These two ships will never have viability as LFs. They're far too big and have no use in PvP. Freighters make for far better interceptors, as they can get greater armour and fare far better in 1v1s against fighters. I strongly feel that the sizes of these two ships will never make them viable as Light Fighters.
So, after seeing the changes to the Hammerhead and Skipjack, which have essentially made them HF/VHF hybrids, it makes me think the SS and Wahoo should get the same treatment. No, I'm not suggesting you should fear seeing a Sea Serpent with 7 ARCHANGELs. I just think that the armour of these ships should be buffed, they should be given more guns, a higher class shield and a greater powercore. And then various stat tweaks. So really, just turning them into HFs. The hybridization would come in with perhaps retaining the cruise speed of a LF, or giving them the cruise speed of a Freighter or AI Drone?
Perhaps they could keep 2 class 6 gun mounts to make them stand out as HFs? That way, they could mount LF debs to make them de-shielding monsters, or two beefier hullbreaker guns to signify a harder hitting, less armored ship.
Honestly, I think that most/all HFs could use a similar buff, either by giving them 2 class 6/8 inter-changeable gun hardpoints, or by giving them freighter cruise speed, so that the class as a whole actually stands out from VHFs.
In the case of the Sea Serpent/Wahoo, I'd be in favor for giving them two class 6 mounts so as to serve as test bed ships. Then perhaps after that, other HFs could follow suit.
On a less related note, yeah I think HFs need an overhaul. I don't really want to form an opinion on it, since I haven't played with all HFs, but based on what I've seen so far it's my belief that there are two types of viable HFs: broken or bordering on broken (Wight, Bayonet, Saishi, generally HFs with a cheesy shape) and hybrids that sacrifice performance in one area to boost it in another (Hammerhead and Skipjack have great damage potential, but sacrifice shields, armour and agility). I'm inclined to think that HFs should be redesigned around the latter (maybe not as extreme as the Hammerhead and Skipjack, considering both of them are literally VHF sized). Right now a lot of HFs just feel like 'weak-VHFs', which makes them unviable. They'd see more use if they were designed around sacrificing performance in one area, and gaining it in another.
give them a full class 6 loadout (6 guns), since LF guns have a higher burst dps it could work well considering how big both ships are.
(08-02-2018, 10:39 PM)Traxit Wrote: [ -> ]give them a full class 6 loadout (6 guns), since LF guns have a higher burst dps it could work well considering how big both ships are.
Could be an interesting solution, taking the HH/Skipjack approach.
Buff LF cruise speed,
Down size Sea Serpent and Wahoo
The problem with them is that downsizing them to the point where their decent would probably turn them into even dirtier versions of the Libbie/Tanto etc. On the other hand though, those kinds of LFs are the only usable ones anyway.
Rather than turning them into HF's, I believe they should just be made into viable LF's. We've already got a ton of good HF's now as it is, and we don't need any less LF's. There are also already BHG and Core HF's. The Sea Serpent and Wahoo are bigger than your average LF, but they're not too big to be LF's.
Their size shouldn't be changed too much, or they won't look the way they were intended to; but they could receive a complete downscaling of 5% along with a 20% downscaling of its midsection from front-to-back. It could also have its frontsection trimmed to be less wide from left-to-right, by about 20%. With these adjustments, it would still be pretty big, but it would be smaller, while still preserving its original look for the most part.
A tiny hull upgrade of 400 points would kick them up to 6700 hull, making them the most durable Light Fighters in the game, while still leaving them with noticeably less hull than even the flimsiest HF's.
A power core upgrade from the LF 1000/8500 up to the light HF 1200/8000 would give their armament the necessary support needed to fit their slightly larger size compared to other LF's. Alternatively, an added dedicated CD slot would allow them to have a missile while still fulfilling their interceptor role, making them pack an extra punch. Either/or would step up their game. Both combined might still not make them overpowered; but I would suggest taking small steps by giving them one first; see how that goes, and then add the other if they turn out to still require improvement.
I believe that all of these minor adjustments combined would turn them into viable ships while still fulfilling the LF role; without moving them up to HF's.
On a side note, with the Piranha being removed, perhaps the Sea Serpent should have its name restored to Piranha, which would make more sense for such a ship.