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[Dreams-Visions]

Would a cobra mk4 make for a good general purpose/bounty hunting ship? I have a loaded sodewinder and an adder for trading/mining.

I bought an eagle for combat and hated it. It was agile but got destroyed so quickly.

The Cobra is the gold-standard. Yes, it is the best ship under $3 million for general purpose usage. Great combat, good cargo capacity, top-tier speed. It's a ship you don't move out of until you have millions to spend on multiple ships.

Huh I don't have much experience with the game at all but from the research I did on reddit and youtube, I find that the viper mk3 is actually pretty tough, one of the tougher fighters out there... you have to jimmy your power management around but I currently have:

weave shield
shield booster
hull reinforcement (and a sturdy one too)

and I still get 10 ly jumps and running 2 X beam lasers (gimballed) and
2 X multicannon (g)

in fact I have even seen some youtube posters say go for 2 shield boosters or you could even dump the cargo rack and go 2X hull reinforcments?

the reason for the hull reinforcements is I don't find you lose much booster speed, a couple of km/s and you can win ramming battles and outlast most other fighters in a prolonged fight. you don't need to worry much about the first say 20% of your hull that way.

but the ramming takes the cake I have survived ramming a type 6 heavy before.

the eagle shouldn't stand a chance in my experience, and a cobra is only faster?

Hello again good sir.

In my opinion, the Viper is a very survivable ship, but you have to fly it well. Most videos you'll find on youtube are people doing gimmicky builds like shieldless silent running builds which got nerfed a bit. You won't find anyone flying Vipers in PvP scenarios unless they're just looking to have fun. As mentioned, the strength of the Viper is its ability to avoid being hit. It is especially strong against ships that are running fixed weaponry because its small profile and 400+ boost make it damn near impossible to hit.

I suppose the point here is that its ability to take a punch does not come from its strong shields. Consider: it's max shielding with 2x A-grade boosters is 250MJ. That's about 11 seconds of sustained fire from a single C3 gimbaled beam laser...which would be incredibly effective against a "no chaff" build because you have no countermeasures to break the gimbal lock. Not including maybe another 300MJ if you get all of your shield bank charges off just before your shields drop.

Now let me offer a caveat. If you build your Viper like this:

https://coriolis.io/outfit/viper/0p5t5F5l8dasdf2272724240406B45a012j.Iw1+kA==.CwBgjKJWNgzHMAmEwg==

If you go with a heavy kinetic loadout you can set pips to 4-0-2 (4 in systems, 2 in weapons) and fire forever. You may be aware (or not) but the more pips you have in Systems, the stronger your shields are. 4 pips to shields = 150% shield strength. More detailed:

• 1 pip to shields allows the sheilds to absorb around 1% more damage.
• 2 pips to sheilds allows the sheilds to absorb around 8% more damage.
• 3 pips to sheilds allows the sheilds to absorb around 37% more damage.
• 4 pips to sheilds allows the sheilds to absorb around 150% more damage.

Thus the 194MJ shield in the link above becomes a 485MJ shield (2.5x) shield. That is formidable. However, it is still extremely vulnerable to gimbaled weaponry. It would still take a ship with 2x C3 beams less than 15 seconds to remove your shields.

I would expect this build remains viable against NPCs, but at the cost of constantly having to go to port to reload. You'll find this to be very undesirable when RES bounty hunting. When you're in a good instance, the last thing you want to have to do is leave it.

That being said, these "4 pips to systems 100% of the time" is pretty much limited to multicannon (and maybe cannon) builds. Everything else (especially lasers) require too much energy to not have max pips to weapons (unless you're doing Engineers efficient modding). These builds used to be extremely popular on Fer-de-lances, which used to do it like this

https://coriolis.io/outfit/fer_de_l...4040m4a5d5d2o66.Iw1-gDKQ.CwBj5BGboZnyCBMTjCA=

That's 2300MJ of shielding with 4 pips to systems. THAT, my friend, is a shield tanking demon spawn. It would probably take 15 minutes to get enough damage on that ship to actually kill it.

--

Back to the Viper, if you really want to go with a full multicannon 4-pip-to-sys build, knock yourself out and have a ball. If you find the reloading issue is annoying or the lack of dps a problem (multicannons deal considerably less damage to shields than thermal weapons), switch to some combination of lasers and multicannons. Just be aware that with lasers, you usually can't run 4 pips to Systems and are thus less tanky. Regardless, your speed and manuverability will always be the best asset to ships of that size. If you sit there against a bigger ship tanking their damage, you're going to end up looking at the rebuy screen.

