Sidewinder vs Hydra

First-ever Hydra solo kill in a Sidewinder. Made possible by the +120% damage of premium ammo with the small hammergauss. Took a painful 10 synths of premium ammo and 8 synths of basic ammo to do (though it could arguably have been done with "just" 8+6, maybe even less) plus 25 synths of heatsinks and 4 synths of limpets. This was my 3rd serious attempt at this fight; I have a couple bloopers of the sidey eating 128 enraged Thargon missiles, before managing to pull this fight off.
Also, this is the first time ever I've used a Weapon Focused / Cluster Capacitors build; Full build info here: edsy.org/s/vN0ms1M
LiveSplit AX files here; this is the free tool I use to automatically track split times for hearts destruction (and overall): github.com/Astyrrean/LiveSpli...
Full-length (raw, unedited footage) here: • Sidewinder vs Hydra (F...
Credits:
- CMDR Maligno, for showing us the "way of the sidey" [ship name is dedicated to him]
- CMDR HeliMeli (NEWP), for nagging me to do this in Horizons without taking advantage of uninterruptible synth bug in Odyssey, and for pointing out every single mistake of my very-approximate flakless flying 🙃
- CMDR Lawson FPV (09TH), CMDR LMAO-C (Conspirator), CMDR Orlandu, CMDR Aeroblast (09TH), CMDR Sirruf, CMDR Michal17 (DUCC) for always cheering me on through my mad endeavor
- CMDR Toyotanos (AXIN) for helping me make this video a lot better
- CMDR Konstantine Novakov, for agreeing to create some of his awesome cover art for the edited version of this video
- CMDR alterNERDtive (GMBT), for his amazing code for LiveSplit; "it just works"™️
- CMDR Aranionros Stormrage, for spending his time playing GW2 and leaving all the AX glory to us 😈
Glory, To Mankind !!!
Chapters
00:00 - Intro
00:21 - Background to the fight
04:55 - Fight begins
06:50 - Heart 1 destroyed, repair
07:52 - Heart 2
10:09 - Heart 2 destroyed, repair
12:00 - Heart 3
13:28 - Heart 3 destroyed, repair
13:49 - Heart 4
16:08 - Heart 5
19:00 - Heart 6
21:15 - Heart 7
24:34 - Heart 8
25:51 - Final kill

[@Datan0de]

Someday I'll solo a Basilisk in a fair fight in my Chieftain. Someday. Meanwhile, you're out here slaying gods in a ship with less armor and firepower than a Toyota Prius. I bow to you, Sir. Beautifully done, and thank you for the informative running commentary! GLORY TO MANKIND!!!

[@Astyrrean]

We all started there CMDR. I remember well my first Basilisk showing me the rebuy screen multiple times before I got the hang of it (and it was HARD!) Keep at it, you'll succeed!

[@toyotanosgaming748]

A fantastic fight, Mechan. Well fought

[@Astyrrean]

Thank you my friend. And thank you for your help and encouragement in making this video so much better!

[@STRIDER503_sub]

Props for the skills and the comprehensive narration. 👏👏👏 I've seen many CMDR doing it, but none of them ever explained how Thargoid behaves during a fight, hope we get to see more from you. :)

[@OliverVonLindenthal]

This shows exactly, what mankind is capable of! "It's impossible? Well, let's get started!" Brilliant and insane, haha. o7

[@HE13272326]

Engineers > Humans ;D

[@kerbodynamicx472]

That thargoid interceptor thought, it has taken down capital ships 10x its size, wiped entire squadrons of AX pilots, how is it getting its ass kicked by this tiny ship

[@y_ffordd]

Congratulations on nailing it in a Sidewinder, and more importantly having the capability of narrating your videos well and adding chapters, pretty rare these days.

[@Astyrrean]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@DoctyrEvil]

Thanks for the master class. Most of us will not be attempting this, but the calm, clear narration and description provide a great lesson.

