I think we can all agree that the Raptors - especially the Raptor UDV - are not very useful.
The invention of the UDV Raptor as an exclusive ship for the UIT was the right step but after tesing and playing around with it and facing it a couple times in player to player combat one thing becomes very clear: The profile of this ship is way to large, that means:

- It is easy flare bait
- It is easy gat bait
- It is significantly easier to hit a Raptor with energy shots than a Vulture or anything else

It is understood that the UIT are in no way a militant Party in this game so therefore don't really "need" a ship like the Valkyrie or the Prometheus... But if you're going to give them something exclusive then give them something decent that is special in it's very own way. Something special that is worth to think about using in player to player combat.
It's only advantages currently are the built in storm radar and the top speed that makes it a worthy chaser... but once your target turns around to fire at you you'll be out of luck.

So to list some ideas which hopefully will be considered by the developers aswell I will get a list of possible solutions started:

1: Reduce the Raptor UDV's profile (much like you did for the Valkyrie X-1)

2: Swap the 2 small ports for 2 large ports. That would not only make it a special ship overall but also make it a tough ppponent in PvP. (given that the profile was adjusted)

3: Give it a third port and do not adjust it's profile.

4: Add a turret port and adjust it's profile. Having an interceptor with a gunner aboard would make a very interesting pirating ship.

Personally I'm a fan of 1&2. This is just a small list of ideas.

I suggest, and have before, as have many people in the past, giving all raptors two large ports and leaving the profile the same. Vulnerable, but very dangerous to be in front of.

I like #2 and #4. Especially since we have no combat ships with turrets.

facing it a couple times in player to player combat

Not all PvP combat is head to head duels. The UDV Raptor is great for a lot of things, but dueling isn't one of them. I'd choose one over a Valkyrie for conquerable station defense any day.

Not all PvP combat is head to head duels. The UDV Raptor is great for a lot of things, but dueling isn't one of them. I'd choose one over a Valkyrie for conquerable station defense any day.

This is one of the reasons why I haven't buffed the Raptor yet. I've talked about how I'm going to drastically change the universe, and I think these changes will make some of advantages of that ship much more evident. I'm expecting the universe changes before the end of the year.

But, I still like this feedback on potential tweaks that could be done and would like to see more.

Availability matters a lot too. If somebody's going to have to travel across the galaxy to get a ship, it needs to be worth wasting the time and effort to move them to where you need them.

How many Barracks stations does the UIT have near heavy PVP areas?

There's a good reason you don't see a lot of folks flying things like the BioCom Vulture XT or Axia Guardian Wraith. They're decent ships, but not worth hauling them.

Inc...all due respect...the raptor has been sub-par for so long that it deserves a bump. If it has to be scaled back later, so be it....but make it useful now so one of the most attractive models in the game actually gets some use.

Waiting for universe changes which could be delayed due to budget constraints does nothing to inspire or motivate your existing player base...nor does it add any new variety to their current gameplay.

Savet- when he says "aiming for" it usually means delays, but "expecting" tends to mean it'll get done.

Savet, it did get a bump, hence the UDV version.

Unfortunately other ships that fill a similar role (SVG, Greyhound) did too that made it comparatively ungood. Add in years of being under-spec and names like the "Craptor" and a lot of people won't even give the new variant more than a cursory look or try to find tactics that emphasize it's strengths.

Why fly a UDV Raptor when the new overpowered Greyhound is better?

for a ship that's featured in the VO trailer it deserves to be improved so people want to fly it.
+1 for suggestions 1 & 2

I've always thought the Raptor looks cool. It's engines already sound cool. Make it worthwhile flying now! +1

Inc...all due respect...the raptor has been sub-par for so long that it deserves a bump. If it has to be scaled back later, so be it....but make it useful now so one of the most attractive models in the game actually gets some use.

Generally, nerfing is a hell of a lot more painful than buffing. People get invested in a particular model and are then pissed about it for years. Or, say, a decade. And, as ARF says, it did get a huge buff for the UDV version.

The universe changes are pretty damned important, so if they are delayed a lot as you suggest, it would really hang up a lot of other things that.. are comparatively much worse than the Raptor usage. So, anyway, I'm not so naive as to claim that the development won't slip, but it's a pretty big priority.

Anyway, let's keep the specific ideas for Raptor-improvement coming.

I think what Savet meant is that it did not receive enough of a bump with the UDV model. Even though the changes were significant, it either needs a profile reduce or something new cool like 2 large ports as suggested by OP to be a decent ship for the UIT.

Edit: Another great idea would be giving it a cargo scanner much like the Hound has. I consider the Raptor to be better at PvP than the Hound, so that'd even it out a little and make it considerable again.

corvus maud.. 13000 armor.. grmbl

Inc, why don't you just lock up the UDV until it becomes useful? Otherwise we'll just sit around complaining that it isn't, because... it's not.

Seiger summarized my point exactly. Give it 2 large ports and let it get some use. When your universe changes happen, we can worry if it needs adjusting at that time. You have something really cool now that your players want.... Really bad... This is an awesome opportunity to make them excited.

-1 to taking away the things we whine and complain about :p

+ 1 to making the UDV Raptor a mini Teradon

To add an analogy to our situation, we have a perfectly shiny bicycle in our garage, and all it needs is a few tweaks like a chain tightening or a pedal replacement. Dad , however, won't fix the bike because they will be regrading the street sometime in the next year and our kid can just roll down the hill on the broken bike when that time comes.

Fix our bike. Be a good father.

DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaddyyyyyyyyyYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!

If you keep whining like that he'll put you in the timeout corner.

We're not whining, We are using varying approaches to bring focus to a low-hanging fruit that players have been wanting for years. The worst thing he will do is not do what we're asking, which is what is going to happen if we do nothing.