I currently am doing some rares trading and would like to do some bounty hunting. I noticed that Imperial Courier, Diamondback scout, viper and cobra all have approximately the same firepower. Which one is the best for bounty HUNTING (interdicting ships in super cruise)? Any suggestions for weapons/modules? I have approximately 10 million to spend.
Ships Best PvE small combat ship
- Thread starter Futuristic Kung Fu
- Start date
OK, I'm not super-experienced with E D, but I have been flying Elite since 1986. Of those ships, the only ones I've flown in E D are the Viper & Cobra. My 'umble is that the Cobra is 'better' but the Viper is 'More FUN'. I have maybe 23 Mill to spend if I cash everything in but from the stats, vidz & reports I've seen I have no desire for a Vulture. Mainly 'coz it's too slow and exceedingly ugly. My best advice is to just 'suck it & see'.
I tried a vulture and didn't like it. I know it is better for pure combat but I would like to know which one of the ships that I posted on top is best as they are all similar but with different drawbacks and advantages. Sorry if this post appears rude.
edit: also vulture does not have great range or speed meaning it is not the best for chasing ships if they try to run away
edit: also vulture does not have great range or speed meaning it is not the best for chasing ships if they try to run away
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Probably courier?
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But if you don't like the vulture, you are no longer interested in the best ship, and are entering the realm of personal preference. Nobody can tell you what ship you like to fly best, we can only tell you which ship has the best stats. And that ship is the vulture.
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But if you don't like the vulture, you are no longer interested in the best ship, and are entering the realm of personal preference. Nobody can tell you what ship you like to fly best, we can only tell you which ship has the best stats. And that ship is the vulture.
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Of the ships listed, the Courier should be best. At least it has all class 2 hardpoints and no class 1, has shields far superior to the others and no energy issues like the other dedicated fighters.
Vulture is an excellent ship. HOWEVER the speed is fairly bad and jump range is terrible. If you want a good interceptor you will need both of those as targets may run away or jump to another system. Also I am not sure 10 million is enough to get a good vulture. If you think that this does not matter please explain why and I will gladly accept that. Please also put a good build for under 10 million. Btw what's the difference between the different size/class interdictor modules?
thanks for all the advice
thanks for all the advice
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Every response here is going to be based on personal preference. I too have tried the Vulture (on two different occasions) and I have to agree with the OP's perspective. I just don't care for it as much. The greatest limitation that the Vulture has is of course the poor range due to the limited fuel capacity, but what exactly makes it the "Best Ship" in your opinion? Why is it so much better than the others he's inquiring about?
All the ships you mentioned are fine if you don't want to travel too far. Probably Courier for local bounty hunting. Or Viper as it's so fast.
If you want to zoom around the galaxy efficiently the DBScout or the Cobra are best out of the ones you listed as their max jump range is much better. Cobra has a little bit better shields and more internals for shield cells etc but DBScout more agile and better hardpoint placements (you can bring all weapons to bear on target easily on DBScout whereas Cobra has 2 weapons a ways back underneath the hull). DBScout is the more focused fighter of those two.
If you want to zoom around the galaxy efficiently the DBScout or the Cobra are best out of the ones you listed as their max jump range is much better. Cobra has a little bit better shields and more internals for shield cells etc but DBScout more agile and better hardpoint placements (you can bring all weapons to bear on target easily on DBScout whereas Cobra has 2 weapons a ways back underneath the hull). DBScout is the more focused fighter of those two.
They are saying Vulture because it's like a pit bull terrier. 2 large hardpoints kill things faster than 2 med/2 small, especially large ships due to a damage penalty on smaller weapons. It's also very agile and has good shields. But yes its butt ugly and is pretty dull to use.
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I'd probably go down the list like this from Vulture for best pure combat:
DBS/Courier
Cobra
Viper
Most of those should fall within your budget, but I'm not sure about the Courier. Personally, the Vulture is a great combat craft that is perfectly capable of punching well above it's weight class, but for me it was between the DBS and the Cobra and the DBS's agility and hard point placement won out for me.
DBS/Courier
Cobra
Viper
Most of those should fall within your budget, but I'm not sure about the Courier. Personally, the Vulture is a great combat craft that is perfectly capable of punching well above it's weight class, but for me it was between the DBS and the Cobra and the DBS's agility and hard point placement won out for me.
Courier. You've got far more power to play with than a Viper (or Vulture for that matter), as well as better shields and I think the weapons placement is better than the Cobra or Viper. I've not tried the Diamondback Scout yet though. The Courier is the most expensive of the ships you've listed and will probably eat up most of the 10million you've got (so will the Cobra if you max it out).
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For 10 Mil you can kit up a pretty nice Courier.
