Exploring the Unknown - Ship Talk #1 - Updated!
Seung couldn't get the old post to carry all my theorycrafting. So I make new one!
Let me apologize for the first iteration of this thread. I wrote the initial post at work and it was just me writing things down as I thought of them. Future Ship Talks will be much better formatted and thought out in the style presented below now that I had some time to work on this. I'm hoping to make these a weekly thing depending on people's interest in me doing them so if you like what you see say so! The next Ship Talk I want to do is the Aurora and its variants. The following is just my thoughts and how I see these ships. I'm trying to be as objective as possible when I'm commenting on these ships. Without anything further I present the revamped "Exploring the Unknown - Ship Talk #1"!
Right now we have a good set of ships that are flyable. We have others that are in the Hangar and/or almost ready to go while we have even more in concept and design. All of these ships have vital roles in our org's rise to the top but today we will talk about one of the most anticipated aspects of Star Citizen and how it relates to ships and our own success. That aspect is exploration.
Currently there are 7 ships designated as exploration focused and they are the Aurora ES and LX, Mustang Beta, 315P, Freelancer DUR, Constellation Aquila and the Carrack. I want to focus on the top 4 here as the most likely candidates we will use to explore the galaxy. The reason I am disregarding the first 3 on that list is because of a lack of base stats and upgrade potential that the 315P has. I do not preclude the idea that a ship not listed below could be tricked out and upgraded to be a good explorer ship because of the increased modular nature of ships now but I am basing this list on the listed primary function.
My Thoughts on the Ships(315P, Freelancer DUR, Constellation Aquila, Carrack):
General Thoughts on Stats
First let me acknowledge that these stats are all subject to change and the listed equipment is not all there such as the Carrack modular bays underneath. Unless something drastic occurs in testing I'd expect these stats to still give a good general direction and capability for each ship. Below is a link to a composite picture I made with all the stats listed from the RSI site:
All 4 ships and their stats.
Structural and Propulsion:
As you go left to right you see the ships get bigger and stronger in capability and potential. Starting out and doing a quick look all of these listed ships seem to be fairly maneuverable with the 315P and DUR taking first and second place respectively. Surprisingly the Carrack despite being 123m may be very maneuverable with 16 TR2 thrusters. This fits in line nicely with its description of jump point navigation. The Aquila seems to be a middle of the road unit balancing all parameters nicely while having a generous cargo capacity the others do not get. I know the Carrack can equip up to 3 cargo modules of 1440 units each from its base of 0 units and I will comment on that more further down. Needless to say the Aquila can haul some loot you might find the others can't.
Of note is the crew requirements. While the 315P may be good for the solo explorer the Freelancer DUR allows a friend to take the 2nd seat making for a good experience without having to wait for others to get online or use NPCs as filler. This is one of the best points of the DUR overall compared to the other higher end exploration ships which may need NPC fillers to achieve peak performance. The Aquila will seat 4 and the Carrack, depending on your source, will have room for 5 or 6. For serious large scale Ops I wouldn't expect any ship used to have any NPCs on board because how many people will be involved. For smaller operations a mix of NPCs and players may work but you'll almost certainly using more of the smaller ships rather than a fleet of Carracks.
Weapons:
Moving further down to weapons you will note that the Aquila has the most weapons due to its size. The DUR is no slouch either. Of course the 315P gets the short end of the stick but has a small radar signature to compensate and will be able to get out of tough spots by speeding away if necessary. The Carrack is.....not equipped for battle. Despite other good stats it is not meant to fight on the frontier as the DUR and Aquila can. Be careful taking your Carrack out alone in unknown space. Strength in numbers and friendly TEST pilots flying escort will pay bigger dividends then a smoldering wreck.
Equipment:
(Aquila cut off on bottom due to poor web coding)
Finally we come to the end and that is special equipment. Carrack first. The Carrack special equipment is not listed but from the description it has the best and most diverse equipment of all including a repair facility and medical bay that the others do not get. It also features a computer dedicated to jump point mapping and a mapping oriented sensor suite. Not listed is the 3 1440 unit modules under the ship that can be used for any number of things like cargo or more advanced sensors. It also features a rover like the Aquila but also gets a small scout skiff/ship none of the others get. This small skiff/ship will be useful for exploring derelict wrecks and other things. This is the top of the line, end all exploration ship.
The Aquila features 2 JUMP navigation sensors(from html source after cutoff) along with the standard jump point scanner which makes it a useful 2nd choice for trying to get through a jump point unharmed. The Aquila also gets a rover and expanded fuel tank for flights beyond what a DUR is capable of without refueling. The DUR is no slouch either. Featuring an expanded fuel tank for long range exploring and the standard jump scanner the DUR is certainly capable of finding what it wants. The 315P at the low end features the standard jump scanner for finding jump points but no additional features come standard. All ships come equipped with a jump engine.
