SWTOR Guide: The Galactic Starfighter Pike/Quell Battle Strategies

swtor Flashfire Sting

The Pike/Quell starfighter is designed to do maximum damage when you use missiles and torpedoes. The starfighter can be equipped with two types of missiles or secondary weapons that make it possible for you to use a variety of strategies when in battle. Most of the strategies used with the Pike/Quell are long-range combat oriented with some dogfighting capabilities. You can equip the Pike/Quell with loadouts that will make it difficult for your enemies to counter your attacks and there is a missile for all types of situations.

Since it’s hard to get requisition, it’s a good idea to know what type of components you want for your Pike/Quell in advance. Knowing a little about the ship and what it has to offer will help you make the best decisions and that is what this guide has to offer.

Pike/Quell Basic Weapons Strategies

As you get accustomed to flying your Pike/Quell, you’ll learn which strategies work the best for you depending on the situation but these strategies will help you get started as you learn more about your starfighter. Learning which missiles to use during each type of encounter is very important because some will do better in certain situations than others depending on what type of ship you’re fighting.

Here is a list of the different types of missiles and the type of scenario in which they work the best:

  • Proton Torpedoes- These are long-range missile (7km and over) that do extensive damage to the hull of the targeted ship and it goes right past the ships armor and shields. The arc is small, so it’s easier to use it when your target is sitting still, at least until you perfect your aiming skills. These missiles are most effective against scouts and ships with flames or low health.
  • Cluster Missiles– These missiles are great when dog-fighting but they don’t do as much damage as the proton torpedoes or the concussion missiles.
  • Concussion Missiles– Use these missiles anytime you can’t use the cluster or proton torpedoes effectively. They are good to use when the enemy ship is a long distant away because you do have to lock-on the target before firing. Of course, after you become experienced, it won’t take as long to get a lock and you can use them more often.

Now that you have a basic understanding of the missiles the Pike/Quell is equipped with, here are a few basic strategies you can use when battling the enemy.

Strategy for Battling a Scout Fighter

The first thing to understand about the Scout Fighter is that these ships can out maneuver you easily, so it’s best to not engage in a dogfight with one, especially if it has full health. This is where your long-range missiles come into play. The best strategy is to attack from a distance and try to take them out with your missiles. Put all the power you can spare on your weapons along with any offensive bonuses you’ve acquired and fire away.

If you don’t kill the Scout Fighter with your initial attack, they will most likely try to engage in a dogfight, which you want to avoid if possible. Instead, move towards anything that offers you cover or the nearest LOS as quickly as you can. Try to confuse the Scout with different maneuvers until you reach cover and have time to regroup. Next, move your power to the shields and make another attack run to try to take him out.

If you can get a lock on the Scout, use your proton torpedoes because they’ll do the most damage. Use ion missiles on a Scout with full health to weaken the shields and to do the most damage, then use your concussion missiles to finish the job.

Strategy for Battling a Gunship

Most Gunships have low health but they can do a lot of damage so the secret to winning a battle with one is to take it out as fast as you can before they have a chance to kill you. The type of shields you have will determine how you fight a gunship because you’ll want to protect your ship from their fire as much as possible.

  • Quick Recharge Shield– Activate this shield immediately after taking a hit from the enemy gunship.
  • Charged Plating– As soon as you’re within attack range, activate this shield immediately before you begin the attack run.
  • Directional Shield– When engaging the enemy, move all of the shields to the front of the ship and slowly move towards the gunship. When in range, use your missiles first to do as much damage as possible until you get close enough to switch to short-range weapons to take out the hull. If the gunship is firing upon you, boost power and move in as fast as possible while firing your missiles and hopefully, you won’t lose power to your shields before you have time to take out the enemy ship.

It’s important to note that proton torpedoes are very effective when used against gunships and you can usually take out a damaged ship with one proton torpedo and a healthy one with two torpedoes.

Strategy for Battling a Strike Fighter

The Strike Fighter is the hardest ship to battle with your Starfighter Pike/Quell and experience plays a major role in how well you fair against one. It’s best to get to know your ship well and have some experience piloting it before encountering this enemy. However, if you do find yourself in a battle the following tactics can help.

Strike Fighters are equipped with a large hull and shield, so you will have to get several good missile hits in before you can take the ship out and proton torpedoes do work the best when you can use them. In most all instances, they will attack you before you have time to kill them so be prepared to fight. They can also out maneuver you, so it’s best to avoid a dogfight when possible.

The best strategy is usually to hit the ship with your ion missiles to damage the shields and when they are down, hit them with concussion missiles and use your blasters every chance you get until you’ve defeated them. Before engaging an attack with your blasters, use your weapon power converter to increase power so you can get more shots in before the power supply is drained.

Don’t forget to check out constantly growing list of guides for Star Wars: The old republic

Lisa Clark

Lisa has been an avid gamer since she was old enough to hold her first controller and a game writer for more than a decade. A child of the Nintendo generation, she believes they just don’t make games like they used to but sometimes, they make them even better! While consoles will always be her first love, Lisa spends most of her gaming time on the PC these days- on MMOs and first-person shooters in particular.