Check out this video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgH-CzIKRgQ

For an example of how to survive for 14 minutes in a Viper with essentially 0 pips to Systems against a Federal Corvette. Note how he almost never takes a direct hit. Once you really understand why, you'll understand how to survive in a Viper. Hint:

Spoiler

he can't shoot you if he can't get you in front of him.

edit: he actually fought for 25 minutes against that Corvette. that's how it's done, boys. Let all small ship aficionados take notes.

edit: sorry for the length. 1200 hours into the game, I think I have a hard time condensing thoughts because the shit can get so complex. I try to be thorough and objective. It's hard.

 

[Caesar III]

HOWEVER, have you been able to get DDP to work with web browsers? If so...how? I can only get it to work with stuff like VLC. It just shows a black screen when i select a chrome window. I haven't tried the Windows Netflix app yet.

You should disable hardware acceleration in Chrome. Then it should work.

I'm fiddling around with this as well. Too bad using this in the rift is not that easy but needs to be done through revive etc. I guess I'll see and wait until this is sorted. Perhaps FD is doing something on their own though. I'd pin the window to the roof of my Anaconda at the moment I guess.

Check out this video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgH-CzIKRgQ

For an example of how to survive for 14 minutes in a Viper with essentially 0 pips to Systems against a Federal Corvette. Note how he almost never takes a direct hit. Once you really understand why, you'll understand how to survive in a Viper. Hint:

Spoiler

he can't shoot you if he can't get you in front of him.

edit: he actually fought for 25 minutes against that Corvette. that's how it's done, boys. Let all small ship aficionados take notes.

Why is he running without life support during the fight? to gain those 5% of power?

 

[AwesomeMeat]

yessir. I actually have my window in the upper right for me. perhaps a hold-over habit from OnTopReplica.

But yea both are like godtier for exploration, trading and basic mission running.

HOWEVER, have you been able to get DDP to work with web browsers? If so...how? I can only get it to work with stuff like VLC. It just shows a black screen when i select a chrome window. I haven't tried the Windows Netflix app yet.



wat

Yes, but only with Firefox.

 

[Dubbedinenglish]

Jumped into a system for salvage mission layout is:

Sun
NAV beacon

157k Ls
Planets.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Jumped into a system for salvage mission layout is:

Sun
NAV beacon

157k Ls
Planets.

Elite: Time-consuming

 

[joecanada]

The Cobra is the gold-standard. Yes, it is the best ship under $3 million for general purpose usage. Great combat, good cargo capacity, top-tier speed. It's a ship you don't move out of until you have millions to spend on multiple ships.


Hello again good sir.

In my opinion, the Viper is a very survivable ship, but you have to fly it well... **snip.

hey thanks... so you are saying the cobra is better due to better shield cap? also you mention a lot about shields but not much about the hull reinforcements I put in there. I am supposing that the cobra also could use these so its not really an advantage for one ship over the other then?

the vids I was watching (they may be older though right) were basically saying play to the vipers strength which is hull strength not trying to beef up its weak shields.

funny because I've never noticed the cobra as especially dangerous but my experience is all pve so the pve pilots could suck too of course lol.

 

[SymbiantXenos]

Jumped into a system for salvage mission layout is:

Sun
NAV beacon

157k Ls
Planets.

Space is big. Really big.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

hey thanks... so you are saying the cobra is better due to better shield cap? also you mention a lot about shields but not much about the hull reinforcements I put in there. I am supposing that the cobra also could use these so its not really an advantage for one ship over the other then?

the vids I was watching (they may be older though right) were basically saying play to the vipers strength which is hull strength not trying to beef up its weak shields.

funny because I've never noticed the cobra as especially dangerous but my experience is all pve so the pve pilots could suck too of course lol.

*nods*

On a small ship, if you're down to HRPs, you usually better be looking to high wake the hell out unless you are a really good pilot and know what you're doing. You don't want to fight on the armor of a small ship UNLESS you're running a silent running build or know you can stay in an advantageous position.

Silent running builds are solid hull tanking strats because the enemy can't see you on radar, thus making you a near impossible target to thit so long as you can keep your heat signature low. It got nerfed a couple of patches ago by way of a reduction in the number of heat sinks that a Heat Sink package could hold as well as the duration of time its effect lasts. BUT you can still run a hull tanking build for fun. Stock up on HRPs (remove shield and add more HRPs) and some Military Grade Armor.

https://coriolis.io/outfit/viper/2p8t5F5l8dasdf21a1a2424020229292o66.Iw1+kA==.CwBjEYxccrmEA=== (this is 765 armor + 50% damage reduction giving you an effective 1,530 HP. But armor doesn't regenerate.)

