The Drake Caterpillar I've not had this ship long, yet every time I see in the hangar it puts a smile on my face! Certainly a ship to keep your eye on in the future. But what do you guys think? As always let me know down below!!
I know it was a tough decision to melt the Polaris. I did the same thing in reverse. I had a bunch of single seat fighters, things like 325a, saber, titan, Cutty blue, vanguard the list went on, then I realized that Stanton and Pyro are like the 2 smallest systems in the verse. I melted almost all my fleet and started over. I have thought long about the large/cap ship dilemma of crew size and cost of components. I decided not to buy any ships over size 6 max crew. That means between blades and a couple friends or NPC all is well. Probably the same size crew of a fully manned RSI Andromeda can crew everything in my fleet, which the 3 largest ships are a Carrack, Perseus and Caterpillar so far. I love my Taurus, MSR, and 400i as well because like you I will mostly be solo. That is why I am going to get a CCU from my Cutty black to a C1, I think it will be a great daily driver and better in atmo.
@@jedi_drifter2988 I had the same thought, I went with a liberator and a few ships and ground vehicles it can carry around so that if needed I can run solo and bring all my assets with me. Or if playing with friends we can bring 3 vultures, or 2 prospectors and an expanse. Or a bunch of ROC's. So it's got a lot of versatility not including just trucking around cargo and other ships. I had an Idris and a Kraken at one point but ended up selling off most of my credits because I realised I probably will never be able to crew one of these capital ships to begin with. Though I love the Kraken if it was my only ship i'd be happy with that. All my ships are now upgraded from referral rewards I have collected over the years. At the moment my Fleet is made up of a Liberator, Vulcan, Vulture, Hornet Tracker, C8X Pisces, ROC, PTV, PTV, and the 3 Ranger bikes from the Original concept sale. I am considering getting a caterpillar down the line, though what I am really waiting for is an Anvil Capital / Sub Capital and have that as my primary ship.
I melted it way back when to go for the C2 instead. However, like you said: "it puts a smile on my face every time i see it"! Melted the C2 and got my Cat back! Not to mention it's supposed to have modularity which will ve awesome in the future, as well as 2 tractor beams ! And i know they're not perfectly placed, but that could change as well. I Just love the damn thing 😂
This is the only Drake ship I own. Not a big fan of Drake but I love this ship for some unexplainable reason. Probably because out of all the Drake ships this one fits the Drake style perfectly being a large industrial bulk freighter. When you are walking around this ship you feel like you are on a serious freight ship. This ship probably has the most unique features in a single ship as well from the detachable command module to the modular cargo pods. I also love the little observation deck opposite from the Command Module. A lot of times when first landing on a planet/moon I'll use this area to get a good look around before departing the ship. The Caterpillar is a great addition to anyone's fleet.
I'm primarily a hauler (Max and C2), and just picked up the Cat a few days ago. I really enjoying flying the Cat, it really does give me a space rig vibe. It is slow a hell compared to the C2 leaving and entering atmosphere, but is otherwise a joy to fly - and much easier to land. I wish the exterior door on the lower deck of the module opened to the outside with an extended ladder.
Well... I melted my Polaris too, and got... Yep, the Pirate Caterpillar. I always loved the Caterpillar but the black and red theme of the pirate one is just hnnnnnggggg.... To tell the truth, I DO feel much more at risk when flying the Caterpillar than when flying the Hammerhead (loaner for the Polaris), and I grew to really love the Hammerhead, not in small part because it's the only very large ship beside the Carrack that can go 1000mps. so while I love the Cat, I'm still on the fence whether I need something more aggressive (on the smaller side there is the Retaliator that smiles to me a lot, with a front torp module and a rear cargo module, you find yourself with a dangerous armored gunship/transport)... I think the most challenging gameplay loop for me in SC is choosing a ship that fits my needs and I like as much as the Cat... Do you believe the Caterpillar will have a weapon module sometimes?
They just recently announced that you will be able to hire NPC escort ships that will operate much like a pet in other MMOs. You be able to command them to attack, defend, stay put, come back, go there, etc. It definitely has some Star War Millennium Falcon (YT-100) vibes. Just like the Falcon, it's a cargo ship, it drives from the side of the ship, and what a lot of people don't know is that the open area of the "U" shaped Falcon is a slot for cargo modules that look identical to the ones on the Caterpillar.
The Cat has more caracter then the Hercules, wich is pretty much a plane. wish ya gl with your new addon and good to see you again. my modules are 7/11, stripjoint, liqour store, gun store and chopshop.
