Does anyone with access to a cutter use a Type 9?

This has been an interesting read, most T9's seem to be attached to carriers used as "tenders" or "Tankers" as in they shuttle fuel or goods to and from the carrier. There is no bickering about the strengths/weaknesses of these two ships relative to each other, just insightful anecdotes about what we do with them. For example the last two posts above this one are someone saying their T9 is welded to their carrier and they use the cutter for most things, the one above that is someone saying they'll never touch a cutter as no other ship in the game could replace their T9. It seems the T9 is the "marmite" of space ships* *Other brands of yeast extract condiment are available :p

I suppose it's only fair I "show my hand" now, I've long had a cutter, hated it with a passion until engineers allowed me to fit it with G5 dirty drives, at which point I merely resented it. Afterwards when engineers got rebooted, I put 3.0 spec maxed out dirty drives with drag drive special effect on them, now I'd only describe it as bearable. I fly 100% FA off, except in a cutter, which I'm ever so grateful for Advanced Docking Computer, which I use on the cutter. I sometimes "cheat" on the cutter and toggle FAon to use FA as space brakes. (in FAoff deceleration is halved but acelleration is doubled, so a drifty pig like a cutter becomes a real handful to stop in FAoff) The cutter is the only ship I put a docking computer on, or at least the only one that permanently has one, and while I can land in a very flamboyant aerobatic style 99% of the time, with the cutter I'm like request docking, let the computer take control and go for a smoke. I can do anything in a cutter, I just don't enjoy it, and as others have commented, its overly illuminated in there making it hard to see certain display elements, and a bit touchy on the yes in VR.

T9? Bought my first one in 3301, used it to bulk trade to help build the credit reserves to buy the cutter, sold it to use the cutter as it can escape pirates, and out run most things that can hurt it. Bought another in 3301 on an alt account to use it for storing engineering commodities #modularterminalmogul noticed it flew better than the cutter. Inspired by this I bought the combat variant of it on launch, having visions of making a type 10 "battle bull", it was woefully bad. More recently I put a type 9 together to bulk mine for mostly materials TBH, but might as well grab some minerals while at it, blew some arx on a machinist paint job for it, had a bit of fun in my "BULLdozer" as with FAoff it flies pretty good, just slow, then you hit suercruise, and oh dear, it's turning radius is measured in Astronomical Units (1 AU is the distance from sun to earth so ~480LS).

Neither the cutter nor the type9 are a ship I could settle down on, as I honestly dislike both, but I cannot decide which is least bad, hence this thread.
 
I had a T-9 before the Cutter existed and refit it as a PvE Q-ship after I bought the Cutter, but then T-10 was added, so I had no use for a T-9.

My Cutter still rocks a C5 prismatic, so I've got 760 tons with a C1 GFSDB (23.6ly laden) or supercruise assist (for quick drops), so there's no reason for me to own a T-9 since I never trade shieldless.
 
Yes.

Oh, you want to know why? Then sit back and I'll tell you a tale of ambition, jealousy and obsession.

Way back when, over three years ago, I was enjoying playing Space Trucker 3302/03. I made my first millions, and suffered my first ganking, recovering wreckage from Starship One in my adder. Undetered I threw myself into every CG, savouring the mix of camaraderie and rivalry each week.

I worked my way up through the Lakon cargo ships. The T6 was a good ship but too small for my ambition. The T7 was a crushing disappointment, but the T9 felt like a warehouse with rocket engines. A proper cargo spaceship. I worked to unlock Prof Palin when he was based in Maia and dirtied up those thrusters. I bought a HOTAS and the thrill of lifting off with that sense of weight and inertia is a lasting memory. I refined my build, fitting ever smaller shield generators until I dispensed with them altogether. The T10 arrived and I could haul just as much cargo with no shields and 'free' HRPs.

But with a real job too I could barely crack the top 10% of a cargo hauling CG. Top 10 was way out of reach. The cutter club seemed to dominate the top ranks with their 700+ ton capacity and I was jealous. Faster, punchier and with more cargo space. Surely the cutter must be the pinnacle of spaceship design. I had to have one.

I'd never identified much with either superpower, though I had a slight federal leaning due to an affection for Sol, the cradle of humanity. So I started the Imperial rank grind from a low starting point. Found a system with many suitable missions and.... burnt out. Space trucker wasn't fun any more so I drifted away from the game and fell into the nostalgia trip that is Total War: Warhammer II.

Several times I felt the call of space travel but the longer I left it the more intimidating the thought of relearning how to handle the controls became.