You can last a long time in this so long as you can stay silent when need be and stay behind them all the rest of the time.


But again, even in this scenario "hull tanking" doesn't mean you let the enemy shoot at you freely; you aren't a bullet sponge. This just affords a new way to be elusive. You still need to play the same way: be elusive at all times. Whether using chaff, silent running or simple skill to stay in your enemies blind spot the majority of the time, small fighter survival is about being hard to see, hard to catch, and hard to get in the sights.

Think X-Wings in A New Hope. "They're so small they're avoiding our turbo-lasers!"

Whatever the preferred formula you prefer that gets you to the requisite level of elusiveness is fine. Just understand that is the goal. Be hard to hit.

Note: silent running builds are generally for PvP. It's not something you should consider for PvE.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zi6icS0AxIE

here's an example of a silent running build allowing a ship to punch above its weight class by simply being hard to hit.

--

As for the Cobra: It's not easy to answer. It's not as fun as a Viper and it's not quite as nimble thus making the Viper sightly better in combat. If all you're doing is combat within a few local star systems, go Viper. If you expect to do Combat, but also some trading or if you want to be able to travel further and land on planets, the Cobra is the right choice every time. Because the Cobra is one of the very few ships in the game that can do *everything* well, it is the gold standard ship and easily the most popular ship in the game.

In my opinion, a Viper is like owning a Porsche Cayman...where a Cobra is more like a Porsche Panamera. IMO, a Cayman or any 2-seater is a 2nd car to own. You want to own a main car that you can use for everything, then a 2-seat coupe for fun perhaps. Get both, but if you have to choose one for advancing your career in Elite: Dangerous? The Cobra is the correct answer.

 

[Jedi2016]

When it comes to fighting, I prefer the nigh-invulnerable shields on my FDL, with max stacked shield boosters. I'm going to Engineer the hell out of both the shields and the boosters when I get back to the bubble. Keep fighting until the shields drop. With that kind of boosting and upgrades, it'll probably take a half hour to recharge them again, so I just bug out when my shields drop, but by then I've already racked up a few million in bounties.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

When it comes to fighting, I prefer the nigh-invulnerable shields on my FDL, with max stacked shield boosters. I'm going to Engineer the hell out of both the shields and the boosters when I get back to the bubble. Keep fighting until the shields drop. With that kind of boosting and upgrades, it'll probably take a half hour to recharge them again, so I just bug out when my shields drop, but by then I've already racked up a few million in bounties.

I too prefer shield stacking. The shields on my Cutter should be approaching 5,000 or so at this point. If you crash my shields, you deserve the kill

Spoiler

but I can still Sir Robin away at 414 m/s so you won't get the kill anyway

.

Cascading torpedoes and thermal shock packhounds notwithstanding. That shit is a very hard counter to shield stacking. Fortunately I also have about 2,200 armor + 50% damage reduction as well.

Ive just finished a bit of the combat, docking and travel training and it has already kinda blowing my mind and I haven't even started for real, lol.

don't get any Sidewinders that say FREE CANDY on the side.

o7

 

[SCHUEY F1]

Ive just finished a bit of the combat, docking and travel training and it has already kinda blowing my mind and I haven't even started for real, lol.

 

[Not Spaceghost]

In a Viper, you won't make it sturdy so don't spent a lot of time trying. Vipers and Eagles are glass cannons. Well, maybe more like glass pistols. The way to stay alive is to use your speed and superior maneuverability to get into advantageous positions (like behind your target) and avoid being hit in the first place.

I'd recommend a loadout like this for a Viper

https://coriolis.io/outfit/viper/0p5t5F5l8dasdf21b1b2424000m5840012j.Iw1+kA==.CwBhrEEYakGYBMdhA===

So I just outfit that viper but I have a question about power management, despite the fact that it's like 5% over output does setting the priority just auto shut down those 5 components during combat to prevent system overload? Or is there some personal management that I have to do with regards to modules?

 

[Jedi2016]

So I just outfit that viper but I have a question about power management, despite the fact that it's like 5% over output does setting the priority just auto shut down those 5 components during combat to prevent system overload? Or is there some personal management that I have to do with regards to modules?

It'll shut down the lower priority systems first. So since you can't jump with hardpoints deployed anyway, you'll want the FSD to be first to go. Ditto for things like fuel scoops, docking computers, anything you're not going to actually use in a combat zone. I also tend to keep my cargo scoop simply turned off all the time anyway, but that may change with all the materials and stuff floating around.

