How to Counter Player Pirates?

[JessyJams]

I'm spending more time in the "denser" p arts of the bubble and starting to get attacked and utterly annihilated by other players. I don't mind this, but the thing is, these encounters are so one sided that I don't see what I can do to counter it.

Every time:

1) Somehow they totally shut my thrusters down from just about any range. Ship says something like "thrusters operating at minimum level." What's this and how do you counter it? Surely pvp meta isn't just sitting still exchanging gun fire back and forth.

2) My shields? Big beautiful 8A shield generator. I get them knocked out in one hit. Can't remember what the ship says, but bye bye shields. It's as if the shield generator is just not even useful.

3) Can't seem to target them. Somehow they break my lock every time.

4) Can't high wake, my fsd gets shut down some how.


All of the above makes for a very lackluster pvp experience. I wouldn't mind it if I had some way to counter these things, but it's hard to imagine an actual back and forth fight when one side is incapable of using any of their ships functions.


Could someone explain what the pvp meta is that's doing this to me? What strategies can I use to counter these effects? What modules are they using or engineering needed to achieve this? It's so foreign to me what happens that I don't even know where to begin. Every time a player attacks me, my ship says things that I've never heard before and I have zero feedback on what's going on.

I understand that I could give in to the interdiction, but sometimes I can't tell if I'm being interdicted by a player or NPC. So I'm looking more for the exact tactis that are being used against me so that I can counter them, or atleast understand them.

I am NOT going to avoid playing in Open. I like open. I'm not whining about it. I want to understand it.

[semidomestic]

Engineering makes all the difference in the world. Start with the power plant, FSD drives, distributor and shields, then weapons. An un engineered ship doesn't stand much of a chance against a G5 engineered ship.
When the interdiction starts, hit the target nearest enemy button. if the player's name starts with Cmdr, it's a human player.

[_mitchlel]

If there are players out there going out of their way to hunt you, then they will normally have a ship fully outfitted for combat, along with engineering.

-What ship do you use? This is important as it defines how long your ship should be able to hold off from other players.

-Escaping a player interdiction is extremely hard, but escaping an NPC interdiction is quite easy. If you are losing the interdiction, set your thrusters to zero and give in to the interdiction. This allows you to escape from the fight much quicker.

-If you are being attacked by a player, they should have CMDR in front of their name (I don't play in Open, but this is what I heard, so don't fully trust it).

[Turih]

1) Your thrusters are not disabled. You are being hit by drag munitions[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] which makes you slower for a brief amount of time.

2)Either your shield gen is getting hit by reverberating cascade[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] (which I find unlikely) or you don't have it engineered properly or at all. Seems like it is just weak. Also you need dem pips in SYS.

3)Target Lock Breaker[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] effect or silent running are 1st two things that come to my mind.

4)If your shields are down then your FSD can as well get shot down by almost anything. But Containment Missile[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] or FSD Interrupt[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] effect can cause your FSD to restart, preventing you from waking out.

In these scenarios, if anything, speed is your best friend. Point defences, chaff, heatsinks and silent running help too.

Barely any of this is part of PvP meta since PvP meta revolves around more balanced fights. If you see someone using these, his main agenda is to pirate traders and miners. Proper pirate loadout I would say. Guys like these can have Wake scanner so one high wake might not be enough.

As for not telling whether it is player or NPC interdicting you, bind "Target Hostile" key. When you get interdicted, after pressing it, it immediately targets the ship that is interdicting you. Also useful to know what is shooting at you.

And most importantly, git gud.

[JessyJams]

Originally posted by Turih:

1) Your thrusters are not disabled. You are being hit by drag munitions[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] which makes you slower for a brief amount of time.

2)Either your shield gen is getting hit by reverberating cascade[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] (which I find unlikely) or you don't have it engineered properly or at all. Seems like it is just weak. Also you need dem pips in SYS.

3)Target Lock Breaker[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] effect or silent running are 1st two things that come to my mind.

4)If your shields are down then your FSD can as well get shot down by almost anything. But Containment Missile[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] or FSD Interrupt[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] effect can cause your FSD to restart, preventing you from waking out.

In these scenarios, if anything, speed is your best friend. Point defences, chaff, heatsinks and silent running help too.

Thank you. So what are the counters to 1) 2 ) and 3)?

I have my shields engineered to G3 I think. For thermal resistance.

The problem is that everything happens so fast I don't know what I could have done differently. I did put my pips into shield but it didn't seem to matter.

Are there any modules I should be fitting to counter these things? What benefit is speed if all they need to do is hit me with bullets to negate my speed advantage?

I'm in a Cutter btw. I just bought it last night. No particular build atm, but I do have A rated fittings for most th ings and engineering somewhat. I've engineered thrusters to G3, Shields tto G3 (thermal ) and hull to G5 (well rounded).

it's not ap vp build cutter. I was on my way to try to unlock the guy for G5 thrusters. A lot of players around Sirius. he innterdicted me near there outside a station. I didn't know it was a player until I lost the interdiction.

