Most Maneuverable Ship For Combat

The Alliance combat ships are practically begging for a set of Cytoscramblers in those small hardpoints.
Been there done that! ;) https://s.orbis.zone/czhg and it is very effective but once the shields are down the Cytos are dead weight (practically zero hull damage), the Pacifier frag cannons are my favourite power wep so far with overcharged + incendiary they have high shield and hull damage combined with a much tighter frag pattern than normal frag cannons.

D2EA Pacifier/cyto Chieftain build https://s.orbis.zone/czhm
 
So from this I gather vulture is probably the way to go, with an eagle also being a fun choice, Im guessing the imperial eagle isnt as good?

The Vulture is a ship that can encourage laziness...very forgiving flight model, especially pip slope. As a trainer, the Viper is probably the better way to go.

And yes the plain Eagle is more agile than the iEagle, even though the latter is faster.

Been there done that! ;) https://s.orbis.zone/czhg and it is very effective but once the shields are down the Cytos are dead weight (practically zero hull damage), the Pacifier frag cannons are my favourite power wep so far with overcharged + incendiary they have high shield and hull damage combined with a much tighter frag pattern than normal frag cannons.

D2EA Pacifier/cyto Chieftain build https://s.orbis.zone/czhm

Considered screening shell instead of overcharged? Half the reload time.
 
Meh try any little ship you want, you'll be back in the Corvette in no time.

NPC fire can't be "dodged" in any significant way no matter how good you fly. Also no matter how good you turn, they can turn better or just as good so they can always bring guns to bear on you. Oh and they are also bullet sponges so you'll really start missing the DPS of the 'Vette against high level mobs.

For most things in the HazRez or wherever, this doesn't matter though I guess.

I would agree that the Vulture is probably your best bet. You can just toss the thing around without suffering the wonky drifting or sliding of the FDL and other ships. The Chieftain is also a similar option I'm told, but I haven't personally bought one yet.

Also I''m seeing the iCourier getting little love here, so I'll toss that name into the ring or else Rat Catcher will be very unhappy! :p
 
DBs was my first dedicated CZ ship, and i love it alot. it is just not as manouverable as an eagle, nor does it have a small profile, so not as good to teach you evasive flying. beside its amazing heli feeling, it really shines if someone wants to learn fix weapons for its hardpoint placement, more so for hot running fixed weapons set up like a double plasma-slug railgun.
In a Vulture I would never have any doubts going up against a large ship or even an Eagle, but a DBs is a whole different ball game. They are all over the place ;) I've lost several PvP fights against a DBs. I've never flown one, but it might be time to give it a try. :unsure:
 
The Vulture is a ship that can encourage laziness...very forgiving flight model, especially pip slope. As a trainer, the Viper is probably the better way to go.
I am currently also thinking to add another small fighter to my fleet to complement the Vulture, as I also notice it is kinda flying on easy mode with it. Which Viper do you mean? DBS is also as very interesting option though...:unsure:

On the Frags, sounds too fun not to try the Vulture with two of them, might give that a go soon. Standards that is, as I have not unlocked the Pacifiers yet.
 

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Viper mk4 can be more agile than Eagle, but specifically in terms of using translational thrusters & with permaboost boost capability, ideally FAOff. In other words - it's capable of being the most agile ship in game but it's harder to fly.

But it also hits a lot harder and is a lot tougher too. The Viper mk3 gets a bit too slippery due to its speed and gets punished too hard if you overweight it.
 
Viper mk4 can be more agile than Eagle, but specifically in terms of using translational thrusters & with permaboost boost capability, ideally FAOff. In other words - it's capable of being the most agile ship in game but it's harder to fly.

But it also hits a lot harder and is a lot tougher too. The Viper mk3 gets a bit too slippery due to its speed and gets punished too hard if you overweight it.
The thing about FAoff is that it is difficult to master. Many CMDRs use FAoff to do a quick 180, but while doing so they move in a straight line, making them easier to hit. FAon will also cause a predictable path but at least it's not linear. Also, in a Vulture (or Eagle/Viper etc.), I have zero problems keeping my aim on the target, as long as I use vertical thrusters. I highly respect those who are good enough to fly FAoff well enough, but most CMDRs are better off with FAon. In that case -> Vulture.
 
Cobra. Not Viper.
And Beer Attack was making a joke, because there is no Viper II
I assumed it was a typo :)

Yeah the Cobra Mk4 is the exclusive but I recalled there was something about the Viper Mk4 that kicked off a round of angst on the forums in the early days:

  • In Newsletter #92 it was stated that every Kickstarter beta backer or above will find a Viper MkIV docked at a starport for free.[3]
Source: https://elite-dangerous.fandom.com/wiki/Viper_MkIV
 
A. Eagle. But it's made of wet toilet paper.

B. Chieftain

C. Vulture

D. Chieftain. Most players will say Fer de Lance but I don't like it, for me nothing beats the Chief.

The Vulture is fantastic in its own right because its maneuverability is beaten only by the Eagle, but has good armour and fantastic shields on top. It has excellent raw firepower; the only drawback is that with 2 hardpoints you lack flexibility. But for the dedicated job of swatting flies, yeah, Vulture.

