In regards to the ultra recent Drake Corsair Q&A post, some things have stood out. Some...not good things. "While they may be less durable, their defense is more than enough for the intended role they’re pitched at and they’re often up-gunned to offset any deficit." Woooo boy. Where to begin on that one. The Cutlass was upgunned to allow for 4x Size 3's, except that the Freelancer gets that in a gimballed setup, with an option later on down the line to make those in to remote turret setups as well. Sure the Cutlass gets the bigger turret, but for raw damage numbers the Freelancer still wins. Not to mention that the Cutlass is the only ship in its size to get a single shield, so the Freelancer can easily shrug off fire that would paint the Cutlass like a Christmas tree. The Buccaneer is so weak that the Make A Wish Foundation is probably considering taking it swimming to pet the dolphins. At first glance it looks like it packs a serious punch though, with 2x Size 1's, 2x Size 3's, and 1x Size 4. Which sounds good at $110 USD, except...well, the 325A gets all that except for the Size 1's. And if you're going to be doing a gimbal setup on a Buccaneer, you're not using size 1's anyway. So we've got a ship $40 cheaper near mirroring the weaponry that also gets cargo, a bed, a locker, interior, and an ejection seat. But wait, there's more! The Avenger Titan, a ship at 50USD, less than half the cost of the Buccaneer, also gets 1x Size 4 and 2x Size 3's. Again, missing the Size 1's, but the same gimbal argument applies. But for that trade off, you once again get cargo space, a bed, an interior (remember, armor and gun storage is a thing!) and an ejection seat. Let's also factor in that the Buccaneer loses two of its guns whenever it loses a wing, and boy does it lose wings a lot. The Buccaneer is a high priced fighter for getting matched up like that, especially when its rivals have so many other options to offer and let's not forget that ejection seat. Why is it the ship that is most likely to be killed gets skimped on for that? The Caterpillar also makes this list, as the pilot gets 4x Size 1 guns, a loadout that can be outmatched by the Mustang Alpha or Aurora LN. You also have two turrets, each sporting 2x Size 4's. Which sounds impressive, except the Starfarer, a ship that carries cargo that cannot be salvaged after blowing it up, gets 4x size 4 gimbals for the pilot alone, in addition to getting a topside turret sporting 2x size 5's, and twin tail turrets each sporting 2x Size 3's. Why does a fuel tanker need all that protection, when a cargo ship sold as a rough and ready hauler and can moonlight as a pirate raid commander doesn't even get half of that armament? A Constellation has more weaponry than a Caterpillar. I've seen a lot of people say "You're not supposed to fight in a Caterpillar.", but you could say the exact same for the Starfarer, or even the Reclaimer, and every other ship in these size categories are bristling with large sized weaponry. Except, of course, the poor Caterpillar. The Herald I will exclude from my butthurtness because it's a data runner and the only thing it's supposed to pirate is Brooklyn 99, but the two things Drake is supposed to be known for (Cheap, which they're not and up gunned, which they're not) is simply not appearing on them. Every other manufacturer seems to be put correctly in their niche thing. Aegis and Anvil are the toughest and get the best of everything, Origin is fast, MISC does industry, RSI...exists, but Drake ships are supposed to be these overgunned cheap pirate ships, and they can't even manage to do that. Now I know no one at CIG is twiddling their mustache and tying Drake to the railroad tracks, but it feels like they've been neglected compared to everyone else and according to my childhood I know what neglect looks like. They get the best lore posts but the worst attention to their actual ships. Please make the ships reflect what is said about them. EDIT: Thanks @JCrewe_CIG !