 

[Not Spaceghost]

It'll shut down the lower priority systems first. So since you can't jump with hardpoints deployed anyway, you'll want the FSD to be first to go. Ditto for things like fuel scoops, docking computers, anything you're not going to actually use in a combat zone. I also tend to keep my cargo scoop simply turned off all the time anyway, but that may change with all the materials and stuff floating around.

That's actually really interesting and useful information haha, i was becoming obsessed with riding that 100% line so I kept finding fits that would only go to like 98% of my power plant's output. Good to know you can get clever and go over.

 

[Jedi2016]

Yeah, you can definitely go over. The trick is that your weapons don't actually draw power until you deploy them. And setting your priorities manually means it'll shut down the systems you want instead of letting the computer pick them, where it shuts off things like, I dunno... your thrusters... lol.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

So I just outfit that viper but I have a question about power management, despite the fact that it's like 5% over output does setting the priority just auto shut down those 5 components during combat to prevent system overload? Or is there some personal management that I have to do with regards to modules?

Yes, so power management is an interesting thing in E. I will spare you another long post, but I will say this. Ships are designed to be able to have more equipment than the 100% power listing says you can have. The idea is that if you can arrange your power priorities such that systems that aren't needed or used when hardpoints are deployed are automatically disabled, you get everything you need powered.

Things you don't need powered when hard points are deployed:

• Cargo Rack - you're probably not scooping cargo with hardpoints out unless you're mining and this isn't a mining ship!
• Fuel Scoop - you're not scooping from a star with hardpoints out because you can't enter supercruise with hardpoints deployed
• Frameshift Drive - Can't be used with hardpoints deployed
• FSD Interdictor - only used in supercruise

These are examples of modules that can be set to a low power priority. In the case of this Viper, what you're looking at here is a power arrangement where 3 modules are disabled when hard points are out. Those modules begin working again when hardpoints are retracted. They are available when you need them, and not using power that could go elsewhere when you don't need them. So we're making use of that freed up power!

Unfortunately the game itself doesn't provide this sort of tool to understand how much power a given module is going to take before you install it, so always reference this website when deciding on loadouts.

--

The other aspect of this (I'll be brief) is that blue line you see for 50%. That line is important because what it is showing is the modules that will remain powered should your Power Plant be destroyed. In PvP (and in PvE) what you should be doing is attacking ship power plants. Any ship that has not properly set their power priorities will find themselves completely disabled allowing for easy kills. You can often kill a power plant far faster than killing a ship's hull and hits on a 0% power plant can cause spontaneous destruction. So targeting it is always good. With the linked build, if you were to lose your Power Plant in combat (because of a lucky shot, stayed too long, whatever), your Chaff launcher (for defense), FSD (so you can jump out), Life Support, Power Distributor, Thrusters, and Sensors all remain up and running because they are on Priority 1 and priority 1 completely fits underneath the 50% threshold. This means you can escape despite losing your power plant, which would be death for someone set up like this, for example:

https://coriolis.io/outfit/viper/0p5t5F5l8dasdf21b1b2424000m5840012j.Iw1+kA==.Aw1sEykA

If this person lost their power plant, every system on their ship would be turned off because there wouldn't be enough power to run all the components that are trying to turn on despite having the exact same loadout (every module on a priority will try to turn itself on. If all can't turn on, none can turn on on that priority level). Said pilot would have to turn to this panel while his ship is scream at him about his hull integrity and start disabling unnecessary systems until he got power to the systems he needs it on. He's dead, Jim.

Lesson: Always do your power management.

edit: here's a handy tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75nmA_cnKLQ

 

[Mengy]

Would a cobra mk4 make for a good general purpose/bounty hunting ship?

The Cobra is the gold-standard. Yes, it is the best ship under $3 million for general purpose usage. Great combat, good cargo capacity, top-tier speed. It's a ship you don't move out of until you have millions to spend on multiple ships.

Dreams, you are talking about the Cobra III, not the IV. The Cobra IV is not what I would consider a good bounty hunting ship. It does have one more hardpoint than the III, BUT it is much, MUCH slower than the III, it's heavier and less agile, and it actually uses the same power plant and distributor as the III so that one extra hardpoint can make the IV feel power starved by comparison. I've flown the IV into combat, and I've found it arguably to be one of the worst combat ships in the game. I felt like a sitting duck in it.

