Pledge: Freelancer vs. Hornet

[Velvatine]

So I'm reconsidering my Freelancer Pledge since I bought a Constellation add-on. I will admit, I'm hesitant because I enjoyed the game it's named after, but the new ship is introducing redundancies.

 

I've found a couple on-topic threads about the Cutlass/Hornet, few on the Freelancer, and I'm thinking of changing the pledge for a better fighter. Unless they start selling Scythes again (doubtful).

 

Ultimately, what do y'all think? Have you dropped the Freelancer for something? I dread to ask...Cutlass or Hornet?

[novastorm]

I will actually be picking up a freelancer soon (probably next paycheck), since i think it's the only one that comes with an engine made/suited for navigating new jump-points as a standard.

 

Also it's my goal to have every "normal" ship available when game launches. Can't afford any more of the "limited" ships even if they go on sale again. My wife would kill me =P

[Bearcat]

I am reluctant to answer, since the current stats that CIG offers are unclear in value.  But if one were to go by the descriptions then the Hornet would be an obvious choice.  It is a high end fighter with no other purpose.  Why else are you playing video games if not to dominate in combat?  The Freelancer description conveys it as a truck driving simulator.

 

But maybe those descriptions have nothing to do with reality and perhaps everything is an equally relevant combatant.

[Nameless]

Since I intend to trade, no I will not exchange my freelancer. Although I have the Constellation. A ship needs gear and I think it will be easier to outfit a Freelancer than a Constellation.

 

So Freelancer vs. Hornet. It depends on what you want to do in the game. If you can get both, do it. It will mean more money for CIG and two LTI ships for you. Like the description already says:

 

MISC Freelancer ready to fly (High-end ship focused more for trade and exploration)

 

Anvil Aerospace Hornet ready to fly (High-end ship focused towards dogfighting/combat)

[Reavern]

There's not much info about the Freelancer (just pics), but it seems that a Freelancer is redundant with a Constellation if you're a trader. The Constellation has nearly twice the cargo capacity as the Freelancer, so why wouldn't you want to haul more cargo? The Constellation also has much better offensive and defensive capabilities, and probably better engine performance (4 x TR6s vs 2 x TR5s), so you'll be safer flying a Constellation than a Freelancer. I suppose another factor could be how expensive or time-consuming it will be to refit a ship's weapons, upgrades, and mods. If you need to change roles often and it costs a lot of time and money to refit your ship, it would make more sense to have different ships for different roles. It's up to each player to decide.

[Velvatine]

All good points. 

 

Bearcat: I am very tempted to have a dedicated "war" ship for huge battles. A side issue that isn't really related to this topic is Cutlass vs. Hornet (which is a moot point I guess since we haven't even hit Alpha). Still, a pure dogfighter makes one smile. Perhaps what is confusing to me is how the "fighting" type ships relate to each other.

 

Novastorm, Nameless: I agree the Freelancer makes a lot of sense as a workhorse (to generate credits to outfit the Stella and such). I'll have to check the engines again since I'm not familiar with the jump point mechanics - still an enticing tidbit.

 

Reavern: True, those redundancies are what inspired me to make this new post. Perfect world, I'd have all the ships, but I need to finance a new computer rig too. Perhaps this summer break will let me make enough cash to do so because if I had both, the Freelancer would easily be my smuggler ship.

 

Great comments so far! I'm sure there are others out there itching to contribute, so keep them coming.

[novastorm]

Great comments so far! I'm sure there are others out there itching to contribute

 

mmmmmmneeeeh i think this is about all you can expect from this topic mate, it's not that interesting  =P

[Master Clovis]

Well I'm waiting until we get more information on the Freelancer.

Right now I have both the freelancer and Hornet but I might upgrade on them to a constellation.

[Reavern]

I founded the following clip of Wingman interviewing Chris Roberts himself about the Freelancer vs Constellation.

 

He diplomatically acknowledges that the Freelancer is somewhat redundant with the Constellation, but he claims that the Freelancer might be more fuel and/or cost efficient than a Constellation.

 

I think (or I hope) that the 15 tons of extra cargo the Constellation can haul will more than offset the extra fuel costs, and even the crew member wages. Also, I expect that pirates will regard Freelancers as easy targets, whereas they'll probably be more cautious about messing with a Constellation.

