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Vikarion
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Posted - 2008.03.21 10:50:00 -
[1]
Recently, I have been privileged to have the pleasure of piloting a variety of Amarrian and Caldari ship designs, among them the Raven, Drake, Cormorant, Merlin, Kestrel, Ferox, Apocalypse, Abaddon, Maller, Omen, Executioner, Punisher, and others.
As a Caldari native, I must say that the differences between the ship designs of the State and the Empire is quite amazing, almost bewildering. Not only are the weapons systems strikingly different - though the unlimited capacity of lasers was a wonderful surprise - but the defensive systems were also very different in design and implementation. After establishing the habit of watching my ship's shield levels like a hawk, I found it disconcerting to simply resign myself to the stripping away of my more advanced protection systems.
I personally still prefer the invisible protection of shielding over the armor that encases most Amarrian and Gallente ships. Somehow I feel more secure with the massive generators and energy pylons fitted on Caldari ships then I do with the gargantuan nano tanks and material reservoirs used in armor repair. Also, although I have no evidence of this, it still seems to me that shields better soften the impacts of enemy weapons, and I personally find the jolting annoying in the middle of a firefight.
However, I cannot fault Amarrian engineering. While their shielding technologies are sub par, their reactors and capacitors are second to none. I was amazed and delighted at the powerful capabilities of antimatter reactors, and while I understand that fitting such technologies aboard Caldari ships is not feasible, I can still dream. More amazing, of course, are the tesseract capacitors, which defy logic or explanation.
The other major strength of Amarrian engineering is, of course, the heavy armor which encases most of their ships. (Not the Executioner, though.) I found even their frigates to be extraordinarily tough and stable, enduring punishment long after a Gallente or Minmatar ship would crumble. On the other hand, they are painfully slow.
I must take exception, though, with the sad accommodations aboard most Amarrian ships. For example, aboard my Abaddon, crew quarters were unbelievably luxurious and inefficient, even if you include the infamous slave quarters. Even the slave quarters apportion a ridiculous 3.5 m3 per slave, a tremendous amount of wasted room. The pod pilot is apportioned a room of over 9 m3, which is even more confusing, since there is no reason for a pilot to ever leave the pod when not in station.
Contrast this with the Raven, where most stock issue ships efficiently apportion 2.5 m3 per employee, and pod pilots are naturally expected to efficiently make use of their pod's life-support equipment. As you can see, these little items can add up over the long run.
I naturally ripped out the slave compartment (since I don't own slaves), and replaced it with automated equipment. I have also since converted the inefficient Amarrian "staterooms" to something approaching Caldari efficiency, and my personal room has been converted to a exercise center for the crew.
Another item I have noticed, with some distaste, is the rather odd predilection Amarrian engineers have with including such things as greenhouses and other "real" food facilities within their ships. Frankly, the time and space needed to maintain these facilities is a drain on profitability. Far better to simply pay your employees more and let them decide whether to purchase their own food or simply consume the same nutritious gruel I do.
I might be able to accept some of these things on a Rorqual or Titan, where you are expected to be in space for months or years at a time, but on a battleship, one should remember that efficiency, not luxury, is the overriding goal.
In any case, I look forward to trying out the Matari line of ships in the intermediate future. I shall certainly let you all know how I fare.
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Kitoba
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Posted - 2008.03.21 13:09:00 -
[2]
Boundless creation ships now come with foosball tables in the mess as standard equipment, and a properly-sized grill in the caboose, too. Apart from that, you get a properly equipped training hall for martial arts and the sleeping room... having 3 m^2 for yourself (don't forget: The average size of a Brutor is 2.4 meters) basically leaves you with at least 7 m^2, because there are always people around who cuddle.
The only thing lacking is a proper camp fire, but my engineer won't let me do it.
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Rainrix Deathwish
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Posted - 2008.03.21 14:10:00 -
[3]
Just you wait until you plug yourself into a Zealot... And soon i'll be plugging in to an Absolution *chuckles*.
Re-decorating usually is a must, I make sure alot of the internal architecture is replaced with something that'll make my mostly Matari crew a little more comfortable. On quite a few Amarr ships there never seems to be much space for escape pods or storage for space suits... I wonder why... But yes I usually make sure that I replace alot of the Amarrian internals that the crew aren't really interested about with these sort of systems. The rooms are still rather small, but they're clean and each crew member has access to various recreational facilities just incase i'm out in space for long durations of time.
Never tried the Caldari ships, Don't think I ever will for a long time anywho... I don't use missiles really. I do use shields quite often on Matari ships, But that's usually with the Tempest/Maelstrom... Plus shield systems don't mess with the ships agility and all like armour plates do.
I'm sure you won't be disappointed with the toughness of Amarr vessels though.
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Anti-Slavery doesn't mean Anti-Amarr! |
Vlad Cetes
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Posted - 2008.03.21 15:27:00 -
[4]
A most excellent discourse on ship design Mr. Vikarion.
 Please visit your user settings to re-enable images.
