And script linked since I know forum appreciates as much!
Comments always welcome.
The mighty Chieftain. Pride of the Alliance Fleet.
For a long time, the most common sight across AX battlefields.
To this day, the most-recommended ship to those beginning their AX careers.
Yet, with the advent of the Thargoid War and of Thargoid Titans, it is now showing its limitations.
I am CMDR Mechan, and this is Bug Smashers, where we review every ship in Elite: Dangerous for their AX Combat potential, in 2024.
*** Chieftain introduction
For years, whenever CMDRs thought of anti-xeno combat, their mind quickly raced to the Alliance Chieftain. And for good reason! The Chieftain has an amazing combination of both a low skill floor, and a high skill ceiling. Or, in plain English, it is easy to use, yet hard to master.
Only recently, with the limitations imposed by Maelstroms and the requirements brought forth by Titan combat, have other ships risen to challenge its dominance.
The Chieftain is unmatched still in its combination of high speed, great maneuverability, good tank, and decent firepower.
It is one of a small subset of hard-hitting medium ships which can reliably engage Thargoid Interceptors in the practice called "cold orbiting" without having to rely on boost.
Unlike heavier medium ships - it can yaw! You can fly a Chief just with pitch and yaw. Roll, while certainly helpful, is entirely optional on this ship.
For all these reasons, a good number of the most iconic fights in the history of Anti-Xeno Combat have been performed in this ship.
No matter whether you are a consummate veteran of years of anti-xeno battles, or this is your first AX ship, one thing is clear: An AX Chieftain deserves a place in your hangar.
With all that in mind, the Chieftain was designed and refined in the era of 1-to-1 interceptor combat. It is ideally suited for that task, but has fallen behind other ships in many other combat scenarios.
*** Chieftain builds and variants
Through years of trial and testing, the Anti Xeno Initiative has developed and successfully refined what has been the workhorse of Anti-Xeno Combat. We call such build the "meta" chieftain, or metachief for short.
The metachief strikes what is possibly the best balance of speed, maneuverability, tank, firepower, and utility.
The main armament of the metachief is 2 medium and 2 small guardian gauss cannons. These can be engineered for anti guardian zone resistance at Ram Tah, further enabling the ship to perform in scenarios where Glaives, Orthruses, or system-wide Anti Guardian Fields are active.
The metachief, primarily being a solo fighter, is equipped with a flak cannon to deal with swarms, and a gimballed long-range thermal vent beam laser for utility.
The ship, like most unshielded builds, runs three module reinforcement packages, a repair limpet controller, and an AFMU, with the balance of optional and military slots being dedicated to hull reinforcement packages.
If you'd like to know more about the build specifically, the Anti Xeno Academy video has a section specifically on the metachief build, where CMDR Orodruin masterfully explains in good detail how it all comes together.
In terms of variants, there's a few worth highlighting. The lightweight variant trades some hull buffer for speed, and is often used by more experienced CMDRs. The low-engineering variant can be used as a low-investment stepping stone towards the engineering-intensive metachief. The flakless variant excels in space-based anti-xeno combat zones, and has use among experienced CMDRs also for solo fights. The no-repairs variant is specifically designed for port-assisted AXCZs where repairs are available (and limpets are not.)
We have also provided a "Titan bomber" build for the chieftain, if you really, really, REALLY want to build it that way. However, we strongly recommend against doing so. If you want to go Titan bombing, please consider building a Krait Mk2 or a Python Mk2 instead. You'll have a much, much better experience.
Finally, a word on the "AX Combat Jumpstart" build which FDEV sells for real money. Simply put, it is terrible. Do not bother buying it. Or, if you already did, do consider reconfiguring it to one of the builds we recommend.
All of these builds are linked in the video description below.
*** Power priorities, Firegroups, PIPs setup
Power priorities on the metachief are quite simple and don't matter that much, as its armored plant has more than enough powergrid to sustain all of its modules without relying on selective shutdown of modules.
Personally, I fly with the cargo hatch and FSD on priority 5, the AFMU on 4, the repair limpet controller on 3, all weapons on 2, and all other modules on 1. That way even a power plant malfunction will at most shut your weapons down, giving you a good chance at getting away safely.
