Been playing around with this, but not much time in it yet.
I like the pace, it isn’t a rushed game, but it seems TOO quiet. Are there any conflicts, events, storylines? Or is it all about exploring and building assets by various means?
There doesn’t seem to be much voice work other than stations and some comm traffic. Are there any characters to interact with or just station personnel?
I’m bothered by it possibly being too much sandbox and no point. “Find your own reason to live in your sad solitary existence.” LOL

For me, ti's very much “Find your own reason to live in your sad solitary existence.” and I that's been great for me.

The main characters to interact with are other CMDRs. You can head out to this week's current CGs in Open play mode, and probably find plenty of action, plenty of conflict and such. So be prepared.

As for interaction with NPC characters, the main element that comes to mind is the Guardians mission offered by Engineer Ram Tah. IIRC, this is still available. Be warned that it opens in a rather long puzzle, with much trial and error, best solved with pen and paper at hand to keep track of what you've discovered. There are huge threads devoted to this mission on the official forums.

And then there are indeed wars in Elite, all over the place. Just filter the Galaxy map by State (IIRC), and you should find some wars with Conflict Zones. Lots of NPCs to shoot, if that's your thing.

The real "characters" in Elite are the ships we buy and personalize. Outfitting, tweaking, and whatnot.

I wanted to like this game, and I suppose I did, or do. It's just that I burned out on it as I realized that (for me) the only real draw was grinding the next ship. Imagination is a requirement, so that the player can place his own value and importance on his actions, as the game really does not. The guys here at SimHQ that fly it are top-notch too. I stopped playing just about the time I was hooking up with everyone, and didn't get to experience that much co-op play. A little, but not much.

I wanted there to be more of a tribal sort of universe. Suppose for a second that you need to pick a home system, and that becomes your nationality so to speak.. Your nation tribe has allies and enemies. How does the experience change if you need to travel through, or in to, your enemy's space? Plot a circuitous route to avoid? Recruit some wingmen and proceed? Solo it, relying on your exceptional skills? How do you react when an enemy interloper is found within your boundaries? What sort of conflict develops? A full out war? Skirmishes? Hostile indifference? And then it's dynamic, so later those enemies are now your friends, and the whole thing flips on it's head.

What sort of systems and mechanics could be developed to allow the 'star citizens' to help their countrymen? Pool resources? Establish colonies? Spy missions? Border patrols? Escort missions?

I could go on for a long time, as I really like what is there, and I spent alot of time thinking about what I would have wanted to do differently as an ED dev, It's usually unfair to slag a game for what it isn't. But I think ED doesn't get that pass, as the potential here is a huge miss, in my view. Every now and again I think about firing it back up, but I never do. Shame that, as I really wanted to like it, for longer than I actually did.

I did a lot of this with an "adopted" NPC faction, as you mention, all with imagination. Supporting and advancing a preferred faction or two in my home system. Then came a player group who flipped the system and I went into fighting in the War and Civil Wars that followed, working to support my NPC faction against this new player group faction. Then after losing those wars, I worked within the law to undermine that player faction for a good while. Some time passed, and now while I don't embrace this player faction, I do accept them and no longer overtly try to damage them (outside of a broader NPC faction effort), while still I avoid directly supporting them.

And that kind of play, stretched out over months, is exactly why I enjoy the very strong sandbox nature of Elite, where there is no narrative trying to steer or push me along some path. It's all up to me.

I do very much agree that more could have been done by Frontier along the lines of interaction and relationship development with NPC factions. Even down to ideas like creating long-standing rivalries between factions here and there, which will endure through the entire game. A player interacting with one of those factions would discover they were getting on the good (or bad) side of other factions as a result.

Good info, thanks all.
So there are some larger, longer lasting, complex missions?
How is Frontier different from the regular game I have?

Should have my new flightstick in today so that may add to it.

You're doing ti right Adlabs, that's the only way to really stay engaged in the long run, in my view. My post isn't intended to put anyone off, just what I found for me. And frankly, much may have changed in those 6 months since I set it aside. For me it was a pretty cool version of Euro Truck Simulator in Space. Nothing inherently wrong with this, ETS is a good game itself. It's the mile-wide, inch-deep sense that caused me to shelve it. Just posting in this thread, however, makes me want to take it for a spin again.

Not sure RK, if those missions exist. Adlabs pointed out the Guardian thing. And CGs are longer lasting, but not complex in any way. Good way to make some ducats though.

