Asp Explorer: is it still worth its name?

[MattG]

I'm actually OK with the Conda just as she is. Sure, she can hit the biggest jump ranges - but not by _that_ much, and the compromise is quite horrific - stripped to the bone, and there are planets with better turning circles. If you're prepared to go to those lengths, keep that handful of extra LYs.

I'm out in a Krait Phantom at the moment as I felt like a change from my AspX. I love the Phantom, and from the outside it looks so much nicer - but I'm beginning to miss my old AspX already. I'm perfectly OK with the number of slots the AspX has; not all ships can be all things to all explorers.

 

[Rudi Raumkraut]

I'm with this

get about 45 ly with an engineered d rated FSD on my ASPX - could probably get further if I went a rated

You went to the effort of engineering your FSD but not buying an A rated one first?

Well, that's new.

Right?

AspX w/ 5D FSD base range: 16.8 Ly
AspX w/ 5A FSD base range: 29.9 Ly

But just 3.3t fuel instead of 5t each jump, so maybe interesting for the 'to Colonia without a scoop' guys!?

 

[GonzTheMalificent]

Firstly,
Love the Anaconda as she is. No touchy!

Only ship anywhere near as good as the Asp X for exploring is the DBX, mine has a silly range - but at the price of cargo hold, which holds the DBX back compared to the Asp.

 

[Satsuma]

Most of my exploration is done in "light" exploration ships. I carry a heat sink and a buggy, very lightweight shields and a long range build, and for that style of exploration the Asp X is - in my opinion - the queen of exploration. In comparison to the Krait it loses out on internals (making the Krait better for folks who wants to bring more stuff with them), but it wins in both the view and jump range. With a similar build, my Asp X gets about 4 LY more per jump than my Krait Phantom.

I've flown an Asp for about 90-95% of my exploration career, racking up about 700,000 ly in it. This is nothing compared to what some other Asp X pilots fly, so it should give you a good idea of how capable the ship is. Personally, I love the thing.

 

[foxoplasma]

Yeah i totally agree the Anaconda is way overpowered for its ridiculously low hull mass, but that is probably a relic from earlier in development when this was THE endgame ship, so it had to be really good. I do personally not fly the anaconda cause of how poorly it handles, but a lot of other people have no problem with it.

I do really think the Beluga should be reworked to be way more competitive with it, though.
Just needs a class 7 slot for some faster scooping, lighter hull, and it'd be an amazing alternative for its size, versatility and price class.
It is an nice jump range yes, but for a dedicated ship it really does not deserve average jump range.

 

[Marco Santos]

Why u say anaconda isnt a worthy explorer?

I started out on the DBX, moved to the ASP Explorer, jumped afterwards to the Krait Phantom and finally settled now on the Anaconda.
Im a new player, so can only talk about my experience so far and my prefered play style, so bare with me...

My anaconda atm is parked on a icy planet and im srv prospecting for engeniering materials to get system upgraded, so far fsd (48ly), engines, power plant and sensors have received level 1 and 2 modifications, and will work for more, but for what i want to do (serious exploration) and the equipment i think i need to play as i really want, the anaconda can take it all and deliver what i need.
In it i can carry more fuel, repair systems, cargo space, scanners, mining gear, srvs (got 4 total, if i manage to wreck one i got more, u never know, especially with those god damn guardian sites), this enables me to go mapping systems without fuel scoopable stars without worrying to run out of fuel.
I can get to a system, use FSS, use probs on all planets of interest, land if need be to investigate, and collect valuable materials also, big range of jump is not important to me when im exploring, since i want to be methodical and go over them all in the path i set to go, but range comes in handy when u need to return to cash in, and also to go back to the point u stopped and pick up the exploration again.

Cant do that in the other ships there is always something missing, or something that lacks...
off course Anaconda is slow, turns bad, totally diferent from flying a medium or small ship...

But would like to know why u say that? just curious...

 

[Evoflash]

Why u say anaconda isnt a worthy explorer?

Everyone is different and you highlight the good points about an AnnieX, I tried it and was amazed by the jump range. The handling though was disastrous. Flying to different planets to scan meant having to roll or yaw which felt like it took about a thousand months to do. It wasn't many jumps before I gave it up as a hopeless job and headed back for the AspX.

Here's the key, it's all down to the individual. For me, the added cargo space and goodies just weren't worth the large boat handling characteristics.

 

[Numenor1379]

Here's the key, it's all down to the individual. For me, the added cargo space and goodies just weren't worth the large boat handling characteristics.

^^^ this is the biggest thing people forget. Flying what you enjoy is FAR more important than the paper specs of a ship, unless you have a requirement that can only be met with a specific ship.

I'm flying a Corvette on DW2 because it is my favorite ship and I love her flight profile. Yep, I only have a 41ly jump range but that is a minor nit given how much more fun I have with it compared to my 75ly Anaconda.

