FAQ/Planes
From The Skybrary
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[edit] Basic Plane Hierarchy
Planes are divided into five categories and nine tiers. The nine tiers basically describes what "level" your plane is. In addition to tiers, planes are divided into the Performance, Combat, Trading, Stock and Upgrade lines.
Performance planes focus on speed and maneuverability; they have low armor and cargo, high speed and high maneuver. Combat planes generally follow along the lines of "Slow and sturdy wins the fight", and are relatively slow in their tier but have high firepower and armor, and often moderately high maneuver and cargo. Trade planes have the most cargo but are usually the slowest of their tier, with moderate amounts of armor but poor maneuverability. Stock planes have very little, if any, room for upgrades; while Upgrade planes are designed to have additional components added.
[edit] The Planes
[edit] Tier 1
T1 Combat: Mastiff
- An excellent plane by any standard. Maneuvers a little stiffly, but that can't be helped. Passable trader as well.
T1 Performance: Thor
- Relatively difficult plane to fight in due to low armor. Still, will hold its own if you know how to circle and snipe.
T1 Trade: Nomad
- Another very good plane. Doesn't have speed, but with a suitable mod on the medium gun it can take on combats that might faze other T1s.
T1 Overall: Avoid the Thor if you are impatient at combat. Otherwise, all the planes are decent picks.
[edit] Tier 2
T2 Combat: Valkyrie
- The plane to chose if you you want combat. However, your trading will be crimped by serious range issues.
T2 Performance: Marauder
- Avoid this plane unless you truly must fly fast. It lacks the armor and armament of the Valkyrie, and its range fall just short of a number of skylands.
T2 Trade: Kittyhawk
- With decently positioned arcs, the Kittyhawk is at least able to defend itself. However, the main reason to get this plane is for the range and cargo; it will let you reach skylands that the other T2s cannot.
T2 Overall: Avoid the Marauder; pick trade or combat as per your tastes.
[edit] Tier 3
T3 Combat: Mkii
- The Mkii is a decent fighter; the arcs in front are pretty good at chewing up pirates. However, as with other combat planes your trading will be crimped by lack of range.
T3 Performance: Requin
- Another sub-par performance plane in most peoples eyes. With overlapping arcs and decent speed the Requin might perform passably, but is overshadowed by the Chappy.
T3 Trade: Halifax
- The Halifax is largely inferior to the Chapparal in most ways and is also not recommended. However, it does have that extra bit of range and cargo, so buy it at your own discretion. The huge sil and unprotected wings make it horrible in combat.
T3 Stock: Chapparal
- The Chappy is fast, has decent range and cargo, a tiny sil, and a decent gun placement. A very popular pick for T3 for both Trade and Combat.
T3 Overall: The Mkii is a bit steadier than the Chappy in combat, due to its higher armor and concentrated front firepower. For trading and performance, most people choose the Chappy. This Tier isn't very popular, however, due to little improvement over T2 and the fact that it is quite easy to earn the money to skip to T4, which is a great, well balanced tier.
[edit] Tier 4
T4 Combat: Phantom
- A powerhouse for mopping up messes of lower tier planes, the Phantom is great for the combat pilot who just wants to make money by fighting mid/lower level combats. May encounter trouble against higher tier Perf/Combat planes such as Havocs and Novas due to lower speed/accel
T4 Performance: Loki
- The plane of choice for combat pilots who enjoy pushing the limit. Although it has half the firepower of the Phantom, the higher speed, maneuver and acceleration give it greater survivability against higher tier opponents.
T4 Trade: Cyclops
- Though slow, the Cyclops makes up for it in range and cargo. Though not suited for high level combats, it can hold its own in most fights. A good plane for pure traders or sporadic players that do little combat.
T4 Upgrade: Excelsior
- A more expensive, less combat capable version of the Chappy; avoid this plane. Final judgment is reserved until after upgrades are implemented, but for now there is absolutely no reason to fly the Excelsior.
T4 Overall: A fairly well balanced tier with the exception of the Excelsior. Whether you fly P/T/C, you should be able to earn good money and have fun (though keep in mind the Cyclops is a slave to the economic outlook of Skytopia)
[edit] Tier 5
T5 Combat: Seahawk
- Basically a powered up Phantom; same principles apply. Also no slouch at trading, the Seahawk is a popular T5 pick.
T5 Performance: Mantis
- The Mantis suffers from poor maneuver and low cargo, plus a moderately large sprite. Not recommended unless you are hardcore.
T5 Trade: Barracuda
- Also not recommended, the 'Cuda is too slow to keep up with Skytopia's (currently) highly dynamic economy. The giant sprite and slow speed make it extremely vulnerable in combat despite four medium guns.
T5 Upgrade: Dauntless
- The second popular pick of T5, the Dauntless rivals the Seahawk in combat prowess. The main concern is range; the Dauntless will not be able to reach a few FL5 skylands and may require extra fuel stops.
T5 Overall: There are two main choices, Dauntless or Seahawk; choose based on your combat style. The Mantis can also be considered if you are truly addicted to speed.
[edit] Tier 6
T6 Combat: Hades
- Your choice for blowing away pirates. Many a fighter pilot has upgraded to the Vengeance only to spend hours wishing they still had the ol' Hades... The shortest range and cargo capacity in T6, the Hades makes up for it with best in class armor, ammo capacity, and maneuverability only slightly below the Cetacea. Good hunting.
