Need combat advice.

Gwyther

Gwyther
Ok I am doing conflict zones in solo and I am nearly always getting my butt kicked every time.

I have a FDL which is not engineered at all, and I'd rather not sod about with engineers. From what I have read, the FDL is meant to be the best combat ship, but from what I have seen it is not, but i admit that i am not the best of pilots.

What i find really annoying is the class 4 gun is at the bottom and the ship handles like a T9 when not in the blue sweetspot.

Anyway, I'd like some advice on a build please.
I currently have this....
Huge hardpoint - 4a gimballed beam
2x 2d cannons
2f multi cannon
2b seeker missiles

I have 5 shield boosters and 1 point defense turret.

I have a 6a power plant, reactive surface bulkheads, 5a normal shields, 4d hull reinforcements x 2, and 4d module reinforcement.

Oh, my combat rank is competent. The ships spawning in the CZ's all seem to be expert, master or elite. And big ships too like Fed drop ships, corvettes, etc...

Thanks.
 
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Vedmo

Vedmo
I would suggest getting better at combat in resource extraction sites, kill missions, CNBs or whatever else and getting at least some weapons engineered before tackling CZs.

Your rank won’t matter in them, and the ships there are engineered and considerably tougher to take down.

FDL is no doubt a good combat ship, and if you want to stick with it that is the only way to get good at flying it, but for pve it Is far from the only good choice. I’d take a Chieftain over an FDL any day for CZs.

edit: If you aren’t already sub targeting power plants, I highly recommend doing so. My alt acct was clearing CZs last night (with some difficulty) in a mostly G3 Viper 4 with 2 medium MCs the only damage dealers once shields down, if I wasn’t popping PPs it was a real slog.
 
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Riverside

Riverside
FDL isn't easy to fly, it rewards smoothness, as you observe with your blue zone comment.

Fit 4x C2 frags & get in close, or 4x multi-cannons if you are a little further away. Gimbals are fine. Stick a C4 gimbaled multicannon in the C4 slot for low power high (ish) DPS unengineered.

I agree with the Krait MkII & Chieftain comments, they are much easier ships to fly with a bigger distributor it's easier to equip them too.


Strongly suggest you try engineering though, grade 1 is easy & gives significant improvements, grade 3 is plenty enough for PvE & grade 5 will make mincemeat of everything ;)
 

goemon

goemon
there is a really, really old, but inspiring guide on conflictzones - not adapted to new conflictzones, but, as said inspiring: https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threa...viving-a-combat-zone-in-a-starfighter.176767/

if you want to win conflictzones in an unengineered ship (i've recently done so in a cobra), the main knack is in how to help your friendlies and how to gang up with green buddies.

what you shouldn't do in an unengineered ship is starting to shoot the highest threat all alone. fly tactical.
 

Florenus

Florenus
I'm not really FDL expert, but I've noticed that without engineering it's not that great - lacks agility.
Maybe try some other ships, like Chieftain or FAS?
 

fu9ar

fu9ar
A fixed cannon is a poor man's PAC...

I fly an engineered Mamba in that role, but if I was running an FDL tonight without engineering it I would probably put gimbal burst lasers on the class 2 and a huge gimbaled multicannon. I have had fun with huge fixed cannons, but it is harder to use well.
 

goemon

goemon
Florenus said:
I'm not really FDL expert, but I've noticed that without engineering it's not that great - lacks agility.
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i have flown the FDL as well pre engineering. the trick is to fit it lightweight - than it behaves like a very potent fighter.

that said - it needs to be flown according to its strength. i got better in an lightweight fdl after flying an eagle and a courier in CZ extensively.
 

deckroid

deckroid
CZ is harder than REZ. Personally, I like to engineer weapons that don't need ammo specifically for hitting a CZ. Then again, having autofeed on all MCs is great fun. bakka bakka bakka.

I will second the lightweight options as well. They really nerfed the FDL more than once. As such, yes, it is a power house to be reckoned with, but it also is a brick compared to what it CAN be.
 

CMDR D Noize

CMDR D Noize
Deserted-crib3 said:
I have a FDL which is not engineered at all, and I'd rather not sod about with engineers.
Click to expand...
That would be a key part of where you're going wrong.

