TEC:
2.4 DPS Front Composite, 1.55 DPS L/R AntiLight, 1.6 DPS B Composite
4 Composite DPS per unit
Cost: 100cr/10m/5c, 2 slots, 15s build
VeryLight Armor
PSI:
2.6 DPS Front Composite, 1.84 DPS L/R AntiLight (PointDefenseLaser), 1.7 DPS B Composite
4.3 Composite DPS per unit
Cost: 100cr/10m/5c, 2 slots, 15s build
VeryLight Armor
PHASE:
2.91 DPS Front Composite, 2.1 DPS L/R AntiLight, 2.3 DPS B Composite
5.2 Composite DPS per unit
Cost: 140cr/15m/10c, 3 slots, 20s build
VeryLight Armor
TEC Heavy: 18 Composite DPS
Cost: 500cr/100m/70c, 10 slots. 60s build
PSI Heavy: 18.95 Composite DPS
Cost: 525cr/100m/90c, 10 slots. 58s build
PHASE Heavy: 23 Composite DPS
Cost: 625cr/150m/110c, 12 slots. 72s build
For every 1 TEC heavy cost you get about 5 corvettes, PSI heavy equals about 5 corvettes too. Phase Heavy gets you about 4 corvettes, but is the DPS about the same?
5 TEC corvettes is about 20 DPS so beats the single Heavy
5 PSI corvettes is about 21.5 so better than the single Heavy
4 PHASE corvettes is about 20.4 so not as good as the single Heavy
Corvettes with their verylight armor are going to take full damage, but get 20 of the buggers together and you've got nasty 80/80/100 DPS (racially respective) with every pass.
Single point of armor or not (+4 to 6 armor from research bonuses), it's a swarm and if taken in when ships are already engaged, they aren't going to be primaried and will slaughter caps/titans or just rip through any non-capital they go after. Fighter movement makes them hard for other static ships to go after and just removed DPS from non-corvettes. AntiFighter frigs aren't really a defense against corvettes with they guns doing less than 5 DPS.
Some suggestions for toning them down.
3/4 the base damage they're capable of now and change composite class to antiheavy so they do 50% vs Cap, 45% vs Titan, etc... Composite is just rape cannon vs anything.
Reduce shield and hull HP by 1/2 so they can be swatted out easier and not just be an invincible swarm. Get 50 of the buggers together and you've got a mess.
Perhaps turn them into a squad after all.
Off Topic, but why do titan weapons only do 75% vs Capital, but 100% vs everything else -except pirates?