M6 viability

[seandigs]

This may have been discussed before, but I am having trouble piloting a m6 with the way enemies spawn in XTC. All of the combat missions I've tried so far spawn a m7 with a little fighter cover. I am not sure how to even approach them in the m6, as it seems like I'm not really any faster or much more maneuverable than my opponents. I'm using a Heavy Dragon with Scram Cannons (and a couple HEPTs for shields\fighter use) and I can rarely even get the shields down before I'm overwhelmed. I've never used missiles very much -- do the m6 class missiles do any worthwhile damage to larger opponents?

I got a lot of use out of a Mamba Vanguard, and could take on much larger foes (both in terms of ship class and numbers) due to the maneuverability. Similarly the Nova worked pretty well in fighter skirmishes since it was pretty heavily shielded. But I don't really see the strength of m6's that I should be taking advantage of. Should I just sell back the H.Dragon and save up for a m7, or am I just making tactical errors?

 0 Comment(s)

[Eliah]

Well, the error might be in using an M6. Seriously, those things are meant to be NPC secondary-rate ships or so - something that maybe annoys you in a battle while the real threats are your main problem, or like acting as a patrol leader that draws most of enemy fire so that the patrol escorts are safer - basically, they are not really single-purpose combat vessels as such, they are good at support roles, though not cost-efficient, of course.

In any case, an M6 needs a ton of shields and a ton of guns to be good (and turning, depending on how you are controlling it) - so a heavy dragon might not be the best choice in terms of shielding maybe.. And, of course, it is much larger and bulkier than even a heavy fighter, so if you try to fly a corvette as a fighter, then you will get overwhelmed (or if you just engage too strong a battle, actually).

 0 Comment(s)

[seandigs]

thanks that is helpful. I wasn't quite sure how to handle it with the way the mod determines enemies. In Vanilla a m6 made a lot of sense since it could handle taking on a lot of fighters--but with more capital ship enemies with the mod I suppose I'll just save it for a fleet escort.

 0 Comment(s)

[K.J.]

Outside of missions its usable (because you can decide at what conditions to fight). For capturing other m6 and pirating its good (enough), but for missions they are more or less unusable. You need an M7 to counter other M7, or a M8 but thats more risky.

 0 Comment(s)

[argon_emperor]

Hmm, giving a quick look at the Scram Cannon stats, the ~3km range is enough to keep you out of the pain zone of an M7 (this being with range of Flak Cannons, which I've found to be the biggest threat from them). I'd suggest playing around with your enemies, find what weapons they can use in what turrets, and sit in the zone which allows you the best chance at survival. Also, as soon as you can afford them (though for corvettes it's expensive) get Military 125MJ shields. They definitely help a lot. I don't know what ships you're going up against, but I'll take a guess most likely Pirate Carrack and Tepukei for the M7 class ships. The best advice I can give for these little formations, is first off take out ANY M8's that are there. They will easily overwhelm you with heavy missiles otherwise. Focus fire one at a time on those, and don't be afraid to jump to another gate in the sector. Quick and easy, and you can do it without too much of a hassle with a bit of practice. After you deal with any bombers, move on to the rest of the fighters. Leave the M7 till last, just set one of your monitors to the M7 (target, shift-1), so you can keep an eye on it.

For the Carrack, just stay about 2.5km from it, on it's side, set your speed to -10, and just strafe to keep it from aiming the main guns at you. Often they have IBL's or such in the side turrets, so easier to dodge as they move slower. It'll probably take some practice, but once you get the hang of it, you'll be able to take them on one-on-one without too much hassle. The Tepukei is more troublesome, as they seem to be more maneuverable, and pack nastier weaponry. First off, do NOT get within 2km of its left, right, or up turrets. Good chance there'll be alpha flak in them, and they chew through M6 shields with no problem. I find the best spot is to try to stay about 2km below them. The usually tend to have either PBG (not a threat at 2km) or HEPT/Energy Flecette in the bottom, and many shots of those can be dodged by strafing, and the ones that hit shouldn't be too critical. Again, it will come down to practice, but those two strategies made it possible for me to take on the M7's.

Also, try a Terran Shamshir if you have the credits and Terran Rep. 6x GEMP in the front, and AEMP everywhere else. Set back turret to missiles only, other two turrets to attack enemies, and use the GEMPs for taking out M3 and above. GEMP has a 6km range, so that allows you to get the early shot in, and with 6x125MJ Military shields, you have a good recharge to soak up the hits on you. But that's up to you, and you might find flying fighters better/more enjoyable anyway.

Hope this helps some!

p.s. Also, be careful about using missiles, as the AI seems to have gotten even better at shooting them down, especially ships with turrets :/

 0 Comment(s)

[Urizen]

Outside of missions its usable (because you can decide at what conditions to fight). For capturing other m6 and pirating its good (enough), but for missions they are more or less unusable. You need an M7 to counter other M7, or a M8 but thats more risky.

The Viper is actually not that risky (because of her high speed and decent manouverability), i´ve tried her out more than once, just don´t go in alone and you´ll be fine

 0 Comment(s)

[pippin83uk]

In a word drones ^_^

I used to find that fighting an M7+ fighter support a problem in an M6 untill i started spamming fighter drones they can easily destroy the fighter support and keep the M7 busy while you waist it ^_^ i like to use the Reaper as my M6 and it packs a punch as long as the energy lasts

 0 Comment(s)

[pippin83uk]

DP >.>

 0 Comment(s)

[Sam Redstone]

I'll second that: a Reaper is your best choice for a player-controlled M6. Make sure you have ECM installed and the lonely turret set for Missile Defense, though, or you'll be sorry.

Anything that gets in front of you will die! Military shields are worth the investment if you're serious about using the Reaper in combat.

Personally, I fly around in a Tepukei with 2 ships docked to it: my Reaper and a Scarab TS for added cargo space and the occasional trade mission. (You could substitute a TP for doing taxi missions.)

The Tepukei is BIGGITY-BAD (translation: a worthwhile adversary ) in fights, and looks so cool (my opinion). The Reaper is handy for a change of pace, or to fight alongside the Tepukei.

Oh, and I keep a fast M5 docked to the Reaper, so I can reach those stations that are offering missions before they time out.

So yeah, that's really four ships all docked together. Maybe there is no single perfect ship in XTC, but if you duct-tape enough cool ships together, you get something similar... LOL.

Oh, yes: and I use drones. Mark II. As much as possible.

 0 Comment(s)