It is possible to do CZs in un-engineered ships if you stick with your allies or are experienced in combat, but CZs have long since been turned into playgrounds for the super engineered combat ships.

Even the NPCs in CZs have a fair amount of engineering on the ships, so they're mostly Hull & Shield tanks.

If I were you I'd get more combat experience in Res sites, play around with different weapons/amour/shields until you find the right combination for you and unlock a few engineers before trying to do CZs solo.
 

CMDR Sophie Joanne

C
here_it_comes said:
First, I'd recommend getting comfortable in HazRES before doing CZ.

Cannons are garbage, seekers are weak. You'd be better off with MCs/Rails for the Mediums. If you're not all that skilled at combat, an FDL isn't gonna be great. You'd be better off with a Krait II.
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Cannons are great! I fly an all-cannon Cobra and have taken out complete (albeit 'Low') CZs on my own...
 

Pug

Pug
Deserted-crib3 said:
Ok I am doing conflict zones in solo and I am nearly always getting my butt kicked every time.

I have a FDL which is not engineered at all, and I'd rather not sod about with engineers. From what I have read, the FDL is meant to be the best combat ship, but from what I have seen it is not, but i admit that i am not the best of pilots.

What i find really annoying is the class 4 gun is at the bottom and the ship handles like a T9 when not in the blue sweetspot.

Anyway, I'd like some advice on a build please.
I currently have this....
Huge hardpoint - 4a gimballed beam
2x 2d cannons
2f multi cannon
2b seeker missiles

I have 5 shield boosters and 1 point defense turret.

I have a 6a power plant, reactive surface bulkheads, 5a normal shields, 4d hull reinforcements x 2, and 4d module reinforcement.

Oh, my combat rank is competent. The ships spawning in the CZ's all seem to be expert, master or elite. And big ships too like Fed drop ships, corvettes, etc...

Thanks.
Click to expand...
Watch your map and join the gang/mob takedown and do not, I repeat Do Not take on an incoming Wing, I forget what they are called but they are all Elite, until your ready for it.
Alternatively pick the biggest baddest ship on your side (maybe Corvette) and support him, take out what he takes out and keep the small sheet off his back if you die you can blame him too :)

Watch your map
Pug
 

Trollymctrollerson

T
My suggestion is that you use a vulture with a burst laser and a MC. Its alot easier to fly and being a small ship, you can skate around without drawing much aggro. Get the hang of targeting modules and flying evasive maneuvers and get some engineers unlocked. Farseer in Deciat has basic powerplant and thruster mods, the dweller will help your PD and lasers. They are pretty easy and will make a huge difference for you.
 

Starshot_Jigawatts

S
Trollymctrollerson said:
My suggestion is that you use a vulture with a burst laser and a MC. Its alot easier to fly and being a small ship, you can skate around without drawing much aggro. Get the hang of targeting modules and flying evasive maneuvers and get some engineers unlocked. Farseer in Deciat has basic powerplant and thruster mods, the dweller will help your PD and lasers. They are pretty easy and will make a huge difference for you.
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He already has an FDL. Wouldn't the Chieftain be a better alternative for him? Vulture is way too hard to make combat viable without any engineering imo. But that's just my take on his situation.
 

Trollymctrollerson

T
Starshot_Jigawatts said:
He already has an FDL. Wouldn't the Chieftain be a better alternative for him? Vulture is way too hard to make combat viable without any engineering imo. But that's just my take on his situation.
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Cheiftain isn't a bad suggestion as long as he has plenty of cash to outfit and rebuy a bunch. Its not my first pick because without Engineering it has paper thin shields, worse than vulture and would draw more fire.
 

aRJay

aRJay
I would simplify your weapons fit so that you can fire everything with just two triggers without switching fire groups, swap the cannons and the missile for more gimballed multicannons.
Cannons do a lot of damage but they are slow firing and the projectile is slow as well which makes them hard to hit with.

Remember that not all ships suit everybody and the FdL has its quirks. the Mamba has a similar price and weapons fit except they are all on top of the hull so might suit you better but again it isn't necessarily easy to fly well.
 
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