Asp commanders - a couple of questions

[Jan Eppendorf]

There are better combat ships and there are better trading ships. The Asp EXPLORER is first and foremost an exploration vessel. So much for the common wisdom.
Do I love the Asp? Yes, I like it enough that I have two in my hangar. One is kitted out for exploration duty with an A frameshift, 3A shield and the rest D class. She yields me around 34 ly range which makes long exploration trips bearable (29-31 jumps to cover 1,000 ly). The other is my community goal ship. I think in this capacity the Asp is most overlooked.

Trading oriented community goal on the other end of occupied space? The 64 t or so cargo hold of a multi-purpose Asp is big enough to make an impact without spending half the mission time getting your Type 7 or 9 there.
Combat oriented community goal? As other have posted here, in Lugh and otherwise a sufficiently kitted out Asp can make shortwork of most NPC ships. Beware of PvP-minded CMDR in dedicated combat ships, though.
Exploration oriented community goal? There's an asp for that.

 

[reverendK]

asp is a multirole ship.
a dedicated trader will out-trade it.
a dedicated fighter will out-fight it.
but neither of those could fight...or trade..or explore at the drop of a hat and the swap of a few modules.
i don't like getting stuck into a role by my ship. that's why i ended up selling my vulture.

and nobody explores better than an asp...except maybe an anaconda...

 

[JimmyTheDeath]

This is my ASP For Combat, i dont use it any more for combat, i got a vulture for that now. but this is what i was doing with my asp
http://www.edshipyard.com/#/L=60g,0...4yS4yS,327_7_7_6Q6Q8S6k,7UI16y05U4zM9s02jw2UI


I would say that cobras and small ships just melt away, with being able to flip flight assistance off and knowing how to fight , it would be hard pressed to be beaten 1v1 vrs anything smaller than it. especially cobras.

as for rare trading this is how i run my ASP on my rout witch nets about 2.6 mill per 1.5 hrs or so usually i'm doing other things at work here when i'm waiting for supply to update on stations.
http://www.edshipyard.com/#/L=60g,0...4yS4yS,2-888S7_6Q6Q8S6k,0AA7TC4zM05U05U2jw2UI


its really a great ship easy to grind to and after that its a money maker.

here is my rare run

Distance	System	Station	Goods
226	Sanuma	Dunyach Gateway (6,000ls)	Sanuma Decorative Meat (Max:24 Supply:1t-30t 860Cr)
82	Leesti	George Lucas (257ls)	Leestian Evil Juice (Max:14 Supply:1t-9t 462Cr) Azure Milk (Max:7 Supply:2t-7t 4,164Cr)
8	Uszaa	Guest Installation (4,350ls)	Uszaian Tree Grub (Max:14 Supply:3t-11t 965Cr)
2	Orrere	Sharon Lee Free Market (963ls)	Orrerian Vicious Brew (Max:16 Supply:6t-10t 533Cr)
7	Diso	Shifnalport (284ls)	Diso Ma Corn (Max:15 Supply:1t-10t 340Cr)
247	Holva	Kreutz Orbital (22,000ls)	Holva Duelling Blades (Max:7 Supply:1t-6t 6,518Cr)
58	Wuthielo Ku	Tarter Dock (145ls)	Wuthielo Ku Froth (Max:17 Supply:1t-16t 420Cr)
49	Rapa Bao	Flagg Gateway (2,338ls)	Rapa Bao Snake Skins (Max:11 Supply:5t-6t 550Cr)
102	Karsuki Ti	West Market (28ls)	Karsuki Locusts (Max:18 Supply:7t-11t 915Cr)
50	Goman	Gustav Sporer Port (291ls)	Goman Yaupon Coffee (Max:16 Supply:3t-11t 1,451Cr)
107	Delta Phoenicis	Trading Post (3,799ls)	Delta Phoenicis Palms (Max:17 Supply:2t-17t 211Cr)

afrer delta Phoenicis just head to Sanuma and sell and start over. very fast run.
this is a great run for me. enjoy it if you like when you get to the end just start back at the it is a loop.
u need 80T after you do it a few times u can dump the surface scanner and add more storage if u like but 2.6 mill i just did not care at that point and rather be versatile in rare running if i want to switch it up. always always have an advanced discovery scanner could be the difference between death and survival if you have to jump to escape some one hunting you

Jimmy OUT!!!