I boosted away, but then my thrusters stopped or wouldn't operate right. Then I couldn't escape. After the FSD cooldown, I started warping out but he interrupted that somehow too.

[JessyJams]

Originally posted by Flamenado:

If there are players out there going out of their way to hunt you, then they will normally have a ship fully outfitted for combat, along with engineering.

-What ship do you use? This is important as it defines how long your ship should be able to hold off from other players.

-Escaping a player interdiction is extremely hard, but escaping an NPC interdiction is quite easy. If you are losing the interdiction, set your thrusters to zero and give in to the interdiction. This allows you to escape from the fight much quicker.

-If you are being attacked by a player, they should have CMDR in front of their name (I don't play in Open, but this is what I heard, so don't fully trust it).

I was in a new cutter. Just got it. That was my first combat experience lol. I went down in seconds. I have 3k hull, but once my shields dropped, I died within about 10 seconds. Enemy was a guy in a python.

I felt totally locked down. Couldn't do anything.

[JessyJams]

Originally posted by Flamenado:

Here is more:

Shield Cell Banks
-These are optional internal modules that are an extreme help. When your shields are on low health, activate one of these and your shields will rapidly repair.

Point Defense
-These are Utility Mounts that automatically fire at incoming projectiles. They generally aren't much of a help, but come in useful when the enemy fires limpets or other projectiles at you.

Auto-Field Maintenance Unit
-This Optional Internal module allows you to repair damaged modules without having to travel to a starport. They aren't useful in battle, but are great afterwards to repair and continue your journey.

There's also Chaff and ECMs, which also come in useful, but I don't really use them so I cannot explain them too well.

If you want to have a chance in PvP, you'll need the Horizons DLC to unlock engineering.

I had point defense, no idea if it was working on not. Not sure what weawpons he hit me with.

[Turih]

Originally posted by McKE:

Originally posted by Turih:

1) Your thrusters are not disabled. You are being hit by drag munitions[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] which makes you slower for a brief amount of time.

2)Either your shield gen is getting hit by reverberating cascade[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] (which I find unlikely) or you don't have it engineered properly or at all. Seems like it is just weak. Also you need dem pips in SYS.

3)Target Lock Breaker[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] effect or silent running are 1st two things that come to my mind.

4)If your shields are down then your FSD can as well get shot down by almost anything. But Containment Missile[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] or FSD Interrupt[elite-dangerous.wikia.com] effect can cause your FSD to restart, preventing you from waking out.

In these scenarios, if anything, speed is your best friend. Point defences, chaff, heatsinks and silent running help too.

Thank you. So what are the counters to 1) 2 ) and 3)?

I have my shields engineered to G3 I think. For thermal resistance.

The problem is that everything happens so fast I don't know what I could have done differently. I did put my pips into shield but it didn't seem to matter.

Are there any modules I should be fitting to counter these things? What benefit is speed if all they need to do is hit me with bullets to negate my speed advantage?

I'm in a Cutter btw. I just bought it last night. No particular build atm, but I do have A rated fittings for most th ings and engineering somewhat. I've engineered thrusters to G3, Shields tto G3 (thermal ) and hull to G5 (well rounded).

Hard to imagine you are having problems with pirates in Cutter. It is fast enough and should sustain the firepower before you jump away. You also cannot get masslocked.

Counters:
1)Basically don't get hit. Hard to achieve while being in a cow like Cutter but it is not the slowest ship in the game and the drag should not affect you that much or you should be able to increase the distance enough to not get shot by drag munitions easily.

2)Point defence to shoot down the torpedoes/mines. Speed to outrun them (torpedoes are really slow).

3) If it is a Target Lock Breaker, just retarget them, if it is silent running, then you could get Emmisive munitions [elite-dangerous.wikia.com]which are direct counter to silent runners.

If you engineer for speed, after the interdiction, when you squeeze your power distributor by boosting the ♥♥♥♥ out of it, I cannot imagine someone who would be able to close the gap between you, kill your shields and your engines/FSD before you high wake. Given that you submit to interdiction of course.

It would help to save a video from that encounter and then you can revise the icons that get displayed when getting hit by a weapon. That tells you what special effect is being applied when enemy attacks. And you can also asses the whole situation calmly and learn from it. Thats basically what I have my Youtube channel for. I store vids there and I go back to them from time to time to remember not to repeat my mistakes.

[Turih]

Originally posted by Flamenado:

-If you are being attacked by a player, they should have CMDR in front of their name (I don't play in Open, but this is what I heard, so don't fully trust it).

Hollow rectangle on radar and CMDR prefix.

[JessyJams]

Originally posted by Turih:

Originally posted by McKE:

Thank you. So what are the counters to 1) 2 ) and 3)?

