What's your "Eleanor"?

[Pville_Piper]

Alas, that falls into the category of "always something better" for me.

For me it isn't about finding something better, she is very manueverable on her thrusters as you swing around the rocks to scoop and can get in between them easier than most and has she great visibility. With 72 tons of cargo I can fill her in about an hour and make around 20 million... She's just a blast to fly that way and it challenges your piloting skills. After all, flying ships is what this game does and flying that way amps up the fun!

S'funny how people's opinions change.

A lot of that has to do with better ships being avaliable and the absolute abundance of credits being available.

The T-6 is fun ship, but virtually useless due to the 2 small hard points. She was fast back in the and I ran one for a while and loved her handling.

The Annie was my go to hauler and mining ship back when I was working up the Fed ranks to get the Vette... I hated mining in her and the T-9 felt so defenseless so the Annie was my big ship until I got the Vette. The T-10 took over laser mining and I tried the Annie out recently but I just hate the way she handles. I have no use for her.

A lot of ships have been obsoleted by the Kraits, the Phantom is a great daily mission runner /light combat ship and the MK 2 is a great mission runner/combat ship. But these roles have been superseded by the Mandy and Corsair for me.

I don't know why, but I can't bear to part with my Diamondbacks, they have served so faithfully for so long...

I still have the FAS... She's still my favorite combat ship. I love the way she flies. If she just had one more size 3 hardpoint...

 

[shadowhand]

I want to like the Anaconda, but I can't stand how it handles. Even with G5 Dirty Drives, it's a chore to fly.

I can't even look at one without unconsciously lining up my cross hairs for a kill shot at the power plant. I've built so many loadouts for my Anaconda, only to give up and park it for another few years. At least it's great for storing modules in.

 

[Greasetrap42]

For me its the Chieftain.

• I really like it. Its awesome.
• It looks amazing.
• I like how it handles.
• Overall its fantastic. I think my favorite ship.

Except:
By the time I include Shields and Fuel Scoop, I only have remaining room for only one more decent module. FSD Booster, SRV Hangar, or a cargo rack.
I can make it dedicated for fighting (no fuel scoop, FSD booster, SRV, or cargo. But I don't do much pure combat. I did use it against the Thargoids.

I like it so much I built three dedicated purpose Chieftains. And still have them, but don't use them.

• AX Fighter
• Combat Fighter
• Med Range Exploration & Exobio

 

[Starlanced]

The Federal Brickships, all 3 of them. On paper they look good but they never fly that well, the FAS is the best of the 3 but still meh, plus they look like bricks.

 

[Pville_Piper]

The Asp scout gets a mention here and there, and for good reason. Back before engineering I ran one for a while, it's fun ship to fly, very manuverable. But... It's so dog cuss slow! It takes forever to get anywhere in it. Flying over the surface of the planets war torture. If they kept the handling and made it faster than the AspX, I would have used it for a daily mission runner.

The corvevette gets a lot of mentions... I have to agree. But I used one as an armed trader and prefer it over the Cutter and T-9/10 for that role.

I want to love the Cutter, it has better super cruise handling than the T-9, but landing at Port is totally off putting... I refuse to use a docking computer. But it has its uses.

And of course the alliance ships are useless to me, a case of too many small hard points and too much drift in the handling department.

I like the T-10, it's a good miner, the handling is a touch better than the T-9, it's a shame that it has so much less cargo space than the T-9. But I still use it.

 

[[VR] DDM_Reaper20]

Anaconda. For fighting, I much prefer either of my corvette murderboats, or the Python Mk II, or the Corsair, or my FDLs... For exploration, I have a Lakon, for trading, T8 and T9 (don't have the Cutter -- may not get one. Jury's still out.)

I get that many rave about the Ana, but I do a different kind of raving.

 

[Kamiyoda]

Anaconda. For fighting, I much prefer either of my corvette murderboats, or the Python Mk II, or the Corsair, or my FDLs... For exploration, I have a Lakon, for trading, T8 and T9 (don't have the Cutter -- may not get one. Jury's still out.)

I get that many rave about the Ana, but I do a different kind of raving.

Crab Rave?

We need more ships with aquatic names

 

[the100thmonkey]

With regard to "something you just can't find a use for," this is now pretty much any non-SCO-native small ship.

They're all completely outclassed by the Cobra Mk. V. This is a real shame, as I absolutely love flying small ships. My favourites are the Viper Mk. III and the Diamondback Scout, but these ships have been completely eclipsed for all roles by the new Cobra.

 

[Stealthie]

For me it isn't about finding something better, she is very manueverable on her thrusters as you swing around the rocks to scoop and can get in between them easier than most and has she great visibility. With 72 tons of cargo I can fill her in about an hour and make around 20 million... She's just a blast to fly that way and it challenges your piloting skills. After all, flying ships is what this game does and flying that way amps up the fun!

Fair enough.

