Reliant Q&A - Part 2

Reliant Concept Blueprint

“We took the newly revealed Reliant Model 0 for a test flight, and what we found was a genuine surprise! Beneath the sleek lines and the high-tech moving cockpit, the Reliant is a sturdy, dependable ship capable of any number of flight operations. We’re so confident with what we’ve seen that we’re offering the ship our prestigious One to Watch award as one of the top new spacecraft of the upcoming model year… Now let’s cross our fingers and hope MISC starts making final deliveries of the production model so we can start converting one for racing!”

- “A Hauler You Can ‘Reli’ On,” Ship and Pilot, September 2945

“We had serious problems integrating some of the Xi’an tech. I’m not at liberty to tell you exactly what we purchased, but to get the point across we asked our contact on Rihlah for one of their surge suppressors… and what we got seemed more like a gooey silicone stomach. We couldn’t even figure out where it was supposed to plug in on the Khartu we were working from! In fact, the boys in R&D are still trying to figure it out. Suffice it to say, the Reliant ships with some pretty cool tech… but it has a traditional human capacitor.”

- Dar Hardwishe, MISC Ship Designer, Junior Level

Greetings Citizens,

Last month, we ran a collection of Hull series Q&A posts during the concept sale. The idea went over so well that we’ve decided to make it a tradition. All future concept sales will include at least one ‘post launch’ Q&A post. This week, for the MISC Reliant concept sale, we’re answering questions backers have posted to this thread. A special thank you to designer Matt Sherman for answering your Reliant questions!

Question & Answer

What about the speed? Two TR1 as main trusters … The Aurora speed is 150 m/s with a TR3 and the Mustang Alpha flight at 200 m/s with two TR2.

It’s planned to fall between both of those ships, and keep in mind, the Aurora has a single thruster where the Reliant has 2.

Why are the two S1 guns listed as fixed mounts when it appears they’re on a gimbal at the end of a wing?

We really wanted to showcase just how big of a coverage angle the Wing-Tip turret would offer. Once it’s in your hangar, it’ll be a Tractor beam on the Turret with the S1 guns on the wings. Also, we’re already planning to make the Twin-mount Turret an available option through REC/VD when the Reliant is made flyable.

In particular, how does the “researcher” variant compare with / differ from the other science oriented ships? What is the prototypical mission that this variant is suited for?

In-system Scanner/Research work. Sadly, there’s not as much to detail out right now as these gameplay systems are also being built up, but we wanted to make sure at a starter-ship level, there was another layer of research/exploration that wasn’t just based on finding jumppoints.

I don’t get the concept of a “tier 2 starter”. A starter for when you’re not actually starting? Or is it a starter that people buying the game post launch will have to pay extra to start as?

We’re still working out many of the plans for post-launch, but the current idea is that the Reliant (and similarly priced ‘tier 2’ ships) would be part of slightly more expensive packages. It’s 100% a ship intended to start the game, though! Like the Aurora and the Mustang, the Reliant was designed from the ground up to allow players to experience as many different opportunities in the Star Citizen world as possible.

Will the vertical flight mode mean that those main thrusters will be gimbaled to allow more maneuverability?

They don’t fully gimbal 360 like the Cutlass engines can, but they’ll have some range of motion. There’s also going to be some Xi’an tech at work that we’ll be talking more about as the ship gets closer to being flyable.

How did humans acquire the technology if they haven’t made contact with the Xi’an yet?

MISC got the tech from trade-deals with the Xi’an, so this ship is something well beyond a first-contact with a species. (As of the time Star Citizen launches, humanity has a history with the Xi’An. There are still mysteries about them, but contact has been ongoing for quite a while.)

The turret we see in the concepts is an optional piece of equipment (Reverse the Verse) is the plan to have it ready for when the Reliant itself is hangar/flight ready?

Yes, while it won’t be included with the stock Reliant, we’re planning to have both the standard S2 (with installed Tractor Beam) and twin-S1 versions of the Turret available when the ship is flyable.

What role do you foresee for the ‘News Van’ variant? Can it be used in a recon role for live updates?

Yes, recon and reporting. The goal is to let the filming teams get the best picture from the safest distance possible. It won’t be as potent as something like a Herald in terms of how many systems out it can directly broadcast, but it’ll definitely be able to spread the word.

Will the “base concept model” be capable of switching or loading various modules so that it can change mission variants?

It’s going to have some flexibility with loadouts, but even inside its own variants, there’s going to be limits to what you can setup. The base-model and combat variant will be more interchangeable with each other, and the research and news van comparable to each other. It won’t just be different parts on the same hull though.

Will any of the variants get rid of one seat, move the remaining seat to the center of the cockpit and use the cleared space for something useful?

There’s currently no plans for a single-seat version of the Reliant.

Given that the Reliant is a “mini-hauler”, can we expect to see main thrusters capable of moving it while fully laden?

It’s currently planned thrusters are fully capable when loaded. Keep in mind, the Reliant uses Xi’an tech, and we’ve still got a few surprises left for what that really means as the ship gets closer to being flyable.

For someone with a fleet of bigger ships (Cutlass, Connie, etc) how would a Reliant complement it?

This really depends on what kinds of roles you’re planning to play with your other ships. Exploration Carrack? The Research Reliant would pair well with the increased maneuverability and scanner packages. Doing some crazy ad-hoc storytelling in space with friends? Bring a News Van to capture the action.

Can you clarify the maximum size and number of attachments that the gimbal hardpoint can handle?

The Wing-Tip turret is the listed S3 hardpoint for the Reliant. This means you can:

• Run a single fixed S3
• Run the stock S2 turret – It comes with a Tractor Beam installed but fits any S2 weapons.
• Run the optional Twin-S1 turret – This is the turret shown in concept art and will also be available through REC and VD when the Reliant is made flyable.

In one of the pictures there is a silhouette that suggests that the Reliant’s wings can fold upward while the ship is landed, perhaps to save space. Is this indeed part of the design, and, if so, will the Reliant be able to land in the same cross-sectional area as an Aurora or Mustang?

The folded wings are more when the ship is stored for distance-transport. It should sit in a similar amount of space to an Aurora or Mustang, but would take some extra time to become flight-ready compared to a Reliant with the wings unfolded.

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