[@StonedDead1981]

"I'm from Buenos Aires and I say kill em all!" Good job, CMDR.

[@EscanthonX]

Man and I was soooo proud of myself for barely beating a cyclops in one Good work commander

[@runspace]

Well done! You clearly have a great amount of knowledge about these alien vessels and their maneuverability. I like your no non-sense and methodical approach, commander ;) Cheers!

[@sudbuddiesexteriordetailin9843]

Unbelievable!!!! Having killed even what I have, it's mind boggling to even consider trying to me. Hats off to you Sir. You are one hell of a pilot and fighter. This is more skill than I have.

[@draconusspiritus1037]

FWIW, I've seen that Mini Gimbal action quite often when mining. Specifically with the Abrasion Blaster. Even without anything actually targeted.

[@aircraftandmore9775]

The thargoid was probably hella confused that such a small ship was able to defeat it

[@Astyrrean]

Check out Eagle vs Hydra for an even more confused look :)

[@cranbers]

Devs are like ohhh, we will nerf that in a jiffy. Thanks for finding that bug for us! haha.. that was epic you make it look so easy.

[@kerbodynamicx472]

Newbie pilot here, and this video set me a goal to take down a Hydra one day on a small ship. Currently all I can do is to familirise a ships controls, and gather enough money to fund this adventure.

[@Astyrrean]

Nice! And we have a small ships video coming out this weekend … stay tuned.

[@nuts_mann]

Highly non-recommended to try to kill a hydra in a small ship if you're a beginner

[@cmdrslavic-hit-you2234]

Congratularions CMDR.. well done

[@mdmckea]

Simply awesome man! AXI need to create a special rank and role of honour for a feat like this. And goodness knows how many times you practiced, but this is an excellent achievement. o7 Dude

[@rodolfoccorrea]

Impressive! I had managed to kill my first solo Hydra some time ago studding one of your videos, and looking at this one, it just just impressed me much more! Amazing job commander!!!

[@thelastknightultra]

Now you truly are deserving of Magilnos robes

[@Astyrrean]

This is a humbling compliment, truly. Thank you.

[@JailBiden]

Thank you for being born. My life is better now

[@steveporter6300]

excellent work CMDR, outstanding

[@themountainsleeps]

*insert call an ambulance meme* Feckin' great job, CMDR. o7

[@draconusspiritus1037]

The one point I can't understand is about all that back off and perform repairs while the interceptor shields decay. Because every time I try it the Goid, the Swarm, or both chase me down and are all over me like white on rice. Only way I've ever been able to perform repairs was to perpetually boost ahead of them.

[@Astyrrean]

Hydra top speed is 450. Sidewinder is one speedy ship and can keep ahead without having to boost. Slower ships will need to boost to keep ahead.

[@TheBuurPit]

Flippin'eck! Well done :) o7

[@Astyrrean]

Thank you! Means a lot coming from you! :)

[@TheBuurPit]

@@Astyrrean I have no idea how you guys do this stuff. Just amazing.... You're in the news today btw ;) o7

[@Astyrrean]

@@TheBuurPit 10% Creativity, 20% Practice, 5% Luck, 65% Madness

[@Ghostwolf82]

o7 CMDR. Well done and thanks for the running commentary!

[@MuQuuu]

This is... This is amazing!😯 You did really good!🍻

[@Astyrrean]

どもありがとうございます

[@cmdrthedarklord4258]

Insane precision flying. Well done Commander. o7

[@millstonebarn]

What a wonderful explanation of so many mechanics! Thank you, and well done!

[@cmdrnick]

o7 cmdr, you deserve a medal for this. amazing fight!

[@Strigon008]

I've been doing solos using my trusty Corvette, my current limit is Basilisk. I'm trying to upgrade to Medusas.

[@Dushess]

fun fact: G.gauss cannons have icons of railgun.

