Vulture or Federal Assault Ship

Sylar N7

Sylar N7
Hello Commanders,

Sometime in the future, I'll be returning from my current exploration voyage. I've decided when I get back that I'd like to do Power Play and combat. Thanks to the amazing CMDR choices I have a very good idea for getting into power play.

Combat, however, is another story. I'll lead right off and say that I mostly suck at it. I've done most of the tutorials, and have fought off my fair share of pirates while mining...but I still feel very inadequate for combat. This has led to giving my choice of ship much thought and consideration. I've narrowed them down to two, and would like as much input and help from you all as possible.

Vulture
Between the two, there's no question that this is the more maneuverable, and that leads me to think it's the more forgiving. Good shields and armor, 2 Large Hardpoints, and great agility. However, I know this ship suffers from a lack of power, so good power management is a must. I think I can handle this in a single NPC fight, but add more into the mix and I'm not sure anymore.

F.A.S.
After doing some light research on this ship, it's the one I'm leaning towards. Still quite agile for such a large-massed ship, it has good armor and great weapon selection. Shield strength seems to be something of a weakness, however, and running top of the line stuff will also lead to power issues, but not as much as the Vulture. One plus... RAMMING!

For a combat noob such as myself, which should I lean towards? I'll be returning from a long and profitable trip and I have 40 million on hand, so credits shouldn't be an issue for highly equipping either.
 

Jaiotu

Jaiotu
I'm not a really great combat guy myself. I know people raved on and on about the Vulture when it was first released but I NEVER could get the hang of it. I prefer a ship where I can just fly when I get into combat and not worry about dropping chaff, constantly monitoring my shields so I know when to drop a shield cell or fiddle around with my power management options.

The Federal Assault Ship is, in this regard, a dream for me. I love going into combat in my FAS. I use two fixed beam lasers and two gimballed cannons. A couple of shield boosters and some hull reinforcements are enough to keep me going in a Hazardous RES until I'm just too tired to keep going. Yeah, this loadout probably blows if I were to have to face down another Commander but I'm not looking for PvP so, hopefully, that other CMDR will either just ignore me or join me in a wing.
 

Tempestfox3

Tempestfox3
I went into a strong signal source in my Vulture once and found a wing of 4 Anaconda's. Killed all 4. That's something my Python struggles to do and only survives that battle due to SCB spam. The Vulture on the other hand can effectively make it 4 1v1 fights by using one of the anaconda's to block the line of sight for the other anaconda's. That's how maneuverable the Vulture is.

Vulture is Combat Easy mode.
 

Dutchman141

Dutchman141
PilleTheKid said:
I think i would go for the Vulture, with 40 Mio. you can easy eguip her to the fullest sheesh.
The FAS is more expensive , check out here http://coriolis.io/outfit/federal_assault_ship/06A6A5A5D6A4D4C--1717----4a030202--.Iw18cQ==.Aw18cQ==
i just fitted some A-Grade Components and Shield Generator (nothing else, no armor) and it's allready 65 mio.
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This ^^^^

You can have a fully kitted Vulture for less the 20milion.
With the 40milion that you have you won't be able to fully upgrade a FAS, you'll need at least 50 to 60 milion, you need some extra credits if you want to be able to rebuy.

I love my FAS but I frequently take out my Vulture because it's just plain fun.
Only weak point the Vulture has is it's cockpit, it brakes rather quickly but I haven't had much troubles with it.
I would go for the Vulture if I were you and go bountyhunting, HazRes sites are perfect for that, 1milion in bounties in an hour is more common then rare, make sure you have a kill warrant scanner though.
 

tafkabb

T
Vulture, hands down. Don't worry about bulkheads or armour - pile on the shields and use that manoeuvrability. That's my fighting style though, you'll have to find your own. There are people who can stay all day in a CZ in a FAS. I couldn't do that
 

Deltateam70

Dangerously Fluffy
Deltateam70
BongoBaggins said:
Vulture, hands down. Don't worry about bulkheads or armour - pile on the shields and use that manoeuvrability. That's my fighting style though, you'll have to find your own. There are people who can stay all day in a CZ in a FAS. I couldn't do that
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I miss my Vulture... The das of when I was flying it were my favourite. Such a speedy, Agile ship and powerful too for its size.
 

Technoraze

Technoraze
Dutchman141 said:
This ^^^^

You can have a fully kitted Vulture for less the 20milion.
With the 40milion that you have you won't be able to fully upgrade a FAS, you'll need at least 50 to 60 milion, you need some extra credits if you want to be able to rebuy.

I love my FAS but I frequently take out my Vulture because it's just plain fun.
Only weak point the Vulture has is it's cockpit, it brakes rather quickly but I haven't had much troubles with it.
I would go for the Vulture if I were you and go bountyhunting, HazRes sites are perfect for that, 1milion in bounties in an hour is more common then rare, make sure you have a kill warrant scanner though.
Click to expand...

Agree with that totally.
A basic KWS will do too as you can get right up close pretty darn fast in a Vulture.
Just mind out that cockpit smashing, many a time I've smashed that, never lost a vulture though but came close.
Actually think I may buy another vulture now. 20 mil well spent.
Just wish I could park it in the back of the conda.
 
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Sylar N7

Sylar N7
The overwhelming favorite seems to be the Vulture...max it's shields and use the maneuverability to stay behind and outlast opponents. Weak cockpit though, and I've heard very little about the power management problems.

