Ship roles in Elite Dangerous?

[saremun]

Hi everyone!

since the release of this game i have been looking at the different types of ships and how they fit their roles but sadly FD failed at making the ships fit their roles and made no incentive for players to play certain ships..

For example the Type 9 is considered the top dedicated ship for hauling but sadly that is no the case anymore because now you can fly a Cutter which is much faster and better in many ways including the main function of hauling which is sad because that left Type 9 with nothing to show up for as a ship..

Other example is the ASP, you can fit it to be the second best exploration ship but you can also fit it to be a killer for other ships, i fought against an ASP with my Python(which should have been a better fighting ship) yet that ASP destroyed my ship(the asp was heavily armored with cannons) over and over, iam not the best pilot and that was a friend in an ASP but i know a problem with my ships when i see it...

Now we have a new Passenger ship the Beluga, and iam really worried that FD has done the same mistake yet again, i hope that the Beluga will be a Passenger ship only and not a multi purpose ship like most of the ships in ED, i hope that FD really tries to make a distinction between the different roles of the ships so that me as a player will have an incentive to play certain ships according to their functionality and not because they are the flavored of the month ships, Type 9 should have been the best Hauling ship...

 

[Hamakua]

I own nearly all the ships in the game - my favorites and the roles I have for them -

Python - the everything ship - essentially a dedicated quest ship that excels at in-bubble planetary excursions. It's primary focus isn't combat anymore but she can still go blow for blow with the best of them.

Asp Explorer - my first and favorite exploration ship. I've converted her into a "High g" - spare no expense exploration ship. Good shields, defensive armament and all the accoutrements for general exploration with no expense spared. DD5 A rated thrusters and a 2nd slot prismatic - jump range is tertiary. She is built to go where no other exploration ship wants to go.

Anaconda - This is my alternate explorer - built for extreme long range jumps and specialized for rim and polar exploration - custom tuned with all thoughts on long jumps and little else. A tub to fly but with a near 60ly jump range she too can go where few others can.

Corvette Miner - Spare no expense dedicated miner. Why, because I love it? No - because I want to spend as little time doing it when I absolutely need to for whatever reason. 384 tons of space - I'm never mining for that long. Engy 5 Prismatic top slot and resist boosters all around means nothing can kill it. 2 huge beam lasers and mining lasers in the rest of the slots.

Corvette PvE BH/farmer - God roll Overcharged multicannons in the top 3 slots - reduced distrib draw beams in the lower 4 - engy 5 all around.

Trade Cutter - your cookie cutter ~700ton hauler. Not much to say.

iEagle 856m/s - trying to tie or beat the record at 866. Needs more work - but you want fast? This is fast - and fun - it's my side project toy.

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Those are my main ships I fly the most. I also have T-9's for holding tier 8 prismatics, other ships to hold weapons, etc. etc. Even have a specialized adder for running to Palin to roll on the Enhanced 3 thruster.

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There are roles for ships, and further - with engineers - if you like a particular ship you can really use the engy's to soften the hard corners and even mould it a bit into the role you wish it would fill. I have as much fun flying the Adder and the ieagle (more fun most of the time) as I do the Python or the Corvette.

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I want to get an FDL but I have a personal rule in the game - if a discount is available, I will only get that ship using it. This means I've been working on my CQC rank to get the permit for 20% off. small personal challenge.

---

Other favorites, original Eagle, iCourier, T-9 believe it or not. DD5 E-thruster hauler and sidewinder, I'm interested in getting a DBS too. All different goals.

 

[h347h]

Hi everyone!

since the release of this game i have been looking at the different types of ships and how they fit their roles but sadly FD failed at making the ships fit their roles and made no incentive for players to play certain ships..

For example the Type 9 is considered the top dedicated ship for hauling but sadly that is no the case anymore because now you can fly a Cutter which is much faster and better in many ways including the main function of hauling which is sad because that left Type 9 with nothing to show up for as a ship..

Other example is the ASP, you can fit it to be the second best exploration ship but you can also fit it to be a killer for other ships, i fought against an ASP with my Python(which should have been a better fighting ship) yet that ASP destroyed my ship(the asp was heavily armored with cannons) over and over, iam not the best pilot and that was a friend in an ASP but i know a problem with my ships when i see it...

