Boarding Hyperion with M7M problems

General discussions about the games by Egosoft including X-BTF, XT, X², X³: Reunion, X³: Terran Conflict and X³: Albion Prelude.

Moderator: Moderators for English X Forum

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Boarding Hyperion with M7M problems

Post by Mousse9 » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 17:26

Hello all. As you can see from the title, I am trying to board a Hyperion with my Cobra, and have a lot of trouble with it. As this is one of the few times I want to board a ship, having boarded the Deca and a certain plotrelated Orca, and the Hyp is uber awesome, I thought it warranted its own topic.

Currently there are 2 Hyperions in my game, in Spring of Belief/Unholy Descent, and Pontifex's Seclusion/Duke's Citadel.

Having followed them quite a time, they never seem to go to non Paranid sectors. The best I can do is that they go to Border sectors that have very little military.

My marines are highly trained, that's not a problem, and the Hyperions don't have any anti boarding equipment.

My main problem is actually getting the Boarding Pod to contact the hull of the Hyp.

I've tried it with just my Cobra, but it just turns too slowly to keep up with the fast Hyp, and when I do manage to get its shields down, the pod keeps getting shot down, even with more missile barrages.

If I barrage it from a distance so the Hyp has to get in range, the pod gets shot down even faster.

Using my Springblossom (with just 2 M/AML active) doesn't work either. I told it to keep the shields down, but my Springy seems to ignore that and the Hyp easily gets destroyed.

Any suggestions on how to do this easier? Am I missing something? Do I need to get another ship (M6/M7) that can use Pulsed Beam Emitters?

I'm at my wit's end, and I really want that ship.

User avatar
cattafett
Posts: 884
Joined: Thu, 30. Aug 07, 00:40
x3tc

Post by cattafett » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 17:58

first use two ships
pick the sector you plan on boarding the hyp in i'd say Spring of Belief as its a big open sector with little defense
place the cobra a good 20/30 km above the a gate (Y axis) with +1 marines more that the hyp can take (6 for TC or 9 for AP)
for your ship(shield duty) i like something that can fire wasps (for bugging out the turrets)
when the hyp enters the sector check to see if it has any followers/friends if so then take them out leaving just your prize
hit the hyp a few time to turn it red then lead it to near where you parked the cobra (near in M7M terms of course about 40 km)
take and keep the shields down and order the cobra to barrage the hyp with boarding pods (only carry two or three pods).
when the pods are close(set the gravdar to the second or third smallest) spam the wasps to stop the pods from getting shot down and to help with the shields till the meatbags have made contact then just keep the shields low till the boys are in
after that the hyp should be yours
Last edited by cattafett on Sat, 24. Aug 13, 18:00, edited 1 time in total.
those UFOs you hear about are just what you tried to explaine to me going over my head
Advanced Complex-Hub you know you need it Catta Fett's D.O.G.S Vanilla safe mod collectionyou don't need them but you want them
Friendship is like peeing on yourself: everyone can see it, but only you get the warm feeling that it brings

brownthomasw
Posts: 163
Joined: Tue, 9. Aug 11, 00:52
x3ap

Post by brownthomasw » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 17:59

The coveted Hyperion of Pontifex Maximus Paranidia. Common advice says to hurt the hyp prior to boarding. Smash him to half hull and ion disruptor him as long as you can stand to destroy not only internal security but his main guns too.

Perpetual Sin is a Paranid sector even though it looks kind of unknowny, i saw him come check on me regularly when i was in there. Low security but still there space. As its only an m6 and you can only send 5 marines in anyway you can try to spacewalk board it with a skiron or hvy centaur. Again he is fast. Damage the hull to lower speed and ion him a little bit. I also hear it is rare but you can buy one as a used ship sometimes.

Or did you try drones/ adv drones set to attack shields so you can launch pods from a distance, not have him firing forward at you personally and happening to hit your pods by accident, the drones distract the turrets and lower shields with less risk to blowing it up.

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 18:17

@cattafett: 6 marines? That means 2 Pods. 1 Pod with just 1 Marine. Weird, but OK.
The Hyp I've scouted out is alone, I made sure of that (no, didn't kill anything, it was already alone). The times I tried boarding it, the Hyp was in Unholy Descent. I chose that sector because it didn't have any military coming through, and there were only transporter NPC's.

