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Daba wrote:Apparently I'm in Gamma Access, so I'll be downloading later today (though probably won't get to play until tomorrow). Is it playable with Mous control, or should I try and dig out my flight stick and try and make room on my desk for it?
Have you just preordered the game or kickstarted it? If the former, you'll only be able to access the tutorials (Braben announced on the premiere event that anyone who has preordered will have access to them starting today). I vaguely recall gamma access was a KS perk, too, though, so I guess you may have full access!
And it's definitely playable with M+KB, too, though you should plan for about 10-30 minutes setting everything up.
My recommendations:
- activate the mouse widget (displays a small arrow on the HUD when you move the mouse)
- set mouse thruster burn to "continuous" rather than bursts (by default, the mouse curser auto-centers once you stop moving, meaning you'd have to keep scrolling and scrolling in a dogfight, which sucks)
- set mouse control scheme to "pitch/yaw" rather than "pitch/roll", and assign roll keys
My own thruster keyboard controls are:
W/S for acceleration/deceleration
A/D for rolling left/right
Q/E for horizontal thrusters (required for landing, otherwise optional)
R/F for vertical thrusters (required for landing, otherwise optional)
Enjoy, and welcome to the Milky Way in the year 3030.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/11/26 13:57:08
SilverMK2 wrote:Edit: Wait, it is putting an early copy of the game on my basket and telling me it is out of stock
Maybe a leftover from an earlier visit? I still had a now "out of stock" Founder's Decal for € 0.00 in the basket.
Also used the 50% discount to get the Sidewinder Blue Mojave (because it fits to my Eagle), Sidewinder Orange Mojave (because it reminds me of Star Wars) and Hauler Yellow Terrain (because it looks like a school bus) paintjobs, though.
"That's how they get you", I suppose!
Also, quick video about the Sol system, which you can now visit (if you have a valid permit .. stinking Feds and their oppressive restrictions ):
Terraformed Mars looks awesome. See you at the party, Richter!
chaos0xomega wrote:ive been messin around with the exploration angle and getting more into it, its kind of almost fun, just wish there was more interesting stuff to discover and also more "logic" to the exploration mechanics.
There is! It just isn't explained very well, which means you have to find it out yourself (ideally via deduction from real life science) or get help from fellow explorers on the Elite forums and/or reddit.
chaos0xomega wrote:It would be nice if there was some module available which could increase scan distance, and/or provided some sort of astrometric data, information such as estimated number and size of orbital bodies, estimated eccentricity/declination etc of their orbits, etc.
Higher class scanners do extend maximum detection distance! Scanner quality yields more data that sells for higher prices.
- Basic Discovery Scanner - Has a 500 LS range and costs 1,000 cr - Intermediate Discovery Scanner - Has a 1000 LS range and costs ~500,000 cr - Advanced Discovery Scanner - Has a system-wide range and costs ~1,500,000 cr (according to the fan-edited wiki, anyways)
chaos0xomega wrote:Hell a "probe" system would be cool too, as in you can launch probes to search areas for gravitational anomalies etc. so that you can cover more ground faster in some of these larger systems.
This is part of the design document and thus may in fact see implementation in the future.
chaos0xomega wrote:Another thing that kind of rubs me the wrong way is the presence of stations in orbit around unexplored planets or moons (or stars), you would think that scanning these things down before establishing a population center would be the first order of business, but evidently not.
Nah, those systems are discovered and you likely will be able to purchase their data from those ports. It's just that they still pay you a bit for updating and confirming their charts, depending on how established that outpost is, and how detailed your scans are.
This message was edited 4 times. Last update was at 2014/11/26 21:29:04
chaos0xomega wrote:By process logic I mean a more scientific and technologically detailed means to locating things. IRL, scientists use different methods such as searching for gravitational anomalies, changes in luminosity (probably the wrong world), radiation, etc. to locate things such as exoplanets, stars, comets, and other stellar phenomenon. In the game, for the most part, we are left solely with our own eyes to spot tiny dots that move differently relative to the background in order to locate objects around the star, woe be unto you if you have an inadequate monitor (or hell, if its a small enough object you wont be able to see it anyway).
Ah, I see!
Well, I'd argue that whilst such a system would be more realistic, it would also be less fun. I mean, from how it sounds you basically want to replace oldschool mk-1-eyeball discovery - "trailblazing" if you will - with the push of a button on some computer that then simply tells you where to fly, instead of leaving it entirely in your hands and brains? Or did you have something else in mind? I think there certainly should be a sort of challenge for the human part involved, but of course there could be alternatives such as various minigames that combine a specialised UI with the exploration mechanic, similar to FSD interdiction.
chaos0xomega wrote:Ah, okay that makes sense. Would be nice if they used a different tag instead of 'unexplored' though. Like 'outdated' or something.
Yeah, that's a good point.
I mean - it makes sense insofar as they are unexplored for you, because your onboard navcom doesn't have the maps, but it's still misleading in that the primary interpretation should refer to exploration by humanity as a whole.
Something for the forums, perhaps.
chaos0xomega wrote:My plan is to run cargo for a little bit to build up my funds until I have enough credits to jump into a ship with 1. A longer jump range, 2. More capacity for scanning gear (and hell, also better scanning gear while Im at it). I'm thinking the Cobra Mk III would be good as its cheaper than the Asp but offers good all around performance otherwise.
If you want to haul cargo for a bit I'd recommend taking a look at the Zorgon-Peterson Hauler. It's a very cozy means of affordable transportation. Comes in at about 44k credits, and has a cargo capacity of up to twenty tons or so, depending on how you juggle internal compartment space and whether or not you want to keep the shields (I would, as Haulers are also juicy targets).
