Level 1 missions can be done in an astero easily, tristan would probably do even better.

If you have some investment into gallente destroyer, an algos makes quick work of both level 1 and level 2 missions.

Also don't fit your strat with an expanded launcher, why do you need combat probes?

the key point is time.

you want finish a mission as soon as possibile.
so you need more dps as possibile. between the 2, the one with more dps is the coercer.

the dragoon gets a bonus for neut, but neuts are useless in pve.

especially with the SoE expanded launcher.

you know the expanded launcher is not a flat upgrade for the normal one right?

its a specific tool for finding player assets i.e. ship , drones , deploy-ables ect ect ...

they're a **** to fit on pretty much anything , yeah the stratios can do it but only with a lot of compromise.
and i do mean a lot , so id have to ask why you want one .

also go for the dragoon, its a little more versatile than the other one

you know the expanded launcher is not a flat upgrade for the normal one right?

its a specific tool for finding player assets i.e. ship , drones , deploy-ables ect ect ...

they're a **** to fit on pretty much anything , yeah the stratios can do it but only with a lot of compromise.
and i do mean a lot , so id have to ask why you want one

The OP did mention something about finding their own ship at a safe somewhere, to be fair

Also don't fit your strat with an expanded launcher, why do you need combat probes?

The only time I can think of needing to combat probe an entire system is if you're looking for recons or something

Why not use combat probes? Everything you can scan with core probes you can scan with combat probes, the combat probes have a larger scan radius making them ideal in many systems because you can often cover a system in one initial scan where core probes can take two scans to cover the same area. The only down side I have ever had with using combat probes is the rare signature you cannot lock down to 100%, even then leaving a single combat probe to mark the spot and then launching cores takes very little extra time. And in the end probably the best reason for an explorer to use combat probes especially in in a less safe area tis the ability to switch filter instantly to look for other ships, ships that are outside your d-scan range. This is especially true if you are working cloaked since you do not have to de-cloak to launch different probes.

There is one caution to what I write, there have been two releases since the last time I did any serious scanning so this may have changed.

Here you have the single best reason to use combats, you can switch instantly from sigs to ships.

Looking at the 4 AU from from a celestial aspect combat probes and their greater coverage still have an advantage. There are many systems especially in Caldari space that are so large it is impossible to cover all the celestial objects in a single scan with core probes often leading to the need for 2 and sometimes even 3 scans simply to get basic information on what is there. With the greater coverage of the combat probes most of these systems can be covered in a single initial scan thus reducing the time needed to scan an entire system.

After some losses in Stain I just had an expanded out there, so went scanning with that. A ranfom Happy Cartel guy then mocked me, because he thought I took so long to scan him. Told him then I was looking for a sig, but don't come to 100.

He told me sigs are easier scannes with cores.

Never came around to actually check that, but I believed him as it sounded

sorry for typos, ********* phone:

the key point is time.

you want finish a mission as soon as possibile.
so you need more dps as possibile. between the 2, the one with more dps is the coercer.

the dragoon gets a bonus for neut, but neuts are useless in pve.

Hey everyone,

I've been piloting an Astero a few weeks now with great success, my drone skills are up and I tend to scout out and achieve most relic sites pretty well now. I am currently working on the Stratios which is a few weeks out from completion and I'm super pumped to see how she flies, especially with the SoE expanded launcher. However! I am finding I don't want to spend all my time in nulsec, (some times of my day are great and quiet, others not so much and I've lost a ship or two and subsequent profits) and would like to start tackling some t1 and t2 missions in highsec (I have clones now so will most likely leave the Astero set up out in nulsec) and am looking at the dragoon or the coerced. Now from what I've read lots of people recommend the coercer over the dragoon, but given my drones skills are high I wondered whether droning would be better? My energy weapon skills are on the rise and I should be able to equip t2 turrets Ina day or two.

So what I'm wondering is people's opinions on the two, fitting them for t1 and potentially t2 missions, and recommended fitting setups for them...


Thanks in advance,
Aphiel