Cobra MK3 in hanger, 5 million cr in hand for upgrades

[ElectricFactory]

UPDATE:
As my circumstances have changed slightly I've updated my post


Greetings All,
As a relatively new player seeking solid advice. I'm presently RES hunting in an upgraded Viper MKIII which appears to be just the right choice for a small ship in combat.

The thing is what attracted me to ED was the idea of exploration, seeing stuff, landing on planets. Bounty hunting is fun as far as it goes and to accrue cash but the Viper MKIII has some def limitations when it comes to anything else. I'm therefore as of now giving the Cobra MKIII a go, I've outfitted it to 'D/C' specs

Here are my questions;
- what are the first areas to go B or A rated besides the FSD - power plant ? Thrusters ? PD ? Shields ?
- could you suggest a budget exploration Cobra MKII build for multirole with an eye to exploration ? Not interested in outfitting for combat
- how are Cobra MKIII shields ? Want to multirole in terms of missions w/o fear of being interdicted and blown up

Thanks guys, standing by.

 

[DDastardly00]

You can do just about anything in a Cobra MKIII including exploration. I started out the same way as you, bounty hunting with a Viper MKII, then I saved up the 6 million for an Asp Explorer. If I had it to do over again I would've bought the Cobra MKIII first then the Asp Explorer next. Nothing wrong with the Viper, it's a great ship but the Cobra has it beat in the Utility dept and well, just about everything else too.

In regards to budget builds for it, I suggest you play around with www.edshipyard.com and experiment with your own budget builds before buying the ship in-game. Good luck with the build Commander, you will love this ship.

 

[JetsonRING]

The Cobra Mk. III is (IMO) the most flexible and useful small ship in the game. You can take on any role in the game using a C3, albeit on a micro scale. I have all the big ships, TWO of some of them, billions of credits and I continually find myself flying both my Sidewinder and my Cobra Mk. III.

An A-rated, fully modified C3 will jump over 30 LY and can fly sideways faster than many other ships can fly forwards. It even sounds awesome. o7

One more thing: If you have a friend that plays Elite Dangerous, the C3 is also multi-crew capable. [up]

 

[Captain Thea Kreutzer]

If you already have a viper id recommend just saving up for a Diamond back scout or explorer. No point in buying to small ships that are basically the same.

 

[JetsonRING]

If you already have a viper id recommend just saving up for a Diamond back scout or explorer. No point in buying to small ships that are basically the same.

The DBX is a great ship (I have a couple) for exploring and other jobs like materials gathering but . . . IMO the C3 is a more flexible ship, able to effectively take on more different roles. o7

A lot of CMDRs like to sell their Sidewinders too, when they can afford a bigger ship but mine gets used about every week:

 

[SushiCW]

Cobra Mk3 is the most "you can't go wrong with it" ship in the game. It's never a bad choice.

[video=youtube;jt1g00-OnKg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jt1g00-OnKg[/video]

In terms of agility: with standard equipment, the Cobra has better top speed, pitch, and roll. The Viper has better acceleration, boosting, and yaw. IMO the Viper is more agile in the right hands, and can position itself more effectively despite a slightly slower turn rate, but they're both nicely nimble ships.

The Viper can mount Enhanced Performance Thrusters which open the door to a whole new realm of top speed & acceleration, but require you to be very mass-conscious in your builds.

I'd keep your Viper in storage, buy a Cobra, and gradually start improving its components as you get cash to do so. Prioritize the thrusters (for escaping enemies), power distributor (so you can boost often and escape enemies), and FSD (to travel / explore faster). It takes ~8 million for a fully A-rated Cobra, but you can build that up as you go. Pack weapons and a decent shield and you can tangle with the occasional wanted NPC for bounty money, and mount a vehicle hangar and detailed surface scanner for exploring planets.

Gradually building up a ship and improving it as you go is my favorite stage of progression in the game. Enjoy!