The Cobra is the perfect allrounder, though, pretty much a straight upgrade from the Sidewinder in that she's just as much of a multirole ship, just that she surpasses the Sidey in pretty much anything except agility.
At about 300k or so the Cobra is also fairly affordable and something you'll probably stick with for a while. Frontier cargo transportation, smuggling, piracy, exploration, the Cobra can do those nicely.
I assume you already got the free paintjobs?
chaos0xomega wrote:While running missions though I had a near heartstopping moment though, I was approaching a station with about 30k creds worth of cargo when some donkey-cave tried to interdict me, since I had sold my shields I figured I was pretty much screwed if he caught me luckily I managed to get away, but then when I got to the station, I wasn't able to dock (for whatever reason the landing crosshair display wouldn't show up for me) so I had to cancel the request, and try again, directed to a new pad, still no joy, I was starting to freak out since I had about 18 minutes left to deliver the goods or get hit with a fine and otherwise useless cargo, so I jumped to the next system over, then jumped back, reapproached the station, and finally was able to dock, all the while praying nobody else tried to interdict me...
Ouphh, I had that bug twice already, too. You do not have to leave the system - just keep cancelling and re-requesting until it works. The longest so far was three failed approaches at a Dahan mining outpost, but at the 4th attempt the pad that was previously bugged suddenly worked again. *shrug*
Glad to hear you already had a thrilling encounter, though.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/11/27 05:30:16
chaos0xomega wrote:They don't even show up on your system map until you search them down, even if you otherwise have the system data available. To me that makes no sense whatsoever.
Well, Universal Cartographics wants you to buy their maps!
chaos0xomega wrote:Theres free paintjobs?
I mentioned it earlier - they're running a sort of Black Friday promotion where this new pack of six Cobra paintjobs is available for 0.00 on the webstore if you "buy" it before Monday. Also, all the other paintjobs are currently at a 50% discount, so if you want to grab some fancy colours for any of the ships you like, now's the time.
chaos0xomega wrote:I considered the hauler actually, Im just not sure how profitable running trade routes will be and whether or not the 50k credit investment will actually increase my profits.
Well, compared to the Sidewinder you basically make money twice as fast. It comes down to what you haul, but if you also consider courier missions, which sometimes pay hefty amounts of credits if you manage to arrange bulk transportation, I'd say there is definite potential here.
There's also some trade tutorials available in regards to how to read the routed on the map, what sort of goods tend to pay the most profits, or which systems would usually look for what sort of resources, and so on, but I confess that even though I did play space trucker for at least two weeks or so, I didn't really do any in-depth research. Especially as I also had "political motivations" regarding the conflict around Eranin, which saw me shipping medical supplies for the commie government trying to keep them pesky Feds at bay.
On a sidenote, the way the various explorers, traders, smugglers, pirates etc give each other tips and slowly probe how the game works is a pretty cool thing. You can really see how there are communities within the community forming. Just hours ago, I was bounty hunting in Eranin, and I got hailed by another random bounty hunter who just happened to take a look at the same nav beacon. We exchanged greetings, talked about local bounties, then went our separate ways to take down bad guys. All in a day's work.
Pacific wrote:But, I worry that if I get it, my skeleton will be found in months time by someone breaking in to my house to find out why I haven't been seen or heard from again..
I can see how that could happen.
Daba wrote:Is there a bug in hyperspace travel? I'm doing the 'travel' tutorial, and when I go to Hyperspace, I stay there and can't even go to the 'Escape' menu to exit the tutorial (I have to close it in task manager).
Hmmm. I had that happen once, but it's not supposed to happen anymore. Supposedly it had to do with the connection to the server. Does it happen every time? And only in this tutorial mission?
Daba wrote:Combat seems fun, though the ships feel more sluggish than they were in Frontier, and ArcElite.
Yeah, it's more dogfighty. Depends on the type of ship and your thrusters, too, though; a nicely kitted out Eagle can fly circles around other ships!
Daba wrote:I have the option to 'start' though I haven't done that yet. Also, I only seem to have one pilot, though I had a few startup packs to pick from. Does the 'pirate' one start in Lave, or did you need to back more for that?
Hmm, as far as I recall, the starting spawn should be mentioned in the packet's description to the right side on that screen. With exception to the Kickstarter specials who start on Shinrarta Dezhra (the pilot union's homeworld), I think all the packs offer random spawns in various specific regions ("somewhere in the Federation", "somewhere in the Empire" and "some independent frontier colony on the fringe").
chaos0xomega wrote:I dunno, I feel like the Hauler presents a bigger risk since its more likely to attract attention than my sidewinder, and isnt as fast or maneuverable
That's certainly true. It's a bit "risk vs reward", though there are ways to minimise danger (you can avoid interdiction if you keep an eye on the scanner and/or are willing to fly detours rather than a straight line from the nav beacon to the destination world). It's only got a single weapon hardpoint, too, though it is located on the belly which means you could install a turret. But basically, if you get into trouble, it's a question of trying to make the shields hold until your hyperdrive is fully charged.
chaos0xomega wrote:They arent one time use only are they? Should Inorder multiple sets? I mean they are free... lol
Naah, no worries, they are basically unlocks. The (other) paintjobs would be pretty expensive otherwise, and few would buy the "exclusive" ones!
Daba wrote:I saw (well, one turned up on nearby ships) an Asp outside station, but I take it you can't buy these yet?