I'm dying to use her as an exploration ship, what with that glorious observatory... I mean, tractor room. A ramp at each of the bays to house vehicles, a laboratory unit, sensor suite... So many possibilities.
So nice to see some people continuing to give news about this most interesting ship for the moment on SC and so much underated... This ship promised a lot of things actually not ingame and an INCREDIBLE lack of informations from RSI about first his modularity, we dont get news about it... As we dont get news also about the separation fo his command Shuttle, or the docking to another ship sas etc... Also, the Caterpillar as mentionned by PIN is totally ridiculously nerfed about his power (look how hard is it to Takeoff) in, comparison with some others same sized ship like the Hercule... and with this 4 MASSIVES Thrusters in comparison with his lenth, guys ! It Must be the fastest cargo ship of all the game, really ! And it will make sense for his pirate's choice. Another thing about this non-sense about Thrusters, why didn't (for two of them) they rotate for VTOL like the Cutlass ? They got the axis for, and probably need adjustment to dont touch ground when in takeoff/landing position but they have to be able to rotate right ? Last thing and I will not talk about all the features common to the other ships like, Co-piloting post, Functionnal engineering post, and Tractor Beam post... But I would like to talk about the Hull doors... why don't they actually touch ground as some lift like they were drawn in prototype sketches ? Why do'nt we also have an access ramp at the front door for vehicles or also a door/lift ? Soooo many question about this Caterpillar and so few informations about the developpement of him :S EDIT : I've finished the video and you talked also about Lift/Doors and ramp, sorry ^^'
I'm currently in a similar boat. I have the galaxy, and I love how it looks and what it is supposed to can. But thinking about actually using it... most of the time solo, the other times with one or two other. But years ago I had the cat and I loves it. And it seems to be the biggest ship still usable alone or minimal crew. And now I'm back deciding if I should melt the galaxy for it😂
I think a good way to do engineering would be to have components malfunction without telling the player what exactly is wrong apart from maybe a check engine light going on in the cockpit, players might then have to infer what and where the problem is before making their way to the problem component and completing a minigame to fix the component. In multicrew gameplay, players might be reporting their problems in real time for the engineer to diagnose and fix. A simple minigame might be to have a bolt with multiple possible positions. All but one position would result in sub-optimal performance of a component, the players would then have to adjust the bolt and test the component, itterating until it works as intended. Playing as a crew would naturally streamline this process, as one player can test the component while the other adjusts it.
To me, the Cat is the flight ready ship with the biggest difference between what it does today and what it can do if you dare believe in the dream that is it's advertised final form
This ship could be amazing in future game play or not. I love the fact its modular, But after Citizencon looking at the new flight systems with the quantum mode. No shields, guns and flares for a few seconds spooling up or coming out of quantum, very well mean you might need a escort. This goes for all cargo ships, miners and more. If however the Modules are kick ass you wont have to depend on that. This will open up a vast amount of game play. The modules are the make or break for this ship I think.
Do you believe that you’ll be able to fit a Herald up against it, once the command-center- detachable has left the main spine? Would certainly incentivize you not to leave your ship for no reason, if a sneaky herald could just make off with your cargo.
They can't reaally, because if they buffed it, the second modularity comes into play, the Cat would render the C2 completely obsolete. Now, being slower and less armed, even with Modularity, the C2 remains relevant. the Caterpillar in the end really will appeal to people wanting a generalist more than a hauler, a home more than a ship.
Is it still possible to somehow unlock the Pirate skin version, please? :) Ive tried like a year ago and failed to find a working match in arena commander, but Ive heard theyre remaking arena commander to some extent?
Can you redo the pirate swarm to rebuy or am I stuck with having to use buyback token? Edit: Wait... Yours is black and not red like I remember it to be... does the game have skins for ships now??? Might have to login and give this whole thing a go again haven't really messed with or kept up to date with the game since 2018 Blue and white as well!? that looks nice
I believe mine came with a military q drive. Fast but SUCKS fuel. Swapped it out for an Erebos. Slower but uses 1/3 the q fuel as the military that comes stock.
You DARED melt the Polaris? Man I understand you. I'm a mostly solo player as well, and literally the only ship I own is the Polaris. For the last 6 months I've been pondering melting it for something more manageable but still big, but I wasn't able just yet to push that "exchange" button... I'm eying the HH, but it's still a blade and NPC nightmare. The Carrack... Like it but lacks firepower. LOVE rhe Caterpillar, but has virtually no firepower... (I'm mention firepower a lot because I play on the wrong side of the law...)