About five months ago, during the long hot summer of Covid-19 I took the plunge. I was sorely disappointed that CGs had gone. Without the fine folks in the Teaka Elite Altruistic Bagging Cooperative I would likely have put the HOTAS back on the shelf.

Then Galnet returned, and community goals. I rekindled the joy of trucking in my T10. When the NMLA struck I turned her into a passenger barge for refugee evacuations, which incidentally helped my Imperial rank. I abused the heck out the Fed vs Imp CG where both sides rewarded me with two rank increases. Somebody must have complained about the rounding of rank progression after that one because I woke up one day to find I was one navy mission away from becoming a Duke. Finally I was in the cutter club!

I spent an evening, and half of my credit balance, outfitting and engineering my shiny new toy. Big shields, big cargo, big acceleration, big turning circle. I named her Gank Bait but nobody took a bite. But I hated flying it. Not just the poor handling, but the shiny floor, the terrible hardpoint placement, the big neon-rimmed speakers above the window. It felt like a luxury yacht ruined by a boy racer's tuning.

A couple of weeks later a throwaway comment here alerted me to the fact that in my absence the T9 had been reviewed. It could fit that second class 8 cargo rack that it had always deserved and even outdo the cutter in cargo capacity! So I mothballed the cutter and bought a new T9 hull. Filled her with cargo racks, an FSD booster and docking computer for a 780 ton capacity and 20ly fully loaded jump range. I said hello again to my favourite cockpit of all Elite's ships. I was back in my rocket propelled warehouse and once again a happy trucker.

PS. I won't grind for a fleet carrier. I've learned my lesson. I'll let the credits accumulate naturally and when I have enough I might take one for a test drive.
 
Last edited:
I bought a T9 when fleet carriers first came in and tritium at 4k per ton was plentiful. I used it to make 33mil per trip with tritium trading. That was my first time in a T9 and I couldn't believe how awesome the cockpit view is (and how slow it is). Then the nerf came in so I sold the T9. I was going to buy another one to transfer goods to and from my FC but now that laser mining has taken a hit I might just fill my cutter with cargo racks instead.
 
Just thinking that the Type-9 and cutter overlap somewhat as being joint kings of cargo capacity, within a handful of tonnes capacity of each other, and both ships have woefully weak spots, but their weaknesses are different from each other. For example, the cutter is fast, like silly fast given its turning rates, but it has the turning circle of a coriolis starport, but is much better in supercruise than a Type-9. However the Type-9 for all its lethargy, is actually a pretty faithful stead and goes (slowly, very very slowly) where you point it. Similarly the cutter has a canopy / windscreen that is akin to a letter box, whereas the Type-9 has the whole Lakon greenhouse canopy offering much better visibility than the cutter. But the cutters cockpit is more opulently appointed whereas the Type-9 is very much a girders and deck plates industrial affair. And so on and so forth, so I was wondering did anyone prefer the Lakon offering over the Gutamaya offering?
My I-Cutter Dammit Turn Already is my current go-to heavy lift platform. She is strong, stable and unstoppable in the role.
The thing is, she doesn't look like she should. She's too sleek, too pretty. She looks like a kitchen appliance, or one of those not-talked-about toys women keep in their night-tables.

Any bike riders remember when THIS damn thing came out?
1607847098513.png

It's the same idea.
Now - for the record, the Pacific Coast is a GREAT touring bike; she's comfy and easy to drive. Amazing gas mileage and when you twist that grip hang on - there's some serious horses under that moulded plastic. But she looks like a freaking blender.

I much preferred my old 'Wing:
1607847222147.png

Now THAT'S a bike!
(Made all the more special because I built her practically from the frame up. :) )
The Pacific Coast has a few real advantages over the classic 'Wing: beautiful balance, superb wind envelope. You CAN (I know because I've done it) flick a Bic over her fuel tank at 100Kph and the flame will be absolutely calm. Great fuel efficiency. Pretty impressive torque - I was surprised how similar she was to the Goldwing in performance.
You just don't feel like you're riding a bike, which is the point. I don't WANT a 2-wheeled limo, I want a ROAD CRUISER.

And that is why for all her advantages, Dammit Turn Already will NEVER be my favoured heavy-hauler. She's a prissy prima-donna - looks great, does the job superbly. But she's all about herself.
My T-9 Hippoposthumous is my truck - my Western Star. She's a thousand tons of grunt; a slow-moving, solid and patient partner hauling goods deep into the Black.
She LOOKS like a truck and turns like an oil tanker. :ROFLMAO:
She is THIS:

👍
GOD I love my space-truck. And I ain't givin' her up for NOBODY.
 
