The Elite At A Glance Ship Reference
UPDATE 2020.01.06
Added changes for additional 2 small slots in small ships and 1 slot in medium and large ships.
Also, the new forum editor turned most of my plusses and minuses into bullets. Sorry.
Following ships may have caused changes to best/worst in class.
Any information welcome.
● Alliance Ships
● Mamba
● Krait/Phantom
Cheers.
Props to Alec Turner for Kindly add this to his Best of the Web (v2) sticky "Alec's Best of the forum ⤴" thread.
Executive Summary:
I am trying to make a table of outstanding (good and bad) stats for each ship for a table reference so that a player interested in a ship could read up on its advantages and disadvantages at a glance.
Detail:
I'm looking to collect a list of records (as in Guinness book of records) for each ship in the game, including best and worst stats and will compile the info in this post as it comes in.
I mainly want to know:
1) Quantitative stats where the ship is #1 (or a decent #2), like fastest Medium ship or most agile, best cargo/cost ratio, fastest 360 roll, biggest power distributor, longest jump range for a medium ship etc.
2) Qualitative recommendations, like best weapon convergence, clearest view etc. are very welcome but need to be as "incontrovertible" as possible.
Positive stats, please preface with a +
Negative stats, please preface with a -
If you feel it's neither + nor - but merely an observation, preface with a /
Please include a Coriolis/EDShipyard build for illustration if you've managed to create a record breaking build.
Note that Stats assume Unengineered A Grade unless the following are quoted:
Imperial Fighter
+ Most Agile SLF -- Nadreck
- Most Fragile human SLF -- Nadreck
Federal Condor
+ Fastest human SLF -- Nadreck
Alliance Taipan
+ Tankiest SLF -- Nadreck
Guardian SLFs
+ Good against Thargoids
Sidewinder
Eagle
- Weakest armour in the game (60)
Hauler
- The only ship in the game with just a single weapon hardpoint.
Adder
Imperial Eagle
Viper MK III
+ Fastest unengineered non-boost speed in the game. (512 m/s)
Cobra Mk III
Viper Mk IV
+ Best stock armour for Small single seater - along with DBX (270HP) -- Ceekay
Diamondback Scout
- Heaviest Hull per Tonne of Cargo (6T Hull / 1T Cargo) -- PanTast
Cobra Mk IV
Dolphin
Diamondback Explorer
Imperial Courier
+ Fastest engineered Combat Fit ship in the game (> 800m/s ⤴) -- mutedhiver
Vulture
Type-6 Transporter
Keelback
Asp Scout
Asp Explorer
Federal Dropship
- Most drifty medium ship in the game. Hence the nickname: Federal Drift Ship.
Alliance Chieftain
Federal Assault Ship
Alliance Crusader
Alliance Challenger
+ Most Hardpoints on an Medium ship shared with FGS (7) -- TheMegaTurnip
Federal Gunship
Krait Phantom
Krait Mk II
Fer-de-Lance
Mamba
- Smallest fuel tank on Medium ship (8T) Along with FdL
Python
- This ship can arguably do everything and go everywhere. OP and boring? Maybe.
Type-7 Transporter
Orca
Imperial Clipper
Type-9 Heavy
Beluga Liner
Type-10 Defender
- Worst Supercruise handling (google sheet) -- Lightspeed
Anaconda
- Arguably the most OP and hence dull ship in the game.
Federal Corvette
- The highest Rank requirement Federal Ship (12, Rear Admiral)
Imperial Cutter
UPDATE 2020.01.06
Added changes for additional 2 small slots in small ships and 1 slot in medium and large ships.
Also, the new forum editor turned most of my plusses and minuses into bullets. Sorry.
Following ships may have caused changes to best/worst in class.
Any information welcome.
● Alliance Ships
● Mamba
● Krait/Phantom
Cheers.
___
Props to Alec Turner for Kindly add this to his Best of the Web (v2) sticky "Alec's Best of the forum ⤴" thread.
Executive Summary:
I am trying to make a table of outstanding (good and bad) stats for each ship for a table reference so that a player interested in a ship could read up on its advantages and disadvantages at a glance.
Detail:
I'm looking to collect a list of records (as in Guinness book of records) for each ship in the game, including best and worst stats and will compile the info in this post as it comes in.