[@raghav1026]

I’m terrified of fighting one of these eventually in a meta chief let alone a sidewinder! You are so skilled! Best i can do is a cyclops solo lol

[@Astyrrean]

That’s how we all started, including myself. Keep at it if you’re enjoying it, there is so much you can learn about flying ships ever more effectively in E:D.

[@alaena3650]

I wouldn’t believe it if I couldn’t see it, good job

[@user-bv9eg1ir7q]

Great job, man!!!

[@judeg.8101]

Awesome skill's Thanks' for also giving a play by play. It made for some great information. Not that I even will attempt it any time .... EVER!

[@Astyrrean]

Glad you enjoyed it. There's usually a lot going on at any given time and, if you don't know what you're looking at, it's very hard to figure what exactly is happening.

[@cheekmauler9980]

Amazing, truly magnificent

[@jadu-entertainment9770]

Great job! You did the impossible!

[@cooleshaka]

i'm speachless. oh,...and very impressed commander o7

[@actron400]

this is amazing, I barely survive one of those in a meta build and random help 🤡 but I'm gonna be that guy and say the real deal is doing this in a Hauler my friendo

[@Astyrrean]

I wish it were possible! Hauler Basilisk is possible though ...

[@MrBojax]

Well that's my plan for the weekend, go solo a Hydra, I had no idea so few had done this, just figured they were more a pain the ass that difficult.

[@Astyrrean]

It's a long (~1hr) grueling fight that's very unforgiving, requires ammo synthesis, and overall most people hate (it was never meant to be a solo fight anyway.) But if you want that virtual badge of honor, give it a shot!

[@Ansicone]

Wow you make it look so easy. 🏵️🔫

[@olly7248]

So awesome 🎉

[@georgel.4428]

very impressive!

[@firnyx]

This is unbelievable gg

[@SkateMasterman]

Holy cow this is impressive. Would you be ok with me using sound from this video to make a song with? I like to make music out of cool sounds i hear lol

[@Astyrrean]

Sure thing, go for it!

[@elxvantheanimeannihilator2279]

The beginning sounds like minecraft villager, but aside that, that was sick

[@saivishwath3773]

403rd subscriber. You took a banana to a boss fight and won:()

[@frascapix]

nice one cmdr. how do you avoid swarm damage? thx!

[@Astyrrean]

The short answer is: you keep moving; that's the essence of what we call "cold orbiting" (though the cold part isn't necessary to avoid swarm fire, it is necessary to avoid interceptor cannon fire)

[@pukalo]

good fight

[@sepalmq1229]

congrats

[@mmontagee]

Madman

[@SycophanticLeech]

Holy shit Mechan.

[@Astyrrean]

Very holy

[@reapern7590]

Top!! 👌👍

[@marcaogameplays3694]

a lenda

[@PXTother]

nice job. praying for your mental health

[@Astyrrean]

Thank you PXT. Mental health couldn’t be better. It’s a very lucid madness at work here … prayers welcome either way!

[@ScottSlooper]

Looks so easy! I'm going to go do that some day after a few beers. HA HA HA HA HA! AWESOME Can't even kill a Cyclops yet myself.

[@Astyrrean]

:) Might be better BEFORE a few beers; but extra credit for doing it tipsy if you can! :D

[@anthrazite]

Just wondering, why did it not shoot caustic missiles?

[@Astyrrean]

If you remain cold and keep your distance, it can't lock you. If it can't lock you for the whole duration of it's "sleep phase" (35 seconds) it won't shoot caustics. Same applies to the EMP field for that matters - it needs a heat-signature-lock to fire it; If you deny it that, it won't fire.

[@anthrazite]

@@Astyrrean Sweet, thanks!

[@bernardsaavedra675]

I don't understand how the swarm doesn't attack him, when I try something similar (with another ship of course) the swarm just kills me

[@Astyrrean]

I am “orbiting”, using flight assist off and using lateral+vertical (and the occasional forward or back) to keep “accelerating away” from the swarm.