The only M6 I have is my Springblossom, should I get another M6 to be able to use Wasps? Or use Spectres?I just knew that flying Terran ships would break me up one day...


@brownthomasw: Spacewalk boarding? Never done that. I'll need to read up on it. I didn't think of using ion weapons or damaging its hull to lower speed either.

Drones! That might work! Are you sure they'll obey if you set them to only attack shields? My Springy totally ignored that command. Then again, M/AML's....

About buying Used Ships. Has anybody ever PERSONALLY bought a Hyperion as a Used Ship? This very much seems like an urban legend to me.

brownthomasw
Posts: 163
Joined: Tue, 9. Aug 11, 00:52
x3ap

Post by brownthomasw » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 18:38

spectres might be too powerful idk you can try.

Spacewalk boarding while problematic is easy enough. In commands on an m6 or tp with marines there is a piracy command. One option chucks them out the other tries to get in position and chucks them out. Its better to get yourself in position and chuck them out though getting them to the hull can be difficult if you don't manage to drop them right in front of him. Lowering his speed and everything else is important for this.

Drones should obey, regular drones only have ire's so they can't hurt him too badly even if they wanted too, adv drones use pac and i think go slower. you can set a hot key, to send drones or wingmen to come to you or to attack. if attack shields isn't stopping them you can call them back or send them forward to attack as needed.

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 18:42

How many drones should I use against a fully shielded Hyp to keep it distracted? 20-30? And Mk1 or Mk2? Won't they be oneshotted by that badass Hyp?

OK, so, I deploy drones in bulk, set them to attack shields of the Hyp, and when the shields go down, I shoot the boarding pod. I think I'll try that tonight, see how it goes. Thanks for the help.

Bill Huntington
Posts: 2493
Joined: Mon, 2. Feb 09, 17:34
x3tc

Poltergeists

Post by Bill Huntington » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 18:46

Mousse9, you're doing good. Poltergeists are even better than Wasps. Small, and multiple missiles.

The SB is a great personal ship, but no Terran ship is a good capping ship. You can swap MAMLs and the smaller Terran weapons, the EEMPC, even set them up on Button 2. For capping, weaker weapons give you more chances. A CW ship with PBE or IRE is the best.
Bill in S.F., enjoying the game

Bill Huntington
Posts: 2493
Joined: Mon, 2. Feb 09, 17:34
x3tc

Alternate Capping Method

Post by Bill Huntington » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 19:07

Mousee9, you are not a rookie any more, so let me give you my alternate capping method. I like it with the Sirokos, because the Siro is more maneuverable. But I have used the Cobra.

You have 3 x 1 GJ shields on the Cobra and Siro. The Hype has 5 x 200, sometimes less. You can ram the Hype and take down its shields. you can ram hard, or softer, to get the damage you want. With reloads, you can get what you want. Probably less reloads than Hammer and Flails. You will be very close, so the Hype can't shoot down your pods. I launch from 10 to 50 m. Not 10 k, 10 m. Once the shields are 5 % or less, pods are launched, gentle bumps keeps the shields low until you are inside, then you can use the Unfocused Jump to leave and come back after the marines take the ship. You can fine tune this and keep the target blue, until your marines are inside. You come back to the same place, with UFJ. Keep the Hype on the overhead monitor, and you can easily follow the progress of the boarding op.

I use this with the Tyr and the Siro later in the game, and take every ship in the TC universe, usually ending with 15 Tyrs and a K.
Bill in S.F., enjoying the game

BurningMan
Posts: 223
Joined: Wed, 8. Aug 12, 15:56
x3ap

Post by BurningMan » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 19:08

Mousse9 wrote:How many drones should I use against a fully shielded Hyp to keep it distracted? 20-30? And Mk1 or Mk2? Won't they be oneshotted by that badass Hyp?

OK, so, I deploy drones in bulk, set them to attack shields of the Hyp, and when the shields go down, I shoot the boarding pod. I think I'll try that tonight, see how it goes. Thanks for the help.
Around 20 MK1 Drones should be enough they won't get shot down that fast because they rarely get hit they also distract the turrets so your pods should be safe.