Now we have a new Passenger ship the Beluga, and iam really worried that FD has done the same mistake yet again, i hope that the Beluga will be a Passenger ship only and not a multi purpose ship like most of the ships in ED, i hope that FD really tries to make a distinction between the different roles of the ships so that me as a player will have an incentive to play certain ships according to their functionality and not because they are the flavored of the month ships, Type 9 should have been the best Hauling ship...

You realize the Type-9 is only a stepping stone ship towards the larger trading ships coming later in this season right?

 

[Cynaqq]

You realize the Type-9 is only a stepping stone ship towards the larger trading ships coming later in this season right?

Not to mention the difference in the total grind difference between a cutter and a T9.

T9 is chump change compared to a cutter and it doesn't require top faction ranking.

 

[saremun]

You realize the Type-9 is only a stepping stone ship towards the larger trading ships coming later in this season right?

This was the case for how long time now? and they didn't say anything about that.

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Not to mention the difference in the total grind difference between a cutter and a T9.

T9 is chump change compared to a cutter and it doesn't require top faction ranking.

Yet the Cutter can haul much more which is absurd besides what happens when you own the Cutter?, you won't even look at the T9 anymore.

 

[StiTch]

Edited the colour...to make it white?

Tbh, is it more important the ships all fit their pre-assigned roles and have no variance, or that the ED community experiments with what the ships are actually best that and emergent gameplay wins the day?

And now following 2.1 the floor is really being opened up in terms of ships breaking the pre-assigned role boundaries. I use an iClipper for exploring and know people using combat ships to mine engineer resources. To me? This can only be a good thing.

I do think the T9 should be a better hauling ship. But what's the price point of it? And have you seen the price point on a complete trade cutter compared?

To answer your concern about our new ship...it might be justified. But the thing you are always going to find is that 90% of CMDRs will use the "best" ship for the job and the other 10% go "to hell with this" and use random ships of their preferences. Unless it's a better multirole than the Asp or Python, it won't be widely used as a multirole. But it will be the best passenger transport thanks to the luxury passenger accommodation, so will be used for that, and a small group of others will take it vanilla or RNGineered to do missions and I imagine will end up being used in the odd exploring ship for dem screenshots.

TL;DR nothing wrong with ships not conforming to society's expectations of them

 

[h347h]

This was the case for how long time now? and they didn't say anything about that.

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Yet the Cutter can haul much more which is absurd besides what happens when you own the Cutter?, you won't even look at the T9 anymore.

Yeah but the Cutter is a much larger ship made to trade too. It would be like arguing that the Type-6 needs to be better because you just got a Type-7. It is a STEPING STONE ship, it isn't the end game trading ship never has been anyways that was always the Anaconda.

 

[saremun]

I own nearly all the ships in the game - my favorites and the roles I have for them -

Python - the everything ship - essentially a dedicated quest ship that excels at in-bubble planetary excursions. It's primary focus isn't combat anymore but she can still go blow for blow with the best of them.

Asp Explorer - my first and favorite exploration ship. I've converted her into a "High g" - spare no expense exploration ship. Good shields, defensive armament and all the accoutrements for general exploration with no expense spared. DD5 A rated thrusters and a 2nd slot prismatic - jump range is tertiary. She is built to go where no other exploration ship wants to go.

Anaconda - This is my alternate explorer - built for extreme long range jumps and specialized for rim and polar exploration - custom tuned with all thoughts on long jumps and little else. A tub to fly but with a near 60ly jump range she too can go where few others can.

Corvette Miner - Spare no expense dedicated miner. Why, because I love it? No - because I want to spend as little time doing it when I absolutely need to for whatever reason. 384 tons of space - I'm never mining for that long. Engy 5 Prismatic top slot and resist boosters all around means nothing can kill it. 2 huge beam lasers and mining lasers in the rest of the slots.

Corvette PvE BH/farmer - God roll Overcharged multicannons in the top 3 slots - reduced distrib draw beams in the lower 4 - engy 5 all around.

