The What, Why & How-to of Favorite Ships

[joshelite]

Hey, what about the Spear Cutter? Upgrade cargo like crazy, maybe even the advanced bridge, and you are in trading heaven. I made more cash with less hassle this way than any other. Great on WF. Don't do contracts, just keep on exploiting shortages and surplus.

[geoklng]

De Valtos Flagship

Attribute Stock Modified Comments

Hull        30       30

Armor     20       31      DA+HS

Engines   32       32

Sails       64       80      Adv Sail System

Crew     124     124

Cargo    124     124      WF+WC

Guns       24      24

Torps      28      28

Speed   Fast   Fast

Agility Medium Medium



This is the easiest flagship to get, since DV has the best economy and is a good place to sell electronics, so reputation and money are made pretty fast. It is also the most balanced of the Flagships, since the Cadar is an Alien Hunter and all the others are downgraded versions of the DV Flagship.

I think of it as the Sails focused version of the Slayernz Cruiser. As the game advances, it becomes more and more common that your targets escape because you do not have enough Stealth. This ship solves this issue by deploying outstanding Sails to Hull ratio. I tested versions without Adv Sail System, but the added resilience of having Armor greater than Hull more than compensates for the smaller prowess in close combat and lower Engines numbers. Besides, i can always pump my Pilot and hire a Pilot officer, but there is no solution for catching the elusive high sails + high stealth prey. 

Call me coward, but i like to play with WC, because i believe that the weapons inside the cabinet do not count toward the enemy rating. Also since this ship has 92 crew more than engines, the only way to have enough weapons for everyone is to have both WF and WC.

It is my second or third ship, depending on difficult level, and usually remains so until i become a dedicated alien hunter. If i am in the mood, i can grab a Hyper Freighter for quick cash, but this one handles the merchant missions almost as well, while tackling the combat missions with wild abandon. Just don't try to capture criminals alive with it, because it has 2 more guns than the Slayernz Cruiser.

[capthawk]

Oh I see some favorites on here! Great thread! I've lived in the Hyper Hauler in many modes, bigger yet though with a very similar signature is the Degla Lifter...make sure on that name, that captain is dead. 202 base cargo I think? PIRATE SKYLIFT!!!! Can't believe they let it in free-verse, 1st ship I ever loved.
But I just found a new favorite.

Javalin Class!
Base stats
Hull 18
Armour 9
Engines 38
Sails 38
Crew 60
Cargo 82
Guns 28
Torp 16

My word. Right out the dock door she starts scaring people. And it can be outfitted so many ways with it's amazingly balanced starting stats.
I was doing the Honor Contractor series with her in Hard, so focused on a different than normal upgrade tree. However I think some of the under used upgrades get a bad rap. Anyway, this was for a Star Trader, second ship. He was to continue exploration until he could exploit conflicts and trades to get a cushion to then do his contracts with enough rep and money to cover permits, rank ones etc. It would not be an ideal second in some pursuits. However the curve on the fuel economy is offset by the lower hull, you can skill up to her hull quickly.
Here's what I did
Hull 18
Armour 9
Engines 40 +2 from Hyperion split
Sails 41 +3 Prow split
Crew 60
Cargo 90 +8 Prow split, wf tank, weapons chest, spy bank
Guns 31 +3 Hyperion split...get OFF my artifacts!
Torpedoes 16 ...NO Ares Upgrade
Anyway this way she can be with me forever. And oh my word I can't wait to find/ use/ redesign in dock for a spy...

[beverage]

capthawk One of my favourite mid-game ships too.
Gotta agree, basically every game I play I smile to myself when I see a Javalin for sale. Sold!! So versatile and looks cool and not obscenely expensive.
Once as an Indy Spy my first encounter was a level one of these. I'll have that thanks, sell Electronics and Weaps and repair away. Great game that one.