You can, but it'll cost ya! The larger, newer hulls tend to go in the millions, as opposed to small second-hand ships like the Sidey or the Eagle that don't even get produced anymore. Once you do have the necessary funds and want to acquire one, high-tech industrial manufacture systems are always a good bet for ships like the Asp or the Anaconda, etc. I think there is a list on the forums where people post what they've spotted where in order to create a community-authored shipyards overview.
And don't worry about the map, you'll get used to it fairly quickly. The only thing I'm really missing is waypoints...
Spoiler:
Also, because it looks really pretty ... terraformed Mars:
Spoiler:
"See you at the party, Richter!"
Oh by the way .. that bug you encountered with getting stuck in the tutorial?
"Fix for travel tutorial getting stuck in hyperspace" -- v1.03 patch notes
Daba wrote:Started with the Imperial Bounty Hunter package (Eagle with some upgrades, starting in random Imperial colony)
I took the same package, except with a different starting location. That Eagle has some pretty nice upgrades that give her an impressive 12ly jump range! Perfect for pursuing a bounty, except that it's missing a hyperspace wake scanner and an interdictor.
Daba wrote:Is it safe to fire on anyone with 'wanted' (outside of no fire zones of course), regardless of their affiliation? Also, how do you interdict?
Right now there's a sort of bug with the dynamic background and reputation mechanics where local authority ships will open fire on you if you shoot a wanted guy and he was part of the same faction. Most systems have at least one faction as the established "authority", which means they control the primary starports and send out patrol craft to enforce whatever laws exist in that place. This seems to have collided with the recent expansion of reputation mechanics, where ships that share the same faction are counted as allies, and since both players as well as NPCs can grind rep with factions .. including the local authority .. well.
Frontier are aware of it, though. I think they are currently working to have authority ships disregard faction status if someone is wanted.
Daba wrote:IDo you generally need to travel longer routes for trading to be lucrative?
Not generally, except if we're talking about unique Rare Goods such as Eranin Wine (which tend to increase in value the further you move away from their point of origin). All in all, the markets are simply governed by supply and demand, which refers to the mixture of production capabilities, resource requirements, and supply lines of the starport in question. Most of the time, short journeys are less profitable simply because they tend to be frequented by other traders (both players and NPCs), but it's not a hard rule.
A dedicated trader could probably explain it in more depth than me, though.
Daba wrote:II'm also considering putting yaw back on the mouse for the precision, or maybe it isn't needed? I have roll on it, and yaw with the keyboard (it's how you play with the VTOL craft in Planetside 2).
Well, it's a personal decision - whatever works best for you - but I too have pitch/yaw on my mouse, and roll on the keyboard. See the first post on this page for my thruster control scheme, which I think works very well, at least for my taste.
Daba wrote:What determines whether they will pay for your exploration data, or if it is newly explored by you, do you always get paid something for up to date data?
I think you always get paid something, but only the first data makes the most money. The rest is simply supplementary information or updates, and the more data people throw at Universal Cartographics, the smaller are the payouts they get.
chaos0xomega wrote:Im looking to score a Saitek X52 Pro flight stick/throttle on sale so I dont have to deal w the mouse/keyboard combo... now if only someone would put it on sale.
[edit]Ah, nevermind, looks like it's out of stock already - plus they only ship to Europe (though maybe you would've had relatives or whatever that could serve as intermediates ...)
I got mine from a bulk reseller on ebay; maybe that would work for you?
This message was edited 3 times. Last update was at 2014/11/28 15:01:56
chaos0xomega wrote:Even on ebay Im only looking at $10 off retail
Oh, you meant "on sale" as in "cheaper", whereas I thought you just wanted to buy one, period.
The X52 has become a bit of a rare commodity because it's not being produced anymore (or at least not in big numbers) but is widely regarded as being the best choice for a "middle class" HOTAS that gives you decent quality for a price below those lulzy $500 luxury kits. I assume that this rarity would also affect their price, so if you did find an offer that is below retail price, that's actually pretty fortunate already, considering that in most stores, you can't even get it in retail anymore. I wouldn't be surprised if the price goes up instead of down.
Hmm, maybe they've produced another run due to the popularity? I only know that when I looked, they were sold out almost everywhere (barring places that would charge you an arm and a leg in shipping), which is why I felt so lucky when I finally found a shop on ebay that sold these. It could certainly explain how the folks from Frontier Development managed to secure a batch for their online shop.
And I absolutely agree about the stick's performance. From what I can tell so far, the positive reviews are justified. No wonder it's become so popular.
And even in the year 3030, the X52 is still the preferred flight stick for space ships.
SilverMK2 wrote:Grrr... Wife has been using the laptop for the last two days so I've not been able to play.
Sounds like the perfect excuse to blow some cash on a gaming PC.
"Look what I got us, honey! Now we no longer have to squabble about who gets to use the laptop!"
On a sidenote, just had two awesome bounties. The first was an Asp Explorer with a 20k price on its head. Interdicted her as she was pulling away from the local star. That beast had two missile racks and four burst lasers, two of them turrets, which promised an interesting fight, but that bounty was just a tad too juicy and I knew my Eagle should be able to outmaneuver her. Twice I got into the firing arc of the turrets, but my shields held, if only barely. A minute or so into the fight as I was happily plinking away at the Asp's thick skin, three new contacts popped into the system. As they were barely inside sensor range I was unable to identify them, but of course I immediately assumed the worst and figured that the gal in the Asp has summoned her buddies. Turns out however that (due to the reset from Beta to Gamma) my emergency transponder was still active, which means my ship has notified the local authorities. Apparently my target was so popular that they sent two Vipers plus an Eagle with concussion missiles! Fortunately, the combined fire from my burst lasers and the m-cannon managed to kill the Asp before the cops got closer, though they did manage to launch two missiles at her, each striking for about 4% hull damage.