I've been reworking my fleet to be more solo/small crew capable. Melted my Javelin just because I doubt I'll ever have the people to crew it or money to run it. Lol. The largest ship I'm gonna have is the Odyssey. I think that's on of the biggest ships you can effectively run with 2 people. (Blade the remote turrets of course)
@@burgerpops7182 Not without putting real money tho. I carefully build a ccu chain while waiting for price increased I thought (and knew) would happen, so in the end the melt value o my LTI Polaris is $500. Moreover now if you buyback a ship, you buy it back full p[rice (meaning if the price increased while it was melted, you buy it with the new price). If I had a melt value of $750, I would have melted it already.
@@captainharlock3998 unlimited fuel, easier to use solo (turrets are remote turrets not manned so blading them when that becomes an option should be easy). Capital shield, bigger hangar. To me it just seems like a more self sufficient ship than the carrack. And having a wider variety of ships that can land in it just improves it's versatility. Lower crew requirements was a big selling point for me.
They increased it's price because by working on the Retaliator's modules they reminded the community modularity is indeed still a thing. (although that does not mean in any way shape or form that they are any closer to work on the Cat's modules, if indeed it is still modular). They then HAD to raise the price, to give some forlorn hope to Cat's owners and would-be owners.
The Drake Caterpillar I've not had this ship long, yet every time I see in the hangar it puts a smile on my face! Certainly a ship to keep your eye on in the future.
But what do you guys think? As always let me know down below!!
I know it was a tough decision to melt the Polaris. I did the same thing in reverse. I had a bunch of single seat fighters, things like 325a, saber, titan, Cutty blue, vanguard the list went on, then I realized that Stanton and Pyro are like the 2 smallest systems in the verse. I melted almost all my fleet and started over. I have thought long about the large/cap ship dilemma of crew size and cost of components. I decided not to buy any ships over size 6 max crew. That means between blades and a couple friends or NPC all is well. Probably the same size crew of a fully manned RSI Andromeda can crew everything in my fleet, which the 3 largest ships are a Carrack, Perseus and Caterpillar so far. I love my Taurus, MSR, and 400i as well because like you I will mostly be solo. That is why I am going to get a CCU from my Cutty black to a C1, I think it will be a great daily driver and better in atmo.
@@jedi_drifter2988 I had the same thought, I went with a liberator and a few ships and ground vehicles it can carry around so that if needed I can run solo and bring all my assets with me. Or if playing with friends we can bring 3 vultures, or 2 prospectors and an expanse. Or a bunch of ROC's. So it's got a lot of versatility not including just trucking around cargo and other ships. I had an Idris and a Kraken at one point but ended up selling off most of my credits because I realised I probably will never be able to crew one of these capital ships to begin with. Though I love the Kraken if it was my only ship i'd be happy with that.
All my ships are now upgraded from referral rewards I have collected over the years. At the moment my Fleet is made up of a Liberator, Vulcan, Vulture, Hornet Tracker, C8X Pisces, ROC, PTV, PTV, and the 3 Ranger bikes from the Original concept sale.
I am considering getting a caterpillar down the line, though what I am really waiting for is an Anvil Capital / Sub Capital and have that as my primary ship.
I melted it way back when to go for the C2 instead. However, like you said: "it puts a smile on my face every time i see it"! Melted the C2 and got my Cat back! Not to mention it's supposed to have modularity which will ve awesome in the future, as well as 2 tractor beams ! And i know they're not perfectly placed, but that could change as well. I Just love the damn thing 😂
This is the only Drake ship I own. Not a big fan of Drake but I love this ship for some unexplainable reason. Probably because out of all the Drake ships this one fits the Drake style perfectly being a large industrial bulk freighter. When you are walking around this ship you feel like you are on a serious freight ship. This ship probably has the most unique features in a single ship as well from the detachable command module to the modular cargo pods. I also love the little observation deck opposite from the Command Module. A lot of times when first landing on a planet/moon I'll use this area to get a good look around before departing the ship. The Caterpillar is a great addition to anyone's fleet.
The Drake stylings, to me, look like "realistic" hard sci-fi spacecraft. The Caterpillar is a believable ship design and that's really endearing.
I agree 100%, which is why she is my favorite!😊
I'm primarily a hauler (Max and C2), and just picked up the Cat a few days ago. I really enjoying flying the Cat, it really does give me a space rig vibe. It is slow a hell compared to the C2 leaving and entering atmosphere, but is otherwise a joy to fly - and much easier to land. I wish the exterior door on the lower deck of the module opened to the outside with an extended ladder.
Glad your enjoying it. The cat does have a certain charm despite its foibles.
Buying a Caterpillar in game is the only reason I got in to Drake ships. I love the aesthetic.
