Yikes Shipyard

Welcome to Yikes Station shipyard. We offer you a 100% accurate ship specification list (unlike the official Frontier manual!) along with a short comment on the ships uses.

Interplanetary | Military | Light Fighters | Medium Fighters | Heavy Fighters | Medium Traders | Heavy Traders

1) Interplanetary

Interplanetary Shuttle: With a cargo space of four (zero including the drive) this ship is completely useless. They are commonly available but are never seen in use.

Lifter: With 7 tonnes of cargo space it is possible to trade within a system but as the profit margins are so low it is pointless. No guns or missiles can be mounted. It looks flashy, though.

2) Military Fighters

Osprey: Good forward acceleration plus average reverse acceleration would make this an ideal fighter if it was not for the lack of cargo space. After the Military drive has taken its share only 5 tonnes is left for weaponry and fuel - only just enough.

Falcon: An acceleration improvement and cargo space increase makes this ship the master of the Military fighters. 10 tonnes of space remains after the drive - enough for a Beam Laser, Scanner, Radar mapper and maybe ECM. In my opinion this is the only playable Military Fighter.

Hawk Airfighter: A tonne of free space after the drive makes the Falcon unusable. This is one of my favourite looking ships but cannot really be played ;-(

Kestrel Airfighter: You have 3 tonnes of cargo space to play with after the Drive. This may be enough if you enjoy fighting with a Phlaschgyt - not me. If I ever use this ship it is hacked to 1000 tonnes cargo space because it looks the nicest.

3) Light Fighters

Eagle Long Range Fighter: This is basically the minimum size of ship you should consider using. The acceleration is spot on and the cargo space allows you a good choice of occupation, from bounty hunter to mini-trader. When fitted with a Military Drive enough cargo space is even available for a few shields.

Eagle II: Because of the extra mass over the Eagle 1, the Eagle II's jump range is starting to suck - and the reverse acceleration is crap. Don't bother with it. This is the nicest looking Eagle, with nice spikes on the wings.

Eagle III: The spikes of the Eagle II are replaced by stupid looking tubes in the Eagle III. Apart from cosmetic differences the Eagle III has excellent acceleration but the mass has increased again making it almost useless unless a Class 2 drive is used. With a Class 2 Military drive the Eagle III can become a fine fighter.

Sidewinder: The Sidewinder's main acceleration is somewhat lacking and it really requires a Class 2 drive. Without missile mounts the sidewinder could be vulnerable.

Krait Assault Craft: The increased cargo bay size and the 4 missile pylons make the Krait a better option than the sidewinder. A class 2 drive is needed for any decent jump range.

4) Medium Fighters

Gecko: The Gecko has the largest jump range, with its standard drive, of any of the ships at 17 ly. This leaves a cargo space of only 9 tonnes - about enough for a fighter but not really for a trader. The acceleration is a big step down from the Light Fighters but adequate.

Adder: Hyperspace range is not a problem with the Adder. With a Military drive it can be formidably armed or quite spacious for trading. The fuel scoop mounting is also handy.

Viper: Ex-Police Vipers can be recognised at the shipyard by the blue markings. The Viper has light fighter level acceleration, good jump range and plenty of cargo space. When equipped with a Class 3 Military drive, shields and a good laser it makes a great fighter and good choice for assassins.

Cobra I: Duller acceleration than the Mk III Cobra, the Mk I has Front and Rear laser mounts, fuel scoop and a healthy capacity. The Cobra I is most useful if the Viper is slightly too small for you or you are more biassed towards trading. The Cobra I comes in some nice colour schemes!

Moray Starboat: The Moray Starboat has mediocre acceleration and looks crap. Its cargo bay size is good so it is ideal as a small trader. However, with competition from the Viper and Cobras, the Moray can't be recommended as a fighter.

Cobra III: After a starring role in Elite, the Cobra III has remained an excellent all-rounder. Once equipped with a Class 3 Military drive the jump range is 18.0 ly - ideal for assassinations. If you kit this one out carefully you can have shields and a 4MW Beam laser. Its acceleration kicks ass too.

Constrictor: Marginally better acceleration than the Cobra III along with an extra 10 tonnes of cargo bay allows the Constrictor to be used effectively as a Trader or Medium Fighter. The smaller jump range makes it less desirable for assassinations. Look for constrictors with flashy teeth.

5) Heavy Fighters

Asp Explorer: Often regarded as the finest fighter of all, the Asp has great acceleration, good jump range (excellent with a class 4 hyperdrive) and 2 gun mountings. The extra capacity allows a good level of shielding and powerful weaponry.

Imperial Courier: This is the largest of the fighters. The courier has good acceleration for a ship of it's size and is primarily used as a well defended trader. It is also a great ship for the later military missions. The fixed drive and jump range of 10 ly allows only limited use as an assassin but because of the cargo bay size 20MW lasers can be accommodated. 20MW equipped Couriers are the largest pirate ships you will encounter in frontier.

6) Medium Traders

Transporter: The Transporter has avarage jump range but a good set of 3 gun mounts. The acceleration is slightly better than the avarage trader. The Transporter represents the bottom end trader-only ship.

Lion Transport: The Lion looks like a space shuttle with turned up wings. Its hyperspace range with the standard drive sucks and a class 4 is recommended. Other than that it is unremarkable - apart from it's complement of 8 missile pilons.

Tiger Trader: Better forward acceleration than the Lion and better hyperspace range makes the Tiger a much better choice. Only 1 missile pylon is provided but that is usually sufficient.

Python Freighter: The python looks nicer and performs better than the previous medium traders. However, it is let down by it's poor hyperspace range on the standard engine. No turrets mounted guns are available. If you are prepared to buy a new drive (immediately) then the python may be a good choice. Otherwise? No.

6) Heavy Traders

Imperial Trader: This is the ship to be seen in. Along with the Courier this is the nicest looking ship in frontier. The accelerations are a big step down from the courier but still good by trader standards. The hyperdrive is fixed and so can't be changed but this isn't really a problem with a range of 10 ly. No scoop mounting is available and only a front gun mount is available - apart from that the Imperial Trader is a great ship.

Anaconda: Back in boring Trader land. There is nothing particularly interesting about the anaconda. It looks OK. It performs OK and it does the job.

Puma Shuttle. The Puma is a good all round large trader. It has a full complement of 4 gun mounts and 8 missile pylons. The hyperspace range of 7.2 ly is a bit small and a class 7 hyperdrive is advisable.

Boa: The Boa has the advantage of having a fuel scoop. This makes it ideal for mining light years from the nearest space station. It has 4 turrets and an excellent capacity.

Panther Clipper: The Panther is the biggest of the lot with 2000t of cargo space. A full 4 guns and 8 missiles are provided and the hyperspace range of 9.1 ly is reasonable. If you want to make money the quick (and boring) way then the Panther is ideal.

Ship Statistics

*1 in ST version

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