A little help needed.

[Arcain]

I just started doing GSF a few weeks ago on all my characters. (back in SWG space became my primary game). I find in dog fights using Scouts and Attack ships I do rather well 1v1, outside of the fact it takes me forever to kill OpFor ships.

 

I have been slowly upgrading my Starter ships and running both Weekly and Daily GSF assignments. The problem is, I am not even close to getting a new ship yet, am I missing something? Is there some way to get bonus fleet marks so I can get out of all these newbie ships sooner?

 

I keep hearing people talk about how handicapped starter ships are, then why the heck does it take so long to get out of them? If Bioware intends on making GSF something people *Want* to get into then they need to even the playing field a bit. In a twich environment, with vet players with all unlocks running around vs newbies who have nothing, they will not stick around. The only reason I'm still playing GSF is I enjoy space combat, even with the realization that 99% of my adversaries WAY outclass my ship.

 

For example, in the Battlefield games I have always been a top ranked player, now if because of my time in, I had advantages all over the place, that would actually lessen my fun. Rank in games that require aim should allow vets to access gear that sets them apart, not allows them to totally dominate newer players.

[DresG]

I keep hearing people talk about how handicapped starter ships are, then why the heck does it take so long to get out of them?

 

I don't usually call people noobs, but whoever told you that is a huge noob. Type 1 Scout packs one of the highest bursts potential in the game (rocked pods, light lasers and telemetry) and Type 1 Strike Fighter is one of the most versatile ships there are, you can set the components for a mean, very sturdy, short range dogfighter (ions, rapids, clusters, quick charge) or you can set it for mid range harasser (heavies, rapids, concs). In both cases, these ships need just a couple of days to have it upgraded to a decent level of functionality.

 

If you want Fleet Requisition fast then you need to convert Ship Requisition from those ships you barely use, to Fleet Req using Cartel Coins.

[Kalphitis]

Is there some way to get bonus fleet marks so I can get out of all these newbie ships sooner?

 

I keep hearing people talk about how handicapped starter ships are, then why the heck does it take so long to get out of them?

 

The starter ships are not 'newbie ships'. The problem is they are not upgraded. When you purchase a new 'non-newbie' ship, you will be in the same predicament since it won't have any upgrades (possibly worse since you don't have any experience flying the other ships).

 

As you upgrade any ship, and get better at the game, you'll notice a difference. I have all the ships, and my favorite one -- the one I always play the best in -- is my 'newbie' Starguard/Rycer that I've always had.

 

Admittedly, most people on these forums consider Bombers to be superior to other ship-types in Domination matches -- but that's a separate story.

[Kalphitis]

<('.'<) Edited April 27, 2014 by Kalphitis

[Verain]

Yea, the type 1 scout and type 1 strike are perfectly reasonable. But being unupgraded is... punishing.

 

 

It actually doesn't take that long to get clear of the phase where you are a real wreck. Most of the really clutch upgrades cost 1000 or 2500 req, but even those few games at native can be obnoxious. It's like the game can't possibly get you to have enough rapid fire laser, despite it being very unfriendly to new people.

[Slivovidze]

As mentioned above. Whoever says that the basic ships are bad, has no idea what he's talking about. Scout packs extreme mobility with really awesome burst damage, and the fighter provides great attack variety.

 

Myself, I have 3 days of GSF played total, 2 of these days are on NovaDive with K/D over 7 (which doesn't provide me any bragging rights, but it is a reasonable, non-frustrating performance). The stock strike fighter isn't my cup of tea though.

 

However, by flying those basic ships you can decide which suits you best, so you will know what to buy once you save the 5k fleet req. Meanwhile, keep upgrading your basic ships and you will become experienced plus you will gain the gear advantage (or more like, eliminate the gear disadvantage). That way, you may even learn that you don't actually want to swap to another fighter or scout, but you might want to try out a gunship or bomber instead.

 

For a new guy it is really mostly just biting it and staying there until you become good. The gear itself also doesn't provide that huge bonuses, it is more that the experienced people know how to stack these bonuses and how to exploit them for biggest success. (which makes the learning curve even steeper though)

 

So, please, hold on and keep trying, and I promise that you will eventually find the fun in GSF. The playerbase is limited and we want every able person to play with or against us.

Edited April 27, 2014 by Slivovidze

[Storm-Cutter]

I'd echo everything slivo said. - save your fleet Reqs - Don't use them to top up ship reqs. - Or use Cartel coins. - You can also use CCs to convert ship reqs to fleet.

 

Its probably best to do the dailies on 1 ship and improve one , rather than try to max-out them all at the same time. Once the dailies are done if you still have the x2 bonus, fly all the remaining ships until that runs out. - This should amass several thousand req points.

