The Federal Corvette is one of the most powerful combat ships on the market. With a total of seven hardpoints, the ship has few rivals in terms of damage output, and is remarkably manoeuvrable given its size. Despite its comparatively small jump range, owning a Corvette is the ultimate ambition of many independent combat pilots, its astonishing power making it one of the most formidable vessels in the galaxy.
— In-game description
The Federal Corvette is a heavy ship specialized for combat. It requires the Federation rank of Rear Admiral in order to be purchased. With a base cost of almost 188 million credits, it is the second most expensive ship in Elite Dangerous, costing less than the Imperial Cutter but more than the Anaconda.
Overview
Comparing the Federal Corvette with the Anaconda and the Imperial Cutter (sometimes collectively referred to as the "big three" by the community), the Federal Corvette is specialized in combat, while the Imperial Cutter and Anaconda are multipurpose ships. The Federal Corvette also has the worst jump range out of the three, due to it being more than twice as heavy as the Anaconda and having a smaller FSD than the Cutter. The Federal Corvette is the third largest player-piloted ship, only being surpassed in size by the Beluga Liner and the Imperial Cutter.[1]
The Federal Corvette is one of the strongest ships in a firefight. In a one on one fight, a maxed-out Corvette will usually win against an Anaconda, Imperial Cutter, or Type-10 Defender due to its extremely high damage output and exceptional mobility for its size. Unlike the Cutter, it also has a power distributor capable of fully powering its arsenal and packs a serious punch. In terms of defensive potential, the Corvette has better armour than the Cutter. However with only a class 7 Shield Generator, its shield is weaker than Cutter, and it has lower armour than both Anaconda and Type 10, leaving its overall defences the lowest of the price range. The placement of its internals and its body shape also makes it very vulnerable to internal damage, particularly its power plant and distributor, especially from nimble ships, further weaking its defences.
The Corvette can carry up to 618T of cargo, making it a good freighter. In fact, it has the third highest cargo capacity of any ship in the game, only being beaten out by the Imperial Cutter and Type-9 Heavy making it a good choice for a well armed trading vessel; especially for those looking for Federal ships and not Imperial.
The Corvette has a relatively low jump range potential, a disadvantage that is exacerbated when it is weighed down by heavy, high-performance modules for combat situations. Long-distance travel in the Corvette is often tedious, even in a streamlined exploration build. This greatly hinders its usage as a trader and makes it tricky to reach mission targets. The Guardian Frame Shift Drive Booster can be used to mitigate this deficiency.
Overall the Corvette is the endpoint in combat power and is almost unmatched in sheer offensive capabilities on the battlefield - only the Anaconda,Type-10 and Cutter can reasonably match it, and even then they will have a far harder time bringing all their guns to bear on a single opponent. The Corvette's main downsides are its poor jump-range and lower defenses, but its attacking strength cannot be overstated, and unlike ships like the Vulture or Fer-de-Lance it still has potential in other roles, and is easily one of the best Pirate and Bounty Hunting vessels in the game.
The Corvette features two huge hardpoints, making it the only ship capable of mounting more than one class 4 weapon.[2] The Huge hard points are located behind the cockpit, the 2 medium hardpoints are on each side of the ship, the large hardpoint under the 'nose', and two small hardpoints on the nose of the ship. It has 8 utility mounts and as of the release of Horizons 2.2 is one of the eight ships that can accommodate a Fighter Hangar for Ship-Launched Fighters.
The Federal Corvette has two cosmetic ship kits that can be purchased from the Frontier store which allows you to "remodel your ship in your personal style", in conventional or "raider" styles. The ship kits do not affect gameplay.
Purchase Locations
| System | Station | Date Seen | Discount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shinrarta Dezhra | Jameson Memorial | Always available | 10% discount |
| Brestla | i Sola Prospect | Always available | 20% surcharge |
| Momus Reach | Ralphus | Jul. 1, 2019 | 15% discount |
| Kutnigi | Redi Enterprise | Feb. 7, 2019 | 15% discount |
| Lembava | Goldstein Port | Jan. 1, 2019 | 15% discount |
| Ix | Scully-Power Station | Jan. 1, 2019 | 15% discount |
| EQ Pegasi | Merbold Ring | Jan. 1, 2019 | |
| Ross 33 | Crown City | Jan. 1, 2019 | |
| 9 Ceti | Fanning Vision | Jan. 1, 2019 | |
| Zibal | Hire Port | Jan. 1, 2019 | |
| Apala | Wilson City | Jan. 1, 2019 | |
| 61 Ursae Majoris | Boulton Hub | Jan. 1, 2019 | |
| LHS 20 | Ohm City | Feb. 8, 2019 | 15% discount |
| EZ Aquarii | Magnus Gateway | Feb. 12, 2019 | |
| LHS 2088 | Tanaka Terminal | Jun. 16, 2019 |
Outfitting
All ships are highly customisable through the Outfitting menu of Station Services. Listed below is the default load-out for the Federal Corvette.
| Category | Default System | Default Rating | Default Class | Max Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small Hardpoint | Empty | -- | -- | 1 |
| Empty | -- | -- | 1 | |
| Medium Hardpoint | Pulse Laser (L) | F | 1 | 2 |
| Pulse Laser (L) | F | 1 | 2 | |
| Large Hardpoint | Empty | -- | -- | 3 |
| Huge Hardpoint | Empty | -- | -- | 4 |
| Empty | -- | -- | 4 | |
| Utility Mount | Empty | -- | -- | 0 |
| Empty | -- | -- | 0 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 0 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 0 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 0 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 0 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 0 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 0 | |
| Bulkheads | Lightweight Alloys | I | 1 | 8 |
| Reactor Bay | Power Plant | E | 8 | 8 |
| Thrusters Mounting | Thrusters | E | 7 | 7 |
| Frame Shift Drive Housing | Frame Shift Drive | E | 6 | 6 |
| Environment Control | Life Support | E | 5 | 5 |
| Power Coupling | Power Distributor | E | 8 | 8 |
| Sensor Suite | Sensors | E | 8 | 8 |
| Fuel Store | Fuel Tank [x32] | C | 5 | 5 |
| Internal Compartments | Shield Generator | E | 7 | 7 |
| Cargo Rack [x64] | E | 6 | 7 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 7 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 6 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 6 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 5 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 5 | |
| Empty (M) | -- | -- | 5 | |
| Empty (M) | -- | -- | 5 | |
| Cargo Rack [x8] | E | 3 | 4 | |
| Cargo Rack [x4] | E | 2 | 4 | |
| Empty | -- | -- | 3 | |
| Supercruise Assist | E | 1 | 1 | |
| Planetary Approach Suite (H) | I | 1 | 1 |
- (L) = Loaned Module
- [x#] = Capacity
- (H) = Requires Elite Dangerous: Horizons, reserved solely for Planetary Approach Suite
- (M) = Military Compartment reserved for Hull Reinforcement Package, Module Reinforcement Package, or Shield Cell Bank
Trivia
- It is very commonly noted that the Federal Corvette bears a heavy resemblance to the Imperial Star Destroyer from the Star Wars franchise; with the only major difference being the smaller bridge.
Guides
Videos
Gallery
