Greetings Citizens,

You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers! On Saturday, we kicked off a concept sale for the new Aegis Sabre fighter. Today, we’ll be answering questions collected on the forums. Special thanks to Foundry 42’s John Crewe for answering your questions. Enjoy!

Can you tell us anything about planned variants to the Sabre?

There are no plans for variants/modular sections at this time, the Sabre was designed with a singular purpose in mind.

At CitizenCon, the Sabre has been called “ninja-like.” What does that mean? Can you elaborate on what a “multirole stealth ship” is?

The “ninja-like” meaning comes from its ability to lurk at the edge of combat zones undetected, infiltrate quickly without raising the alarm, hit hard and use its speed and capabilities to get out. Its multi-role capabilities come from its twin internal bomb bays which can carry a variety of payloads, you can rock a load of S1 missiles if you want, fill it up with some more advanced larger missiles or other non lethal options.

Can you elaborate on why someone would pick the Sabre as opposed to the Hornet, and vice-versa? How does this relate to the Hornet Ghost specifically?

The Hornet is a tank, it’s not particularly mobile but can really take a pounding and make it out which is a great feature for a lot of players. Its similar in my mind to how current day pilots love the A-10 for its rugged reliability and ability to come back home with huge amounts of damage. The Sabre on the other hand is not tough, it relies heavily on its ability to not be detected and then its array shields to keep it safe. Once those shields are down you’d best be on your way out of combat else you’ll probably not make it back.

Compared to the Hornet Ghost the Sabre is built from the ground up to be a dedicated “stealth” ship whereas the Hornet Ghost is retrofitted to become stealthy, therefore whilst the Ghost is still very stealthy compared to other ships it wont be quite as impervious to radar as the Sabre. What little it lacks in stealth capabilities compared to the Sabre though is made up for in its additional armour and weaponry however

What’s the deal with the colored-cockpit glass? This is a first for Star Citizen.

It’s a cool little touch the concept artist Gavin Rothery added and we kept in, we’ll be evaluating it from a gameplay side more as it goes through the production pipeline but if we do keep it in then don’t worry about everything being tinted red when viewed from inside as we’ll make sure it doesn’t impact gameplay for the pilot.

Will the Sabre be able to have a full gimbals setup? To what extent can we gimbal the weapons?

Absolutely, it has 4x S3 hardpoints so you can rock 4x fixed S3’s or 4x gimballed S2’s(or a mix of both) if you desire. Whilst they are gimballed there are obviously some restrictions due to the locations of the weapons, which infact can completely retract into the hull. The Sabre was designed so that all weaponry can be retracted inside the ship to keep its cross section profile down, so the nose guns tuck backwards and up into the body. The wing mounts retract into the wings and panels cover them up, all the missles are stored in internal bomb bays.

The Gladius is described as a short range patrol fighter, the Vanguard as long range fighter. Where does the Sabre fit in? Is it a light, medium, or heavy fighter?

The Sabre is a medium fighter in classification, however with its advanced construction and components falls towards the lighter end of medium.

Can the Sabre store any cargo?

The Sabre does not have any cargo carrying capacity.

Does it come with a jump drive?

Yes, the Sabre comes with a jump drive standard.

Are x2 TR3 engines correct? Will this be the fastest ship in Arena Commander when it arrives?

These are the engines we are currently aiming for, however as with all stats they are subject to change as we go through development. It is not aimed to be the faster ship when it arrives in AC as remember TR rating is not completely indicative of top speed, it will be fast though.

Is there any interior to the ship beyond the cockpit?

There is no accessible interior beyond the cockpit, the rest of the body contains the vast array of low power components that provide multiple levels of redundancy.

How well will the Sabre handle in comparison to the Gladius? Will it be a good ship for Gladius pilots to transition into?

The Sabre is going to handle very similarly to the Gladius, if you look closely the manoeuvring thruster type and placement is very similar to the Gladius. If you enjoy flying the Gladius the Sabre should behave broadly the same but with a little extra weight to it.

Does it fit inside an Idris?!

Yes!