¶ Speedrun Builds
On this page you will find some recommended builds for speedruns specificly and some of the considerations that go into modifying them.
These ship builds are not recommended for pilots new to Anti-Xeno Content, they require a solid understanding of Thargoid mechanics to truly succeed. Click here to see our recommended builds for regular AX.
¶ Build Considerations
There are several differences between a general-purpose AX build and a speedrunner - they key difference being the focus of survivability and versatility in general builds, whereas speedrun builds can be highly specific to a particular variant and often forego self-repair capabilities, instead focusing on lasting just long enough to complete the kill.
- Since these fights are short and intense, repair limpets do not have the time to return the hull that is sacrificed to equip a controller and cargo rack, and AFMUs may not be necessary.
- Shields, while offering excellent protection from ramming damage, are useless if utilizing Silent Running - an extremely valuable tool in the speedrunner’s arsenal.
- Shutdown Field Neutralizers can be useful as some techniques involve triggering the EMP/Caustics on purpose to accelerate the fight.
- Thermal vent beam lasers are less important as the builds can rely on Silent Running for short periods of time, and there is almost no kiting involved in these fights
- Some builds may use mirrored surface composite Armor, the reason being that it lessens the heat-damage taken from overheating. These can be replaced with military grade when not desired.
Note that there are roughly 2 main types of speedruns:
- Regular Speedruns - Faster paced combat, sometimes with the use of more nuanced techniques, with the willingness to expend as much ammo and health as needed to get the kill as fast as possible.
- Stunlocks - Relies heavily on the sleepphase of an Interceptor with the goal to kill it as fast as possible while avoiding an open-fielded fight.
These are not mutually exclusive, but some speedrunning builds are built to specialise on one over the other.
View the Speedrunning Guide to learn more about speedrunning techniques.
¶ Anaconda
If you want to go stunlocking in a large ship, the mighty Anaconda is the ship to go with. It brings a mighty class 8 distributor and numerous hardpoints with solid convergence to bear.
Arguably the best large ship for stunlocking.
Can replace a number of modshards with large guardian shards when doing cold-locks.
¶ Krait Mk II
The Krait provides a great damage output. The Krait’s distributor and numerous hardpoints allow it to mount four to five of any guardian weapon effectively in the case of speedrunning.
It is a very sturdy medium with good heat characterisitics.
This build works just as well for Stunlocks.
¶ Corsair
The Corsair is an amazing medium ship with a generous hardpoint layout, a size 7 distributor and unmatched survivability amongst mediums (and even some larges).
It does have slightly worse heat characteristics than the krait, a thing you may want to consider when attempting modshard cold-locking in the corsair.
¶ Federal Gunship
The FGS has been a staple of medium ship speedrunning for a long time. With many hardpoints and a class 7 distrubotor to feed them. Though it has been superseded by some newer ships, it is still a very fun ship to use.
Fans of the FAS will find it to be an easy switch.
¶ Cobra Mk V
The Cobra Mk V is a small ship that out-performs even a lot of mediums in many aspects. The size 4 distributor is the only thing you may ever find limiting on this ship.
Arguably the best small ship for speedrunning (and other AX).