Privateer

The privateer (PVT) is a cargo ship able to transport up to 250kt and sporting numerous multi-function slots.

It is a very useful freighter in the early stage of the game for two reasons:

1. It can take 3 fuel-pods, giving it extended range.
2. It requires very little germanium, leaving more available to build factories.

The drawback is that the base hull does, however, require a lot of ironium and a little more resources to build than its closest relative the medium freighter. While the medium freighter is also available sooner at construction 3 versus construction 4 for the privateer, this disadvantage is somewhat reduced by the increased capacity of the privateer which is able to transport 40kt more cargo per hull.

Many players also use the PVT hull as a coloniser, with two fuel pods and one colony module.

It is very important to note that a recently found bug allow one to copy a ship design, remove the colonization module and still retain colonization ability. Even though this bug can be abused on any hull, removing the module from a colonization privateer hull from the start of the game and onward is a huge saving in long term resources and minerals without the sacrifice of a more "useful" ship in return. The use of this bug on any hull is known to get other players suspicious on sight and can lead to immediate game ban. You have been warned.

Specifications

Base Fuel ―	Base Armor ―	Base Ini ―	Base Mass ―	Base Resource
650mg	150dp	3	65kt	50

• Require Construction 4

Slot layout

• 1 Engine
• 250kt Cargo Space
• 2x1 General Purposes
• 1x2 Shield or Armor
• 1x1 Scanner/Elec/Mech

Slot IDs

         ___        #   = Cargo Space (250kt)
        │3·3│___    0   = Engine
 _______│3·3·1·1│   1   = Shield or Armor x2
╡0·0·#·#·#·#·1·1│   2   = Scanner/Electrical/Mechanical
╡0·0·#·#·#·#·2·2│   3&4 = General Purpose
 ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯│4·4·2·2│
        │4·4│¯¯¯    Privateer
         ¯¯¯

Common designs

Long Range Privateer

Players using mainly privateers for transport in the early game can use its two general purpose and well as the scanner/elect/mech slot to sport 3 fuel pods, greatly increasing the operational range of the cargo ship. Doing so reduce greatly the need for more cargo ships for the same travel or the need of boosters. A fuel mizer is also common on such ship, further extending range.

It is one of the most commonly used cargo ship design.

Colonization Privateer

Colony Ships being restricted to 25kt of cargo, many players already using the previous long range privateer design are also fond of this minor modification of dropping a single fuel pod and replacing it with a colonization module. The resulting ship is then used exactly like a normal colonization ship and has the advantage of being able to transport more cargo and drop more minerals at destination as the ship is destroyed in the colonization of a new world. As fuel is lost on the colonization ship with the colonization attempt, fuel can also be transferred to the remaining cargo ships before landing to help with the return voyage.