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 19:11

@Bill: Ramming? Seriously?! :lol:

I should try that for sheer craziness.

@BurningMan: Thanks, I'll try this after I've tried Bill's tactic. :P

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sat, 24. Aug 13, 21:46

I GOT THE HYPERION!

Oh my gods, I did so many things wrong, yet managed to get all my ships out safely.

Here's what I did (with NUMEROUS retries and tweaks to get it right):

I was about 20km away from the Hyperion, when I launched 2 barrages of Flails, immediately followed by 4 single Flails by spamming the L key 4 times. The moment I saw the shields go down below 10%, I shot the boarding pod, immediately followed by another 4 Flails. These last 4 ensured the shields stayed below 10%. And apparently I shot too many because abruptly the hull dropped to 50%!

But my marines got through so I waited. Only when they got to hacking the core did I realize that I completely forgot to bring my Zephyrus TM with the Gear Locker M5 inside, with the Jumpdrive.

I make the Zephyrus jump to my sector, and have it come to me, while suddenly 2 Paranid transporters start pounding on my newly acquired Hyperion!

The TM gets in range of the Hyp, I transfer the Jumpdrive and E Cells, and make the Hyp jump out to one of my plexes, only to discover that there are Paranid ships there. :o

Fortunately their taste for Argon Whiskey is stronger than their anger, and they leave my Hyp alone, and it manages to dock.

Mission success!


PS. I tried the drones and ramming, unfortunately neither worked. The drones either totally killed the Hyp, or they completely ignored it even within 1km range. And ramming didn't work, the Hyp was smart enough to accelerate JUST before I rammed it. Smart little bugger...
Apparently the answer was MOAR DAKKA. I just didn't barrage fast enough. The attacks were too spaced out.

But all is well! Thanks for all the advice, guys. One of my major milestones completed! :D

brownthomasw
Posts: 163
Joined: Tue, 9. Aug 11, 00:52
x3ap

Post by brownthomasw » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 02:09

Congrats, for all the tricks the flails and boarding pods do it. Thats what they do. I'll have to get a springblossom now, looks zoomy but i generally avoid terrans at all costs.

What plotrelated Orca is there and whats special about it? Not like i don't have enough TL's this time around. I think i have 11 mostly being used even.

BurningMan
Posts: 223
Joined: Wed, 8. Aug 12, 15:56
x3ap

Post by BurningMan » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 02:24

brownthomasw wrote:
What plotrelated Orca is there and whats special about it? Not like i don't have enough TL's this time around. I think i have 11 mostly being used even.
The Orca is the one you have to cap to get the HQ at the end of the boron plot.

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 11:00

Yeah, it's the Orca you have to board at the end of the HQ plot.

I like the Terran ships, generally. I used my Cutlass for quite a while as a combat ship, it's pretty tough and fast, though a wee bit lacking in the firepower. The Vidar is a total killing machine, evidenced by the fact that it tore up that Hyp multiple times, even when I didn't want it to.

I used the Springblossom to explore and map Aldrin. Gotta love that speed. I did get an abrupt game over once, because the autopillock rammed an SPP at full speed.

One thing I dislike, is their weapons. Either the very shortranged EMPC, or the ammo using M/AML. If I need to get ammo, I have to jump all the way to Terran space. Heck, I dislike ammobased entirely. Hate the idea of running out in the middle of a battle.

Anyway, I got the Hyperion, and unless people want to discuss this more, like weapon loadouts for it, consider this topic closed.

Infekted
Posts: 2925
Joined: Mon, 1. Mar 10, 19:47
x3tc

Post by Infekted » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 15:00

Terran stuff is powerful and yet a bit one dimensional. Not a lot of choice involved with them.

I love ammo based weapons. Make sure you have some sort of supply logistics in place and never have to worry about running out really.
You can usually balance them so that you never run out of ammo or energy. Unbeatable DPS over fairly long times scales. And in the rare cases you do rampage too hard, resupply isn't usually that hard with a bit of thought.
MDs make M5s and M4s scary.
EBCs are a great M3 weapon, especially with PBG. Work ok on some M6 too.
MAML is the only M6 weapon that's any good, way better than CIG/ISR etc.
Guass can be very useful as well.