 

[ElectricFactory]

Thanks for the terrific replies, believe me the provided info is SO helpful! I'm completely engrossed in ED, absolutely am overwhelmed at the scale of it. I like the Viper very much, all except for it's short jump range. As a small fighter it's hard to beat, I'm just less interested in fighting than I am trying out other aspects of the game( missions for instance, planetary survey, a little hauling AND the occasional bounty in a RES ). From everything I've read the C3 is the one for what I want to do.

Cobra Mk3 is the most "you can't go wrong with it" ship in the game. It's never a bad choice.



In terms of agility: with standard equipment, the Cobra has better top speed, pitch, and roll. The Viper has better acceleration, boosting, and yaw. IMO the Viper is more agile in the right hands, and can position itself more effectively despite a slightly slower turn rate, but they're both nicely nimble ships.

The Viper can mount Enhanced Performance Thrusters which open the door to a whole new realm of top speed & acceleration, but require you to be very mass-conscious in your builds.

I'd keep your Viper in storage, buy a Cobra, and gradually start improving its components as you get cash to do so. Prioritize the thrusters (for escaping enemies), power distributor (so you can boost often and escape enemies), and FSD (to travel / explore faster). It takes ~8 million for a fully A-rated Cobra, but you can build that up as you go. Pack weapons and a decent shield and you can tangle with the occasional wanted NPC for bounty money, and mount a vehicle hangar and detailed surface scanner for exploring planets.

Gradually building up a ship and improving it as you go is my favorite stage of progression in the game. Enjoy!

 

[ElectricFactory]

I should also add, my true aspiration is to get a Sol permit, that's really what I want to do and where I want to go. I'd like to be able to do missions that get me to that goal. By the way I'm currently parked at Bluford Orbital in LHS 3447.

 

[Wolfe3]

5 posts in and somethings missing...

 

[fnberger]

Please be aware that the Cobra III is not a combat ship, but great for trading, exploring, mission running. Just a few million Cr later, a Type6 will be better at trade and a DBX will be an excellent explorer. I'd even encourage you to take a look at the Adder, which is nearly as good in multirole jobs as the Cobra, just cheaper. Also keep gathering those materials at USSs and after fights, as even basic engineering will push you forward several steps.

 

[Captain Thea Kreutzer]

Please be aware that the Cobra III is not a combat ship, but great for trading, exploring, mission running. Just a few million Cr later, a Type6 will be better at trade and a DBX will be an excellent explorer. I'd even encourage you to take a look at the Adder, which is nearly as good in multirole jobs as the Cobra, just cheaper. Also keep gathering those materials at USSs and after fights, as even basic engineering will push you forward several steps.

Adder as good as the cobra lol.

 

[znôrt]

- could you suggest a budget exploration Cobra MKII build for multirole with an eye to exploration but w/ the occasional bounty-cash potential ? What are the essentials within my budget of say 2million cr ? Would be open to trading in my Viper
- how does the Cobra MKIII compare in agility to the Viper MKIII ?

2mill is low for a cobra. don't fly budget ships, at the very least you need a decent thruster and distro to see what the ship is capable of. sometimes you might want to sacrifice that for e.g. jump range on an explorer/trader build, but in general this is what i would put on a multirole cobra as a base: https://s.orbis.zone/23hp

just add/swap cargo/weapons/whatever optionals as you need them. if you want to do combat, fit for combat, i.e. don't fight with cargo racks or srv's on board except if absolutely necessary (or irresistibly fun for some weird reason). but note that that base build alone is already over 7mill. ok, you may get a cheaper fuel scoop and that's already 2.5mill less, but the point is ... i would just amass another dozen million or two with the viper first and then fit the cobra comfortably, with its full potential (albeit unengineered) and with plenty of rebuys left. it's not like credits are hard to come by.

also, you will not kill any faster with the cobra, and the viper is peanuts, so for convenience you could aswell keep the viper around ready fitted for combat or bh until you are initiated to the vulture (which will be the real blast) and go sightseeing/smuggling/canyon racing/whatever with the cobra meanwhile.

 

[Clanky Munge]

Diamondback Scout >> Viper MK III

 

[fishgotnosole]

5 posts in and somethings missing...

They'll show, just wait for it.

I'll check behind the fridge.

