Wouldn't a new AX ship have made sense?

[UberDuper]

Considering where fdev was taking the war, wouldn't it have made more sense revenue wise and player enjoyment wise to have released a new AX ship for ARX roughly 2 - 3 months ago? Instead of the medium cargo ship nobody asked for? Maybe before the exploration ship?

I'd love to see something like a chief or challenger mk2 with enough distro and hard points for 4x modshards. SCO enhanced. Maybe with an AX focused perk of core sensors that can scan thargoids? Maybe put that redrawn map of our understanding of thermodynamics in to an AX ship that can stay much cooler while firing guardian weapons?

I would have bought this.. like instantly. Especially with the timing of Cocijo and the invasion of Sol.

 

[Neilski]

Considering where fdev was taking the war, wouldn't it have made more sense revenue wise and player enjoyment wise to have released a new AX ship for ARX roughly 2 - 3 months ago? Instead of the medium cargo ship nobody asked for? Maybe before the exploration ship?

Yeah, quite possibly.
At the same time, if they had done that I'm pretty sure they'd have been severely flamed by quite a chunk of the player base, for milking the situation (or similar).

 

[Mako The Grey]

Considering where fdev was taking the war, wouldn't it have made more sense revenue wise and player enjoyment wise to have released a new AX ship for ARX roughly 2 - 3 months ago? Instead of the medium cargo ship nobody asked for? Maybe before the exploration ship?

I'm finding the Python MrkII to be one of the better AX ships...especially when working a Titan. Also seeing a few folks using the Mandalay for Thargoid work around settlements under attack. Their builds seem to work well

 

[aRJay]

But by the time a new ship could be tuned to be the meta would there be enough for it to do?

 

[UberDuper]

But by the time a new ship could be tuned to be the meta would there be enough for it to do?

If they'd released it ahead of the attack in shindez, I think so. Even if this Sol event concludes the war and the majority of thargoid related content, I would have been very happy to have done it in something new and interesting. People have figured out the AX builds for all of the new ships well before they were actually released. A ship that behaved a little differently with guardian modules/weapons would have been a fun curveball.

 

[UberDuper]

I'm finding the Python MrkII to be one of the better AX ships...especially when working a Titan. Also seeing a few folks using the Mandalay for Thargoid work around settlements under attack. Their builds seem to work well

Those ships work for AX but they are inferior to the old metas. The commanders flying them do so because they want to, not because they're well suited to the task. Which I totally respect.

 

[DemiserofD]

They kinda did. The Python Mark 2 is by far the best Titan bomber in the game, and the type 8 is easily the best Titan rescuer in the game. The Mandalay is the odd man out, but not everything needs to be about ax. That said, with its extremely decent agility and lovely hardpoints, it is definitely a viable contender for straight up ax combat.

 

[Mako The Grey]

Those ships work for AX but they are inferior to the old metas. The commanders flying them do so because they want to, not because they're well suited to the task. Which I totally respect.

Not really always the case...in terms of the Python Mrk II...for working a Titan...I find it superior to most/many of the "old metas". It's my "go to" now inside the titan cloud

 

[UberDuper]

Sorry I just don't think of titan bombing as ax combat so it sometimes escapes me that you could use literally anything as a titan bomber and be about as good as literally anything else at it. So, okay, yeah.. python mk2 great ax ship because.. I dunno you can point at a semi stationary object and fire guns.

 

[DemiserofD]

Sorry I just don't think of titan bombing as ax combat so it sometimes escapes me that you could use literally anything as a titan bomber and be about as good as literally anything else at it. So, okay, yeah.. python mk2 great ax ship because.. I dunno you can point at a semi stationary object and fire guns.

The Pymk2 is basically the only ship capable of soloing the titan core, so that alone sets it apart.

The big problem with AX combat is that existing ships basically max out the capabilities of the meta. If you wanted a new AX ship, it would need to do something different - which the Python2 does do, just not quite in a way that's super effective. Still, it's quite decent in certain cases.

 

[Mako The Grey]

Sorry I just don't think of titan bombing as ax combat so it sometimes escapes me that you could use literally anything as a titan bomber and be about as good as literally anything else at it.

Some engage in interceptor, scout, and hunter combat when engaged in Titan bombing as well . The new python is great in that role

 

[Koma Pahu]

Im not sure what you would do to a ship to improve over the Chieftain and Krait Mk2.

In universe, the Chief was built specifically to fight the Thargoids, and one-on-one there’s still nothing that matches it. And the Krait is more forgiving in CZs and brings more firepower.

The obvious “improvement” is a ship that can natively carry more than 4 AX weapons, but to make the most of that it’d have to be a large ship, and they’re never going to be manoeuvrable enough to knock the current metas off their perch.

I’m not opposed to the idea, it’s just the Chief and Krait are just such a good fit already.

 

[Hibiki54]

AX Ship?

You mean this?

 

[UberDuper]

Im not sure what you would do to a ship to improve over the Chieftain and Krait Mk2.

I mean.. I listed a couple ideas that would make a ship uniquely AX and not be game breaking. I'd be happy with a SCO enabled krait that could scan thargoids without having to add a xeno scanner.

 

[Mako The Grey]

I'd be happy with a SCO enabled krait that could scan thargoids without having to add a xeno scanner.

They effectively did that with the Python mrk II as it has 6 utility mounts vs the 4 of the Krait and the much better SCO performance of the Python Mrk II is another advantage that can help with AX combat. No perfect ship...I like that

 

[rootsrat]

Considering where fdev was taking the war, wouldn't it have made more sense revenue wise and player enjoyment wise to have released a new AX ship for ARX roughly 2 - 3 months ago? Instead of the medium cargo ship nobody asked for? Maybe before the exploration ship?

Personally - no. AX has been a focus for WAY too long now. Time to let it rest for a bit and focus on other activities. I won't derails this thread into "what other ships we need", but FWIW I think that's enough AX stuff for now.

 

[UberDuper]

Personally - no. AX has been a focus for WAY too long now. Time to let it rest for a bit and focus on other activities.

Like hauling cargo? That's a fun and entirely new activity.
How about a new ship for pvp? It'll be perfect for when power play rewards people for playing in ope.... err. Maybe people will use it for titans or something.
The mandalay is cool but a little premature. Give everyone a shiny new exploration ship and send them out to the black then OH CRAP SOL!

 

[UberDuper]

Anyway.. I think it was a missed opportunity for fdev. Could have been much better received than either of their "jumpstarts". Doesn't really matter now that, presumably, this major focus on AX seems to be coming to an end.

 

[rootsrat]

Like hauling cargo? That's a fun and entirely new activity.

Fun is subjective. What's fun for you is boring for someone else and vice versa. For me the fun in hauling cargo comes from figuring out the best trade routes or finding accidental gold mines, like a cheap medicine nearby an outbreak system for example.

How about a new ship for pvp? It'll be perfect for when power play rewards people for playing in ope.... err. Maybe people will use it for titans or something.
The mandalay is cool but a little premature. Give everyone a shiny new exploration ship and send them out to the black then OH CRAP SOL!

Not entirely sure what these statements have to do with my opinion that we absolutely should not get a new AX dedicated ships. The undeniable fact is that the AX was main focus for FDEV until Powerplay 2.0 was released.

Which is fine by me, big fan of all of the AX activities and I think the Thargoid War upgrade to 2.0 BGS/PP-style feature was a genius move. But - again - it's been dragging on for way too long now. Time to shift the focus.

 

[UberDuper]

Sorry, I might not have been clear. I'm saying it would have made sense for them to release an AX ship months ago.. not today. So we'd all be cruising around defending Sol in them right now.