The Cobra III is a capable fighter, but the IV is not IMHO.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Dreams, you are talking about the Cobra III, not the IV. The Cobra IV is not what I would consider a good bounty hunting ship. It does have one more hardpoint than the III, BUT it is much, MUCH slower than the III, it's heavier and less agile, and it actually uses the same power plant and distributor as the III so that one extra hardpoint can make the IV feel power starved by comparison. I've flown the IV into combat, and I've found it arguably to be one of the worst combat ships in the game. I felt like a sitting duck in it.

The Cobra III is a capable fighter, but the IV is not IMHO.

I don't believe new players have access to the Cobra 4, so it's not something we need to cover. And yes you are of course correct and I failed to notice his mention of the 4. I assume he meant the Mk 3? Hopefully.

For clarity, we've been primarily talking about the Viper Mk 3, Cobra Mk 3, and to a lesser extent the Viper Mk 4. Don't bother with the Cobra Mk. 4 even if you have access to it.

 

[Jedi2016]

The Cobra III is a tremendously versatile ship, and is fantastic for an up-and-coming player. I few a Cobra for a loooong time while I was earning up money for bigger ships. I think my Asp has more playtime, but only because I've taken it out on a few exploration jaunts.

 

[GodParticle]

Can someone give me a hint on what to do?

I'm playing solo and warped to the the maine station. I had no idea what to do, so I picked a mission from this lady where she wants me to obtain 4 synthetic textile things. I have no idea where I'm supposed to go for it

 

[Heshinsi]

I agree with the idea of just trying out different stuff. There are a few cheesy things to understand about the Elite mission system. You can Stack missions (some people will call this Cycling). Let's use Data Missions as an example here:
- You can open the missions and accept all data missions.
- Log out, Log back in (Cycling from Open Play to Solo Play and back) and accept new missions.
- You can do this until you have 20 active missions or in the event they are trading missions, until your cargo hold is full.

Some people will say this is an exploit and others will say it is just part of the game. The fact that frontier is aware of it and doesn't seem to patch it tells me where their head is for now. This is how people make bank by going out to Sothis and doing long range hauling'/smuggling. It is also the way that most people will rank up with the various factions.

Thanks for this tip. Just earned nearly $7M in credits in about 45 minutes lol. I had 3 nearly $2Mish deliveries that ended having 2 for the same system and the other just 30lys away. With the Crystalline Gold (fuckers would only sell me 18t of it) and the exploration data, it was a pretty solid run. Thank you

Soloing conflict zones with a smaller ship is pretty rough. Usually you will want to wing-up for those or have a bigger ship like a python or conda that can shield tank a bit. It used to be a lot easier but now that they've got the AI up to snuff, the CZ will chew you up and spit you out in smaller ships.

Otherwise, you just need to make sure you stick with other people in your faction. Try to stay where there is only 1 of the opposing faction and several of your allied guys. If your shields are about to go, super cruise out until they are back up.

Honestly though, solo in a viper you'd probably be better off bounty hunting instead of dropping in a CZ.

I thought I was losing my mind for a bit there. Recently got back into the game, and I distinctly remember being able to 1v1 everything from Clippers, to Condas, to Pythons, etc, with impunity. I would target these bigger ships even if they were in a wing with smaller fighters. Go straight for the big guy, destroy their power plant, and then deal with the annoying mosquitoes. Tried that recently, and got sent packing with my tail between my legs. They weren't afraid anymore

 

[Dizzy-4U]

I've seen some people like to disable the shield boosters to recharge their shield faster. Is that recommended until the first ring goes up or all three?

 

[Nivane]

Can someone give me a hint on what to do?

I'm playing solo and warped to the the maine station. I had no idea what to do, so I picked a mission from this lady where she wants me to obtain 4 synthetic textile things. I have no idea where I'm supposed to go for it

At said station, look at the commodities market for whatever item you are trying to acquire. It'll say what the item is and where it is sourced from. Pick the nearest system and head there. Then head to a station, go to the commodities market again and select the item. It should give you an option to buy 'x' amount. Take them back to where you got the mission, and when you select your mission again from starport services, it'll give you the option to complete it.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Can someone give me a hint on what to do?

I'm playing solo and warped to the the maine station. I had no idea what to do, so I picked a mission from this lady where she wants me to obtain 4 synthetic textile things. I have no idea where I'm supposed to go for it

https://eddb.io/commodity

go here. find the commodity you need in the list and click it. then input your closest system. it will find a system and station near you that has the item you need. buy it and take it back to the station asking for it and get paid.

edit: and yes, this should be built into the game, but unfortunately so of the mechanics of the game require outside tools to do things efficiently.

