How do you design and pilot your ships?

[Hurshana]

I have never really engaged with ship combat, I usually just try to escape from every encounter.

Curious what people put on their ships and how they balance defenses, the number of damage sources + types, crew capacity, and how they actually pilot them in combat.

At a glance the Sidewinder seems like the best to customize a ship around--it's the highest on a bunch of a different stats and the ones it's not it's either second-best or only mediocre. And, of course, it's kind of free which is nice because most ships are crazy expensive unless you're grinding credits.

Only downside I think is that it comes with no built-in weapons.

When I am forced into combat I usually just watch enemy energy--if it's high I evade and once it's lower I shoot. Generally avoid trying to recharge.

 

[Theron]

Missile Turrets are very Energy efficient, and their Accuracy bonus stacks, as far as I can tell. They're also good vs both Shields and Armor.

Currently, Modules/Gadgets don't take Crew space. They did in Flash, so it might be a bug. Weapons are independent, too.

I use either the Sidewinder or MS-XI, depending on character. My favored setup is a couple of installations of Hardened Systems + Shield Vampire, then Missile Turrets and Power Core Tuners. Shoot until the enemy has about 2500 left, then Vampire. The Cyberdale can be instantly defeated by opening with Shield Vampire. You have enough Accuracy you'll hit a Cloaked Spearhead more often that not.

Sidewinder in particular is good with the Holographic Mirror System. High Agility makes the decoys more likely to avoid attacks.

 

[PanzerGuitar00]

I just spam the battle option until I win.

 

[Hurshana]

Missile Turrets are very Energy efficient, and their Accuracy bonus stacks, as far as I can tell. They're also good vs both Shields and Armor.

Currently, Modules/Gadgets don't take Crew space. They did in Flash, so it might be a bug. Weapons are independent, too.

I use either the Sidewinder or MS-XI, depending on character. My favored setup is a couple of installations of Hardened Systems + Shield Vampire, then Missile Turrets and Power Core Tuners. Shoot until the enemy has about 2500 left, then Vampire. The Cyberdale can be instantly defeated by opening with Shield Vampire. You have enough Accuracy you'll hit a Cloaked Spearhead more often that not.

Sidewinder in particular is good with the Holographic Mirror System. High Agility makes the decoys more likely to avoid attacks.

So you just stack all missiles?

 

[Theron]

So you just stack all missiles?

Basically. You could have different weapons for Shields and Armor, enabling them depending on the stage of the battle, OR just use Missiles, since they're reasonably effective against both,

Turrets need Crew to operate, but I assume you have enough.

 

[Off The Record]

Sidewinder
x8 Thrust Vectoring System
x2 Capacitor Banks
x1 Laser Turret
x2 Coil Cannons

If the hostile ship has shields remaining, then turn off the Coil Cannons and blast 'em using the Laser Turret. If the hostile ship has no shield remaining, then turn off the Laser Turret and blast 'em using the Coil Cannons. If you have less than 140 energy at the start of your turn, use a Capacitor Bank.

My ship has never suffered a scratch.

 

[Hurshana]

Sidewinder
x8 Thrust Vectoring System
x2 Capacitor Banks
x1 Laser Turret
x2 Coil Cannons

If the hostile ship has shields remaining, then turn off the Coil Cannons and blast 'em using the Laser Turret. If the hostile ship has no shield remaining, then turn off the Laser Turret and blast 'em using the Coil Cannons. If you have less than 140 energy at the start of your turn, use a Capacitor Bank.

My ship has never suffered a scratch.

I like the strategy.
I presume that there's a hard cap on ship evasion, how much do you think you're getting with 60 + 80 there?

 

[Theron]

I presume that there's a hard cap on ship evasion, how much do you think you're getting with 60 + 80 there?

Thrust Vectoring System adds Agility, which is separate from Evasion and stacks. I think. It can be hard to read the code.

Spoiler: Code

this.speed() / 2 + this.agility() + this.shipStatBonusTotal(E.j.Evasion)

Shield Vampire, Shield Disruptor & Capacitor Vampire automatically hit. They force a Systems vs Systems check instead.

