My first trip to Sag A - Need some help

[Jonkai]

Hello fellow Commanders

I've been thinking about exploring for quite a while, I was saving for an ASP doing Rare runs with my limited play time. I got itchy feet and am now about to set off in a Cobra, Ive been a Cobra fan since 84 so it kind off made sense in my head!

Could you run your eyes over this fit:

No turrets or utility mods loaded

A4 Thrusters
B2 AFMU
A3 PD
A4 Fuel Scoop
D3 Life Support
A4 FSD
D3 Sensors
D4 PP
Detailed Surface Scanner
Advanced Discovery Scanner

With the speed I am comfortable with no shields and the auto docker takes the danger out of landing (I play with the track pad ona laptop)

I'm going to go the scenic route as posted by CMDR Erimus, will I make it with my current build or should I be making some changes?

It'll take me a while to get there but I'm not in a rush, thanks in advance

 

[Pilot Mark]

Hi CMDR
I've not been exploring in a Cobra, but it is a fine ship. It's weakness is its limited jump range which can make it difficult crossing the spiral arms. As you reach the core, of course this is not a problem because the density of stars increases (it sure is beautiful out there). However, it is a long journey and optimizing your jump range is, I believe worthwhile. For this you will need to reduce weight as much as possible. You can use smaller thrusters without compromising function (we'll talk about boost in a moment). Same with the power distributor, you don't need such a big one of these either. AFMU is worth taking, and doesn't weigh anything - so good. A4 fuel scoop, definitely. You will be doing a lot of fuel scooping. A4 FSD ditto, between these two are where the ASP really is better (faster scoop, higher jump range). Don't worry, when you get back you'll be able to afford an ASP easily!

Boost - well, arguably you'll be spending most of your time in supercruise with no risk of interdiction and hence you won't need to run away from anything. However, on your return journey this is not the case and you'll potentially be 'carrying' 100's of millions worth of cartography data. With an A4 scoop you are going to be exposed as you enter 'the bubble' of civilization and so it may well be worth having this capability. This is something you'll need to think about and be comfortable with your own personal risk/reward ratio. For me, I cannot boost but then I do have shields (for planetary landings) and am seldom mass locked because I fly an Anaconda.

I'm sure others will chip in with their advice. At the end of the day, have fun and enjoy the trip. Don't forget to take photos

 

[Senik]

You can make it there with just about any build. Some are just more efficient than others. This is a good starting point, tweak from here to fit your tastes:

http://coriolis.io/outfit/cobra_mk_...jOVzVKo==.CwBgjAzCGicgJhMFsg==?bn=Exploration

The only thing I'd definitely change about your build is to switch to an A-rated power plant. This will allow you to get closer to stars (and for longer) without overheating. This makes fuel scooping a lot easier, and can help save you from overheating if you jump into a system between binary stars that are close together. Make sure you keep unneeded modules powered off (sensors, power distributor, cargo hatch, and AFMU) to help keep heat levels as low as possible.

A heat sink launcher can also be good for when you jump between close binary stars, as you can launch it from supercruise and it will give you plenty of time to get away. This happens pretty rarely, though, so one is enough for a trip to Sag A.

Otherwise it's really just about cutting out as much weight as possible to improve your jump range. You won't get any use out of the better thrusters and power distributor while you're out exploring -- they are effectively dead weight slowing you down. So weigh that carefully against how much you think you need the bit of extra speed they give you, for the few jumps that you'll be in/near the bubble.

 

[Colonia Jesus]

important things to remember are that weight is key to jump range along with a decent FSD. Thrusters should be D rated ideally as they offer best weight (and are cheaper too) can't really improve on Seniks build tbh ( i might take some cargo space in case you come across any data caches) but thats it really. definitely the best Scoop you can afford in as they are weightless it does not matter what rate it is.

 

[Jonkai]

Thanks CMDR's much appreciated, swapped to Senik's build but kept the Cargo just incase I find anything, thanks again, onwards I go!