[Stormfury]

On the surface statistically the connie looks far better at doing the job that the freelancer is named after.  I had heard rumors (nothing confirmed) that the RSI team was looking at making sure the freelancer fills the role though, so there may be some inherit bonuses to sensors or built in sensors that don't require module slots or something.

 

Bottom line for me, I debated on the Connie vs Freelancer & Hornet.  I opted for 2 ships over 1 since this would allow me 2 very different roles as well as a ship I could switch too should the insurance timer get to high.

[Reavern]

I don't see why the Freelancer should get bonuses to make it a better exploration/merchant ship. The Freelancer costs half the pledge amount of the Constellation. If you compare the two ships, the Freelancer is HALF the Constellation in most respects (except for the Stella's ability to carry a starfighter). Seems like you get what you pay for.

 

If RSI decides to create variants of the stock Freelancer upgraded for exploration, mining, and cargo hauling (like the Aurora variants), that would be fine.

 

The only reason why the Freelancer seems redundant is because we backers can buy one for real-money pledges supporting Star Citizen's game development. And for those of us willing to pay $125 for one ship, some are willing to pay $250 for a better ship.

 

I predict that new players who start out with an Aurora ES will appreciate the Freelancer more, especially if they're prospective explorers/merchants, because it's a more affordable upgrade than the Constellation -- which is probably one of the best and most expensive ships in the game. I don't think new players will complain about the Freelancer's perceived redundancies with the Constellation.

[Velvatine]

Well, I wouldn't rule out certain ways of making a ship better than a Constellation in certain situations. RSI has stated numerous times this will be a skill based game and gamers won't win by throwing money around. Although,I don't know how the balancing will be implemented since the game still has a long way to go. As a general thought, I'll likely treat the Constellation as a go-to ship when I have friends around (body or ship wise) versus a smaller ship I can handle in a solo situation.

 

Additionally, I would be disappointed if the final game doesn't have more ships that would give the Constellation a run for its money. I say this even though I own a Stella and love it dearly.

[Pnuts]

They also stated the Freelancer is of cooperative design between another race and will allow for mods from that other race.

[Velvatine]

They also stated the Freelancer is of cooperative design between another race and will allow for mods from that other race.

 

I figured that bit of wording was going to have some significance eventually.

[novastorm]

Alien tech is probably what is going to set the Freelancer apart, also i see no reason for it not to get bonuses if it diversifies the selection.

Saying it's half a Connie and that's ok because it costs about half as much is asking for a pretty boring game imo

[Stormfury]

I wouldn't expect the freelancer to be anything like the connie for mercantile, but I would hope it would have some form of edge in the exploration dept.  Alientech might be that edge.  Thanks for that info.

[Reavern]

Alien tech is probably what is going to set the Freelancer apart, also i see no reason for it not to get bonuses if it diversifies the selection. Saying it's half a Connie and that's ok because it costs about half as much is asking for a pretty boring game imo

In practical terms, what I said was accurate. My point was that the Freelancer could do virtually everything the Constellation can do, but half its capacity for half its price; i.e. half the cargo, half the crew, half the weaponry. The description for the Freelancer fails to emphasize or explain why the hybrid alien tech is an advantage. In the video I imbedded, I don't think Chris Roberts even mentions the Freelancer's alien tech. RSI needs to highlight the Freelancer's alien tech and spell out what it will allow intrepid explorers and ambitious merchants to do. For that reason, maybe the next Jump Point should be about the Freelancer.

[Naros]

In practical terms, what I said was accurate. My point was that the Freelancer could do virtually everything the Constellation can do, but half its capacity for half its price; i.e. hang the cargo, half the crew, half the weaponry.

 

Thats probably a point you forget to consider - half the price, or ingame probably less. The Freelancer fills the gap between Aurora and Constellation. If you start the game with your Aurora and want to do long range exploration/trading - you most likely won't upgrade straight from Aurora to Constellation, you will buy a Freelancer or something alike first.

[Velvatine]

Thats probably a point you forget to consider - half the price, or ingame probably less. The Freelancer fills the gap between Aurora and Constellation. If you start the game with your Aurora and want to do long range exploration/trading - you most likely won't upgrade straight from Aurora to Constellation, you will buy a Freelancer or something alike first.

