The Epee has one thing in common with the Arrow - they both take a lot of getting used to. For first-time users, the Arrow is frustrating due to its low firepower and the sheer difficulty of hitting something when you whistle past it at 2000KPS. The Epee, on the other hand, is frustrating for the complete lack of armour. However, in both cases, once you get the hang of the ship and learn to put its advantages to good use, they're great.
A long time ago, back before we even implemented the scoreboard, I ran out of AB fuel halfway through wave 8 while playing with the Epee... and I managed to survive through all of wave 8, then all of wave 9, and then take out one or two wave 10 ships before I died. It might have been possible to survive even longer, but I sorta gave up in wave 10 - I'd been convinced that the previous wave had been wave 10 (this was before we implemented the computer voice announcing wave numbers) and that I'd be getting refueled. When this turned out not to be the case, I pretty much surrendered

. Anyway, the point is - when you get the hang of it, the Epee is an excellent ship and surprisingly survivable even without AB fuel.