This article is about player behavior, not to be confused with the quest-related NPCs.

Pirating

Pirating is the act of destroying a ship in hopes of looting it for money. Any ship with a decent armament of guns and speed can be a pirating ship, but Cruisers and some Battlecruisers are typically the ships of choice for most Pirates. Read Avoiding Ship Loss to make sure you don't lose a ship to a pirate.

Summary

When a player is Pirating, they will usually be in a faction that has declared war on the majority of factions in the game. Pirates usually choose agile, quick and powerful ships to Pirate since most players will run when attacked, making Pirating reliant on ambushing and quickly subduing the target.

List of Recommended Pirate Ships

Destroyers

Cobra: This ship is fast, but doesn't have much firepower. It is mostly used by new players in taking down Miners or weaker ships. Sometimes it is used to exploit larger ships' blind spots and destroy them without being hit.

Zero: Agile and powerful, but it does require large use of its Spinals since its Turrets are too weak to kill anything on their own (only 2 Turrets). This cheap Destroyer has a lot of firepower but may not withstand the Gatling Turret fire when close to enemy Starbases.

Scimitar: It is able to pirate weakened ships (potentially small ships if the pilot is skilled enough) with its decent firepower, great maneuverability, and small frame.

Nightmare: An incredibly agile ship that packs a massive punch. It also contains a cargo hold of 250, allowing for quick looting when needed.

Cruisers

Gideon: Powerful, the Gideon can dish out a lot of damage and can take ships at their base with ease. Lots of people who Pirate use multiple Gideons at a time sometimes between 3-6 or more to create a force able to take down Dreads with ease and kill everything in sight.
Sixfold: Fast and powerful. The Sixfold can dish out a ridiculously large amount of firepower quickly, then catch up to the target and finish the job.
Aura: Extremely high DPS and great maneuverability.
Nidhogg: Extremely high DPS and great maneuverability.

Battlecruisers

Vansnova: The Vansnova, like the Razor Wing, relies on its Spinals to attack ships. However, the Vansnova can dish out a lot of damage without having to constantly aim, as all barrels of the Vansnova's Spinals fire at the same time; unlike the Razor Wing which fires them one at a time. The Vansnova's Spinals are enough to obliterate Destroyers with one shot of both the Phasers and the Cannons!

Black Flare: This Battlecruiser is often used to take down medium-sized ships or other Pirates, as it wields high firepower against larger targets while also maintaining high maneuverability.

Grievion: While not very maneuverable, this ship can belch out a lot of damage for its class to ensure the target is taken down quickly. It can also hold its own in a fight against other Battlecruisers.

Razor Wing: This Battlecruiser can take down Dreadnoughts and Carriers easily with its ridiculously powerful Spinals (4 Medium Phasers and 4 Medium Cannons). It also has 2 Flak Cannons and a Cannon to take down smaller ships. However, the majority of the firepower lies in this ship's Spinals, meaning that to use this ship effectively the pilot must make use of them.

Sturm: The Sturm can deal large amounts of damage with its Spinals. It is very fast and has the highest acceleration of any Battlecruiser, but has low Shields and Hull to balance it out. It's also the second most expensive Battlecruiser, but is considered the perfect Pirate ship by many players.

Mjolnheimr: The Mjolnheimr is a Battlecruiser version of the Ampharos. Its agility and light firepower makes it able to take down small ships with ease.

MRLS Launcher: The large cargo hold coupled with high firepower and good health makes it an ideal ship for Pirating.
Zhen: The Zhen is god for pirating due to the large cargo hold, and high firepower when used in swarms. The only disadvantage is the cost.
Aeaphiel: The Aeaphiel became extremely popular in pirating after a buff that made it deal over 300 DPS along with being fast and having good turn speed. Though it has since been nerfed, its current 177 DPS is still among the best in its class.

Capital Ships

Warden: The Warden is a fast and cheap Battleship With relatively high health and small size, it excels at destroying shields and hull equally.
Sentaliz: Even though the Sentaliz is a Battleship, its relatively small size and devastating hull firepower make it a perfect Pirating vessel. This ship is also good at PvP if you can aim the Spinals.

Ampharos: While the Ampharos is a Battleship, its agility and firepower make this a go-to Pirating ship. It is also good for defending siege ships from smaller ships.

Witch: Fast and very agile for a Battleship. Its ability to quickly destroy shields with its turrets and to finish them off with its spinals makes it one of the best pirating ships.
Helios: Amazing Firepower, Speed, and Maneuverability make it a great choice for Pirating bigger Miners and Freighters, with the only downside being its low health. It also has a huge cargo hold of 1000.
Stealth One and Stealth B-2: Designed to sneak up on unsuspecting freighters and miners, and destroy them with ease using its Large and Small Torpedoes respectively. In addition, both ships cannot be detected on the minimap, making them extremely powerful for spying on enemy bases and ships.

Slipstream: Though a Dreadnought, it is very fast for a ship of its class. Due to its speed, Turret placement, and firepower, it is perfect for killing ships below its class, and since it has high hull health, it can dive Ships near Starbases and dodge most of the Lasers due to its speed.

Cyclops: Being a Dreadnought, it's firepower mainly consists of Railguns. Railguns excel at destroying the hull of a ship. This increases the odds of you getting the final kill on a ship because you deal more damage to a player who's on low health. If paired with a Zeus there isn't much that can stop it. Due to Railguns having incredibly long-range, it's also possible to snipe Miners that are at the Starbase.

Leviathan: One of the best PVP ships in general, this ship is very balanced and is often used as a Pirating tool in order to easily destroy ships that are weaker than itself. Having Railguns at the front of the ship allows it to snipe Ships while still at the Starbase. It is also able to use its Spinals in a similar fashion, making it a popular choice for all-around Pirating.
Avalon: Although not designed for PvP, its turrets and spinals are all hull-focused, with its powerful 3 Medium Torpedoes. Best paired with a shield-breaking ship like a Warden since your turrets will deal pitiful damage to shields. Just remember to be ready to warp out as soon as reinforcements come, since the Avalon is a glass cannon, and has very bad maneuverability
Astraeus: Has EXTREMELY high damage per volley, allowing it to destroy miners under Orca in 1 volley (1 second) and Orca and Galaxy in just 2 volleys. (25 seconds)
File:Epic pirate.png
Gideon assaulting an Industrial Miner from an earlier version. Credits to threshhold101 & BloxEman01.

Trivia

Some frown upon Pirating seeing it as "unethical" or "bullying", while others simply say that Pirating is part of the game and avoiding ship loss is a necessary skill to play the game.
Pirating can be very profitable if you are fast enough to get a Freighter to the wreck.
"Privateer" is a more accurate term as you only attack ships during times of War.
Pirating is one of the safest ways to raise a large bounty, as you typically attack non-combat Ships.
Pirating used to be a massive threat, but due to updates like needing a certain amount of Loyalty and a certain level Starbase to spawn Dreads, pirate attacks lowered in number, though they remain a notable danger.