Cobra Mk III: Difference between revisions

The '''Cobra MkIII''' is a [[Ships|ship]] manufactured by [[Faulcon DeLacy]]. A time-honoured and well-respected design, the Cobra MkIII debuted in 3100 under the banner of its original manufacturer, Cowell & MgRath of [[Lave]]. The company has since been acquired by Faulcon DeLacy, which produces the modern iteration of the Cobra MkIII. The ship is a popular choice among new pilots looking for a jack-of-all-trades at an affordable price, and even experienced and wealthy pilots are known to return to the Cobra MkIII later in their careers.

The Cobra MkIII is an exceedingly popular ship for good reason: it is a small, low-cost multipurpose vessel capable of performing very well in any role, and essentially serves as a much cheaper [[Python]], making it a good stepping stone for every kind of pilot.

In combat the Cobra MkIII is quite potent. It has impressive damage output and defences for its price tier and it is very powerful when outfitted and engineered correctly, making it good at both Bounty Hunting and Pirating. The downside of this ship is the combat ability relative to other ships. For bounty hunters who are attempting to tackle skilled opponents the Cobra MkIII can be outmanoeuvred by [[Eagle MkII]]s and [[Viper MkIII]]s, however, its large cargo bay makes it more viable for pirates.

The Cobra's carrying capacity, being more than double that of the [[Hauler]] and [[Adder]], and its cost, being almost one third that of the [[Type-6 Transporter]], makes it a logical stepping stone for aspiring [[trader]]s as there is no other ship capable of hauling more cargo at the Cobra's size and cost. If the [[Cobra MkIV]] is not an option then it can remain viable due to its small landing pad requirement. In addition it has much better combat potential than freighters and can defend itself or run away from hostile [[interdiction]]s.

The Cobra MkIII is also a good and affordable [[explorer|exploration]] ship due to the sizeable 16t [[Fuel Tank]] and the amount of [[Internal Compartment]]s which allows for the placement of the necessary exploration modules such as a [[Detailed Surface Scanner]], a [[Fuel Scoop]] and an [[Auto Field-Maintenance Unit]] without the need to remove the [[shield]]. The downside is its rather low jump range compared to other ships, which averages at 29 LY and can be surpassed by the much cheaper Adder and Hauler.

As a [[miner]], the MkIII is very effective. The MkIII's additional hardpoints, compartments, and cargo space compared to the Adder make it very effective at its job, and it can even bring along [[Limpet]]s due to the extra space. It is an excellent early choice for miners until they can afford a [[Keelback]].

The weapon hardpoints are located as follows: two Class 2 hardpoints in front of the cockpit on the upper surface ship, and two Class 1 hardpoints on the underside of the ship. The distance between the two Class 1 hardpoints is sizable, which may cause some trouble when mounting multiple fixed weapons since it is hard to hit with all of them at the same time. The pilot's seat of the Cobra MkIII is to the left of the centre of the ship, and has the co-pilot's to the right.

All ships are highly customizable through the Outfitting menu of Station Services. Listed below is the default load-out for the Cobra MkIII.

*The Cobra MkIII has the most amount of [[Livery]] options of any ship. Somewhat ironically, the [[Cobra MkIV]] has the fewest.

*The Cobra MkIII has gone through several design iterations. An example of an older iteration from over a century ago can be found at a crash site at the coordinates -54.3, -50.3 on HIP 12099 1 B. It was the personal ship of the famed CMDR [[John Jameson]], who was hired by the [[Intergalactic Naval Reserve Arm]] near the end of the first [[Thargoid]] conflict to deploy the [[mycoid]] bio-weapon against the alien invaders. CMDR Jameson's ship was secretly sabotaged by INRA to ensure he did not return from his mission, however.

*As of December 16, 2019, the Cobra MkIII was one of the three most popular ships in ''Elite Dangerous'', the other two being the [[Asp Explorer]] and the [[Python]].<ref name="5th">[https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/celebrating-5-years-of-elite-dangerous.533151/ Frontier Forums: Celebrating 5 years of Elite Dangerous!]</ref>