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dteowner
Shoegazer
Joined: 21 Mar 2002
Posts: 7570
Location: Third Hero of Erathia |
So I'm getting to the point where I can afford to trade my Nova for an M6 (good thing, because my Nova is getting stomped on the current story mission). What to buy? Looking at my ship list, here's my thoughts:
Argon Centaur- inexpensive and solid across the board
Boron Hydra- expensive, weak weapons, only one that can use an ion disruptor
Paranid Nemesis- only one to use PSGs, tiny cargo
Split Dragon- only 1x125MW, fast, well armed, dirt cheap
Teladi Osprey- hugely expensive equipped, 3x125MW, slow, over-powered?
Your thoughts?
_________________
=Proud Member of the Non-Flamers Guild=
=Benevolent Dictator, X2/X3 and Morrowind/Oblivion Forums=
Sorry. No pearls of wisdom in this oyster.
RIP Red Wings How 'Bout Dem Cowboys! |
Wed Mar 31, 2004 3:55 pm |
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EverythingXen
Arch-villain
Joined: 01 Feb 2002
Posts: 4342
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What do you want out of your M6? If you want stylish good looks, blazing speed, heavy firepower, and to still have to worry about Khaak clusters than go Dragon.
If you want to end fights as soon as you have your enemies in your sights then Centaur or Osprey is your ship.
If you want a good all rounder... something that can dogfight with some effort and has the ability to kill capital ships and stations without being made of glass or being as slow as sin... Nemesis is your choice.
If you want to be slightly slower than a Dragon, slightly less armed than a Nemesis, and slightly more manoever than a TL then choose Hydra. Half as nice at twice the price! 
Nemesis is my ship of choice, though I've been flying a Dragon a bit for bounty hunting missions. You actually have to worry about shields on a Dragon which is why some people call it a 'skilled player's M6' whereas the Osprey is a 'cheater ship'. But people are stupid.
I have an Osprey... I have an M6 of every race (except the Hydra. Even my economy (made 20 million yesterday non-Seta. A few 1 million dollar bounty hunts helped.) has a hard time swallowing the cost of a Hydra.) The instant you think a slow butt Osprey is overpowered take it into a Khaak sector and watch it evaporate because it can't run fast enough to recharge its shields.
My Osprey I flew for an hour to find out 'what's the deal' and then sent it off to protect one of my MIII autotraders (which is what my M6s do in their spare time, except the Dragon... which can die if unattended rather easily. Which is another reason I pilot it myself... takes skill and I hate seeing M6 idle!).
_________________
Estuans interius, Ira vehementi
"The old world dies and with it the old ways. We will rebuild it as it should be, MUST be... Immortal!"
=Member of the Nonflamers Guild=
=Worshipper of the Written Word= |
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Wed Mar 31, 2004 4:09 pm |
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dteowner
Shoegazer
Joined: 21 Mar 2002
Posts: 7570
Location: Third Hero of Erathia |
Given my feeble combat prowess, I'm thinking a Dragon would be a poor choice for me. The Osprey and Hydra are out of my financial reach unless I want to be patient.
That leaves the Centaur and Nemesis. The incredibly tiny cargo hold in the Nemesis scares me. Figure you start at 1/2 max and it gets ridiculously expensive to get past 3/4 max (like the TS class). That means the Nemesis is going to fly with around 300 units. If the M5 you carry counts against your hold, I'm guessing you've got room left for about 20 energy cells which makes the jumpdrive pretty useless. OTOH, the lure of putting PSGs in computer-controlled turrets is strong...
_________________
=Proud Member of the Non-Flamers Guild=
=Benevolent Dictator, X2/X3 and Morrowind/Oblivion Forums=
Sorry. No pearls of wisdom in this oyster.
RIP Red Wings How 'Bout Dem Cowboys! |
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Wed Mar 31, 2004 4:36 pm |
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EverythingXen
Arch-villain
Joined: 01 Feb 2002
Posts: 4342
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It costs something like 50,000 to get the hold on a Nemesis to max. Perhaps more... I always max the holds on non TS though and It's never come near the nearly a million credits a Dolphin takes to upgrade from 1500 to 3000 (I've got 5 max Dolphins... four on my TL to make its virtual cargo space 25,000 units... one stockpiling capitals ship weapons and shields as they come in to an equipment dock in Depths of Silence).
413 is enough to hold 1 gamma PSG, 1 gamma HEPT, 2 beta PSG, 2 beta HEPT, 10 hornets, 2 shields, and 250 to 300 energy cells easy. If you have a Teladi harrier with a maxed cargo bay (104 units) fueling you up after every jump you're just fine.
Centaur is a solid choice, though. The firepower is amazing... it CAN take down a capital ship or station given time. Its cargo hold is large enough to hold anything you could ever want to.
