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+--- Thread: Using less than top weapons (/showthread.php?tid=11256)
Using less than top weapons - El Nino - 08-13-2008
Well i've been trying to take out a trader with my estemeed Sabre... Naturaly I blew his shields down with my debilitators, but then... I had to chase him, throu about two systems to a total of 100k on impulse and thrusters while shooting at him, with my Krakens type 2... My loadout was pretty basic 2 debilitators, 3 kraken 2's and kraken turret. My weapons were grouped so all the power went to my shield busters... Even so it took unresonably long to take down this menace of a nonpaying advanced train... (//i wonder why people pirate in caps)
So I did some calculations. Based on energy consumption, it turns out I would have taken out that trader 20% sooner if I was using lvl 8 weapons... The natural question then would be... Why nobody mounts lvl 8's? In virtualy any sustained firing lvl 8 weapons are more effective dealing more damage per energy consumed...
Now if a pilot is a highly skilled ace who hit's every shot and becouse of aiming doesn't shoot continualy, lvl 9's are perfectly fine, but how many crack shots are there?
Furthermore to the point, every ship has a suggested weapon level, (vhf's lvl 8)
If you don't mount shield busters, and go for a full hull busting loadout, then lvl 7's become an option...
I'd like to hear your reasons for not using anything but the top lvl 9's (some even go for lvl 10's .. but let's not go there)
Using less than top weapons - Tenacity - 08-13-2008
You probably wouldnt have had an issue if you had grouped your shield busters and krakkens seperately. Debilitators take a ridiculous amount of energy to fire, and krakkens arent cheap either - but each on their own shouldnt drain your energy too quickly.
Using less than top weapons - El Nino - 08-13-2008
Oh I did group them seperatly, I only used debilitators while shields were on... It's a mathematical thing really, lvl8's are more energy efficient...
Using less than top weapons - Athenian - 08-13-2008
The level 8 debilitators are pretty cool and score a hit even if you have lousy aim. Mounted on a Loki you can fire them continuously without draining the power planet, reducing an opponent's shields so you can fire off a fast mini razor - a technique unheard of had I not tried doing calculations (as you have) about energy use. I use them sometimes on a Manta, seeing as the buckshot drains the energy so much (well when you're firing blind and snarling at the monitor like me.
Using less than top weapons - mjolnir - 08-13-2008
Problem is that most traders shoot back..... so you can't really keep sustained fire..
I prefer to do as much damage per shot as possible .. running out of energy fast... before his shots start to hit me.. then dodge until the energy is up.. and again. All this while keeping reasonably effective guns (so no ARCHANGELS for example).
But yes specially low level shieldbusters are extremely effective. I'm using Debilitator turrets on some ships.. and lvl 7 Debilitators on LFs with many slots (SLipstream, Scimitair) as well as on Corsair LFs since they don't have lvl 8s and Tizonas are mostly overkill.
Using less than top weapons - chopper - 08-13-2008
Exactly. In chase fights, you have to be ready to give a huge amount of damage in a moment, so you can dodge in the meantime.
If you are overpowering someone and you can sit on his tail ALL the time and no one targets you, then yes, 8's can be good.
But you have to remember that only Xenos and Outcasts have awesome 8's, while other 8's are mostly crap.
Sutingers are pretty much same as Kraken 1's, therefore very uber.
Also, codes are usually much more energy efficient then even 8's.
Using less than top weapons - Thexare - 08-13-2008
I fly mostly Light Fighters - a Slipstream, a Scimitar, a Hussar, and an Arrow. Soon, my indie LSF will probably switch to a Liberator, since I'm terrible in VHFs.
I can almost never keep up sustained fire in those ships, because I frequently have to focus on dodging so I can actually, y'know, not die. Because I have to stop firing so often, using anything less than the best doesn't make sense. Energy's not an issue, because it recharges when I'm focusing on dodging, so I may as well make the shots I can take count.
Of course, neither my Scimitar nor my Arrow have any shieldbusters at all; the former has a full Kraken loadout, effective enough on all those Graviton shields and great for hull damage, and the latter just doesn't have the room for a Debilitator.
Using less than top weapons - El Nino - 08-13-2008
' Wrote:Also, codes are usually much more energy efficient then even 8's.
:rtfm:It's true, why didn't I think of them before... trying to roleplay an outcast way to much... Who would have thought... *Looks at those 10 codes stashed away for a rainy day*
Using less than top weapons - Ascendancy - 08-13-2008
I don't use Class 8 weapons probably because I mainly belong to factions where their Class 8 weapons are not that great (save for Outcasts of course, Kraken Type 1's are good no matter how you slice it). Only my Order characters keep Codenames, probably because those are the ones I've had all the way since 4.82 (and I'd really only have 6 Codenames if the Solaris stayed as a Chain Gun).
To me, because I'm an average aim depending on what I fly, I'll always keep Class 9's/10's on my ships because when I do nail them, it hurts and hurts bad, and no one's going to deny a pair of Excaliburs will put a good dent in nearly anything they come into contact with, unless it's a battleship class capital.
As for shield busters, I don't use them. Never really liked them to begin with, even if they have that "lol wtfpwn shields" effect. I'd rather slug it out with a full compliment of hull busters.