Best Fighter for commerce raiding

[sithneverdiealone]

I'm looking for advice on picking a fighter for commerce raiding. i usually use a Kestrel, but I'm planing on getting in to ...acquisitions... in a big way and a M5 just doesn't have the punch I'm looking for.

[Timsup2nothin]

I generally use a Buster Raider with four PACs and two IREs. The four PACs will blow the shielding off of a freighter fast enough, and then the two IREs can pound the hull while repeatedly demanding freight without ever running out of laser juice.

[sithneverdiealone]

I generally use a Buster Raider with four PACs and two IREs. The four PACs will blow the shielding off of a freighter fast enough, and then the two IREs can pound the hull while repeatedly demanding freight without ever running out of laser juice.

I was leaning towards a Tenjin... is the speed diferance gona bit me in the butt?

[Nanook]

In anything less than a well shielded M3, you need to worry about fighter drones when attacking freighters. I've had as many as 20 or more released at one time, and even with the Mosquito Missile Defense, I'm hard put to keep from being pecked to death by all those IRE's. A heavy fighter with a turret works best for this role, IMO.

[Triaxx2]

Kestrel makes one heck of a raider, but you need something to pick up valuable cargo. The Buster is an acceptable compromise, though unless you're an awesome pilot, fighting drones is a suicide mission.

Better to hit freighters that have just come from pirate sectors, where they're more likely to have exhausted most or all of their drones. Of course scanning for drones first is an even better tactic.

[Timsup2nothin]

In anything less than a well shielded M3, you need to worry about fighter drones when attacking freighters. I've had as many as 20 or more released at one time, and even with the Mosquito Missile Defense, I'm hard put to keep from being pecked to death by all those IRE's. A heavy fighter with a turret works best for this role, IMO.

Gotta be quick on the jump drive, or hang out in thick asteroid fields. Also, always freight scan first so you know what to expect.

[Bill Huntington]

Capping is a fun part of the game. You can start capping freighters with a Disco and 3 or 4 IREs, even a Harrier with less. I rarely buy a fighter as a personal ship. I usually cap it. You can usually win a fight with the next level up. So I'll even accept the Pericles without a JD, since it can get me to an M3. I love the fast Mambas, but a Perseus or Nova is okay too. Any M3+ is an improvement, with a Laser Energy about 200. My M3+ of choice is the Eclipse with a 200 MJ shield, and staying power on weapons. It needs Turbo is be at its best. Many fighter choices reflect your own fighting strategy. Many choices are what's available.

In a small ship, FDs are too tough. But they're kind of fun in an M3. Constant strafing, a little right, a little left, makes them miss. Shields give you some leeway. Then just lock on one, finish it, then the next.

The hardest for me is an M3+ with Plasma Burst in front, Flak in back, and heavy missiles. You have to stay close and behind because of the PBG, then the flak just pounds you even while you fly and strafe. Then the missiles get you too. If you blow the missile right after launch, it gets both of you. If you wait too long, then it gets just you. You take the target down to 86% hull. If he doesn't bail on First Chance, then you have hang in there until the Waiting Period is over. While being pounded and missiled. Or Turbo out to come back when it's time, then avoid a blast of PBG getting to the target's tail. ... So this kind of cap is worthy of TC/AP.

Edit: Sometimes if you're in the Disco or other small, you can still get a TS to bail even if it has too many FDs. Sometimes they don't launch FDs. Sometimes they don't launch until well into the cap.

[Triaxx2]

Big mistake: Attacking from the front unless you seriously out class them.

Better to engage from a weaker angle, either using speed to get around behind, or attacking from below if the turret is on top.

Straight line thinking is suicidal.

[Timsup2nothin]

Big mistake: Attacking from the front unless you seriously out class them.

Better to engage from a weaker angle, either using speed to get around behind, or attacking from below if the turret is on top.

Straight line thinking is suicidal.

?

I always attack freighters from the front. Fly out front, cut speed to zero as I spin onto target, blast away. Repeat if needed.

NOTE: Split Caimans may require re-thinking, but I seldom find them with guns in their forward bays.

[sithneverdiealone]

Big mistake: Attacking from the front unless you seriously out class them.

Better to engage from a weaker angle, either using speed to get around behind, or attacking from below if the turret is on top.

Straight line thinking is suicidal.

?

I always attack freighters from the front. Fly out front, cut speed to zero as I spin onto target, blast away. Repeat if needed.

NOTE: Split Caimans may require re-thinking, but I seldom find them with guns in their forward bays.

actually i have been attacking from the rear and ripping in till I'm juuust pastt the gun and then cuting to the TS's Speed and letting my kesral's rear turret shoot them, admittedly I'm mainly picking on Dukes TSs right now...

[Timsup2nothin]

I seldom use a ship with a rear turret, and even when I do I hardly ever turn it on unless I know I am being chased by a missile. I've gotten pretty comfortable with using the monitor view to guide me to that straight out front sweet spot, and blasting them right in the nose is always safe. Even with a fairly fast or maneuverable target there is plenty of time before they can turn away enough to start shooting back. I'd guess that at least half my targets never even fire a shot.

[Graaf]

In anything less than a well shielded M3, you need to worry about fighter drones when attacking freighters. I've had as many as 20 or more released at one time, and even with the Mosquito Missile Defense, I'm hard put to keep from being pecked to death by all those IRE's. A heavy fighter with a turret works best for this role, IMO.

Gotta be quick on the jump drive, or hang out in thick asteroid fields. Also, always freight scan first so you know what to expect.

Always use the Freight Scanner! Not only to check for fighter drones, but most importantly to check if your target carries valuable cargo you can demand!

[birdtable]

What ever ship you prefer avoid ships armed with PBG's ( New game starts biggest nightmare) and watch some sheep dog trials on Youtube for attack tactics ...

Best ship ...Chimera.

[Triaxx2]

I like to attack the M3/M4 freight haulers, since they've typically got no drones, and more valuable cargo in my experience. Plus the ships are more valuable.

Freighters I attack from below, and sweep fire down the length, before peeling away, and then coming back to check for drones/bails.

[Bill Huntington]

When I first saw PBGs, I wanted to run away, then avoid them. But that meant giving up a lot of $3Mil prizes, after the trouble to find them and be close enough to scan them. So I thought about how.

I only cap M3+ when they're traders. The military ones have high morale and rarely bail. Since they're traders, you can approach from behind and start shooting that way. If they have PBG, you have to stay behind them no matter what.

Sometimes you have to break away, to repair shields or whatever. When you come back to them, they are approaching. The range of PBG is about 1 km. At about that range, I strafe with two keys so the target's aim is way off. In an Eclipse with 200 MJ shields you can take some hit from PBG; some, not a lot. But then you are past it and on the target's tail. At some point, you've got another $3 Mil in your account.

I cap TS ships early, then for my own use. But there's rep loss with every cap, even to the pirates. You get the most $ for least rep loss if you just cap M3+. If you are at top rank for every race, you can cap 3 or so targets before you drop a rank. Then you just do a mission or two.