[@bernardsaavedra675]

You are an ACE, sir! @@Astyrrean

[@ufcgod6258]

GG m8 Awesome watch o7

[@user-25352]

I've heard Advanced Missile Rack's AX ammo is somehow able to damage hearts before they even become exerted. But that would do for invalid run I guess? Anyways, great job!

[@Astyrrean]

That’s … the first time I hear anything about that. Adv MRs have 20 breach damage, which is also splash damage, making them deadly against hearts - but the synthesis cost is generally prohibitive (you need to synth ammo EACH time - can’t reload at station.)

[@user-25352]

@@Astyrrean yeah, synthesis is the main reason "advanced" missiles or multicannons are not used. I've found "damages hearts directly" mentioned somewhere in AXI discord when I saw missiles are actually banned from use in AXI ranks and started searching... tbh I am not fully sure it works that way or if it's sort of urban legend, since obviously barely anyone is willing to test it :(

[@Astyrrean]

@@user-25352 What I can tell you as a fact (I'm an AXI Discord Staff Member) is that the reason that AdvMRs have long been banned from ranks is their unbalanced splash breach damage; nothing to do with damaging unexerted hearts. Never heard anything about damaging unexerted hearts. That part sounds like a myth.

[@user-25352]

@@Astyrrean ok thanks for the info

[@jadenlevesque4994]

noice

[@drangpo6904]

Wow... just Wow... o7

[@adithyaoscar9826]

now nobody has an excuse to why they suck at combat

[@sidneyrobinson18]

Holy shit, no shield??

[@Astyrrean]

Pretty much all small and medium ship AC combat is done shieldless, as shields don’t help much against thargoids, and come with a lot of downsides.

[@superscott9780]

Does this bug still work

[@Astyrrean]

Only on legacy

[@superscott9780]

@@Astyrrean good to know thank you

[@interceptionunit6666]

FDev should give you Raxxla permit for this xD

[@Astyrrean]

Another one? I think the one I got with Eagle vs Hydra should be sufficient?

[@interceptionunit6666]

@@Astyrrean Oh, I haven't seen this video yet. Glad you already got a permit :)

[@danielstokker]

Thats fucking nuts i couldnt do it

[@michal_1725]

Nice, now do it in a Hauler. xD

[@Astyrrean]

No u :D

[@michal_1725]

@@Astyrrean Nooo, my weakness!

[@whiterspon573]

then you kill these aliens thanks to Bug in game right?

[@Astyrrean]

Yes this fight exploits the extra-damage of the modified guardian gauss cannons using premium ammo in what is now know as legacy mode. For the hardest fight ever done with nominal damage, have a look at Eagle vs Hydra.

[@Netferet]

I Hope to have a fraction of your skills someday, i am still failling some of my cyclops fight because it takes out my canopy, i still make mistakes while cold orbitting. Good job cmdr o7

[@Astyrrean]

Make sure you have at least three module reinforcement packages on you ship - anything less and your canopy becomes very very fragile. Then use heat sinks and keep moving an suoi should be good!

[@user-gj7mb6gj7o]

o7

[@CTAJIEBAP]

Sidewinder's power distributor fully upgraded into charge can't run two gauss for longer than dozen seconds. With this setup and 3 pips to weapons it will not be able to run even 1 of them at full rate of fire. So there must be some other bug that effectively doubles the fire power on top of 120% damage one. Either that or stats on gauss have changed a lot since this video was uploaded.

[@Astyrrean]

Individual heatsinks provide +2MW of WEP distro capacity for the 10s they run each (at the one-time "cost" of 2 MJ of SYS energy to fire). That's more than enough to power 2 small gauss with 3 pips in WEP. [This has always been in the game, is still working this way in Live, and is as-intended]

[@CTAJIEBAP]

@@Astyrrean Elite really hates explaining it's mechanics. Also many of them make little sense. Also it's pretty buggy. So no surprise that i assumed that something else was wrong, especially in a scenario where a bug is used to improve damage output. BTW, is premium damage bug still in the game or was it fixed?

