Changes

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===

The third transport ship is the [[Marauder]], one of the best transport ships that retain agility. The standard Marauder is no better than the Centaur, except for its superior agility. Of course, there are other variants of the Marauder that increase its cargo space up to 60. Most variants are outfitted with three small ports, but there is one variant, the [[Template:Factions:Tunguska|Tunguska]] Mineral Marauder, that is outfitted with one small port and one large port and is designed for mining. This variant is also the one with the largest cargo capacity of the Marauder class transports. The Marauder can hold its own in battle when piloted by the right people, so be sure you aren't attacking a person who is known for their superior skill in fighting with a heavy ship.

===Behemoth===

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.

Another suggestion in taking out Behemoths (also known as "Moths", "Teh Beh", or just "I-knew-I-should-have-been-a-farmer"), Try a Warthog mk II or mk III, equip it with a Neutron Blaster mk II and a Megapositron Blaster. This ship has the highest damage potential of any chase ship, capable of dealing 40000+ damage with a single heavy battery charge. If you're VERY VERY lucky, this ship may do the trick.

-Shape, ex-itani, pirate-extraordinaire

Ah, don't ye' be listenin to Shape mateys. Use teh [[Pirating#Prometheus|prom]] equiped like I been tellin ye!

==Ships to Pirate With==

The [[Vulture]] is one of the most popular fighter class ships used. Due to its thin design, it makes for a very good dodger. There are many variants that are far superior to the basic one. Most notable of the variants is the [[Corvus Prime|Corvus]] [[Vulture#Faction_Variants|Vulturius]]. This ship is one of the fastest fighters when in turbo, up to 240m/s, and 75m/s without turbo. The Vulturius makes a great ship for chasing down ships that are running. Of course this high speed comes at a cost. While in turbo, the Vulturius will deplete the battery very quickly. All variants of the Vulture come equipped with two small weapon ports, which are usually equipped with Neutron or Gauss cannons, depending on whether you want quantity over accuracy, or accuracy over quantity.

===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===

Surprise! The Behemoth is good for pirating. When hunting down a Behemoth, having a partner along in a Behemoth is quite useful. He can add support fire and, when the enemy Behemoth explodes, he can pick up all the cargo and split the profit.

===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==