Lesson for other prospective bounty hunters: Disable the "Report Crimes against Me" feature in your functions tab to the right! If you are hunting down a mark, the last thing you need is a bunch of coppers swooping in to steal your kill.
The second bounty was a Cobra with an 8k bounty; fairly standard fare, but it seems that guy was a smuggler rather than a pirate, for instead of fighting me he immediately turned away and tried to flee. Needless to say, I diverted some power into the engines and pursued, targeting the Cobra's frameshift drive as I opened fire. After taking some damage, the wanted pilot panicked and started jettisoning his illegal cargo, one canister after another, opening comms and pleading to me that I should let him go. That Cobra was like a giant piñata; the more I shot it, the more sweets poured out of its cargo hatch. Being in an Eagle, however, I'd only have room for four tons of stuff anyways, so I continued the pursuit and finally blew him up, my computer logging the kill and issuing the customary bounty chit, to be redeemed next time I'd dock at a Federal outpost. Still having some of that white cloud of cargo canisters on my scanner, however, I deployed my cargo scoop and got me some stolen domestic appliances, which I was able to cash in for a nice bonus in the black market at Eranin Orbital.
Orlanth wrote:Star Citizen has been far better managed in terms of fund raising.
From a business point of view, that is absolutely true. As a gamer, its "aggressive hype" was what actually drove me to Elite, though.
Don't get me wrong, I think SC has great potential, and in the end I'm just lucky that the genre has been revitalised by these two giants. And I am quite sure that I'll at least take a look at SC once it's out. But it just felt more like a big PR stunt rather than a game in development, and I have more trust in Elite's slow, gradual expansion rather than SC's attempt to deliver everything at once by splitting development between a dozen different studios as if the game was some big puzzle. The good thing is that SC has raised so much cash that I'm sure they will ultimately be able to deliver something good, in spite of what I'd consider inevitable waste and chaos. I mean, with a budget like that, they could theoretically start over completely multiple times, and they have wisely chosen not to commit to a deadline.
I also like how not only both games have committed to a different development style, however, but also different design aesthetics and different gameplay styles. This should ensure that there is (a) hopefully less rivalry between their fans and (b) people who enjoy space games get to pick from a greater spectrum of variety. Just like I foresee a continued future for Eve Online, because I expect that it too will be able to maintain its niche due to its focus on social features and communities.
Pacific wrote:Think I'm going to do a pre-order from the site, goodbye world!
Sweet! The Mercenary (aka preorder) Edition will not only net you a small discount, but also an Eagle fighter and a couple goodies. Welcome to the year 3030, Commander.
SilverMK2 wrote:Woo! Managed to land and shoot some cannisters - though as I could only find the broken mouse I am finding it hard to shoot the ship as the mouse keeps dropping out
That sounds like something you should fix! The idea of a broken mouse conjurs horror images of a Hauler loaded chock-full with progenitor cells smashing against the docking ring due to a "thruster malfunction".
From what I understood, Freelancer was originally planned to be an MMO - but then again, according to that article those features were cut at the behest of Microsoft, and only because the development team had already overshot both its budget and the schedule, neither of which should really be a problem for SC. As you say: wait and see.
In regards to the dogfighting: according to the videos on the web, and from how I've seen SC players describe it, its flight model seems to be more open and thus slightly more newtonian (like a mixture of Elite's Flight Assist Off and On, with the newtonian physics of the former but utomated spin stabilisation of the latter), though this has led to what people call "turreting" and gameplay that supposedly feels like "point and click", whereas Elite's default flight model (Flight Assist On) feels more like atmospheric flight and thus somewhat less realistic - a concession the developer felt was necessary to preserve fun, as they already foresaw the "turreting" issue SC has been going through.
I had thought that both games would stick to their flight models, which would further distinguish between the two games (as I'm sure each model has its share of fans), but lately I've seen comments that SC supposedly moved closer to ED's model in response to the criticism. Not sure how to feel about that - on the one hand it means less of a difference between both games, but on the other I have to admit that I like the feeling of ED's flight model a lot, and that I'd welcome if SC would feel similar whenever I get to try it out a couple years from now. Plus, if we are honest, "atmospheric flight" is quite simply what we are used to from all those sci-fi movies.
Back to Elite ... someone on reddit found a nice pop-culture reference hidden among the thousands of inhabited systems.
"I have seen things you people wouldn't believe ..."
Haha, I kinda wish exalts would be visible on dakka, too - it'd be nice to (a) have the person you exalted know you did and (b) know which dakkanauts are sharing your line of thinking. Anyways, hope you like the game! Did you already try the tutorials?
chaos0xomega wrote:Those c-beams man, they sure do glitter in the dark
Daba wrote:On the Imperial Eagle, is there anything to drop for an interdictor device, or do you think assassinations are going to be beyond your capability with one of the starting ships? A single one would net me 5x the money I currently have.
You should have sufficient internal compartment space to slot an FSD interdictor, at least if you don't have stuff like a discovery scanner or something like that.
That being said, I've heard the assassination missions being quite challenging in that you may be faced with an Anaconda or something like that. Personally, I wouldn't take on something bigger than a Cobra or an Asp, at least if I'm flying alone. It may depend on just how much the bounty is, though; I'd expect smaller ones to be less challenging. If I ever see one for about 40-60k, I'm gonna try it, but those 180k ones just sound a tad too heavy for me. I tend to catch my bounties by patrolling a star system, scanning other ships and checking for fugitives, then pulling them out of supercruise.