[@Astyrrean]

@@CTAJIEBAP It was fixed in Live. It remains in Legacy.

[@pawels.5669]

What.

[@JetsOfWorship]

Oooh so now all the speed runs running Modified Gauss Cannons are Now being accepted. Since you know you use them . Pin another medal on your chest

[@Astyrrean]

I mention pretty clearly in the video that this run would not be eligible for ranks (same would be the case for speedruns.) The hammergauss ammo bonus makes this fight *humanly possible* for the first time. It does not make it easy. If you think otherwise, try it for yourself ;).

[@MJRSoap]

Considering people have killed interceptors with haulers, litterally just 1 small hardpoint. It's just a matter of time till that's done against a Hydra.

[@Astyrrean]

Unfortunately a 2-small-gauss-Hydra is practically impossible. We did do a Hydra with three haulers though. That was fun.

[@sausageslaps]

and how was it determined this is the first? perhaps the first on video but i doubt the first ever.

[@Astyrrean]

It is not just the first ever. It is the first, and ONLY (to date.) It was determined by nobody having ever done it before.

[@sausageslaps]

@@Astyrrean and how was this determined?

[@Astyrrean]

@@sausageslaps If you're serious ... the simple answer is: there is no evidence of anyone having done this before. Zero. Zit. Furthermore, ONLY SIX CMDRs have ever done a medusa in a sidewinder; these are, in order: Maligno, myself, QuinnRZ, EuanAB, HeliMeli and Cobalt Viper. None of these six except myself have done SideyHydra. No-one else, or at least no-one else known to the AX community (which with >10,000 CMDRs registered, is pretty big) has demonstrated the skill required to get even close. Now if you have evidence of someone else having done it before me, please post it. If you don't, go away and stop just nagging with "theoretically it's possible someone else could have done it and nobody knows about it" - as that's BS. If someone else had done this, it would be known. I don't think you simply understand how incredibly difficult this is to do.

[@sausageslaps]

@@Astyrreanyou still cannot make such a claim without knowing, kinda arrogant and self serving to trumpet such claims with anything solid to back them up

[@sausageslaps]

as in no evidence some else did or did not. so either admit you cannot prove it or you go away, lol.

[@BlueSideUp]

Can't gut large ships for combat, never could. So now I have a 6 modified shards Challenger with a thermal vent beam in the remaining small slot. It's a blast. But currently I fly a 5 modified shard FDL, as I also hate synthesis and 5 sirius heatsinks rock. The Hulltank FDL is not for the faint at heart though, especially in high g environments. One missed shutdown field warning just reaching your ship could be the last 😉

[@RBHMSpoons]

Shame that his forum post mentions about exploiting a non interrupt synth bug to kill this hydra....

[@Astyrrean]

You clearly didn't watch the video, and you clearly misread my forum post. Yet you come here to spread misinformation .... that bug doesn't even exist in Horizons (which is where this fight was done); eh,

[@thegunsarecoming]

@@Astyrrean always that one guy 🙄

[@js70371]

Someone’s jelllllllly 🙄🤦‍♂️😂

[@coejone]

idk how you did it . but you did .and it was amazing to watch

[@Astyrrean]

Thank you! For a non-modgauss-bugged version, which is technically even more challenging, watch Eagle vs Hydra. That one is probably my hardest fight ever - much, much harder than this Sidewinder vs Hydra.

[@coejone]

@@Astyrrean I like the eagle more then the sidewinder. I would have thought it would be easier in an eagle . But I will watch it today. By the way. Do you have a setup for larger end game ships ? For fighting Goids? I haven't seen the rest of your videos

[@Astyrrean]

Watch the Academy video. That has the build for the "Meta Chieftain" which is arguably the best 1:1 AX ship. Or watch the "Titan Killer" video for a no-guardian-modules (so works in Maelstroms and against Glaives) Krait Mk2.