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Anvil Carrack - Dedicated exploration ship


Hon-R

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A dedicated exploration ship is definitely what I'd want if I was to try my hand at exploration. I don't want to mess around with a 315p or Freelancer, or even a Constellation, if there's a purpose-built exploration ship like the Carrack. This makes me wish CIG adopted this design philosophy for all the ships, instead of only the new batch of stretch goal ships. How many discussions and arguments have there been about what is the best ship for exploration, or mining, or salvaging? These new ships definitively resolve those questions because they're built for a explicitly-stated role, and will apparently come equipped with features and upgrades for that role. I realize that the fancy sensor and nav computer that the Carrack has can probably been bought and installed in a Freelancer or Constellation, but it's so much easier to simply buy the Carrack instead and know what you're getting. :) (Sorta, we still don't have any specs or pics yet, but knowing the unique selling features of the Carrack is better than what we got with the pledge ships ;) ) I predict that the Carrack will be the one definite-buy now that LTI is gone. The other ships, like the Surveyor and Herald, are interesting, but I can wait and acquire them in-game. The Carrack sounds far superior to the Freelancer, and when I go out exploring, I want to do it right! :D

 

Agreed, I'm glad CIG have started making specialized ships instead of just variants now. I was planning to outfit a Freelancer for exploring (or get a variant) but now I can just get a Carrack instead.  :)

 

We basically have specialist ships for almost anything now. Combat has the Hornets, trading has the Banu Merchantman and now exploration has the Carrack. And now we have other ships for the even more specialist roles like salvage and info running. 

 

But yeah, it would have been easier if CIG had just given us specialized ships earlier instead of giving us a bunch of variants for the more multirole ships.

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Some reason I can't get past, picturing this ship like the Defiant from Star Trek deep space 9. bigger then a shuttle, self sufficent mini ship. like a totally scaled down compact version of the USS Enterprise or something, but sleeker like the Defiant.

 

I think a lot of people are going to fork out hard cash for it with LTI or without because of coolness frenzy.

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Some reason I can't get past, picturing this ship like the Defiant from Star Trek deep space 9. bigger then a shuttle, self sufficent mini ship. like a totally scaled down compact version of the USS Enterprise or something, but sleeker like the Defiant.

 

I think a lot of people are going to fork out hard cash for it with LTI or without because of coolness frenzy.

 

+1 I know I will.  This ship sounds glorious.

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I'm not exactly enthused about all the explorers stacking the vote for their ships, but the Anvil Carrack definitely seems worth buying -- assuming we hit the $33 million stretch goal tomorrow and CIG makes this ship available. If the Carrack is unlocked, I'll seriously consider reclaiming my Digital Freelancer package for it, because it sounds like a more robust and specialized exploration ship.

 

I ALMOST agree. If I didn't have LTI on my Freelancer I'd do the same...Once it pops on the market I'll have to take a look at the pricing and decide. Personally, not a huge fan of the interior of the Freelancer (NOT talking about the cockpit, that just reminds me of a 747). Dunno, though. Have to wait and see.

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...and the Freelancer still has that Xi'an tech component.

 

The Carrack may be the best human exploration ship available, but the Freelancer can use presumably superior Xi'an tech or at least some kind of advantage over the Carrack. I hope there is still that distinction. In can also be that Xi'an tech is cheaper to maintain or easier to replace.

 

All this just ups the ante on choice and fit for purpose application.

 

Try this; Carrack for ruggged off the beaten track frontier space exploration. Freelancer for cheap long haul deep space exploration. So, do you want endurance or resilience when going out into the unknown?

 

(just pure speculation of course)

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@maltomix I really hope it's not that large, to me it sounded more like a 2-5 crew sized ship. Somewhere between a Freelancer and Caterpillar. 

 

With the list of feature it has below , it sounds big.  To me, "facility"  sounds bigger than a module.  

I guess we'll find out more next year .  