I've been flying one the last few days as i think it fits pretty nicely into the 1.3 environment. It's great for running missions, a bit of smuggling, and with the strong shields it hold up well in combat as long as you don't try to punch too far above your weight class. It's quick and handles very nicely, quite responsive.
It does take a bit of getting used to the hoola whoops that reinforce the canopy, but flying it for a bit does make those a bit more tolerable. Too bad - I really thought FD had a chance with this to make it F-16 like with the design. Both the hoola hoops and the way the front rises detract from what otherwise would have been a truly "stellar" design. That and I can't help but see a Walrus on the beach with it's flippers out from behind when I look at the ship display on the hud.
On balance, though, it's a really nice, fun ride and can do lot well in the current environment. I'm pretty much a gimballed weapons fan as I think they give more hits on target, so I'll give a thumbs up on hard point placement as well. Not at all as severe as the Clipper, and with the center point on the nose, you could easily run a fixed weapon there if you like.
http://www.edshipyard.com/#/L=707,5Rr5Rr7OX0_g0_g0_g0_g,2-6Q4s4s1k4s3I5A,7Pc4zM03w03w03w2UI
Here's my basic load out. You can easily see how you can swap Cargo bays for interdictors or SCB's and sheild boosters for scanners, chaff, or HSL's. A lot of versatility.
HTH
I've been flying one the last few days as i think it fits pretty nicely into the 1.3 environment. It's great for running missions, a bit of smuggling, and with the strong shields it hold up well in combat as long as you don't try to punch too far above your weight class. It's quick and handles very nicely, quite responsive.
It does take a bit of getting used to the hoola whoops that reinforce the canopy, but flying it for a bit does make those a bit more tolerable. Too bad - I really thought FD had a chance with this to make it F-16 like with the design. Both the hoola hoops and the way the front rises detract from what otherwise would have been a truly "stellar" design. That and I can't help but see a Walrus on the beach with it's flippers out from behind when I look at the ship display on the hud.
On balance, though, it's a really nice, fun ride and can do lot well in the current environment. I'm pretty much a gimballed weapons fan as I think they give more hits on target, so I'll give a thumbs up on hard point placement as well. Not at all as severe as the Clipper, and with the center point on the nose, you could easily run a fixed weapon there if you like.
http://www.edshipyard.com/#/L=707,5Rr5Rr7OX0_g0_g0_g0_g,2-6Q4s4s1k4s3I5A,7Pc4zM03w03w03w2UI
Here's my basic load out. You can easily see how you can swap Cargo bays for interdictors or SCB's and sheild boosters for scanners, chaff, or HSL's. A lot of versatility.
HTH
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No, sorry. Words mean things. He put "best" in the OP. "Best" is about stats and real world performance, not personal preference. You may, as a matter of personal preference, not care for the Vulture, and that is fine. But the Vulture is the best combat ship until you get into the FDL/Python price ranges.
That said, out of his list, I think the Courier is the best combat ship, although one could argue about this. If we include the Vulture, there isn't even an argument.
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Completely agree regarding the Vulture, it's the best pure combat ship in the game for the price, and I even know a few people who prefer to the FDL.
now, of the four others, it depends on what you want from a hunter. In my opinion, it's really only down to two, the DBS and the Courier, with the Courier having a lead. It's basically a poor man's Vulture, in that it can hang in a fight. What the DBS gives you is great spreed and agility, and the ability to quickly put your weapons on target, but it's shields are nowhere near the Couriers (saying that, they do recharge a hell of a lot faster). Of course the DBS has amazing jump range, but I don't know how that would help you in combat in PVE.
If you want to undermine in powerplay by killing courier ships far far away it's an ideal little inderdictor as long as you dont bite off more than you can chew.
Courier or Scout. Both are a better fighter than a Viper, which is a better fighter than a Cobra.
And between those two, the Scout has more speed, agility and jump range, and better heat vents, the Courier has much stronger shields and slightly better hardpoint selection (1 medium > 2 small). And the price of a completely upgraded Scout and Courier are very similar, the Courier comes with a greater initial price, the Scout is more expensive to loadout (A4 thrusters and FSD each cost ~1m more than A3).
I put my 2p's worth in the Courier camp also, it's nimble, has a small profile, its vertical and lateral thrust acceleration and deceleration are IMO the best feature.
It has a great powerplant for a flexible loadout, 3 well placed hard points and can be built into a mini shield fortress if so desired.
Personally I like to keep the weight down with D class shield boosters x 3, and D class life support and sensors. Giving it a 298kph speed with 4 pips in power and a 410 boost speed. I find being evasive is better than tanking in the Courier.
It has a great powerplant for a flexible loadout, 3 well placed hard points and can be built into a mini shield fortress if so desired.
Personally I like to keep the weight down with D class shield boosters x 3, and D class life support and sensors. Giving it a 298kph speed with 4 pips in power and a 410 boost speed. I find being evasive is better than tanking in the Courier.