Well... I melted my Polaris too, and got... Yep, the Pirate Caterpillar. I always loved the Caterpillar but the black and red theme of the pirate one is just hnnnnnggggg....
To tell the truth, I DO feel much more at risk when flying the Caterpillar than when flying the Hammerhead (loaner for the Polaris), and I grew to really love the Hammerhead, not in small part because it's the only very large ship beside the Carrack that can go 1000mps. so while I love the Cat, I'm still on the fence whether I need something more aggressive (on the smaller side there is the Retaliator that smiles to me a lot, with a front torp module and a rear cargo module, you find yourself with a dangerous armored gunship/transport)...
I think the most challenging gameplay loop for me in SC is choosing a ship that fits my needs and I like as much as the Cat...
Do you believe the Caterpillar will have a weapon module sometimes?
Wow, amazing video. Thanks for taking the proper time needed for this amazing ship. Love Drake, but didn't like the caterpillar, but now I NEED one.
They just recently announced that you will be able to hire NPC escort ships that will operate much like a pet in other MMOs. You be able to command them to attack, defend, stay put, come back, go there, etc.
It definitely has some Star War Millennium Falcon (YT-100) vibes. Just like the Falcon, it's a cargo ship, it drives from the side of the ship, and what a lot of people don't know is that the open area of the "U" shaped Falcon is a slot for cargo modules that look identical to the ones on the Caterpillar.
The Cat has more caracter then the Hercules, wich is pretty much a plane. wish ya gl with your new addon and good to see you again. my modules are 7/11, stripjoint, liqour store, gun store and chopshop.
That gun store sounds cool! Nice
I'm dying to use her as an exploration ship, what with that glorious observatory... I mean, tractor room. A ramp at each of the bays to house vehicles, a laboratory unit, sensor suite... So many possibilities.
So nice to see some people continuing to give news about this most interesting ship for the moment on SC and so much underated... This ship promised a lot of things actually not ingame and an INCREDIBLE lack of informations from RSI about first his modularity, we dont get news about it... As we dont get news also about the separation fo his command Shuttle, or the docking to another ship sas etc...
Also, the Caterpillar as mentionned by PIN is totally ridiculously nerfed about his power (look how hard is it to Takeoff) in, comparison with some others same sized ship like the Hercule... and with this 4 MASSIVES Thrusters in comparison with his lenth, guys ! It Must be the fastest cargo ship of all the game, really ! And it will make sense for his pirate's choice.
Another thing about this non-sense about Thrusters, why didn't (for two of them) they rotate for VTOL like the Cutlass ? They got the axis for, and probably need adjustment to dont touch ground when in takeoff/landing position but they have to be able to rotate right ?
Last thing and I will not talk about all the features common to the other ships like, Co-piloting post, Functionnal engineering post, and Tractor Beam post... But I would like to talk about the Hull doors... why don't they actually touch ground as some lift like they were drawn in prototype sketches ? Why do'nt we also have an access ramp at the front door for vehicles or also a door/lift ?
Soooo many question about this Caterpillar and so few informations about the developpement of him :S
EDIT : I've finished the video and you talked also about Lift/Doors and ramp, sorry ^^'
@Spaceman-PIN Nice vid Steve! Strafe up with two seconds of boost and the Cat breaks free of the surface with no problem; no need for more speed. 😄
Many super thanks Bruce!
I'm currently in a similar boat. I have the galaxy, and I love how it looks and what it is supposed to can. But thinking about actually using it... most of the time solo, the other times with one or two other. But years ago I had the cat and I loves it. And it seems to be the biggest ship still usable alone or minimal crew.
And now I'm back deciding if I should melt the galaxy for it😂
I think a good way to do engineering would be to have components malfunction without telling the player what exactly is wrong apart from maybe a check engine light going on in the cockpit, players might then have to infer what and where the problem is before making their way to the problem component and completing a minigame to fix the component. In multicrew gameplay, players might be reporting their problems in real time for the engineer to diagnose and fix. A simple minigame might be to have a bolt with multiple possible positions. All but one position would result in sub-optimal performance of a component, the players would then have to adjust the bolt and test the component, itterating until it works as intended. Playing as a crew would naturally streamline this process, as one player can test the component while the other adjusts it.
About C2 and It’s thruster performance It’s pretty fair for Crusader ships, cuz they specialize on engine… On very good engine 😏
The official title for the person in charge of cargo is "Loadmaster" ...at least it was in the AirForce.
It appears your low on fuel and out of ammo! I thought I heard it somewhere 🤔 mines better ha ha ha!
To me, the Cat is the flight ready ship with the biggest difference between what it does today and what it can do if you dare believe in the dream that is it's advertised final form
I really appreciate how you touch on the lore of ships!
