Panther Clipper Mk IITrading

The Panther Clipper Mk II is Lakon's dedicated super-freighter and the new king of bulk hauling. Thirteen optional internals — two of them class 8 — give it a maximum cargo capacity north of a thousand tonnes, more than any other ship in the game, including the venerable Type-9 and the Imperial Cutter. It is, simply, the most cargo you can move in one hull.

Crucially, it's not just a bigger box. Six utility mounts and a tough, purpose-built frame make it far more defensible than the Type-9, so it can run high-value or hostile routes carrying a fortune without being easy prey. It's slow and large-pad-bound, and it costs a fortune to buy — but for a commander whose business is moving the maximum tonnage per trip, the Panther is the definitive answer.

Four things make the Panther the ultimate freighter:

• The largest cargo hold in the game. Over 1,000 tonnes — more than the Type-9 or Cutter — the most you can move in a single hull.
• Six utility mounts. Room for a real shield-booster and defence suite, so it can run hostile routes carrying a fortune.
• A tough, purpose-built frame. Far more defensible than the flimsy Type-9 — it survives interdictions a lesser hauler wouldn't.
• No rank gate. Unlike the Cutter, anyone with the credits can fly one — the accessible super-hauler.

Leads on the single most-weighted trading factor — ~1,048 t, the most cargo any hull can move — with six utilities for real defence; only its slow ~290 m/s boost and ~287M Cr cost hold it back.

The 98/100 headline is a verdict against the trading 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 trading specifically. The role column is the maximum cargo capacity in tonnes — the headline number for bulk hauling.

Same class — large-pad traders

The Panther tops the large-pad traders — and the whole trading class — on cargo. The Cutter carries less but adds shields, speed and combat ability; the Type-9 nearly matches the volume far cheaper but flimsily. For maximum defensible tonnage, the Panther stands alone.

Other classes — the medium and capital options

The medium traders land more flexibly and cost far less; the Cutter is the defensible large alternative if you'll grind Imperial rank. But for the single goal of moving the absolute maximum tonnage per trip, defensibly and without a rank gate, nothing matches the Panther.

At ~287M Cr the Panther is among the most expensive ships in the game, though it needs no rank or permit. A trade fit needs little exotic engineering — mostly thrusters, FSD and a defensive shield — so the bulk of the cost is the hull and cargo racks.

It pays for itself only at scale: if your income is bulk commodity hauling or Community Goal deliveries, the Panther's extra hundreds of tonnes per trip compound fast. For occasional trading, a cheaper Type-9 or a medium trader is the wiser buy.

A maximum-tonnage trade fit that keeps a defensive shield. Initial is the cheapest buy-only hull packed with cargo; A-Rated is the trade baseline with a bi-weave and booster suite; Engineered maximises laden jump range, mobility and survivability. Strip the shield for absolute max cargo on safe routes.

Buy the hull and fill the seven largest optional slots — both class 8s, both class 7s and all three class 6s — with stock E-rated cargo racks; capacity is the entire point. The small size-5, -4, -2 and -1 internals and the planetary-approach slot stay empty for now.

The buy-only state ships with stock Lightweight Alloy bulkheads and carries no shield and no utilities — all six utility mounts start empty. Core internals stay stock (8E Power Plant and Thrusters, 7E Frame Shift Drive and Power Distributor, 5E Life Support and Sensors, 7C Fuel Tank). The shield, boosters and A-rated cores come in the next pass.

A-rating priority for a super-hauler:

• 1Thrusters → 8A — A 1,200t hull laden needs every bit of thrust; A-rate first. ~20M Cr
• 2FSD → 7A — Laden jump range determines route efficiency. ~20M Cr
• 3Power Plant → 8A — Power for shields, boosters and modules. ~25M Cr
• 4Shield Generator → 6C bi-weave — A class-6 bi-weave in an optional slot defends a fortune in cargo from interdictions. ~12M Cr
• 5Power Distributor → 7A — Sustain boost on the heavy hull. ~15M Cr
• 6Utilities → three 0A Shield Boosters — Fill the mounts with three A-rated boosters, point defence and a heat-sink launcher; back them with a 2A Shield Cell Bank. ~5M Cr
• 7Scanner + Guardian FSD Booster — Drop a 1I Detailed Surface Scanner in the planetary-approach slot for cartographics, and fit a 1H Guardian FSD Booster in the freed size-1 internal to add laden jump range. tech broker

The trading engineering pattern: range, mobility and defence. Felicity Farseer (maxed) carries the FSD; pin blueprints for remote G1→G5 application.

Recommended order

• 1Thrusters and FSD to G5 first so the laden super-hauler moves and jumps.
• 2Bi-weave shield G5 Reinforced (with Fast Charge) plus Heavy-Duty boosters to defend the cargo.
• 3Low-Emissions plant to run cool and lightweight non-essentials to claw back jump range.
• 4Fill everything else with the biggest cargo racks.

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

Engineered, the Panther moves over a thousand tonnes per trip behind a real shield, jumping well enough to make routes efficient — a 1H Guardian FSD Booster squeezes out roughly another light-year laden, with a relocated Detailed Surface Scanner riding the planetary-approach slot. It stays slow and large-pad-bound — the price of the scale — but no ship hauls more, more safely.

• Cargo is the point — fill the internals, but keep a bi-weave and boosters for valuable routes; you have the slots.
• A-rate and engineer thrusters and FSD so the laden ship still moves and jumps.
• Mind the large pad — plan around orbital stations, planetary ports or a carrier.
• It pays off only at scale; for casual trading, the cheaper Type-9 carries nearly as much.