SCASSSS - My Friend, The Sabot

My 10mn Thrasher I usually has a few different rounds of ammo in the cargo hold. Republic Fleet Phased Plasma is a good all-rounder. It is high-DPS doing kinetic and thermal, meaning it is good for most ships. Of course I have RF EMP and fusion for those ships with the appropriate hole (steady!). But I also always take some Republic Fleet Titanium Sabot with me when I go out. This is not a particularly common or popular ammo, but I use it. I take it especially for the Imperial Navy Slicers!

Most Slicers are kite-fit in the low-sec war zones in my experience. They tend to orbit at 18-20km and plink away at you. Even with good speed, your AC Thrasher is unlikely to get close enough to them and with Plasma, EMP or Fusion you are going to struggle to hit them even with an artillery cannon Thrasher. That is why a Slicer will commonly engage a Thrasher. If he is AC fit then he has no chance. The Slicer will kite him all day long. Artillery cannons will be an issue with a 10km optimal with high DPS ammo. But most Slicer pilots do not think about artillery cannons with RF Titanium Sabot.

When I see a potentially hostile Slicer I swap my ammo over to Sabot rounds. My optimal range is suddenly propelled up to 19km with up to 33km on the falloff. There is another bonus as well, the weight of the ammunition. The light-weight Titanium Sabot gives you a extra 20% bonus to tracking speed. Whilst the damage output of this ammo is much lower than the more common short-range types, the extra range, the bonus to tracking and the fact he's running his MWD tips the balance in your favour...

"Ah ha! I have that Thrasher pointed. Orbit at 20km. Fire guns and...."
BANG!
"Woah. Lucky shot! May be I....
BANG!
"Feck I'm well into armour how is he....."
BANG!
"Holy shit I'm in structure I need to get out of....."
BANG!
"Warp pod! Warp! WARP!!!!"

Yes, Titanium Sabot isn't as popular as EMP, Fusion or Phased Plasma, but like many items in Eve, it has its uses in the right situation!

Oh, and as well as Slicers, try the 10mn Thrasher/RF Titanium Sabot against Daredevils. Dramiels are not a good choice but for some reason I have had success against Daredevils!