Trade Cutter - your cookie cutter ~700ton hauler. Not much to say.

iEagle 856m/s - trying to tie or beat the record at 866. Needs more work - but you want fast? This is fast - and fun - it's my side project toy.

---

Those are my main ships I fly the most. I also have T-9's for holding tier 8 prismatics, other ships to hold weapons, etc. etc. Even have a specialized adder for running to Palin to roll on the Enhanced 3 thruster.

---

There are roles for ships, and further - with engineers - if you like a particular ship you can really use the engy's to soften the hard corners and even mould it a bit into the role you wish it would fill. I have as much fun flying the Adder and the ieagle (more fun most of the time) as I do the Python or the Corvette.

---

I want to get an FDL but I have a personal rule in the game - if a discount is available, I will only get that ship using it. This means I've been working on my CQC rank to get the permit for 20% off. small personal challenge.

---

Other favorites, original Eagle, iCourier, T-9 believe it or not. DD5 E-thruster hauler and sidewinder, I'm interested in getting a DBS too. All different goals.

That is exactly what iam talking about, a Corvette is a fighting machine so it should not be a mining one too, what left to the Type 9 and future industrial ships if you can use the top ship in the game to mine Asteroids?

 

[goemon]

i personally like that aspect of ED, which got even stronger with engineers.

using the wrong ship for the right job is a lot of fun.

with engineers, you can trim your DBE to be a ship which is fun to fly in combat - it won't beat a dedicated fighter maxed out for the same, though.

i have taken eagles, couriers, and a DBS for exploration.

i have build a vulture for mission-running, including 32T of cargo and okayish jumprange.
i have used an orca for pve piracy and mining.

passenger ships, e.g. beluga and orca (and dolphin?) will be the ships that can fit luxury cabins which you need to take on VIP transports.

i do hope, that some other ships will be able to fit them as well ... a clipper would make sense lorewise, but i wouldn't mind building a luxury cab out of an FDL, or an exploration-passenger ship out of an anaconda (and AspE?), to get some tourists to betelgeuze...

 

[Cynaqq]

This was the case for how long time now? and they didn't say anything about that.

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Yet the Cutter can haul much more which is absurd besides what happens when you own the Cutter?, you won't even look at the T9 anymore.

A T9 is still more efficient if you compare the risk vs reward.

T9 will make it's rebuy in profits many times over until you make even one rebuy back with the cutter.

A T9 has it's place in the game and a cutter doesn't make it obsolete, unless you convince yourself it does.

 

[saremun]

Yeah but the Cutter is a much larger ship made to trade too. It would be like arguing that the Type-6 needs to be better because you just got a Type-7. It is a STEPING STONE ship, it isn't the end game trading ship never has been anyways that was always the Anaconda.

Exactly!, you can't fight and trade with the Type 7, that ship would be instant death of you fly it in combat.

 

[Hamakua]

That is exactly what iam talking about, a Corvette is a fighting machine so it should not be a mining one too, what left to the Type 9 and future industrial ships if you can use the top ship in the game to mine Asteroids?

The corvette - as are all this ships - is a tool, a platform, a blank slate. Because we have ship customization in the game, and pretty extensive ship customization, all ships can nearly do all jobs - and most of them can be finagled to do the job respectably. The purpose of a corvette miner is its weapon distributor which is currently the highest available in the game (tied with anaconda). This allows the maximum amount of mining lasers to be fired for the longest amount of time.

 

[Mohrgan]

Each ship is what it is. There is/was no indication that the T-9 was to be the best trade ship. It is just a T-9. Each ship is judged by it's design and cost, not by some role based hierarchy.

 

[Cmdr Chaos]

Ship role balance for me is something I take my hat off to for FDev. Every ship has a character, it's quite something to have pulled off.
A T9 costs considerably less than a Cutter though! A shorter range or even in system bulk hauler by it's designers intent it seems. Not for potentially hauling many hundreds of tons of slaves through an Anarchy system.
The only pebble in my shoe in the entire range is I'd love the DBX to have a size one internal added so you can run: Scoop, Shield, AFM, Planetary lander, both scanners. It's a very very small pebble mind you, might just be grit...

 

[saremun]

A T9 is still more efficient if you compare the risk vs reward.