The metachief relies on three firegroups.
The first firegroup has 1 medium and 1 small gauss on each trigger. The split is important, as we will want to stagger gauss fire on the metachief to avoid heat spikes. Do NOT map the thermal vent beam to the same firegroup you map you gauss to. Using beams and gauss together doesn't cool you - the extra distributor draw will instead make your heat spike higher.
The second firegroup has flak on the first trigger and the thermal vent beam on the second trigger.
The third firegroup has your repair limpet on the first trigger, and all scanners on the second trigger.
The metachief flies with two PIPs configurations.
0 SYS - 2 ENG - 4 WEP during an attack run.
1 SYS - 4 ENG - 1 WEP (or, alternatively, 2 SYS and 4 ENG) outside of attack runs.
*** Usage notes
Being, for a long time, the most popular AX ship, many great videos have been made explaining the cold orbiting technique which the Chieftain has long been the standard-bearer of.
The Anti Xeno Academy video has an introduction section on topic. For a more in-depth guide, CMDR Helimeli's introductory guide to cold orbiting is excellent, and a highly recommended watch.
For the purpose of this video, it's sufficient to explain that the chieftain generally fights with flight-assist-off, relying on flak to wipe out the swarm, single-banking heatsinks to stay cold when firing gauss at interceptors, while using its mobility to make the interceptor "orbit it" so that its main cannon misses the ship. The chief will then proceed to repair itself in between attack runs, while keeping out of the interceptor's cannon 3km range.
*** Notable fights & CMDRs
Some of the most remarkable fights in the history of Anti-Xeno combat have been accomplished with the chieftain.
These include, but are not limited to: A 1vs8 Hydra fight solo. A 1vs20 Medusa solo (of which 15 were taken down before a disconnect ended the fight early). An E-Rated, unenginereed fight against a Hydra. And handful of "100%" (as in, no-hit) Hydra battles. Further last but not least, a "snake eater" challenge run.
Of all the great chieftain pilots in the game, and there are MANY, CMDRs EuanAB, Muquuu, and Helimeli are possibly among the most-accomplished. Do watch some of their fights - they are really inspiring.
*** Chieftain limitations
Moving past solo combat, the limitations of the Chieftain become apparent once Anti Xeno Combat Zones, Thargoid Spire Sites, and Thargoid Titans are taken into consideration.
In anti-xeno combat zones, medium modified shard cannons are the go-to weapon. The chief is limited to mounting just three of said weapons and, even then, the third one has pretty poor convergence. In Anti Xeno Combat Zones, the Chieftain is thus outclassed by ships that are better platforms for modified shard cannons, such as its sibling the Challenger, the Krait Mark 2, and even the Python Mark 2 and Fer-de-Lance.
At thargoid spire sites, it's now really a choice between medium modified guardian plasma chargers and large anti-guardian zone resistant shards. The Chieftain's Class 6 power distributor cannot effectively feed the former, and having only 2 large hardpoints, the Chief does not make a good platform for the latter. At Thargoid Spire sites, the Chieftain is thus outclassed by ships like the Krait Mk2, both Pythons, and the Anaconda.
Heading to TitanSpace, the ammo limitations of gauss pose a significant limit to the effectiveness of ships that rely on that weapon. It'll work, but it'll work for a very short amount of time before you're out of ammo and facing a long trek back home to rearm. At Thargoid Titans sites, the Chieftain is thus outclassed by ships like the Krait Mk2, both Pythons, and even the controversial Mamba.
*** Ship showcase - let's hit a Hydra
No ship review would be complete without a showcase of course.
As the king of medium-ship agility, let us take it out for a no-hit run against a Hydra.
And see for yourself how it handles!
*** Conclusion
The AX Chieftain remains the best solo fighter in the game. It is also a fantastic ship to learn AX in.
With the community's shifted focus towards the Thargoid war however, with its Anti Xeno Combat Zones, Spire Sites, and Titans, I believe that it is fair to say that the Chieftain has lost its crown as "the" meta.
What has taken its place, you'll wonder? Stay tuned for the next episode of Bug Smashers to find out!
And if you enjoyed this episode and would like to see more in this series, please consider liking, subscribing, and hitting the notification bell below; it really helps me notice your support.
