Can the Eagle be kitted out to be a decent fighter?

MonsterRob · Jan 30, 2015

Iv been Trading for quite a while and the other day I bought a viper kitted it out and went bounty hunting with a friend it was great. I sold the viper after that as I wanted some cash to upgrade to the type 7. but now iv got some spare cash I’m going to try again.

Only thing is I don’t like the look of the viper, I think the Eagle looks really mean but its a cheap starter ship if I invested a lot of money in to it can it become useful. I have 3,000,000 to spend.

Sts · Jan 30, 2015

I have kitted out an eagle for a lot less, but I have been keeping clear of conflict zone though.

Good platform for experimenting with different weapon configurations. Can usually pull in 60k an hour at a nav point, less than trading but more exciting.

With a cheaper ship you are less prissy than you with high specced out asp which has cost a fortune. I tend to go exploring potential conflict points much more rather than trying to avoid them.

S.

Skip Intro · Jan 30, 2015

Eagle can be a fast, snakehipped fragile eggshell carring a big hammer.

mosh_er · Jan 30, 2015

MonsterRob said:
Iv been Trading for quite a while and the other day I bought a viper kitted it out and went bounty hunting with a friend it was great. I sold the viper after that as I wanted some cash to upgrade to the type 7. but now iv got some spare cash I’m going to try again.

Only thing is I don’t like the look of the viper, I think the Eagle looks really mean but its a cheap starter ship if I invested a lot of money in to it can it become useful. I have 3,000,000 to spend.

Buy 2 of them and glue them together

Vendraen · Jan 30, 2015

An Eagle in the hands of someone who understands how to use it is pretty damned deadly. That would not be me - but those who can handle it's wet-paper-bag hull use it to deadly effect. So......maneuverable!

Elan · Jan 30, 2015

Even with A grade everything I don't think you'll spend much over 2 million upgrading an Eagle.

I usually run 3 pulse or 2 pulse and a multicannon. KW Scanner or chaff in the utility and a shield cell bank.

Duckfather · Jan 30, 2015

Friend of mine loves 'em and won't fly into combat in anything else, even though he has more than enough money to seriously kit out bigger ships. And he's quiet successful in it too (PvP Bounty Hunter)

Dr Roly · Jan 30, 2015

The Eagle is a great little ship, and you can max it out for about 1.5mil. You'll want to fit A grade power plant, distributor, shields and also fit a shield cell bank or two.

Suggested weapon loadout:
Vs NPC:
1 x beam laser on roof
2 x fixed or gimballed multicannons under wings
Kill warrant scanner

Vs Players:
3 x dumbfire missile racks

The Eagle may not be the most capable ship in the game, but it's still my favorite (and I've flown and fought in every ship apart from the Python).

Badda Boss · Jan 30, 2015

I put my T7 into storage last night and tried to buy an Viper and kit it out for combat for the kicks. And wow was I disappointed. It seemed impossible to kit it out with a kill scanner, A-grade everything and 2 beams+2MCs due to the power requirements exceeding the power generator. Even starting to remove some things and going to an E shield didnt help.

Will try the Eagle today

Or back to Cobra and Asp

salad · Jan 30, 2015

Duckfather said:
Friend of mine loves 'em and won't fly into combat in anything else, even though he has more than enough money to seriously kit out bigger ships. And he's quiet successful in it too (PvP Bounty Hunter)

I understand him

Dr Roly · Jan 30, 2015

Set the cargo hatch and FSD to priority 2 or greater. You should be golden, even with a beam and two MCs.

soma · Jan 30, 2015

Sure, just fit 3xDumbfires and attack big, slow targets

Chevy66 · Jan 30, 2015

I've been doing bounty hunting and conflict zones in an Eagle, haven't been blown up yet although I have bugged out at 6% hull once

There is no NPC ship that can't be beaten by an eagle

MonsterRob · Jan 30, 2015

thanks for the quick responses guys I look forward to having a play around tonight

Rubbernuke · Jan 30, 2015

With a good pilot they can be tricky, but if the Eagle is jumped on by a beaming snake they can be melted in one pass so watch out! If you are not attacking in an Eagle you are in danger.

Arithon · Jan 30, 2015

Might I suggest this configuration....

[Eagle]
S: 1E/F Beam Laser
S: 1G/G Multi-cannon
S: 1G/G Multi-cannon
U: 0I Chaff Launcher

BH: 1I Reactive Surface Composite
RB: 2A Power Plant
TM: 3D Thrusters
FH: 3A Frame Shift Drive
EC: 1E Life Support
PC: 2D Power Distributor
SS: 2D Sensors
FS: 2C Fuel Tank (Capacity: 4)

3: 3A Shield Generator
2: 2A Shield Cell Bank
1: 1D Frame Shift Drive Interdictor
---
Shield: 66.11 MJ
Power : 8.10 MW retracted (84%)
9.53 MW deployed (99%)
9.60 MW available
Cargo : 0 T
Fuel : 4 T
Mass : 84.9 T empty
88.9 T full
Range : 17.35 LY unladen
17.35 LY laden
Price : 1,534,181 CR
Re-Buy: 76,709 CR @ 95% insurance

Farmboy · Jan 30, 2015

I had an A-specced eagle which was worth about 1mil - 1 laser 2 multicannons. Worked pretty decently. The main reason I traded it in for a viper was speed. I was bounty hunting at a nav point and had even helped the local security take out an anaconda so was feeling chipper when a clipper with a 40k bounty showed up. Didn't go so well, and I couldn't outrun it and escape. boom. Much less of a risk in a viper even C-specced (which is all that million let me afford as a straight up switch).

So - does it work? Yes. However you have to be quite aware of it's limitations.

Valkara · Jan 30, 2015

I love using my Eagle for bounty hunting

I do recommend that you kit it out with as best a shield generator as you can buy. This is the lifeline of the eagle as it doesnt have a strong hull and most ships can really hurt you when you lose your shield.

Using 2 x MultiCannon and 1 X Pulse laser (for shield dmg) I find I can kill any rated Viper, Cobra or Sidewinder.

One time I battled a Federal dropship in my eagle (for the naval progression mission) and won!! It was a very close fight mind you and my hull was around 35% in the first few mins. Once I got away from the dropship coming at me and getting hit by a direct firing line - the advantage was with me. Outmanouevering the enemy is the key to success - if they get the drop on you then it could be costly

Andi · Jan 30, 2015

Eagle is okay for targets up to Asp, but the Asp is already pushing it.
It's not that it'd be difficult to survive these fights - the NPC just gets bored at some point and jumps out, and there's nothing an Eagle can do about it.

dunkreid · Jan 30, 2015

MonsterRob said:
Iv been Trading for quite a while and the other day I bought a viper kitted it out and went bounty hunting with a friend it was great. I sold the viper after that as I wanted some cash to upgrade to the type 7. but now iv got some spare cash I’m going to try again.

Only thing is I don’t like the look of the viper, I think the Eagle looks really mean but its a cheap starter ship if I invested a lot of money in to it can it become useful. I have 3,000,000 to spend.

I had an experimental Eagle with various configurations and my preferred build cost about 1.7m (beam on top, bursts underneath). It was great fun in combat but did feel a little underpowered and "gnatty" due to the small hardpoints. I'm currently testing an Adder as an occasional combat / scout ship, and the medium hardpoint does provide a more meaty and satisfying weapon load out, but it's not a patch on the Eagle in terms of dexterity and agility.