I have seen a number of posts, some old some new but many go on to talk about T2 things and ships worth 100+ million etc however I am hoping for a nice and clear answer on what I should be doing.
In short, using T1 ships, what is currently the best ship and weapons to use to quickly grind through the Level 1 and 2 kill missions?
I’m new so I can go down any route - but want to use the community experience to try and get myself as much of a head start as possible given that I lack the skills currently to swap between weapon types etc. I don’t have any particular preference in terms of fighting style - I just prefer to be able to run missions as easily and as quickly as possible.
Personally, I would go for a Moa if you run L1/2 missions in Gallente or Caldari space. Hybrid ammo is cheap and applies damage instantly. You are damage type locked but you waste less ISK on ammo. If you do that in Amarr space, an Omen should do the trick. Lasers don’t use any ammo if you use T1 crystals and faction crystals are very cheap compared to equal numbers of shots of other ammo.
I would choose Corax. Fully kitted with T2 modules, it can breeze through L2 missions and SoE Epic Arc. Most of all, it scales nicely meaning you don’t need skill injections to start using it and flying L1/2 missions while perfecting the boat.
Cons are lack of speed and poor power/CPU, meaning you start it with a lot of fitting rigs and -modules. Allmost all other modules should also have word “compact” in their name.
You can keep switching these out as skills improve and once aced, the skillset allows you to move on to cruisers without any extra training.
although any combat ship can be used for missions, going the Caldari / Missile route is a solid choice for attacking NPCs. Missiles are not the most popular choice when it comes to PvP, so take that into consideration if you plan to do PvP in the future.
But I would also try using drones (Tristan Frigate) as the gameplay is a little different and quite enjoyable. If you enjoy using drones- then going with a drone ship tree is quite rewarding.
Turrets are perfectly fine for PvE, but tends to be a very popular choice for PvP- so again, think about this if you might want to do some PvP in the future.
Let me know if you need me to clarify anything here. Good luck on your journey.
Course with the right skills and ship fit, a T1 combat Frigate can solo complete level 3 encounter missions. However that will take a lot more time compared to using a Battlecruiser.
I am currently using a Caldari destroyer “Cormorant” to run level 1 from level 2 mission without any difficulty.
My clone is only at 1,2 million skill points and all level 2 mission is like finger in the nose.
My cormorant is fitting like this:
Full 150mm rail gun
microwarpdrive
tracking computer I (script to boost optimal range)
Sensor booster (script to boost targeting range)
2xMagnetic field stabilizer
Some rig ancillary current router to boost your power grid to fit all this.
ammo small antimatter S (close combat 15km) and small iron charge S (snipe at 50km).
setup your default keep at range 50km, after warping inside pocket prop on your MWD when needed to maintain your default distance from rats, turn on your sensor booster to enable targeting lock from above 40km and tracking computer to adjust your damage range.
You will shoot down everything between 40-55km without being hit, prior the weakest one and when the hardest is left if really need use Antimatter S at close range (15km orbit) to rip them fast.
You will be surprised how cheap and efficient this fit is for L2 mission.
Vexor - Dominix - Ishtar - getting angry at myself for not going for the Ishtar straight away since i use for 2s up to 4s whatever i have to fly against.
Works like a charm and zero running costs besides the rare drone loss.
From my experience the best ships for L1 and L2 missions are Destroyers. Most L1 missions can also be absolved with a Frigate with a good fitting but the firepower of a Destroyer is quite useful. When it comes to weapons some of my chars used lasers, railguns oder projectile weapons. I have some problems with blasters because of the limited range. The Destroyers combine firepower with sufficient slots to fit salvagers.
Hey OP, train your skills…all of them, for your choice of Cruiser and battlecruiser…
While you are doing that, the fastest way to accumulate standings and bypass the near worthless lv 1-2 combat missions is to do Courier missions for your choice of NPC Corporation that you are trying get standings for.
