I bought an iEagle...how fast can it go?

[VR Jay Le Chardon]

As a fellow veteran of FE2 and FFE I find the notion of top speeds laughable. You cannot even "drift" by hitting the afterburners building up speed and cutting the thrusters, the minute you cut power to thrusters, custard physics kicks in and you slow to a stop - what the heck is that all about? Same as your speed shouldn't be altered by thruster rating, merely acceleration, in any direction or axis.

But while I agree that the flight model is flawed, the OP was initially asking whats the highest he can get out of a racing iEagle, so thats what I answered.

 

[GreyAreaUK]

My iEagle boosts to about 840m/sec.

Originally I just bought it as a "toy" to play around with, fitted all the lightest/smallest parts possible except thrusters and power-dist' and that's how I got to 840m/sec.

Oh, that's a thought - I've A-rated the power plant. I probably don't need that if I lose weapons. That'll get 0.5T back. Every little helps.

 

[hunvagy]

Oh, that's a thought - I've A-rated the power plant. I probably don't need that if I lose weapons. That'll get 0.5T back. Every little helps.

From what I've seen on coriolis,you will need a 2A or 2B to support the 3A performance thruster.

 

[GreyAreaUK]

From what I've seen on coriolis,you will need a 2A or 2B to support the 3A performance thruster.

Plus it's only 0.5T, so maybe not entirely relevant. I'm not in this hardcore, I'm just curious to know what I could get out of it. I'll see what my G4 or G5 DD's come out with. To be honest, its current 600m/s boost is pretty ok for me.

 

[Madd_Matt]

A 663m/s (884m/s boost) build, although I've seen some edge a bit higher...

 

[TartanDragon]

While fun to have a good boost speed. I've noticed you still go splat it you hit a canyon wall at 740 or 520.

Who knew!

 

[Bounder]

It's a video game that people play just for fun. The realistic optimal time to go to Mars is once every 1.6 years IIRC, that's not really compelling gameplay or even possible in an MMO where everyone has to exist in the same timeframe.

1.6 years using chemical rocketry maybe.

Elite ships use fusion thrusters, or at least they used to, so that Mars shot would only take a few hours, in real-time, without time-acceleration or supercruise warp drives. You can try it in FE2 or FFE - just launch, point at Mars, open the throttles and watch your speed climb as the AU's start to tick down..

Aside from which, ED does have warp drives, so you can make the same journey in a few minutes. Warp drives and spaceflight aren't mutually exclusive - you can have both, in the same ship, in the same game, at the same time!

 

[Stigbob]

1.6 years using chemical rocketry maybe.

Elite ships use fusion thrusters, or at least they used to, so that Mars shot would only take a few hours, in real-time, without time-acceleration or supercruise warp drives. You can try it in FE2 or FFE - just launch, point at Mars, open the throttles and watch your speed climb as the AU's start to tick down..

Aside from which, ED does have warp drives, so you can make the same journey in a few minutes. Warp drives and spaceflight aren't mutually exclusive - you can have both, in the same ship, in the same game, at the same time!

Do you not find warp-drive to be unrealisitic, or do you make a playability concession the way people do with sub-light ?.

 

[777Driver]

While fun to have a good boost speed. I've noticed you still go splat it you hit a canyon wall at 740 or 520.

Who knew!

Old Canyon run vid of mine, happy with the G3 running at 630m/s, lots of fun. Would be suicidal doing runs at 800+ m/s. Damn I miss this game, been months since I've flown any ship.

Good choice of ship Op, my goto ship when I want to unwind.

[video=youtube;2v1U_6-MJUU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v1U_6-MJUU&t=119s[/video]

 

[GreyAreaUK]

Old Canyon run vid of mine, happy with the G3 running at 630m/s, lots of fun. Would be suicidal doing runs at 800+ m/s. Damn I miss this game, been months since I've flown any ship.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v1U_6-MJUU&t=119s

I've only watched the first couple of minutes, but I like what I see

 

[ThriveInDark]

EDIT: Also if you aren't accustomed to PE thruster ships yet, they are REALLY mass sensitive. Those two pulse lasers you left on will be taking double digit figures off your speed. Anything not modded for lightweight will need to be modded for it. Anything you can't mod for lightweight...should still be modded as lightweight.

I know a guy.

...

I got this iCourier topping out at 688 at 67t (still has 404MJ shields and full weapons too), you should introduce me to your guy

Almost as fast as the iEagle, jumps okay when lightweight and with max FSD, but with the advantage of having relatively substantial shields with even a small/light generator.