What are you thinking with your Hyperion loadout?

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 15:37

The Hyperion weapon loadout? I've been Googling and searching the forums on what other people say, read up on them on the wiki, and I must say, IT'S A TOTAL MESS.

I am trying very hard not to rant here, but everybody is saying different things. Keep in mind, other than the HEPT and PAC, I have NOT experienced fighting with these weapons, so this is all hearsay for me.

OK, let's start:

Back turrets is PAC, no doubt about it, so skip this.

Front turrets: Either EBC or HEPT. EBC is faster and thus more accurate, but at the same time, AI ammo consumption will probably be massive. More micromanagement because of restocking. BUT, it won't drain energy from your use of main guns.

HEPT is energy based, but probably won't be able to reliably hit the faster ships.

Main guns: This is where it gets crazy. HEPT, CIG, ISR or PBG.

HEPT: Boring old HEPT, I wanted to try something new, so was more interested in the others. Still, if it comes out the best of the bunch, I'll use this. Not really capable of hitting hard on bigger ships. Rather annoying short range.

CIG: Long range, makes target tumble if a smaller ship. Massive energy drain. Slow shots. Some say this weapon is good against big ships, others point to the tumbling effect and that it's "supposed" to be used against smaller ones.

ISR: Long range, slightly drains enemy weapons energy. Even more massive energy drain than CIG, and coupled with faster shots, say bye bye to your energy in seconds. Some say the weapons energy drain is good against capital ships with their energy hungry capital weapons. Others say the faster shots are good against fighters. Confusing isn't it?

PBG: Highly efficient, against both capitals and fighters, but you'll have to see the whites of their eyes before you can shoot, and I dislike shortrange weapons.


I haven't had the chance yet to outfit my Hyperion, I was too busy with other stuff, but I DID have time to think it over, and I just don't know enough how the weapons play. So, I'm going to test them. 4 CIG's, and 4 ISR's in main, in 2 groups.
See how the CIG fights compared to the ISR, and base my decision on that.

Then put 4 of either CIG or ISR on the main guns in group 1, and 4 PBG in group 2.
Group 1 for when combat starts, at long range, then switch to group 2 for close combat.
Or, 6 of CIG or ISR on main, and 2 PBG in group 2. I read that 2 PBG's are enough to easily kill an M3 so 4 aren't necessary.


Originally, I wanted a loadout like in testing: 4 CIG and 4 ISR, in 2 groups. Switch as necessary, and just forgo the PBG with its minimal range. But since both CIG and ISR suck up energy, switching when you're out is no use. And PBG DOES look really good when you're upclose.

See what a mess this is? So, I'm just gonna go find out what fits MY playstyle, and not worry about "what is best".

Infekted
Posts: 2925
Joined: Mon, 1. Mar 10, 19:47
x3tc

Post by Infekted » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 15:47

Mousse9 wrote:The Hyperion weapon loadout? I've been Googling and searching the forums on what other people say, read up on them on the wiki, and I must say, IT'S A TOTAL MESS.
:lol:
Why do you think I asked you for your opinion before commenting?
There's as many load outs as people playing almost... :D
Mousse9 wrote:I am trying very hard not to rant here, but everybody is saying different things. Keep in mind, other than the HEPT and PAC, I have NOT experienced fighting with these weapons, so this is all hearsay for me.

OK, let's start:

Back turrets is PAC, no doubt about it, so skip this.

Front turrets: Either EBC or HEPT. EBC is faster and thus more accurate, but at the same time, AI ammo consumption will probably be massive. More micromanagement because of restocking. At the same time, it won't drain energy from your use of main guns.

HEPT is energy based, but probably won't be able to reliably hit the faster ships.
I would go EBC all the way. The AI doesn't use any more ammo than you whilst used IS, and the hype can carry crazy amounts of ammo.
Set this turret to attack my target and they will literally constantly pwn.
Mousse9 wrote:Main guns: This is where it gets crazy. HEPT, CIG, ISR or PBG.

