For me, at least, the point is simply that combat is a rather binary thing so if you're intent on winning it's unlikely you're going to pick a ship that doesn't contribute to that outcome.
The outcome may be binary, but the challenges are not. Different ships have different strengths and different niches.
An FDL cannot keep up with a Clipper to take it down or reliably drive it off; I've seen wings of FDLs be kited around by a single Clipper while stragglers were picked off by lesser numbers of other FDLs. Likewise, being the fastest ship in a group of FDLs while flying an FDL yourself is very uncertain, unless one is running a very fragile build. Not every combat is a 1v1 where the other side would rather go down than leave, and even in these cases there is no linear progression in power...a Gunship can take on an FDL build that will almost always beat a given Krait build that will get it's butt kicked by said FDL build.
Sure, we all like deliberately flying an "underdog" ship at times but that's not really a strong selling-point for a ship, is it?
Not any ship's selling point.
Even then, you never know when something's going to go wrong and then you'll be better off going up against an Elite Annie in a decent, reliable, Cobra than a Mamba that's (currently) likely to do as much heat-damage to itself as your opponent does.
The Mamba can handle any non-Thargoid NPC threat itself, up to and including soloing wing assassination missions, and is almost certainly superior against any NPC threat than a Cobra.
As for Elite Anaconda...most of my encounters against single large NPC ships are going something like this:
[video=youtube;lZD5bJV8eF8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZD5bJV8eF8[/video]
That's not remotely the coolest running weapon loadout (OC incendiary huge MC and a focused PA) that's viable either.
Yes, the FDL, FAS, Chieftain, etc can do just as well, maybe even a little better, but the Mamba isn't particularly disadvantaged.
I got one of those
. But it just doesn't have that explorer vibe for me. The Mamba would be along the lines of the classic "Gentleman Explorer" - or maybe Clarkson tackling the Sahara in a Mercedes S-class. Practically, I prefer a Dolphin (especially when, after the beta, I can put in a size 5 scoop, a size 4 booster and still bring everything else), and I'll definitely try a Krait Phantom.
Talking about S-class (or Audi A8, or presumably a Roller or a Bentley): if you've ever had the chance of driving one of those - that's how the Mamba feels for me. Doesn't want to go around corners, but when you put your foot down, she doesn't hang around.
My current primary exploration and mission running vessel is a Courier. Can do almost everything (PvE) that involves 8 tons of cargo or less except wing assassination missions or Thargoids with one general loadout. Triple lightweight beams barely harm jump range, and let it knock out any single NPC with relative ease, even if the fights are a little protracted at times. And it's one of the safest ships in the game with a 700m/s+ boost speed and over 900MJ of shields.
However, the Mamba and FDL can actually keep up with it over large distances because it can scoop much faster relative to it's fuel consumption per jump. If I make sure I hit a scoopable star every other jump, I can knock out those ~40 second jumps like clock work with a ship that has a class 5 scoop and class 4 FSD. The Courier needs to stop for a lengthy scoop every four or five jumps.