 

[Hurshana]

I was just going off the wiki which says it's speed/2 + agility. But if there's no cap then you'd only need 2 Thrust Vectors on the Sidewinder to achieve 100% evasion.

 

[Theron]

You're forgetting about enemy Accuracy.

 

[Hurshana]

Oh yeah.

 

[Off The Record]

Shield Vampire, Shield Disruptor & Capacitor Vampire automatically hit. They force a Systems vs Systems check instead.

I wouldn't worry about Shield Vampire, Shield Disruptor, or Capacitor Vampire though. Those don't touch Armor/Health. Losing Shields means nothing if the hostile ship can't actually land a hit on you after. And Capacitor Vampire only delays their loss. But since Capacitor Vampire is a once per fight module, you can just use up your own Capacitor Bank to immediately recover energy then get back to blasting.

I presume that there's a hard cap on ship evasion, how much do you think you're getting with 60 + 80 there?

My Sidewinder has 120 Thrust and 190 Agility, so 250 Evasion, but my Ship Stats in-game tell me its actually 266. The wiki says your Steele's stats actually contribute a little, and the math does add up.

I do concede that eight Thrust Vectoring Systems might be redundant. But I haven't cared enough to test how many I can trade out before I start getting hit again. But there isn't an incentive to increase other stats anyway. Not Systems, for the reasons above. Not Armor/Health or Shields because the Sidewinder isn't getting hit. And not Sensors, because I haven't seen the Sidewinder miss yet. I guess I could grab another Capacitor, but I don't need it. I never need more than two. If anything, I wish I could fit more weapons on the ship.

Edit: Nevermind I did the math. The hostile ship with the highest accuracy is Teeyal's MS-XI. It has a total Accuracy of 135—well below 266 Evasion. So there you have it. I'm not sure how hit rate is calculated, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't miss replacing at least x3 Thrust Vectoring Systems (-60 Agility/Evasion) for other modules.

 

[Theron]

I wouldn't worry about Shield Vampire, Shield Disruptor, or Capacitor Vampire though. Those don't touch Armor/Health. Losing Shields means nothing if the hostile ship can't actually land a hit on you after. And Capacitor Vampire only delays their loss. But since Capacitor Vampire is a once per fight module, you can just use up your own Capacitor Bank to immediately recover energy then get back to blasting.

1. I was including them for completeness. (Teyaal is specifically geared to negate the Sidewinder's 'weaknesses'.)
2. I first got a Shield Vampire when testing Teyaal (in the period where she'd attack you even if you weren't flying the Sidewinder) and felt like being cheeky. I liked it enough to keep it.
3. Shield Vampire can instantly defeat the Cyberdale if used in the first round, since she surrenders if she has no Shields or active Holograms.
4. You're assuming the player is using the Sidewinder, which is extremely good, but hardly the only viable endgame option. MS-XI for example, can't get nearly as high Evasion. The ability to do ~2500 Shield damage and restore mine at the same time is very useful.

 

[Off The Record]

1. I was including them for completeness.

Heard.

4. You're assuming the player is using the Sidewinder, which is extremely good, but hardly the only viable endgame option. MS-XI for example, can't get nearly as high Evasion. The ability to do ~2500 Shield damage and restore mine at the same time is very useful.

Yes, I am. You replied to a message about my Sidewinder setup, and I responded to your reply. I reasonably believed we were talking about the Sidewinder.

Are other ship setups viable? Sure. I don't disagree.

 

[Hurshana]

I wouldn't worry about Shield Vampire, Shield Disruptor, or Capacitor Vampire though. Those don't touch Armor/Health. Losing Shields means nothing if the hostile ship can't actually land a hit on you after. And Capacitor Vampire only delays their loss. But since Capacitor Vampire is a once per fight module, you can just use up your own Capacitor Bank to immediately recover energy then get back to blasting.


My Sidewinder has 120 Thrust and 190 Agility, so 250 Evasion, but my Ship Stats in-game tell me its actually 266. The wiki says your Steele's stats actually contribute a little, and the math does add up.