Daba wrote:For making money, my ship isn't really suited to hauling or mining.
Courier jobs can pay nicely!
Daba wrote:When buying a new ship, do you move your hardpoints over or are they sold off with your old ship/lost?
I'm fairly sure everything gets sold. Personally, I'd wish for there to be an option to store equipment in a garage of sorts so you can either install it in a new craft or keep it for later, but so far that's only a suggestion on the forums.
eddieazrael wrote:the yaw rate on my mouse seems low (hard to track targets off to left/right)
I think that's intentional. If you have a target breaking off to the sides, you need to roll and then pitch after them. Yawing is really just there for minor corrections (usually just shooting/docking/scooping/thatsortofstuff), whereas roll is for changing course entirely.
For what it's worth, it does look better that way.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/11/30 09:16:11
Pacific wrote:Also, another question if I may; While the combat was fun, I primarily like the idea of playing as a kind of trader/transporter, and more of a low tempo affair while enjoying some of the gorgeous-looking graphics.
Absolutely! I've done so myself for a part of the Beta, and it is a very relaxing way of playing the game - excluding those moments where a pirate attempts to steal your cargo, of course. There's a number of dedicated freighters in Elite, and you can do both cargo missions (get X from A to B) as well as buy stuff using your own budget, and try to make a profit by selling it at another port. In face, some blogs and website have taken to calling Elite "Space Truck Simulator 2014", either charmingly or because they thought it was boring. Personally, I liked doing civvie stuff with a Hauler for a change .. http://www.pcgamer.com/the-pleasure-of-space-trucking-in-elite-dangerous/ http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2014/11/19/the-elitist-part-five-hunting-dogs/
Pacific wrote:Is it possible to hire NPCs to protect me (launch drones, as in EVE?), or is that even necessary?
And yeah, I guess now you can only wait - fortunately, launch is only ~2 weeks away, and in the mean time maybe you can have fun browsing the reddit or something like that.
Originally I had thought that the tutorials people can play would include the non-combat stuff that has been added lately, but I guess they only released the "old" combat tutorial .. oh well.
eddieazrael wrote:So, flying is old-school dogfighting in SPAACE then! Makes no sense from a reality basis, but rule of cool always wins! (And that's fine with me.)
Yeah, that's exactly what the devs said, too. They're very big on adding realism wherever possibly, but at the same time they said that gameplay must come first. They tried full newtonian flight in Elite II, and it just wasn't as much fun, seeing as it resulted in a combat model that more resembled jousting than anything else.
Daba wrote:What's your favourite weapon configs?
Not that I can afford them though...
For my Eagle .. two burst lasers on the belly, and a multicannon topside. I'm currently trying to find one of those variants, such as focused burst lasers, or a high impact m-cannon that has a lower RoF but more punch behind each bullet.
The basic models of these weapons are fairly affordable, though, I think you could get the whole set for about 50k.
What ship and which weapons do you currently have?
Daba wrote:I have the Eagle with two burst lasers and a multicannon on top
Oh by the way, according to people on reddit, equipment you sell at a station stays there - which would be one way of swapping stuff from one ship into another, I guess.
Daba wrote:I'm thinking of what to go with when I upgrade. I might skip the Viper and go straight to Cobra. I seem to be doing mostly exploring, and I don't really want to sell my scanner as it's how I make the most money at the moment. Maybe the cargo hold, but I do make a little money from that, though I don't have enough space for most delivery missions.
Sounds good. The Cobra is definitely more suited to exploration than the Viper; the latter has a default jump range even lower than the Eagle iirc. I'd argue you could make more money flying a Viper than an Eagle due to the increased loadout and/or cargo space, not to mention it isn't nearly as flimsy, but if you want to get a Cobra ASAP then sticking with the Eagle might indeed be smarter.
I'd definitely keep at least 2-4 tons of cargo space, though. In my experience, a lot of transport missions are just about 2-3 tons of stuff .. plus you'd hate to come across a canister of gold or palladium in deep space (either from an USS or some ship you shot at) and not have the room to pick it up.
On that note: I pulled 4 units of "trade data" out of a wreck I came across in Asellus Primus. Sold 'em for 3k on the black market.
Daba wrote:I keep getting jumped by people who don't have a bounty on their head. They open fire , because we're in an anarchy zone with no civilisation and die for it, but it still costs me in ammo.
Yeah, m-cannon ammo can be quite expensive, depending on where you buy it. I'd probably suggest either just using lasers here, or jumping out - depending on how tough the target is.
Sweet. I thought they'd only air it in the UK or something. Not sure the game needs that much exposure - as I don't believe it is suitable for every kind of gamer - but on the other hand, I suppose it's not a bad thing if it reaches those who may be genuinely interested in its take on space sims, yet haven't heard of it so far.
By the way, patch 1.05 is out. Aside from the bugfixes, I really like the bit about a pilot's actions now generating GalNet news posts. This should make the background sim a lot more transparent!
illuknisaa wrote:I haven't played any space sim (except some old star wars sim, i gave up on the docking tutorial) and I was wondering if this game has a huge learning curve?
I wouldn't say "huge", but the game is certainly a lot more complex than other contemporary products - both due to its increased depth, and unfortunately also flawed documentation. There are some tutorials that will teach you the basics, as well as an official PDF quick start guide, but many systems' functions and details are left unexplained and for yourself to discover, or to ask on the forums/reddit. This may all be adressed by a proper manual later on, though, but for now it can be a bit tricky. Anyone who managed to get used to EVE should have no problems with ED either, though, and you do not exactly need to know everything to have fun either.
