Want to have stats that look a lot like these?

Want to fly a ship like this?



Well I’m here to help, well at least not hinder. Hopefully I’ll be able to convey some useful tips and clear up some of the idiosyncrasies of this game and although these posts will have a bias towards combat, hopefully it can be some help to traders and explorers as well.

So to start, and I’m sorry but it will be a slow start, let us look at the basics of outfitting. I will try to make this a quick and unbiased view of all modules. In further parts to this guide I will discuss my views and tips on outfitting in more detail. You may yet not be able to afford the pictured Fer De Lance but the basics of outfitting hold true to all ships.

So starting at the top of the outfitting menu.

Bulkheads:

These come in 5 types for all ships.

Lightweight Alloy

Reinforced Alloy

Military Grade Composite

Mirrored Surface Composite

Reactive Surface Composite Zero cost and zero weight and zero damage reduction. This is the base value for your ship and is factored into the cost and weight of your ship. This will add weight to your ship, at approximately 7.5% of the base mass of your ship, and at a cost of around 50% of the base purchase price of your ship. In return you will gain approximately 25% damage reduction against all weapon types. This will add weight to your ship, at approximately 15 % of the base mass of your ship, and at a cost of around 100% of the base purchase price of your ship. In return you will gain approximately 50% damage reduction against all weapon types. This will add weight to your ship, at approximately 15 % of the base mass of your ship, and at a cost of around 200%-300% of the base purchase price of your ship. In return you will gain approximately 75% damage reduction against thermal weapon but only 25% damage reduction against kinetic weapons. This will add weight to your ship, at approximately 15 % of the base mass of your ship, and at a cost of around 300% of the base purchase price of your ship. In return you will gain approximately 75% damage reduction against kinetic weapon but only 25% damage reduction against thermal weapons.

Modules:

Next in the list in the outfitting screen are the Fixed Modules. There are 7 of them. These are common to all ships and must be replaced with the same type of module. Modules have 2 ratings. Grade and Class.

Class

Grades Dictates the size of the module. If you look at the outfitting screen of the Fer De Lance you will see, in the bottom right of each module slot, a number in orange. This is the maximum class for that slot. Above that number you will see a letter and number in white. That is the Grade and Class of the module currently fitted. All ships when purchased come with E grade modules of the maximum class available for each slot. When outfitting a ship, pay close attention to the maximum class of the slot. You should always fit modules of the maximum size for that slot. There are a couple of exceptions to this rule which I will note when discussion the module type.

C and A grades are direct replacements for E grade. D and B differ slightly. All modules come in E to A grade. General rule is E are the worst and A are the best.C and A grades are direct replacements for E grade. D and B differ slightly. D grade is the Lightweight grade. Better than E grade, but lighter than all the other grades. B grade is the armoured grade. Better than C grade and heavier than all the other grades, but in return you gain some damage reduction to this module.

Power Plant:

The Power plant is the heart of your ship. It provides power to all the other modules and weapons. If it is destroyed, your ship is destroyed.

The power plant will often be the limiting factor in your ship, as it will limit the type and class of weapons and modules.

The capacity of your power plant is shown in the top right of the outfitting info panel.

The two numbers to the left of this are your Retracted power usage (when weapons are stored) and Deployed power usage (when weapons are deployed).

In order to power your ship in flight and in combat these values must be lower than the max capacity of your power plant.

You may note that from the image of my Fer De Lance both values are above the max capacity. This is possible and I’ll discuss this in the next instalment.

Also note that if you are trying to build a lightweight ship that the A grade power plant a class below is lighter, offers slightly more power and better heat efficiency than a D grade power plant but at 10 times the price. (See Attachment Powerplants)

Thrusters:

Thrusters provide your ships movement. Who would have thought. Better ones will increase your base speed, boost speed and manoeuvrability. If they are damaged in combat, they may malfunction leaving you in a state of FA off. If they are destroyed, you will be dead in the water, at the mercy of your aggressors.

Thrusters are very power hungry and can be quite costly, and they are at their most efficient when your ships combined weight (including any cargo) is at 50% of the optimal weight stated for your thrusters. This value can only been seen in the purchasing menu for thrusters. (See Attachment Thrusters)

You may notice that my weight is 4.9Tons over but it’s close.

Frame Shift Drive:

This module allows you to jump between systems and allows you to enter Supercruise. Upgrading it allows you to jump further. The max distance you are able to jump is determined by the Grade and Class of FSD and by your ships combined weight.

Take very careful note when upgrading a FSD. Choosing an A2 rather than an A3 may leave you stuck in system, unable to jump out and maybe unable to repurchase the same or better drive. This can leave you with some problematic choices on how to proceed.

Life Support: This module determines how long your air supply will last if your canopy is breached. Life support Class is fixed for all ships, so you will not be able to change class, only grade.

Sensors: Upgrading your sensors allows you to see and target other ships on your scanner from greater distances. Sensor distance is also affected by the heat output of ships. The lower the heat the lower the distance your sensors will be able to target them. Sensor Class is fixed for all ships, so you will not be able to change class, only grade.

Power Distributor:

This is one of the most important modules on your ship. It links the power plant to your shields, thrusters and weapons. It provides some power directly to these systems and also has capacitors which will store a charge for these systems. Upgrading this allows you to fire for longer and boost more often.

For engines you must have power in the capacitors to be able to boost. For weapons, a larger capacitor will allow for longer continuous use of weapons.

The way the power distributor works with shields is long and complicated and I will discuss this further in a later instalment.

For combat pilots upgrading to an A grade Power Distributor is generally the most important task. Luckily they are quite cheap for their Class and Grade.

For traders and explorers should still consider an A grade over a D grade as the decrease in time between boosting could save your ship from trouble, although this has to be balanced against the extra weight.