P.S. never giving up my ASP i use it at work , and i use my vulture at home.

 

[requ1em]

I loved my Asp for combat. I started with the base spec and added two gimballed pulse lasers and four gimballed cannons. Lasers for shields and small ships, cannon when close. It was a great ship and over time I kept adding to the core modules to get the shield up (put it in the class 6 slot). averaged about 1.4M per combat run in a resource site against NPCs. Got me in to my FDL now.

 

[SMcA]

It depends on what you're using it for. While I wouldn't recommend the Asp for PvP, if you're doing trading and PvE then you can get into an effective D and C module equipped Asp for less than 10 million credits. Don't listen to the "it's too expensive" crowd, because they'll say that about EVERY ship. Just leave yourself enough cash for trading and insurance (and insurance, and insurance, and insurance) and you're good to go.

Don't forget to leave enough cash for insurance.

I get nervous if my cash is less than three time the insurance costs.

 

[Morbad]

1. How decent is it in a fight?
2. What is the maximum cargo capacity you have had?

1. Perfectly sufficient vs. AI. Not advisable vs. skilled CMDRs.

2. 120T trading load with minimal shields. 80T with a full combat load.

 

[Branko]

I scored my first PvP kill in the Asp (2 med beams and 4 seeker missiles for the hull). It is about as fast as the Vulture, but is kind of drifty, larger target, not nearly as maneuverable (then again, FA off backflip works as always), and the shields are considerably worse then a Vulture which is in the same price class. That said it is not a bad ship, it is a very good multirole and a definite upgrade over the Cobra or Viper in terms of punching power.

I also rammed a Vulture out of existence with it, heh heh. It is a solid ship. I am awaiting the Imperial Courier though, Asp's basic Lakon cockpit and look is slightly off putting to me

 

[Steve72]

I used an asp at the same stepping stone as you. I did rare circuits stopping to play at navs to break things up. Jump range makes rare running quick.

Pve its fine. I dont know about elite conda missions. Scared myself after trying one in cobra. Single plasma to the face took me from full shields to about 36% hull and no shields. I didnt try again until I got a vulture. This rocks at what it does. Not bh has been buffed you will probably earn more doing that than trading in t6 or asp. Having said that they have been disappointing recently.

Sold my asp after getting python.

Fun times in asp. Loved it at the time.

 

[William J Smith]

I love my Asp

Its a very good all rounder, which means it excells at nothing.

But in a combat zone with a decent shield , hull armor, and carful power management, it can take a pounding while handing one out especially if you're prepared to get up close and personal with big ships as you take out their power plants.

as a dedicated trader I'd said you'd have to remove a heck of a lot of gear to get the cargo capacity upto a T6, so it does'nt excel there

But fit an A5 FSD and you'll have your ideal rares trader, even if you do kit it out with shields and weapons etc etc.

But its real purpose is exploring, again the A5 FSD and strip it of everything but the scanners/fuel scoop and you'll make a 2000 ly trip seem like its a walk around the block

Oh and guns.

Cant go far wrong with gimballed lasers on the bottom 4 points and a pair of multicannons on the top 2 points... will chew a basic sidey out of the sky in about 3 seconds.

Bill

 

[Philip Foster]

The ASP with shields gets 96t of cargo, without shields it can get 128t cargo. It's not very good in a fight, it's the second most drifty ship in the game, but it can ram smaller ships pretty well. It gets 4 small hardpoints and 2 medium hardpoints, so it's only a bit better than the Cobra in terms of firepower.

