Player Features and Ideas Discussion

I personally feel that the MTU is overpowered as it can reach (MUCH) further than the noctis, and wouldn't mind giving the maurader another 24km range on a T2 tractor.... but I don't use them.....

I don't understand tbh, the salvage from missions from non battleships is awful in general, so just haul and salvage/loot the large wrecks.

You know, people will abuse this...
Just an example: finish site, drop mobile depot, congrats you have a tanky Noctis

As an example of "how to do":
Just drop in every site / stage a MTU and bookmark it.
After like 90min shooting change to Noctis and salvage the BMs in order to avoid despawning of wrecks...

No, the marauder class was not intended to do what you are asking it to do. It is intended to allow you to grab some stuff while killing and then move on. If you want everything the Noctis is your baby.

Random gibberish

Except, the Noctis came long before rebalance, and the only changes was basically Bastion.
Marauder fans still complained about the lack of love to tractor bonus, which fell on def ears.

It was part of their intended role when introduced, and should remain their intended use.
If that were not the case, the bonus would have been removed.

Uhm, you mixed something up here...
It was part of their role? Yes, and it still is.
But their role was never to be the best salvage/loot ship, their role is to be a combat ship with an decent bonus to tractor beams. Which gives you the capabilities to fast extract the mission loot / shiny loot in complexes whatever...
THAT role they still fulfill.

Geared toward versatility and prolonged deployment in hostile environments, Marauders represent the cutting edge in today's warship technology. While especially effective at support suppression and wreckage salvaging, they possess comparatively weak sensor strength and may find themselves at increased risk of sensor jamming. Nevertheless, these thick-skinned, hard-hitting monsters are the perfect ships to take on long trips behind enemy lines.

So, I just finished running several lvl 4 missions... Though, this is not a special case (done a million of them); the ways in which I salvaged and looted were different


These few missions that I ran were at a different attempt.

1) Using 2x tractor with 1x salvager

2) Using 1x tractor with 2x salvager

3) Using 2x MTU with 3x salvager on ship

4) Run 3 missions, BM'ing each room as you go, and returning to salvage in a Noctis with 4 tractor and 4 salvage. It's also important to note that I am capable of full 10 locked targets.


While I did not measure exact completions with 3 missions per method, the results were noticeable.

1) Probably the slowest, as Marauders are not bonused to salvaging.

2) More effective than option 1, but the limited range bonus of Marauder tractor hinders the use of these ships as salvage/loot (I use cruise missiles which increases completion time, but also increases wreck range)...This becomes more effective with the use of MJD/MWD.

3) With 2x MTU, you have to heavily focus on managing damage (try not to accidentally shoot a wreck), managing tank (if not cap stable), and managing salvage to keep the 2 MTUs from tractoring off each other.
While this is much more effective than 1 and 2 (and quite a bit more engaging than than all other options) it is also hindered by having to manage so many things at once, and the slow tractor velocity and retarget timing of the MTUs.

4) Significantly more effective than any other option. Warping to BMs of several missions (thus avoiding warp gates) on top of tractoring 4 targets at the same time you salvage 4 targets, is very effective.



The whole point of all this was to determine if their was any method to which Marauders were effective enough to negate the use of a Noctis.
The reasoning is due to the additional highs, the tractor bonus, and the large hold are intended to allow the Marauder to be self sufficient when in PVE content.
Now, in no way should Marauders be as powerful as the Noctis while still retaining their combat effectiveness.
That said, you can still give them the same tractor and salvage bonuses the Noctis receives, and it won't overshadow it, as 1t - 2s or 2t - 1s cannot compete against 4 of each...

So, the question then becomes, is it a good idea to give Marauders the bonuses of the Noctis, should they be stronger, or should we find a different bonus for them entirely???

My personal opinion is to give them AT LEAST the bonuses of the Noctis, if not a bit stronger. (even if they're stronger, the number of modules would still keep them from being AS effective.)


However, I'd like to see if someone has another idea that could replace the Tractor bonus and/or remove high slots.
Perhaps bonused towards salvage drones and Noctis lvl tractor range and speed? This would mean less fitting sacrifice.

Actually, looting and salvaging IS part of their intended "role", but has since been overshadowed by salvaging drones, Noctis, and MTU, making the 100% tractor bonus virtually useless.

You claim that it fits the intended role of "fast extracting mission loot/ shinies", yet fail to notice that very few security missions have loot drops, and most of which drop within 20km (t1) or are in a ship that will bring the loot to you.
So your premise is flawed.

That said, read the looting and guns section here.

I will now give you a copy of the description on the Golem, which is virtually the same as the others, and unchanged dispite rebalance..... I'll highlight the important part


I will also note that the on the go looting and salvaging has been hindered even further with the introduction of bastion, as even close range weapons can out range the tractor bonus.

Noctis level tractor bonus on Marauders does not break anything, it does not overshadow the Noctis, and the shorter range compared to MTU is quite balanced, especially considering you have to remain on grid to use local tractors.

So yes, looting and salvaging are/were part of their role/design.