Ferrius' Fighting Ships, Privateer Edition

[Privateer Ferrius]

Since it seems to be an 'in-demand' topic (and why not?) I figured I'd go out and try to make a comphrehnsive guide to the various ships available in Confederate (and Kilrathi) space.

This guide will be updated as I track down various ships, and is ordered by price. It includes all available and pertinenant non-classified specifications for the ships, as well.




Tarsus (20,000 credits)

Class: Civillian Scout
Max Velocity: 300 kps
Acceleration: Average
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 600 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 77/71/77 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM
Missile Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 100 units

Manufacturer: New Detroit, Terran Confederation (Depreciated vessel: no longer mass produced)
Sources: Most backwater worlds, asteroid mining colonies, refineries


A standard exploration craft, the Taursus is the ship that most fledgling Privateers start with. It's one virtue is it's easy availablity and it's rather quickly and easily retrofitted with new components. You can find it in many backwater merchant worlds and agricultural worlds, where it's cheap cost makes it a common choice.



Demon (125,000 credits)

Class: Light Fighter
Max Velocity: 450 kps
Acceleration: Very Good
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 1200 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 140/140/140 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT
2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Missile Hardpoints:
1x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 20 units

Manufacturer: New Detroit
Sources: Military worlds, military bases, worlds with a large shipbuilding industry

Some mercenaries prefer a lighter, more nimble craft than the Centurion. This ship is for them. Despite having less armor and missile capacity than the Centurion, its four guns in a tight box formation give it unmatched firepower, and it can dodge or outrun anything except Confed or Kilrathi light fighters. However, the Demon isn't available to just anybody--you first have to prove to the Mercenaries' Guild that you've got the right stuff--which mainly entails kicking a lot of mercenary butt in Palan system.

Note: The original Privateer version of the Demon had a 1x10 proton torpedo mount. At the time of this writing, the remake does not.



Galaxy (150,000 credits)

Class: Merchant Marine
Max Velocity: 300 kps
Acceleration: Average
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 750 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 95/88/95 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
2X TURRET
Missile Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 150 units

Manufacturer: New Detroit
Sources: Worlds with large merchant marine volume

A powerful merchie hauler, the Galazy is a common choice of long-haul cargo haulers, due to it's weapons payload capacity. A lot of mining bases keep these haulers handy for aspiring merchant marines, and anywheres where there's a decent volume of commerce, you can find yourself a Galaxy.



Centurion (200,000 credits)

Class: Heavy Fighter
Max Velocity: 500 kps
Acceleration: Very Good
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 1000 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 133/124/133 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
5X LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Missile Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 50 units

Manufacturer: New Detroit, Border Worlds (Militia forces)
Sources: Military worlds, Military bases, Worlds with a large shipbuilding industry, Border Worlds

The workhorse of the guns-for-hire, the Centurion is a highly maneouverable fighter with a sizable weapons payload. A standard non-milspec fighter, you can find it in anywhere with a decent shipbuilding market.



Orion (???,??? credits)

Class: Heavy Fighter
Max Velocity: 350 kps
Acceleration: Average
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 800 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 86/86/86 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
2X LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
2X TURRET
Missile Hardpoints:
1x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 50 units

Manufacturer: New Detroit
Sources: Military Worlds, Military Bases

The only non-milspec gunship available to the public, this fighter is the vessel of choice for many bounty hunters and privateers who frequent Kilrathi space. The payload capacity of this fighter is it's biggest asset - it can contain a simply devestating amount of firepower. The only civvie ship that is more threatening is the cap, Drayman. Many shipbuilding worlds keep these heavy fighters in stock, due to the high demand for bounty hunters.



Drayman* (???,???,??? credits)

Class: Transport
Max Velocity: 150 kps
Acceleration: Poor
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: N/A
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 36/36/36 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
Unknown number of turrets
Missile Hardpoints:
Unknown number of capship missile tubes
Spec. Cargo Hold: No Data Available

Manufacturer: New Detroit, Terran Confederation
Sources: Worlds with large merchant marine volume


A civvie yacht with considerable cargo capacity, it is the most common capital ship in known space. It packs some heavy heat, but doesn't compare to any other capital ship. The drayman can defend itself effectively, but isn't a frontline-worthy cap ship by any regard. You can find the odd Drayman for sale on Oxford and other worlds, but only after making a bit of a name for yourself - no responsible ship dealer is going to put a cap in the hands of some nobody.

*: this is for the overhauled second variant of the Drayman. The much earlier craft of the same name had a much different design and configuration.




If you have any insights yourself, I invite you, please do comment. I'll be adding to this main post as I retrace my steps for other ships, and also with the comments of other Privateers.

[Privateer Ferrius]

Maybe a mod could sticky this? Given the volume of "where do I buy X" threads, it would seem a valuable resource.

[ijuin]

Here's another one:

Demon (125,000 credits) - Some mercenaries prefer a lighter, more nimble craft than the Centurion. This ship is for them. Despite having less armor and missile capacity than the Centurion, its four guns in a tight box formation give it unmatched firepower, and it can dodge or outrun anything except Confed or Kilrathi light fighters. However, the Demon isn't available to just anybody--you first have to prove to the Mercenaries' Guild that you've got the right stuff--which mainly entails kicking a lot of mercenary butt in Palan system.

