Well just today (and many times before) I fought a random hazres-pirate that peppered me with all kinds of experimental effects: trajectory disruption, shield bypass, thermal something... I'm used to NPCs having one of these effects, but this one had a lot of them all in one. And iirc it wasn't even an Elite but "just" Deadly. (Might be mistaken though)
Phasing would be unusual in a HAZ Res, but certainly not indicative of cheating, and could be explained by a mission target following you into the location.
Trajectory disruption and thermal attack are innate properties of stock (unEngineered) rail guns and plasma accelerators. Even harmless NPCs can have these.
And on the other hand, I have seen a few yt videos about engineering where it was explicitly stated for some experimentals that they don't work on NPCs. Most of them were things like TLB (because AI just immediately reacquires you) but it also concerned a few other effects, I think.
NPCs effectively retarget instantly. Just like fire-at-will turrets and just like as most experienced CMDRs can. Anyone can reflexively hit target highest threat, or target under reticle.
Even in PvP before TLB even had a cooldown, the only real effect of TLB was to interrupt subsystem targetting (something NPCs cannot do anyway, they always target the center of their target) and missile locks (which works normally against NPCs, as far as I can tell).
I'm not aware of any effect that NPCs are categorically immune to, even if they're behavior (which is possible for CMDRs) makes most of them trivial (because most are trivial to most CMDRs with proper loadouts, module priorities, and tactics).
You don't get it...don't you? It's not about equipments that differs from the player ones, it's about how they are coded but from your bible I understand one simple thing, you overstimate yourself..it's typical in this forum you are not alone, you think you are part of some unknown elite egomania can have these effects, enjoy your wisdom!
The OP was talking about loadouts were they not? Regardless, the same assertion that there isn't any significant cheating going on also applies to their behaviors. There is virtually nothing NPCs do that we cannot, and many things we do that they cannot.
Do you have any examples of NPC behavior or piloting that cannot be duplicated, or improved upon, by a CMDR? I certainly haven't seen anything like this in my considerable amount of game time, nor have I heard of any credible reports of such behavior, beyond the odd bug, or well known impenitence issues when transitioning between instances. Perhaps I'm wrong, and your experience more broad, or your powers of deduction are more acute than mine. If so, please enlighten me.
It's not just my capabilities I'm talking about, it's everyone's, even yours, if you get past the assumption NPCs are somehow doing something you cannot. The assertion that I'm somehow a victim of my ego, when you're here telling us things contrary to virtually everything SJA has posted, and all experimental observation, is pretty damn hypocritical.