| Author |
Long Range Scouts and You (ver. 1.483~) |
Bardiche
Chief Marshal
Joined: November 16, 2006
Posts: 1247
|  Posted: 2008-02-27 22:16
[size=1](copying DarkSpace Community Website's form, lulz. I blame boredom for this, plus seeing no one fly this otherwise excellent ship...)[/size]
Alright. The Long Range Scout. A scout based on ECM and ECCM, electronical warfare equipment. You, despite your lack of big ships, want to be an asset to your team. This may be because you are a newcomer, or just because you haven't subscribed yet/anymore. This guide will tell you some basic things regarding the usage of this vessel and how to equip and handle it to be a valuable asset to a battle.
[u]Requirements:[/u]
Rank: Midshipman
Badges: None
Tech level: 15
Resources:
Don't know from the top of my head. : (
[u]Mounts and Standard Components:[/u]
(#, mount type, stock components, arcs)
(F=fore, A=aft, L=left, R=right, Full=F/A/L/R)
1x Jump Drive I slot
*1x Tachyon Drive (A)
1x Drive slots
*1x IE Drive (A)
4x Armour slots
*1x Standard Armour (F)
*1x Standard Armour (L)
*1x Standard Armour (R)
*1x Standard Armour (A)
5x Special I slots
*1x Auxiliary Power Generator (Full)
*1x ECM (F/L/R)
*1x Scanner (F/L/R)
*2x ECCM (F/L/R)
2x Standard Mount
*1x Standard Chemical Laser (Full)
*1x Beacon (F/L/R)
Outfitting
Alright. Now, the main thing we remember is that this vessel does not do damage. Not... At... All. So don't bother with any damage output whatsoever.
Keep the SCL or replace it by a Pulse Beam if available. Point Defense may not do much, but it's useful for allies nonetheless. Keep the Beacon. It doesn't matter that it doesn't give full coverage, for as a Scout, you have your way of getting past such things.
Equip an AME Drive and Anti-Matter Jump Drive if available, but they aren't really necessary. They just give you a nice speed boost. As far as armors go, I usually keep Standard Armors, as your evasion should be able to keep you out of harms way. Once damaged, recovery of Standard Armor coupled with evasion should regen most of it before you get hit again.
Now, the devices is where it gets interesting. You get one ECM, two ECCM and a Scanner + Aux Gen. Personally I find those to be.. Not much use in their current setup. Replace the Scanner by an ECM, and replace the ECCMs for an ECM as well. Keep the Aux Gen, max level everything. Now you have 4 ECMs, which lower your signature significantly. This helps with masking allied ships, or approaching (clustered) planets.
Not much other modding to do.
[u]Usage[/u]
The Long Range Scout is, by no means, suited for one-on-one battle. It does not at all pack a punch. It's most excellent for, as its name implies... Scouting.
Beacons are useful for those pesky K'luth vessels, while your ECM will cover most other aspects. The Long Range Scout is at its best in a combat situation that will feature ECM pilots, K'luth, fleeing vessels, planetary sieges... Well, actually, you can deploy it for mostly anything! Run wild!
[u]Ingress[/u]
As far as entering a battle zone goes, a Scout has a relatively easy job. Select the warzone, jump in at 300 GU distance, fly in. In the case of a planetary bombing, likely you are already with your bomber. Otherwise, jump to the bomber.
[u]Deployment[/u]
Max out your engine speed, activate one or two of your ECMs (usually, one will do the trick) and charge straight into the battlefield, all the while nimbly dodging around and avoiding getting hit. Your task is to beacon enemy vessels, tracking down fleeing foes and masking friendly Supply Ships from enemy eyes.
[u]Engagement[/u]
You don't really Engage, but whatever. As a Long Range Scout, you are there to beacon enemies. Fly towards an un-beaconed enemy, get within 50 GU range or, better yet, fly under them and set a beacon on them. This will help your allies locate the enemy easier, gives you 1 Scout point and, if it's K'luth, disallow it to cloak. Your SCL can take out nearby missiles and infantery, but don't concentrate on it.
Prepare to take down your ECM if it, unintentionally, cloaks enemies from your allies. If there're allied Supply Ships flying along, stick to within 100 GU of them and run your ECMs if they don't have ECMs of their own. They will love the ECM coverage you provide them.
Now, that's not all there is to it. One of your major fortes is a Jump Drive that takes 1-2 seconds to charge. Now during engagement, enemies have a tendency to jump away when the going gets tough. That's your cue! Open your navmap and check where their icon disappears: Plot out a route that, hopefully, trails the same direction and path as they jumped, set a target point about 1k further than where they disappeared and jump! If all goes well, the enemy should be within detectable range of you, and your allies can go into the pursuit of killing.
If, however, this is not the case, plot out a route further into the same direction, press Jump and carefully monitor the navmap to see if you happen to pass by the ship. Cancel the jump when you do, alert your teammates, jump to where you saw them and stick to them like flies to... Flypaper.
Post Scriptum: Once you have beaconed all enemy targets, just fly away from the combat zone at 500 GU distance, turn your engines down to 2.5~5.0 and jump in only when either a new ship approaches, or one of the enemies flees. You know the drill.
[u]Planetary Engagement[/u]
Now this is where a Long Range Scout can do some excellent work. There are two tactics to deploy here.
One is to activate all your ECMs, get within 500 GU of the planet and check all its planetary defenses: Once within 500 GU, you can pick off what each diamond represents and check what it is armed with. Your allies will love the intel. If your signature is about to get above 0.0, either lower your speed or de-activate your engine. If that still doesn't work, jam them to the max, circle the planet once at max speed and get out. Attentive allies that have you on their cam should be able to see what they want. You've done your task.