 

- Advanced jump drive array

- Mapping-oriented sensor suite

- Computing facility

- Medical facility

- Repair facility

- Reinforced long-duration fuel tanks

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@maltomix It wouldnt be to hard to imagine something the length of the Caterpillar having that same Set-up since it's highly modular. I really hope it's the case because of my irregular work hours, I would like to have an exploration ship that i could run around with just me or a friend. Also that it wouldnt cost an arm and a leg like the Idris

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Tempted to get it. Will have to wait for concept art/screens to make up my mind. But I'm really at the point where I should not spend more $ on a single game. Already broke all my records. 

 

Just wondering if this will be 125$ or 250$ ship.  

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i am really glad they are making a ship dedicated to exploration finally. I love the idea's to adapt it to something like a long range scout ship i hope the price is decent and i can pick it up when it becomes available

 

I like the way you think

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I'm just praying that it's not going to be above the $250 price point, AND it will have LTI as a limited ship. I really want one of these, but it's hard for me to justify going above $250 for something I am probably going to have to multi-crew. Personally I would like to think of the Carrack as almost a...Starfarer (but prettier), but with the cargo area converted to house 3 or 4 scout based fighters (i.e. Ghost/315P/Xi'an) or a couple of fighters + a Freelancer sized ship. This would allow it to truly be an exploration focused hub boat with a major mapping suite and the like, while also giving it the ability to send out for resupplies without actually having to leave its' primary mission (i.e. cargo converted Freelancer goes back to pick up some supplies/fuel). The Medical Facility also would lend well to the idea of a beefier sized ship, but I'm really hoping it's not Idris priced. I honestly don't see this as being a small ship, but who knows.

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I predict that Carrack will be priced at $250, if and when it's made available to buy. :) $250 seems like a threshold price point for most backers, which is why only 2 ships cost more: the Idrises and the Captured Vanduul Fighter. That's probably why the Banu Merchantman was priced $250, instead of higher. My prediction is that the Carrack will be Constellation-size -- I'll be very surprised if it's much larger. I think it'll have a crew of 3: a Pilot, a dedicated Sensor & Navigation officer, and an Engineer for maintaining the ship. I hope that Carrack has a broader hull design, providing plenty of interior space. (I like the Connie's design but the interior seems cramped because of everything they've tried to cram inside, like the sleep pods, dining table, and shower.) Even the Retaliator seems wanting for space because of its long and narrow profile. I wish CIG would design some of their ships wider. I'm hoping the Carrack is different, and is roomier, which would be ideal for long-duration exploration cruises. Considering the medical and repair bay facilities, I'm picturing something like the Normandy from Mass Effect. B)

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@maltomix It wouldnt be to hard to imagine something the length of the Caterpillar having that same Set-up since it's highly modular. I really hope it's the case because of my irregular work hours, I would like to have an exploration ship that i could run around with just me or a friend. Also that it wouldnt cost an arm and a leg like the Idris

 

Yeah it could be a Caterpillar type ship, not throwing any possibility out the window.  But what really intrigue me is 

the "Repair facility".  What is it suppose to repair ?  Other smaller ships ?  If so, does that mean that there is a hanger for these ships. 

Or is a place where are the repair bots stored and maintained.  

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Yeah it could be a Caterpillar type ship, not throwing any possibility out the window.  But what really intrigue me is 

the "Repair facility".  What is it suppose to repair ?  Other smaller ships ?  If so, does that mean that there is a hanger for these ships. 

Or is a place where are the repair bots stored and maintained.  

Probably a small hanger for repair bots and materials. 

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Yeah it could be a Caterpillar type ship, not throwing any possibility out the window. But what really intrigue me is

the "Repair facility". What is it suppose to repair ? Other smaller ships ? If so, does that mean that there is a hanger for these ships.

Or is a place where are the repair bots stored and maintained.

