Viper Mk III

The Viper Mk III is a light combat ship manufactured by Faulcon deLacy. Fast and manoeuvrable, the Viper's comparatively low price point makes it a good option for aspiring bounty hunters, while its versatility has made it popular with security forces throughout the galaxy.

— In-Game Description

The Viper Mk III is a small ship produced by Faulcon DeLacy. An affordable, light fighter craft with a distinctive, minimal profile that was designed for agile ship-to-ship combat, the Viper Mk III is a favorite of security forces and bounty hunters across the galaxy. Newly-licensed pilots who desire to specialize in combat often make purchasing a Viper Mk III an early priority.

Overview

The Viper Mk III is a combat-focused vessel commonly used by station security forces and other law enforcement organisations. Compared to the multi-role Cobra Mk III, it has the same weapons capacity, slightly stronger shields per shield class, slightly weaker hull, marginally slower turn rate, much faster strafe speed, faster speed under normal thrust and slower speed under boost. The Viper is also currently one of the fastest ships available on the market, and an optimised build can achieve speeds as high as approximately 870 m/s while boosting; the Imperial Eagle can surpass that and reach a little over 900 m/s, but the Viper can turn more easily and activate its boost more frequently.

Its main drawbacks are that its heat dissipation, power generation and hyperspace capacity do not equal that of the Cobra, which limits the value of having the same hardpoint capacity; mounting the ship's full weapon weight makes it very short-ranged, and an energy-heavy armament causes it to either overheat or use all available power very quickly. Fuel is also an issue as the ship comes with capacity of only four tons. In addition to its official police/security role, the Viper's speed, range, and combat capability make it ideal for bounty hunters, small-load couriers, mercenaries or smugglers, while its small cargo capacity makes it a very poor choice for traders, and a survivable but inadequately profitable platform for pirates. With proper fitting, the Viper is an excellent fighter capable of standing its ground against more expensive ships.

Viper MK III hardpoints convergence

The Viper Mk III's weapon hardpoints are located as follows: two Class 1 hardpoints in front of cockpit on the upper surface, and two Class 2 hardpoints on the underside of the ship with one on each side of the cargo scoop. This provides a range of options for weapons loadouts. The Viper Mk III has a delta-shaped hull which tapers to form two prongs at the front. The cockpit is situated just behind the bow, slightly raised. This gives the pilot an excellent view without exposing the canopy to potential damage. The Viper Mk III lands on two small rear struts and one large front strut which doubles as a boarding ramp to the cockpit.

Purchase Locations

System	Station	Date Seen	Discount
Shinrarta Dezhra	Jameson Memorial	Always available	10% discount
Brestla	i Sola Prospect	Always available	20% surcharge
Akkadia	Hotel Vogelsang Outpost	Jan. 18, 2018	15% discount
KP Tauri	Spedding Orbital	Jan. 18, 2018	15% discount
T'ien Mu	Grabe Ring	Jan. 18, 2018	15% discount
Shana Bei	Chu City	Jan. 18, 2018	15% discount
Barnard's Star	Haller City	Jan. 18, 2018
Altair	Solo Orbiter	Jan. 18, 2018
Exioce	Fort Lawrence	Jan. 18, 2018
Azrael	Extra Refinery	Jan. 18, 2018
LHS 331	Gold Station	Jan. 18, 2018
Hera	Bounds Station	Jan. 18, 2018

Outfitting

Main article: Outfitting

All ships are customisable through the Outfitting menu of Station Services. Listed below is the default load-out for the Viper Mk III.

Category	Default System	Default Rating	Default Class	Max Class
Small Hardpoint	Empty	--	--	1
	Empty	--	--	1
Medium Hardpoint	Pulse Laser (L)	F	1	2
	Pulse Laser (L)	F	1	2
Utility Mount	Empty	--	--	0
	Empty	--	--	0
Bulkheads	Lightweight Alloys	I	1	8
Reactor Bay	Power Plant	E	3	3
Thrusters Mounting	Thrusters	E	3	3
Frame Shift Drive Housing	Frame Shift Drive	E	3	3
Environment Control	Life Support	E	2	2
Power Coupling	Power Distributor	E	3	3
Sensor Suite	Sensors	E	3	3
Fuel Store	Fuel Tank [x4]	C	2	2
Internal Compartments	Cargo Rack [x4]	E	2	3
	Shield Generator	E	3	3
	Empty (M)	--	--	3
	Empty	--	--	2
	Empty	--	--	1
	Advanced Docking Computer	E	1	1
	Supercruise Assist	E	1	1
	(PAS)	I	1	1

• (L) = Loaned Module
• [x#] = Capacity
• (PAS) = Reserved solely for the Planetary Approach Suite or Advanced Planetary Approach Suite
• (M) = Military Compartment reserved for Hull Reinforcement Package, Module Reinforcement Package, Shield Cell Bank, Guardian Shield Reinforcement Package, Guardian Hull Reinforcement Package, or Guardian Module Reinforcement Package

Trivia

• The Viper Mk III was introduced in Standard Beta 1 of Elite Dangerous.
• The Viper Mk III length (29.8m) is a bit shorter than the Space Shuttle orbiter (37m) that was operated by NASA.

Videos

• File:Pleasure Achieved - Elite Dangerous Viper MKIII
• File:Viper MkIII - Faulcon DeLacy Elite Dangerous
• File:Elite Dangerous 1rst CCN Race Event Highlights 4k60
• File:The Viper Mk3 Elite Dangerous
• File:The Viper MK3 Review - Small but Deadly? -Elite Dangerous-

Gallery

• 
  Viper Mk III interior cutaway
• 
  Metal Asteroids and Viper Mk III
• 
  Faulcon DeLacy Viper Mk III Blueprint
• 
  Viper Mk III and pilot in hangar
• 
  Viper Mk III and Orbis Station
• 
  Viper Mk III in a hangar
• 
  Viper Mk III in space