 

[iain666]

Good luck, the Mk III is a fine explorer - I'm on the far rim in mine, 64,214ly from Sol at last check and aiming for the 65k line. I'm having to zig-zag a bit as I try to stay as close to the very far edge as possible so that distance from Sol is swinging about between 64.2 and 64.5kly but I'll get there, and then come home the long way round.

My build is in my sig.

 

[SvennoJ]

You might want to take some 3D shields with you, unless you don't have horizons. I guess not, I don't see a buggy in your ship.
Anyway landing on high g planets without a scratch is near impossible, and those little scratches add up over time.
It's fun to race through canyons in a Cobra, yet perhaps not the best thing to do on a long trip.

 

[colprice2002]

With the Cobra using the fuel scoop will take you to 70% heat if you skim the stars - I'd strongly recommend taking 1 possibly 2 heat sink launchers (disable 1 of them to keep as a spare}.

Before you set out to Sag A, do a few 1000 ly trip to see how you get on. You may want to tweak or completely change your ship and that's difficult when you're 16000 ly out!

 

[Hanekura Shizuka]

Actually, I would make two recommendations from Senik's build. Not that it's a bad build, but it's more what is needed and what isn't.

First, I don't think you're going to need the heat sinks. Heat damage happens; flying through suns happens; that's what the AFMUs are there to fix. Granted, you could view it as a safety blanket if you like, but I don't see the need for it.
Second - and this might be a little controversial, but I think more necessary - dial down to a 3C fuel tank, rather than a 4C. It means 8T of fuel rather than 16, so only two-jumps and emergency in the tank, so it means a little more vigilance is needed while traveling. That said, the added jump range - a whole light-year of jump range - is an absolute godsend when traveling.

 

[Hooplah]

Not an extreme explorer but I've wondered why take heat sinks along when after using them they cannot be replenished. They then take up space where perhaps another module would be more beneficial. Hot suns happen but 3 heat sinks aren't going to resolve that on the 4th sun. Heat happens even in the bubble but I figure it's all about resource management. Suns not withstanding if one cannot fuel scoop and manage the heat then the scoop is too small or it's not being correctly performed.

 

[Senik]

Heat damage happens; flying through suns happens; that's what the AFMUs are there to fix.

I agree, but with caveats. First, a heat sink typically allows you to completely avoid any heat damage -- including to the power plant and hull which can't be repaired. So in that respect it's slightly better. Second, if you don't take heat sinks you may need to budget for extra/bigger AFMUs, both to repair each other and for additional ammo to repair the damage the heat sinks would have prevented (unless you have horizons and stock up on materials to synthesize AFMU refills).

A heat sink launcher costs you .16 LY of jump range in a Cobra Mk. III, and even less on larger ships. I'd estimate the route planner will plot jumps that are within .16 LY of your maximum range less than 1% of the time, until you get fairly deep into the galactic core (at which point a slightly longer route is barely off course anyway). So, realistically, that kind of difference in jump range is probably almost unnoticable.

If it's a fairly short trip (e.g. Sag A) and you have the money, taking just AFMUs is definitely more optimal. I'd be wary of doing that on a really long trip though. And of course, if you're taking a Cobra out for a spin because you're on a budget, heat sinks are probably the only choice anyway.

Second - and this might be a little controversial, but I think more necessary - dial down to a 3C fuel tank, rather than a 4C.

I'm a major fan of this in the Asp/Diamondback Explorer. Especially once you have some experience under your belt. But that's because in those ships you still get nearly 4 jumps worth of fuel by dropping the fuel tank size down by one. You don't really need to start worrying about opening the galaxy map and looking for a detour until you hit your 2nd unscoopable in a row, as long as you're in a region with reasonable star density. With the Cobra, you'd have to open the galaxy map and check on the 1st (i.e every) unscoopable, which might get annoying after a while.

