Chieftain Review - Revisit - Elite Dangerous Ship Reviews

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Today I Revisit my original review of the Alliance Chieftain in Elite Dangerous.
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[@SuperDipMonster]

I hope you appreciate me twisting my mobile around in order to help you with your turning.😀

[@VindicatorJones]

LOL, thanks man!!

[@davidkennedy6208]

You flying 'badly' is twenty times better than me at my best haha!!!

[@gungan5822]

I dunno what AI he is fighting against but the stuff I fight never does anything but boost turn. It's boring AF.

[@VindicatorJones]

It is the exact same AI.. boost turning (jousting) can be countered effectively by utilizing thrusters and getting in close. I will be making advanced combat maneuvers video soon, its about 50% done.

[@davidkennedy6208]

Vindicator Jones i look forward to it!!!

[@aquaticborealis4877]

Vindicator Jones I'll be interested to see it.

[@coronal2207]

@@VindicatorJones Is this out yet?

[@arrynroyce72]

Sending that Eagle spiraling to death after that collision was great!

[@GoliathHimself]

ramming speed is legitimate tactic

[@fruitgums]

Michael Hogan, it reminded me of Darth Vaders Tie Fighter spinning out to space just before the destruction of the Death Star, although his never blew up.

[@Unserene]

I agree. it is more fun than the FDL. Just for the maneuverability.

[@WolfintheWheat]

Old vid, but holy hell this ship is good even now in '22. I was a die-hard Imperial Eagle pilot, trying to squeeze as much viability out of my speedy maneuverable dogfighter as possible, but when I realized I needed something with at least a Large hardpoint or two, someone recommended the Chief. It maneuvers like a small ship but it's got an even more generous hardpoint spread than most of the other Mediums... And it's also one of the cheaper ones. The fact that you can also get a similar feel out of its sister-ships with more armor or even a Fighter Bay is great too if you fly with friends.

[@timothyrogers2349]

I have absolutely LOVED the chieftain. it has been so fun to fly that i'm actually enjoying playing ED again. its fantastic with engineering and makes it even more fun. its probably the only ship where the engineer grind wasn't so tedious for me. great Vid Thanks!

[@lemusketeer3232]

Man I miss your vids and your voice... Where have you gone? Come back please and feel the love for you and your content..

[@TheZorch]

Damn, you're peeling their shields off like an orange! :D

[@luistigerfox]

if you put more than 0 into sys the modules malfunction less often.

[@jackarcher3706]

Glad you did the revised review, really matches up with what I have been experiencing. For quite a while I had lvl3 dirty, when I bumped it up to 5 + drag I wasn’t sure I liked it. It slides like crazy! Had to change my flight style a bit, but love it now. Favorite ship in the game at the moment. 1v1 in most cases you can avoid taking damage, and melt anything in a haz rez. I do take on wings of 3, but it’s dodgy for me. Take 1 out, run, recharge shields and come back. Wings of 2 are usually not a problem. Cockpit was never a huge issue for me, it’s those thrusters! I have lost two chieftains due to dead thrusters with ~70% Hull. I’ve been running 2lmc with auto loader, mrail, 1smc with corrosive, and 2spulse with scramble. 2 pips in weapons, occasionally bumping to 3 depending on how many rail shots I take. With this things pitch rate it’s almost always 100% on target till death. Its speed at taking ships out I find also lessens the effect of shield boosters and chaff. Not a pro here, but for my skill level I can kill, next, kill faster in the chieftain than in my fitted Anaconda, and so much more fun. Just can’t take the hits. Due to module, specifically thruster damage, this thing takes when the shields are down, I wouldn’t classify it as a hull tank. Sounds counterintuitive given its integrity vs mj, but when my shields are down, I’m moving out to readdress.

[@BamaChad-W4CHD]

I just tried my first Alliance ship today. It wasn't a Chief but Crusader. I am amazed at its maneuverability. I've been flying Krait and FDL a lot lately and the Alliance ships are amazing compared to them. So easy to maneuver around for dogfighting.

[@thethumbinator6046]

Found my new loadout!! Great video, VJ!! Just Subscribed!!

[@cmdrmaskime]

Fantastic review ! I really miss your videos man !

[@DanTKD87]

Holy pitch and roll speed batman!

[@01ZombieMoses10]

I kept thinking Jones was saying 'SCVs'. I was like...are they in the rear with the gear?

[@lostandlonely2112]

My cousin Lester saw a Thargoid once.

[@FlecheDeFer]

I love the Chieftain but what do you think of the Challenger? Do you see it as a real improvement?

[@leviathanskiss8720]

I enjoyed watching you combat test. Now onto the next 1.

