OK, long range exploration noob question. How likely it is to encounter things that are going to mess up your ship no matter what out there? I don't remember the last time I ended up in a binary system with stars next to each other (I have a screenshot and it was a very long time ago). I recall some pulsar a couple of months ago, don't remember if it ended up in any damage, but I remember it didn't destroy me or anything. I always reduce speed to 50% on exit or cut the engines completely if the first thing I see exiting is a pulsar. But this is all the bubble and few k around it. Do I need to take AFMU with me at all if I want to go to Colonia, around the core and then back to the bubble?
Anaconda AFMU question 5A or 6A?
- Thread starter GunnerBill
- Start date
Depends what you are doing. If you are doing neutron star supercharges, then yes you need an AFMU to repair the damage to the FSD, which if left unchecked it could cause a malfunction while supercharging, something that will most likely kill you. The most common sources of damage are:
- Faceplant onto a star by accident. Minor damage to hull and modules.
- Faceplant onto a planet/moon by accident. Minor damage to hull and modules.
- Overheat while scooping from a star. Minor damage to hull and modules.
- Accident while landing. Depending on what happened this could kill you. Not sure if modules take damage or just the hull.
- Neutron star supercharge. FSD becomes damaged by 1 or 2 percent every time.
Having an AFMU allows you to repair all damage, except hull and power plant. Just remember that to do repairs you need to drop out of supercruise if you want to repair FSD and thrusters. Otherwise your modules and hull will take more damage and you'll be thrown out of supercruise in a nasty manner.
OK, so of this list the last item is something I should be concerned about. I guess I'll make sure to add one unit to my shopping list. Thanks for the info.
If I'm going on a short exploration, I take no AFMU. On a longer trip, I'll take 1 medium/largish sized one. (Depends on ship size and waiting isn't usually a problem in deep space.) I made to Beagle Point and back with only 1 AFMU. On a long trip where I plan to use neutron star boosts, I'd take 1 medium/largish AFMU and a small one, which is only used to fix the other AFMU. There's no need to take 2 large AFMUs and really not much need for 2.
I think short answer here is for long trips take 2 if you can fit them. Its based on a lot of experiences from a lot of Cmdrs.
Seriously I have done Colonia and back with no AFMU on board, that's including landing on planets and exploring. I can see the need if you are going to be months in the black, but 20kly or so isn't much of an issue. I ended up arriving back in the bubble with 70% hull but that was due to stupidity on my part and not due to lack of an AFMU. If you are going to Beagle point yes, if you are going from one location to another with a station at each end it's pretty much unnecessary.
Than again, they have no weight and they use no power if you turn them off until you need them.
So if money isn't an issue, better to have one on board and not need it, than to need one and not have it.
Last year I was only about 2Kly away at HD 49368 and I took some heat damage that brought my FSD down to ~77%.
Nearly every jump on the way home resulted in an FSD malfunction and I had to wait for cooldown before I could try to jump again.
I wished I had an AFM that trip but I was in a DBX and there was no room for it in those days.
So if money isn't an issue, better to have one on board and not need it, than to need one and not have it.
Last year I was only about 2Kly away at HD 49368 and I took some heat damage that brought my FSD down to ~77%.
Nearly every jump on the way home resulted in an FSD malfunction and I had to wait for cooldown before I could try to jump again.
I wished I had an AFM that trip but I was in a DBX and there was no room for it in those days.
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This is why I have matching 6As on my Anaconda. Needed? Not if I'm smart. But that's a big "if" because I get distracted. Kids, wife, oooing and ahhhing over the sights, plotting my next destination on the system or galaxy map...I've face-landed in more than one planet/star due to this. With the 6As, I keep them off unless I need them. On my Annie they take about 15% power when turned on, which is less than the thrusters take. So if I'm repairing, real-space, thrusters off, repair everything, AFMS off, turn essentials back on, back on my way.
When off, they take no energy, they have no weight.
Excactly what Major Klutz said. There is no need to NOT take one or pref. two with you if you can, although its almost the lowest priority if you have limited slots.
Reiterate all of the 'for AFMUs' above. I tend to go out into the black for months at a time and would rather have that warm fuzzy feeling of knowing I have them than not have them. Plus I explore in a twinked explora-conda so i have both the module space and the engineered power plant capacity to run two.
Each to their own of course. I think this only becomes an issue if Cmdrs are exploring in ships with great range but poor internal adaptability. The DBE is a great example of that.
Each to their own of course. I think this only becomes an issue if Cmdrs are exploring in ships with great range but poor internal adaptability. The DBE is a great example of that.