Don't listen to him the Asp is fine in a fight, I fly mine in combat all the time and I can chuck it around quite easily. For the record I have flown both extensively.

 

[Mortifa]

I like my Asp so much I am thinking of selling my Cobra.

It does not have the speed of the Cobra, but it fights better and when you take off FA it is great in combat.

 

[Sayne]

I use 2 Pulse and 2 Burst lasers on the Class 1 hardpoints and 2 Cannons (not Multis) on the medium hardpoints.

I use lasers for the small weapons rather than the Medium weapons because there is no small weapon damage penalty against shields like there is for hulls. Lasers strip the shields, then I target the Powerplant and Anacondas go down with a few well-aimed cannon shots (they do more damage at a 90 degree angle).

Also it has enough power to run an A5 shield with boosters, which is stronger than an A6 without boosters.

 

[Philip Foster]

1) It's ridiculously expensive to kit out for combat. 6A shields are 16M. Mine was in excess of 35M. You CAN do an Elite Conda with it but it's not amazing. It's a BIG target you know!

2) I've had some 112 or there about with the lowest shield you can slap on and with that jump range, it's an unbeatable rares trader.

I love the Asp and will never sell mine. It can do a lot of things very well but in one, it stands tall and proud next to the Conda: exploration. Actually, that view beats the Conda, left handedly.

Good luck commander!

The Cobra is a pretty big target too by the way.

- - - Updated - - -

I like my Asp so much I am thinking of selling my Cobra.

It does not have the speed of the Cobra, but it fights better and when you take off FA it is great in combat.

True, it doesn't have the speed of a Cobra but it's still faster than a Vulture and just wait till you put 5A thrusters on it.

 

[Kancro Vantas]

The most important thing that a cmdr has to give up with Asp, is the Aspiration to be the BEST in anything. It's counter intuitive but it's the truth: once that's understood, you got the best ship ever.

You can trade at 64t, have strong shields, refinery and minning laser, still beam, pulse and ulticannons, scanners for wake, cargo and kill warrant, an interdictor drive, and a FSD that allows you to jump 30ly at a time, with advanced and detailed surface scanners. All combined, all together, at the same time. And small enough that can still land in outpost -something that no other ship equipped as this can do (mainly no other can have all that AND also jump 30ly) What is not to love????

Granted, you will need money to equip it as mentioned (mine is in the 37 MM mark), but I am ready for any action or mood at the flip of a coin.

And, regardless of what people say about it, and even when there are way better and bigger ships for combat, truth is that an Asp is always respected in a combat. Can take smaller ships easily, and is a tough cookie for bigger ones to chew on.

edit: corrected 96t for 64t which is what I do now. Max Jump is 29.8 ly. unladen and on low fuel.

My current config:

[Asp]
U: 0C Cargo Scanner
U: 0C Frame Shift Wake Scanner
U: 0C Kill Warrant Scanner
U: 0I Heat Sink Launcher
S: 1G/G Burst Laser
S: 1D/F Mining Laser
S: 1F/G Pulse Laser
S: 1F/G Pulse Laser
M: 2F/G Multi-cannon
M: 2F/G Multi-cannon


BH: 1I Lightweight Alloy
RB: 5A Power Plant
TM: 5A Thrusters
FH: 5A Frame Shift Drive
EC: 4E Life Support
PC: 4A Power Distributor
SS: 5D Sensors
FS: 5C Fuel Tank (Capacity: 32)


6: 6E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 64)
5: 5A Shield Generator
3: 3A Frame Shift Drive Interdictor
3: 3A Refinery
3: 3A Fuel Scoop
2: 1C Detailed Surface Scanner
2: 1C Advanced Discovery Scanner
---
Shield: 211.32 MJ
Power : 14.14 MW retracted (69%)
19.74 MW deployed (97%)
20.40 MW available
Cargo : 64 T
Fuel : 32 T
Mass : 407.5 T empty
503.5 T full
Range : 28.02 LY unladen
24.46 LY laden
Price : 40,519,427 CR
Re-Buy: 2,025,971 CR @ 95% insurance

 

[Philip Foster]

I found the Asp to be a reliable combat platform but it does lumber a little. It has poor yaw but loops ok.
It takes an age to back off the throttle so you can heave it around into a loop.

