ELITE Dangerousis aspace exploration, combat, and trading game that has had something of a rocky history, with players believing it was going to soon go into end-of-life in 2023. However, FDEV surprised the entire community in early 2024, by releasing details of planned feature expansions, and a number of new ships.
The 180.04 update forELITE Dangerousintroduces the first of these planned changes. Three major new additions to the game were patched in with this update. Firstly, the brand new Python Mk II ship chassis was added. Secondly, the Super Cruise Overdrive (SCO) ability was added to a completely new range of Frame Shift Drives. And lastly, FDEV began selling prebuilt ships in the cash shop throughmicrotransactions.
Prebuilt Python MK II Ready For Combat
Package:
The first of the newly introduced prebuilt ships that can be purchased for in-game currency inELITE Dangerous, is the Python Mk II Stellar. It is based on the new Python Mk II ship chassis (more on this later) and comes fully equipped forspace combatwith a full A-rated module loadout.
The package includes a ship kit and a paint job. FDEV has been pretty clever with this cash shop package, as buying it will unlock the new Python MKII for purchase at a shipyard. Players who don’t want to buy this prebuilt ship package will need to wait a few weeks before the new ship chassis is unlocked for all.
Ready To Go Prebuilt Exploration Ship
This is a prebuilt ship package that can be purchased in theELITE Dangerouscash shop. It is ready to go as a long-rangeexploration ship. Based on the popular Diamondback Explorer ship chassis, the package includes a Guardian Frameshift Drive, which usually has to be unblocked via a long-winded process in the game.
The package includes both a ship kit and a paint job as well. Once purchased, the ship can be spawned for free at any starport. Furthermore, if the ship is lost, it can be respawned at any time, again for free. However, neither the ship modules nor the ship itself can be sold for credits.
Prebuilt Anti Xeno Combat Ship
Anti-Xeno combat has been a thing inELITE Dangeroussince the Thargoid War began. In-game events have slowly progressed this war, moving towards a resolution. Part of this process has been the introduction of Guardian technology, including Guardian weapons that are specifically designed to fight Thargoids.
The ship package includes 2 Guardian Gauss Cannons, and the entire ship loadout is entirely focused on fighting Thargoids. Purchasing this package means the player can sidestep the requirement to unlock these specific Guardian modules. What makes this ship pretty cool, is if it gets blown up fighting Thargoids the player can respawn it for free at any shipyard. And this can be done an infinite number of times.
Specialized Beginner Laser-Mining Loadout
The Type-6 Transporter is an excellent ship for new players to get to grips with mining inELITE Dangerous. This cash shop package provides a completely fitted-out Type 6 formining. Furthermore, the actual mining lasers are pre-engineered, which improves the mining yield.
A paint job and ship kit are included in the package, although it must be said the paint job is pretty dire, and there are much better ones available for the Type 6. But this is just a cosmetic issue, it doesn’t change the fact that this prebuilt ship package is going to help new players amass their first fortune in the game.
2Achilles Aerospace Completes Supercruise Overcharge Research
SCO Ability Now Available For New FSD
This addition toELITE Dangeroushas been somewhat of a point of contention with players. The SCO Frameshift Drive adds the ability to burst the speed of supercruise mode to much higher levels. However, the fact that this new feature was added as a completely different set of FSD, means that players will have to replace their original FSD that they likely spent tensof hours engineering.
Of course, players are free to keep their old style FSD if they wish, but they won’t have access to the new SCO ability. The community has been quite vocal about this new addition, but for reasons unknown, FDEV refused to retrofit the existing FSD to add the SCO ability.
1Added The Python Mk II
Brand New Ship Chassis
There has not been a new ship added toELITE Dangeroussince 2018 when the Mamba and the Krait Phantom were patched into the game. Early in 2024, FDEV surprised theELITE Dangerouscommunity by confirming that several newspaceshipchassis were planned for the game in the coming year. The new Python Mk II is the first of these.
Only players who purchase the ship via the cash shop can gain access to it in the 18.04 patch. Others will have to wait until August when it is added to the shipyard for general purchase. This is something of a cash grab on the part of FDEV and has left many players angry.