If in doubt, save before you buy (of course!) and then see how much it costs to get the cargo space to full on both ships. It's always worth it, to me, but I don't mind dropping 10 to 12 million on a M6.
_________________
Estuans interius, Ira vehementi
"The old world dies and with it the old ways. We will rebuild it as it should be, MUST be... Immortal!"
=Member of the Nonflamers Guild=
=Worshipper of the Written Word= |
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Wed Mar 31, 2004 5:00 pm |
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dteowner
Shoegazer
Joined: 21 Mar 2002
Posts: 7570
Location: Third Hero of Erathia |
I played most of the day and night, but I always seemed just a bit short of cash for the Nemesis. Finally, I broke down and bought the Argon M6.
Introducing the latest flagship in Chairman dte's fleet, replacing the venerable Nova Scotia: Centaur Field!
Took me over an hour and a reload to get the equipment transfer and docking figured out and done properly, but here I am at 3:30am having taken the next step toward dominating the universe.
So, my empire stands at:
2 wheat farms with an Express energy buyer each
6 SPPs (Herrons Nebula, Kingdom's End, Red Light, Seizewell, Trinity Sanctum, Patriarch's Defeat) with 2 sellers and 1 buyer each (ship race varies)
1 Crystal fab with 3 buyers (1 Manta, 2 Express)
5 Mk3 traders (4 Mantas, 1 Toucan)
Centaur Field and his Harrier service ship
about 1.5mil credits on hand
_________________
=Proud Member of the Non-Flamers Guild=
=Benevolent Dictator, X2/X3 and Morrowind/Oblivion Forums=
Sorry. No pearls of wisdom in this oyster.
RIP Red Wings How 'Bout Dem Cowboys! |
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Thu Apr 01, 2004 9:23 am |
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corwin
On the Razorblade of Life
Joined: 10 Jun 2002
Posts: 8376
Location: Australia |
At the max 20 hours a week I have time to spend on the game, I'll never be in your league. I have a pile of half finished NWN mods I'd like to play too. Best news I heard all week; BD has been delayed. If it came out on time I'd be in real trouble!! 
_________________
If God said it, then that settles it!
I don't use Smileys, I use Emoticons!!
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Thu Apr 01, 2004 10:04 am |
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EverythingXen
Arch-villain
Joined: 01 Feb 2002
Posts: 4342
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Nothing wrong with the Centaur. Its extra GHEPT forward cannon makes up for not being able to mount PSG nicely... considering most times you'll use HEPT instead of PSG anyways in a Nemesis unless you're tired of your race rating...
Plus, it looks a little like the APC from Aliens. Always a plus in my book.
Replace the headlights with cannons and raise the windshield on the left up a little.
_________________
Estuans interius, Ira vehementi
"The old world dies and with it the old ways. We will rebuild it as it should be, MUST be... Immortal!"
=Member of the Nonflamers Guild=
=Worshipper of the Written Word= |
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Thu Apr 01, 2004 2:28 pm |
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dteowner
Shoegazer
Joined: 21 Mar 2002
Posts: 7570
Location: Third Hero of Erathia |
I'm rather frustrated with my M6. The lack of manuverability is a pain in the caboose, but that's not the crown jewel no sir.
I'm starting to get better at making use of Magpie, my Harrier. The problem now is how to deal with M-sized cargo. Magpie can't carry it; Centaur Field can't dock a ship that can handle bigger cargo; Centaur Field can't dock with most stations that buy/sell these goods; docking a Manta (for example) at the same station that the M6 docks at doesn't work- apparently the "big ship dock" and the "little ship dock" aren't connected so freight exchange doesn't work.
How does one handle this little headache? I've thought about buying an M4, outfitting it with a jumpdrive, and having it tag along with me. When I need to transfer something from ship to ship, I'll open up the cargo bay doors, toss it into the vacuum, and hope the other ship can pick it up without getting mauled from having to drop shields. If that's not a kludge and a half, I don't know what is.
_________________
=Proud Member of the Non-Flamers Guild=
=Benevolent Dictator, X2/X3 and Morrowind/Oblivion Forums=
Sorry. No pearls of wisdom in this oyster.
RIP Red Wings How 'Bout Dem Cowboys! |
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Mon Apr 05, 2004 4:26 am |
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Dhruin
Stranger In A Strange Land
Joined: 20 May 2002
Posts: 1825
Location: Sydney, Australia |
You need a matter transmitter from the Goners (not the right name - I'm at work and can't remember). You will need a M4/M3/TP/whatever to grab the goods then beam them straight aboard as long as the two ships are within 5km.