I felt a good mix was two big beams on top and 4 multi's on the bottom.
Not as quick as dispatching baddies as my lovely clipper but good enough to make an impact.

I always leaned toward combat/safety configs so I only ran about 80T.

If the Cobra can be regarded as a turner and burner the Asp can be regarded as a boomer and zoomer. That doesn't make it better or worse, just different. Plus, I've finally got 5A thrusters and the difference is stark. It is more responsive, it accellerates faster, it boosts faster, top speed is faster, turns faster.......................................but costs 5m credits and still won't out turn or out pace a Cobra. You can buy an E class Vulture for the price of 5A thrusters for an Asp. I'm happy with it though. I suppose when you get used to something it's difficult to move on. I am an Asp fanboy I think.

 

[smiths121]

Hello,

Well it looks really good in orange!

My early asp was trade orientated, and the ability to defend itself from NPC pirates, as I am not too close to other players, and I was skint - about 16MCr.
We are experimeinting with the Background Simulator, so I find myself ferrying a few missions and a lot of time in low intensity conflct zones.

I would not disagree with the observation - probably better in a vulture given my current mission brief, but do no want lose 600K for trading in the Asp, cannot afford both. So I tweaked it for combat. It is ..... adequate, no PvP "currently" needed.

[Asp]
U: 0I Chaff Launcher
U: 0I Heat Sink Launcher
U: 0A Shield Booster
U: 0A Shield Booster
S: 1E/G Cannon
S: 1E/G Cannon
S: 1G/G Multi-cannon
S: 1G/G Multi-cannon
M: 2D/G Beam Laser
M: 2D/G Beam Laser
BH: 1I Reinforced Alloy
RB: 5A Power Plant
TM: 5B Thrusters
FH: 5B Frame Shift Drive
EC: 4E Life Support
PC: 4A Power Distributor
SS: 5A Sensors
FS: 5C Fuel Tank (Capacity: 32)
6: 6B Shield Generator
5: 5A Shield Cell Bank
3: 3E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 8)
3: 3E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 8)
3: 3E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 8)
2: 2E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 4)
2: 2E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 4)

--- Shield: 309.97 MJ
Power : 17.73 MW retracted (87%) 21.43 MW deployed (105%) 20.40 MW available
Cargo : 32 T Fuel : 32 T Mass : 524.6 T empty 588.6 T
full Range : 18.32 LY unladen 17.32 LY laden
Price : 27,461,239 CR Re-Buy: 1,373,062 CR @ 95% insurance

Simon

 

[YoBuck]

The most important thing that a cmdr has to give up with Asp, is the Aspiration to be the BEST in anything. It's counter intuitive but it's the truth: once that's understood, you got the best ship ever.

You can trade at 64t, have strong shields, refinery and minning laser, still beam, pulse and ulticannons, scanners for wake, cargo and kill warrant, an interdictor drive, and a FSD that allows you to jump 30ly at a time, with advanced and detailed surface scanners. All combined, all together, at the same time. And small enough that can still land in outpost -something that no other ship equipped as this can do (mainly no other can have all that AND also jump 30ly) What is not to love????

Granted, you will need money to equip it as mentioned (mine is in the 37 MM mark), but I am ready for any action or mood at the flip of a coin.

And, regardless of what people say about it, and even when there are way better and bigger ships for combat, truth is that an Asp is always respected in a combat. Can take smaller ships easily, and is a tough cookie for bigger ones to chew on.

edit: corrected 96t for 64t which is what I do now. Max Jump is 29.8 ly. unladen and on low fuel.