[@madddog7]

Good job! I really like the Chief. It is a pleasure to fly; more responsive than most other ships when including acceleration, turning and 'skidding' 9:54. Others have complained about it, especially the skidding, but I think that it is the pilot's technique that makes the difference. And I don't mean skill, but technique.

[@shyamsrini777]

Mr. Vindicator Please come backkkk

[@MichaelSmith-fn1ci]

Another great vid VJ, bought a Chieftain for Thargoid bashing but was a little disappointed by the limited Xeno weapons loadout, might change the ships role as an out and out bounty hunter.

[@Zenryoku42]

I love my Chieftain so much. Dirty Drives 5 + Drag Drives = LOL

[@VindicatorJones]

= LOL .... Couldnt have put it better myself... I am often left giggling from the insane boost.

[@VcntyPrxy]

that eagle kill gave me a good giggle

[@raveouscarlias4479]

Chieftan is one of my favorite ships. It's absolutely amazing :)

[@domoughton]

I roll with two large plasma accelerators, a medium beam laser and three small multi cannons, works wonders

[@NoisySheep7]

I just brought this yesterday with my credit, now I only have like 1mil cp lol. Didn't really get to use it yet, but I painted it a dark color immediately lol. And the booster sounds like a MONSTER!! Did u hear it?! It goes "woop prEAAHHH"

[@shut_up_n_diie7895]

Can you please do a video on combat with a type 9 stock or non upgrade or specd out? You know what I mean. I really enjoy your videos and I just started playing ED for about 3 weeks on PS4 system and I’ve already purchased and sold many ships that I’ve grind out with hard dedication. It’s hard to find good instructional videos for me on this game. Surprisingly I gotta admit that I really like the type 9. My problem is that I don’t know how to defend myself with it properly. Lol if that’s possible. It’s turning speed is horrid and I’m learning how to implement flight assist on/off to gain a better advantage in combat. When I’m hauling cargo, it seems like they try to interdict me every 8 minutes, lol. Frustrating so if I can destroy the other ship then I can continue to deliver cargo with out the impediment. Also, when being interdicted, keeping the ship directed at the escape vector is very challenging do to its turn ratios. You, also, just got a new Subscriber. Cheers and thank you 🙏

[@charliemannion2718]

This has been my ultimate favorite ship for combat for the last month. I have a 70mil build and a 3 something mil rebuy. I’m in no way disappointed. I just need to get used to flying with flight assist off.

[@charliemannion2718]

@Lorens Dewinde 70 million credit

[@moonshot988]

I hadn't really thought of using rails on the smalls. I'm definitely going to give that a try after watching this. I currently roll with 2 focused APAs (lock breaker and gimbal scrambler), one medium cannon with high yield shells, and 3 OC enforcer cannons (one with corrosive, other two oversized). The lead distances work out well as long as you're within 1-1.5km despite everything being fixed. I haven't tried g5 efficient APAs yet, but I suspect they'll lag a bit behind. I just have two problems: 1) I have to watch my heat a bit and 2) I run out of enforcer ammo too quickly. It's cheap to synthesize, but I'm really thinking that the rails might be the way to go instead of the enforcers, as long as I can work out the power budget with everything else. I'll just have to deal with the varying lead distances. Definitely worth trying. Thanks for the video.

[@timesthree5757]

My chieftain I use to find ground salvage. The legs spaced enough to find landing spots easy. The ship sits far enough from the ground that srv has complete clearance. It can kill pirates trying to snatch n grab. My light combat ship is the fed assault ship. My Intel and planetary scan ship is drop ship. Settlement assault is fed gun ship. In space salvage ship is krait mk2

[@MrRavenBlackwing]

A lot of this backs my experience save that I used my Legacy mods from my now defunct FDL in my Chieftain. I find a combination of Efficent Pulse in the smalls, Efficient Inertial Impact Burst in the Medium, and OC MC Incendiaries work rather well.

[@johnterpack3940]

I wish I understood combat better. I'm so bad at it FDev told me they were going to create a rank below "Harmless" just for me.

[@GRDwashere]

16:25 "my hole is really taking a pounding now"

[@evoeightyci]

I love my Chieftain. I'm a lousy combat pilot, lets be honest. But the maneuverability is awesome. I tend to be able to get out of a fight if I take on too much for my skill level. A great ship for working out your combat skills, as long as you can afford to replace it a few times.

[@lennys5058]

I went back to the chieftain had the challenger was ok but got bored of it then sold it for a mamba was "ok" but the maneuverability was terrible went back to the chieftain now having fun destroying FDL's and Mamba's

[@olliewray1197]

Can we get a challenger video as it seems to be a more armed chieftain

[@Teedeedubbelu]

the chief has a special place in my hart.

[@cmdrterrorfirma4244]

I am loving this ship too!