Glory, to Mankind!
CMDR Mechan, over and out.
For a long time, the most common sight across AX battlefields.
To this day, the most-recommended ship to those beginning their AX careers.
Yet, with the advent of the Thargoid War and of Thargoid Titans, it is now showing its limitations.
I am CMDR Mechan, and this is Bug Smashers, where we review every ship in Elite: Dangerous for their AX Combat potential, in 2024.
*** Chieftain introduction
For years, whenever CMDRs thought of anti-xeno combat, their mind quickly raced to the Alliance Chieftain. And for good reason! The Chieftain has an amazing combination of both a low skill floor, and a high skill ceiling. Or, in plain English, it is easy to use, yet hard to master.
Only recently, with the limitations imposed by Maelstroms and the requirements brought forth by Titan combat, have other ships risen to challenge its dominance.
The Chieftain is unmatched still in its combination of high speed, great maneuverability, good tank, and decent firepower.
It is one of a small subset of hard-hitting medium ships which can reliably engage Thargoid Interceptors in the practice called "cold orbiting" without having to rely on boost.
Unlike heavier medium ships - it can yaw! You can fly a Chief just with pitch and yaw. Roll, while certainly helpful, is entirely optional on this ship.
For all these reasons, a good number of the most iconic fights in the history of Anti-Xeno Combat have been performed in this ship.
No matter whether you are a consummate veteran of years of anti-xeno battles, or this is your first AX ship, one thing is clear: An AX Chieftain deserves a place in your hangar.
With all that in mind, the Chieftain was designed and refined in the era of 1-to-1 interceptor combat. It is ideally suited for that task, but has fallen behind other ships in many other combat scenarios.
*** Chieftain builds and variants
Through years of trial and testing, the Anti Xeno Initiative has developed and successfully refined what has been the workhorse of Anti-Xeno Combat. We call such build the "meta" chieftain, or metachief for short.
The metachief strikes what is possibly the best balance of speed, maneuverability, tank, firepower, and utility.
The main armament of the metachief is 2 medium and 2 small guardian gauss cannons. These can be engineered for anti guardian zone resistance at Ram Tah, further enabling the ship to perform in scenarios where Glaives, Orthruses, or system-wide Anti Guardian Fields are active.
The metachief, primarily being a solo fighter, is equipped with a flak cannon to deal with swarms, and a gimballed long-range thermal vent beam laser for utility.
The ship, like most unshielded builds, runs three module reinforcement packages, a repair limpet controller, and an AFMU, with the balance of optional and military slots being dedicated to hull reinforcement packages.
If you'd like to know more about the build specifically, the Anti Xeno Academy video has a section specifically on the metachief build, where CMDR Orodruin masterfully explains in good detail how it all comes together.
In terms of variants, there's a few worth highlighting. The lightweight variant trades some hull buffer for speed, and is often used by more experienced CMDRs. The low-engineering variant can be used as a low-investment stepping stone towards the engineering-intensive metachief. The flakless variant excels in space-based anti-xeno combat zones, and has use among experienced CMDRs also for solo fights. The no-repairs variant is specifically designed for port-assisted AXCZs where repairs are available (and limpets are not.)
We have also provided a "Titan bomber" build for the chieftain, if you really, really, REALLY want to build it that way. However, we strongly recommend against doing so. If you want to go Titan bombing, please consider building a Krait Mk2 or a Python Mk2 instead. You'll have a much, much better experience.
Finally, a word on the "AX Combat Jumpstart" build which FDEV sells for real money. Simply put, it is terrible. Do not bother buying it. Or, if you already did, do consider reconfiguring it to one of the builds we recommend.
All of these builds are linked in the video description below.
*** Power priorities, Firegroups, PIPs setup
Power priorities on the metachief are quite simple and don't matter that much, as its armored plant has more than enough powergrid to sustain all of its modules without relying on selective shutdown of modules.
Personally, I fly with the cargo hatch and FSD on priority 5, the AFMU on 4, the repair limpet controller on 3, all weapons on 2, and all other modules on 1. That way even a power plant malfunction will at most shut your weapons down, giving you a good chance at getting away safely.
The metachief relies on three firegroups.
