I just moved from a Caldari Cormorant (destroyer) to a Moa (cruiser) and started some level 2 security missions. My preferred play style has been keep my distance and pick enemies off with my railguns, I have fitted my Moa with 250mm railguns. This worked well in the Cormorant, but the Moa is slow and I get swarmed by rogue drones/frigates before I can kill them.
How do I take out small enemies? I don't want to fit small railguns as it defeats the object of having a cruiser, and besides, my Cormorant would do more damage with its seven turrets v the Moa's five. Will drones do the trick, or am I just no supposed to be running level 2 missions in a cruiser?
Best Answer
Usually you've got four basic concepts to fight drones and other smaller craft:
Drones: Especially for new players, drones are usually the easiest way to fight smaller craft your ship's guns cant hit. However, based on your skills and your enemies, your drones might be too weak to break a small attacker's tank (especially true for Elite Frigates).
Avoid Close Quarters: Fight smaller ships before they're able to orbit you. This way even Battleships can take out Frigates or Drones in a single hit. Based on the speed of the enemy, this might be impossible (some Spider Drones fly 5 km/s or faster).
Reduce the Enemy's Transversal: Or in other words: slow down his orbiting speed so he's easier to hit. There are basically two possible approaches for this. Either try to web down the enemy (the module is for medium powered slots and called a Stasis Webifier; it will reduce his speed by 50% or more) or try to outrun the enemy (i.e. flying away so he has to follow you, negating his transversal or approaching speed). The latter can be tricky, especially if you're in a slower ships. Fast ships, like most Minmatar ships as well as Faction ships associated with the Angel Cartel really shine when trying this.
Try a different weapon system: Don't use artillery weapons, when you know you're going to face lots of close range enemies. Based on ship bonuses, skills, etc. this is not necessarily a real solution though. If you're still new into "kiting" (i.e. outrunning your enemies), you might be better off using close range weapons though (e.g. Autocannons or Blasters). Missiles could be a different option, because they don't require tracking. They will, however, still do less damage against smaller/faster targets.