Exact gameplay experience will depend on the individual gamer - I'm the type who enjoys to discover how things work by themselves, so I did not mind.
Flight mechanics are primarily "atmospheric" like, say, War Thunder, explained in the game as a Flight Assist mode which intentionally limits manoeuvrability to guarantee a more intuitive handling of the ship a la Star Wars X-Wings. You do have the option to turn Flight Assist off, however, for a more newtonian experience, allowing you to fly manoeuvres like the Star Furies in B5, with turning on your tail and shooting backwards whilst maintaining directional velocity. See here for an in-game example. Some pilots like Isinona get crazy skilled in this mode, and occasionally you may catch people trying to practice in the bowels of a rotating Coriolis-class station. Myself, I'm mostly flying with Assist On and only switch it off for quick turns, or when I'm feeling like drifting through space a little.
illuknisaa wrote:How well does this game run? (i think the game uses ut engine so comparing it to something bl2 would be nice)
Elite uses the in-house Cobra engine - the name is a reference to the famed Cobra starship from the Elite franchise, though I think the current version of the engine actually premièred in the studio's Zoo Tycoon game ... a hint at how well it might do at planetary environments later on?
As a consequence, however, this also means that (with the exception of Frontier's other games) there is nothing you could compare it to in this regard. However, personally I find the Cobra engine to be incredibly efficient when it comes to system resource allocation. My machine is now 3-4 years old, and whilst it is struggling with Dragon Age Inquisition (at least on higher settings), it runs Elite Dangerous like a charm.
It would be tricky to make any predictions for other PCs, of course. I assume you've already taken a look at the official system requirements on the website?
I have it on the Z key. Best check your options to make sure, though.
You should do that anyways because there's a ton of potentially useful buttons and settings in there.
mattyrm wrote:I loved Elite as a kid, I hope this is a worthy successor, it looks fething amazing of course, but sadly flashy graphics are no guarantee of quality, look at Hollywood!
Agreed!
So far I'm stoked, though. That being said, a number of features outlined in the design documents are still missing. Personally, I'm not really worried about that, as the studio has shown itself to be extremely productive over the Alpha and Beta phases, though. As long as they keep adding stuff, it'll only get better. But I can certainly understand people who wish to wait some more "on principle".
An area that is settled but marked as "Unknown" essentially just means that your ship's computer doesn't know it, not that it's unknown to humanity as a whole - or rather any of the big factions, as they collect data independently from one another. That being said, I was under the impression that they should always pay at least a token amount for the effort, so perhaps it could just be a bug. Maybe try again at a later time?
Hmm, depends on what you want to do with it. For bounty hunting, I'd say it would not be more profitable, but you would be more survivable. Unless you're a real good pilot with the Eagle.
The Viper is less manoeuvrable, but quite a bit faster and capable of carrying more and heavier weapons (although you really need a better power plant for this). Good Eagle pilots may be able to outmanoeuvre you, but that's part of the balance (and you could just boost away if things get hairy), and on the other hand you may be able to take on bounties that are harder to crack. Maybe even an Anaconda? Okay, that one's only recommendable if you're flying with friends, though. But a Python, perhaps. I've heard that even though they are slow to turn, their engines are super-powerful, so you may need a fast ship to keep up with them.
Spoiler:
I ... I want one of these. <3
But it should not be forgotten how the Viper offers more slots for equipment, too. For example, you could mount a Cargo Scanner in addition to the Warrant Scanner, to check if anyone is carrying illegal goods and thus discover smugglers, or alternatively an FSD Wake Scanner to enable you to pursue targets through hyperspace.
Also don't forget that it has 4 internal compartments compared to the Eagle's 3, so you could add an additional cargo rack, or perhaps a shield cell bank, or a field maintenance unit.
It's definitely a trade-up, albeit not mandatory for bounty hunters as the Eagle maintains its edge in agility. It depends on your play- or rather piloting style, and how exactly you want to make your credits.
[edit]
I think the dynamic background sim needs a few more templates for certain types of factions...
What exactly are you regretting about it? If it's just a case of missing weapons and low cash, then I'd say just grind a few bounties or courier missions and gear it up. Or don't you like the way it's handling?
Pacific wrote:Wow that is awesome.. what was going on in the vid, who are all the ships fighting it?
I've not been there personally, but from what I can gather it's some sort of uprising, either independent of or as a direct result of the conflict at Eranin. Kotigen is a Federal system, but if you look closely you can see that the FNS Kracer and its escorts are fighting ships of the System Defence Force, which means Feds against locals. I noticed that the background sim has recently been kicked into the next level so that players can now promote or harm factions (I myself have contributed to the Eranin People's Party now spreading its operations into the surrounding systems), so maybe this has led to a shift in power within the local authorities?
The Kracer isn't alone in the system, either. If you want to feast your eyes on a Viper's suicidal attack run on the FNS Damocles, click here!
Feds are out in force today, it seems.
Spoiler:
[edit] Looking at the 2nd vid where the player is about to set his IFF transponder, it seems the fight is between two local factions, and the Feds are intervening on behalf of the one fighting against whoever controls the KSDF right now? Curious.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/12/09 02:02:55
Daba wrote:I think it's the money hit really and the cost it will be to equip it well and have a reasonable jump distance. Once I get some more cash I'll put an interdictor on (replacing the exploring sensor), but I think the equipment is going to be more than double the ship cost...
Eh, maybe if you factor in an improved reactor and such. But keep in mind that any investments you make here will add to the ship's resale value, so even if you trade up again later on, you'd already have reached a higher stepping stone, and save up less cash to afford the other ship.