T9 will make it's rebuy in profits many times over until you make even one rebuy back with the cutter.

A T9 has it's place in the game and a cutter doesn't make it obsolete, unless you convince yourself it does.

First, there is nothing called Risk and Reward in this game, i have yet to see a situation where your actions brings you more profit because its riskier, like the fact that i reached Elite in Trading only my smuggling Slaves all day long and not a single time when there was a danger to my ship or mission, the same thing goes for combat related and exploration, lost only a single ship once a Vulture because i lost my canopy.

in fact that is something which the game lacks very much which is Risk and Reward, you can effect the galaxy the same way as anyone else while playing Solo or Private and others risk it in Open yet the results are the exact same...

Besides how is T9 has its place in game?, you can trade in other ships like the Anaconda for much faster, longer jump range and the difference in hauling capability isn't much and get enough money to buy a Cutter..

 

[kalniel]

I could be wrong, but it sounds like you're comparing ships as if you have access to all of them straight away. For mere mortals there's a very slow progression as we enjoy ourselves roleplaying our commanders' lives which can put one ship in reach while another, superior, ship is several years away from being an option. Should you remove the stepping stone because it may be obselete one day? Not if you want players to enjoy the game rather than having to just concentrate on making credits as quickly as possible.

 

[saremun]

i personally like that aspect of ED, which got even stronger with engineers.


passenger ships, e.g. beluga and orca (and dolphin?) will be the ships that can fit luxury cabins which you need to take on VIP transports.

i do hope, that some other ships will be able to fit them as well ... a clipper would make sense lorewise, but i wouldn't mind building a luxury cab out of an FDL, or an exploration-passenger ship out of an anaconda (and AspE?), to get some tourists to betelgeuze...

Dude that is the main problem, a Beluga looks like a luxury ship with the look to indicate that it is a tourist ships and passenger ship but to tell me that FDL can fit the same role...it doesn't have the look or the design to do so..that is the problem iam talking about, what is the point of having Passenger ships if you can have other ships doing the same thing and may be better? what is the dame point of even picking names to classify those ships?

 

[Gully Foyle]

In the right hands any ship can do any role . . .

I could be wrong, but it sounds like you're comparing ships as if you have access to all of them straight away. For mere mortals there's a very slow progression as we enjoy ourselves roleplaying our commanders' lives which can put one ship in reach while another, superior, ship is several years away from being an option. Should you remove the stepping stone because it may be obsolete one day? Not if you want players to enjoy the game rather than having to just concentrate on making credits as quickly as possible.

You are far from wrong. Enjoy beats grind any day.

 

[StiTch]

In the right hands any ship can do any role . . .

With a couple of common sense exceptions - I am not taking a FDL to start trading no matter how many RNGineer mods - but otherwise this is pretty much the consensus, and a good one at that.

You are far from wrong. Enjoy beats grind any day.

Well yes. But it doesn't negate the fact the stepping stone should not be removed. We overuse grind a bit here, but I would indeed say that the naval ranking is bordering on it.

What needs to happen is a re-write so the naval ranking system is not necessarily easier, but more engaging. Don't remove the "grind", but the "perfect" level for any progression of this kind is that the grind and the fun are not mutually exclusive. Anyone dealing with the hell levels on early EQ should know what I mean. I do know FD have somewhere accepted the need for change is present, but they have a lot on their plates in terms of development.

 

[saremun]

I could be wrong, but it sounds like you're comparing ships as if you have access to all of them straight away. For mere mortals there's a very slow progression as we enjoy ourselves roleplaying our commanders' lives which can put one ship in reach while another, superior, ship is several years away from being an option. Should you remove the stepping stone because it may be obselete one day? Not if you want players to enjoy the game rather than having to just concentrate on making credits as quickly as possible.

Well, that seems to be the 90 if not 95% of this game, Imagine..imagine...

But i also know that ships are designed and designated according to their functionality, saying an FDL can have luxury passenger seats is like saying F16 should be used to move VIPs around, saying a Beluga or an Orca is used to hauling is like using a yacht to move cargo and even better than cargo hauling ships, what is the point of even naming them, why don't we call them ship 1, 2 ,3 etc...