I have a problem choosing ships...

NCFCpaul

N
I've been playing Elite for some years now. I have amassed a considerable fortune that makes me look with some sadness at my bank account in RL, I have a wide range of ships, I'm fairly sure I've tried flying every ship in the game--fully engineered too.

My preference for ships seems to be the exact opposite of the perceived wisdom. For a example I think the Viper mk 4 is superior to the mk 3, well worth the extra.

I really didn't like the Vulture, I can't figure out why people rate it. I think the FDL is fine but a bit, well, meh.

My first choice ships are the Federal Gunship, the shields may well drop but the hull takes extraordinary punishment while delivering huge damage itself, as well as having a SLF for good measure.

Second up the Alliance Challenger, the biggest and heaviest of the Alliance ships is by far the best, like the FGS sending down great firepower against hapless NPC's.

The Krait mk 2 is the best mining ship for me- by the time I've filled it I'm about ready to do something else. Also it's greater manoeuvrability over others helps..

The AspX is the best explorer, NOT the Anaconda and certainly not the Phantom.

The Python really does nothing for me- Jack of all trades, master of none and the Corvette is the best of the big three because it's at least good for something. I rarely fly mine. The Cutter being just plain awful, almost unflyable with hopeless weapon placements.

So I'm wondering if anyone else out there shares my views on ships? Surely the FGS is the best ship in the game? How can anyone argue differently? Could someone change my mind?

Fly safe everyone and if in doubt unload seven multicannons on the baddies, they all go pop!
 

Juanxlink

Juanxlink
FGS is a hull tank, you want shield tanks. If you need the assistance of the SLF, you made wrong decisions minutes-seconds ago.

Why do you need 2 combat dedicated ships?

Python is better at mining.

Conda is a better explorer, its a fact, deal with it. ASP lacks internals to carry everything you need...

Corevette is a large, slow, sluggish ship, so half useless, same with cutter, but cutter has some speed.

FGS is only the best ship if you like flying bricks.
 

Deleted member 38366

D
Well, if you like tanking, hate Speed, agility and Pips Management... and don't mind taking alot of Hull Damage all the time - yes, Ships like the Viper Mk.IV or the GunShip (both basically "led bricks in space" for their respective size ;) ) are perfectly feasible.

The Alliance Challenger is a fairly decent combat Ship, so there's really nothing wrong with it.

Krait Mk.II is a quite suitable Mining Rig indeed, so it's perfectly viable.

AspX is clearly the best Explorer for folks who like good vision, good SuperCruise agility and plenty of Internals. Anaconda has some shortcomings but adds some Jumprange and more Options. Some prefer a DBX, some the Anaconda, some the Krait Phantom. They all get the job done.

Python is the best for : Medium Passenger hauling, Medium high-volume Miner, Medium Trader, largest Ship that can still operate off Outposts. Some very profitable Boom-time Missions on Outposts require Cargo Space that only and exclusively the Python offers. It's also the best-defended Medium Vessel with its very strong Shields.

But to answer the question which is the best Ship in the Game... it depends
Probably the one(s) you like flying the most ;)
 

lenna

lenna
@NCFCpaul: So called "perceived wisdom" is a fallacy where ship selection is concerned, every ship has it's positives and negatives and different people will view the related features in different ways and evaluate them according to personal preference in the main. There are some that will argue based on specific meta-build reasoning but ultimately such reasoning is flawed in terms of universal applicability.