They needed to make co-op play more rewarding. Wings didn't really do it. I could wing up with a couple of players and still do my trade routes solo and they'd still get the benefit of my trading. That didn't really feel like co-op. I could wing up with a couple of players and do pew-pew but I could also do pew-pew by myself. Multi-crew didn't make much sense as AFAIK, it was better to have two guys in two ships rather than two guys in one ship.

As much as it pains me to say this, I liked EVE Online better as it really did show how a small group of players can boost whatever activity was being done, whether ice mining or running missions or whatever. There were some things you simply could not do solo and had to wing up in order to do it. That's what Elite needs.

Also, the background economy needs work....

The Guardians mission is hard for me to call complex. There is a large trial and error element, which requires both diligent record-keeping and patience. Maybe some hints, too. If there was a deeper order to what I was doing, I didn't realize it.

There are also some "mysterious" things out there with clues scattered around. Lost Generation ships. Lost (and long dead) mining outposts. The trail of abandoned INRA anti-Thargoid bases and the story lines that unfold, plus the Thargoid surface sites and unlocking their strange responses. Meeting Thargoids face to face, maybe trying to collect a tissue sample, or even score a kill. And most recently, there are stations on fire and burning in the Pleiades, victims of Thargoid attacks. I was out there doing emergency evacuation missions, ferrying missions out to huge Rescue Ships stationed nearby.

I've spent a huge part of my play chasing these things down. And please note, that almost all of these things require Horizons. Also be aware, that many of these things also don't pay any credits, either.

And I also don't want to sound negative, but certainly I want to be clear that players who are seeking a traditionally designed progress through some story arc, with NPCs to talk with, and carefully scripted twists and drama at some ultimate point of conclusion... It's not what Elite is. The story is very much a creation of the player's own imagination and interest. The things I've seen in Elite, the things I've done, all were totally my own choices. Choices in what I wanted to pursue (and there were plenty of things aside from those mentioned above, which I never chased down), how I wanted to pursue them, and with what preparation I made for those pursuits.

TL;DR - instead of being a mile wide and an inch deep, it's now 1.5 inches deep

Everytime I want to fire up Elite, I'm thinking of EVE Online instead.

Well, I can't say Eilte + Horizons has failed to entertain me. I've logged over 1500 hours in almost 3 years of play, and still I have plans I'm working toward for play after 3.0 goes live.

I used to love Elite... until all the traders went to Solo/Mobius. I had no one left to... tax. Piracy became dull.

Frontier's biggest mistake was allowing solo/group players to take their earnings and ships into Open mode. They should have been kept separate from the start and to top it off, never should have been a solo/group mode to begin with. Braben should have given everyone the middle finger and made it Open only. Forced player interaction. The game lacks deep content, and players make up for this, and if you allow players to cower and hide, what's the point?


So after 500 hours, I pretty much stopped playing. A trade run is a trade run, a hazardous resource site is a hazardous resource site, etc. What's the point?

Damn shame, too, because Elite nails the spaceflight experience. It simply needs deep and worthwhile content to go along with it.

As a trader, I'd agree. Being forced to watch out for human CMDRs would greatly influence my trade runs and would've greatly influenced my early trader fittings such as when I would run around without shields. It would be annoying and it would force me to probably abandon certain routes, but at least it would be additional challenges in the game to overcome. Going into a station and finding 1000+ ships have been in/out of the system doesn't really bother me as I'm "safe" in Solo mode..... would've been really different if it was Open; I'd be thinking of relocating

I’m playing solo, I get frustrated with the unwashed masses. They ruined too many games for me. LOL
I liked Eve, but solo it’s limited. Just isn’t meant to be played that way.

Got my new stick in, so I am having fun for now, but I like a game with “lore” and a story. I’d like a Skyrim equivalent. Multiple storylines and roles if you want to work through them all, or, go your own way and just sandbox it. Stumble across hidden stories and side missions and blend in. I don’t know if that is out there. Starpoint Gemini Warlords has been a lot of fun, and I do prefer larger ships to fighters, but it doesn’t have the polish. I guess you can’t have it all.
May try X3 again.

I was going to say X3

X3 Star Wars mod!

Can you have a Y Wing?

I saw a Babylon 5 conversion too, but I don’t know if it had cockpits.

Installed Star Wars and Litcubes on X3. Didn’t get into it due to getting sidetracked trying to set up my T16000M HOTAS. The game only recognizes one device, so I’ll have to figure it out in TARGET I guess. Looks awesome!

Still messing with Elite too and enjoying it. Finally getting the timing of navigation down. Taking on some bounty and assassination missions, but they keep timing out because I can hardly EVER find the target. I try going for random warrants, but those are hard to find too. I’m anxious to get to another ship.

Anyone care to offer a brief synopsis of the 10 gig patch that just dropped? What's Beyond?

