Diamondback ScoutExploration

The Diamondback Scout is the smaller, cheaper sibling of the celebrated Diamondback Explorer — and it inherits the family's best trait: it runs cool. For well under a million credits it gives a budget commander a genuine deep-space ship that scoops without overheating, lands at any outpost, and jumps a respectable ~55 LY engineered.

It is, inevitably, the lesser Diamondback. Its class-4 FSD and six smallish optionals mean less range, a smaller scoop and tighter module space than the DBE — you'll carry a scanner, AFMU and SRV bay, but with less room to spare. Still, for the absolute lowest entry price into cool-running exploration, the Scout delivers. It's the ship for a first cautious step into deep space, or a cheap second explorer for short hops.

Four things make the Scout a viable shoestring explorer:

• Cool-running. It scoops and runs modules with low heat — the Diamondback family trait, valuable on long hauls.
• Four utility mounts. Generous for so small a ship — heat sinks, a shield booster and field utilities all fit.
• Respectable range for the price. ~55 LY engineered from a hull costing well under a million credits.
• Tiny cost and small pad. The cheapest cool-running explorer, landing at any outpost — deep space on a shoestring.

Lowest-cost, very-cool-running deep-space entry with ~55 LY engineered, held to 74 by a class-4 FSD and six small optionals that cap range, scoop and capacity below the DBE.

The 74/100 headline is a verdict against the exploration role's priority-ordered factors. Each factor carries a weight (its share of 100); this hull earns part of each based on how it performs against the whole field. The points sum to the rating.

Both tables rate ships for exploration specifically. The role column is the maximum engineered jump range in light-years — the headline number for deep-space travel.

Same class — small-pad explorers

The Scout is the cheapest cool-running explorer. Its own bigger sibling the DBE beats it on range and capacity for only a little more money, so the Scout makes most sense at the absolute lowest budget or as a cheap short-hop second explorer.

Other classes — the step-up

The Scout is a stepping-stone, and the step up is short: the DBE for a little more, or an Asp Explorer / Phantom / Mandalay for serious range and capacity. The Scout's role is to get a budget commander into deep space at the lowest possible price.

At ~564k Cr the Scout is the cheapest explorer-capable hull worth taking far, and its small modules keep a full fit around 6M Cr all-in — deep space for almost nothing.

It's a pure value pick. For only a little more the DBE is a better explorer, so the Scout makes most sense when every credit counts or as a cheap, expendable short-range scout.

A shoestring cool-running explorer fit. Initial is buy-only; A-rated is the expedition baseline; Engineered maximises range within the Scout's small frame.

Buy the hull (~564k Cr); it ships with stock Lightweight Alloy bulkheads and an E-rated core. Add a 3E Fuel Scoop and a 0I Heat Sink Launcher.

Leave the Detailed Surface Scanner, AFMU, SRV bay, Guardian FSD Booster and landing shield slots empty — they come with the A-rated pass.

No weapons; the heat sink is the only utility fitted for now. Bulkheads stay the as-delivered Lightweight Alloy — nothing to buy.

A-rating priority for a shoestring explorer:

• 1FSD → 4A — Jump range is everything; A-rate the drive first. ~1M Cr
• 2Fuel Scoop → 3A — A decent scoop keeps the trip moving. ~600k Cr
• 3Guardian FSD Booster 3 — A flat range bonus — a Guardian-site run. material cost
• 4Detailed Surface Scanner — Cartographic payouts. ~250k Cr
• 5AFMU + SRV bay — Self-repair and surface access via the 2G Planetary Vehicle Hangar. ~600k Cr
• 6Landing shield — a 1C Bi-Weave Shield Generator and 0A Shield Booster so a hard touchdown won't breach. minor spend
• 7D-rate the core — power plant, thrusters, life support, power distributor and sensors to D to shed mass for range. minor spend

Bulkheads stay the stock Lightweight Alloy — on an explorer every kilo costs range, so there is no case for heavier plating. The hull's only job is surviving a clumsy touchdown, which the landing shield already covers.

The exploration engineering pattern on a tiny hull. Felicity Farseer (maxed) carries the FSD; the thrusters go to Professor Palin or Mel Brandon for Clean Drive Tuning. Pin blueprints for remote G1→G5 application.

Recommended order

• 1FSD Increased Range to G5 with Mass Manager for the Scout's ~55 LY range.
• 2Lightweight everything non-essential to squeeze range from the small hull.
• 3Low-Emissions plant adds to the cool-running advantage.
• 4Clean Drive Tuning thrusters for efficient travel.

Approximate progression across the three states (figures are representative, not exact rolls):

Engineered, the Scout jumps ~55 LY while running cool, for almost no money — a genuine deep-space ship on a shoestring. The G5 Lightweight bulkhead trims hull mass rather than adding armour, squeezing out the last of that range. Its tight internals and modest range mean the DBE is the better explorer for a little more; the Scout wins purely on lowest entry cost.

• It's the lesser Diamondback — for a little more, the DBE is a better explorer in every way.
• Its cool-running plant is the main draw at this price — scoop freely.
• Module space is tight; carry the essentials and skip the redundancy.
• Use it to learn the rhythm of exploration, then upgrade to a DBE or a medium.