Gunboats balance

[Tenacity]

So how's the scorpion gunboat stack up in comparison to the others? Just curious.


To address the gunboat vs X issue here...

In my opinion gunboats really have a middle ground. Most gunboats have an extremely hard time hitting fighters - in turret view or 3rd view. The gunboat weapons dont have a quick refire, which makes dodging the shots very easy for even the VHF's - just alternate strafe direction every second or two and you'll almost never get hit. Server/connection lag plays a big part in that too - I try to avoid going up against any sort of fighter in my gunboat (at current, using a liberty rogue gunboat w/ outcast turrets for my pirate character - bloodsail).

Because of their manuverability, gunboats seem to be fairly effective when used in a -support- role against other capital ships - anything from destroyers to battleships. Alone, gunboats dont have the firepower needed to take out a destroyer/cruiser and up (usually) - but they provide more raw firepower than a fighter/VHF, and enough manuverability and shielding to survive fighting larger capships. Case in point - when I was an LSF pilot flying a liberty gunboat, I fairly easily chased a lane hacker spyglass away from manhattan because I was able to 'hide' underneath his ship, and keep up with his manuvers, in a spot where most of his turrets were unable to hit me - but almost all of mine could hit him.

Gunboats seem particularly effective against bombers, in my opinion. I havent gone up against any of the 'uber' bomber pilots yet, but I generally win against those I do fight. Gunboats have more firepower than a fighter, and bombers arent agile enough to dodge the turrets (most of the time). The gunboat is also quick and agile enough to dodge the heavy-hitting weapons (torps+) used by the bomber, allowing it to stay alive more easily.

Really though, the only encounters gunboats truly excel in is gunboat vs gunboat, and even then it's even ground. They dont have a significant advantage against either other capships, or against fighters. There are a few simple reasons why most players prefer gunboats over fighters/bombers (IMO):

1. GB's are much easier to do anti-NPC missions with. They're very tough for NPC's to kill, have a lot of firepower, and dont require excessive flying skill to do well on missions with.

2. GB's give the feel/RP of a capship, but dont cost 100+ million credits to obtain. Gunboats are an easy/quick alternative if the player wants to Roleplay a warship captain without spending weeks trading for money.

3. GB's allow a player to survive much longer in pvp situations when they dont have the uber flying skills some of the fighter/bomber pilots here have.

I fit into all three of those, honestly. The third in particular - i've tried several light fighters, heavy fighters, VHF's, and bombers... and frankly I suck in them, and I know a lot of other players do as well. Part of the issue is connection latency, which makes piloting more fragile craft in pvp exceedingly difficult - the other part is that capships, even gunboats, give combat a 'slower' feel to it. Not everyone wants fast paced adrenaline junkie fighter combat, and not everyone is capable of such either. I prefer combat to have a little strategy involved.

One other, semi-related reason gunboats are popular, especially among pirate and criminal groups: GB's can fairly easily manuver through scrap and asteroid fields, and have the shielding to withstand mines and explosive gas. The first two are the biggest points - a gunboat has firepower and survivability, but unlike cruisers and battleships the gunboats are small enough to escape into an asteroid field where larger ships cannot follow.

Just my input.

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