Pirating: Difference between revisions

First off, you need to decide what you want to do.

* Do you want to be a purist pirate, who only takes cargo and kills unarmed traders?

* Or, will you be a hybrid of both?

* '''Never pirate a trader more than once in one log in'''. This keeps those greedy traders from feeling like you are taking all their money and helps make sure they pay you next time.

* '''Make a funny hail message'''. This just helps make you stand out from the n00b in a bus with an eye patch and a bird who has a funny dye job.

* '''Never go back on a deal'''. You're telling people who already think you are scum that if they give you money you will let them live. They have no guarantee you will, so you need to build up a rep. So if they ask all their little trader buddies (traders are cliquey, and due to them being so rich they have many "friends") if you are good for your word, they will get a yes back and then they'll pay instead of run.

* '''Find a way to make your name stand out'''. You have some pirates who do this by killing everything, kicking dogs, and biting flowers. These guys are often hated and almost never make any money. (Though there is something to be said for being able to log in and kill anything you want and then make the people you killed cry by peeing on their cats.) Then you have pirates that are kinda nice; these guys are often thought of with a warm fuzzy feeling, and people like to thank them for making the game fun. Then, you got guys like me who are known for doing anything for money. Which ends up leading me away from piracy and into other fields of work.

Whatever you decide to do, make sure you have fun with it and remember it's just a game. Don't you ever forget: without pirates, there will never be a need for human traders, as any robotics man can make a bot who will haul cargo from point A to point B. But only a human will dare try to take on a pirate. So remember: you're doing it to help humans keep their jobs.

-Borb, Pirate, Merc, and BLAK council member.

==Ships to Pirate==

*A concussion mine is never used for damaging a player, as it causes 0 damage. Instead, the concussion mine will, when detonated, exert a very large amount of force on all ships within the blast radius, causing the ships to be thrown off course. The force exerted is the same on all ships, except ships with more mass will take longer to recover from it.

*A lightning mine is very dangerous and can kill ships who decide to hang around it. The lightning mine is equipped with a large battery and much more sophisticated sensors than the other mines. The sensors are able to determine whether or not ships within range are hostile. The lightning mine utilizes a weapon that causes pure energy to arc from itself to an enemy ship at a rate of 1000 damage per second and will keep firing until the ship is out of range, the mine is destroyed, or the mine's energy is depleted and self-destructs. The lightning mine is somewhat easier to spot than proximity and concussion mines due to the electrical arcs that surround it.

===Atlas===

First, we have the [[Atlas]], this is the first transport class ship that players get access to. The main variant can contain 32 cargo and other variants can hold up to 38. The Atlas is outfitted with one small weapon port and one large weapon port. There really is not much to say about the Atlas except that it is a low level trading vessel and fairly easy prey, there are much bigger space fish to fry.

===Centaur===

The next ship is the [[Centaur]], this transport vessel can hold 48 units of cargo and the other variants can hold up to 50 units of cargo. The Centaur is constructed with one small port and two large ports, allowing it to launch two mines at once. A popular configuration with transport vessels that have two or more large weapon ports is to launch a [[Weapons:Large#Mine_Launchers|concussion mine]] to get you disorientated and then to launch chaos or locust [[Weapons:Large#Missile_Launchers|Swarms]].

===Marauder===

===Behemoth===

The last transport ship is the appropriately named [[Behemoth]]. This ship is indeed a huge transport with space for 120 cargo units - it can barely fit into a dock. This transport class is an easy-to-hit target, but it has a very thick hull which can take large amounts of damage. The Behemoth does not come with superior weapons capacity, as all of its space has been dedicated to its massive cargo holds, thick armor, and very powerful engines. In fact, its capacity for weaponry is lower than the Centaur, as it comes with only two large ports. Destroying this ship without a partner has proven quite difficult, as its huge amounts of armor allow it to take considerable amounts of damage while its very efficient engines can be powered indefinitely by a Fast Charge Battery as it reaches top speed and flees the sector.