I mainly want to know:
1) Quantitative stats where the ship is #1 (or a decent #2), like fastest Medium ship or most agile, best cargo/cost ratio, fastest 360 roll, biggest power distributor, longest jump range for a medium ship etc.
2) Qualitative recommendations, like best weapon convergence, clearest view etc. are very welcome but need to be as "incontrovertible" as possible.
Positive stats, please preface with a +
Negative stats, please preface with a -
If you feel it's neither + nor - but merely an observation, preface with a /
Please include a Coriolis/EDShipyard build for illustration if you've managed to create a record breaking build.
Note that Stats assume Unengineered A Grade unless the following are quoted:
- Stock (E rated from the shop)
- Engineered (With G5 Engineering applied)
___
Ship Launched Fighters
Ship Launched Fighters
Imperial Fighter
+ Most Agile SLF -- Nadreck
- Most Fragile human SLF -- Nadreck
Federal Condor
+ Fastest human SLF -- Nadreck
Alliance Taipan
+ Tankiest SLF -- Nadreck
- Slowest SLF
- Least Agile SLF -- Nadreck
Guardian SLFs
+ Good against Thargoids
- Lowest armour (10)
- Locked behind Guardian puzzle.
SMALL SHIPS
Sidewinder
- The starter ship
- Cheapest ship in the game. (32kCr)
- Most agile ship in supercruise (360° pitch 9s / yaw 3s @ 50%)
- Smallest ship with a coffee dispenser, although tricky to reach from cockpit seat -- Optimal_909
- Weakest base shields in the game. (40)
- Smallest Fuel Tank in the game. (2T)
Eagle
- Cheapest dedicated fighter in the game. (45kCr)
- Most agile ship in the game. (188)
- Weakest armour in the game (60)
Hauler
- Fastest average trans-system station-to-station ship per lightyear (Buckyball-RC Thread) -- Alec Turner, Esvandiary
- Best LY/Cost Jump performance in the game. (37Ly / 52kCr)
- Best Cargo to Hull Mass Ratio (0.64 T Hull / 1 T Cargo) -- PanTast
- Cheapest fully functional explorer. 7 Slots: FSD Booster, Shield, Scoop, SRV, AMFMU, DSS plus one slot for cargo etc. -- 13A/24B
- The only ship in the game with just a single weapon hardpoint.
Adder
- Cheapest general purpose ship in the game. (88kCr)
- Cheapest muticrew capable ship in the game. (88kCr)
Imperial Eagle
- Only imperial ship not rank locked.
- First and cheapest imperial ship in the lineup.
Viper MK III
+ Fastest unengineered non-boost speed in the game. (512 m/s)
Cobra Mk III
- First ship and longest history in Elite franchise (1984, Original BBC Elite)
- Most popular Small ship in the game -- Frontier 2019 Year End stats
- Fastest unengineered ship with regular thrusters (Cruise 325m/s ~ Boost 464m/s) -- Stinja.
- Most paint jobs and customisations available in the store (70?) -- JohnF
Viper Mk IV
+ Best stock armour for Small single seater - along with DBX (270HP) -- Ceekay
Diamondback Scout
- Coolest running ship (?) -- insanephoton
- Sub 1MCr ship with most Utility slots. (4)
- Heaviest Hull per Tonne of Cargo (6T Hull / 1T Cargo) -- PanTast
Cobra Mk IV
- Most cargo for a Small ship. (92T)
- Most internals for a Small ship. (10)
- Most Hardpoints for a Small ship. (5)
- Excellent hardpoint placement (Top, Centre) -- Necasek0
- The only variant/upgrade with a new cockpit -- JuicerPrime
- Most possible hull integrity for a Small ship (5158HP)
- Biggest hit box area for a Small ship.
- Only available if game purchased in the first year of release!
- Slowest Small ship - along with the Hauler!!! -- Necasek0
- Least maneuverable small ship.
Dolphin
- Only Small ship that can accept Luxury passengers -- insanephoton
- Most internals of all Small ships except the limited Cobra Mk IV. (9) -- Stealthie
- Most cargo of any small ship except for limited Cobra Mk IV. (88)
- Best Yaw in supercruise of any ship (19s for 360° @ 50% thrust)
- With 5A thrusters, its max speed is totally unaffected by any (non-engineered) modification or mass change. (<400T) -- Ahab
Diamondback Explorer
- Highest unengineered jump range in the game (41.8Ly)
- Best fully "Combat Fit" jumprange in the game.