I have at least one of each ship and my personal summary assessment of them (in no particular order) is essentially as follows:-
  1. Sidewinder - my first ship and one I occassionaly use as a cheap shuttle to collect/gather other ships
  2. Hauler - don't really rate this one as a ship of value beyond perhaps the early game, probably has most value as a hood ornament ;)
  3. Adder - my second ship and one I mainly keep for sentimental reasons
  4. Eagle - bargain basement combat vessel, don't expect too much from it
  5. Imperial Eagle - slightly improved version of the Eagle
  6. Viper Mk 3 - (relatively) cheap and cheerful combat vessel
  7. Cobra Mk 3 - my third ship and almost perfectly balanced for a variety of activities
  8. Cobra Mk 4 - a baby python, excellent multi-role craft if a bit slow (mine is configured as a mining vessel)
  9. Viper Mk 4 - an excellent alternative to the Cobra Mk 4, best part is it not tied to having bought Horizon before a certain date (unlike the Cobra Mk 4)
  10. Imperial Courier - a decent combat vessel that can have exceptional shields for it's size
  11. Type 6 - my fourth ship and an excellent balance of capability versus weight versus rebuy and works well operating in high gravity planetary environments (I have two of these for that reason)
  12. Keelback - a modified T6 with SLF capability, have yet to use this extensively but can see it's value as an early progression SLF facility
  13. Dolphin - like the Keelback, this ship was introduced too late in the day for me to find a high degree of value in it. Nice ship though.
  14. Federal Drop Ship - a flying coffin, has some redeeming qualities perhaps but I do not particularly rate it
  15. Imperial Clipper - Excellent ship, good balance of price versus capability
  16. Diamond Back Scout - A fairly decent combat vessel
  17. Diamond Back Explorer - Possibly the best single seater explorer now, when it was initially released it was rather lacking
  18. Asp Scout - Errm... not sure about this one, jury is out on a long holiday on this one
  19. Asp Explorer - Since day one I have targeted this vessel as the single ship I most wanted to own and fly, it did not disappoint. It will always have a special place in my fleet and is my default go-to ship for exploration (position only really challenged by the Diamond Back Explorer).
  20. Type-7 - A good cargo hauler but requires a Large pad
  21. Vulture - under powered (PP wise) and overrated IMO
  22. Federal Assault Ship - don't really rate this ship, ignorable in the main
  23. Federal Gun Ship - don't really rate this either, also ignorable in the main
  24. Alliance Challenger - Nicely balanced combat vessel able to carry a decent amount of cargo
  25. Alliance Chieftain - A decent combat ship that could have been better IMO... too much like a carbon copy of a FAS IMO
  26. Alliance Crusader - Fairly decent combat vessel, SLF capability is nice
  27. Mamba - Can anyone spell fast? this ship can (fun to fly)
  28. Fer-De Lance - Not really a fan of this ship
  29. Krait Phantom - A true combat T-6 albeit more expensive
  30. Krait Mk 2 - A more expensive Asp Explorer with an SLF bay
  31. Orca - Reasonable ship, a bit too short on operating range for my liking (used to use it a lot for passenger missions)
  32. Beluga - Reasonable ship but the tall tail makes less than ideal for slotting at Coriolis and similar stations
  33. T-9 - Excellent cargo hauler, use it occasionally when engaging in trading
  34. Python - Unsurpassed multi-role vessel at it's size IMO (my only Python is configured for mining)
  35. T-10D - Two words "Turret Boat", arguably unique in that the 4 large mounts are unsurpassed in placement for turret weapon coverage. Love it as it is, but do not fly it much.
  36. Anaconda - Largest true multi-role vessel (my only Anaconda is configured for mining), it's deep keel makes it less than ideal for slotting at Coriolis and similar stations
  37. Federal Corvette - Arguably the best combat vessel (at least for non-Thargoid engagements), when outfitted appropriately it can have exceptional operational range between refuels.
  38. Imperial Cutter - King of the Hill: fast, unsurpassed MLF, reasonable weapon placement, and can carry an excellent amount of cargo
The underlined ships are probably my main go-to vessels
 
Last edited:

RELSPI

RELSPI
Fly what you want to fly. I adore the T7, the Gunship (which is a good ship according to most anyway), and the Asp Scout. I loathe the AspX and the Anaconda. This is mostly against 'general wisdom' but it doesn't matter because it's a video game and winning it is not important.
 

Stealthie

Stealthie
I think the way people frame their opinions is important.

If, for example, somebody says "I like exploring in a Vulture because...." then I'm fine with that and I'll probably be interested to read their opinions, look at their ship-build and see if I can learn anything.
If, OTOH, somebody says "I want to go exploring in a Vulture but it's jump-range is poop and it doesn't have enough slots" then I'm probably going to be a bit more critical and wonder why they're so determined to go exploring in a Vulture.

Point being, if you're happy with the way something works, and you're not fundamentally shooting yourself in the foot by doing it, then have at it. (y)

Personally, I'm probably a bit boring when it comes to ship choice.
I look at the stat's of a ship and then conclude that it'll make a good exploration ship, combat ship, mining ship or whatever exactly like a gazillion other people before me did.
 

Juanxlink

Juanxlink
Stealthie said:
I think the way people frame their opinions is important.

If, for example, somebody says "I like exploring in a Vulture because...." then I'm fine with that and I'll probably be interested to read their opinions, look at their ship-build and see if I can learn anything.
If, OTOH, somebody says "I want to go exploring in a Vulture but it's jump-range is poop and it doesn't have enough slots" then I'm probably going to be a bit more critical and wonder why they're so determined to go exploring in a Vulture.

Point being, if you're happy with the way something works, and you're not fundamentally shooting yourself in the foot by doing it, then have at it. (y)

Personally, I'm probably a bit boring when it comes to ship choice.
I look at the stat's of a ship and then conclude that it'll make a good exploration ship, combat ship, mining ship or whatever exactly like a gazillion other people before me did.
Click to expand...

Im partial to exploring with my mamba now, the view is unmatched by anything, not even ASPs, the jump range hovers around 25Ly if that much, but the ship is a joy to fly anywhere, and the looks, those looks...

