Char;y wrote:Zauron wrote:The Burst Laser Mk II is one of the best weapons in the game.....Second choice would be the Federation Cruiser (either one, differences seem pretty negligible)
I think the second Fed Cruiser is nowhere near as good.
As you rightly pointed out the Burst2 is the best gun in the game, and the Fed ship starts with one, making it superior (in my book). Add a second burst two, and you can be comfortable against any other ship for the rest of the game, until you reach the flagship. If you can find 4, then you you may just the most awesome thing in existence. And thats before you take into account the Arty beam.
In fact, I am not clear as to why anyone woud favour the Starting ship over the Fed ship. The Fed ship even gives you a four man crew, including a great engineer, and a mantis and rock, so you have the option to go for a boarding strategy early.
I find the type A and B of this particular ship to be much more similar in feel than most other ships in the game. You make a good point about the burst laser, but type B comes with level 2 in the arty beam already, a missile launcher, more starting power in the reactor, and a slug crewman (rarest besides crystal and useful for both events and nebulas) and zoltan (giving more versatility to power usage, and in my experience also more rare than rocks and mantii). Dual Lasers are also a great weapon giving you 2 shots for only 1 power, and I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that the ONLY way to get it is by starting with it. The dual lasers are great in a low-power pinch like in an ion storm and if you do find a Burst Laser Mk2 you have 5 shots for only 3 power with more ability to adapt to losing power or weapons system damage. I also like type B's layout slightly better for venting and boarder defense, except for having a 2-slot medbay sucks. This is, as you point out, all countered pretty nicely by starting with a Burst Laser Mk2 out of the gate, hence why I say they are very similar especially compared to the dramatic differences between types A and B of other ships.
As for comparison to the starting ships - first, I prefer the Kestrel's layout. I find it easier to defend and keep repaired, vent fires, etc. Second, the Fed Cruiser can't install the Stealth system (arty beam takes up the stealth slot on the upgrade screen), which is super helpful against the big attacks from the final boss, and the kestrel can.
I also acknowledge that Kestrel-B is mostly a better-equipped ship than A, with a somewhat superior layout and better crew, but I find myself annoyed having to aim 4 weapons each time to get a full volley, and later when more weapons come along I have to debate which ones to swap out and if I should keep the lasers around, etc, whereas with type A I have great weapons that take less effort to use and at least 2 more weapon slots I can fill with whatever I want before I need to worry about swapping anything out.
As I said before though, I'm certain my preference is in the minority, and may change when I try out more ships.
