FDL is teasing me.

Shiro Akai

Shiro Akai
o7 CMDRs,

straight to the point: recently I started to look at FDL and thinking whether I should get one.

Once in a while I do some kind of a "review" of existing ships and decide what is yay and what is nay. First time I saw FLD I thought it looks rather cool, deeper inspection showed it's not the ship for me. Being new CMDR back then I wanted to reach AspX rather fast so I planned my route as: Adder - T-6 - DBX - Asp. From that point I went bigger and bigger to the point where I had all Big 3, with a bunch of medium and smaller fries. Recently I reduced my fleet to just 3 units (Adder, Python and Cutter).

Currently I'm working on an exploration Cutter build, applying finishing touches. As a sidestep I thought about my Adder and how it would be cool if it would bigger. Then, somehow, FDL cought my eye and for the past few days I've been reading various info about it. Even built one or two on Coriolis.io, just to see how capable it is.

Now - hard stuff. I'm a trader at heart, with some exploration inclination. I don't PvP at all but I don't rule out combat in general. I tried bounty hunting in Viper, Vulture and Chieftain. DBX probably as well. I'm thinking about optional combat fitted ship, with primary role of lazy mission running. Even close range exploration.

While reading about FDL it turned out it's Zorgon-Petersen, as Adder. Silly me, design similarity is rather obvious giveaway. Anyway, call to FLD users - convince me to get one for myself. And also convince me against getting one. I'd like to know what I'm going into.

Cheers.
 

Muzz UK

Muzz UK
FDL is supposed to be a great combat ship but needs a good pilot due to heat and turn/lag issues.

Personally love it, think it looks good and holds its own against smaller faster ships and bigger bulky ones. There are plenty of good PvP and PvE builds and with engineering still has a nice 15-20 ly jump range.

Canopy is made of cheese though.
 

Ceekay

Ceekay
It's jump range is poor but because it uses a class 4 FSD a 4A fuel scoop can easily replace the 3T used in a high speed pass so travel isn't that bad just a lot of jumping!

This build has a lot of lightweight engineering and jumps over 25 LY, the weapons array is always down to personal choice but the 4 x pulse + huge MC is a bit of a classic with decent DPS, shields I prefer the bi-weave + resistance approach but I reckon these will be more suitable until you get more combat experience.

http://www.edshipyard.com/new/#/L=C...kG7JcKw58UoPcWphXcrHxgrHxkrHx4_w107201IM12UI0
 

Urbanski101

Urbanski101
A great combat ship but I'd hesitate to use it in any other capacity.

The jump range once engineered is ok but the poor fuel tank means endless scooping with a size 4 scoop.

It also takes some practice to understand how to keep it's momentum in tight turns to prevent 'stalling'.

Once mastered however it is a truly awesome ship, quick, nimble, powerful, tough...a heady mix.

4 medium and 1 huge hardpoint promote a number of viable weapon setups. It's also a shield tank so forget HRP/MRPs, stick everything into shields, once the shield goes down and preferably before you should already be spooling up for SC.

Highly recommend this ship if you plan to stay local and want a combat capable vessel that can handle anything.

Good luck to you sir 07
 

Majic-12

Majic-12
Aside from some poorly placed canopy framing, the aesthetics of the Fer-de-Lance are superb. It's a delightful hot rod of a ship to fly.

The huge hardpoint can be great fun, but a lot of the outfitting tradeoffs of the FDL hearken back to a time before more ship choices in that price-range/pad-size were available. And even in those days, my combat Python always felt like a better choice.

These days, my FDL gathers dust in the shipyard because other medium-pad combatants tend to do an all-around better job.

I love my FDL, but I think it and most of the older generation of combat ships could use a fresh look from the devs and some design tweaks.

Maybe someday...
 

VR andysonofbob

VR andysonofbob
Have you played Dirt Rally?

If you will know the Lancia Stratos; it is rear wheel drive and twichy AF
BUT BUT BUT!!!
Once you learn it, it is an absolute JOY to drive. You literally don't stop skidding. Hard to describe but the pleasure is Maximum

That is how I feel about the FdL.
 

Majic-12

Majic-12
andysonofbob said:
Have you played Dirt Rally?

If you will know the Lancia Stratos; it is rear wheel drive and twichy AF
BUT BUT BUT!!!
Once you learn it, it is an absolute JOY to drive. You literally don't stop skidding. Hard to describe but the pleasure is Maximum

That is how I feel about the FdL.
Click to expand...

I can get that feeling in any ship by accidentally leaving Flight Assist turned off. :p
 

chino_uk

C
My goto bounty hunting ship... I'll happily take on pretty much anything with it as a shield tank and a huge multicannon.
 

