So how hard are the wing assassination missions?

[biohazard15]

Elite-level wing assassinations usually feature FDL and two Vultures, all somewhat engineered. Usually they have phasing lasers.
The best loadout for these missions are laser-based builds, preferably efficient beams coupled with G5 weapon-focused PD. Once you melt FDL's shields, it'll die pretty quickly.
For defence, get a prismatic-based shield tank (Big 3, FDL, Mamba all work) and throw in engineered armor and a couple of heavy-duty HRPs, this would help against phasing sequence.

 

[Ian Skippy]

if you're looking for cash, do normal assassinations, it's less hassle, take less time and pay about the same (which I don't understand...)

Wing missions are, somewhat unsurprisingly, aimed at wings. If you do it with three mates, the rewards are x4.

 

[Hellfire85]

If you can fly your ship you should be fine. I solo those in a Pacifier Vulture.
And usually they come in full wings, FDL and 3 vultures, phasing lasers.

 

[rekurzion]

i do these in my engineered asp scout and usually come out with around 80% hull remaining depending on how many mistakes i make.

if you do these solo you can create your own wing by calling in the local authority. to do that you will need to interdict the target as their USS is not affiliated with a faction and authority is not notified of an attack. keep notice of the security of the system: high (cops show up in 10s); medium (they take 1 minute) and low (4 mins). so in a low sec system you will need to bait up to 4 ships for 4 minutes until backup arrives. kind of fun actually.

depending on the ships involved you can also bait the main target out of the pack then proceed with a one on one. for example, if you face an FDL with vulture escorts.

two things to keep in mind: you need the fire power to take the target out quickly or the ability to prevent them from jumping so you can finish them off. if you can't lay enough DPS they will just jump. even if you chase them you will have to deal with their escorts again and they may not be wanted in the system they jump to.

 

[rekurzion]

Wing missions are, somewhat unsurprisingly, aimed at wings. If you do it with three mates, the rewards are x4.

yup. what i like about doing the wing missions solo is that if i happen into another commander its a bit of fun roleplay and they get a nice reward for helping. i wish transport wing missions were similar, that is offer the same payout without the insanely high cargo requirements of 6000+ tons.

 

[Aashenfox]

I'll definitely need a vid of you killing a wing assassination target with an asp scout with 80% hull left. After that I will call you God and make your tea whenever you request it.

 

[Aashenfox]

@OP - This is how I do it for a challenge...(with no cops and no kiting)...

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=843jRydUG-w

 

[Bigmaec]

I'll definitely need a vid of you killing a wing assassination target with an asp scout with 80% hull left. After that I will call you God and make your tea whenever you request it.

Seconded

 

[TrailBlazer 143]

Wing missions are, somewhat unsurprisingly, aimed at wings. If you do it with three mates, the rewards are x4.

Sadly enough, the normal missions can be done in a wing as well, if your friends all accept the same target. Wing assassination missions are just for the SUPER elite I feel because there is NO WAY you're getting them done with all your friends in any of the smaller ships if you're new. Mainly because ALL Wing Missions scale to Elite Rank for some odd reason.

I don't see how Frontier thinks new people don't bring their friends to play their game...

 

[[VR] scipio_77]

Well, my first attempt didn't go well. Found the USS, and it was a Corvette and a Vulture (I thought there was a third ship too, but didn't see much of it if there was). I concentrated on the Corvette for a bit, then decided to switch to the Vulture. I think that was a mistake, as it was easier to keep the Corvette in my sights... I did finally get the Vulture, but my shields dropped shortly after and it turns out that reactive armour drops quite quickly (I need to revisit some of the engineering decisions I made). I legged it out of there...

I'll be heading back for more practise in a while... And maybe I should invest in an interdictor...

Yeah, I had my doubts when people in this thread told you they were easy. They didn't feel easy to me.

I think it's silly what we can't also get wing missions that aren't on crack. "Here is a wing mission, but grind for 3 months to get the ships and gear you need before you can do it with your mates."

 

[Deleted member 38366]

IMHO :
Bringing one Feedback Cascade Railgun to these parties is very beneficial.
Cuts down on the time needed (and damage taken) by denying the otherwise very frequent SCBs ...

A skilled NPC in an SLF also helps keeping a bit of the heat off for what it's worth, so I consider that the 2nd most beneficial key to quickly getting the job done.

 

[rekurzion]

its not about them being easy, its about understanding the mechanics of the AI and being a diligent and observant pilot. for example, corvettes will only fire their one large PA and no other weapon until that first PA shot connects. meaning if you do not get hit you will have effectively neutered one of the most powerful ships in the game to a single slow shot every few seconds.

another dumb AI mechanic...there are circumstances where the AI will not use their chaff.

of course, you can always tank the heck out of them, use an actual wing or the AI backup - but there are other ways to skin a cat.