The first firegroup has 1 medium and 1 small gauss on each trigger. The split is important, as we will want to stagger gauss fire on the metachief to avoid heat spikes. Do NOT map the thermal vent beam to the same firegroup you map you gauss to. Using beams and gauss together doesn't cool you - the extra distributor draw will instead make your heat spike higher.
The second firegroup has flak on the first trigger and the thermal vent beam on the second trigger.
The third firegroup has your repair limpet on the first trigger, and all scanners on the second trigger.
The metachief flies with two PIPs configurations.
0 SYS - 2 ENG - 4 WEP during an attack run.
1 SYS - 4 ENG - 1 WEP (or, alternatively, 2 SYS and 4 ENG) outside of attack runs.
*** Usage notes
Being, for a long time, the most popular AX ship, many great videos have been made explaining the cold orbiting technique which the Chieftain has long been the standard-bearer of.
The Anti Xeno Academy video has an introduction section on topic. For a more in-depth guide, CMDR Helimeli's introductory guide to cold orbiting is excellent, and a highly recommended watch.
For the purpose of this video, it's sufficient to explain that the chieftain generally fights with flight-assist-off, relying on flak to wipe out the swarm, single-banking heatsinks to stay cold when firing gauss at interceptors, while using its mobility to make the interceptor "orbit it" so that its main cannon misses the ship. The chief will then proceed to repair itself in between attack runs, while keeping out of the interceptor's cannon 3km range.
*** Notable fights & CMDRs
Some of the most remarkable fights in the history of Anti-Xeno combat have been accomplished with the chieftain.
These include, but are not limited to: A 1vs8 Hydra fight solo. A 1vs20 Medusa solo (of which 15 were taken down before a disconnect ended the fight early). An E-Rated, unenginereed fight against a Hydra. And handful of "100%" (as in, no-hit) Hydra battles. Further last but not least, a "snake eater" challenge run.
Of all the great chieftain pilots in the game, and there are MANY, CMDRs EuanAB, Muquuu, and Helimeli are possibly among the most-accomplished. Do watch some of their fights - they are really inspiring.
*** Chieftain limitations
Moving past solo combat, the limitations of the Chieftain become apparent once Anti Xeno Combat Zones, Thargoid Spire Sites, and Thargoid Titans are taken into consideration.
In anti-xeno combat zones, medium modified shard cannons are the go-to weapon. The chief is limited to mounting just three of said weapons and, even then, the third one has pretty poor convergence. In Anti Xeno Combat Zones, the Chieftain is thus outclassed by ships that are better platforms for modified shard cannons, such as its sibling the Challenger, the Krait Mark 2, and even the Python Mark 2 and Fer-de-Lance.
At thargoid spire sites, it's now really a choice between medium modified guardian plasma chargers and large anti-guardian zone resistant shards. The Chieftain's Class 6 power distributor cannot effectively feed the former, and having only 2 large hardpoints, the Chief does not make a good platform for the latter. At Thargoid Spire sites, the Chieftain is thus outclassed by ships like the Krait Mk2, both Pythons, and the Anaconda.
Heading to TitanSpace, the ammo limitations of gauss pose a significant limit to the effectiveness of ships that rely on that weapon. It'll work, but it'll work for a very short amount of time before you're out of ammo and facing a long trek back home to rearm. At Thargoid Titans sites, the Chieftain is thus outclassed by ships like the Krait Mk2, both Pythons, and even the controversial Mamba.
*** Ship showcase - let's hit a Hydra
No ship review would be complete without a showcase of course.
As the king of medium-ship agility, let us take it out for a no-hit run against a Hydra.
And see for yourself how it handles!
*** Conclusion
The AX Chieftain remains the best solo fighter in the game. It is also a fantastic ship to learn AX in.
With the community's shifted focus towards the Thargoid war however, with its Anti Xeno Combat Zones, Spire Sites, and Titans, I believe that it is fair to say that the Chieftain has lost its crown as "the" meta.
What has taken its place, you'll wonder? Stay tuned for the next episode of Bug Smashers to find out!
And if you enjoyed this episode and would like to see more in this series, please consider liking, subscribing, and hitting the notification bell below; it really helps me notice your support.
Glory, to Mankind!
CMDR Mechan, over and out.