It’s a new “season” whatever that means. I don’t see it for sale though. Is it part of the Horizons season pass or was that just for the 2nd season?

https://www.elitedangerous.com/en/seasons/#season2

https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php/409098-Elite-Dangerous-Beyond-the-features-of-3-0

I’ve considered buying Horizons to get the events, but I’ll probably wait until I’m further along and better equipped.

I have Horizons. Here's a rundown of what the new update is

http://elite-dangerous.wikia.com/wiki/Elite_Dangerous:_Beyond

Lots of stuff there to wrap the noggin 'round.

"Every module must be modified incrementally through each of the five grades."

I hate that sort of stuff. So many games do this. If I have the funds and the required tech/research/whatevs then I should be able to build whichever or whatever I want. Why be forced to upgrade to a level 2 schmeckel, when I want a level 5 schmeckel and can afford to do so. I mean, I understand why devs think this is a good idea, but I vehemently disagree

This 3.0 update seems a major rework or addition to the current game. I would be interested hearing from some of you that have any impressions of how it may have changed the gameplay.

If I may state a question myself as a noob CMDR.
I've had Elite for some time but never got into it despite looking a numerous YT tutorials.

My last attempt a few days ago I was following a tutorial suggestion to go bounty hunting at mining areas (?) such as planets with rings.
The suggestion was to engage wanted ships when "police fighters" did and when getting the kill I would see credits in the 50k to 100k range.

I spent 2.5 hours ingame bounty hunting raising my 1000 start credits to 2700.
Next ship costs 4 brazillion?
Game uninstalled for the second time.

Realising the older tutorials maybe giving advice not applicable today due to changes in rules and systems maybe some of you experienced guys could give me a hint how to get past the first hurdle?

Should I just select the offered missions (used to be aboot 10k each but took me quite some time when I first tried the game a few months back so I never really got to improve the Sidewinder or God forbid, grab a new ship).

I must assume I am doing something utterly wrong (seeing folks on YT having 23 mil credits, seriously?).

Here's hoping this new "Beyond" to make life easier for us new players.

Oden! What's up chum?

For me I made money three ways. Bounty hunting yes. It was more lucrative than what you describe. I tended to float around and identify everyone within range. I then shadowed the most likely looking valuable bad dude. I waited for him to get in to combat with other AI then jumped in. I mean sometimes I just went to battle, depends on the ship type, skills and whether he had friends. But an hour or so of that and it was a good haul of space ducats.

Second way was ETS in space. Running cargo and transport missions. The way I tried to do it was find a number of jobs in the same system, or on the way so I could maximize my efforts. There are certain ones that are far more valuable than others of course. Do you have a good cargo/transport ship?

For bounties I started with a Cobra, and that did well. I tried an Eagle, and it wasn't as good. I then tricked out a Vulture and that was a great bounty hunter.

For cargo and transport it was an Asp Explorer.

The third way I made money was community goals. Some of them are really good, like the redeem voucher base and the conflict zones being really close together. Makes it a breeze to zip in, get some kills, and collect the money with a bonus at the end depending on your contribution..

I went back and skimmed my thread to see if I could remember how much money I was making and found this blurb

"As for making money.... I guess at this stage I make about 2 million per hour give or take. It's a combination of bounty hunting, mission running (especially boom time deliveries) and transport missions. I often fill the hold with some 'imports' for the destination to turn a bit more profit. Lately it's been mostly transport, especially rich tourist transport, which pays decent and gives good rep to keep working on Fed rank."

The money is there, but it takes the right sort of missions, higher rep and the right ship to maximize your ROI.

If you're still in the Sidewinder, yes it's a pain in the rumpus. Ask Ice about his money making schemes

I'd say get a Cobra soon as you can.

I see yes you still have the Sidewinder. Well, I think you'll not make any good money in that bucket of bolts and space alloys

Haha Dbond, you always master anything you touch

I just tried a "normal" mission but not really understanding the mining concept yet I stumbled upon a space fight and thought "what the heck, lets join them" and managed to earn a 40k IOU note that I brought back home (failing the mining stuff) so maybe the previous two and a half hours for 1700 bucks was just to test my patience (not so much for this title since last failure).

I bet some Frontier dev is laughing at me already.

Anyhow, I guess I can start upgrading my Sidewinder now.
Is it worth upgrading btw or should I build on a Cobra base rather?


Our F-16 flights over Balkans were much easier than this.