A second tactic here is to escort the bomber. This is easy. Fly to within 50 GU range of the bomber, to utilize your ECMs to the max. Preferably, fly behind them. Press G to shadow them, activate PD, sit back and wait. When you notice your bomber heading off at about 1000 Gu from the planet to avoid getting caught in an Interdictor, you are left two choices:
One, get out.
Two, continue on, escorting the bombs in under ECM. Just stick to the bombs, and bail out once you feel you get too close to the planet, which usually is within 250 GU, depending on planetary size.
[u]Scouting[/u]
Sometimes, enemies will stick to their planets and gather their forces. As an ECM specialist, you can hide your signature and creep closer to the enemy forces. Memorize who the enemies are and what their ships are and tell your allies. They will now be prepared to face whatever the enemy decks out.
Make sure they don't catch you, though: Stay at least 300 GU away from the enemy (unless you want to beacon tag them), and avoid your signature rising above -0.1. You do not want to get caught in the middle of an enemy fleet, with all allies well out of your range. Dying in vain, despite the low prestige loss, always leaves a bitter taste to the mouth.
[u]Egress[/u]
Really easy. If you find your armors compromised, hit Shift + J (it is preferred you are not facing any celestial bodies while doing so), cancel the jump once out of the combat zone, activate your ECMs. Get your signature down to less than 0 and wait out the battle before sending out Supply Distresses. If you have Standard Armors, wait until your armors are at a nice level again (25% will usually do) and jump back into the action.
If you're escorting another ship, jump to their same location and stick to within 50 GU of them to provide optimal ECM coverage and shield them from enemy eyes.
Now that you've sit through this boring read, all of you Midshipman can grab this excellent vessel, mod it and fly it into combat. Usher us into an age of ECM coverage!
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Ulven Skyblade
Marshal
Non Omnis Moriar
Joined: March 04, 2007
Posts: 230
From: Timbo400
| Posted: 2008-02-28 04:24
this is what i call a usefull post.
Timbo
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The more you see, the more you read, the more you hear, the more you know that you know nothing. And that the truth is nothing more then a personal judgment on the world around us by the people around us.
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Kanman
Grand Admiral
Pitch Black
Joined: August 26, 2005
Posts: 1017
From: Virginia, United States
| Posted: 2008-02-28 08:01
The most useful of scouts would have to be the Assault Corvette on UGTO. Aside from it be far too strong in direct combat, it has another useful role few know about or use.
that would be as an anti-bomber. Just put 5 chem lasers on it and 1 ECCM. You can wipe out entire clouds of bombs long before they reach the planet and easily ram any left-overs if you run out of time to shoot them all.
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Sanity Assassin (K'Luth propaganda)
Grand Admiral
Sanity Assassins
Joined: February 19, 2006
Posts: 919
From: Pittsburgh PA, USA
| Posted: 2008-02-28 09:54
nice post. im sure it will help lots of new players seem they can accomplish something.
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Bardiche
Chief Marshal
Joined: November 16, 2006
Posts: 1247
| Posted: 2008-02-28 13:01
Quote:
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On 2008-02-28 08:01, Kanman *FC* wrote:
The most useful of scouts would have to be the Assault Corvette on UGTO. Aside from it be far too strong in direct combat, it has another useful role few know about or use.
that would be as an anti-bomber. Just put 5 chem lasers on it and 1 ECCM. You can wipe out entire clouds of bombs long before they reach the planet and easily ram any left-overs if you run out of time to shoot them all.
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: P But Assault Corvette is used often enough. I was hoping to shed some light on a vessel normally neglected by people, when it's actually rather good. (I mean, what other UGTO vessel can spare the energy to carry 4-5 ECMs while still getting 20.0 speed?)
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DarkScorpion
Marshal
Sanity Assassins
Joined: September 14, 2004
Posts: 237
From: London England
| Posted: 2008-02-28 14:03
just to add a bit its actualy beter to use a scaner for planet defence as it targets better on bombs thatn eccm
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doda *EP5 no longer exception...*
Grand Admiral
Joined: December 11, 2005
Posts: 1012
From: happy land
| Posted: 2008-02-28 17:11
Quote:
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On 2008-02-28 13:01, Bardiche wrote:
Quote:
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On 2008-02-28 08:01, Kanman *FC* wrote:
The most useful of scouts would have to be the Assault Corvette on UGTO. Aside from it be far too strong in direct combat, it has another useful role few know about or use.
that would be as an anti-bomber. Just put 5 chem lasers on it and 1 ECCM. You can wipe out entire clouds of bombs long before they reach the planet and easily ram any left-overs if you run out of time to shoot them all.
|
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: P But Assault Corvette is used often enough. I was hoping to shed some light on a vessel normally neglected by people, when it's actually rather good. (I mean, what other UGTO vessel can spare the energy to carry 4-5 ECMs while still getting 20.0 speed?)
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dont antisensors have the same electronic warfare equipment, but with more slots for point defense?
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VCA since June 5th 06
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Bardiche
Chief Marshal
Joined: November 16, 2006
Posts: 1247
| Posted: 2008-02-28 17:18
Quote:
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On 2008-02-28 17:11, doda *EP5* (No Longer Exception...) wrote:
dont antisensors have the same electronic warfare equipment, but with more slots for point defense?
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Excellent point. I just checked: Anti-sensors have an additional F/L particle and F/R particle cannon, both of which could be swapped for beacons or PD. Thanks! I totally overlooked that ship! (lol irony)
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