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Editor @ RPGDot |
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Mon Apr 05, 2004 7:50 am |
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EverythingXen
Arch-villain
Joined: 01 Feb 2002
Posts: 4342
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Bingo. Transporters should come standard on M6 as they're the most useful thing in the game to make them playable.
I spend a LOT of time in my M6 and rare is the occassion I have to the 'arg I just ran over three GHEPT trying to pick them up' boogie.
In fact, transporters are so useful (and so fragile aparantly from my luck with losing them to rams) that I permanently have a max speed Pegasus docked at the Goner temple, ready to zip off to deliver transporter goodness to any capital ship purchase. At 15 seconds per sector traveled at SETA it has caught up from anywhere in the universe by the time the clunker has jumped and moved between a few shipyards buying weapons and shields.
As for the lack of manoeverability... hmm... I find the M6 manoeverability to be nearly 'just right' for me. Some of them are faster at some moves than others... for example, the Nemesis turns up and down faster than a Centaur does, but a Centaur rolls faster.
Rolling is critical in M6. It's the best way to keep your turrets tracking targets and turrets are a significant part of your kill power in a M6. My Dragon, the XHG Firebreather, will take out a super-cluster in less than a minute with minimal damage if I do a good job of keeping the cannons aligned and speed optimal (100 to 160).
_________________
Estuans interius, Ira vehementi
"The old world dies and with it the old ways. We will rebuild it as it should be, MUST be... Immortal!"
=Member of the Nonflamers Guild=
=Worshipper of the Written Word= |
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Mon Apr 05, 2004 12:21 pm |
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dteowner
Shoegazer
Joined: 21 Mar 2002
Posts: 7570
Location: Third Hero of Erathia |
I thought that the Goner transporter was for people- saving you the hassle of spacewalking between ships. It never even dawned on me that it might work for cargo.
Plot course for Cloudbase Southwest! Chop chop!
I'm getting better at steering this bus. (I can only imagine what a TL or M2 would be like) I'm probably more sensitive to agile ships than most of you- quick turns will go a long way toward hiding poor pilot skills.
_________________
=Proud Member of the Non-Flamers Guild=
=Benevolent Dictator, X2/X3 and Morrowind/Oblivion Forums=
Sorry. No pearls of wisdom in this oyster.
RIP Red Wings How 'Bout Dem Cowboys! |
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Mon Apr 05, 2004 8:40 pm |
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EverythingXen
Arch-villain
Joined: 01 Feb 2002
Posts: 4342
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An M2 is actually fairly good at turning left and right... up and down is a lost cause though (that's why you use roll left and roll right to make up and down left and right) .
Piloting a TL causes me pain. Strafe drive eases this pain but not very much. At some point you'll have to turn 180 and at that point it will take 10 to 15 seconds to do so.
_________________
Estuans interius, Ira vehementi
"The old world dies and with it the old ways. We will rebuild it as it should be, MUST be... Immortal!"
=Member of the Nonflamers Guild=
=Worshipper of the Written Word= |
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Mon Apr 05, 2004 8:50 pm |
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Dhruin
Stranger In A Strange Land
Joined: 20 May 2002
Posts: 1825
Location: Sydney, Australia |
Flying something like a Herc or Elephant TL can be hilarious. Take a mobile mountain and hurtle it along in a straight line towards a gate at 300 speed...and listen to the cries of "AAAaaaargh...." as AI TPs smash against the hull. 
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Editor @ RPGDot |
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Mon Apr 05, 2004 10:26 pm |
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EverythingXen
Arch-villain
Joined: 01 Feb 2002
Posts: 4342
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Mostly Boron, too, it seems. The cut off 'aaarrgh' of the boron is fun... though the 'noooooooooooo!' of the Argon can be amusing from time to time as well.
What is not is when you hear a collision and see wreckage and nobody complains at you. It probably means you ran over your own ship. Such as when I docked at the Argon Prime shipyard (my SPP is within two or three kilometers).
"Choom, choom, choom"
"Hmm... that was nasty. Oh well... they didn't complain."
*check log later*
Your Argon Prime SPP Sell was destroyed by Fortress Maximus
Your Argon Prime SPP Sell was destroyed by Fortress Maximus
Your Argon Prime SPP Crystal Buy was destroyed by Fortress Maximus
"CRAP!"
_________________
Estuans interius, Ira vehementi
"The old world dies and with it the old ways. We will rebuild it as it should be, MUST be... Immortal!"
=Member of the Nonflamers Guild=
=Worshipper of the Written Word= |
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Tue Apr 06, 2004 5:30 am |
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corwin
On the Razorblade of Life
Joined: 10 Jun 2002
Posts: 8376
Location: Australia |
Do you still get an insurance payout when that happens?
_________________
If God said it, then that settles it!
I don't use Smileys, I use Emoticons!!
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Tue Apr 06, 2004 8:44 am |
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