Freelancer v. Constellation: your thoughts?

[starkestrel]

You want to be a solo trader and have some versatility, both in cargo and other types of missions. You need a good, well-rounded ship that you can customize over time and potentially have a few specialized layouts for special missions.

You've got two basic options: Freelancer or Constellation. Ignoring the variants for now, the decision boils down to a basic decision -- do you fly the 1 or 2-man ship, or the 4-man ship?

Constellation

The Connie is going to be able to carry more cargo and has more firepower to protect that cargo. More space and power may mean better specialized systems.

That said, it's going to have a larger ship's signature, will probably be slower, and is going to have higher operating costs: a crew (NPCs), fuel, and maintenance.

Freelancer

The Freelancer is going to be more cost-efficient to operate with, at most, one additional crew member (NPC) and less onerous operating expenses. Smaller ship's signature can be an advantage, as can speed. It'll likely be cheaper to customize, and it's possible that there's some jump points that a larger ship can't find.

That said, the cargo bay will be smaller and the firepower of the ship will be less potent.

~*~

There's pros and cons for each. One of the biggest unknowns is how viable a Constellation will be with a crew of NPCs. If you're not actually planning on crewing your ship with PCs, is the Connie even a viable option?

What are your thoughts?

 

[starkestrel]

From a more personal perspective, I'm looking at giving up my LTI Super Hornet for either the Freelancer or the Constellation. As much as I like the SH, the DFM is illustrating to me that I'm going to want to be a trader/explorer in the 'verse. With a trader, I could theoretically purchase a dogfighter from profits in-game, whereas it's probably going to take longer to earn the credits to buy a trader with a dogfighter.

It's a tough decision, but I can't afford to pledge both.

 

[SkippyLeDoo]

Although the Constellation will be more expensive to maintain, you'll be able to bring in more money from each haul.

As for its defensive capabilities (even though they're fighting npcs and probably have god mode) this video shows how well it can handle a few hornets.


The Freelancer won't be as powerful overall, but it will be a smaller target with plenty of firepower. Its main gun mounts are class 4 turrets that can mount class 1 guns, giving you more firepower than the connie's primary guns with a wider firing radius.


EDIT: Forgot to link the video.

 

[starkestrel]

As for its defensive capabilities (even though they're fighting npcs and probably have god mode) this video shows how well it can handle a few hornets.

Unfortunately, the multiplayer video isn't going to be good data for me/us. If I'm planning on flying with an NPC crew, it's hard to know how effective they'll be in a fight. And my understanding is that the Constellation had to have been in godmode for that video, because the Connie isn't ready for dogfighting -- no shields and no damage compartmentalization.

It's quite difficult to make these determinations from two years outside of the game. :(

Thanks for pointing out the weaponry on the Freelancer. I hadn't caught that.

 

[starkestrel]

Any idea what people are talking about when the say the Andromeda has "8 open upgrade slots"?

 

[[EGTID]Killbuni-]

Any idea what people are talking about when the say the Andromeda has "8 open upgrade slots"?

the standard shields etc are not at max cap. for the connie and can be upgraded their are also extra slots that not got equipment assigned to them so you can personalise it your self ie tractor beams etc etc no hard details yet as we have no information on how we can upgrade our ships yet, just that we can (Soon tm) ;)

 

[starkestrel]

the standard shields etc are not at max cap. for the connie and can be upgraded their are also extra slots that not got equipment assigned to them so you can personalise it your self ie tractor beams etc etc no hard details yet as we have no information on how we can upgrade our ships yet, just that we can (Soon tm) ;)

Thanks. I actually cleared up my confusion. The guy who was talking about that on multiple threads thought that the dots next to "Additional Equipment" in the technical specs meant open slots.

I was staring and re-staring at the tech specs for the longest time trying to think what he meant, because I wasn't seeing it in the simple component upgrades. When he explained what he meant, I did a combo facepalm and headdesk.

 

[SkippyLeDoo]

Unfortunately, the multiplayer video isn't going to be good data for me/us.

That's true, but it's a little bit to go on. It seems to at least have damage states.

Another thing about the Freelancer is that all variants except the MIS have a rear mounted dorsal T5 turret.


A way you could consider your answer is this: Do you want to take higher risk runs, or lower? I figure the stock Constellation might be able to hold off against an attack a little better or longer than a stock Freelancer, but as we all know, nothing is certain at this point.

 

[Choppanob]

Another thing about the Freelancer is that all variants except the MIS have a rear mounted dorsal T5 turret.

But still can mount one as far as i know (only dosn't come standard with it)

 

[starkestrel]

A way you could consider your answer is this: Do you want to take higher risk runs, or lower? I figure the stock Constellation might be able to hold off against an attack a little better or longer than a stock Freelancer, but as we all know, nothing is certain at this point.

Thanks for the reframing question. Those types of questions help discover clarity. If you can think of any others, please do ask them, as they do help.

The difficulty is that it's hard to know from this distance. I can speculate as to the game mode I'm going to prefer, but that may not survive contact with the game. In addition to not knowing how enjoyable I'll find different ways of playing the game, I can also be the sort of picky gamer who might not like a perfectly viable vessel simply because it doesn't look right or feel right while flying it.