Unless you wish to keep and store that Viper, that is.
Umm, I think it's quite a bit away (70 LY from Eranin where I am now), but you can easily check for yourself by opening the Galaxy Map and then entering "Achenar" in the search box on the 2nd tab.
That being said, even long journeys can be completed within half an hour or so. I once travelled from Shinrarta Dhezra to Eranin and that was 160 LY or so.
In other news, Frontier just released a sneaky surprise patch - Gamma 2.00 is here!
Personal Highlights:
- 2 new ships (ZP Adder Utility Craft + Lakon Type-7 Transport)
- Waypoint Plotting in Galaxy Map (if set, your navcomputer now automatically selects the next system of your route as soon as your ship has finished a jump - very comfy for longer journeys)
- a much more seamless transition between frameshift and realspace - expanded missions (now including corporate salvage and faction military) and deep space encounters
- slavery (in economy, as well as appropriate missions)
- general improvements to sound and visuals for added atmosphere/immersion
- cool new main menu (animated - and with an easter egg)
- another easter egg
I also noticed that Azeban Orbital - the outpost where I've set up camp - has gotten a big bigger and added two new modules.
On the downside, however, a "Brotherhood" from a certain nearby Anarchy system has begun operating in Eranin - thanks to player pirates I'm sure - and they seem to be so successful that they've started to displace the Eranin People's Party when it comes to mission availability.
I'm now making it a point to interdict wanted ships from the Brotherhood faction in particular. Go back to Freeport, criminal scum!
Also, another minor new goodie from Gamma 2.00 - decals! I'm not actually sure this was an intended feature as it was not mentioned in the patch notes, and so far there is only a single decal to choose, but ...
Spoiler:
Arr! Well, I suppose it kind of fits for mercs/bounty hunters as well, Riddick-style.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2014/12/11 04:47:26
Daba wrote:Hordes coming from Morgor?
Did someone leave the Ring in Eranin?
Hah, nah, I meant LP 98-132.
From the navcomputer entry:
Spoiler:
LP 98-132 is an anarchic system with a solitary small M2V type dim red star. There isn’t a lot here, though there is some mining of valuable minerals like cobalt, rutile and coltan, and very occasionally of gold. Piracy is rife here with pirates on the look-out for those high value cargoes. There is the station Freeport operated by a group of locals, and this is the nearest thing to law that exists in the system.
I have temporarily relocated from my home on (read: over) Azeban to Lugh in support of the Crimson State's uprising against the Federal occupation force .. but as I left, the "Brotherhood" from LP 98-132 was responsible for about 90% of the missions offered in Eranin. It makes me worry to think the pirates may be taking over. I'll see what I can do to help the Eranin People's Party once I'm back from my stint at Lugh.
As you may have already seen, the players who are currently trying to plunge Lugh into a civil war even made it into the official newsletter now as an example for player-driven narration and the dynamic galaxy. Lugh is quite a bit away from Eranin, but thankfully this was also a golden opportunity to try out the new course plotting feature, and it worked like a charm in conveniently leading me to my destination. The only thing I had to do was keep an eye on the temperature gauge in order to prevent heat damage to the drives by jumping too soon/often, and I had to make a single stop at a station to refuel my Eagle.
Immediately after arrival (and being greeted by two dozen contacts - there is a lot of traffic at Lugh!) I was heading to Knight Dock to rendezvous with my contact of the Crimson State Group when I noticed an Unidentified Signal Signature in the vicinity. Deciding to check it out I dropped in, and caught a lone Hauler in the process of spooling up its jump drive. Perhaps she had just exchanged cargo with another ship? A quick scan of the vessel marked it as belonging to "Lugh for Equality", a local faction whose name initially hinted at a potential ally in the fight to liberate the system from Federal oppression, but the computer quickly informed me that this faction was aligned with the Federation rather than Independent - undoubtedly it was some sort of political puppet, or its leaders had lined their pockets with Federal credits. Either way, their allegiance marked them an enemy of the cause, and thus my first target.
Needless to say, the Hauler was not exactly equipped for resisting the unbridled aggression of an upgraded Core Dynamics Eagle Long Range Fighter, and vented both shipment and pilot after a few salvos of burst laser and m-cannon rounds. I also noticed that my lower left burst laser once again malfunctioned, snapping off another shot as the system was just in the process of cooling down. Something for the mechanics at Knight Dock to take a look at - I suppose I should have taken better care for the ship's Wear & Tear condition. Either way, in addition to a bounty chit (to be redeemed somewhere in the Empire, apparently), the Hauler also spilled a bunch of cargo canisters. Most of them were just rations, but amidst the salvage I also discovered two tons of battle weapons, no doubt intended for the garrison of the Federal occupation force. I vaguely remembered their price on the open market, so with heavy heart I dumped two of the four rare artwork canisters (scavenged them from the wreckage of an Imperial Clipper in a USS) to scoop up the battle weapons. After all, a preliminary briefing had informed me of the existence of a black market in Lugh where I could transform these hot goods into cold, hard credits.
If anyone feels like participating in the liberation of Lugh, here's a crosspost from the ED reddit containing all you need to know:
Spoiler:
Fellow Pilots, Traders, Explorers and Independent Entrepreneurs (Pirate is such an ugly word),
I call upon you to come to Lugh (44 : -6 : 27) and join the cause to free Lugh from the Federation and make it independent again. We are making good progress and expect a civil war to break out by sunday. Freedom and Fortunes await!
What is the goal?