Maybe I'll go ask Ice for his money making schemes anyhow

If I could locate these bounties I’d be rolling in another ship by now. I go to the area, follow the blue marker and try looking on supercruise to interdict, then go to normal flight to try that way. Sometimes I find signals to scan, but l rarely find the target.
Made some money on delivery runs and got some bonuses for being fast. Slow going, but my Sidewinder is set up ok.

It's difficult going until you get to the Cobra. That ship is so versatile. I've got a few million to spare, Oden. Just tell me when you want to jump online.

And just like that, the SAP is back in bizness!

RK, you need to go in to the RES sites for the bounty hunting. Every ship marked as Wanted is fair game. If that's what you're already doing, kindly disregard.

I would advise against this. Maybe some new guns just so you have the ones you like. But I wouldn't spend money on the 'Winder, save it for a Cobra Mark III.

If you take advantage of Ice's SAP program, you'll have a shiny new Cobra straight away.

RES sites? Not familiar with that term?
I do hang out around the nav beacons and scan every ship I come across I might be able to take, but rarely get more than a couple thousand.
The bounty missions are actual missions I accept to go after a specific NPC. Go to an area, get info on it from the beacon, marked with a blue marker, then watch at the time they say they will be there. I have an interdicter if I find them at high speed, which I’ve used successfully, but I also check at regular speed around the area. Maybe I need to upgrade my sensors again to cover more area?
I just can’t find these guys.

I’ve been playing with the subsystem targeting too, trying to disable them before they can jump away. Not sure it does any good, prob more useful when you get into larger ships.

I pretty sure he means "Resource Site", you find lots of those close to planets with rings around them.

The Nav Beacon trick is exactly what I did as recommended from some YT source before I headed for resource sites.
I had the same results you've had, waste fo time pretty much

Never tried a dedicated bounty mission like that, what price range are they in - I got 40k from chasing down a random wanted dude inside one of those planet-rings.

Will give this weekend an honest attempt to get into this, otherwise I might call you Ice

If I find some good approach to stuff I'll be right back and recommend you RK.

Let's do this Space Marines, hooah
(yeah, I'm getting silly)

You can do this in your Sidey for peanuts or you can take advantage of the offer and kick-start your career in a Cobra. Save yourself the pain of fighting with one hand tied behind your back and let the Cobra show you how much fun it can really be.

Yes, sorry. Resource Extraction Site. When I speak of bounty hunting, it's not for the missions you can choose. I tried one of those and after many hours of flailing around the galaxy, I think I managed to get like 2 of the required kills. Far too difficult to actually locate the intended targets.

When I speak of bounty hunting, instead I mean entering RES sites and engaging ships marked Wanted. The higher the hazard rating of the site, the bigger and more valuable (and more dangerous) the Wanted ships will be on average. I tend to look for those marked High as the best mix of profit and peril.

These are the areas you should be bounty hunting in my opinion, and is a fun, quick way to earn some ducats. It's not too difficult to rack up one or two million credits doing this for an hour. You can only redeem the bounties in systems where your target was wanted, but just check every time you dock if bounties you're holding can be redeemed there. As Oden said, these RES sites will be found near bodies with rings, gas giants with asteroid belts. The more pristine the reserves, the more miners and the more bandits! Ships will be there mining, and the bad guys are there to pirate the miners, and you're there to take out the bad guys. It's the dogfighting arena of Elite Dangerous. Here's a guide I found, not sure if it's still accurate.

https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showt...-Resource-Extraction-Site-Bounty-Hunting

My tips would be

-- Get a good dogfighter. Cobra Mark III, Viper, Eagle or Vulture are all lower-end of the pricing structure and will do well, although I find the Eagle is just too fragile. In my opinion, if bounty hunting is your thing, the Vulture should be a goal on your ship progression list. Hits hard and can fly rings around most of what you'll engage. It will be your go-to BH craft until you get one of the big boys, and maybe even after that. It's a really fun ship to fly in ED.

-- Get a good scanner. Range and time to identify are better, and that's good in RES sites, where the action can be thick.

-- Always scan a target before opening fire. ALWAYS! Don't say I didn't warn you.

-- Be sure of your target and also be sure to avoid any of your stray rounds hitting a non-Wanted ship. If that happens, YOU are now marked Wanted, and sh!t is about to hit the fan, tout suite!

-- Mix your weapons. Have an energy weapon to drop shields, and kinetic to rip to shreds. Pulse laser and multi-cannon, yum.

-- Pile on! Especially if you aren't in a really good ship, you should fly wing on the security forces in the RES site. Just follow them around and help them take down anyone they engage. RES sites marked Hazardous have no security forces, so best to avoid these IMO.

