TLDR; I am looking for suggestions to optimize my power distribution, engineering, and loadout. The Phantom is my favorite general purpose ship, so the only hard line is the ship itself.
Build:
–Preamble–
This is the current rendition of my general purpose ship. It is my engineering & synthesis material gatherer, explorer, and xeno-biology system hopper.
Current build is shield-less, as I have replaced my 3D shield and docking computer as my piloting has improved over time. I have found that even while the small 3D shield would occasionally save me from disaster (leaving me sub 10% hull on some High G landings) I would be forced to seek a station to repair without repair limpets. I also noticed that while the docking assist was easy/lazy and a good time to take a fast bio break, the takeoff would sometimes ram my ship into the mail slot wall if I was on a pad too close to the exit, so I ditched it for my (everyone's lol) safety. In other words, caution is the best defense against disaster.
This rendition outfits an AFMU and Repair Limpet controller, to sustain longer durations outside the bubble, while still containing all of the necessary equipment for Mapping, Xeno-Biology, and Material Gathering both in flight and planetside. While full on limpets, it maintains a jump range of 60.94Ly, an Injection range of 121.88Ly, and a Neutron boost of 243.76Ly.
–Power Distribution–
Default flight mode has AFMU and ERV Hanger disabled. [Note that for maintained ship operation, never enable both the AFMU and ERV Hanger simultaneously, they are to be used only as needed and you should never need both at the same time either way.]
Repair Mode for when repairs are needed, enabling the AFMU will disable cargo collection, SCA, and power distribution. My pips are only ever full engines so the distro could theoretically remain disabled after the pips are set. In this mode, FSD and FSD booster remain active, as does the fuel scoop. This allows me to scoop and continue to travel while repairing. The repair limpet controller also remains online if hull and system repairs needs to happen out of SC.
ERV Mode for when landed and the ERV is required, Cargo collection is disabled. As these are only required while in flight, they are unnecessary while planetside.
–Closing Statement–
As an additional side note, I do occasionally replace the 1G ERV Hanger with a 2G when exploring for fun and not profit, as I can get a little crazy and lose an ERV (although I usually just synth repairs as needed.) I also run 6 lightweight heatsinks and could run more, though I will just synth more as needed and save on the extra weight. Sometimes I even run a point defense turret for when gathering Guardian materials, though this only adds a small QOL improvement and I often leave it out.
I have been considering downgrading my 5C Fuel Tank down to a 4C Tank [423.79Ly down to 230.25Ly] but I'm not sure if that will mess with my neutron boost distance or if the additional scooping will actually reduce the travel speed overall (even with a 6A scoop). I'd love to hear someone's experience with this.
I would appreciate the thoughts, knowledge, and collective experiences of the community on this build. Do you think this is already optimized or are there any suggestions on how to improve its effectiveness on campaigns out in the black, sometimes for weeks or months? Is there maybe a better way for me to setup power priorities? Should I reduces the size of my fuel tank? Is there a better medium / small ship I could try out to obtain better range or multipurpose?