Not an extreme explorer but I've wondered why take heat sinks along when after using them they cannot be replenished.

If you use all 4 heat sinks on a trip to Sag A, solely for escaping close binary stars, then you either have some bad luck or you took a lot of detours.

If I had to guess, I'd say I jump into a close (i.e. close enough to be dangerous) binary system every 100 jumps or so, on average. But most of the time I jump in from a safe angle, not between the stars. So it's maybe a 1 in 1000 jumps kind of occurrence.

That said, I do really hope FD adds a synthesis recipe to refill heat sinks. Even if they make it so the synthesis takes 60+ seconds to avoid people abusing it during a dogfight.

 

[Jonkai]

Thank you again CMDR's, got about ten jumps out and got some unexplored planets so heading back to get the first reward, happy that I'll have my name on a planet.

Will be fitting CMDR Iain666's build and heading straight back out. I plan on doing many more exploration missions, so can eventually see what works best for me.

Thank you again, all help and advice is greatly appreciated.

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Yeah I've got Horizons, will save landng on planets until I get into an ASP

 

[Jonkai]

I kept the Heat Sink Launcher, and what a life saver it was, got complacent when jumping and didnt throttle off. The HS saved my skin!

Certainly taught me a lesson though

 

[CMDR Argent Steel]

My advice really is less about your ship and more about training yourself to explore. I think you should take a few field trips 1,000ly out from inhabited space just to get used to what you will be doing. It teaches you how to manage your route, how to handle a variety of stars when you encounter them, helps you learn to identify what the objects are your discovery scanner shows, and gets you over the urge to scan everything you see. Once you've scanned a few dozen icy bodies you'll finally feel comfortable ignoring the others you see. It also helps you settle on how you want your ship build to be before you start going really far out, and that's important because once you're more than a couple of days away from the bubble you're kind of stuck with what you left with.

 

[Scal]

My advice really is less about your ship and more about training yourself to explore. I think you should take a few field trips 1,000ly out from inhabited space just to get used to what you will be doing. It teaches you how to manage your route, how to handle a variety of stars when you encounter them, helps you learn to identify what the objects are your discovery scanner shows, and gets you over the urge to scan everything you see. Once you've scanned a few dozen icy bodies you'll finally feel comfortable ignoring the others you see. It also helps you settle on how you want your ship build to be before you start going really far out, and that's important because once you're more than a couple of days away from the bubble you're kind of stuck with what you left with.

I'd second that. Also, it always takes me a few Kylies to figure out if I like my current rig.

Barnards Loop is a spectacular trip - and because it is always visible from the bubble, you're constantly reminded of looking back through from the other side.

 

[Jonkai]

I was scanning everything until I found an image last night, not bothering with rocks and ice anymore

I have got the first on around 25 metallics though so going to head back tonght, around 1400 LY away from Sol

 

[CMDR Argent Steel]

I was scanning everything until I found an image last night, not bothering with rocks and ice anymore

I have got the first on around 25 metallics though so going to head back tonght, around 1400 LY away from Sol

See, the point at which you stop bothering to scan rocks and ice is one of those little milestones on the way toward becoming a veteran explorer.

 

[Jonkai]

Done a couple of trips in the Cobra, enjoyed it and decided to cram in some more Rare Trading mixed in with Bounty Hunting and have now got a ASP, 33.50 minimum jump range... even got a buggy onboard, although I've never actually landed on a planet before, is it really necessary? My build is as follows:

Leightweight Alloy
A2 Power Plant
D5 Thrusters
A5 FSD
D4 Life Support
D3 Power Distributor
D5 Sensors
C5 Fuel Tank
C6 Fuel Scoop
G2 PVH
C3 Auto Maintenance
E1 Docking Computer (Laptop track pad!)
D3 Shield Generator
DTS
ADS

Heat sink x1

Pretty sure that'll get me to Beagle Point and hopefully across it, don't plan on returning anytime soon