[slayernz]

I'm still shocked that nobody has written up the Jango Class. The Royal Class was awesome too but got a little nerfed (at least that was what I remember happening - it might not have been nerfed, I might have just gotten suckier at playing )

[xdesperado]

Feb 20, 2016 3:39:15 GMT -5 slayernz said:

I'm still shocked that nobody has written up the Jango Class. The Royal Class was awesome too but got a little nerfed (at least that was what I remember happening - it might not have been nerfed, I might have just gotten suckier at playing )

Think the Jango is one of those ships that many long term players may have fond memories of, but other newer ship designs sort of took the special edge off of.
If I'm not mistaken it was one of the earliest additions to ST and with the 100s of newer designs plus the addition of the custom ship designer the wow factor just isn't the same anymore.

This isn't a knock on the TBs but with all those ships in game very few have a big WOW factor as something really special. Can't find X ship your looking for, no problem just grab W Y or Z as they are very similar stat wise. This is good most times but can also take some of that excitement of finally locating that one ship you've been hunting for. Much as I love having the ship designer there are times I miss the thrill of seeking out those special ships I coveted so much back in the day.

[beverage]

Galtek Spacetruck has to be the penultimate apex of Star Trader technology.

Second only to the sublime Atmo Hauler. What a beast!!

[slayernz]

Oh Man, Jango still rocks today
This is what I did with the Jango ... admittedly it isn't an end game ship, but rather, a early/mid-game ship of supreme dominance.
Jango Class

Attribute	Stock	Modified	Comments
Hull	15	15
Armor	6	6
Engines	30	30
Sails	30	41	Adv Sail System, Sale Command probe
Crew	55	55
Cargo	60	76	Cargo Prow
Guns	30	30
Torps	9	9
Speed	Fast	Fast
Agility	Quick	Quick
Other			Weapons Cabinet, WF Tank

Brief description of why its a favorite and intended use.
Look, it's a great ship for gun-bunnies before they have built up the cash to design their own. It is a Fast/Quick ship, with the magical 2EHr and 2SHr. It is perfect for maintaining range and killing efficiently with its 30 guns. 30 guns, you say. Yes, if you have decent pilot skill and tactics of course, you can definitely be accurate in your ability to take out engines or crew.

It starts out with 60 cargo. That's more than enough to get you from one side of the map to the other. When you've beefed up pilot skill, you can do so with plenty of spare in the tank too. It's a useful shortage-buster ship for early/mid-game for sure.

Upgrades added and why they were chosen along with options or special upgrade notes.

I needed to get the sails up to 40, for a bonus in efficiency. The sail probe + 25% adv sails gave me that. Adding a cargo prow gave me more capacity still. I almost always get the WF-Tank, because that gets me the ability to fill my whole hold with cargo for shortages - and still know I have 25 units of fuel. Given my efficiency with that ship is 0.89 in red, and 0.00 in green, 25 units of WF gets you a loooooooong way.

I added a weapons hold because when I am a gun bunny, I most-often find weapons on enemy ships. It's useful to be able to loot those if my hold is already full.

No ... the Jango is an amazing gun-bunny ship. There are other ships out there that are broader in "usability", but not a hell of a lot of ships are as good as the Jango for true gun-bunny domination.

[capthawk]

Feb 20, 2016 4:17:57 GMT -5 xdesperado said:

Feb 20, 2016 3:39:15 GMT -5 slayernz said:

I'm still shocked that nobody has written up the Jango Class. The Royal Class was awesome too but got a little nerfed (at least that was what I remember happening - it might not have been nerfed, I might have just gotten suckier at playing )

Think the Jango is one of those ships that many long term players may have fond memories of, but other newer ship designs sort of took the special edge off of.
If I'm not mistaken it was one of the earliest additions to ST and with the 100s of newer designs plus the addition of the custom ship designer the wow factor just isn't the same anymore.

This isn't a knock on the TBs but with all those ships in game very few have a big WOW factor as something really special. Can't find X ship your looking for, no problem just grab W Y or Z as they are very similar stat wise. This is good most times but can also take some of that excitement of finally locating that one ship you've been hunting for. Much as I love having the ship designer there are times I miss the thrill of seeking out those special ships I coveted so much back in the day.

Jango was the second ship I loved. Another one i can't believe is in free! After Pirate Skylift this was the second I ever commandeered lol.