-- Always be scanning every new contact to build SA

-- Be prepared to bug out. Don't lose your ship. And never, ever, enter a RES site without enough in the bank to cover the insurance. Actually, you should never fly any sort of mission without enough to cover the insurance. If that occurs, take your Sidewinder out until you do have enough.

-- This sort of bounty hunting is central to many of the CGs. If you're going to bounty hunt, might as well sign up for a CG and increase your profits.

-- Ensure your hold is empty of any cargo before entering a RES site. You have been warned a second time!

So this just happened.

Decided to go get two blocks of Cobalt as this was the only mission I could handle.

Having absolutely not idea where to find this metal I checked YT and got a tip - look in station list where prices and such are listed and for the Cobalt I can see where they import this stuff - ok, some random 3006 system it seems.

Check Galaxy Map and found it 2 hops down.

Replaced one pulse gun with a mining laser and off I go.

First jump ok, then selecting this 3006 place and no, hell no Oden, your craft is too weak and ugleh!

What the H..

Now I'm stuck in a system with unpleasant people and horrible bars with non-hot women.


My suggestion: stay way from missions until new ship with major upgrades.


Going to go hunting like DBond described above, all else seems to fail for new CMDR's.

Not really intuitive this, is it?
(this simgame really annoys me at times)


I'll be online during the evening Ice


Edit 2:
I couldn't find any Cobra in shipyard, is it only available to buy in special bases?

Good luck. I'm starting to feel the itch, I might have to give this another go.

Oden, check this site. I can't recall if this is the best one, there are several that do the same sort of thing.

https://eddb.io/station

Select Cobra Mark III in upper left, set your current location under reference and clicky

Here's another

https://inara.cz/galaxy-outfitting-stations/

Looking forward to your bounty hunting report!

I'm a bit rusty on Elite, especially now with the new patch. I'll be online for a couple of hours to find my bearings again. What's your CMDR name?

I am the extravagant CMDR "eliteOden".

Good stuff DBond, I will head to Meliae from Asellus Primus and never come back to Bake's Prospect again
Hopefully I'll get some kills on the way too, I'm down to some 13k while gaining nothing.


RawK, sorry if we hijacked your thread

Yeah sorry RK, but you kicked off a storm didn't you?

Oden, if I may, you might consider going to Wells Ring in the V538 Aurigae system, or Coke Dock in LFT 424. Li Yong Rui controlled systems have a discount (15%?) on ship purchases, or it used to anyway. Add Li Yong Rui under the Powers box on that tool to see which ones. I'd choose Coke Dock for the shorter arrival flight. With 13k you might need to finance this purchase haha.

It's 48 lightyears, but worth it for the discount. If that site is up to date, it's also in Boom economy so you can get some profitable cargo running missions here. Since you're in the 'Winder, look for data delivery missions too, which don't require a large cargo hold.

Better yet, let him go to a station that has a collector limpet.... buy that and install it and buy a 2 drones. Then find a station that buys Palladium

You longtimers talk a language not familiar to my brain

Got 2 kills halfway to Meliae, 35k each so I am getting along now.

15% off you say, sounds interesting but my short legs (6.20) blocks my freedom.
Is it fueltank only giving me longer legs? No speed stuff and such?

Well, yes, and that's how I got out of the Sidewinder after two days!

Oden, friend request sent in the game. What is your current location?

I'm back at Asellus Primus, Beagle Landing trying to buy some fueltanks (much easier in an F-16C)

You can still get there. Just stop in every other system or so to top your tanks. Or get a fuel scoop. The entry level ones kinda suck though.

I thought all ships came stock with the largest fuel tank they can fit? You can actually increase your jump range with a smaller tank. The tank itself has no mass, but the fuel does. So you can jump further with less fuel. But if you then run dry it probably wasn't a good idea.

If that happens call the Rats

Where are you telling him to go? I'm at Asellus Primus just waiting for him to get back online after his tacos

I think he ran outta fuel

Should regain a bit of propulsion from the tacos, but that's fleeting.

Might be a different sort of propulsion

You still playing Elite?

Nah, not since June I think. But discussing it with you lot has given me a bit of an itch.

I've been in to Football Manager lately. Managed to get Port Vale promoted in my first season, so I got that going for me, which is nice.

I see

Well, doesn't seem like he's coming back after his tacos....

Oden's the resourceful sort. I bet he pops back up shortly.

I bet he is cursing me about going 50 LY with a 6 LY JR. It will be easy they said

And all that to only see the Cobra at the dealer. Can't afford one of those on 13k, although he said he got 70k enroute, but still....

Tacos done!


Had to cater for my youngest son too, he's one of the guys driving Scania R520 in Stockholm clearing the town from snow during night hours.