I have my shields engineered to G3 I think. For thermal resistance.

The problem is that everything happens so fast I don't know what I could have done differently. I did put my pips into shield but it didn't seem to matter.

Are there any modules I should be fitting to counter these things? What benefit is speed if all they need to do is hit me with bullets to negate my speed advantage?

I'm in a Cutter btw. I just bought it last night. No particular build atm, but I do have A rated fittings for most th ings and engineering somewhat. I've engineered thrusters to G3, Shields tto G3 (thermal ) and hull to G5 (well rounded).

Hard to imagine you are having problems with pirates in Cutter. It is fast enough and should sustain the firepower before you jump away. You also cannot get masslocked.

Counters:
1)Basically don't get hit. Hard to achieve while being in a cow like Cutter but it is not the slowest ship in the game and the drag should not affect you that much or you should be able to increase the distance enough to not get shot by drag munitions easily.

2)Point defence to shoot down the torpedoes/mines. Speed to outrun them (torpedoes are really slow).

3) If it is a Target Lock Breaker, just retarget them, if it is silent running, then you could get Emmisive munitions [elite-dangerous.wikia.com]which are direct counter to silent runners.

If you engineer for speed, after the interdiction, when you squeeze your power distributor by boosting the ♥♥♥♥ out of it, I cannot imagine someone who would be able to close the gap between you, kill your shields and your engines/FSD before you high wake. Given that you submit to interdiction of course.

It would help to save a video from that encounter and then you can revise the icons that get displayed when getting hit by a weapon. That tells you what special effect is being applied when enemy attacks. And you can also asses the whole situation calmly and learn from it. Thats basically what I have my Youtube channel for. I store vids there and I go back to them from time to time to remember not to repeat my mistakes.

Well that's why I'm confused. I couldn't out run him. I started with full engine pips with G3 dirty drives with drag drive augment. He immediately shut my thrusters down though. I melted after that because my shields were insta popped. All I know is that the things under my shield read out were flashign red then it was gone.


My shields went down too fast for me to warp out. It must be a missile or something you mentioned that he used to prevent my warp. idk.

I have 5 point defens3e on the ship. Not sure if they were working or not. I don't know if he shot missiles at me or not.

Well, I couldn't target him since by that point I was facing away, but he broke my lock somehlow.

I probablyu would have outrun him, but the whole shutting down of my thrusters really invalidates speed as a tactic no? It seems impossible to use speed if all it takes is a single bullet to prevent me from using any thruster power.

[JessyJams]

Originally posted by Turih:

Originally posted by Flamenado:

-If you are being attacked by a player, they should have CMDR in front of their name (I don't play in Open, but this is what I heard, so don't fully trust it).

Hollow rectangle on radar and CMDR prefix.

Yeah thew problem is that I had a lot of bunched up things at the bottom of my radar. I couldn't tell what was interdicting me because of all the overlap.

[Dolphin Bottlenose]

Originally posted by McKE:

Yeah thew problem is that I had a lot of bunched up things at the bottom of my radar. I couldn't tell what was interdicting me because of all the overlap.

You may want to adjust your radar zoom if you haven't done so yet. By default it's too zoomed out and everything looks crowded. Under the radar there is a little "brick" - that's a zoom indicator. I usually keep it somewhere at the middle in normal space.

[76561198335825264]

Seems like your shields are not properly engineered. Also how many shield boosters do you have? How are they engineered?

[JessyJams]

Originally posted by Algomatic NaCl:

Seems like your shields are not properly engineered. Also how many shield boosters do you have? How are they engineered?

I have two shield boosters each with G1 resistance augmentation and power draw special effect.

My shield is 8 A with All thermal mods to G3 level.


I have THerm: 22% resist: 50 % exp, 32% kinetic. My shield HP is 1200 ish.

I have 3089 armor with -6% kinetic, 9.8% thermal, 30% explosive.

[JessyJams]

Originally posted by Dolphin Bottlenose:

Originally posted by McKE:

Yeah thew problem is that I had a lot of bunched up things at the bottom of my radar. I couldn't tell what was interdicting me because of all the overlap.

You may want to adjust your radar zoom if you haven't done so yet. By default it's too zoomed out and everything looks crowded. Under the radar there is a little "brick" - that's a zoom indicator. I usually keep it somewhere at the middle in normal space.

Thank you I will try this. It's gotten me killed this way 2x now.

[ZombieHunter]

Hmm if I told you how to evade player pirates then you might evade me when I attempt to pirate you. Quite the dilemma. Pirates don't kill their targets b/c there isn't any credits in that. Pirates ask you for cargo or more likely just fire hatch breaker limpets to steal your cargo without your permission. You cannot counter hatch breaker limpets. Well, you can, but I'll leave that as an exercise for you to figure out.