Chieftain is only slightly less agile than the Vulture and doesn't even have stronger shields, but it has excellent firepower with 6 hardpoints in a mix of S, M, L so you can prepare for anything and cover all bases. Also these HPs have excellent convergence so they're ideal for using fixed weapons.
It's also the single best choice for Anti-Xeno combat.

I can post a few variants later, with or without Guardian tech.
 
Clearly you've never experienced the joy of doing combat in a frag Clipper.

Since I fly a Clipper even the NPC pirates don't bother chasing me - it's been so long since I've fired my weapons I've forgotten the colour of my beams, nothing can touch me :D

Not to say it can't be done, obviously it can - but the ship doesn't feel like designed for combat imho, more to avoid combat.
 
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Since I fly a Clipper even the NPC pirates don't bother chasing me - it's been so long since I've fired my weapons I've forgotten the colour of my beams, nothing can touch me :D

Not to say it can't be done, obviously it can - but the ship doesn't feel like designed for combat imho, more to avoid combat.

That's because people tend to overlook the builtin size 5 hardpoint, which is the bow.
 
It has occured to me to use it as a hammer yes, indeed I shoved smaller ships aside with it...

But the opportunity simply hasn't presented itself ;)
 
It actually comes down to your own flight style.

What is great in one persons hands flies like a lump of wood in anothers.

Do you fa off? All the time? some of the time? never?

It makes a difference as to which ship is better.

Surprised no one has mentioned the diamondback scout yet either. That is a lovely ship for dancing around in. Works well in all flight styles too.
Thats essentially what i want to get good at, FA off or learning when to toggle etc.
 
A. Eagle. But it's made of wet toilet paper.

B. Chieftain

C. Vulture

D. Chieftain. Most players will say Fer de Lance but I don't like it, for me nothing beats the Chief.

The Vulture is fantastic in its own right because its maneuverability is beaten only by the Eagle, but has good armour and fantastic shields on top. It has excellent raw firepower; the only drawback is that with 2 hardpoints you lack flexibility. But for the dedicated job of swatting flies, yeah, Vulture.

Chieftain is only slightly less agile than the Vulture and doesn't even have stronger shields, but it has excellent firepower with 6 hardpoints in a mix of S, M, L so you can prepare for anything and cover all bases. Also these HPs have excellent convergence so they're ideal for using fixed weapons.
It's also the single best choice for Anti-Xeno combat.

I can post a few variants later, with or without Guardian tech.
I flew a Vulture for a long time, having great fun, and started looking for an upgrade. My choice was the Chief. Maybe I was just expecting "more Vulture" from the Chief, so I equipped it like I had the Vulture, all frags. I'm not saying you're wrong about the Chief, but honestly, I was disappointed. It has weaker shields and it's much heavier than the Vulture. Then I tried MCs, but it still couldn't kill enemy ships as quick as in my Vulture. I think much has to do with me being a frag cannon fanatic. A Vulture moves like a ninja, and with frags, it moves like a ninja with two sawed off shotguns. Btw, I don't kill aliens :alien:

Edit: As you might have noticed, I believe that frags are all you need to do the job. They rip shields in the blink of an eye, and they are so efficient against anything beneath the shield that I don't bother aiming for the PP or the FSD. I just shoot until it's over.
 
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The Vulture! It's by far the most fun you can have in the galaxy, but it's crap when not (fully) engineered. Consider frags. They demand that you are very close to your target, but that's pretty easy in a Vulture, and once you're close enough, the frags will blow your mind, and blow the opponent to another Universe. Rapid fire, screening shell being my personal favorite. It might not beat a FDL in a PvP fight, everything else equal, but it's still my favorite PvP ship.

The biggest drawback of the Vulture is that you probably won't get ganked when flying one (cause gankers are wimps). Still, I've been fighting three gankers at Deciat, including a shield tanked Cutter. I was able to cling onto the back of the Cutter firing like crazy, while the ganker in the Cutter went "Get him away from me!". His two friend tried to hit me, but the Vulture is small and the Cutter is Huge, so they mostly hit their friend. That's a typical Vulture situation :)

The Eagle handles even better than the Vulture, and it can be a lot of fun, but you need to stay away from anything being fired at you, or it's instant rebuy.
any chance you have a link to the vulture frag build? as something to eng is what im looking for, thank you for this though, great info
 
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