- Best stock Armour for Small single seater - along with Viper Mk IV (270HP) -- Ceekay
- Cheapest ship with Large hard point. (1.9MCr) -- GoldenSilver484
- Heaviest Small - vastly reduces influence of outfitting on speed and jump range -- Necasek0
Imperial Courier
+ Fastest engineered Combat Fit ship in the game (> 800m/s ⤴) -- mutedhiver
Vulture
- Only Small ship with 2 x L weapons.
- Largest Power Distributor in a Small ship. (C5)
- Most Agile heavy fighter (169)
- Hardest hull of Small ship. (55)
- Highest MLF of Small ship (10) along with DBX
- Weakest Canopy of any fighter (?) -- Sylveria
- Most expensive small ship (4.9M)
MEDIUM SHIPS
Type-6 Transporter
- best cost / cargo ratio Medium ship. (1MCr / 114 Cargo)
- Fantastic cockpit view
- Only Medium ship that can't do multi-crew (1 Crew).
- Lowest number of hardpoints on medium ship (2 x S).
- Lowest Hull Hardness for a Medium ship (35).
- Weakest base shields on a Medium ship (90).
Keelback
- Cheapest ship with SLF. (3.1MCr)
- Cheapest Multicrew Medium ship.
- Excellent cockpit view.
- Flappy thrusters. (Yay)
Asp Scout
- The highest agility score for Medium ship (165)
- Rare, vertical main thruster arrangement -- Aiki_Zvezda
- Lightest Medium ship hull (150T)
- Least popular unlimited ship in the game -- Inara.cz
- Least Utility Slots for a Medium ship (2)
- Least Class 5/6 cargo slots for a Medium ship (1 x C5)
- Second least cargo capacity for a Medium ship (72T) just 2 more than the FDL
Asp Explorer
- 2nd most popular ship overall -- 2019 Year end Frontier post.
- Longest unengineered jump range for Medium ship. (38.2 Ly)
Federal Dropship
- Convenient Drinks Dispenser in Cockpit (LOL) -- Ceekay
- Highest achievable unengineered hull value for Medium ship (3920) -- Ophion
- Most internals of any medium ship (10 slots) along with python.
- Most drifty medium ship in the game. Hence the nickname: Federal Drift Ship.
Alliance Chieftain
Federal Assault Ship
- Best Yaw performance for Medium ship (?) -- Aashenfox
- Excellent armour for Medium ship (540) -- Aashenfox
- Excellent hard point convergence
- Convenient Drinks Dispenser in Cockpit (LOL) -- Ceekay
Alliance Crusader
- SLF Capable
- Medium ship with 3 crew seats, along with Krait Mk II -- Moorison
Alliance Challenger
+ Most Hardpoints on an Medium ship shared with FGS (7) -- TheMegaTurnip
Federal Gunship
- SLF capable -- Aashenfox
- Most Hardpoints on an Medium ship shared with Challenger (7)
- Biggest Power Distributor in Medium ship (C7!) along with Python -- Aashenfox
- Convenient Drinks Dispenser in Cockpit (LOL) -- Ceekay
- Slowest Medium Ship boost speed (325m/s)
- Lowest Agility for a Medium ship (123)
- Lowest Maximum Jump Range (19.5)
Krait Phantom
Krait Mk II
- SLF capable
- Fastest SLF capable ship when boosting (383m/s) -- Ziljan
- Cheapest Three-Crew ship in the game (76.5MCr)
- Only Medium ship with 3 Crew posts.
- Most Large Hardpoints for Medium ship shared with Python (3)
- Superb cargo scooping capability, even on surfaces -- Stealthie
- Tends to get "overlooked" by station authorities -- Stealthie
Fer-de-Lance
- Cheapest ship with Huge hard point. (51.6MCr) -- GoldenSilver484
- Most utility slots on a Medium ship. -- GoldenSilver484
- Smallest fuel tank on Medium ship (8T) Along with Mamba
- Least cargo capacity for a Medium ship (72T)
- Least Class 5/6 slots for a Medium ship shared with Asp Scout (1 x C5)
Mamba
- Smallest fuel tank on Medium ship (8T) Along with FdL
Python
- 3rd most popular ship in the game -- http://inara.cz
- Highest Cargo Capacity ship that can dock at outposts Medium ship. (292T) -- Riverside
- Highest number of internal slots for a medium ship (10)
- Highest MLF for a Medium ship (17)
- Most Large Hard Points for a medium ship, shared with Krait MKII (3)
- Biggest Power Distributor in Medium ship along with FGS (C7!) -- Aashenfox
- Arguably the most capable multi role, Medium ship in the game -- Mugur
- 2nd highest achievable hull value for an Medium ship after FDS -- GoldenSilver484
- This ship can arguably do everything and go everywhere. OP and boring? Maybe.