 

[IndigoWyrd]

It’s been months since I’ve fired a weapon, and even longer since I’ve taken any mission, but I have done a few of these previously and they were satisfying.

 

[Navigare Necesse Est]

Impossible without engineering. The bulletsponge kills it.

 

[Aashenfox]

its not about them being easy, its about understanding the mechanics of the AI and being a diligent and observant pilot. for example, corvettes will only fire their one large PA and no other weapon until that first PA shot connects. meaning if you do not get hit you will have effectively neutered one of the most powerful ships in the game to a single slow shot every few seconds.

another dumb AI mechanic...there are circumstances where the AI will not use their chaff.

of course, you can always tank the heck out of them, use an actual wing or the AI backup - but there are other ways to skin a cat.

Ah... now I realise...you're talking about regular Pirate Assassinations. Sorry man, we're talking about WING assassinations...

Yeh, pirate assassinations...? Pfff. I was taking them out a year ago in a racing ship with no hull damage. Not trying to brag, just highlighting the enormous difference...You can see in this video below as well, the exact mechanic you describe. Until he connects with a PA he doesn't fire his other weapons. This obviously helps a lot in that instance.

However in Wing assassinations, the target is now always a Fer de Lance, and the wing always two or three vultures, and their engineering is much, much higher than before. Part of the reason I challenge you on the 80% hull thing is because they use phasing. It would be a very special run to avoid those two vultures hitscan phasing weapons for long enough in an asp scout to clear the instance and still be at 80%...So here're a couple of other videos...the first is the lightweight courier nearly running out of ammo, but getting the job done (280mj shield, lightweight multicannons and lightweight railgun, ZERO dps, lol), and the second video is just to show the OLD composition of wing assassinations, I do an easy clear in my vette...

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6qrKxYrtI0


And the old style assassinations (miss these.... )

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaOAtWOMsfE

 

[Kissamies]

My PvE Corvette handles them quite well. I also tried one with my PvP Chieftain, but it couldn't handle being shot by the wingmen, or I'm rusty with that thing.

 

[Muetdhiver]

They are quite hard, but they are one of the most fun PvE combat to be had.

For maximum fun, I would recommand okay-engineered medium ship like a FAS or the chieftain.

 

[Aashenfox]

My PvE Corvette handles them quite well. I also tried one with my PvP Chieftain, but it couldn't handle being shot by the wingmen, or I'm rusty with that thing.

No, it's not your fault, the current wing assassinations are an extreme challenge in anything with less than 4000hp (shield and hull combined). While that is easily achievable with a chieftain and I can clear a wing assassination in my chieftain (with 700mj biweave and 4200 hull), it requires not only a bulletproof build, but excellent multiple contact dogfighting technique, and I don't enjoy doing it, one mistake would mean going back for repairs and having to start again, which is why I take the Krait these days, it simply has a much higher equipment budget than a chieftain, far bigger distributor, larger hardpoints and much better shields. Note in my vid of my recent clear (not the two above, the one before that), that I make sure I get all three ships in front of me before trying to make another pass. This minimises the time three sets of hardpoints are facing me. If you have crimes on and YOU interdict the TARGET (rather than dropping in on missoin instance) you can get police help. But in the mission target waypoint, police signals are jammed.

 

[Frank]

The normal pirate killing missions are easy. The wing missions are not. I can normally take out the pirate without losing a single ring of shield, but the one time I accidentally picked a wing mission it went like m0rl0ck describes. I was swarmed with smaller ships ripping me apart while I tried to concentrate on my target. After five attempts I realized I was simply not good enough and abandoned the mission.

Don't abandon the mission so quickly next time. Send me a friend request. My in-game name is Commander Frank. Even though I take part in Fighter Club every Wednesday my fighting skills are... lacking.

If you see me about in the game and you have a wing assasination to do then give me a shout. I don't mind taking 15 mins out of my BGS time to go grab my Corvette and do a bit of dancing with the baddies

Admitting my poor combat skills is not a good endorsement for Fighter Club <sigh>

 

[Crank Larson]

Yeah, I had my doubts when people in this thread told you they were easy. They didn't feel easy to me.

I think it's silly what we can't also get wing missions that aren't on crack. "Here is a wing mission, but grind for 3 months to get the ships and gear you need before you can do it with your mates."

In my case it was also a case of I have forgotten how to fight in my Cutter. I think I've been in the Chieftain too long now. I used to do a lot of fighting in the Cutter, but these days I can rarely keep other ships in my sights. I will try one of the missions using the Chieftain instead, as I can rip ships apart in that really quickly. I think I'll just keep the Cutter for basking.