u/Jimjemael

Newish player and I've rushed the recent CGs and got my hands on a Type-11, Anaconda and Panther Clipper.

Panther got blown apart by another CMDR on her maiden voyage (no sweat, it's part of the fun) but I had to sell my Cobras 3 and 5 to re-deploy and since made a lot of money.

I'm looking to get a 'near meta' small/medium combat ship to give combat/bounty hunting a go but after looking around I see a lot of disagreement on the best ships for this role.

Just wondering what folks recommend in 2026. Doesn't have to be the best but ideally one of the contenders.

P.S was planning to make a colony station with my brother at some point. Is claim sniping still common and something to account for?

Newish player having a blast so far! I'm using the term Destroyer loosely because the game implies the existence of larger capital ships we don't really see in-game.

I would LOVE if there were a big-ass chunk of rust I could have as a long term goal that acted as a mobile (automated?) gun platform to support other CMDRs in combat. Something in between the Anaconda and a fleet carrier where maybe my mates could manage battery fire.

I wouldn't want anything OP to be clear, in fact I'd be fine with it being a little underpowered vs all the lethal vectors that pilots have dutifully spent time fine-tuning (easy enough to disable or overwhelm maybe).

Mostly I do trading/transport/mining but I really enjoy the idea of participating in combat situations in a more zoomed out and supportive/strategic way. A ship you might have on hand to prop up a raid, or protect a station, for example.

As mentioned I'm a newer player and feel free to poke holes in the idea. Maybe this role can already somewhat be filled or simply clashes with Elite's framework for ship combat entirely. The game seems to be having a bit of a reformation and I live in hope.

New player here. I've been playing for about 4 days on/off around work.

I've had two community interactions that blew me away already in terms of people going the extra mile for another player.

One query which prompted a fella to make a 20min video to help out myself and other noobs and one rescue from the fuel rats (can't recommend those guys more highly btw, they are well organised) who turned up within 5 minutes of my stranding.

My question is off the back of the fuel rats assistance specifically.

Are there other 'third party' player groups offering services/cooperation? I thought maybe security escorts or anything really, just curious.

New player and I thought I'd give the evacuation community event in Lhou Mans a go.

Stopped off at a nearby station and bought some passenger cabins for my Cobra and then jumped to Webb City station.

My first evac so I'm crapping it, there's fires and debris all over. I reach the landing pad, get stowed away and check the passenger manifests.

Mostly seeing orders for hundreds of tourists and I can only take about 16 people but then I spot a group of politicians the right size.

Turns out I bought economy class cabins and these scholars refuse anything short of a business class escape as the walls fall in 😂

Flight control thanks me for risking my ship as I leave with my empty hold past a queue of incoming rescue vessels.

Guess I'll come back with the comfy seats!