Newcomer / Intro The Keelback...

[Maymo]

I'm running a fresh commander, I spend the majority of my time doing deliveries out of Diaguandri in my VMk4 and supplement my income with the odd pirate bashing mission. I've got the funds to get myself a T6 which I know I can earn excellent credits with but I really fancy a change of pace and have been looking into the Keelback...

The problem is I just can't see how this ship is going to work, the internals seem really limited compared to a standard T6, it feels like once I've equipped a fighter and a good shield I'll no longer have a freighter because there's no room for cargo?

I've read some horror stories about this ship but I understand they did upgrade it at some point? I've also spotted some proud owners here on the forums so I'm hoping someone can give me an up to date review...

 

[Chris Simon]

I like Keelback. You can beef it up pretty good, she has decent guns (Same as Vipers, Cobra mk.III, Diamondback Scout, Asp Scout) PLUS A FIGHTER. It's like having a half of a Vulture with you, everywhere you go.

It has less cargo than T6, crap jump range, unless you engineer it. But as a general missioneering ship, she's awesome. With the right fighter (I like the iFighter with fixed beams) and decent pilot (Master and above), you'll be melting Pythons and FdLs that missions throw at you with no problems.

So if you are willing to sacrifice a bit of profits for heaps of fun, go for it. Keelback's great.

 

[Conde]

You're not going to get fighter like handling but it's great fun to use with a fighter bay in one of the Size 5 slots , the other one will take 32t cargo or a decent passenger cabin. I use 2 Medium Turreted Burst Lasers and Missiles to keep any troublemakers occupied whilst the fighter kicks in. You wont make a lot of cash but its all about the fun factor!

 

[Maymo]

Well I did it guys...
I believe in spending a good week in a ship before passing full judgement so I'll give her a good run, even spent some frontier points on a new paint job to keep me committed...



Wow, she's noisy!

@Conde

Yeah, those two medium hardpoints are crying out for turrets, I should be unlocking Dweller shortly so may go with Pulse turrets and improve the distributor recharge for boosting. It's early days but this thing seems capable of a very impressive 180 degree vertical boost turn....doesn't even feel like it drifts, just does it right on the spot...will test properly when A rated...

I'm down to 300k so going to quietly go and make some credits....lol

 

[Conde]

Looks good! A nice match with your IPhone 428 Yes The Dweller proved quite handy. I got him to boost all 3 recharge rates as I didn't want a huge increase at the expense of the others. Also I experimented with the Turrets by getting him to maintain DPS but increase range out to around 3600 with the advantage of damage fall off at maximum range (i.e no falloff at all) instead of the usual 500m. On top of that he pulled out of the hat a tweak that does damage to hull through shields. Some of the mods on offer introduce jitter but I wanted to avoid that if possible. So overall worth a visit! I was sceptical at first but I must say Holo-Me and the new Camera makes things a lot more immersive too.

 

[Maymo]

Thanks Conde!
I've not even been in her a week and I've got plenty of stories to share...

It really reminds me of the Thundertank! I really wish it had some kind of combat cockpit rather than the standard T6 one, I'd appreciate some more metal around the ankles and sun roof...using glass as a bumper is just bad design strategy IMO...

I've done several loadouts and settled with small beams upfront for harassing/initiating and two turreted MCs for dropping ships, burns through ammo like a SOAB...but man it works so well...

I made the mistake of trying to use this ship like a T6 at first and could have been disappointed if I hadn't explored her fully. It just isn't a freighter....it's something else entirely. I've now got it A rated with 16mil in the bank and my no claims bonus is still in tact...

I thought Chris was taking the mick when he said I'd be fighting Pythons and FDL's but I've been interdicted by both now and didn't lose my shields to either. The turrets provide near 180degrees of fire and if something does happen to get beneath me this thing can roll over faster than a dog on heat and keeps blazing. With the fighter chewing at their haunches as well I've seen more ships try to jump away from me than any of my previous vessels...

I'm going to post a full review after I've been in her a week.

Not sure if we get shouted at for bumping threads here or not.....sorry!

 

[Chris Simon]

You didn't believe me! Shocking. [squeeeee]

 

[Maymo]

You didn't believe me! Shocking. [squeeeee]

Ha! I'm sorry man but with all the hate on this ship can you really blame me? I like underdog builds though and this ship has been really satisfying to tame, I wouldn't use it without engineers though, she needs those dirty drives and the distributor needs tweaking so she can boost right...

Just noticed I haven't upgraded the armour!! Must get that done next! Getting 30ly jumps combat ready and this thing is awesome at scooping...

 

[Chris Simon]

Ha! I'm sorry man but with all the hate on this ship can you really blame me? I like underdog builds though and this ship has been really satisfying to tame, I wouldn't use it without engineers though, she needs those dirty drives and the distributor needs tweaking so she can boost right...

Just noticed I haven't upgraded the armour!! Must get that done next! Getting 30ly jumps combat ready and this thing is awesome at scooping...

Yep, engineering definitely helps to drag her out of the corner of mediocrity (though I actually used and liked her even before engineers and fighters. )
And actually I don't even use military grade composites of her. I need the jump range for missions. I just engineered the basic lightweight armour with a lucky roll of heavy duty. It has over 80% added mass, but, well, 0+ 80% of 0 is still 0, so...

 

[Maymo]

And actually I don't even use military grade composites of her. I need the jump range for missions. I just engineered the basic lightweight armour with a lucky roll of heavy duty. It has over 80% added mass, but, well, 0+ 80% of 0 is still 0, so...

That's a really good tip actually....nice!
I feel like bumping its armour just plays to its strengths, Keelback actually has the identical hull mass of the Cobra3 but more than twice the armour to go with it...I did get the hide stripped off me by a triple wing over at a Nav beacon yesterday (the one time I lost my fighter so far) they had me down below 40% hull by the time the coppers showed up to help...had minimal module damage though and just one of my weapons was on the fritz...shouldn't have started with a harmless fighter I guess, she's competent now though and seems to be wearing more lipstick, killing things is making her more cocky...

 

[Chris Simon]

That's a really good tip actually....nice!
I feel like bumping its armour just plays to its strengths, Keelback actually has the identical hull mass of the Cobra3 but more than twice the armour to go with it...I did get the hide stripped off me by a triple wing over at a Nav beacon yesterday (the one time I lost my fighter so far) they had me down below 40% hull by the time the coppers showed up to help...had minimal module damage though and just one of my weapons was on the fritz...shouldn't have started with a harmless fighter I guess, she's competent now though and seems to be wearing more lipstick, killing things is making her more cocky...

Yea, one on one, she's great, but I wouldn't engage a wing. Not even a wing of Sideys, wings are deadly for almost all small and medium ships.