LARGE SHIPS
Type-7 Transporter
- Cheapest Large ship (17.5MCr) -- GoldenSilver484
- Cheapest ship to carry over 200T Cargo -- GoldenSilver484
- Best Yaw performance for Large ship.
- Top class Yaw in supercruise of any ship, 1s behind Dolphin! (20s for 360° @ 50% thrust)
- Its unique maneuverability in supercruise makes it difficult to successfully interdict!
- Fantastic view from the bridge.
- Only large ship to jave just one crew seat -- Moorison
- Only Large ship to have only Small Hardpoints. (4xS)
- Weakest shields for Large ship. (155MJ)
- Lowest Hardness for a Large ship. (54)
- 0.5m too tall for M pad -- GoldenSilver484
Orca
- Fastest Large ship (348m/s) along with Clipper -- GoldenSilver484
- Second highest Large ship jump range in the game behind the Anaconda. (36.2LY)
- Lightest Large ship hull in the game (290T)
- Excellent Yaw, second only to the Type 7.
Imperial Clipper
- Fastest Large ship (348m/s) along with Orca --GoldenSilver484
- Most manoeuvrable Large ship (138). -- GoldenSilver484
Type-9 Heavy
- Best Cost/Cargo performance for Large ship.
- Cheapest ship in the game to have multiple C8 slots. (2 x C8) -- the100thmonkey
- Best bridge visibility in the game
- Slowest ship in the game cruising and boosting (130m/s & 200m/s)
- Least agile ship in the game (48)
- Worst Supercruise handling (google sheet) -- Lightspeed
Beluga Liner
- Can carry the most luxury passengers in the game (40人)
- Biggest Fuel Tank (128T) -- Necasek0
- Most maximum range jumps per full tank of fuel (10) -- Optimal_909
- Overall most agile Huge ship in supercruise.
- Marvelous Canopy view.
- Currently biggest player flyable ship in the game -- Optimal_909
- Only ship to overheat unavoidably during regular use with regular modules.
- Biggest, ship not able to carry an SLF with a full size Shield and Fuel Scoop simultaneously.
- Most difficult ship to fit through the Station Mailslot (folding winglets).
Type-10 Defender
- Best base Hull Armour in the game (1,044)
- Most weapon hardpoints of any ship (9)
- Hardest Hull in the game (75)
- Heaviest Hull in the game (1200T)
- Coolest running Large ship -- GoldenSilver484
- Wonderful cockpit view
- Pips in ENG have little influence on speed (25%) -- GoldenSilver484
- Second highest Mass Lock Factor after the Cutter (26) -- Necasek0
- Worst Supercruise handling (google sheet) -- Lightspeed
Anaconda
- Most popular Main fleet ship in the game -- http://inara.cz
- Most popular Large ship in the game -- http://inara.cz
- Longest unengineered jump range for Large ship. (41.4Ly)
- Biggest Power Distributor in the Game (C8) along with the Federal Corvette
- Too many others to list
- Arguably the most OP and hence dull ship in the game.
Federal Corvette
- Most Agile of the Big 4
- Only ship in the game with multiple Huge hardpoints. (2 x H)
- Biggest Power Distributor in the Game (C8) along with the Anaconda
- The highest Rank requirement Federal Ship (12, Rear Admiral)
Imperial Cutter
- Most Cargo space of any ship (792 T)
- Only ship in the game with multiple C8 slots along with T9 (2 x C8)
- Highest Mass Lock Factor in the game (27)
- Fastest "Huge" ship (232m/s Boost 371m/s)
- Largest thrusters of any ship (C8)
- Strongest base shields of any ship (600MJ) -- GoldenSilver484
- Fastest ship with SLF without boost (232m/s)
- Most expensive ship in the game (208MCr)
- The highest Rank requirement Imperial Ship (12, Duke)
- Longest stopping distance of any ship in the game. (~5km)
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