Whenever I have to go to Dav's now, Im going with the mamba now. It has meant that I had to engineer that FSD too, but hey, if you want something, you have to work it out.
 

mikekim

mikekim
it doesn't matter what you fly.. each person has their own preferences.

take exploring for example:
I done long range explorations in a Sidewinder (Sag A*), Cobra (Colonia) and Anaconda (Beagle Point). (closest approximations to original builds as outfitting has changed since)
each have their own merits, but any exploring now i'll either user a Krait MKII or Belugia. I still have the others but just prefer to fly those ships in VR
 

Stealthie

Stealthie
Juanxlink said:
Im partial to exploring with my mamba now, the view is unmatched by anything, not even ASPs, the jump range hovers around 25Ly if that much, but the ship is a joy to fly anywhere, and the looks, those looks...
Click to expand...

Uhuh.

I have a Vulture for doing passenger missions and a lot of people seem to think that's nuts.
I use it for those missions which require transporting criminals short distances, though.
It works great and I kind of like the RP element of transporting a criminal boss around in a fast, fighty, ship.
 

d8veh

d8veh
Every ship is best in the right circumstances, so everybody will have their own opinions about what's best.

A gunship won't win against a Vulture in a PvP one to one fight. The Vulture's agility is its advantage. The Gunship will hardly get to look at the Vulture, let alone shoot at it. That's assuming both engineered to the same level or unengineered,

The Viper 3 is more agile than a Viper 4 and it has more speed, which gives it a faster kill rate for farming bounties in a RES. It's also a safer ship for conflict zone, again because of its speed. you can get in shoot a ship and get out again before they get you. What else do you use a Viper for?

I think a Python is a better miner than a Krait because it has a larger cargo capacity. Everything else is more or less the same. The Krait is slightly faster and has slightly more jump range, but the Python has better shields and armour. I think the Python would always win a mining race against a Krait.
 

lenna

lenna
d8veh said:
Every ship is best in the right circumstances, so everybody will have their own opinions about what's best.
Click to expand...
True.

d8veh said:
A gunship won't win against a Vulture in a PvP one to one fight. The Vulture's agility is its advantage. The Gunship will hardly get to look at the Vulture, let alone shoot at it. That's assuming both engineered to the same level or unengineered,
Click to expand...
Depends on loadout, if you exclusively load it out with fixed/gimballed direct weapons then perhaps you have a point... BUT... add turrets and missiles into the mix and things become far less cut and dry. In addition, the FGS does have the benefit of an SLF to supplement it's own capabilities.
 

13A/24B

13A/24B
NCFCpaul said:
Surely the FGS Adder is the best ship in the game?
Click to expand...

FTFY ;)


Personally, I fly what I think is right, not what is expected.

For combat I use a DBS (or FGS for heavy work).
I use a FDS for mining until I can afford a T9, at which point the FDS is used purely for core mining.
Exploration is done in a Dolphin.
I trade in whatever is at hand Krait,Python or T7

Favourite ship is the Adder. It's my early game explorer, and then my runabout/scavenger. With HD armour and rails it can hold it's own against smaller ships, and when it can't it's quick enough to escape.

I've tried Imperial ships and not found one I like. Same with the Cheiftain variants. Fed bricks are good although the FAS tends to be redundant once I can afford the FGS.

I also don't enjoy large ships except the T-9 :unsure:
 

Juanxlink

Juanxlink
Stealthie said:
I have a Vulture for doing passenger missions and a lot of people seem to think that's nuts.
Click to expand...

Oh it is nuts...that is the beauty of it.
I had at one point in time my vulture stripped and "made for exploration". Its the only ship I have a kit for afterall...
 

Kissamies

Kissamies
Viper mk 4 seems pointless, but I haven't really looked into it so I don't have strong opinion either way.

I used a Vulture in my early days. It was fine, good even, but nothing to fall in love with. Maybe if I had more APAs, I might buy it for the third time.

FGS was the first rank locked ship I grinded for. This was when ships with SLF bays were rarer. It's a fine PvE ship, though it was made obsolete when I got the Corvette. Still in my Colonia fleet, though.

For Challenger I don't see much point, but I love my Chieftain.

I currently use my Krait Mk2 for mining as well. Sure it doesn't have as much cargo as Python, but I wouldn't have patience to fill more cargo either.

Switched my exploration ship to Phantom, but AspX is still a fine ship for this role. Good supercruise maneuverability and excellent visibility from cockpit. Phantom just has more options and bit more range.

Python I don't really like but finally ended up getting one for multipurpose mission running. Corvette is my PvE ship and very good at that job. I've had bit of a hard time to figure a role for Cutter because I have thus far refused to use it for cargo. Currently it's used for AX and it's reasonable enough.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom