Imperial Courier

Imperial Courier

Overview
Manufacturer	Gutamaya
Years Produced	3145-Present
Type	Multipurpose
Cost	2,542,931 CR
Insurance	127,146 CR
Faction	Empire
Faction Rank	Master
Default Specifications
Landing Pad Size	Small
Dimensions	42.1m x 27.4m x 7.1m
Pilot Seats	1
Multicrew	No
Fighter Hangar	No
Hull Mass	35 t
Mass Lock Factor	7
Armour	144
Armour Hardness	30
Shields	230 MJ
Manoeuvrability	4
Top Speed	277 m/s
Boost Speed	380 m/s
Unladen Jump Range	7.81 ly
Cargo Capacity	12 t
Fuel Capacity	8 t
Hardpoints	4x Utility Mounts 3x Medium Hardpoints
Internals	3x Size 1 Compartments 3x Size 2 Compartments 2x Size 3 Compartments
Maximum Non-Engineered Specs
Top Speed	325 m/s
Boost Speed	441 m/s
Unladen Jump Range	33.68 ly
Cargo Capacity	34 t

One of the most compact vessels on the market, the Imperial Courier is a lightweight combat ship from Gutamaya. With agility to rival the Viper Mk III, the Courier is adept at evading incoming fire, while its three medium hardpoints have made it popular with those who want a balance of power and style.

— In-Game Description

The Imperial Courier is a ship manufactured by Gutamaya for the Empire. Described as the quintessential Imperial ship that epitomizes elegance of form while packing a good punch, the Imperial Courier is one of the smallest ships available, barely larger than the Sidewinder MkI and with a lighter mass than all ships except the Sidewinder and Hauler. Although able to be adapted to several roles, the ship's agility and three medium hardpoints make it especially well-suited for combat. Officially, the Imperial Courier is used to provide transport for Imperial officials who do not warrant the privilege of an Imperial Cutter or a Majestic Class Interdictor. However, its flexibility means that it fills many roles for the Imperial Navy and prominent citizens of the Empire.

Overview

The Imperial Courier is well armed and very well shielded for its small size, making it a punchy and evasive fighter in combat. In terms of agility, it ranks somewhere close to the Viper MkIII. While it has a good pitch rotation speed, its slightly weaker vertical-lateral thrusters cause the Courier to drift more than the Viper. Even though the Courier has the same top boost speed as Viper, due to its low hull mass relative to modules, it is slightly slower and can't boost as often as the Viper, dropping down from the top speed faster.

The Imperial Courier's shields are much better than the Viper MkIII's and Cobra MkIII's, being almost on par with those on a Vulture. Unlike the Vulture, the Imperial Courier does not have such severe power management issues, and is thus better able to equip shield boosters and Shield Cell Banks.

While the Imperial Courier can achieve an excellent jump range between 30-50 ly with Engineering, it is not suited for long-term exploration. The Courier's diminutive size and light weight works against it in this situation: it can only fit a Class 3 Frame Shift Drive. Thus, to keep the ship's mass low and achieve that 50 ly jump range requires undersizing the core internals and eschewing utilities along with most modules suggested for exploration, including a Planetary Vehicle Hangar. While this does not mean the Courier should never be used for exploration, there are better ships to choose from for the role, such as the Diamondback Explorer.

Convergence icourier — Imperial Courier hardpoint convergence

The weapon hardpoints are located in the following places: one Class 2 hardpoint at the front of each engine nacelle, and one Class 2 hardpoint underneath the nose. Of the four utility mounts, one is located on top of each nacelle, and the remaining two are behind the cockpit canopy on the ship's dorsal surface. The cockpit has only one pilot seat, and thus the ship is not compatible with Multicrew.

Purchase Locations

System	Station	Date Seen	Discount
Shinrarta Dezhra	Jameson Memorial	Always available	10% discount
Brestla	i Sola Prospect	Always available	20% surcharge
Lalande 4268	Lowry Ring	May 28, 2020	15% discount
BD-15 447	Good Enterprise	May 28, 2020	15% discount
Regira	Clayton Orbital	May 28, 2020
V374 Pegasi	MacKellar Hub	May 28, 2020
Izanagi	Manakov Ring	May 28, 2020
Oto	Gauss City	May 28, 2020
Vequess	Agnews' Folly	May 28, 2020
Atlantis	Kimura Terminal	May 28, 2020
Lombi	Xin Hub	May 28, 2020
GD 140	Liwei Terminal	May 28, 2020
Tau-1 Hydrae	Priestley Port	May 28, 2020
LHS 274	Teller Port	May 28, 2020

Outfitting

Main article: Outfitting

All ships are highly customisable through the Outfitting menu of Station Services. Listed below is the default load-out for the Imperial Courier.

Category	Default System	Default Rating	Default Class	Max Class
Medium Hardpoint	Pulse Laser (L)	F	1	2
	Pulse Laser (L)	F	1	2
	Empty	--	--	2
Utility Mount	Empty	--	--	0
	Empty	--	--	0
	Empty	--	--	0
	Empty	--	--	0
Bulkheads	Lightweight Alloys	C	1	8
Reactor Bay	Power Plant	E	4	4
Thrusters Mounting	Thrusters	E	3	3
Frame Shift Drive Housing	Frame Shift Drive	E	3	3
Environment Control	Life Support	E	1	1
Power Coupling	Power Distributor	E	3	3
Sensor Suite	Sensors	E	2	2
Fuel Store	Fuel Tank [x8]	C	3	3
Internal Compartments	Cargo Rack [x4]	E	2	3
	Cargo Rack [x4]	E	2	3
	Shield Generator	E	2	2
	Cargo Rack [x2]	E	1	2
	Cargo Rack [x2]	E	1	2
	Empty	--	--	1
	Advanced Docking Computer	E	1	1
	Supercruise Assist	E	1	1
	Planetary Approach Suite (H)	I	1	1