I've seen some people like to disable the shield boosters to recharge their shield faster. Is that recommended until the first ring goes up or all three?

yes, that is recommended. leaving boosters on lengthens the time it takes for the shields to come back online. turn them off if shields are down. when shields are up, turn them back on.

 

[GodParticle]

At said station, look at the commodities market for whatever item you are trying to acquire. It'll say what the item is and where it is sourced from. Pick the nearest system and head there. Then head to a station, go to the commodities market again and select the item. It should give you an option to buy 'x' amount. Take them back to where you got the mission, and when you select your mission again from starport services, it'll give you the option to complete it.

https://eddb.io/commodity

go here. find the commodity you need in the list and click it. then input your closest system. it will find a system and station near you that has the item you need. buy it and take it back to the station asking for it and get paid.

Thanks!

 

[Dizzy-4U]

yes, that is recommended. leaving boosters on lengthens the time it takes for the shields to come back online. turn them off if shields are down. when shields are up, turn them back on.

Neat. Thanks.

 

[Butterfly Witch]

Can someone give me a hint on what to do?

I'm playing solo and warped to the the maine station. I had no idea what to do, so I picked a mission from this lady where she wants me to obtain 4 synthetic textile things. I have no idea where I'm supposed to go for it

Elite Dangerous is one of those games where it's a complete sandbox, you do whatever you want really. There is no main story line or even quests in a traditional sense, the world is your toy box and also your personal meat grinder. They're not kidding about the Dangerous part in the title.

Keep these websites in mind:

1) https://eddb.io/

This website will allow you to locate any commodity around you for missions that require you to donate or source out specific goods, you just have to fill in the boxes and it should be fairly intuitive.


2) http://etn.io/

This website is a neat way to find some simple trade routes so you can make some cash on your own time. Trading is fairly profitable and it only gets better with time.




The "problem" with ED is that the game really does not hold your hand in any way. Welcome to the universe, here's a shoebox of a ship and piss off. Having said that, the game allows you to make some money in whatever path you choose although at the very start I'd use the discovery scanner to scan solar systems and simple courier missions if you can get them to raise your funds a little.

After that, you get to step out into your first ship depending on what you want to do: bounty hunting, pirating, exploration, trading and mining. It's all a matter of what game style you like.

I don't know if GAF has a private group or not but the game really shines with a close community populating the universe and, if you're brave enough and crazy enough, open play is always there but remember that this game is full on PvP all the time, everywhere you go.


I'll let others chime in as I'm no expert on ED, far from it.



Moving to my own request,

So I find myself with an Imperial Courier, looking to upgrade into a Clipper and I've been grinding some missions for rep. What are the exact strengths of the Clipper? I know I ought to upgrade to match my play style but the Clipper is just an extremely sexy ship and I must get one. I got the Courier based on design alone and because it looked to me like a decent enough ship for bounties but I've also been having problems gearing it as it feels like it's too slow for RES hunting but it could just be me being inept and gearing the poor thing.


Any help would be wonderful!

 

[TharpDaddy]

I'm probably going to try trading soon to make some money. I'm guessing that if you're carrying a haul to sell you're going to have a much higher chance to get interdicted? Any tips for avoiding pirates when your cargo is full?

 

[Not Spaceghost]

Yay finally found the federal rank up mission, managed to finally hit rank 1 and I'm already 88% into the next rank because of how much stuff I had to do to find this mission ahahaha.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Yay finally found the federal rank up mission, managed to finally hit rank 1 and I'm already 88% into the next rank because of how much stuff I had to do to find this mission ahahaha.

Nice. You'll enjoy Sol when you get that permit. It's the only hand-crafted system in the game and you can tell.

 

[wesleyshark]

Hit Baron rank with the Empire. Currently debating on getting the Clipper or not. Thoughts?

 

[GodParticle]

Elite Dangerous is one of those games where it's a complete sandbox, you do whatever you want really. There is no main story line or even quests in a traditional sense, the world is your toy box and also your personal meat grinder. They're not kidding about the Dangerous part in the title.

Keep these websites in mind:

1) https://eddb.io/

This website will allow you to locate any commodity around you for missions that require you to donate or source out specific goods, you just have to fill in the boxes and it should be fairly intuitive.


2) http://etn.io/

This website is a neat way to find some simple trade routes so you can make some cash on your own time. Trading is fairly profitable and it only gets better with time.




