X3R Free Ship Help

[Blinx2510]

Hi guys, i'm just in a bit of a dilemma atm with trying to pick up the free ships dotted about the universe. I've got the majority of them now but im struggling with some of the ones where you have to pass through xenon/pirate sectors as i just keep getting absolutely battered as soon as i enter them. I'm currently running the free nova which is very good for the most part but every now and then ill either be outnumbered or completely outgunned, especially in the xenon sectors. Was just wondering if anyone could pass on any advice on how to get through them unscathed?

[The Q]

The Nova is too slow I guess. If you can get a hold of a fast M4 or M5 ship, ideally with cargo class M, a jumpdrive, a Transporter Extension and a couple of ecell, it should be possible to get to the ships quicker, take over control and sent them elsewhere with the help of the jumpdrive, without being shot by pirates.

[Blinx2510]

OK thanks i'll give that a go. My current plan is to raise money to buy myself an argon centaur, is that the best M6 or should i be aiming for another race's M6?

[Cpt.Jericho]

Either go for speed or superior firepower. M6 have neither.

[Blinx2510]

So the M6's aren't as utterly dominant as they were on 2? i know the centaur is slightly slower than the nova but with better guns and much better shields. Whats the best next step after the nova if not M6?

[oHmY]

I am echoing the previous suggestion. Buy the fastest disposable ship you can find, load it with Ecells, a jump drive, a transporter, exchange these onto your free ship and just leave your m5. Trading 100K worth of ship for 2M worth of ship is a no brainer.

Sorry I don't have a precise solution specific to your question relating to M6.

TBH, I'd highly recommend an upgrade to Terran Conflict or even Albion Prelude. A lot of well balanced content has been added. Reunion felt too much like the shell of a game to me--A poor variety of ships and weapons, and a limited UI. I spent most of my time in Reunion asking "why can't I find this, why is there only 4 weapon types (exaggerating), why is this always out of stock, why can't I do this, why won't the UI let me do that?"

When I moved to TC after a short adjustment period, I thought "There it is, I need to stimulate the economy there to get more of that, sweet more weapons, nice now I CAN do this, now the UI WILL let me do that." Also TC still has free ships at specific locations (and more added I believe). AP, however, has their locations set at random (and I think sometimes not at all.)

Even now I was looking over X3 Reunion sites trying to find a solution to your M6 question. I've already given up while thanking my lucky stars I had made the decision to move to TC. Then after a short period I moved on to AP.

[The Q]

So the M6's aren't as utterly dominant as they were on 2?

Correct. Unfortunately, they were nerfed too much in comparison to X2. While they're not completely useless, especially as a playership they forfeited a lot of their strength.

Whats the best next step after the nova if not M6?

Personally, if at all I would look for speed and manoeuvrability in an M6 class ship. That's usually their biggest weakness. If I remember correctly, the Centaur is a prime example for that: While on paper it might be stronger than the Nova in various points, it's so immobile that you can hardly evade enemy fire, making it the perfect target for smaller ships.

An equally strong or maybe even equally overpowered ship like the M6 class ships in X2 is the Hyperion in X3R. It's the only M7 class ship and you'll get it as a reward of the Bala Gi Research missions. I guess, that's what a lot of players fly after an M3. Also added with the Bala Gi Missions are so-called M3+ ships, which might be something else to look at.