 

[Marco Santos]

I totally understand u and get it, the Kraith Phantom for me fits that bill perfectly. (what u like)

In the end is all down to personal preferance and style of play, everyone has its own, for mine the Anaconda fits it perfectly, i even went to the point to dont use systems to have boost since for the size and handling im ok with that, but as setting up mine i bet its totally diferent from everybody and would be hard pressed to see someone have 1 exactly as mine.

This phrase applies perfectly to this game and the way we use our ships:

"This is my Anaconda, there are many like it, but this one is mine!"


PS- by the way tks for the reply, i like to have an understanding of ppls thougt process, it helps out doing my own, and sometimes it even makes u change yours, when u are made to see what u missed out in the 1st place.

 

[marx]

I wouldn't mind seeing the 'Conda's specs rebalanced. I suspect it'd need something more comprehensive than just increasing the hull mass though, as that would have knock-on effects on other things (thrusters, shields, whatever.)

Hm, I didn't think about shields before. Thrusters are alright, because they can just increase the slot's class. Shields are more problematic: slap on +400T extra weight, and the tiny barebones shields that many people use will suddenly become unusable. So if an explorer finds themselves out there not just with the jump range reduced, but also the shield generator no longer working, I think they'd be entirely right to be upset.

The best thing for any nerf would be to just apply it the next time a Commander docks. Make a "legacy" Anaconda ship (doesn't have to be displayed to players), turn it into a "new" Anaconda then, transferring - or perhaps even upgrading - the existing equipment as well. Sure, they'd gain some credit value from upgrading the FSD from class 6 to 7, and shields as well, but it's not like it would be that many credits - and they are mostly meaningless by now anyway.

However... when has Frontier nerfed a ship in the live game? The only nerfs I recall were done during betas. So even if my memory failed me here, there weren't many, the only changes done to "live" ships were buffs.

Not that I'd mind other ships being brought up to the Anaconda's jump range though. I have no problem with a 80 ly max range, I'd just rather it weren't the only option for the highest jump range. After all, it isn't even an Explorer-branded ship. Plus like you said, reducing the highest jump range achievable by any ship would make previously-accessible systems no longer reachable, which should be a big no-no.

Something that would make a big difference, I think, would be Fuel Scoop engineering mods to increase scoop speed. The painfully slow scoop speed makes the Diamondback line less attractive than they should be.

Hmm hmm, near-instant scoop on my Clipper

 

[signal11th]

Humm I went the other way, started off in a ASPX then flew to Beagle in a DBX and now in a phantom, aspx is great but I prefer the other two if I'm honest, ASPX is a good starter ship for me nothing else.

 

[Orvidius]

The AspX will always have a place, since it's fairly inexpensive, has a great cockpit view, and carries just enough to make a robust exploration build. So I think it's a safe bet to say that it will always be part of the exploration "meta".

I flew mine almost exclusively for exploration for most of a year (with a few short duration, long distance trips in the Anaconda), so I've had enough of it, and will likely leave it retired. Not because there's anything wrong with it, but rather I have other choices now. I used to resent not having a clear upgrade path, other than the Anaconda, which I'm not that fond of. Now that we've had some significant changes over the last year, between the addition of the FSD booster, some buffs on existing ships, plus the addition of two Kraits, we finally do have some upgrade/alternate options. The AspX has to make some choices due to the limited size of most of its internals, and some of the other ships have advantages there.

But one thing the AspX will always have is that wonderful cockpit view. I find that the view is the one thing that quickly makes me get tired of exploring in many of the other ships, rather than steering. And that's what killed the Anaconda for me. I like being able to see the ground when I'm approaching a planetary surface!

 

[The Lawful]

Wut? I still got two, and still always the broken oil tanker wins when going really far out, for it's sturdy and can handle Neutron Boost better than anything. Apart from that, my Phantom sadly collects dust, and the AspXs jump farther and the view is better (VR). That said, my favourite ship of choice recently is the Engineered Sidewinder. YMMV.

O7,
[noob]

 

[osser]

I love mine.

 

[marx]

Hauler. Is it still worth its name?

 

[BradHann]

Hauler. Is it still worth its name?

If you fill it with biowaste it is.

 

[iBR0WNY]

Imo it's also one of the best looking ships in the game too. I just bought the gold pharaoh paintjob and it looks awesome.

 

[Jackie Silver]

Hauler. Is it still worth its name?

Sappho's Quest?

 

[robbyp]

My Conda, yes it handles like a beached whale on high G planets, but that adds to the fun - and the thrill - of not blowing it up.

 

[marx]

Sappho's Quest?

Shh, the Alliance doesn't want us to know about the Quest ships. They are premium pay-to-win only.