The "problem" with ED is that the game really does not hold your hand in any way. Welcome to the universe, here's a shoebox of a ship and piss off. Having said that, the game allows you to make some money in whatever path you choose although at the very start I'd use the discovery scanner to scan solar systems and simple courier missions if you can get them to raise your funds a little.

After that, you get to step out into your first ship depending on what you want to do: bounty hunting, pirating, exploration, trading and mining. It's all a matter of what game style you like.

I don't know if GAF has a private group or not but the game really shines with a close community populating the universe and, if you're brave enough and crazy enough, open play is always there but remember that this game is full on PvP all the time, everywhere you go.


I'll let others chime in as I'm no expert on ED, far from it.

Really helpful. This game just kind of throws you out there to die in space haha.

One thing that is driving me nuts is playing on a controller. When in the galaxy map, I could click on a system and then(I think click the lb/rb) to cycle through the options to plot course and whatnot, but now it doesn't work anymore. Can't figure out what I'm doing wrong and it's annoying to switch to a mouse just to navigate that little menu

 

[BudokaiMR2]

Why is it so ridiculously satisfying just running random missions from one system to another? I honestly don't get it.

I'm not being facetious. Like I've put 80 hours into this game since the No Man's Sky release (NMS was really average) and it's just so soothing rather than kinda boring.

The difference between those two games specifically comes down to just how damn good the core systems in ED are, especially the flight model.

It is not only relaxing, but even doing simple missions has a sense of accomplishment however minor because of how much control you have and how easily even those simple takes can go wrong! Once you get in the zone it is hard to put down.

NMS just felt like going through the motions, while ED really feels like a complete experience. Just my 2 cents.

 

[joecanada]

Yeah at first I was worried I'd get bored too quick with the travel times and such but then I remembered some games are great with listening to music , having tv on in background, even doing other stuff. Then you realize there aren't actually that many lapses in the game there's lots of management to do and it's all pretty satisfying.

A huge time sink though for sure lol

 

[Dubbedinenglish]

The difference between those two games specifically comes down to just how damn good the core systems in ED are, especially the flight model.

This completely. It's why I like playing sims like DCS or IL-2 as well. I like that there are highs and lows in missions where you prep, travel, do objective, return, land. The rhythm is really appealing to me. Like in DCS some of the F-15 missions can take about an hour to complete but I love the transit and flight as much as the combat.

 

[Butterfly Witch]

Really helpful. This game just kind of throws you out there to die in space haha.

One thing that is driving me nuts is playing on a controller. When in the galaxy map, I could click on a system and then(I think click the lb/rb) to cycle through the options to plot course and whatnot, but now it doesn't work anymore. Can't figure out what I'm doing wrong and it's annoying to switch to a mouse just to navigate that little menu

Yeah, ED is a hotkey heavy game. I use a flight stick (Logitech X3D, cheap little thing) for flying, keyboard for some hotkeys and menu navigation and my mouse when I'm docked. In a way, it kind of adds to my immersion because it reminds me of those sci-fi shows and how pilots are surrounded by various inputs, buttons, switches, etc.

I mean, just look at the cockpit of a F-14 TomCat:

Spoiler

So... yeah. Find the input combo that works best for you, it'll take time but you'll customize it just to your needs and taste

 

[AwesomeMeat]

Having VoiceAttack is also awesome if you are on PC. Being able to give your ship commands is very convenient.

 

[GodParticle]

This is what I'm talking about. I used to be able to navigate that sub menu in the map using lb/rb, but now it just operates the left menu. The other issue is that i can only move the top headings in the left menu and none of the ones under it. How do I fix that using an xbox controller?

http://imgur.com/a/8jETx

Err...I can't get imgur to post here for some reason

 

[Not Spaceghost]

I've had my T flight HOTAS X for almost a week now and it's just been such a blast. There is something absolutely amazing about using it that it is hard to explain.

I think the moment I knew this was the way I had to play the game was when I used head look mode to tilt my cam down slightly with the hat so I could see the CMDR model's hands and they were mirroring my own hands in what looked nearly 1:1

If I nudged the stick or even pushed the throttle a bit I would see my character do it, and that was just a completely unique experience to me.

 

[derFeef]

Got that mission from 2 days ago finished, whew, taht was fun. Now I am getting constanty a Route Plotting failed though and I have no idea why. Also my first engineer invite, which is nice. Need to outfit my Hauler now, it seems a bit restricted with a landing bay and SRV....