[@madddog7]

I'm using two 3d beam lasers and the rest are seeker missiles ... seems to work well. I also do a lot of reverse thrust to correct my overshooting problem ;-) .

[@Maurilustrador]

I laughed so hard to the Eagle at the beginning bahahaha. It made your bounty hunting easier xd

[@tessemi]

On my chieftain i have 1 class3 beam 1 class 3 burst and 1 class 2 pulse. All other weapons are turreted multicannons. These work well since i dont have to pay as much attention as soon as my enemys shields are down. And for being only small hardpoints, they shred ships like there is no tomorrow. Dont even know why they do so much damage. I have not engineered anything until now.

[@tcb9813]

when will this boy's videos come back?

[@VindicatorJones]

When I gets mah new PC!! Ordered it back in november, STILL WAITING..

[@jakedraper6408]

I commented on your last video as well. What was the total outfitting cost and if any, were there any variations in the internals? Thanks for the help! Once again, another great video!

[@VindicatorJones]

I am still playing around with the build of the Chieftain, so no loadout just yet. But total cost is around 110-120 million I think.. But I did have reactive armour.. If you stick with regular armour, I think total cost is about 50-60 million.. but dont quote me.

[@jakedraper6408]

Thanks so much! Keep up the good work!

[@mdmckea]

VJ, do you use the 'hat' on the joystick to control your thrusters? I watch the app in the top left of the screen to see where/when you thrust and you're pretty slick on the movements. Excellent vid and it's convinced me to move my Chieftain out of the easy High RES to Haz and actually earn my bounties.

[@VindicatorJones]

I have an X-56 and use the thumb mini stick on the throttle to use the thrusters. Glad you likes the video :)

[@mdmckea]

X-56 - Great. That's my wife's birthday present sorted... :-)

[@VindicatorJones]

OH I am sure she will LOVE that! ;)

[@Knightfang1]

I use the thrust master T16000M and I have the analog stick under my index finger on the throttle for the thrusters. I’m definitely not as good at this as you are, even with A rated thrusters use I have a hard time staying behind most targets

[@Farinhir]

Funny how I have been running the small rails also. My difference is I have a medium pulse. I would love to know more about your engineering and what other components are in the ship. I also would love to know where you made the overlay for trust. I know you said in a different video but I forget which one it was. But yes. The Chieftain is a very fun ship. I do wonder if I should have heat sinks for heat management during long fights though. Rails are hot. Edit, In about 5 weeks I will probably be testing the Imperial Hammer in the medium slot.

[@cmdrlevianova1485]

Problem with chief is engines are incredibly easy to destroy.

[@tomekl3476]

Its better to upgrade vulture to a grade everything or buy chieftain fast? (I love RG + MC but i cant use them in vulture). And one thing, Chieftain or FAS? I will use it for RES and CZ. Some multirole will be welcomed (like material getting srv for enginniers). And another thing that matters. Money i dont have it much.

[@aquaticborealis4877]

Boost turning in the chieftain is a lot of fun. Its the most fun ship to fly that I've tried. Shields are crappy though.

[@Fabelaz]

Hello, can you tell me, how you engineered your weapons? Also, on a separate note, what do you think about Archon Delain's burst lasers mounted on this ship's small hardpoints to remove shields of any vessels? Are rails more useful in those terms? Don't want to wait for another month to get to the answer myself.

[@Fabelaz]

Oh, feedback cascade and super penetrator, and it seems "more ammo". Second question still stands. And one of multicannons 100% has the corrosive shell.

[@yugster78]

Yes i think i want one!

[@Datan0de]

Why are you waiting for them to scan you before engaging?

[@gungan5822]

Chieftain vs Vulture? I keep looking to upgrade my Vulture but just don't see any point until a Corvette.

[@VindicatorJones]

Chieftain is definitely an upgrade to the vulture.. So is the FDL

[@gungan5822]

Is it still an upgrade unengineered vs a fully g4-5 vulture (i.e. 550 bi-weave shields with 50/50/60 resists, dirty drives, the whole kit, thermal reactive armor) or is it going to have to sit in the hangar while I upgrade it? I wanted an FDL originally but i got a Python for trading which I'm going to convert to combat once i get a cutter or whatever.

[@jacklawson1869]

Gungan stay out of the corvettes and the cutters if you want to actually play the game, the big 3 are afk simulators in pve.

[@jhh631]

I disagree, because chieftain is worse in conflict zones, PVP, and NPCs with missle racks

[@jonathaneardley8570]

Eagle 1 hit KO at 1:29 - 1:34, oops indeed!

[@rigsta]

Great video. Have you tried the Challlenger and if so, what do you think?