Thankyou
The Caterpillar is great. I can't wait for the modularity to come in for it. This one is in the IRL fleet.
I love the cat, is super cool
This ship could be amazing in future game play or not. I love the fact its modular, But after Citizencon looking at the new flight systems with the quantum mode. No shields, guns and flares for a few seconds spooling up or coming out of quantum, very well mean you might need a escort. This goes for all cargo ships, miners and more. If however the Modules are kick ass you wont have to depend on that. This will open up a vast amount of game play. The modules are the make or break for this ship I think.
Either way I'm excited to find out!
Drake cat will be very valuable later on when they add modularity
Could be used for prisoner transport to want this gameplay to come in to the game
A Pilot, 2 wreck divers / gunners, 2 Fury Pilots in the nose, support Salvage Ops.
Nice review i love this ship :-)
Thank you! Me too ha ha
I love my Caterpillar!, one question: What ships do you think are ideal for a solo fleet?
Any ship with a low crew count, odyssey, perseus, cat etc.
Do you believe that you’ll be able to fit a Herald up against it, once the command-center- detachable has left the main spine? Would certainly incentivize you not to leave your ship for no reason, if a sneaky herald could just make off with your cargo.
I wish the cat got a buff to make it more comparable with the c2
They can't reaally, because if they buffed it, the second modularity comes into play, the Cat would render the C2 completely obsolete. Now, being slower and less armed, even with Modularity, the C2 remains relevant. the Caterpillar in the end really will appeal to people wanting a generalist more than a hauler, a home more than a ship.
Is it still possible to somehow unlock the Pirate skin version, please? :) Ive tried like a year ago and failed to find a working match in arena commander, but Ive heard theyre remaking arena commander to some extent?
Not anymore, I believe its a limited time event. But I'm sure it will be available again in the future.
if only the Herald could attatch where the command module goes or could replacxe the command mod
Drake ships look very influenced by alien
Can you redo the pirate swarm to rebuy or am I stuck with having to use buyback token?
Edit: Wait... Yours is black and not red like I remember it to be... does the game have skins for ships now???
Might have to login and give this whole thing a go again haven't really messed with or kept up to date with the game since 2018
Blue and white as well!? that looks nice
thanks
Love this ship but man it burns through QUA fast!
Yes it does.. very hungry for fuel.
I believe mine came with a military q drive. Fast but SUCKS fuel. Swapped it out for an Erebos. Slower but uses 1/3 the q fuel as the military that comes stock.
PIN back with the JUICE!! 😁
indeedy! ha ha
You DARED melt the Polaris? Man I understand you. I'm a mostly solo player as well, and literally the only ship I own is the Polaris. For the last 6 months I've been pondering melting it for something more manageable but still big, but I wasn't able just yet to push that "exchange" button... I'm eying the HH, but it's still a blade and NPC nightmare. The Carrack... Like it but lacks firepower. LOVE rhe Caterpillar, but has virtually no firepower... (I'm mention firepower a lot because I play on the wrong side of the law...)
you can exchange the polaris for store credit and buy back when you want and with the store credit you can buy many ship until the relase of polaris
I've been reworking my fleet to be more solo/small crew capable. Melted my Javelin just because I doubt I'll ever have the people to crew it or money to run it. Lol. The largest ship I'm gonna have is the Odyssey. I think that's on of the biggest ships you can effectively run with 2 people. (Blade the remote turrets of course)
@@burgerpops7182 Not without putting real money tho. I carefully build a ccu chain while waiting for price increased I thought (and knew) would happen, so in the end the melt value o my LTI Polaris is $500. Moreover now if you buyback a ship, you buy it back full p[rice (meaning if the price increased while it was melted, you buy it with the new price). If I had a melt value of $750, I would have melted it already.
@@richardbalboni1351 If I may ask : why the Odyssey over the Carrack?
@@captainharlock3998 unlimited fuel, easier to use solo (turrets are remote turrets not manned so blading them when that becomes an option should be easy). Capital shield, bigger hangar. To me it just seems like a more self sufficient ship than the carrack. And having a wider variety of ships that can land in it just improves it's versatility. Lower crew requirements was a big selling point for me.
Ah yes the Drake caterpillar the ship CIG increased it's price without updating anything about it just cuz they could
They increased it's price because by working on the Retaliator's modules they reminded the community modularity is indeed still a thing. (although that does not mean in any way shape or form that they are any closer to work on the Cat's modules, if indeed it is still modular). They then HAD to raise the price, to give some forlorn hope to Cat's owners and would-be owners.
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