I tried someone's Andromeda in game and then went from Aurora to Constellation Aquila. While that one is not flyable, got a loaner Andromeda.
A Connie is a supersized Aurora :grinning:
I'd say if you can afford it - get one. Something bigger like Carrack may be too much for 1 person, plus you are likely not to be able to use most of the ship's fire power solo, unlike for Connie. Something smaller, like Freelancer, - I'd say no point of getting one if you can get Connie - an intermediary step between Aurora and Constellation. Although it depends on what exactly you want to do (should be hard to tell, as we are still in the alpha test).
From my point of view:
Pros:
- Great view, like in Aurora: you can see everything in front, up, down, sideways - no blockers. Very important for navigation in busy areas, asteroid fields, combat; helps a lot in landing, and is overall very pleasant when enjoying the great views out of cockpit (or maybe the control bridge given it's size). Freelancer is blind in comparison (not sure if as blind as BlindOwl).
- Confidently soloable. You have all the main controls and weapons as a pilot. You need people or AI for turrets and the snub fighter, but having no turrets or fighter operational doesn't prevent you from still be effective. As a pilot the only control you are missing is the detailed control over all systems and subsystems, but not sure how critical it is. You can still control shields, missiles, the ship, main guns.
- Handles very well for a ship of it's size. My understanding is that right now all ships behave as if they have full cargo load, but even with full load it's still very responsive and maneuverable.
- Versatile. Jack of all Trades. Can do anything. Remove the rover and you can haul a lot of cargo. The bay can be approached from 2 sides, which should speed up the loading/unloading, or make it more convenient. Add the rover, and you've got a great exploration vessel. It has a well build living quarters, so you can spend more time "planetsiding". The ship can do combat. Good gimbaled cannons with a lot of punch, turrets, a snub fighter, and lots of missles, especially for Andromeda. You can fire all missiles at once creating a rain of missles, check this topic:
https://testsquadron.com/threads/hey-has-anyone.11569/#post-208047
- Well designed.
- Snub fighter gives you more freedom. You can use it as a personal transport, not only for fighting. For example you can leave your ship on orbit, or at a space port, and take the fighter down to the planet surface (and probably pay less for fuel and "parking"), etc. If you explore and land on a planet. You could fly around in the fighter to recon and then take your rover if you find something interesting, rather than ride around in a bike (as something like Cutlass can't carry the rover), - much more efficient exploration or search and rescue.
- Looks majestic, a ship you want to fly again and again.
Cons :
- May be costly (but you get the ship, the rover and the fighter).
But's and If's
- Jack of all Trades, but Master of none. It depends how you look at it. The ship can do every type of role, but there are specialised ships that can do these roles better (but can't do other roles). For example, it can do exploration, but Carrack is probably better at it, but Carrack is much larger, and probably can't be soloed that easily. The ship can do combat, but a dedicated fighter, like Super Hornet, is probably much better at it, but can't do anything else, like exploration. Can haul cargo, but a dedicated cargo hauler like Hull B/C/etc. is likely to excel in cargo role, but only that and nothing else.
- Still need the crew to be efficient. But can do with part crew, like 1 co-pilot instead of 2. Can still do a lot solo.
- There are smaller ships that can do similar roles, which are cheaper, fly better, and possibly fight better. They also are much better for solo and cheaper. Yes, but they are smaller, can't carry the rover and the fighter and they also have cons.
Other options (rather alternatives to Aurora, since they are in a different size/class):
- Freelancer. Flys and handles very well. Has great firepower. The view sucks. Living quarters are too small, and overall the ship is build to carry 4 crew, so cockpit and living quarters looks and feels cramped. Would be much better if made for 2 crew (like Winnebago in Spaceballs; Winnebago possibly has a larger windscreen than Freelancer). A smaller option, but do you really need it, when the level of soloability is the same between Freelancer and Constellation, and Connie can do more, and feels better designed. To me, Freelancer is the only real alternative to Connie, but the view ruins everything. You can get used to it, but views of the space is a huge part of gameplay. This kind of view maybe OK on something like a Starfarer, or Hull C-E, where all you do is just business - sit in Captain's chair and control your crew. Although sometimes this view gives somewhat a "cosy" feeling - as if you sit in a space truck cabin.
- Cutlass. Flys and handles very well, but offers less cargo than Freelancer. Feels more like a heavy fighter with extended cargo capacity. Doesn't really look like an alternative to a Connie.
- Avenger or Reliant - those are really fighters with some extra cargo capacity, not even close to something like a Freelancer. However, these are much cheaper options.