I do not see why man should not be just as cruel as nature. |
Mr Reeth
The Aegis Militia
Aegis Militia
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Posted - 2008.03.21 15:59:00 -
[5]
I donĘt know where you got such a decadent Amarrian ship from. But you should see the inside of a Khanid warriorĘs ship. It makes the Raven look like the Opex Luxury Yacht.
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Ikasu
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Posted - 2008.03.21 22:11:00 -
[6]
I may dislike Amarrian philosophies and their religious obsessions, but their ships are appealing to an extent. I prefer Gallente ships, but if I were to cross train i'd probably start with an Amarrian ships. Though, if you think Amarr ships are too cosy you probably wouldn't like a Gallente ship. I have several facilities run in my larger ships made specifically for crew moral such as a Virtual Reality room and a Fencing Room, not to mention the entertainment hall. This things may seem terribly inefficient, but you should try them. Keeping crew morale up, to me, is one of my highest priorities.
I keep a far smaller crew then most other pod pilots (I hate risking lives) but for those I do their always in good spirits. I also outfitted my ship with a higher grade of escape pods to insure crew survivability. Many of my crew have been with me since my first cruiser because of my cautious measures.
Also, I prefer armor tanking to shield tanking. Shields are nice but they seem almost flimsy compared to a proper armor tank which, although it may suck through capacitor running three hards and two reps, will keep you alive fairly easy. It just takes some getting used to and some large balls to know that laser hit your ship only meters away from where you're sitting.
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Rawr Cristina
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Posted - 2008.03.22 04:24:00 -
[7]
I'm almost exclusively a pilot of Caldari ships these days, and in many ways agree. Most of the space in my Drake is consumed by extremely powerful shield emitters, advanced heavy-assault missile launchers and microwarp propulsion systems, with nearly all the rest being cramped with basic electronic systems and the warp core.
The remaining living space is minimal at best. I'm glad I don't have to endure the experience of being a Crew member aboard it, particually in an emergency...
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Please visit your user settings to re-enable images. |
Karin Ezekun
Imperial Academy
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Posted - 2008.03.22 09:21:00 -
[8]
Edited by: Karin Ezekun on 22/03/2008 09:21:42
Edit: alt post, delete :S
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Kostantin Mort
Naqam
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Posted - 2008.03.22 09:22:00 -
[9]
Why even bother with quarters, ammenities or even give them a choice of gruel they want to ingest? Chip them and keep them happy forever. They'll do their job, they'll need minimal space to rest, minimal mess halls and no entertainment facilities at all. Convert most of the crew space to extra defences, and not only will they be happier, but safer. It's win/win, both for the capsuleer and the humans.
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Innovation is a product of madness. |
Garion Avarr
Zero Zero Traders
YTMND.
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Posted - 2008.03.22 20:04:00 -
[10]
Just like Amarrians themselves, Amarrian ships can be quite different from one another -- but certainly many do tend towards having as much grandeur as is practical. There are many subcultures within the Empire (and beyond, in the Kingdom and Mandate), and they all have slightly different philosophies. Ships constructed by different groups will most certainly be different.
On a side note, those seem abnormally small spaces. Do you mean square meters instead of cubic meters, perhaps?
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This is not a signature. |
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Vikarion
United Heavens
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Posted - 2008.03.22 22:27:00 -
[11]
 Originally by: Garion Avarr
On a side note, those seem abnormally small spaces. Do you mean square meters instead of cubic meters, perhaps?
Well, keep in mind that I'm averaging out the space per crew member. Many Caldari crew hot-bunk - that is, they share a bunk through different shifts.
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Quintrala
University of Caille
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Posted - 2008.03.23 00:18:00 -
[12]
Well, my favourite friggy is the Executioner.
The first thing many will point out, yes it is an Amarrian frigate. So what? Well, it is not like the craftmanship compares to a Roden or a Duvolle ride. Amarr Navy? No leather lined passenger seats, little or no ergonomics, some of the trimmings are really, ew, utilitarian like that one handle, or the odd ugly service hatch in plain sight. Zero luxury. Nor does it have the raw engine power on a Boundless or any other Minmatar ship. Can't fit a nice egonics system, even the basic sound system on a Caldari ship will kill the CPU dead on mine; flap, I can't even chat on local without having navi problems.
And you know what? Whatever!
This one is mine mine mine and I love her. Look at her, a golden, shiny, beautiful arrowpoint. Built for speed. A Wing and a Prayer, she is called. It was a good idea at the time, and I still think so. A mix of raw speed and fragile beauty.
See here, the Ammy Navy got a couple of things right. Totally right. The ship herself is very fast, and very light to begin with. Now the armor has been removed in so many places to install racing stuff - you can see the holes and some electronics right inside - yes that is the work of our UC boffins. They took their time to patch her back and in the meantime, I had to race a sieve. Also, there is so much polycardboard inside that you can probably push her around by hand. She has been altered and tweaked so much that by now, she is as close to an interceptor as she can get, while still being T1. Did you know she can beat an Ares in a series of short jumps? Of course the Ares will win on the long ones, but still, wicked riding...
The point is, she is the fastest racing frigate, ever. I flew her during season 3 of the ISGC racing league and we won the T1 championship  . We won every single race we flew together...
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