 

He was talking about that point earlier, which is totally understandable if someone only has an Aurora (his example). There should be a scale of ship/prices to fit various budgets, and if you can't afford a Constellation, get a Freelancer.

 

I was just postulating that the Constellation should not be an end-all, be-all ship. There must be some situations/setups where the Freelancer could contend with the Stella. Right now, we can only say it houses more players and has more of everything. I'm a little fuzzy on maneuvering, but I can definitely see the Freelancer's alien tech playing an important part, possibly for exploration.

[Naros]

He was talking about that point earlier, which is totally understandable if someone only has an Aurora (his example). There should be a scale of ship/prices to fit various budgets, and if you can't afford a Constellation, get a Freelancer.

 

Ok then I did't read that post

 

And the alien tech - yeah I see your point - that opens some really nice options.

[Reavern]

I was just postulating that the Constellation should not be an end-all, be-all ship. There must be some situations/setups where the Freelancer could contend with the Stella. Right now, we can only say it houses more players and has more of everything. I'm a little fuzzy on maneuvering, but I can definitely see the Freelancer's alien tech playing an important part, possibly for exploration.

I wouldn't be surprised if a fully upgraded Freelancer outperformed a stock Constellation in some respects. But in a baseline comparison, the Constellation is clearly the superior ship. The Freelancer weighs 55 tons and has 2 TR5 main engines and 8 TR2 maneuvering thrusters. The Constellation weighs 75 tons and has 4 TR6 engines and 8 TR3 thrusters. The Constellation has far superior power-to-weight ratio than the Freelancer, and possibly greater agility because of its more powerful thrusters.

 

The only wild card is the Freelancer's hybrid alien tech. Since the Freelancer is characterized as an exploration and merchant ship, I agree with others that its alien tech probably gives it enhanced exploration abilities. Perhaps its stock jump-drive has greater "exploration" ability, making navigating and charting jump points easier. Another possibility is that Freelancers will be able to navigate alien territory -- like Xi'an Empire -- more freely.

 

I'm not trying to bash the Freelancer. I'm just saying that if anyone owns a Constellation, I don't see a reason to also buy a Freelancer.

 

Regardless, I think the Freelancer is going to be very popular with explorers and merchants.

[Pnuts]

In the recent writers guide, they said the alien tech is not better then the UEE, but different.  

While their technology might seem superior to ours (it certainly looks nicer), most of that is simply due to its alien origin. Our two civilizations are on relatively equal technological footing.

That gives us an idea kinda. So the ship should have a unique edge that is not ridiculous when compared to the other ships.

[Kenryuu]

An important feature of the Hornet is its ability to operate off an Idris Corvette. If you are planning to participate in fleet operations this might be a desirable feature.

 

DF

[neurotopia]

from what was said in the video and mentioned by others, i think the alien tech and baseline computing sensor systems  -- as well as fuel efficiency -- are going to be what differentiates the two ships.  right now the data we have is pretty limited.  for instance, we don't know how sensor arrays, computing systems, or fuel efficiency will all actually play out in-game.  if i was a developer of some kind (and i'm not), i would seek to keep the seemingly "lesser" ship relevant by giving it certain specialized advantages.  so, sure, given what we see NOW, a connie looks like a better choice than a freelancer.  but if the freelancer comes with a significantly superior sensor array and fuel efficiency out of the box, then it would clearly be a better choice for exploration -- in that regard.  but if you throw in other factors (such as dealing with hostile forces out in nullsec while exploring), the connie is going to shine in a more well-rounded way.  that's just my opinion and conjecture, of course, but it does seem to make sense given the way the two ships are talked about.  

[Xivai]

I suspect the Freelancer will be more maneuvrable due to its far lighter weight, it won't need a lot of engines to go fast and the ones it doesd have will take it further. It's basic physics.

 

Has anyone considered that? On top of its fuel cost efficiency, enahnced sensors, and alien technology options this more than makes it a very unique ship. I could see a skilled pilot being more feared in the Freelancer than the Constellation because he is going to be harder to hit. I also see the Freelancer as a small cargo vessel that transports small luxury goods at high speeds. I get the idea the Constellation is more of a bulk freighter at least compared to the Freelancer.