I think I would be taking some forgiving weapons, ideally Gimballed or even Turreted to start off to get a feel for the ship. Not two lasers though as that should hog a lot of power. Maybe one Gimbaled laser for shields and one cannon or PA?
 

Deltateam70

Dangerously Fluffy
Deltateam70
x Sylar321 x said:
The overwhelming favorite seems to be the Vulture...max it's shields and use the maneuverability to stay behind and outlast opponents. Weak cockpit though, and I've heard very little about the power management problems.

I think I would be taking some forgiving weapons, ideally Gimballed or even Turreted to start off to get a feel for the ship. Not two lasers though as that should hog a lot of power. Maybe one Gimbaled laser for shields and one cannon or PA?
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If you set up the Vulture right, two fixed or Gimb Pulse laser should do perfectly.
 

DbulHelix

D
I'm loving my Vulture... It does have power issues, but after the stuff I have rigged to shut down (cargo hatch, FSD interdictor, etc.) it's not a problem.

I have 3E Pulse. They aren't great, but you can fire pretty much consistently, and they cut through armour. The 3C Beams and Burst are great, but drain so fast it leaves you kinda vulnerable. The only other issue is when you get in trouble, she's not the fastest ship to escape. Not terrible, but requires spamming boost to make your getaway.

I'll get a Fed Drop Ship at some point, if I can ever find another rank progression mission...

Enjoy!
 

Sylar N7

Sylar N7
I'm thinking I'm gonna buy the Vulture first and try it out... I played the Supply Strike tutorial mission which gives you a Vulture to use and I loved how agile it was. So I'll use the Vulture to grind rank for the Feds, as down the line I'd still like to get the FAS or maybe even the Vette :)
 

Unforgivn420

U
I'm getting a FAS myself, but my Vulture is the pride of my fleet. I will take it into combat any day of week over any ship I have. Even my A rated combat Python. The Vulture is very nimble. I aim for power plant on anything Clipper size and up, and I have little to no problems killing anything. I have fully upgraded shields and the military bulk head. 2 A0 shield boosters, SCB, chaff. 2 pulse lasers. I can stay in battle until I just don't feel like fighting anymore. Which could be a while. The Vulture is a great ship and has made pretty much all of my money since I purchased it.
 

Himoura

Himoura
I have both ships, and am very close to buying a second vulture. The FAS is a great next step after the vulture. I can't emphasize enough how much I love the vulture for pvp and pve. Your power management is going to be an issue, but the ship would be OP if it didn’t have those issues. The vulture will make you think about your play style and fight style a lot. You will have to tailor your vulture to suit your style. I personally don’t like build guides and firmly believe that you should experiment with diff loadouts to fit you. With the vulture you will need to make a decision if you want high defense (shields), high DPS (hardpoints) or High maneuverability/evasion. You will have to learn to manage shields, heat, and pips. The difference in how good you manage all these will determine if you pay for a new vulture or not. Once you accept that fact that the vulture is best when built to do one thing best you will be very successful in it. In pve this isn’t as important as in pvp. If you’re a noob at combat I suggest you take on the vulture. It’s a forgiving ship that’s easy to use and difficult to master.
 

Sylar N7

Sylar N7
Himoura said:
I have both ships, and am very close to buying a second vulture. The FAS is a great next step after the vulture. I can't emphasize enough how much I love the vulture for pvp and pve. Your power management is going to be an issue, but the ship would be OP if it didn’t have those issues. The vulture will make you think about your play style and fight style a lot. You will have to tailor your vulture to suit your style. I personally don’t like build guides and firmly believe that you should experiment with diff loadouts to fit you. With the vulture you will need to make a decision if you want high defense (shields), high DPS (hardpoints) or High maneuverability/evasion. You will have to learn to manage shields, heat, and pips. The difference in how good you manage all these will determine if you pay for a new vulture or not. Once you accept that fact that the vulture is best when built to do one thing best you will be very successful in it. In pve this isn’t as important as in pvp. If you’re a noob at combat I suggest you take on the vulture. It’s a forgiving ship that’s easy to use and difficult to master.
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Thanks for the explanation!
 

goemon

goemon
if you want to "learn" combat, get an eagle, and go for RES/High RES. it's cheap to loose, and you'll learn fast everything you'll need for vulture or fas. especially to evade shielddamage, and how to get and stick behind your targets. i prefer the vulture, but both (fas, vulture) are great ships!
 

oflow

oflow
I have both ships and to me they are almost the same one is just bigger. The main advantage the vulture has is better shields, but the FAS has more armor, weapons and modules.

I wouldnt really say the Vulture is more manueverable, an FAS with A thrusters is blazing fast it can hit 406 on boost. Thats its biggest advantage is its speed since the other ships like Drop and Gunship have better hardpoint placement.

I think a Vulture is like an F-16, the FAS is an F-15, the FDS is an F-14 and the FGS is a Harrier.
 
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MrWhippy

M
As others have said, the ship you want is the Vulture, with two gimballed pulse lasers. Will set you back around 15 Mil for a decent spec.

The FAS is out of you price range, looking at 70mil+ for a decent one.

Imperial courier is another common option, cheaper than both, with massive shields. Hull is like paper though, so time to run when shields are about to drop!
 
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