Shiro Akai

Shiro Akai
Thanks for the valuable input. Everything is taken under consideration and there are few true gems of an advice. I realize it's primarily combat ship and for that it should be used. Thanks for the build link, seen few more and general consensus is huge MC + 4x personal preference and shield tank approach.

I mentioned exploration since I like to test roles for which ships weren't designed for. 20 LYs would suffice for the target I'm planning it to use for. The more I think of FDL it the more I like it, especially that "hot rod" vibe that was mentioned. I'm thinking of dedicated BH ship, it's high time I finally get serious about this part of the game.

Other option is Chieftain, less than half the FDL price. I suck at combat and need something tough to withstand my mistakes. I got a Corvette for that but sold it due to lack of sufficient outfitting credit capabilities. Maybe some day. Until then I look for something smaller. I'm 80% decided to buy FDL...

... because of looks. Stats are secondary :D
























And then I wonder why I suck at combat...
 

Pigshead

P
I love my FDL.

I’ve got various ships for various roles, only three of which are really combat ship. A beam wielding python which I use when bounty hunting/CZ in a group (healing beams and repair limpets) or if I want to collect some stuff after a fight, a vulture for solo BH fun times, spiralling round and round anacondas and pecking them to Death is a joy to me, and the FDL.

I love all three of these ships for different reasons, the python for its survivability, I can sit in a HAZRez for hours in it, the vulture for the sheer joy of tearing around the place and wearing much bigger ships down, and the FDL because it feels like attempting to wrestle a wild stallion into submission.

My own personal FDL is a triple PA + dual rail gun beast. It can run hot if you aren’t careful, but my tactics of hit and run straffing attacks are great fun, it’ll shred bigger ships in a few passes, although it does struggle against some of the smaller ships as they tend to be able to avoid the PA’s quite easily.

Sometimes, I still forget how it handles, and those graceful, sweeping, sideways drifts through an asteroid field end up going a bit wrong. But that’s part of the fun.

I highly recommend the FDL, but it can take a little getting used to. It’s not for the faint of heart.
 

XW_Ziggy

XW_Ziggy
It's the best medium-sized shield tank, but as others have said it has poor jump range and you'll be scooping a lot.

Mine has been mothballed for a while now. Many of the more interesting loadouts end up running toasty hot and near the power limit if you want to run it as a shield tank.

It's still a very satisfying ship to fight in, but if you're not going to play to its shield-tank strengths, you might as well get yourself a Chieftain instead; You can jump 60% further, you can turn faster, you can carry double the cargo and it's way more flexible with hardpoint loadout - simply because there are more of them and it handles heat much better. Also the fuel tank is big enough to support plasma slugs, unlike the FdL.

Unfortunately, the Chieftain isn't as pretty as the FdL to look at, and the thrusters sound like you're flushing a toilet when you boost :(
 

Pigshead

P
XW_Ziggy said:
It's the best medium-sized shield tank, but as others have said it has poor jump range and you'll be scooping a lot.

Mine has been mothballed for a while now. Many of the more interesting loadouts end up running toasty hot and near the power limit if you want to run it as a shield tank.

It's still a very satisfying ship to fight in, but if you're not going to play to its shield-tank strengths, you might as well get yourself a Chieftain instead; You can jump 60% further, you can turn faster, you can carry double the cargo and it's way more flexible with hardpoint loadout - simply because there are more of them and it handles heat much better. Also the fuel tank is big enough to support plasma slugs, unlike the FdL.

Unfortunately, the Chieftain isn't as pretty as the FdL to look at, and the thrusters sound like you're flushing a toilet when you boost :(
Click to expand...
I’ve never tried a chieftain, but your last sentence has just convinced me to buy one.
 

Urbanski101

Urbanski101
Shiro Akai said:
... because of looks. Stats are secondary :D
Click to expand...

Aesthetics are important and I love the way the FDL looks...please don't ruin those beautiful lines with a ship kit though... blurrrgh :)

I also own a FAS which is another great medium combat vessel but it's so butt ugly I just can't bring myself to use it.

Chieftan is also a highly viable alternative from what I hear but I've never flown one so I can't speak from experience....I do know the ladies love the FDL...it must be the hot tub :)
 

Borko

Borko
Fdl hits harder, chieftain’s flight characteristics are more forgiving. I fly both but have more success in the cheiftain. Takes a better pilot than me to fight properly in the Fdl.
 

ACQ

ACQ
Fdl is great for assassination missions and CZ's. Many different weapon load outs possible. One of my personal favourites for rapid kills in CZ's is huge long range fixed thermal vent beam laser with 4 overcharged gimbal MC's.
Don't got time to be chasing no vipers.

ACQ
 
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