The Long and Short
315P - The smallest of the 4 listed exploration ships it can't do much. It has limited upgrade potential but it can be very useful. If possible it has the potential to be a great asteroid field survey and scanner ship. Its small size will allow it to zip in and out while planting scanners on each asteroid before scanning them for the Orions. If a pilot errors and the ship is destroyed it isn't as big of a loss as the others. Properly equipped with different sensor packages a group of these may be able to carry out a fast low res scan of a given area before the larger ships move in for a closer look at any points of interest found initially. The 315 P is also small enough to fit in the smallest jump points and certainly the most maneuverable ship to navigate one. The 315P features a tractor beam......for some reason. Low cost describes the 315P well. Not fabulous but can be very useful in specific situations. Don't count this ship out for the larger ops. It WILL be needed.
Freelancer DUR - The DUR is a large step up form the 315P in almost every way. As stated before it is a 2 seater which means FRIENDS!. It features a small amount of cargo space but nothing compared to the Aquila. Its shields and weapons are a big step up, able to dish out and take punishment to smaller ships and hold its own against even dedicated space fighters. The DUR will form the backbone of any exploration scout force due to its low cost and manpower requirements. The DUR will be cheap enough that a loss won't be too big a deal but has enough scanning power to find some interesting things for the Aquila and Carrack to take a closer look at. While it won't ever compare to an Aquila or Carrack in capability, the upgrade potential for the DUR is certainly something to keep an eye on.
Constellation Aquila - I'll be honest, the first time I wrote about the Aquila I didn't like it very much because the Carrack can do everything better and the DUR is a competent explorer in its own right with a smaller crew requirement. Now that I've had a chance to read more and go over things I can say my earlier dislike was unfounded.
The Aquila is a major step up form the DUR in capability with more weapons, shields and everything else the DUR doesn't have. Features an expanded fuel tank like the DUR for long range flights and more powerful sensors including dedicated science station linked to the top retractable sensors. While the Aquila is good I still see it as more of a command ship for a small exploration force. In a pinch it can certainly focus on trouble spots the DUR an 315P are unable to completely identify but its crew complement can be used for other functions as well. It is the first exploration ship equipped with an exploration rover. Manpower may be an issue with 4 people. NPCs may need to be used if people can not be found. Overall I see this ship as the most generalized exploration ship and that is not a bad thing. The upgrade possibilities of course will almost certainly rival the Freelancer DUR due to its increased size and power along with the dedicated science station. The Aquila also features some real cargo space(almost 9X the DUR) allowing a single ship the opportunity to haul back some real treasure if discovered.
Continued below due to 10K character limit :(
Seung couldn't get the old post to carry all my theorycrafting. So I make new one!
Let me apologize for the first iteration of this thread. I wrote the initial post at work and it was just me writing things down as I thought of them. Future Ship Talks will be much better formatted and thought out in the style presented below now that I had some time to work on this. I'm hoping to make these a weekly thing depending on people's interest in me doing them so if you like what you see say so! The next Ship Talk I want to do is the Aurora and its variants. The following is just my thoughts and how I see these ships. I'm trying to be as objective as possible when I'm commenting on these ships. Without anything further I present the revamped "Exploring the Unknown - Ship Talk #1"!
Right now we have a good set of ships that are flyable. We have others that are in the Hangar and/or almost ready to go while we have even more in concept and design. All of these ships have vital roles in our org's rise to the top but today we will talk about one of the most anticipated aspects of Star Citizen and how it relates to ships and our own success. That aspect is exploration.
Currently there are 7 ships designated as exploration focused and they are the Aurora ES and LX, Mustang Beta, 315P, Freelancer DUR, Constellation Aquila and the Carrack. I want to focus on the top 4 here as the most likely candidates we will use to explore the galaxy. The reason I am disregarding the first 3 on that list is because of a lack of base stats and upgrade potential that the 315P has. I do not preclude the idea that a ship not listed below could be tricked out and upgraded to be a good explorer ship because of the increased modular nature of ships now but I am basing this list on the listed primary function.
My Thoughts on the Ships(315P, Freelancer DUR, Constellation Aquila, Carrack):
General Thoughts on Stats
First let me acknowledge that these stats are all subject to change and the listed equipment is not all there such as the Carrack modular bays underneath. Unless something drastic occurs in testing I'd expect these stats to still give a good general direction and capability for each ship. Below is a link to a composite picture I made with all the stats listed from the RSI site:
All 4 ships and their stats.
Structural and Propulsion:
As you go left to right you see the ships get bigger and stronger in capability and potential. Starting out and doing a quick look all of these listed ships seem to be fairly maneuverable with the 315P and DUR taking first and second place respectively. Surprisingly the Carrack despite being 123m may be very maneuverable with 16 TR2 thrusters. This fits in line nicely with its description of jump point navigation. The Aquila seems to be a middle of the road unit balancing all parameters nicely while having a generous cargo capacity the others do not get. I know the Carrack can equip up to 3 cargo modules of 1440 units each from its base of 0 units and I will comment on that more further down. Needless to say the Aquila can haul some loot you might find the others can't.