I do concede that eight Thrust Vectoring Systems might be redundant. But I haven't cared enough to test how many I can trade out before I start getting hit again. But there isn't an incentive to increase other stats anyway. Not Systems, for the reasons above. Not Armor/Health or Shields because the Sidewinder isn't getting hit. And not Sensors, because I haven't seen the Sidewinder miss yet. I guess I could grab another Capacitor, but I don't need it. I never need more than two. If anything, I wish I could fit more weapons on the ship.

Edit: Nevermind I did the math. The hostile ship with the highest accuracy is Teeyal's MS-XI. It has a total Accuracy of 135—well below 266 Evasion. So there you have it. I'm not sure how hit rate is calculated, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't miss replacing at least x3 Thrust Vectoring Systems (-60 Agility/Evasion) for other modules.

Not sure how ship combat works, but assuming accuracy/evasion is the same as ground combat would you only be able to drop 1? 266-135 = 131.
Drop one more Thrust Vector for 106% evasion?

 

[_____]

Last times I fought, in the Aegis, it was Missile Turret, EM Cannon and Missile Bay. The Bay is highly efficient and you can turn the electric weapon off when the shields are down. With the Clydesdale, the missile turret because you can't have a third weapon. Shield Vampires are just a gamble for people with credits that the next enemy will have shield restoration and for that and the disrupter, you have to take up module space for Hardened Systems.

I wanted to try switching the Bays for Coil Cannons lately, but the game is giving me shit deleting fixed installations and their slots whenever I replace anything.

 

[Off The Record]

Not sure how ship combat works, but assuming accuracy/evasion is the same as ground combat would you only be able to drop 1? 266-135 = 131.
Drop one more Thrust Vector for 106% evasion?

How is hit rate calculated for ground combat?

 

[Theron]

How is hit rate calculated for ground combat?

Spoiler: Melee Combat Miss

rand(100) + 1 + Physique / 2.5 + Accuracy < ((something I can't make out) + t.reflexes() / 2.5 + t.evasion())

Spoiler: Full Code

var o = arguments.length > 2 && void 0 !== arguments[2] ? arguments[2] : -1;
if (e.inventory.meleeWeapon.hasFlag(GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_BLIND_IGNORE))
return !1;
if (-1 === o && (o = e.attack(!0)),
t.isTripped() && (o += 50),
e.isBlind() && !e.inventory.meleeWeapon.hasFlag(GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_BLIND_IGNORE) && (o -= 33),
e.inventory.accessory.hasFlag(GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_REDUCED_ACCURACY) && (o -= GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_DATA[GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_REDUCED_ACCURACY].value1),
t.hasStatusEffect("GooCamo") && (o -= 66),
t.hasPerk("Lucky Breaks") && rand(100) <= 9)
return !0;
if (t.hasPerk("Melee Immune"))
return !0;
if (e.hasStatusEffect("Target Lock") && !e.isBlind())
return !1;
if (t.isImmobilized())
return !1;
var a = "PlayerCharacter" === e.getClassName() ? 5 : 10
, n = e.physique();
e.hasPerk("Third Eye Aim") && (n = e.intelligence());
var i = t.hasStatusEffect("Vortex Brand") ? .5 : 1;
return rand(100) + 1 + n / 2.5 + o < (a + t.reflexes() / 2.5 + t.evasion()) * i && (t.hasPerk("Evasive") && t.setPerkValue("Evasive", 2, 0),
!0)

Spoiler: Ranged Combat Miss

rand(100) + 1 + Aim / 2.5 + Accuracy < ((something I can't make out) + t.reflexes() / 2.5 + Evasion )

