Tristan: Difference between revisions

There are two current play styles regarding the Tristan: The Kite Tristan, which uses range to keep damage down; and The Brawler Tristan, which uses a heavy tank to mitigate damage.  Many opinions exist on the most effective way to pilot a drone boat, but generally most veteran players might suggest the kite fit.  Kiting is a strategy where the enemy is kept at range so that incoming damage is minimized, but outgoing damage is still effective.  Kiting can be thought of as sniping with long range guns, however in this case, the guns are replaced with drones. <br />

The Tristan comes with two available weapon slots, and has a boost to Hybrid weapons.  In the Kiting example, it would be most beneficial to fit Railguns, as they are the long range Hybrid weapon.  Fitting short range Blasters on a Kiting Tristan boat will be discussed below.  Railguns will allow the player to supplement the damage of the drones while staying well out of harms way from the enemy.  As the majority of the Tristan's damage comes from its Drones, there is no reason to fit excessively expensive or high damaging guns when starting out with this ship.  As the player progresses in skill level, it is advisable to upgrade modules as needed.  Focusing on survivability and range dictation should be a primary concern as if the ship explodes, the drones stop functioning. <br />

Concerning damage mitigation: while the Kiting setup could equally fit modules that increased ship speed at the reduction of armor amount, or fit the complete opposite with a full armor tank, the Brawler setup should be concerned with tank only, be it shield or armor. Gallente ships generally are armor tanked, as ship bonuses are given to armor, and ship design provide opportunity to this tank setup. Those ships with equal numbers of mid and low slots can use either shield or armor at the best judgement of the player. <br />

The Brawling Tristan should be thought of as a larger drone:  Orbiting fast, hitting hard and taking all (or none of) the damage. Brawler Tristan's are generally fit with short range Hybrid weapons, and this is where the ship bonus to turret tracking speed will come into full play. You will find yourself victorious when faced with an enemy set up for ranged combat as there is often a chance to "get under his guns".  The closer one orbits, the faster the other ships' turrets have to track.  <br />