Of note is the crew requirements. While the 315P may be good for the solo explorer the Freelancer DUR allows a friend to take the 2nd seat making for a good experience without having to wait for others to get online or use NPCs as filler. This is one of the best points of the DUR overall compared to the other higher end exploration ships which may need NPC fillers to achieve peak performance. The Aquila will seat 4 and the Carrack, depending on your source, will have room for 5 or 6. For serious large scale Ops I wouldn't expect any ship used to have any NPCs on board because how many people will be involved. For smaller operations a mix of NPCs and players may work but you'll almost certainly using more of the smaller ships rather than a fleet of Carracks.
Weapons:
Moving further down to weapons you will note that the Aquila has the most weapons due to its size. The DUR is no slouch either. Of course the 315P gets the short end of the stick but has a small radar signature to compensate and will be able to get out of tough spots by speeding away if necessary. The Carrack is.....not equipped for battle. Despite other good stats it is not meant to fight on the frontier as the DUR and Aquila can. Be careful taking your Carrack out alone in unknown space. Strength in numbers and friendly TEST pilots flying escort will pay bigger dividends then a smoldering wreck.
Equipment:
(Aquila cut off on bottom due to poor web coding)
Finally we come to the end and that is special equipment. Carrack first. The Carrack special equipment is not listed but from the description it has the best and most diverse equipment of all including a repair facility and medical bay that the others do not get. It also features a computer dedicated to jump point mapping and a mapping oriented sensor suite. Not listed is the 3 1440 unit modules under the ship that can be used for any number of things like cargo or more advanced sensors. It also features a rover like the Aquila but also gets a small scout skiff/ship none of the others get. This small skiff/ship will be useful for exploring derelict wrecks and other things. This is the top of the line, end all exploration ship.
The Aquila features 2 JUMP navigation sensors(from html source after cutoff) along with the standard jump point scanner which makes it a useful 2nd choice for trying to get through a jump point unharmed. The Aquila also gets a rover and expanded fuel tank for flights beyond what a DUR is capable of without refueling. The DUR is no slouch either. Featuring an expanded fuel tank for long range exploring and the standard jump scanner the DUR is certainly capable of finding what it wants. The 315P at the low end features the standard jump scanner for finding jump points but no additional features come standard. All ships come equipped with a jump engine.
The Long and Short
315P - The smallest of the 4 listed exploration ships it can't do much. It has limited upgrade potential but it can be very useful. If possible it has the potential to be a great asteroid field survey and scanner ship. Its small size will allow it to zip in and out while planting scanners on each asteroid before scanning them for the Orions. If a pilot errors and the ship is destroyed it isn't as big of a loss as the others. Properly equipped with different sensor packages a group of these may be able to carry out a fast low res scan of a given area before the larger ships move in for a closer look at any points of interest found initially. The 315 P is also small enough to fit in the smallest jump points and certainly the most maneuverable ship to navigate one. The 315P features a tractor beam......for some reason. Low cost describes the 315P well. Not fabulous but can be very useful in specific situations. Don't count this ship out for the larger ops. It WILL be needed.
Freelancer DUR - The DUR is a large step up form the 315P in almost every way. As stated before it is a 2 seater which means FRIENDS!. It features a small amount of cargo space but nothing compared to the Aquila. Its shields and weapons are a big step up, able to dish out and take punishment to smaller ships and hold its own against even dedicated space fighters. The DUR will form the backbone of any exploration scout force due to its low cost and manpower requirements. The DUR will be cheap enough that a loss won't be too big a deal but has enough scanning power to find some interesting things for the Aquila and Carrack to take a closer look at. While it won't ever compare to an Aquila or Carrack in capability, the upgrade potential for the DUR is certainly something to keep an eye on.
Constellation Aquila - I'll be honest, the first time I wrote about the Aquila I didn't like it very much because the Carrack can do everything better and the DUR is a competent explorer in its own right with a smaller crew requirement. Now that I've had a chance to read more and go over things I can say my earlier dislike was unfounded.
The Aquila is a major step up form the DUR in capability with more weapons, shields and everything else the DUR doesn't have. Features an expanded fuel tank like the DUR for long range flights and more powerful sensors including dedicated science station linked to the top retractable sensors. While the Aquila is good I still see it as more of a command ship for a small exploration force. In a pinch it can certainly focus on trouble spots the DUR an 315P are unable to completely identify but its crew complement can be used for other functions as well. It is the first exploration ship equipped with an exploration rover. Manpower may be an issue with 4 people. NPCs may need to be used if people can not be found. Overall I see this ship as the most generalized exploration ship and that is not a bad thing. The upgrade possibilities of course will almost certainly rival the Freelancer DUR due to its increased size and power along with the dedicated science station. The Aquila also features some real cargo space(almost 9X the DUR) allowing a single ship the opportunity to haul back some real treasure if discovered.
Continued below due to 10K character limit :(
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