I expect the Carrack's repair facilities are for both the ship and the drones mentioned in the description. Since the Carrack is intended for long-range deep exploration, it will need to be more self-reliant than most ships, which is why its repair capabilities will be essential. When you're ranging on the frontier, you can't run all the way home after every scrape or bruise, regardless if it's from asteroid impacts or hostile ship attacks. The Carrack should have the capability to repair damage and keep going. :)

If and when I buy the Carrack, I don't know what I'm going to do with my Freelancer, because the only reason that I bought it was because I wanted a dedicated exploration ship -- but now there is a true Exploration Ship, the Carrack. Maybe when the Freelancer's brochure is released, there will be an upgraded model that'll serve a useful purpose other than exploration.

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  • 2 weeks later...

OK, I guess it's ok to write my expectations for the Anvil Carrack.

This ship has in its description more facilities than I've read about on any other ship so far, including the Idris which only really goes into detail with the weapon systems. That being said I'd be EXTREMELY surprised if this ship was Idris sized or even close to that size. Size wise I'm expecting something similar to the Constellation except maybe with another floor stacked on top.

The only facility which has been stated will have its own dedicated room will be the computer room. For that reason I'm going to assume that all other facilities are limited to a station on the vessel (similar to the Idris additional stations on the bridge) or have a small room for the medical bay (one to two beds).

The repair station will be dedicated primarily to self repair of the vessel. This is to help on long range missions as it's been stated that it will be self sufficient for this reason. This may include some kind of repair drone control or it may require EVA activities to repair exterior hull damage. I'm betting on some kind of automated repair system for the exterior repairs over EVA as this would require a factor of game play that hasn't been really spoken about too much yet. Although I'm open to the possibility of the alternative.

It will have dedicated sleep facilities for each member of the crew probably requiring a dedicated room for this purpose.

Storage space: I'm not expecting too much on this, maybe about half the size of the Connie but that's purely hypothesis based on balancing. If it were as capable as the Connie in everything then it would be more capable due to its excess abilities. Once again I'm prepared to be wrong about this and would actually be happy to be proven wrong.

Hangar facilities: this is one of the few things that isn't mentioned in the description and given the level of detail that the description goes into I'm not expecting the ability to carry fighters. If there is a facility to carry a secondary 1 man ship then I expect it to be limited to only one and even then perhaps limited to a short range fighter such as the connie has. The P-52 Merlin. However if I could store a secondary 1 person ship it would make so much sense to have a secondary exploration vessel (315p, tracker) which could also provide additional firepower in the event of an enemy contact.

Weapons systems: Again I'm not expecting too much from this. Isn't specifically mentioned in the description. Will probably only be an average capability or something similar to the connie. Again I wouldn't be surprised to be wrong about this, could have perhaps additional turrets (4 instead of 2) but information about this isn't available so purely speculation. Although this is a repurposed military vessel it's also designed primarily for exploration (probably as part of a larger operation) and so will probably be classed as a support vehicle and only be as well armed as a fuel tanker.

Just some initial thoughts. Happy to hear other ideas and evidence supporting or against what I've said.

 

And for those who don't know I'd LOVE to have one of these things and would even pay up to 400 for it, but I expect the price to be 250.

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  • 1 month later...

For those who are more interested in history, it is also interesting to point out that the Carrack is historically a three/four masted sailing ship in the 15th to 16th century. Those ships were large and stable in the ocean and carried lots of supplies to last a long time. Christopher Columbus used a carrack  (Santa Maria) to map America in 1492, as well as many other famous explorers. Overall the Carrack was one of the most interesting ship designs and was continued to be improved until the 19th century. The Carrack carried mediocre armament, but enough to stand its own with a few guns. 

 

carrack.jpg

 

 

Since a Carrack is supposed to carry a lot of supplies, perhaps it might have a cargo size comparable with the Constellation. Although I first pledged for a 315p + Freelancer, I reckon it will be more than worth it to swap them both out for a Carrack, or even a Constellation for a Carrack. 

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