Greetings All,
As a relatively new player seeking solid advice. I'm presently RES hunting in an upgraded Viper MKIII which appears to be just the right choice for a small ship in combat, having accrued 1.6million cr to date
The thing is what attracted me to ED was the idea of exploration, seeing stuff, landing on planets. Bounty hunting is fun as far as it goes and to accrue cash but the Viper MKIII has some def limitations when it comes to anything else. I'm therefore interested in giving the Cobra MKIII a go, particualrly in light of it's multirole capabilities for a small ship.
Here are my questions;
- could you suggest a budget exploration Cobra MKII build for multirole with an eye to exploration but w/ the occasional bounty-cash potential ? What are the essentials within my budget of say 2million cr ? Would be open to trading in my Viper
- how does the Cobra MKIII compare in agility to the Viper MKIII ? One of the things which surprised me that I didn't appreciate until now- the Sidewinder is very agile
- does the Cobra MKIII have similar boost capabilities to the Viper MKIII ?

Thanks guys, standing by.

Hi OP, and welcome to the hoopy world of ED. Where excitement, adventure and really wild things await you in no small measure.

Okay, regarding your post: I'd also recommend keeping the Viper Mk III for it's current role. With the aim of eventually upgrading it to a Viper Mk IV. Pulse and Multi is always a good combo as the rate of fire is so high.

Regarding an explorer build, for the Cobra Mk III. I've chucked up a very rough and ready example here. However, this isn't the ship I'd personally recommend.

There is ED Shipyard and there is also Coriolis, it's purely a matter of opinion which you prefer. Have a good tinker in either build planner to figure out what's best for you, your budget and your needs. Without spending a single CR.

You don't mention engineering. Unlocking Felicity is a good step to make as it will allow you to engineer your FSD for more range.

Good luck, CMDR. [up]

 

[Deleted member 110222]

You summoned me?

Sorry, I'm taking a break from ED right now. ESO is great fun with The Casual Rascals.

OP, a Cobra Mk III is an excellent choice.

Whilst technically a trade ship, it is famous for its versatility across all roles.

It's so adaptable, that it's the only ship I fly on both Xbox & PC. Where most people run multiple ships, I instead have around 110 modules in storage so I can configure my Cobra, the Germanica's Grace, to complete any task, be it trade runs, bounty hunting or anything between.

Also, the performance gap between stock:A-rate is one of the smallest on any ship in the game. A stock Cobra is genuinely useful. Fortunately, as it is a cheap ship, upgrading it is a realistic prospect.

In my opinion, OP, not only should you buy a Cobra Mk III, you should keep it even after moving to a bigger vessel. The Cobra is the gold standard of ships, and having one available is the best investment a CMDR can make.

 

[BulletTrev]

Don't buy a mk3, don't be a sheep !

 

[TheMegaTurnip]

Overated. The Viper 4 suffers less loss of range with added weight, jumps well, and is a hell of a lot less papery, i'd take that over a cobra anyday. Cobras are a bit kack really.

 

[The Lawful]

If you already have a viper id recommend just saving up for a Diamond back scout or explorer. No point in buying to small ships that are basically the same.

DBX and DBS are small ships too. DBX is the perfect taxi or for going to the ruins, but apart from that, both are outmatched by the iconic Cobra III. The entire game was built around it, so why wait?

That said, I have access to all the ships except Cobra IV and flown them all. Current fleet includes 2 Cutters, 2 Condas, one Corvette (sold the second one because of redundancy), 2 Kraits, 2 Pythons, 2 AspX and so on.

Including 2 Cobra IIIs and one Sidewinder. If I had to sell all except one, I'd keep the Cobra (just like in '84). Strong BUY from here

And you might even already have the F25 paintjob for FREE without knowing, best in the game IMHO.

Spoiler

O7,
[noob]

 

[Deleted member 110222]

Don't buy a mk3, don't be a sheep !

Excuse me?

 

[znôrt]

Cobras are a bit kack really.

don't say that. every ship has a loving cmdr.

also, the cobra will never be op, but it still has its own character. at least emotionally, since engineers washed almost all differences away ... in an unengineered world the cobra would still be quite king as a stroller.