Heavy Fighter's Cruise Speed

[Challenger]

Their only advantages should be maneuverability, raw engine output, and (perhaps) cloak fuel consumption.

HF would definitely be better served with VHF powerplant and 10/9 weapons instead of a speed boost. They would still be weak hull/shield, but they could get behind something and shoot the damn thing down.

Personally I think VHF class should have agility reduced across the board by about 10% *AND* should be the only class with mines and fighter torp slots. HF should be the shooter class, VHF should be the utility fighter.

But you cant do that either because some of the light bombers are already better than VHFs

If you're going for even fights between HF and VHF-class fighters, then you're absolutely right. However, I'm still not convinced that this is a reasonable premise for balance. In my mind, choosing a smaller fighter is appropriate when combat should be avoided. If I expect a scrap, I'd be nuts to take out anything short of an armored VHF.

But on the other hand, I could be misunderstanding the balance goal here. Are heavy fighters supposed to be able to take down VHFs?