The goal is to raise the influence of the "Crimson State" faction in the system. Currently they have an influence of 24,4% (up from 17% wednesday and 14% tuesday evening). We want to achieve an influence of over 55% to take over the system. We are curious to see the event system in place. We hope for interesting spawns of conflict zones and a civil war in the system.
Current standing:
*** UPDATE 12.12.2014 - 21:20 GMT ***
The Crimson State Group is now the strongest faction in the system!!!
Crimson State Group: 38,9%
Lugh for Equality: 38,3%
Lugh Defence Force: 17,5%
Fed 43 % Lugh Defense 24.4% Crimson State Group 24.4 %
How to participate? Come to the Lugh system. Position is (44 : -6 : 27), about 60 ly from Sol
Take missions for the "Crimson State" faction (be careful not to take other missions)
Hand in exploration data at Crimson State stations.
Trade with Crimson State stations.
Pirate non-Crimson State vessels.
Sabotage non-Crimson State missions (by abandoning them).
System information Lugh is an agricultural / industrial system with 15 Billion people. It is currently unlawfully occupied by the Federation (they took over some time between patch 3.9 and version 1.0). It is about 60 ly from Sol in a dense area with plenty of inhabited systems and trading opportunities around.
Crimson State Faction Stations Knight Dock, Lugh 5 - Wealthy, very large industrial station
Read Gateway, Lugh 7 - Wealthy, very large industrial outpost (all services)
Seega Port, Lugh 8 - Wealthy, very large industrial outpost (all services)
Maclean Hub, Lugh 11 - Wealthy, industrial outpost (all services)
Mission Information You can get missions at all Crimson State Stations
You can get pirating missions at Read Gateway
Mission Completion Information *H.E. Suits: Zeaex
*Microbial Furnaces: ?
*Fish: LHS 3167
*Wine: Mari
*Non-Lethal weapons: Arth
Black Market Information Hartsfield Market, Lugh
Exploration Information Valuable exploration targets:
Mikir, 40k (16 high metal planets around 3 suns, with advanced + detailed surface scans)
Karnarki, 12k
Jinoharis, 12k
Outfitting Information The Crimson State station, Knight Dock, has all kinds of modules (all of them) for easy outfitting. It furthermore offers a wide range of ships, and the new Lakon-7.
Daba wrote:Normal cannon seem a lot more expensive than the M-cannon - do they represent that much of an improvement?
I'd say it's situational. They have a much lower rate of fire, but pack more of a punch. They are good for delivering "burst damage", if you manage to account for their slow projectile velocity, and absolutely wreak havoc on internal components. Against smaller, faster targets it would be difficult to ensure a hit, though. But that's what the fragmentation variant is for, I guess.
Daba wrote:Also might be something to do with landing 30k worth of bounties in a couple of fights too (though I lost reputation with the issuing faction for some reason despite them paying me the bounty...)
Did the ships you shot down belong to the same faction, by any chance?
Either way, congrats on the bounties.
If you like bounty hunting, Patch 2.03 will probably have you rejoice.
Pacific wrote:Already got my 2001 soundtrack at the ready
Right on, Commander.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/12/13 05:01:45
Whew, that was a smooth launch! I also heard the pre-order goodies will be unlocked by the end of the week, for those who own the Mercenary Edition here.
Nice co-op action here, showing how fun things can be with friends:
Daba wrote:I will miss the Viper (I sold it off). After flying it, and then the Cobra for a bit, the Viper was really nippy and had fantastic Yaw (for this game), and the light hard point placement is a lot better.
Yeah, the Cobra is a great allrounder, but if you want to hunt, either the Viper or the Eagle might have been better options. Then again, all that cargo space gives you a lot of options for "alternative income".
Orlanth wrote:The launch sequence, just five hours ago.....
Hahah, voice from the rear at the end: "God help us!"
Love how the button is wired to a Raspberry Pi tho. Nice detail, and a tie-in to one of Braben's other projects.
eddieazrael wrote:Brings back my childhood - except I'm not looking at a wireframe cobra.....
Spoiler:
Better?
Orlanth wrote:Remember gimballed guns can be countered by EW.
You can still fire them manually - they just won't track their target, and they'll obviously still do less damage than their fixed counterparts.
Yeah, the trade routes displayed on the galaxy map are (afaik) effectively just paths taken by other traders, which always means you're following in someone's footsteps. Most of the time this is not a problem, but I think when the target world has a low population and thus low consumption, you may arrive on a market that is already saturated with the goods in question! Likewise, watch out that the stuff you are exploring is sold on the local market at High Availability. Even if stuff is locally produced and exported to other worlds, it may well be that it's expensive because production is low. Supply and demand dictate the price, and thus the profits you make when selling that stuff elsewhere.
A piece of paper and a pen really help in this game.
I made 60k+ yesterday with just half an hour bounty hunting in my Eagle. Got a 20k contract to rid a system of pirates, whose collected bounty added up to another 35k. Plus 5k from salvage I was able to sell on the black market. It was a good day.
PS: Today is newsletter day! Wonder what'll be in it this week.
PPS: Where are y'all located? Anyone planning to participate in the upcoming throne succession struggle (and for whom), or otherwise want to do some co-op some time?
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2014/12/19 16:00:58
That is weird. Good call on the ticket, who knows what was up with that.
Though I suppose one possibility is that at least one of those stations did produce these goods previously and either doesn't do it in sufficient quantities to always have them available, or they've somehow lost the capability, or someone else sold these goods to the station's market, where they were re-purchased and shipped further away. I suppose this would be uncommon, but if there are no other sources for combat stabilisers nearby ...
It would also explain why the system is generating missions to get them: normal trade doesn't suffice for local demand.
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