Spoiler: Full Code

var o = arguments.length > 2 && void 0 !== arguments[2] ? arguments[2] : -1;
if (-1 === o && (o = e.attack(!1)),
"Dollmaker" === t.getClassName() ? o -= 50 : "JumperBored" === t.getClassName() && (o -= 30),
t.isTripped() && (o -= 10),
e.isBlind() && !e.inventory.rangedWeapon.hasFlag(GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_BLIND_IGNORE) && (o -= 50),
t.hasStatusEffect("Taking Cover") && (o -= 90),
t.hasStatusEffect("GooCamo") && rand(3) <= 1 && (o -= 66),
e.inventory.accessory.hasFlag(GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_REDUCED_ACCURACY) && (o -= GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_DATA[GLOBAL.ITEM_FLAG_REDUCED_ACCURACY].value1),
t.hasPerk("Ranged Immune"))
return !0;
if (t.hasPerk("Lucky Breaks") && rand(100) <= 9)
return !0;
if (e.hasStatusEffect("Target Lock") && !e.isBlind())
return !1;
if (t.isImmobilized())
return !1;
var a = t.evasion() + t.statusEffectv1("Optic Blur")
, n = "PlayerCharacter" === e.getClassName() ? 5 : 10
, i = e.aim();
e.hasPerk("Third Eye Aim") && (i = e.intelligence());
var s = t.hasStatusEffect("Vortex Brand") ? .5 : 1;
return rand(100) + 1 + i / 2.5 + o < (n + t.reflexes() / 2.5 + a) * s && (t.hasPerk("Evasive") && t.setPerkValue("Evasive", 2, 0),
!0)

Spoiler: Ship Combat Miss

rand(100) + 1 + e.accuracy() < t.evasion())

Ships seem to have a special Evasion calculation, which I don't think is capped like Ground Combat Evasion.

Spoiler: Ship Evasion

"evasion",
value: function() {
var e = 0;
return e = !(arguments.length > 0 && void 0 !== arguments[0] && arguments[0]) && this.owner ? this.owner.reflexes() / 4 : 0,
this.hasStatusEffect("Evading!") && (e += 50),
this.hasStatusEffect("Stealth Field") && (e += 80),
e + this.speed() / 2 + this.agility() + this.shipStatBonusTotal(E.j.Evasion)

"shipStatBonusTotal",
value: function() {
var e = arguments.length > 0 && void 0 !== arguments[0] ? arguments[0] : 0
, t = E.j.PropertyNames[e]
, o = 0;
return this.inventory.listShipEquipment().forEach((function(e) {
("shieldDefense" !== t || e.type !== GLOBAL.RANGED_WEAPON && e.type !== GLOBAL.GADGET) && (o += e[t])
}

 

[TheShepard256]

That thing you can't make out? In the old Flash code, it's called hitThreshold; assuming it's been unchanged since the GitHub was last updated, it's 5 if the attacker if the PC, and 10 otherwise. I guess Steele is inherently a slightly better shot than everyone else!

 

[Off The Record]

rand(100) + 1 + e.accuracy() < t.evasion())
Ships seem to have a special Evasion calculation, which I don't think is capped like Ground Combat Evasion.

Thank you.

Dr. Teyaal’s MS-XI, the ship with the highest accuracy in the game, has a 135 Accuracy. Therefore, the highest hit rating a hostile ship can achieve in the game so far is 236. Is that correct?

If it is, then that means a ship would need to achieve an Evasion of 237 for a 100% chance to evade any attack.

 

[Hurshana]

Your ship has 266 right? Outside of those forced hit weapons do you ever see your ship take damage?

 

[Off The Record]

Your ship has 266 right? Outside of those forced hit weapons do you ever see your ship take damage?

I have never seen my ship take damage—full stop. Even the forced-hit modules just take out my shields or energy, but don't damage my ship.

 

[Lostname475]

Sidewinder
x8 Thrust Vectoring System
x2 Capacitor Banks
x1 Laser Turret
x2 Coil Cannons

If the hostile ship has shields remaining, then turn off the Coil Cannons and blast 'em using the Laser Turret. If the hostile ship has no shield remaining, then turn off the Laser Turret and blast 'em using the Coil Cannons. If you have less than 140 energy at the start of your turn, use a Capacitor Bank.

My ship has never suffered a scratch.

Do machine gun turrets not do more damge and cost less energy than coil canons? Wiki says its 190 and shoots 4 times (760) as opposed to 500 and costs 50 energy compared to 70. Or is the multi shot factored in already?