Personally, I bought a Cobra mk3 as soon as I could afford one, flew that for about 3 months (this was back in the days when data delivery missions paid a couple of hundred credits) and then I bought my first AspX.
At that time, I'd fly the AspX to "earn the big bucks" for a few missions but I couldn't really afford to repair it after it got damaged so I'd go back to flying the Cobra for a week, until I could afford to repair the AspX and, if I was lucky, buy a new module for it.
Once I consolidated myself into a position where I could afford to fly/upgrade an AspX I kind of didn't "move on" for a couple of years.
I used AspXs for everything - trading, mining, exploration (duh!), running missions and combat.

Because of that, by the time I was willing to buy other ships, I already knew exactly what I could do with an AspX so I suppose I "missed out" on finding jobs for a bunch of alternative ships.

I guess a lot of it is simply what you're comfortable with.
For example, I really, really, like my Corvette but I originally only bought it because I was already using an Annie as a large multirole and a Cutter as a cargo ship so, when I decided to build a large combat ship, the Corvette was the only possible choice that didn't already have another job.
A decade or so later, I'm quite happy exploding stuff in my Annie(s) or Cutter but I'm only really comfortable doing CZs etc in the Corvette... or my shiny new P2.

I like the T-10, it's a good miner, the handling is a touch better than the T-9, it's a shame that it has so much less cargo space than the T-9. But I still use it.

I said, a while back, that I'd had enough of limpets smashing into my T10s hull so I replaced it with another Corvette.
Used the 'vette for mining for a couple of months and, honestly, it was better than the T10 in almost every way but... it just wasn't the same.
Didn't feel "right" mining in a 'vette and it didn't give me the same "lumbering industrial machine" vibe, so I sold the 'vette and went back to mining in my T10.
I did find matching paintjobs for all my mining ships (the "salvage" paint) so applying those felt like an improvement.

 

[Pville_Piper]

The Federal Brickships, all 3 of them. On paper they look good but they never fly that well, the FAS is the best of the 3 but still meh, plus they look like bricks.

As a pure combat ship the FAS was completely outclassed when they introduced the FDL. About that time they also increased module damage, introduced module reinforcements which reducef the amount of compartments that could have been used for hull reinforcements and allowed shield tanking to render hull tanking obsolete.

I much prefer the handling of the FAS over most ships. It's drift is minor and controllable, it accelerates quickly without boost and the nose points very quickly without using FA off. It's handling is not overly sensitive like some ships.

The FGS is a fun ship, a great (and probably the first) meme ship with all multi cannons. I had a blast with one fitted out with all dumbfires... It would vaporize anything you hit. But it was too slow to be practicable.

The FDS actually makes a decent miner and I used it for that until I bought the Python.

In reality, all the Federal ships are obsolete, the power creep and loss of hull tanking killed them.

I used the FAS for AX work fighting hunters. It was a better fighter than the Krait MKII even though it had one less large hard point. It would win a multiple Glaive encounter in much better shape and more handily than the Krait MKII. The Krait MKII won out in the end due to a better internal layout.

Sadly, a lot of niche ships are just wasted in this game and have been devastated by the power creep. While I enjoy the new ships, it's shame to see the older ones fall by the wayside.

 

[Commander Biscuit]

Keelback as well. Probably don't need to elaborate.

Second choice is probably an unpopular one, but I can't make the Krait Phantom work. I dislike it as an exploration ship, and there are better options for any kind of combat, also the boost sound annoys me somehow.

 

[Neilski]

Funnily enough I get on OK with my Anacondas (2 of 'em - a low-skill-requirement combat ship and an explorer)

For me, the ship I dropped like a hot potato after I discovered a major flaw was the AspX (despite it being the darling of many players, both then and now). I bought it many years ago and tried to do some combat in it. It was just dire, and after a while I realised that it was because unlike (say) the Vulture, the "pip speed" (the amount of variation of handling with number of ENG pips) for the AspX was huge, totally crippling the handling when I diverted pips from ENG to other systems.

However, FD adjusted the game at some point (again, years ago) so now all ships have roll and yaw rates which don't change with pips at all, and pitch rates which vary more modestly (maybe even by the same factor for all ships?). So... maybe I should blow the dust off the AspX and play with it again.

Fun fact: since the handling calculations in the Coriolis "profiles" tab were never updated, you can demonstrate the old handling for yourself by opening the AspX and the Vulture. (I think the calculations were accurate before FD updated the handling behaviour, but Coriolis has had long periods of semi-neglect over the years, so who knows. NB: I believe EDSY calculates the current behaviour correctly.)
You will see that the pitch (and roll/yaw) rates for the AspX vary by more than a factor of 2 (!!) as you go from 0 to 4 ENG pips. For the Vulture, the total variation is around 10%...