HEPT: Boring old HEPT, I wanted to try something new, so was more interested in the others. Still, if it comes out the best of the bunch, I'll use this. Not really capable of hitting hard on bigger ships. Rather annoying short range.

CIG: Long range, makes target tumble if a smaller ship. Massive energy drain. Slow shots. Some say this weapon is good against big ships, others point to the tumbling effect and that it's "supposed" to be used against smaller ones.

ISR: Long range, slightly drains enemy weapons energy. Even more massive energy drain than CIG, and coupled with faster shots, say bye bye to your energy in 2 seconds. Some say the weapons energy drain is good against capital ships with their energy hungry capital weapons. Others say the faster shots are good against fighters. Confusing isn't it?

PBG: Highly efficient, against both capitals and fighters, but you'll have to see the whites of their eyes before you can shoot, and I dislike shortrange weapons.

I haven't had the chance yet to outfit my Hyperion, I was too busy with other stuff, but I DID have time to think it over, and I just don't know enough how the weapons play. So, I'm going to test them. 4 CIG's, and 4 ISR's in main, in 2 groups.

See how the CIG fights compared to the ISR, and base my decision on that. Then put 4 of either CIG or ISR on the main guns in group 1, and 4 PBG in group 2.
Group 1 for when combat starts, at long range, then switch to group 2 for close combat.
Or, 6 of CIG or ISR on main, and 2 PBG in group 2. I read that 2 PBG's are enough to easily kill an M3 so 4 aren't necessary.


Originally, I wanted a loadout like in testing: 4 CIG and 4 ISR, in 2 groups. Switch as necessary, and just forgo the PBG with its minimal range. After reading all that stuff, PBG just sounds really good.

See what a mess this is? So, I'm just gonna go find out what fits MY playstyle, and not worry about "what is best".


Yes that sounds about right to me. CIG or ISR depending on what you prefer, plus a couple of PBG because they are just awesome and to balance the energy (especially of ISR) is what I would recommend.

Also do not forget about missiles, the Hype can launch a silly array of them.

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 16:03

Whoops, I've edited my comment while you were posting, Infekted. Hope that doesn't screw up the reply too much.

As for missiles, fortunately this is MUCH easier. Not sure if I really NEED missiles, given the Hyperion's being such a fantastic ship...

Wraiths for capital ships (if I can GET any Wraiths, freaking Terran space and weapons...)
Either Typhoons or Wasps for fighters. Typhoons have more damage, but Wasps are faster, maybe I'll take a load of both. Typhoons for M6 and M3(+), and Wasps for M4/M5.
Mosquitos for Missile Defense.

Oh! Since I have the HUB connected to Ore Belt/Home of Light, and my HQ, should I even make missile complexes for say Typhoons or Wasps? I'm not sure how mass available they are. If it just takes a few jumps with a Mistral SF to stock up on everything when I need it, I'm not going to build plexes.
If I need to wait hours for NPC factories to produce, I'm going to make my own....

Infekted
Posts: 2925
Joined: Mon, 1. Mar 10, 19:47
x3tc

Post by Infekted » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 16:17

Again sounds just right. The Hype makes a great missile test platform. The ideal thing to get a feel for various ones. Best way to get stuff for test purposes that I found is looting battle zones. Can get all sorts, including ones that aren't even produced.

If you use missiles much (I don't), then it's well worth building some factories for them. I know some players do so as a matter of priority. It can never hurt, the worst that can happen is that you sell missiles at average price to an EQD.

Mousse9
Posts: 367
Joined: Mon, 5. Aug 13, 23:16
x3tc

Post by Mousse9 » Sun, 25. Aug 13, 16:29

The only missile plex I've made is the Flail/Hammer Torpedo one, in case I needed to bomb the heck out of a station with my Cobra.

To be honest, I've never used a lot of missiles either, mainly because I avoid combat, and the very few times I used them, I bought them from NPC's.

Only when I regularly use them, I'll build, which I don't see in the immediate future.

Maybe...I can build a Typhoon/Wasp plex, stock my HQ with a whole bunch, and then sell to EQ docks for profitssss. And stop selling when I run out. That might be a good idea.

Post Reply

Return to “X Trilogy Universe”