I've been texting you Ice, ingame.
So, is there something I should do?


Edit:
DBond, I'm not sure how to travel that distance, trying to get in the general direction I usually endup with stretches longer than my 6.20?

Sorry, I was only in the 'Winder for two days before learning what a limpet does, as you appear about to as well. I guess you CAN have a JR that's too short to get some places.

6.2? Yeah, that's pathetic. Stock JR on a Cobra Mk III is 10.5, so something to look forward to. But even that is too short. Once you have a Cobra and a new FSD, you'll be zipping around the galaxy.. If you opt for a Cobra that is. That's what we are advising, but you might have another plan.

Cobra base cost is about 350,000 IIRC. The Li Yong Rui discount makes it 297,5000. Even stock it's a huge upgrade over the Sidewinder in everything aside from maneuverability. But it has great speed, large cargo capacity, multi-role with many different configurations, and it just plain looks cool. As I moved in to the Vulture and AspX strata, I sold everything -- the Eagle, the Viper, and even Heatseeker, my trusty Sidewinder. But I kept the Cobra. Because the Cobra is one cool ship.

Fully upgraded it would set you back in the 10 million range. No reason to seek one out until you have enough money to buy one. When that time comes, you can strip everything with mass off the 'Winder, and maybe have enough range to get there. Or just keep plotting courses to any shipyard that sells them. There may be other not too far away that sell them as well, with shorter hops required, but perhaps no 50k discount.

Oden, check in-game convo

I wonder if there's still issues with in-game texting?

Teamspeak.

Can you jump on SimHQ TS3 for a moment DBond? Having issues with Oden and need to test.

Think I broke my soundblaster or something.

Anyhow, I upgraded my Side'y and now I could map a travel to 15% area - always something.

Sorry, at work, cannot join for the test.

No problemo. I think he's got a new mic or something, I don't remember him being this difficult to understand

Was he saying things like

Förlåt, vad sa du?

Du kan prata svenska med mig

Min svävare är full med ål

Vill du dansa med mig?

Var är toaletten?

If so, I think I know what the problem may have been

Too difficult to understand, he may have but I wouldn't know

Well, thekingofstyle (John) has jumped into TS3 and confirmed that it's a mic issue with Oden as I can hear John very clearly.

haha DBond, you know your Swedish

I now sport a MkIII and have 1.4 mil bucks, holy future!

Seriously Ice, this is very much appreciated - you spent wealth and more valuable, 2 hours of you spare time, friday time even!
(or was it 3 hours, took forever )


Will check what's up with my soundblaster just incase we join forces again.

Great info, I'll give it a go. I've seen a resource site around me somewhere. I know because I had an emergency abort before crashing into the ring. Can't afford to look away for long. LOL




It's all good info and I'm the LAST person you should apologize to about a hijack. LOL
I hijacked myself talking about X3! I've got that going now with the Star Wars mod and some nice scripts.
Gaming is SET for quiet a while now between these two.

Star Wars mod is best mod.

I got 16 traders pumping cash for me. Haven't played in a while but a trader fleet is well worth the effort to establish.

That will be fun when I figure it out. I’ve definitely got some cheats going, but I figure that if I speed up the pace of the game a bit I might not burn out quickly this time.

On Elite, I got tired of the docking when dealing with one of those borg-looking stations. Discovered a docking computer and it’s been really fun. Very 2001 with the music kicking in. LOL
I was going to do more hunting warrants, but I kept running across good paying delivery and salvage missions that were quick and easy money, sometimes with bonuses. Slightly over my rank, but so far no trouble. If I could quit upgrading my ship I’d be further along. Also discovered I have an Eagle stowed somewhere. Not sure how. I seem to take them out pretty well so I’m not that eager to hop in it.

Should I pick up the dlc season pass?

I wish. I just googled common Swedish phrases and picked the ones that would seem funny, if you were saying these things to Ice

The SAP serves another satisfied customer. Well done Ice

How do you like your new Command Oden? The worm has definitely turned for you my man.

Sgt Elias agrees

https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/270b1b53-2428-4097-a513-84aab2054b0a



This might be my favorite ship, if all you did in Elite Dangerous was fly around. But I didn't have much success in it. It seemed a great idea to buy one for bounty hunting. But more often than not I would need to bug out due to damage. It's made of glass. But it has my favorite cockpit and can dance around anyone. The trouble is when the one you're dancing with had already brung a partner or two. I ended up selling it, along with the Viper, when I bought a Vulture.

I hope to hear how yours and Oden's first trips in to RES sites goes.