 

[Kalizandra]

For me the Chieftain, just too damn twitchy, so prone to over compensation as I adjust my vector. Never could get the hang of it
.
A very close second is, (and please don't shout at me!), the Manderley. Its range and handling in supercruise are ace, but in terms of a bubble taxi I prefer the Cobra Mk5, (its just more fun to fly.) For pure exploration, the Mandy is OK, but I hate the way it handles in atmosphere and its view is terribad for exobio so my Manderley hardly sees the light of day. Poor thing is gathering dust at the back of the FC's hanger

On a side note: love my Anaconda, she functions as a really forgiving Rail gun platform, the sluggishness is a virtue in this regard!

 

[Pville_Piper]

Second choice is probably an unpopular one, but I can't make the Krait Phantom work. I dislike it as an exploration ship, and there are better options for any kind of combat, also the boost sound annoys me somehow.

I had the same issue, but its jump range, decent internals and weapons made it a versital daily mission runner. I used it in that role until the Mandy came along.

For me, the ship I dropped like a hot potato after I discovered a major flaw was the AspX (despite it being the darling of many players, both then and now).

It's another good shp, but like the Python, it just never clicked for me.

You will see that the pitch (and roll/yaw) rates for the AspX vary by more than a factor of 2 (!!) as you go from 0 to 4 ENG pips. For the Vulture, the total variation is around 10%...

The Vulture was the ship that was saved by engineering. Almost worthless before that with its heat issues. Tried to use one as a daily mission runner back in the day, but.... Yeah.

 

[Kalizandra]

Also I have to add the Corsair as well. I must admit to a wee bit of buyers remorse, in that I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with her now I have bought her. (Should have given more thought to the purchase which is on me!)
She doesn't give me a thrill in combat as her turns are so sluggish, and when I think of any muti role use I could have put her too, I can immediately think of another ship to use that is simply more fun to fly.
Might end up sitting in the FC like the Mandy alas.
Surely this is the last of the new medium ships this year? Please praise Braben we get a large next!

 

[Vardaugas]

I tried the Cutter on several occasions and couldn't warm up to it. It's just such a drag. For what it costs, it wasn't fun. I prefer the T-9 for trading, the Corvette for fighting (or Chieftain or Vulture), the T-8 for mining (or Anaconda) and the Viper IV for exploration. The Cutter may be more effective on paper in some or more of these roles, but I just don't like to fly it.

 

[Iron Body]

For me, the Corvette. Bought one, engineered it 99%, gave it a nice name - HMS Compass Rose, pennant number K49, and then never use it.
I have 4 anacondas instead. Battle Conda, Long Range Passenger Conda, Explorer Conda and Armed Trader Conda.

 

[Pville_Piper]

Also I have to add the Corsair as well. I must admit to a wee bit of buyers remorse, in that I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with her now I have bought her. (Should have given more thought to the purchase which is on me!)
She doesn't give me a thrill in combat as her turns are so sluggish, and when I think of any muti role use I could have put her too, I can immediately think of another ship to use that is simply more fun to fly.
Might end up sitting in the FC like the Mandy alas.
Surely this is the last of the new medium ships this year? Please praise Braben we get a large next!

She initially disappointed me as well but she works best if you use FA off, set the keybind to hold rather than toggle... Takes a bit of getting use to, but it makes the ship much better in combat. I still prefer others, but, using FA off and a single size 2 rail in the bottom slot is making me a better pilot.

 

[Stealthie]

Second choice is probably an unpopular one, but I can't make the Krait Phantom work. I dislike it as an exploration ship, and there are better options for any kind of combat, also the boost sound annoys me somehow.

S'funny, I had a similar thing with the Phantom when I first got one.

At the time I was using an AspX as an exploration ship and, on paper, the Phantom should have performed similarly, but with the benefit of bigger slots, better defences and... just cooler.
The Phantom I built was a bit sketchy, though.
I had to manually enable/disable modules to avoid power shortages, it didn't fly very well with undersized thrusters and it had a habit of falling out of the sky (again, probably related to power issues) when I recalled it to a planet's surface.

I was about ready to give up on it when I had the bright idea of building "scout" ships.
These would be, basically, multirole ships with the emphasis on light weight and jump-range, but not to the point where the ship's functionality was limited.

That allowed me to bung a decent PD into my Phantom, put some useful weapons on it, and add some other bits and it all just fell into place.
In the end, the ship was much more capable than I expected, to the point where even though the Mandalay I replaced it with is more capable, I still miss the Phantom.

Coriolis EDCD Edition

A ship builder, outfitting and comparison tool for Elite Dangerous

s.orbis.zone

 

[HRDiagram]

I was tempted to say Anaconda, as I see it exactly like all the others who have mentioned it, but it would be unfair, because I've never owned one (and never will), even though I have 28 paintjobs for it (all rewards, drops, gifts, etc. ).

I will say Asp Scout, instead, because I own a couple, and I really want to love it, but it always falls flat, no matter what.
The only thing I really do with it is to fly it in Open, hoping that whoever sees me will tell one day: "Once I saw someone flying an Asp Scout! I swear!"