ALMOST as fast? iEagle WISHES it was a Courier, swap the HRP/MRP for scanners and the full size FSD, its still 652 m/s with guns and a 30 ly jump range, and these are CLEAN drives

 

[Alexander the Grape]

Absolute max is 143% drives at half optimum mass = 915

I know someone with a fully combat-fit courier that boosts 800 or so

 

[GreyAreaUK]

Absolute max is 143% drives at half optimum mass = 915

Wow.

 

[StiTch]

ALMOST as fast? iEagle WISHES it was a Courier, swap the HRP/MRP for scanners and the full size FSD, its still 652 m/s with guns and a 30 ly jump range, and these are CLEAN drives

Depends on your roll.

iEagle is inherently faster but the greater hull mass means it gets hit real hard by optimal multiplier changes.

Unmodded, iEagle is faster. With the bog standard 30% optimal multiplier / -15% optimal mass roll, iCourier is faster, because the -15% optimal mass starts to cripple the iEagle.

Get a roll that's better than approx. -10% optimal mass or better with a decent optimal multiplier and the iEagle maintains its advantage over the iCourier and really sings. This is why I frequently advocate the G3 DD mod or possibly G4 over G5 for anyone that doesn't have the capacity for a ton of G5 rolls; unless you can land a roll without a crippling optimal mass reduction, you'll often get just as good or better results on a respectable G3 roll, especially if it means being able to roll it several times.

My PvP iCourier still has G3 DDs on it. I've focused my G5 DD rolls elsewhere and never rolled one on it that conveniently landed on strong enough optimal mass to overcome the relatively heavy build I tend to employ. *shrugs*

 

[Stealthie]

Oh, that's a thought - I've A-rated the power plant. I probably don't need that if I lose weapons. That'll get 0.5T back. Every little helps.

IIRC, I originally had mine set up with a 2D PP, an engine-biased P-dist and (of course) G5 DDs.
Obviously, there were no weapons, shields, scanners or any other junk to draw power or add weight.
Also, don't forget that you can also free up more power (if necessary) by shutting down anything which doesn't help you go faster (cargo hatch, sensors, data-link scanner etc).

When I re-purposed it as a "proper" recon' ship, I think I played around with a 2A PP and a 3D PP but in the end I just stuck a 3A unit into it.

Also, FWIW, my iCourier is set up in a similar way but that has some cargo space and a couple of lasers so it's more of a "HazOps delivery vehicle" whereas the iEagle is a pure recon' ship.

If you're looking for some gameplay to put your newfangled speedboat to work, I really recommend checking out some of the various listening posts people have found.
An iEagle with a fuel-scoop and a G5 FSD is perfectly viable for jumping around the bubble and you WILL need the speed and agility when you stumble on the Black Flight.
Forget about weapons.
The trick is to get 'em to chase you for 10 minutes then bung a U-turn and return to the objective (at full speed) before they can catch up again.
On which note, I think that's why I ended-up installing shields on my iEagle.
If you're trundling along at 50% throttle, with 3 or 4 Black Flight Anacondas in pursuit, and you get a bit careless with the separation it's handy to have shields that can soak up one or two shots.

 

[GreyAreaUK]

An iEagle with a fuel-scoop and a G5 FSD is perfectly viable for jumping around the bubble and you WILL need the speed and agility when you stumble on the Black Flight..

Stumble on the what now?

 

[Stealthie]

Stumble on the what now?

I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you. [where is it]

Spoiler

They're "enforcers" for whatever shady organisations may or may not be either collaborating with the Thargoids or, at least, attempting to profit from the Thargoid threat.
It's all related to the stuff Salome was wailing about before she carked it.

 

[GreyAreaUK]

I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you. [where is it]

Spoiler

They're "enforcers" for whatever shady organisations may or may not be either collaborating with the Thargoids or, at least, attempting to profit from the Thargoid threat.
It's all related to the stuff Salome was wailing about before she carked it.

Oooooo. Some digging may be in order. Thanks.

 

[Conch]

You guys should take a serious look at the viper mk3.. stripped down its topspeed might not be on par with the ieagle or courier.
but 1 boost is max speed!! That something non of the other ships do!!

 

[Stealthie]

Oooooo. Some digging may be in order. Thanks.

As a "starter for 10", head over to the Electra system and scan the listening post.

Like I said, just google "Elite listening post" and then go and have a snoop around any of the places listed.
Often there aren't any credits in it, there's sometimes bits & bobs to collect, but it's mostly just an interesting way to spend a few days doing your own thing, rather than just doing what other people tell you to do.

And, like I said, a speedy iEagle is the ideal ship for the job because running away is usually the smart thing to do, rather than trying to fight.
it's always nice to build a "specialised" ship and have something to do with it.