Anyone flying a keelback?
- Thread starter Tetzmol
- Start date
I never ran rares, but I would imagine an AspX is probably the best all-around ship for that job. Since you are asking about the Keelback, I would say that it could do the job, but you would probably be better off in a Cobra Mk3, or the AspX. The Keelback probably requires a fair amount of Engineering to be competitive, but I think it would still fall short of the other two I mentioned, even if they are just A-rated in the important parts with no Engineering.
Hopefully an experienced rares runner will pop in here, and give you a better answer.
Riôt
Hopefully an experienced rares runner will pop in here, and give you a better answer.
Riôt
The following thread on this forum, currently on PS4 page three, went over the Keelback's features and it's an interesting read, but long story short, it concluded that the ships' best feature is it's the cheapest ship that can launch fighters, which is something i'm eager to check out 
.
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showt...he-true-role-of-a-Keelback-and-is-it-worth-it
.https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showt...he-true-role-of-a-Keelback-and-is-it-worth-it
Yes you can turn the Keelback into a flying fortress. Note that after doing go it's cargo capacity wont be much different from a Cobra's. But it can be a lot of fun with a fighter. It will also benefit from engineered thrusters.
picking up on "not too vulnerable" - speed provides most safety in ED if you don't insist shooting back.
which is why a cobra mkIII (440 m/s boost speed unengineered - fastest ship in the game before engineering) is probably the better tool for your job (rare trading) as well as a t6 with a-class thrusters (406 m/s boost speed). fit an a-class powerdistributor for perma-boost.
a keelback is slow.
which is why a cobra mkIII (440 m/s boost speed unengineered - fastest ship in the game before engineering) is probably the better tool for your job (rare trading) as well as a t6 with a-class thrusters (406 m/s boost speed). fit an a-class powerdistributor for perma-boost.
a keelback is slow.
Rares Trading is possibly the only time a Keelback can fulfill its intended role as a Combat Freighter because you don't need all that much cargo space to do well. The issue though is that your fighter pilot is going to be eating into your trade profits so you need to calculate if the benefit of having him/her around is going to be worth it.
Another complication is going to be where the heck you're going to put a fuel scoop, you need to travel about 150ly IIRC to maximise a rare trade. It's just another nail in the coffin for the Keelback, FD thought it was prudent to strip it of available module spaces and in so doing they made it useless in many roles. It NEEDS that extra class 4 module slot back that someone stole!
It should have the same internal layout as the T6. That would make it a ship worth paying for. Even if they gave it the same price tag as the AspX.
Another complication is going to be where the heck you're going to put a fuel scoop, you need to travel about 150ly IIRC to maximise a rare trade. It's just another nail in the coffin for the Keelback, FD thought it was prudent to strip it of available module spaces and in so doing they made it useless in many roles. It NEEDS that extra class 4 module slot back that someone stole!
It should have the same internal layout as the T6. That would make it a ship worth paying for. Even if they gave it the same price tag as the AspX.
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Totally agree with goemon. I fitted my T-6 out with the A rated modules I had in my Cobra (FSD, thrusters, power) and the T-6 felt incredibly nippy. This was before I had started evading interdictions and I simply submitted to every one, boosted in cooldown and then fired up the FSD and was off again. I don't think I ever felt a single shot fired. Not only this the T-6 has a lot more cargo capacity than the Cobra. Personally, I think if you are trading, then do that. Trade. If someone comes on the offence, you run away it's as simple as that; this is your best guard against vulnerability.
I believe this is roughly the build I used; https://eddp.co/u/oUPXUXN2
The run I used would just about get 100 rares on the home and away pass each without any waiting around so felt very efficient; the T-6 carries just over but anything less than that I think you are missing out.
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