Starfield Ship Build: Trade Authority Caiman

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Trade Authority Caiman


 

Introduction

WARNING: This ship uses extensive merging techniques to combine the Reactor, Fuel and Grav Drive together. The Engines are also merged together. Rather than try to explain each step, please visit Crimson Flyboy's tutorial video on merging. I used Flip and Drop Merging technique on this build.

The Trade Authority Caiman just started out as an experiment to see just how far I was willing to take the whole merging thing. I really didn't have a story for it. I made it, flew it around a bit, and went back to the Dependable, which is featured both as another entry on my blog and a Crimson Flyboy video.

For literal months it just sat there in the character's roster of ships until I was scrolling through them one day and noticed that the Caiman and the Greenback had similar color schemes. As often happens, I started thinking about how they would work together and the connections became pretty obvious. The Caiman is very much an escort/fighter and the Greenback is very much a cargo hauler. Why wouldn't the Trade Authority pair up a couple of Caimans to safeguard a Greenback, particularly if said Greenback is shipping something of great value.

 

Head Canon/Lore

In an effort to expand their fleet and provide additional protection to valuable cargo vessels, the Trade Authority decided it needed a heavy fighter. After a lengthy process of elimination and refinement, the Caiman came in as the winner.

 

Components


 

  1. (4) Hope 6 Landing Gear (Port/Stbd, Aft/Fore)
  2. (2) NG-20 Landing Gear - Mid
  3. (2) Nova Cowling 2L-BF
  4. 100 DP Slim Docker - Bottom
  5. Nova Galactic Storeroom 1x1
  6. Taiyo Ship Bed 200 Landing Bay
  7. (2) Jishaku Nd RF Rapid Railgun Turret
  8. (3) Reza 300 PHz SX Laser
  9. (2) Deimos Wing A
  10. (4) Deimos Wing E
  11. (2) Stroud Cowling
  12. (2) Supernova 2100 Engine (Merged)
  13. J-51 Gamma Grav Drive, SF-30 Sheared Flow Reactor, 600T He3 Tank (Merged)
  14. Nova Galactic All-in-One Berth A 2x1
  15. Magellan C2 Cockpit
  16. (2) Stroud Cap A
  17. (2) Deimos Tail A
  18. (2) Deimos Spine A
  19. Assurance SG-1800 Shield Generator
  20. Equipment Plate
  21. (2) Tsukisasu 40k Missile Launcher
  22. (3) Nova Cowling (Aft, Fore, Mid)

 

 Assembly

Being such a heavily merged build makes this a little challenging. The engines will need to be merged into one entity and the Reactor, Grav Drive, and Fuel will need to be merged into another distinct construct. A merge tutorial video by Crimson Flyboy is linked in the Introduction above, if you need help. The assembly instruction below assume that the two merged constructs are built and the larger Structural and Hab pieces are attached to them as pictured.

We will start with the Weapons and Structural pieces to the right and work left.

  1. Attach the Missile Launchers (#21) to the inner connect points of the Deimos Tails (#17).
  2. Detach the Aft Deimos Wing E (#10) pieces.
  3. Select the Deimos Tail (#17) and Deimos Spine A (#18) pieces and attach the Tails to the aft points of the Stroud Cowling (#11).
  4. Flip merge the two Aft Deimos Wing E (#10) pieces into their previous locations.
  5. Attach the two Aft Lasers (#8) and Railgun Turrets (#7) to the Deimos Wing A (#9) pieces.
  6. Attach the Shield Generator (#19) to the Aft point on the All-in-One Hab (#14).
  7. Attach the Equipment Plate (#20) to the Fore point of the All-in-One Hab. Attach the Fore Laser to the Equipment Plate.
  8. Flip merge all three Nova Cowlings (#22) to the top of the Main Deck, starting with the Aft one. The aft one attaches to the top of #13. The Mid piece connects to the Aft and the Fore piece connects to the Mid.
  9. Connect the 100 DP Slim Docker to the bottom of the Storeroom 1x1.
  10. Group select the assembled Main Deck and drag it over to the Lower Deck and connect it so that the 2x1 Hab sits on top of both the Landing Bay and 1x1 Hab.
  11. Attach the Fore Hope 6 Landing Gear to the forward points of the Landing Bay
  12. Flip merge the Aft Hope 6 Landing Gear behind the Fore ones.
  13. (Optional) - You could copy two additional Deimos Wing A and flip merge them into the Stroud Caps. It is not necessary and only fills into a little bit of the open space.The effect is very subtle. The pictured one has this merge done.

 

Upgrade Path

The biggest weakness that this vessel has is the lack of cargo. One or both of the Stroud Cowlings can be replaced with roughly equivalent cargo pods. This will necessitate the more powerful versions of the Supernova engines and may even require that a third one be merged in.

Aside from that, it's the same old song about better Reactor and particle weapons, though you really don't need the latter.


Final Build



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