The New Merlin and why I think it Rocks

I saw Merlins being used in the first match of the Alliance tournament and I thought I'd like to write my thoughts about them down because since they got rebalanced I really like this little ship.

The Merlin was one of the frigates together with the Tormenter, Rifter, Punisher and Incursus  that was changed in CCP's ship balancing project. 

Being interested in flying cheap ship for learning PvP I was curious at the changes and did some EFTing with them. 

The Merlin caught my eye the most in its new form. I can't even remember the old bonuses it had I think it was a shield resist bonus and a rocket velocity bonus.. forgive me if I am wrong. Anyway.. CCP made it into a little brawler with a 5% shield resist and a 5% hybrid damage bonus.

A resist bonus screams active tank to me and especially the Ancillary shield booster (ASB) so I EFT ed a fit with one and came up with the fit below.

When theorizing about a possible fit I like to find a balance between the DPS it can apply to its targets and the DPS it can absorb before exploding. I found a very nice balance in the following fit;

 [Merlin, Neutron blasters active tank AB]
Damage Control II
Tracking Enhancer II
Reactor Control Unit II

Medium Ancillary Shield Booster, Cap Booster 50
Stasis Webifier II
1MN Afterburner II
J5b Phased Prototype Warp Scrambler I

Light Neutron Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Neutron Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Neutron Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S

Small Anti-EM Screen Reinforcer I
Small Anti-Thermal Screen Reinforcer I
Small Hybrid Burst Aerator I

With all skills at lvl 5 the stats are: 

DPS:155DPS , (178 OH)

EHP: 3627 or 1563HP

SHIELDBOOST: 146HP, (170HP OH) for 10 cycles = 1460HP (1700HP OH)

Velocity max: 1043m/s

Optimal: 1.3km

Falloff: 4.1km

Lets look at the tank with the ASB.. and to compare lets calculate the HP not the EHP. 

The basis is 1563HP ad the cycles of the ASB to that overheated because that is how I use it always.  The ASB can take a lot of overheat compared to the other modules, almost 4 minutes which is much longer than a fight will last.

So total tank= 1563+1700= 3263HP. Compare that to a simular buffer tank with a medium extender (2876HP) and you will see that the ASB give you more survivability. But for a short while ofcourse.

My oppinion is that the DPS is pretty good for a T1 frig. The problem is as with any blaster ship is applying the dps onto the target. The optimal is very short and so is the falloff with Antimatter ammo. Getting in close which you need to do can give problems with tracking but fortunately the Merlin can fit a web and a scram. 

The choice for Neutron blasters was not really for the extra DPS because they don't an much more (about10) but for extra range and they fit of course. I put the tracking enhancer in there as well to get more range out of the turrets and better tracking as I am not really sure if the blasters will track well enough. I am still learning what works best but as I mentioned I want to make sure I can apply all that DPS on target. High DPS is no use if you can't hit your target. 

Even with null ammo loaded the DPS is not too bad (123 and 140OH) and I personally would prefer having null loaded over antimatter so I can start applying damage as soon as possible. Unless I was sure that I would be on top of my target in no time.

The speed is alright , nothing to write home about but not too bad. You can exchange the Afterburner for an MWD without changing anything  on the fit which is convenient. Till now I have flown it with a afterburner but I keep a MWD in the cargobay if I change my mind.

So all in all I think this ship rocks in its current state with the ASB and even without it. I have had a couple of fight in it vs Rifters (the former king of t1 frigs, excluding pirate and faction frigs ; ) .

I took one down relatively easy and of another ended undecided. I had to leave grid though when my booster charges ran out.

BTW don't be afraid to comment or correct any kind of mistakes I might have made in my calculations. I am still learning a lot of how this all works and how I should interpret the information I get from EFT or Pyfa. Also and advice you may have is welcome.