Ion Cannons Worth It?? (Strike Fighter- FT 8 Star Guard)

[Dkrewe]

So I am trying to figure out my primary and secondary weapons on my Star Guard. I tend to try to swoop in for kills and frequently sit at a satellite and gun down people as they approach, but still seem to get stuck in dogfights vs scouts or other strikes when they attack in force what I am defending.

 

So, is the best offensive setup Ion Cannons+ Quad? Or is the Heavy Laser Cannons best? I really don't like the Rapid-fire much because it just seems like it doesn't do enough dmg for me. Yea I might hit less getting lucky holding down the firing button but when I do hit the shots don't really count as much.

 

Insight would be appreciated.

[Ramalina]

In the blaster arena the primary advantage that strike fighters have is longer range options. Ions are nice, but in general I don't like sacrificing 1-3 km in range for something that is really only strong against shields, forcing a switch at close range.

 

If you like finishing people off with cluster missiles Ions might be a good choice, but skilled pilots can make getting a lock very difficult even after you've gotten the rapid lock-on upgrade.

 

I usually run Quads and Heavy on my FT-8. Heavy are hard hitting and with range capacitor can hit out to 6.9 km, almost the same range as concussion missiles. Also shield piercing upgrade is very nice once you get it. The quads are fast firing and hit pretty hard when mastered.

 

So it probably depends on your fighting style. If you shoot mostly at very close ranges Ions are a good choice, especially if you finish with death by cluster missile. If you like trying to hit at longer ranges a heavy-quads setup is better.

[mr_sim]

nah They might be but you need to get good before you can deploy them, I'd say keep the standard load out. on the Star guard, try the cluster missiles though see if you like them better.

[Delta_V]

I find them useful when defending a node. One thing to note about them is their remarkable accuracy - over 120% at close range if you take a crew member w/ the accuracy bonus. This makes it much easier to actually land hits against a target near the edge of your firing arc, which is very useful when dealing w/ enemies near satellites. Often, if you're trying to deal w/ a satellite hugger, quickly stripping his shields w/ Ion Cannons will make them panic and run away, making it easier to get a kill shot, or at least make it possible for your teammates to finish them off.

[Brilo]

I don't always fly a Star Guard, but when I do I use Ions.

 

Killing shields isn't all they're for, but nothing is better at it. It matters more against people that make good use of directional shields, but either way there's nothing like blowing through those shields and having a nice couple of solid blaster rounds and cluster missiles right behind it, makes short work of just about anything.

[mr_sim]

you'll notice the posts arguing for the Ion cannons are for advanced tactics, get your feet under you first then start playing with Ion cannons, Weapons swap mechanics takes a little bit of extra focus that a fresh player doesn't have the mental bandwidth for.

 

Ion cannons are an excellent specialty weapon, you have lots of time to come back and buy/upgrade them later,

[codycroft]

I like razzing the target with ions as my missle is locking on. I consider it a bit of prep work.

[Cleet_Xia]

So I am trying to figure out my primary and secondary weapons on my Star Guard. I tend to try to swoop in for kills and frequently sit at a satellite and gun down people as they approach, but still seem to get stuck in dogfights vs scouts or other strikes when they attack in force what I am defending.

 

So, is the best offensive setup Ion Cannons+ Quad? Or is the Heavy Laser Cannons best? I really don't like the Rapid-fire much because it just seems like it doesn't do enough dmg for me. Yea I might hit less getting lucky holding down the firing button but when I do hit the shots don't really count as much.

 

Insight would be appreciated.

 

First req I spent was to replace my primaries with Ion & Quad. My recommendation is to pick which of the two stock weapons you like best & replace the other with Ions.

 

The chief problem with the combination is that it draws down your weapon battery faster than any other load out. And if your not going to manage your power resources, you'll spend a lot of time out of gas. You're not going to down too many orbiting scouts with any strike loadout, but the Ion cannon makes sure that they are always ready for one of your scout wingmen to make an effective strafing run.

 

Ions + Quads probably has the highest burst output of any loadout for the strike. So it is very effective for convincing gunships that they had better boost and scoot. And it's more effective for clearing station defensive turrets. Both of which are very beneficial for your scout wingmen.

 

As for secondaries, Cluster missles are better for station defense, Torpedos for gunships & and turrets. I generally use Concussion missles as a not so happy medium. With secondaries, everything is a trade off. Just make sure you use which ever you pick.

 

On a side note... If you're not comfortable hotkeying between your weapons ~ you'll contribute more by flying a scout.

Edited December 27, 2013 by Cleet_Xia

[Kaivers]

I just started using Ion Cannons and find them useful as a backup option when the need arises. They supplement my Strike's toolkit, which includes Quads and Concussion Missiles, very well. Edited December 27, 2013 by Kaivers

[Lytewraith]

I have a star guard with ion cannons at lv 4 with the eng power drain aswell on them and they are amazing at cutting a enemy down no matter what ship they are not ony are you droping there shilds and light hull damage but you drain there engines and at lv 5 you get a nice little debuff on them and remeebr that is every bolt fired from the ions and they fire a lot its like watching the ion rail gun when they are beefed up you take there power there shields and they are done with anyone attacting them and it don't take a lot eather fire ions for around 3-4 secs and then switch to quads and you can watch the fireworks Edited December 27, 2013 by Lytewraith
misspell

[Luneward]

Much like the Ion Rail cannon, ion blasters are most effective when maxed out and can be used for utility as much as razing enemy shields. When I'm flying strike, though (not often), I make use of them because shields are my biggest annoyance. I bring out my strike for close-satellite dog fighting, and all that circling around and ducking behind things gives plenty of time to regenerate shields, and I prefer to take shields out as quickly as possible before switching to heavy weapons for the kill.

[Wainamoinen]

Ions and target Clusters; launch Cluster so it hits with their shields down and switch to Quads; pewpew = dead. Great when you pull it off. Edited December 27, 2013 by Wainamoinen

[Dkrewe]

Is it not a good strategy to hit them from distance with the Heavy Laser Cannon and then swap to Quads when I get close? Right now doing that I don't even have to swap usually.

[Dkrewe]

By good I mean is it more effective when coupled with range capacitor.

[Arilou_skiff]

Ions can be very nice if you're teamed up with someone, as you can drain shields/mess up systems while your buddy delivers the killing blow. It's probably sub-optimal otherwise though.