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Start with the job
For a flight lesson, leave the expensive ground kit at home. For a ground mission, ask what the group is doing before filling every equipment slot. A rifle, a turret and a ship’s nose gun solve different problems.
A simple ground kit
- Get dressed first. Equip an undersuit, then the helmet and armour you intend to take. Missing equip options can be an undersuit issue.
- Choose one primary weapon. Check its exact magazine and attachment compatibility. A similar name or the same manufacturer does not make a magazine interchangeable.
- Pack the complete loadout. Bring compatible spare magazines, medical supplies and any mission-specific equipment. Check what is actually on your character.
- Leave a spare at base. Local inventory stays at its location. Gear stored at one port will not appear in another port’s storage.
Use a storage kiosk to organise the kit before departure. Some armistice zones restrict readying weapons; do not mistake that for a broken loadout.
Choose a role before a gun
| First session | What to prioritise | What to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| General ground mission | A controllable weapon you can practise with; a clear view through the optic | A complicated kit you have never used |
| Longer-range support | Visibility, a planned position and communication with the group | Assuming a bigger scope makes every fight easier |
| Turret crew | Learning that turret’s controls and agreeing targets with the pilot | Buying personal weapons for a job that stays aboard |
This is a way to choose your equipment, not a damage ranking. Availability, handling and balance change with patches. Use the equipment tools to check current options.
Ship weapons: compare the whole fit
Open Erkul, select your ship and the correct LIVE or PTU data. Check weapon compatibility alongside the rest of the build before making a shopping trip. A calculator helps compare options; it cannot tell you how well you will fly them.
Ballistic weapons have a finite ammunition supply, so include a restock stop in the plan. Energy weapons have their own resource-management requirements. For your first tests, choose a setup you can keep on target and understand, then change one thing at a time.
Use Arena Commander’s Free Flight to get familiar with the ship and its controls, then an appropriate combat mode to practise. Note what goes wrong: missed shots, running out of ammunition, poor positioning or simply too many controls to manage. Fix that problem before buying another component.
Before leaving the hangar
Checklist saved in this browser only.
If something will not work
Cannot equip armour? Check the undersuit. Cannot ready a weapon? Check the area’s restrictions. Cannot find your purchase? Check the location where it was stored. Not sure which key? Open our searchable controls guide and verify your own bindings in-game.