 

remember also to leave the aces and the fly-boys to chase kills. A support role is just as valuable. - Injure any that cross your path for an assist. - Shoot node turrets - Defend nodes rather than chase kills. - also stay on your side of the map during Domination.- its easy to get injured and be deep In enemy territory where their fresh ships spawn. If you are shield/evade heavy, try peeling ships off nodes or into friendly sides by tempting them and run away. -If they're chasing you they aren't defending or scoring kills!

 

Blast anyone with low shilelds/hull. Finishing them off scores a kill, and is easier than taking them down from full.

 

Practice getting close to obstacles without crashing - And circling nodes real-real close. That cuts down on the snipers/ missile locks.

 

As you improve, your req earning will improve too. Stick with it and have a blast. It really is worth it.

[DamascusAdontise]

It can take a while, but with somewhere between 1-3 weeks of dalies (depending on if you do them religiously or not) and you can get into a ship of your choice. Substantially shorter if you can play a lot, but be careful not to burn yourself out. As another option you can purchase a cartel market version of some ships on the GTN, this will allow you to get into a ship you want MUCH sooner. I bought the Ocula on my first day so have had access to the tier 2 scout since the start (which helped a lot)

 

I also wanted to second the advice of others, find a ship and stick with it for a while (this will help you to unlock it faster)

 

Also when you are spending req, be sure to check stasies guide first so you dont waste any req (this is way more punishing than the grind) I suggest outfitting your components one at a time, at least until it gets to the 5-10k option, the 15k one can be a little time consuming to get.

 

Everything is important to unlock but I usually start with defense or missiles first. The other secondary components are less important at the start. If your using distortion field get the missile break first, as it is the most bang for your buck otherwise IMO its something like: Defense > Missiles > Engine > Blasters > Secondary Components.

[Toraak]

It can take a while, but with somewhere between 1-3 weeks of dalies (depending on if you do them religiously or not) and you can get into a ship of your choice. Substantially shorter if you can play a lot, but be careful not to burn yourself out. As another option you can purchase a cartel market version of some ships on the GTN, this will allow you to get into a ship you want MUCH sooner. I bought the Ocula on my first day so have had access to the tier 2 scout since the start (which helped a lot)

 

I also wanted to second the advice of others, find a ship and stick with it for a while (this will help you to unlock it faster)

 

Also when you are spending req, be sure to check stasies guide first so you dont waste any req (this is way more punishing than the grind) I suggest outfitting your components one at a time, at least until it gets to the 5-10k option, the 15k one can be a little time consuming to get.

 

Everything is important to unlock but I usually start with defense or missiles first. The other secondary components are less important at the start. If your using distortion field get the missile break first, as it is the most bang for your buck otherwise IMO its something like: Defense > Missiles > Engine > Blasters > Secondary Components.

 

Personally I'd suggest engine/shield t2 first (depending on what shield your going with. t3 if distortion), If your starting to level a t2 scout I'd actually suggest at this point getting BLC and going to t4, then max missiles next. As a t2 scout you do most of your damage off of burst (if your choosing that Primary), so getting the ignore armor ability at t4 makes a huge increase to your damage once you have your defensive CD's reduced.

[Devrius]

If you really can't wait to get a new ship simply do a weekly and for 200 CC you can convert the ship reqs on both starter ships to 5000 fleet reqs and get a new ship.

 

I kinda recommend doing this actually, seeing how dailies and weeklies both give reqs to *all* ships unlocked.

 

Meaning that basically every daily and weekly reward you use before unlocking extra ships is somewhat wasted.

 

You seem to like dog-fighting, in that case do the above and get a T2 scout asap the Sting on the Empire side and the Flashfire on the Republic side.

 

The base ships are actually some of the bests, the starter strike fighter is a jack of all trades that can be built to do almost anything. The build in Stasie's guide for example is a powerfull ship both in TDM and Dominion, I have most ships unlocked but I find myself flying my Starguard almost exclusively.

 

 

1st upgrades:

 

- Reducing cooldown on your missile lock (engine), now more then ever this is vital.

 

- Armor/shields: passive defenses will keep you in the fight longer and if stacking evasion every little bit helps.

 

 

After that go for what seems more lack luster, if you find yourself lacking laser energy too often invest in magazines, if it's the damage you deal that is too far behind invest in weapons, find yourself flying around too much and engines running on empty? Upgrade thrusters, go for what is most needed and get it to tier 2 asap then move to upgrading another component, then max the low costing tier 3 and finally max everything else.

 

It is pointless to have fully upgraded main weapons if everything else is still fresh of the store.

Edited April 27, 2014 by Devrius

[Arcain]

Thanks for all the advice guys. I've taken a break from GSF for a bit, trying to level multiple characters all at once with newbie stuff, got me a bit burnt. I'll just focus on one character from here on out.