That's a problem with Elite. The smaller ships are /too/ weak vs. the more expensive ones. I'd rather the game have an eclectic mix of ships where they're all equal but different so player skill plays an even bigger role. Don't get me wrong, there was a time when a Cobra MK IV could take down a Fer De Lance(I did so many times vs other human players), but once the devs realized it was possible, they nerfed railguns into the ground making it impossible again.

I'm having a good time in my Cobra DBond, thanks to Ice

Planned to go and show some wanted NPC's how cool guns I have but no joy.

Tried some mining just because (having 4 gun slots I have 1 pulse, 1 GAU-8 (yeah, right), 1 phase and 1 mining laser just for occasions like this).
But despite having a pickup drone I ended up with only 1 chunk to sell back at base, not sure I'm doing this right.

I get "unprocessed" stuff into cargo bay and when I open right menu to check whats up I see some name and a percentage, lack from better knowing I click on it and it goes away from the list but I don't seem to get anying into my cargo slots.
Sometimes there's a line saying "refined".

Didn't have to do this in the training mission for mining.

I'll go out and chase some NPC's again, really want to use my guns a first try.

I've not done the mining, so cannot advise.



Go get 'em. For what it's worth, try to find a RES site in the sun, not on the shade side of the planet, easier to spot the AI ships. I would choose the one that has no rating, just RES (not High RES, Hazardous, etc) until you see how things work in there. Hang around the beacon, but not too close, and scan all newcomers. Shadow the Wanted ones and gang up on 'em with others.

Your hold is empty, right?

I ended up running across some good paying, no failure fee salvage missions. Got some good money. Then I was offered one at about $250k above my rank. I took it anyway, avoided an interdiction, snatched up the cargo and ran. LOL
Paid for half of my Viper IV! Parts are pricey and not many shared with my other ships, but I have enough without risking my insurance. I'll build up again and get a Cobra, then I hope to get an Asp Explorer.

Was a nice return to Elite last night. Got jumped a couple of times by AI pirates and ran from them for the most part but when I linked up with Oden and there was one in the area, I had to fight him or else he'd just hound us all night. Nice to see I can still fight and damn proud having done it in my Asp fit too (2x MC, 4x lasers).

The newbie ran out of gas too so had to bring a fuel limpet along Was cool using it though; it was my first time being a fuel transport!

Finally cleared enough Palladium to give Oden a good start and while he was in awe of the 1.4M credits (plus around 400K value in the Cobra fit), I had to bust his bubble by showing him that that money alone was just a single 4A FSD module for the Cobra. On the bigger ships, a whole fleet of kitted out Cobras may only be the value of a A-rated thruster setup

Might be good to play this game again, get more stuff for my Cutter and maybe get a Fed Corvette too, but going back to "500 miles wide but an inch deep" isn't really very exciting for me. I do look forward to flying the ships in VR though. Dogfighting in VR is just awesome!

You guys probably know this stuff, but this is a brilliant channel. The other new guys may benefit from the tips, but it’s funny regardless.
I’ve heard about the 7second cut down, but the 75% tip was new to me and it’s been a major game changer. No more loop of shame unless I’m picking an angle!

LOL... never heard of it it being called "loop of shame"! I did make sure Oden knew about this.

Does anyone actually fly with Flight Assist off?

Thank YOU Raw, best list since Rommel left North Africa!

And yeah, Good to know it's called Loop of Shame hahaha (blushes)

That return to orbit might come in handy when I start trying to use my SRV, not really sure what to do with it yet (only tried it in training mission).

I got the dlc but haven’t tried a landing yet. Loving the extra space in the viper but going to be expensive kitting it out properly. I think most will transfer to the Cobra later, so it isn’t a waste.
I do wish there was an autopilot for some of this, seems like that would be realistic. Maybe if it was at least usable for previously visited systems.

Can you not search for all systems on the map? I was trying to find that system with the good prices but it didn’t come up.

Good prices for? If you want some cheap ships or modules, go to a Li Yong Rui system (spell check!).... which one? You'd want a high population High Tech system. Certain ships and modules are available in non-High Tech systems but not very often. A good High Tech system will have all or 90% of the stuff you'd want. Might be best to use INARA for this.

I was thisclose to firing this one up again yesterday. But it was my son's birthday, and with all the little rugrats running around I never did get to it, and when I finally had time I instead guided Port Vale to a 17-match unbeaten run that has taken us to the top of the table. Back to back promotions? A possibility, yes.

err, yeah, what's that got to do with ED? Not a thing. But it's hard to think of running a load of cobalt to the corners of the galaxy when the glory and prestige of the Championship beckons

Anyhoo, did you guys try the RES site bounty hunting yet? How did it go?

