User blog:Nes4day/Specter Review

I published this on my new blog, but I thought I should post it here as well since probably not everyone can access my blog. - Cheers, though I seem to have some trouble getting the pics to link, just follow this link to my blog (for those who can to see) to see the pics.

Before you start reading, my posts will generally contain spoilers of kind, and I suggest those who do not wish know turn away now or just skim through and look at the pictures.

The Specter is the infamous ship that will be unlocked for players to use once the Supernova expansion for Galaxy on Fire 2 has been completed on Extreme difficulty.The ship itself is encounter very early on in the story line, as the "mystery" enemies that has been haunting the Midorian space during the early phase of the supernova, and these heavy interceptor units will also be encounter through out the galaxy where they will try to tear you and your ship apart until the main story line is completed. These ships are later revealed to be the exclusive ship of Trunt Harval's elite Black Guard units in its description. And they are fitted with two Dark Matter Cannons, along side its heavy armor, it makes for a formidable opponent, and are especially deadly in packs of more than 3.

In game performance, flown by AI: though the ship itself is formidable, they are usually only encountered in packs of 2 or 3, and should not cause a problem for the more seasoned players, though due to their stealth nature, surprise attacks from behind and getting chase on the rear side can be a real issue, their deadly dual cannons will tear through all shield and additional armour plating in a matter of seconds, and with their high agility they can make a quick turn around and continue their attack much faster compared to the usual faction ships or pirates you encounter throughout the galaxy.

Best way of counter attack, have a cloak, and try to remain stealth to flank these units and it's best accompanied by weapons with area damage and relatively good firing rate. Use of guided ordinance against these targets is not recommended as they will usually cloak and you will have wasted a perfectly good missile. EMP attack can effective but since these fighter have a tendency to break formation when attacking, so watch your back when doing so.

Ship review: this ship is the second most heavily armored ship in the entire game, with the highest being the Rhino and that is completely unusable in combat since it's a cargo ship. The Specter also has the highest Equipment count making it highly versatile, also that the high handling factor making it suitable for intense dog-fighting scenario, the only down sides to it are the relatively small cargo hold (can be compensated by upgrade and equipping a Rhoda Black Hole) and the low secondary slots (not a factor if you don't used them that much), but given its massive armor and four primary slots, it truly is one of the best fighter the game has to offer.

Combat performance review: with its high armour and a high primary slots (2 Dark Matter and 2 M6A4 "Raccon" were used for combat performance test). It can easily overcome up to 5 or 6 enemies without cloaking or using secondary on Extreme difficulty, however, the ship has a large firing arc, making it somewhat inaccurate at close range (or long, depending on target approach).

Though, some players might argue that the wide firing arc is good but I suppose that's really just a matter of taste, and even though I'm not too bothered by the low availability of secondary weapons, it can still be inconvenient at times for me having to drag out the fight due to lack of alternative attacking options.

This ship's heavy armor makes it one of the top candidate if not the top candidate to use during Most Wanted mission since the opposition has ridiculous amount of hit points, and it's 4 primary weapons will prove to be highly useful in a one-one (or 2 or 3) confrontation since nothing says I want you dead more than to fire at them with over 3 million credits worth of guns.

Compared: I've compared the Specter against a fully upgraded Kinzer RS and Darkzov, as well as cross referenced it to my fully upgraded VoidX from my other save file, the Specter wins on armour level and equipment slot without any arguments, with all 4 of these vessels having 4 primary weapon slots, it all comes down to handling and firing arc. The VoidX has the best handling and the closest firing arc, and after due consideration, it was decided that the VoidX has the best combat performance thanks to it incredible handling and tight firing arc. Darkzov's limited (relatively) equipments slots and low handling saw it out matched by the Specter, however, the Kinzer RS, having a similar handling factor and same cargo load and is only one equipment slot short, but compensated with 4 secondary slots and a tight firing arc at mid and not too wide at side. After several raids, I would have to say the Kinzer RS would perform just as well if not better than the Specter, and also the Specter is more pricey than the VoidX and Kinzer RS, making the more economically viable (though the VoidX can only be obtained when all achievements has been unlocked on gold level). But despite out that, in my personal opinion, the Specter is by far the most beautiful ship in the game and any self respecting space fighter pilot will sure want to be laying down the lay while flying this magnificent machine. The Kinzer RS does great in the looks department, but personally, the seriousness of the Specter out guns the Kinzer RS, as it has one think the Kinzer RS does not quite have, the intimidation factor.

Conclusion and final scores: This ship is definitely among the top 5 ship GOF2 has to offer, but it is by no mean the best combat vessel, and lack of cargo space making it annoying for some players (but then again, the VoidX has even less). But personally, this ship simply marks the dream look of a pilot. And since it fly great as well, I would recommend it to be used by anyone who shares my sentiment.

Final Score:

Armour: 10/10

Firepower: 9/10

Combat Performance: 8.5/10

Combat Versatility: 8.5/10

Ship Versatility: 9.5/10

Cost: 8.5/10

Look: 10/10

Overall: 9/10

And there we are, hope you enjoyed it, and constructive criticism is always welcome, thank you.

-Nes