That said, something appeals about the idea of having a stock Connie or stock Freelancer and tricking it out with components that may not be obvious on first scan. I like the idea of being able to hide cargo. I like the idea of being able to run from a fight if sticking around for it doesn't look promising, or I'm on a tight deadline, or I can't afford the damage repairs right then. I actually don't mind the idea of having to run a tight ship with regards to expenses vs. profit, and maybe having to ground my vessel for a bit while I crew someone else's to make some extra scratch to hire on crew for my own run.

If I knew I'd have copious amounts of free time to play in, I'd just get the Freelancer and see how it goes in-game. As-is, though, it's compelling to try and start the game with the right hull, and then work on customized upgrades.

 

[Desterion]

Ben said the upgrade slot thing got scrapped. Before it was it had X number of spaces to place an upgrade in kind of like a puzzle or an inventory in diablo 2. He said they have since changed it so that upgrades are for each individual component, weapon, etc and it made a lot more sense.

 

[starkestrel]

Ah, cool, thanks for that Desterion. Do Ben quotes come from the forums, or does he do video stuff too?

 

[Desterion]

I saw it on reddit a couple of days ago as a forum quote

 

[GrammarGestapo]

Although the Constellation will be more expensive to maintain, you'll be able to bring in more money from each haul.

As for its defensive capabilities (even though they're fighting npcs and probably have god mode) this video shows how well it can handle a few hornets.


The Freelancer won't be as powerful overall, but it will be a smaller target with plenty of firepower. Its main gun mounts are class 4 turrets that can mount class 1 guns, giving you more firepower than the connie's primary guns with a wider firing radius.


EDIT: Forgot to link the video.

woah, thanks for posting that. I was worried about just how effectively it would be able to handle attackers. Now I'm secure in my purchase :)

 

[starkestrel]

woah, thanks for posting that. I was worried about just how effectively it would be able to handle attackers. Now I'm secure in my purchase :)

Do understand that was an advertisement. The Constellation isn't yet DFM ready. We have no idea how representative that was of an actual firefight.

That said, I've read comments that devs have said that, all things told, a fully-manned Connie should be able to fight with 2-3 Hornets.

 

[SkippyLeDoo]

a fully-manned Connie should be able to fight with 2-3 Hornets.

Missile spam. There's no way they'll have enough countermeasures for 48 of them.

 

[GrammarGestapo]

Missile spam. There's no way they'll have enough countermeasures for 48 of them.

you have to keep in mind that missile spam won't be too useful when they get close. From far away, hell yes. But when they're close enough to out turn you, your turrets are the only weapons that will have any sort of effect.

 

[starkestrel]

Missile spam goes both ways, as well. It's likely that 3 Hornets can fire more missiles in 6 seconds than 1 Connie can, and 3 Hornets have just one target.

 

[SkippyLeDoo]

you have to keep in mind that missile spam won't be too useful when they get close. From far away, hell yes. But when they're close enough to out turn you, your turrets are the only weapons that will have any sort of effect.

Just spin when they get close. I'm sure ol faithful could handle a few direct hits.

Serious: Here's what my strategy in a Constellation would be:

Face your target, fire on the enemies and try to get missiles out. They're likely going to get close to lay down fire and speed out to get away from the turrets. Once this happens, you could turn to the side to give the turrets a decent view while keeping the exposure to them and the 'bridge' at a minimum. This would also decrease the time it takes for you to face them after they pass and get a lock on as they prepare for another run. If they stay close and get out of the turrets' FOV, it's as simple as pitching or rolling a little to expose them to your weapons. If they stay within missile range, you've already won.

The Phoenix would make things more difficult for the attackers due to its PD turret. I'm not sure if it attacks all enemies or tries to shoot down missiles, but it would force them to improvise.

The snub fighters would also put some extra pressure on small groups.

 

[GrammarGestapo]

Just spin when they get close. I'm sure ol faithful could handle a few direct hits.

Serious: Here's what my strategy in a Constellation would be:

Face your target, fire on the enemies and try to get missiles out. They're likely going to get close to lay down fire and speed out to get away from the turrets. Once this happens, you could turn to the side to give the turrets a decent view while keeping the exposure to them and the 'bridge' at a minimum. This would also decrease the time it takes for you to face them after they pass and get a lock on as they prepare for another run. If they stay close and get out of the turrets' FOV, it's as simple as pitching or rolling a little to expose them to your weapons. If they stay within missile range, you've already won.

The Phoenix would make things more difficult for the attackers due to its PD turret. I'm not sure if it attacks all enemies or tries to shoot down missiles, but it would force them to improvise.

The snub fighters would also put some extra pressure on small groups.

That's the thing, the constellation is huge. I don't think it will even spin in decoupled mode very effectively. I think the driver of a connie should focus on counter measures and keeping the fighters in general away from the vulnerable rear blindspot. Chasing after them would be pointless, and focusing on a single one would risk tunnel vision of both yourself and your turret gunners. Keep a level flight, otherwise, your turrets won't hit shit.