 

[Heshinsi]

Voice Attack (K.I.C.S), plus Radio Sidewinder/Solitude Radio has made this game an absolute dream for me. I don't have a HOTAS, and KB/M is too complicated for me, so I use an X1 controller. So having K.I.C.S handle things like targeting subsystems, requesting docks, firing shield cells/chaffs, etc, makes things so much more enjoyable.

Oh and, I just discovered mission stacking hehehe. I'm currently about to start a nearly $17M run where the systems are near each other, with many actually at the same system and station as well. Man AwesomeMeat, thanks for telling me about Sothis System again

 

[wesleyshark]

This is what I'm talking about. I used to be able to navigate that sub menu in the map using lb/rb, but now it just operates the left menu. The other issue is that i can only move the top headings in the left menu and none of the ones under it. How do I fix that using an xbox controller?

http://imgur.com/a/8jETx

Err...I can't get imgur to post here for some reason

On Xbox, the bumpers move the header tabs on the left, and the d-pad moves what you highlighted. Hmmm.

 

[zorbsie]

Figured I'd take a break from combat and do some exploring. Found this brown star (I think) with rings. Haven't come across this before and with so many rings, thought I'd share it.

 

[Dizzy-4U]

Voice Attack (K.I.C.S), plus Radio Sidewinder/Solitude Radio has made this game an absolute dream for me. I don't have a HOTAS, and KB/M is too complicated for me, so I use an X1 controller. So having K.I.C.S handle things like targeting subsystems, requesting docks, firing shield cells/chaffs, etc, makes things so much more enjoyable.

I tried KICS a couple of times but my english is so unbelievable broken that the software can't understand what the hell I was saying half of the time. Remember that scene with Chekov talking to the computer in Trek 09? Same thing. Vwiktor Vwiktor twooo.

It is helping me in improving my accent though, so I keep it around.

 

[wesleyshark]

Figured I'd take a break from combat and do some exploring. Found this brown star (I think) with rings. Haven't come across this before and with so many rings, thought I'd share it.

Gorgeous. That's a hell of a lot of rings.

 

[Xater]

Figured I'd take a break from combat and do some exploring. Found this brown star (I think) with rings. Haven't come across this before and with so many rings, thought I'd share it.

Oh man that's cool.

Space is awesome you guys.

 

[Felix Lighter]

Got that mission from 2 days ago finished, whew, taht was fun. Now I am getting constanty a Route Plotting failed though and I have no idea why. Also my first engineer invite, which is nice. Need to outfit my Hauler now, it seems a bit restricted with a landing bay and SRV....

I've never seen that. Is it like a game crash or a message when plotting? What is the jump range on your ship?

 

[la_briola]

I've had my T flight HOTAS X for almost a week now and it's just been such a blast. There is something absolutely amazing about using it that it is hard to explain.

I think the moment I knew this was the way I had to play the game was when I used head look mode to tilt my cam down slightly with the hat so I could see the CMDR model's hands and they were mirroring my own hands in what looked nearly 1:1

If I nudged the stick or even pushed the throttle a bit I would see my character do it, and that was just a completely unique experience to me.

Next step: get TrackIR (or use FreeTrack/EDTracker) and your head will be your camera. This is THE game changer in combat.

 

[StonedRider]

Guys, I need an advice!

Have enough materials to upgrade Power Distributor to third grade on my combat FdL. It already has engines dirty tuning 3. I consider two variants - Engine focused or Weapons focused. System focused is useless imo.
With Engine focused I will be able to boost more frequently, but with Weapons focused I will be able to have 4 pips in Sys and still use my huge beam laser (at least I hope so!). What do you think?

Btw, is there any way to obtain Specialized Legacy Firmware except missions reward?

 

[Felix Lighter]

The Cobra III is a tremendously versatile ship, and is fantastic for an up-and-coming player. I few a Cobra for a loooong time while I was earning up money for bigger ships. I think my Asp has more playtime, but only because I've taken it out on a few exploration jaunts.

I still use a Cobra III for salvage and surface missions. It's internals, speed and relative maneuverability makes it perfect for a bunch of the missions, which I must say again are much better in 2.1. The mission types aren't confusing and mysterious, USS aren't the old random bullshit where you felt like the objective randomly came to you instead of you seeking out the objective. And the payouts, I remember the old missions were like 5000 to 100,000 payouts. Now I'm seeing all types of million plus mission payouts and not just the old long distance smuggling missions. I think everything but exploration is reasonably profitable now. I still remember when I first started nothing but trading was really profitable. You traded so you could get a combat ship to bounty hunt for fun, not for profit. Trading was everything unless you wanted to sit in a viper for 6 months.