Fractal Softworks Forum

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

News:

Starsector 0.97a is out! (02/02/24); New blog post: Simulator Enhancements (03/13/24)

Pages: 1 [2]

Author Topic: Most effective fighter setup?  (Read 25131 times)

TaLaR

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 2794
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #15 on: May 08, 2017, 08:30:51 AM »

Astral with 3 Longbows + 3 Daggers is quite nice. Rapid refire due to ship system and decent fighter survival rate (=sustained firepower) since all fighters are shielded and don't get too close to target.
Logged

The2nd

  • Lieutenant
  • **
  • Posts: 81
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #16 on: May 08, 2017, 09:29:59 AM »

Astral is special.  Because of its system, I use only bombers.  Daggers are too expensive.  Khopesh get the same job done for much less cost.  However, a few homing torpedoes is nice as insurance and to mix things up.  For Astral, I use one wing of Daggers, three Khopesh, and two Longbows.

That's the exact same load-out I settled on too. It's a mean one  ;D
After using it for a while I swapped one Khopesh with another Dagger for more cosistent damage vs frigates and destroyers.

When using an Astral for the first time I was surprised to find that the recall ability had neither charges nor a cooldown. Flux cost is negligible when you stay mostly out of enemy range so it's really spammable. Feels borderline OP in the players hands. 

Logged

Wyvern

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3786
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #17 on: May 08, 2017, 11:38:31 AM »

Gladius is actually one of my favorite fighters, and I use a Drover equipped with two wings of them as frigate hunters - even at only two fighters in a wing, they're much better at getting the job done than Broadswords are, regardless of whether that job is killing fighters or frigates, or distracting larger ships from bomber attack runs.  The extra IR Pulse Laser isn't great at punching through armor, but it's quite good enough for light targets, and the Gladius is just a lot better than a broadsword at actually getting its guns pointed at its target.
Logged
Wyvern is 100% correct about the math.

Dri

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 1403
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #18 on: May 08, 2017, 12:15:21 PM »

It seemed like the Gladius fluxed capped itself after just a few shots of the IR Laser when I used them, which lead to awkward staggers in its attacks.
Logged

Thaago

  • Global Moderator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 7174
  • Harpoon Affectionado
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #19 on: May 09, 2017, 12:43:16 AM »

Yes, I was just testing the Gladius and while its 300 speed is a big bonus, it doesn't actually get much firepower out of the IR laser due to building up flux. I thought that fighter weapons didn't cause flux specifically to negate that problem?
Logged

AxleMC131

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 1722
  • Amateur World-Builder
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #20 on: May 09, 2017, 02:06:37 AM »

No, fighter weapons are just regular weapons most of the time. They create flux like anything else.
Logged

TheWetFish

  • Commander
  • ***
  • Posts: 140
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #21 on: May 09, 2017, 03:39:57 AM »

All of the fighters are now updated in the wiki (for 0.8a-RC19)
http://starsector.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Fighter

Dagger, Longbow, Wasp & Claw only have the no_weapon_flux hullmod fitted and do indeed not generate weapon flux.  All other fighters generate flux as normal

The Gladius does have an odd cadence to it's IR Pulse Laser.  200 flux capacity & 50 dissipation will do that.  It's still amazing at it's heavy interception role :)

Lots of talk about offensive fighter usage already but remember they can also be used defensively, particularly with the Converted Hanger hull mod.

Wasps aren't particularly durable but make an excellent defensive addition with 6 highly mobile PD Lasers and on demand minefields.  Their Stinger-class Proximity Mines are fairly useless inside a hostile PD envelope but make a huge difference defensively in protecting against both fighters & munitions.

On the subject of munitions consider the humble Mining Pod Auxiliary Wing.  It is... garbage.  But very cheap & sturdily constructed garbage that likes to fly in front of it's ship in a box formation.  The 4 mining lasers may on occasion do something but it's real strength is manual physical interception of munitions intended for it's carrier, a role it excels at.  Think of it less as a fighter and more as physical shield.  
« Last Edit: May 09, 2017, 03:49:00 AM by TheWetFish »
Logged

AxleMC131

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 1722
  • Amateur World-Builder
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #22 on: May 09, 2017, 03:56:24 AM »

Dagger, Longbow, Wasp & Claw only have the no_weapon_flux hullmod fitted and do indeed not generate weapon flux.  All other fighters generate flux as normal  

* Looks this "no weapon flux" hullmod up in the stock game files for confirmation. *

Well. I stand corrected. Some fighters do not generate flux from weapons. :-X
Logged

TheWetFish

  • Commander
  • ***
  • Posts: 140
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #23 on: May 09, 2017, 04:24:11 AM »

Dagger, Longbow, Wasp & Claw only have the no_weapon_flux hullmod fitted and do indeed not generate weapon flux.  All other fighters generate flux as normal  

* Looks this "no weapon flux" hullmod up in the stock game files for confirmation. *

Well. I stand corrected. Some fighters do not generate flux from weapons. :-X

New in 0.8 I think.  It caught me out initially too :)
Logged

sotanaht

  • Captain
  • ****
  • Posts: 297
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #24 on: May 11, 2017, 09:31:55 AM »

For an Astral you really want a only bomber setup. As soon as they have dropped their ordinance recall them for the next wave. You have a insane damage output this way.  

I run 3x Longbow + 3x Khopesh on my Astral.  Everything else is just Talons and Claws.

All jokes aside, I don't find Talons to be that powerful.  They make a good defense screen or distraction, but they won't kill anything but the enemy fighters.  Even when I tried running like 9 drovers, I still didn't really have enough talons to kill big ships.  The Talon+Claw loadout though is pretty good at locking ships down with EMP.
Logged

SCC

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 4112
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #25 on: May 11, 2017, 09:42:01 AM »

My experience with Talons was completely different, they killed mine Medusa and something else I can't remember, and even when I'm in a cruiser they aren't mere annoyance.
More on topic... Honestly, I don't know. I go with sparks, longbows, broadswords and kopeshes mostly.

Burlap

  • Ensign
  • *
  • Posts: 23
    • View Profile
Re: Most effective fighter setup?
« Reply #26 on: May 13, 2017, 08:50:37 PM »

My experience with Talons was completely different, they killed mine Medusa and something else I can't remember, and even when I'm in a cruiser they aren't mere annoyance.

I think this is more broadly because fighters/bombers in 0.8 are quite dangerous, getting attacked by a few wings is the equivalent of a full cruiser's firepower being brought to bear at you from the most inconvenient angles. Certainly it's got me designing Centurions and Medusas and Tempests for my fleet that specialize in rapidly thinning out enemy fighters. Carriers are now pretty amazing if they outnumber you, all that firepower projected across the whole battlespace (unless there's enemy interceptors or other effective deterrents).
Logged
Pages: 1 [2]