It is possible to take out the Behemoth by yourself though; one tactic has proven fairly effective. This tactic uses a Warthog class attack ship, in the large port goes a jackhammer (or screamer) class rocket launcher and the small port has a Neutron MkII (preferably MkIII). You use the rocket launcher to knock the Behemoth off course. It will need to drop out of turbo in order to readjust, and this is when you use your Neutron blaster to attack it. When it is about ready to turbo again, fire another rocket, rinse and repeat until desired effect is obtained.

==Ships to Pirate With==

===Vulture===

===Centurion===

The lower level variants of the [[Centurion]] are not very good for pirating. Fortunately, there are some special variants, most notably the Rev C from Orion Heavy Manufacturing and the IBG from the Itani. These ships are very light and very agile making them perfect fighters. I recommend using one in conjunction with a Hog or even another Cent for maximum effect. Good Cent pilots have been known to take on groups of up to 5 people at once and come out alive. Common configurations are dual neutron mkIII, or Axia positrons. Although some will swear by dual gauss, find out what works for you as this is a very useful ship in the right hands.

===Warthog===

The [[Warthog]] is very good for destroying the heavier transport ships. Simply place a rocket launcher into either the small weapon port or the large weapon port and your energy weapon of choice in the other weapon port. You should, of course, never use the basic variant and explore the other options the universe has to offer. If you can fight quite well, then you should use the cargo transport or mining variants, as these will let you take back more of your goods from the remains of the ship. Also keep in mind, turbo speed and the turbo's energy consumption, you want to be able to catch your prey, but you also want to be able to attack it.

===Behemoth===

===Valkyrie===

Two ion or phase and one gauss (or one ion or phase and two neutrons 1-3) - this ship is often used in conjunction with the first tri-sun valk to great effect. The tri-sun will hit the target and this ship will then fly in close and inflict damage before the trader can regain his bearings. Or this ship will engage the trader and the tri-sun will fly around behind the trader filling him full of rockets.

===Prometheus===

The [[Prometheus]] is a great ship for committing acts of piracy. The best version for this act is the MKII. It is slower then the SCP, but it's large cargo hold allows you to pick up any extra goodies you find laying in the wake of your destruction. The common outfitting of this ship is to have 2 Sunflares and one Gatling Turret. Used right, this ship can cause massive damage to trade lanes.

Key to making this work is vigilance. So make sure to use verbose! What's that you say? Never heard of it?

===Marauder===

Often used as a poor man's Valk, the [[Marauder]] is a great Pirate ship. Its speed and large cargo hold allow for many great options. The fact that it can be bought almost anywhere makes it almost as available as the Vult, meaning you will most likely fly it at least once in your career. Common configurations are similar to the ones used with the Valk.

===Atlas===

No, we're not crazy! The [[Atlas]], when used right, makes a very good pirate ship - most notably the [[Atlas]] TPG X. Due to the large cargo space, this is a very good looting ship for use against traders or miners. The fact that it can hold a Large port weapon is a very nice plus. Common configurations are a Mega Positron Blaster and a Neutron 1-3. Or in the configuration known as the Atlas Of Doom, a Gatling Turret and a Sunflare.

==Pirate Terms==

| align=center | Privateer

| A privateer is a pilot with a "letter of marque" (see below) from a governement. This letter "allows" the sailor to plunder any ship of a given enemy nation. Technically, a privateer was a self employed soldier paid only by what he plundered from an enemy. In this, a privateer was supposed to be above being tried for piracy. Tell that to Cap'n Kidd. Most often, privateers were a higher class of criminal, though many turned plain pirate before all was said and done.

|-

| align=center | To Go on Account

! colspan=2 | [http://www.inkyfingers.com/pirates/terms/index.html Source of some of these terms] <font color=white>|</font> [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirate#Stereotypical_piratical_expressions Other good sources.]

|}

[[Category:Aggressive Activities]]