How does collision damage work

Snakebite · Jan 25, 2015

I've just been in a dogfight against an imperial clipper in my Cobra Mk III.

I had his shields gone and he was down to about 48% hull.

I had full shields and I have Military grade armour.

We bumped hulls and I exploded instantly.

Does this sound about right ? Is the clipper that tough.... or did I get unlucky ?

hiciacit · Jan 25, 2015

Like with everything else in this game: no-one really knows, I guess.

MorteDeAngelis · Jan 25, 2015

From what I've understood, it'll depend how you hit him.

If you hit his broadside while you hitting him with your smaller or "thin" side then you'll take more damage as the impact in concentrated in a smaller area while hitting him means the damage is spread more evenly.

Feldspar · Jan 25, 2015

From personal experience, don't run into Clippers.

NettiWelho · Jan 25, 2015

Clippers hull mass alone is twice that of Cobras, put heavier modules in there + possibly cargo and armor and he is several times your weight. What do you think is going to happen to the insides of your ship when all your modules/cargo mass wants to keep moving forward when youve hit immovable object?

Did he survive?

OneAmongOthers · Jan 25, 2015

Collision damage has no rating. Honestly a Cobra hitting a clipper should cause considerable damage to a Clipper. Especially if you hit their engine nacelles. I feel military grade armor is bugged or not working as intended. It just doesn't seem to reduce incoming damage at all. Especially since its so easy to hit internal components.

Moonwalk · Jan 25, 2015

It's almost entirely size-based/mass-based. In a cobra, generally the largest thing you can safely ram is an Asp (as in, not die - you'll probably still get hurt), and then only if you've got good shields and are pretty damn heavy yourself (and/or if the Asp is fairly light). Boosting into ships twice your size or more will almost always be an instant suicide, unless you barely nick them.

Shields make a big impact as well, especially in collisions that are more similar in size, but even those won't make a difference if you're slamming full speed into something as large as a Clipper.

On the flip side, ramming an Eagle or Adder in that same cobra has a decent chance of killing the other ship immediately without even bringing down your shields.

OneAmongOthers · Jan 25, 2015

The Clipper is a very sleek and elongated craft. Hardly something you'd want in combat. A Cobra is a perfect example of a combat ship. Compact. Engines enclosed (unlike the Clipper with exposed engine nacelles).

CMDR Rob James · Jan 25, 2015

I came out of a station with my Asp pitched down and boosted promptly through the cockpit of an Orca. It was stationary I guess waiting to dock I had little damage but it exploded all around me. My imagination made me think of all the passengers and made me feel ill for a few miliseconds.