[@VindicatorJones]

Challenger is pretty much the same as the Chieftain, except less maneuverable, which, for me, makes the challenger pretty meh... Yes, you can launch a fighter, Yes, you have more module slots, and yes makes a better multirole ship. However, PERSONALLY, I would rather save my money and get a Krait if I wanted something more multirole focused. Dont get me wrong, a lot of people love the Challenger, and thats cool, it just isnt my cup of tea. I feel the Chieftain is much more fun in combat, and the Krait makes for a much more useful multirole ship.

[@rigsta]

​@@VindicatorJones Turns out if you make three very similar ships with very similar names people get them mixed up, who'da thunk? The Crusader is the one with the fighter bay, the Challenger is the one that removes a L hardpoint for two M hardpoints. I get the feeling your answer would remain the same though :)

[@MrTokageroh]

I think the chieftain might be the best platform to load out with frag cannons to just rip right through enemy's. I see it as mostly the build your running just instead of the rails they are frags with double shot5 all around. The size 2 with drag munitions to keep em from escaping, the rest with incendiary. If you got the time/materials give it a shot, as im rather new and havent gathered nearly enough to engineer much.

[@robdfar]

what is your loadout i have been tring to find a good one for hunting. and i did not see the fix for the canopy was that today?

[@stealthmana1980]

Can you please share the fitting on Shipyard or Coriolis. Thank you.

[@VindicatorJones]

I will be making a build video soon. I am still working on its outfitting right now.

[@stealthmana1980]

Vindicator Jones Thank you Sir.

[@ChozoSR388]

Y'know, it kinda looks like a dropship...like it should be carrying troops instead of large caliber munitions lol I may actually try that...get another Chief and build it out as a transport...

[@LunarBloodRose27]

My first thought was the gunships in Star Wars The Clone Wars lol

[@Khaykeroth]

what modification do you use on your railguns?

[@goldentramps]

Do feedback cascade rails stack? I was always under the impression that one was enough

[@moonshot988]

I didn't think they did either... very good question. Anyone know?

[@VindicatorJones]

I was under the impression they did, but I could be completely wrong.. I will try and find out.. I hate when issues like this are extremely vague

[@fmyay3852]

i didnt see it in the video, what exactly is your build?

[@jaspertidmarsh6399]

How do you pull such tight turns?

[@hermaeusmora345]

better than the Imperial Clipper and Federal Assault Ship Combined.

[@tonylanders1196]

Could you post your load out for this chieftain thankyou

[@NoisySheep7]

Purple really looks sexy

[@yosharian]

People are saying that this thing is better than the FAS but the FAS hull tanks like a boss, doesn't it? And the Chieftain doesn't seem to

[@VindicatorJones]

Chieftain will out Hull tank the FAS.. the problem is module damage, which the FAS suffers from just as equally. Dont get me wrong, I like the FAS, very easy to fly and does its job well. But the Chieftain is a step above. Some people may prefer their FAS, and thats perfectly understandable.

[@yosharian]

Vindicator Jones I thought the FAS was quite difficult to plant

[@VindicatorJones]

To plant? You mean to fly?? No the FAS is extremely easy to fly. the FDL is the one thats hard to fly, but when flown correctly is better than both the FAS and Chieftain.

[@yosharian]

Vindicator Jones no, plant as in destroy the powerplant

[@Landbeforetime1992]

A properly piloted PA FAS will beat any chieften build not using missles in a 1v1, assuming equal pilot skill. The FAS has higher absolute burst damage potential, and is fast enough to control the range of engagement, counteracting the chief's superior lateral and vertical thrust in close combat. I love both ships for PvP, and have over a hundred duels in the chieften, and hundreds more in the FAS, but I can say definitively the FAS is the better of the two.

[@Jin-Ro]

Over heats like a pig in the sun this thing. Fuelscooping, thrusting, turning, and I'm sure at one point it overheated warrant scanning. Close to selling it on to be fair.

[@primaryaccount7626]

Kim Jong Il Did you have an overcharged power plant? I’ve had no heat issues whatsoever with an armored pp.

[@PhatCohiba]

What's the fittings and engineering on this?

[@VindicatorJones]

As I said in the video, I havent finished playing with the build yet. But once I do, I will make a video and post a build.

[@Papai_Pai]

I can't enter the alliance home system where can I buy this ship nearby

[@VindicatorJones]

You should be able to buy it from most High Tech systems, anywhere in the bubble.. You can also use this site to source most items you need closest to your system.. its not 100% accurate, but pretty damned close.. roguey.co.uk/elite-dangerous/ships/alliance-chieftain/where.html

[@Papai_Pai]

Vindicator Jones thanks I'm using a python at the minute as my trading vessel no weapons on it trying to unlock all the engineers before I get into combat