Well, I know that UESG Patrolships won't have foldspace engines. However, they'll all carry two restockable torpedoes, which will make them very useful as escorts.
And I don't think that the Rapier corresponds to Fighters in Ares; it's more of a Heavy Cruiser. Fighters in Ares are one-man cramped ships with a single dinky gun - which is a lot like the Defender. And EV didn't make much use of the Defender either.
Also, remember that in EV, all ship classes had to be independently useable. The Player only got one ship for personal use, so practically every ship had to have Hyperspace and Cargospace. Fighters in Ares really aren't meant to operate independently from their parent Carrier.
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