 

[Yvenne]

This is a bit of a necro, but weapons with double shot (x2) and full auto (x4) does take into account the energy cost, so yes, it does 190x4 damage for 50 energy, but this is not taking into consideration the Defense value of the enemy ship. Defense reduces the effective damage per shot, so, let's say, assuming a Defense of 40, that would be in the case of coil cannon, 500 - 40 = 460 because the Defense will only proc once, whereas for Machinegun Turrets, it would be more like (190 - 40) * 4 = 600. It's still on average higher than the Coil Cannon, especially since Defense ranges from 0 to 50 (Teyaal's) with the median being 20, so pretty much in every case and scenario that exists in the game, even accounting for Defense, Machine Gun Turrets do more overall damage as compared to the Coil Cannon and does so with less energy expenditure. But, this is pure damage, without going into damage types, damage resistances of shield vs armor, and having different weapons for different weaknesses like thermal and kinetic, is the best approach.

 

[Theron]

Do machine gun turrets not do more damge and cost less energy than coil canons? Wiki says its 190 and shoots 4 times (760) as opposed to 500 and costs 50 energy compared to 70. Or is the multi shot factored in already?

The bigger difference is probably damage type. Take the Star Viper Spearhead (because that's what I ran into first).
Shield: 20 Defense, 50% Kinetic, -50% Electric
Coil Cannon: 500*1.5 - 20 = 730
Machine Gun Turret: (190/5 -20) * 4 = 300

Armor: 55 Defense, 0% Kinetic, 25% Electric
Coil Cannon: 500*0.75 - 55 = 320
Machine Gun Turret: (190 - 55) * 4 = 540

You're better off using the Coil Cannon vs Shields and Machine Gun vs Armor.

... especially since Defense ranges from 0 to 50 (Teyaal's) with the median being 20,

Star Viper Spearhead has 55 Armor Defense. Pirate Gruss has 75. If Scan is to be believed.

 

[Yvenne]

The bigger difference is probably damage type. Take the Star Viper Spearhead (because that's what I ran into first).
Shield: 20 Defense, 50% Kinetic, -50% Electric
Coil Cannon: 500*1.5 - 20 = 730
Machine Gun Turret: (190/5 -20) * 4 = 300

Armor: 55 Defense, 0% Kinetic, 25% Electric
Coil Cannon: 500*0.75 - 55 = 320
Machine Gun Turret: (190 - 55) * 4 = 540

You're better off using the Coil Cannon vs Shields and Machine Gun vs Armor.


Star Viper Spearhead has 55 Armor Defense. Pirate Gruss has 75. If Scan is to be believed.

Yeah, I figured damage type probably matters more than just the pure values, for sure, but I'm unsure as to whether the shield and armor weaknesses are universal to all ships, but I assume so, like all shields being weak to electric. If not, it becomes more complicated to fit different damage types for different ship encounters. Okay to do for boss ship encounters when you know what you're facing ahead of time, other than that, I would say ship battle encounters are pretty easy and don't require min-maxing situationally, yet at least. As long as you have the endgame ship, the Sidewinder, at least.

Personally, I'd just go with a Shield Vampire, deals 2000-2500 shield damage, pretty much deletes it on most ships, and then you can focus on armor. Of course, the caveats being the Shield Disruptor which takes half of shields is better for the very rare case the opponent ship has a shield value higher than 4000-5000, and when facing multiple ships since gadgets are 1x per encounter.

 

[Theron]

Yeah, I figured damage type probably matters more than just the pure values, for sure, but I'm unsure as to whether the shield and armor weaknesses are universal to all ships, but I assume so, like all shields being weak to electric.

It's certainly true for all Player ships (and most NPC ships are based on models the PC can have). Seems to be true for Guardian of Flame, too. (Ship blocking Phaedra.)

Personally, I'd just go with a Shield Vampire, deals 2000-2500 shield damage, pretty much deletes it on most ships, and then you can focus on armor. Of course, the caveats being the Shield Disruptor which takes half of shields is better for the very rare case the opponent ship has a shield value higher than 4000-5000, and when facing multiple ships since gadgets are 1x per encounter.

If the enemy has more than 2500 Shields, shoot it until it has about that much, then steal them to heal.
Technically, Gadgets are 1/installation/encounter. Probably not worth installing more than one, though.