Last edited:
I wish I had more reasons than RP to use the T-9. It just feels right for trucking and I still use the Cutter because I am lazy and hate to play the interdiction minigame. In the engineered Cutter I submit, look what type of enemy it is and if I can be arsed to kill it. Most of the time I just low-wake out and continue on my merry way.
With multiple trade missions the risk is just too high to amass 2, 3 or 4 enemy ships in every subsequent interdiction to use the T-9 with paper shields.
 
Yup, got two T9's.

One is just A rated but un-engineered. Flies shieldless and is only used for loading FC when I get a spot so close interdictions aren't an issue.

The other is heavily engineered and is a 512t laser miner. With 13 collector limpets I can fill her up in around 1.5 hours in a metallic ring no problem.

Cutter is my armed transpot with 728t cargo capacity. Enough armaments to waste any NPC pirates, and very safe in open. Only been forced to hi-wake once in last few days despite heavy gank activity at CG.

Both great ships if you play to their strengths.
 
Yes, I will always choose a T9 over a guttermaya.
For whatever reason, back when I decided to learn FAoff, I chose to do that in the cutter. Docking included.
If I never fly that abomination again, it will be too soon.

Type 9 however is a very lovely and capable ship. ~4000 hull, 672 cargo, ~500 shield (that's plenty for npcs) and reverb torpedoes and railguns to turn them Anacondas into material dispensers. It's just a joy to fly.
 
My I-Cutter Dammit Turn Already is my current go-to heavy lift platform. She is strong, stable and unstoppable in the role.
The thing is, she doesn't look like she should. She's too sleek, too pretty. She looks like a kitchen appliance, or one of those not-talked-about toys women keep in their night-tables.

Any bike riders remember when THIS damn thing came out?
View attachment 199622
It's the same idea.
Now - for the record, the Pacific Coast is a GREAT touring bike; she's comfy and easy to drive. Amazing gas mileage and when you twist that grip hang on - there's some serious horses under that moulded plastic. But she looks like a freaking blender.

I much preferred my old 'Wing:
View attachment 199623
Now THAT'S a bike!
(Made all the more special because I built her practically from the frame up. :) )
The Pacific Coast has a few real advantages over the classic 'Wing: beautiful balance, superb wind envelope. You CAN (I know because I've done it) flick a Bic over her fuel tank at 100Kph and the flame will be absolutely calm. Great fuel efficiency. Pretty impressive torque - I was surprised how similar she was to the Goldwing in performance.
You just don't feel like you're riding a bike, which is the point. I don't WANT a 2-wheeled limo, I want a ROAD CRUISER.

And that is why for all her advantages, Dammit Turn Already will NEVER be my favoured heavy-hauler. She's a prissy prima-donna - looks great, does the job superbly. But she's all about herself.
My T-9 Hippoposthumous is my truck - my Western Star. She's a thousand tons of grunt; a slow-moving, solid and patient partner hauling goods deep into the Black.
She LOOKS like a truck and turns like an oil tanker. :ROFLMAO:
She is THIS:

👍
GOD I love my space-truck. And I ain't givin' her up for NOBODY.
Great story, and good analogy, using a road analogy I'd compare the T9 to a Chevy Blazer k5 and the cutter to an Escalade. Both will tow serious trailers, but one feels like a truck and the other feels like a limo, and there are significant differences in how both those vehicles go about their business.
 
Cutter is my favorite ship but also use several T9s for specialty roles. Use my (1) Cutter as multirole and gear as needed. For cargo role, always gear as combat trader - full weapons and defense, guardian booster, etc. This leaves 656-688 tons for cargo depending if I slot fuel scoop for longer ranged runs.

This beats by far the longer jumping but smaller capacity of Anaconda, but leaves T9 at over 700 tons a better bulk cargo runner for shorter distances.

I use T9 for all powerplay hauling and leave it parked at my powerplay capital. Another T9 I keep on my carrier as tritium hauler.
 
Only a moron would use the Type-9. Frontier's idea of a joke. Slow, sluggish and mass locked by a Python. It should have double the shield at minimum and quadrupled armour. It's only fair, seeing as it firepower also sucks.
 
Cutter definitely mothballed the t9. Shielded t9 vs 6 size shield cutter doesn’t have a lot of cargo less. 6 size shield is not the strongest but makes a huge difference. Plus you never get mass locked and can boost out of combat easily. Only threat is another cutter outfitted for combat.

So really I don’t see any reason to risk it in the t9 anymore. Only drawbacks to the cutter are its price and rank requirement.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top Bottom