Your Machete S has a range bonus to command modules (actually that’s pretty badass. I might have to get one…). The base range of command and engineer modules is the same.
Really? Ah, right… I confess that the Machete Type S is the first Command Fighter I’ve flown ‘seriously’ since trying to use a Rank 4 Hercules Arrow with Mk I / II modules feels like I should be flying vs Tier 1…
Okay, so that’s a point discredited due to misunderstanding on my part. 
I’ve been thinking on this some more and my current idea… I know it’s not going to be popular. I know for a fact rage is incoming… but I don’t care. If people don’t like it then fine; so long as they can give good reasons why they are against it I welcome the argument.
tl;dr version: Frigates should be Fighters.
Long version:
Frigates should have comparable speed, agility, survivability and firepower to Fighters.
This might sound a tad crazy, but here me out:
Let’s take a hypothetical Tier 2 Command Fighter and use it as a baseline. We shall call this ship the “Default.” Such a vessel exists for all three races, and it is the benchmark by which all other ships are judged.
Gunships would have less health than the Default, and possibly be a tad slower, but their potential DPS is much higher when in Overdrive. Tacklers… you know what? I’ve never actually flown a Tackler and I still don’t know enough about them to say how they are meant to be balanced compared to other Fighters, but it would be balanced against the Default.
Then come the Frigates…
The Engineer Re-imagined:
The Engineer Frigate would have the same Survivability as this Default ship. It might be slightly slower and/or have a poorer turning circle, but it would be just as easy / hard to kill, just as strong in terms of damage output and so on.
How is this balanced?
Compare the two ships and their roles:
- Both have the same offensive and defensive abilities before applying Specials. This means if both ships stood in front of one another with no modules or Specials active and shot each other, the winner would be who fired first (I know it’s more complex than that due to Resistances, but it’s good enough for this theoretical).
- The ‘bonus’ the Command Fighter has is superior defense and short-term survivability. Its modules increase damage resistance, and its Special takes said resistance through the roof. However, it isn’t built for solo-fights and will eventually be ‘pecked apart’ by attackers.
- The Engineer has (slightly) superior offense due to its Drones. It also has superior long-term survivability; if it can escape a fight (or win one) then it can begin healing itself back to full health. This is balanced by the fact that in the short term it will take more damage more quickly than a Command Fighter, and so will in theory lose against one once Modules and Specials are applied into the equation.
This provides an obvious tactical and strategic niche; if you go mass Command you don’t have healing power and your enemy can wear you down over time. If you go mass Engineer your enemies can alpha-strike you without ever giving you a chance to properly heal. If you bring both then their abilities compliment each other, making them far more survivable than either can be alone.
The Long Range Frigate Re-imagined:
This should be balanced compared to the Gunship. Again, assuming both ships have comparable survivability, speed, energy and so forth, let us consider the differences:
- Long Range Frigates have more firepower by default - six turrets to the Gunship’s four.
- Gunship “Overdrive” provides a major, short-term boost to damage, allowing it to do more than the LR can in a turret duel. This is part of the balance factor - Gunships lose to LR without Overdrive, but beat them with it.
- The Disintegrator / Guided Torpedo still does not allow a DPS rate to match the Overdrive, save perhaps for some lucky multi-ship hits with the Torp. This is offset by the fact that it can be employed from further away.
In short, the Gunship stays a front-line brawler, whilst the Long Range Frigate remains a second-line support ship. However, both ships can fill the other’s role to an extent - a Gunship with Stabilized Railguns or similar long range weapons can support at a distance to an extent, whilst the half-dozen turrets of a Long Range Frigate allow for some major damage up close and personal.
Guard Frigates:
I am going to admit I am not 100% sure how much Guards would have to change to fit this new imagining of the Frigate, if they change at all. However, I would submit the following potential change as an idea:
- Guard Frigates get the “Default” statline. This would result in much lower Survivability, but a big boost to speed and agility.
- Guard modules focus on disruption and de-buffing (Missile shields, damage-reducing auras) or raw damage (Pulsar). Their DPS output would be the same as the Command / Tackler / Engi / Gunship (assuming Specials are offline).
- As a potential option, the “Guard Shield” could be given an area of effect - boosting the protection of all nearby ships.
So, thoughts on this concept?