My current config:

[Asp]
U: 0C Cargo Scanner
U: 0C Frame Shift Wake Scanner
U: 0C Kill Warrant Scanner
U: 0I Heat Sink Launcher
S: 1G/G Burst Laser
S: 1D/F Mining Laser
S: 1F/G Pulse Laser
S: 1F/G Pulse Laser
M: 2F/G Multi-cannon
M: 2F/G Multi-cannon


BH: 1I Lightweight Alloy
RB: 5A Power Plant
TM: 5A Thrusters
FH: 5A Frame Shift Drive
EC: 4E Life Support
PC: 4A Power Distributor
SS: 5D Sensors
FS: 5C Fuel Tank (Capacity: 32)


6: 6E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 64)
5: 5A Shield Generator
3: 3A Frame Shift Drive Interdictor
3: 3A Refinery
3: 3A Fuel Scoop
2: 1C Detailed Surface Scanner
2: 1C Advanced Discovery Scanner
---
Shield: 211.32 MJ
Power : 14.14 MW retracted (69%)
19.74 MW deployed (97%)
20.40 MW available
Cargo : 64 T
Fuel : 32 T
Mass : 407.5 T empty
503.5 T full
Range : 28.02 LY unladen
24.46 LY laden
Price : 40,519,427 CR
Re-Buy: 2,025,971 CR @ 95% insurance

Sweet setup fella.

 

[squeaky McPiggle]

Asps power plant is easily targeted to make them pop. Sat behind cockpit. Great ship though

 

[Sayne]

Hello,

Well it looks really good in orange!

My early asp was trade orientated, and the ability to defend itself from NPC pirates, as I am not too close to other players, and I was skint - about 16MCr.
We are experimeinting with the Background Simulator, so I find myself ferrying a few missions and a lot of time in low intensity conflct zones.

I would not disagree with the observation - probably better in a vulture given my current mission brief, but do no want lose 600K for trading in the Asp, cannot afford both. So I tweaked it for combat. It is ..... adequate, no PvP "currently" needed.

[Asp]
U: 0I Chaff Launcher
U: 0I Heat Sink Launcher
U: 0A Shield Booster
U: 0A Shield Booster
S: 1E/G Cannon
S: 1E/G Cannon
S: 1G/G Multi-cannon
S: 1G/G Multi-cannon
M: 2D/G Beam Laser
M: 2D/G Beam Laser
BH: 1I Reinforced Alloy
RB: 5A Power Plant
TM: 5B Thrusters
FH: 5B Frame Shift Drive
EC: 4E Life Support
PC: 4A Power Distributor
SS: 5A Sensors
FS: 5C Fuel Tank (Capacity: 32)
6: 6B Shield Generator
5: 5A Shield Cell Bank
3: 3E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 8)
3: 3E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 8)
3: 3E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 8)
2: 2E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 4)
2: 2E Cargo Rack (Capacity: 4)

--- Shield: 309.97 MJ
Power : 17.73 MW retracted (87%) 21.43 MW deployed (105%) 20.40 MW available
Cargo : 32 T Fuel : 32 T Mass : 524.6 T empty 588.6 T
full Range : 18.32 LY unladen 17.32 LY laden
Price : 27,461,239 CR Re-Buy: 1,373,062 CR @ 95% insurance

Simon

Looks solid, but super heavy. That 6B shield weighs more than a Sidewinder.

B components have more hit points, but they weigh so damn much. I always skip them in favor of A components.

 

[Kancro Vantas]

Sweet setup fella.

Thank you!!! 3 months in the making!!...I haven't flown anything else ever since, but I am an Asp lover even before getting the game. If anything, the Asp allured me to get Elite!!

Now comes that Diamondback sexy beast, wiggling its tail and curves at me...but is hard to compete with my current ship, that's the truth!