T6 Performance: Cetacea
- If you've grown to love seeing these guys in your combat queue, you may wonder why you'd pick the Cetacea as your own. The balance of speed, range and cargo capacity makes it your first serious option for running influence missions, and the firepower (especially with flak guns) lets it hold its own in a fight.
T6 Trade: Bullfrog
- Double the cargo of any other T6 plane, this is your trader. Huge range and lots of armor, but all the disabled maneuvers can make combat a little dodgy. But you weren't planning on picking fights in the Bullfrog anyway.
T6 Stock: Bolo
- A strong pick for T6, the Bolo sports good arc coverage, has excellent handling and a spacious cargo hold. Unfortunately it runs through ammo very rapidly, most of which is wasted.
T6 Overall: This is a solid Tier no matter what you choose, though be aware that the Cetacea is not your typical Performance plane, with its high sil. The Bolo is also surprisingly good, and is a passable performance replacement if you cannot stand the Cetacea.
[edit] Tier 7
T7 Combat: Vengeance
- The Vengeance has almost as much armor as the Thunderbolt, almost as much maneuver as the Havoc, almost as small sil as the Havoc, and a medium and large front arc with wide coverage. About the only reason you wouldn't pick a Vengeance for combat is if you must have symmetrical arcs.
T7 Performance: Havoc
- Perfect arc overlap with 2 mediums and a small arc, the Havoc has enough speed to chase down/flee from any other plane, and low enough stall to tail just about anything. If you like performance planes, the Havoc is a dream come true. Just like any other perf, be wary of longarms and flaks, as your 7 armor won't last long.
T7 Trade: Leviathan
- The Leviathan has almost triple the cargo space of the next highest cargo, but is also the slowest of the slow. With 5 medium turrets on each side and 25 armor, the Leviathan doesn't go down easy either. However, because of its slow speed, and the high probability of shifting an economy trying to fill up its gargantuan hull, many prefer to stay in the Bullfrog and upgrade to the Lancaster or Kingfisher when they get the chance.
T7 Upgrade: Seafire
- The Seafire has Cetacea-like triple front medium arcs, 11 armor, and a giant sil. With only 5 more cargo, and the exact same range as the Vengeance, there is absolutely no reason to choose this plane in the absence of upgrades.
T7 Overall: T7 is an exceptionally good tier whether you choose C/P/T, and because of that many people skip the T8 equivalents (especially for Combat and Performance). Just don't pick the Seafire.
[edit] Tier 8
T8 Combat: Avenger
- The Avenger is a powerhouse, with 2 large guns it has as much focused firepower as the Thunderbolt. However, its speed leaves somewhat to be desired, and its large sil and size makes it unwieldly in combat. Most people prefer the T7 Vengeance, with its perf-like sil and similar guns.
T8 Performance: Nova
- The Nova is fast. And that's about it. With 1 less arc than the Havoc, and 1 less armor, the only upgrade over its T7 cousin is its speed (which is actually a drawback as its harder to tail slower planes, and the Havoc can already chase down any other plane), and its slightly smaller sil. Save your money and stick with the Havoc.
T8 Trade: Lancaster
- Large cargo, high armor, decent speed, and nice gun placement, the Lancaster is everything you would want in a trader, and is only slightly worse than the Kingfisher in terms of numbers. To top it all off, you've got the party dome, and with no disabled maneuvers, you're free to do whatever crazy stunts you want to keep those partygoers satisfied.
T8 Stock: Bismarck
- Simply put, the Bismarck is a disappointment. Don't underestimate it, however, as it does sport 3 large guns, 2 of which are swiveling turrets, but its large sil and huge blind spots through its sides make it easy to take down. It is slated for improvement, however, so keep your eye on this one.
T8 Overall: As with all of the higher tiers, none of the planes are complete pushovers, though only the Lancaster is a significant improvement over previous tiers. Many prefer to stay in their T7 planes and skip straight ahead to T9, and there is good reason for that.
[edit] Tier 9
T9 Combat: Thunderbolt
- The Thunderbolt packs 2 large guns with perfect overlap and 20mm of armor onto a Performance plane's speed and maneuver. It's fast, it's deadly, it's durable, it looks ridiculous. The obvious choice for combat.
T9 Performance: Ingersoll
- By far the fastest plane in the sky, this is the only choice for serious Influence running (pre-upgrades). Almost invisible with its 5 sil and tiny graphic, it is unhittable except for crits. Its high speed makes tailing planes difficult, and its low armor gets shredded quickly if you're unlucky with crits, but otherwise is just as competent at combat as the Thunderbolt is.
T9 Trade: Kingfisher
- Great cargo, range, armor, and speed, this is the best Trader around, as evidenced by the leaderboards. It is a bit large, but with its swiveling large tailgun it's well capable of defending itself. The lack of a front facing gun (the 2 mediums face outwards at an angle) takes some getting used to in combat.
T9 Upgrade: Spectre
- A sleek plane with great arcs and low sil, it however has worse numbers than the other T9's. Still a popular pick, because of its perf-like sil, and more than double the armor of the Ingersoll. Furthermore, its an Upgrade machine, with the potential to be better than the rest. Even without upgrades, the Spectre is a nice "middle of the road" combat plane between the Thunderbolt and the Ingersoll.
T9 Overall: This is the last tier, and as such, every plane is the epitome of its type. These are the best planes in the sky, period.
