large for its reactor and radar, it is really the size of a Medium ship and should be able to traverse any size wormhole. Along with the Vanguards, Eclipse, Cutty Blue, Lancer Dur and Vulcan, the Apollo brings a lot to such a strike team. It can carry a little cargo, has the best radar for any ship its size and is pretty quick. It only needs one player to keep an entire group healthy. If you're planning to team with other Vanguard players, consider the Apollo for an Alt.
I can vouch, I just did this. Though RSI credit eclipse via buyback ($275 standard) to Glaive ($50) to Carrack to Polaris WB ($100) = $425One interesting CCU to the Polaris is the Carrack if you can get your hand on an old Carrack, that makes a Polaris at 450$.
I've got an old Explorer's Pack with a Carrack and a few other ships for $695. Those old packs are amazing for saving some bread. Just gotta be careful about upgrading too soon. It's why my fleet sucks right now and I've got a dozen CCUs.One interesting CCU to the Polaris is the Carrack if you can get your hand on an old Carrack, that makes a Polaris at 450$.
It's is not so bad having it non limited sale. In reality maybe only 50 to 100 ppl will get one this sale. There is only probably 10k ppl whom own one across the planet, so it will still be scarce to see in the verse. Most ppl are going to go for the smaller ships or the really big ships like the Kraken or the Idris. If you are going to get a Crucible and if it is available this Invictus sale, I would get one now before they re-concept it and the price goes up to 450 or 500 dollars. The Crucible can rearm, refuel, repair any size ship, and will be bigger than it was originally concepted.
A Polaris is not that big ship if you compare it to a Carrack, 890, or Reclaimer. And if you see today in the verse, it is pretty fairly "common" ships, at least the first 2.It will be interesting to see how many do end up buying a Polaris. I have to wonder how many others like me see the other capital ships as being just to big to take anywhere as they would always draw lots of attention and be the focus of any attack making them hard to use outside of fleet battles (I am rethinking the Javelin after seeing the turrets are dual turrets ment for both small and large targets). For me the Polaris was the sweet spot between capital sized weapons and a smaller faster capital ship with fewer crew requirements allowing it to be used easier and thus more often.
I was very close to trying for an Idris, but then I was like the crew requirements, the costs, if you spawn it stays in game after logging out. I bailed on it. Besides, there will probably be better caps later on to invest in. I heard of another carrier from Crusader called the Jupiter. It all just depends on server meshing and whether big ships will actually be practical in actual use. With fighter carrying ships becoming the norm, very few smaller vessels will be safe, and Hull series ships are going to get graped even with escorts cause you can just pew pew chew off bits of it while they run. With shields low one or 2 size 5 missiles are just going rip off 5 or six cargo containers. Basically everything carrying cargo will have to have at least a hand full of fighters or a few large escort ships just to operate.That's exactly how I think of them. The Idris and Jav are important to have in a large fleet and players need to know how to fly them as a group, but events needing them are going to be relatively sparse unless hundreds of players commit to fighting Vanduul over a protracted period of time. Either way though, players will be mining and salvaging etc., between martial engagements.
The Polaris is a ship a score of comrades can live on together. The're gonna hang by the pool table and sing sea shanties. It's a drunkard's ship, but that will make you sober up quick when she goes into action.
A Polaris is not that big ship if you compare it to a Carrack, 890, or Reclaimer. And if you see today in the verse, it is pretty fairly "common" ships, at least the first 2.
Even consider the Hammerhead. A bit smaller in size, but needing a crew to be effective also. Right now it is a ship quite often used with crews running ERT missions (equipped with salvation / attrition or revenant), where you can melt any opposition HH in around 5 seconds at close range. It is the ship i use when i do such bounties in group, and most french guys i know are doing the same.
A Polaris can be effective with just a 6 ppl crew. You will not probably fill all guns position, but that should be enough (1 pilot, 1 torpedo guy or remote turret operator, 4 gunners), as 1 S4 turret is remote (even labelled "automated" in the Polaris brochure, maybe automated/remoted like the S3 for the Perseus) and the S5 can be controlled by the pilot (said to be automated in the brochre, and about the pilot control it is not said in brochure or q&a but half-confirmed later by CIG). Missiles are said to be automated launchers.
So all in all, even if not close to the brochure specs, with the same requirement as for a Hammerhead you can still use a Polaris effectively, might need to swap position during fight but still okay.