[Privateer Ferrius]

I'm not very fond of the Demon, but I'll add it to the list nonetheless

I beg to differ on the comment on 'unmatched firepower' - most if not all milspec fighters clearly outgun it, especially the Broadsword and Crossbow.

[ijuin]

Of player-flyable ships, only two have four forward guns: the Demon and the Centurion (yes you can get the Gothri too, but I'm counting ships you can normally buy). The Centurion has four guns in a line, which makes it hard to get all four shots to hit the target, while the Demon has them in a box formation. This is why I would say that the Demon's guns are superior for a given reactor level.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Of player-flyable ships, only two have four forward guns: the Demon and the Centurion (yes you can get the Gothri too, but I'm counting ships you can normally buy). The Centurion has four guns in a line, which makes it hard to get all four shots to hit the target, while the Demon has them in a box formation. This is why I would say that the Demon's guns are superior for a given reactor level.

Not completely true. I'd say the Gorthi, dunno if you ever flew one, has four gunslots (light-heavy)in a line, meaning every gun for itself. And yes, the Demon has all four slots in a box (But: 2x light-heavy, 2x light). But the centurion has the gunslots not in one line but in TWO boxes. You can see this when you fire all four guns (see it best when all guns are of the same type) at once. If you do sustained fire (what's the verb one uses in English with sustained fire?... ), it seems if they where completely independent from each other, but they are not.

[Privateer Ferrius]

Doesn't matter whether they do or not anyways. The main combat indicator is the volume of fire a fighter can put out in any given cone. The Broadsword is clearly the one that can put out the greatest volume of fire of any fighter. It even beats the Drayman. The Broadswords got fire coming from the front, its ass, above, below, and generally from all sides.

The Demon has the most in the forward-firing arc - but it's completely lacking in any other arc. I actually prefer the Centurion in that way, with the guns independant on each wing, its easier to hit maneouvering ships.

@Spiff: 'Use' is the correct verb for 'sustained fire'

[ijuin]

If I am a good shot, and I fire with all four guns on a Demon, then all four shots land. If I am an equally good shot, and I fire with all four guns on a Centurion, then either the leftmost shot or the rightmost shot is too widely spaced to hit the target--the spread of the guns is wider than the target.

[spiritplumber]

One thing you can do is add a little bit of autotracking to non-autotracked guns; the latest WCU binary has this (experimental). Try that? You'll also need its vegastrike.config for it to work properly.

Do NOT replace either permanently, this stuff is still under heavy testing!!

[Spaceman Spiff]

@Spiff: 'Use' is the correct verb for 'sustained fire'

... ... there is always one you can't look up nowhere...

[Privateer Ferrius]

If I am a good shot, and I fire with all four guns on a Demon, then all four shots land. If I am an equally good shot, and I fire with all four guns on a Centurion, then either the leftmost shot or the rightmost shot is too widely spaced to hit the target--the spread of the guns is wider than the target.

This assumes the target is always directly ahead of you. This is often not the case. Especially on the AI levels that actually fight back.

[Privateer Ferrius]

I've greatly expanded the guide by including the specs for each ship. The hardpoints are sketchy, as I did it from my memory. Please post any corrections you may have.

Enjoy!

[NoRespect]

Galaxy (150,000 credits)

Class: Merchant Marine
Max Velocity: 300 kps
Acceleration: Average
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 750 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 95/88/95 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM
2X TURRET
Missile Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 150 units

The Galaxy can carry 2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY guns

Centurion (200,000 credits)

Class: Heavy Fighter
Max Velocity: 500 kps
Acceleration: Very Good
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 1000 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 133/124/133 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
5X LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Missile Hardpoints:
2x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 50 units

4x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
1x TURRRET

Orion (???,??? credits)

Class: Heavy Fighter
Max Velocity: 350 kps
Acceleration: Average
Maximum Afterburn Velocity: 800 kps
Maximum Yaw/Pitch/Roll: 86/86/86 degrees/s
Gun Hardpoints:
2X LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
2X TURRET
Missile Hardpoints:
1x LIGHT MEDIUM HEAVY
Spec. Cargo Hold: 50 units

The only non-milspec gunship available to the public, this fighter is the vessel of choice for many bounty hunters and privateers who frequent Kilrathi space. The payload capacity of this fighter is it's biggest asset - it can contain a simply devestating amount of firepower. The only civvie ship that is more threatening is the cap, Drayman. Many shipbuilding worlds keep these heavy fighters in stock, due to the high demand for bounty hunters.

The description is a "bit" misleading... The Orion is actually a piece of useless crap. Only 2 Guns, 1 Launcher and 1 Turret... and so slow and cumbersome, that her stronger shields don't really help. Even the galaxy is better suited for combat. The Orion is a flying coffin. Only suicidal mercenaries would use it..

[ijuin]

Yes, the extra armor and shields on the Orion don't feel like much--maybe it's because of the better accuracy of the AI shooting at you?

Anyway, the cargo capacity on the Demon is 20 and on the Drayman is 5,000.

[NoRespect]

I don't know... but the shields in the Remake feel generally a lot weaker than in the original. I used to like the Orion in Privateer, as it was really hard to damage it. It was a really strong ship, but in the remake it is unfortunately completely unusable. Even the level 7 shields you can get in the RF campaign don't help.