Not long ago, and maybe in this thread even, someone had mentioned a promotion sort of thing where Fed rank requirements were dropped for a short time and you could purchase their ships regardless of your standing. Is this sort of thing announced ahead of time? Are there any of these sorts of things on the horizon?

It's hard to think of watching overpaid millionaires running around when the glory and prestige of size-6 A-rated modules beckons


AFAIK, there is some heads up on these as it's usually tied to a story or some such in the game. No idea if there's another one coming though.

Fair play to you on that one, except I am in League One. Ain't no money down there. As an example, We recently played a League Trophy match against Southampton's Under-23 squad. and they had 5 players that each made more in salary than my entire team does. I've got guys making less than I do! We just got a sponsorship deal for 13k a year! No money down here

But it's the wrong forum for that. I don't expect anyone to care too much lol

Thanks, if anyone hears of one of these 'sales' or whatever they might be called I'd be interested. I need to log on and check how much money I've got, because if one of these pops up I want to be ready.

I meant to comment on this the other day, but was at work, and events overtook me.

The AspX is a fine choice. I have one and it's fantastic for everything aside from combat. And maybe mining, I don't do mining.

But it has been a really good ship for cargo hauls and especially transport missions. It's also a very capable explorer of course. I'll have to check, but I think my jump range is near 34 Just get a good fuel scoop, and you can fly it anywhere. It has a great cockpit view, is quite configurable, and is all you need provided you also have a good gunfighter.

130k in one bang.
I'm so awesome.
(yeah, not really)



But now that I've seen the prices I'm not so sure 130k is so much to party aboot.

I think I had to fight as hard in the Cobra as I did in the Side'y, life isn't supposed to get easier in here, right?

Now that's what I'm talking about!

Good work Commander. You'll be making a million before too long.

Why? What ship are you wanting to get? IME, they weren't that great....

Umm good question, been so long I forget. Clipper, Courier, FAS, FDS? Let me get back in to it and I could answer with more clarity.

I've found that I've never really used any of my Imperial ships.... still went with the Asp/Python/Anaconda combo. Maybe the Cutter but the damn thing is too expensive to risk at the moment

I’ve had a great time on salvage runs in my Viper. Some good money in it, 100-250k, but average is about 125k. It’s fun!
My ship doesn’t have the big expensive weapons yet, but for this, speed is more important. The cargo you’re picking up is just 1 or 2 units. No cargo in the hold on the way there, so if something happens I can fight it out without losing anything. Most contracts under 130k have little or no penalty fee. Swoop in, scoop up the units as fast as possible and immediately close up and punch it. Set up navigation after you get going. 5 seconds is a lot better than waiting 15 seconds to spool up. You’ll get taken out if you linger a few seconds too long. Makes it exciting! You need good shields in case they try to shiv you before you take off.

I was working one and took too long—I missed the cargo the first go around, costing me precious seconds. I got jumped by 3 ships. They took out my thrusters immediately, so I was screwed. Just before they took me out, the cops showed and took them out. Then they left me to die! LOL
Thrusters were at 0%, gone. I was about to self destruct, but I looked online for ideas, since I still had my salvage. Turns out that even at 0%, you can reboot your system...it’s just above self-destruct...then switch thrusters back on and you’ll get them back to 2%. I may have had to try twice. Good enough, I was moving again and took off to get repaired. FUN!

I’ve seen on some video somewhere that the Asp Ex is good for combat as long as you don’t get into a turning fight. Power out ahead, then turn for a head on pass..maybe even ram. I’m enjoying the Viper IV, but it’s not as tough as I’d hoped. The stats make it look fast and tough. I still might get the Cobra, just for the experience. Most parts should transfer.

On the lore, I was listening to a broadcast the other day that mentioned generation ships. Then I saw a video where people have found one dead in space with the story why in the logs. I’m looking forward to check8ng that out, but I haven’t gone out far yet. This one station keeps feeding me the good salvage missions.

Why have you started talking about salvage missions?

Also, when you say "pick up," do you do so manually? I don't think there's space for a collector limpet on a Viper?

RK's thread has actually gotten me to fire this up again. I only did so long enough to set up my stick and TIR, and fly the first training mission to see if everything worked. I also wanted to see how much money I've saved. Not as much as I had hoped If I do get back in to it I need a goal, and that means a ship, and that means money.

Whoa! there are new ships? What's a Chieftan? I have plenty of money for one of those. Anyone fly this thing? Is it even out?

http://elite-dangerous.wikia.com/wiki/Alliance_Chieftain

What other new ships are there? Why wasn't I informed of this?

I stumbled across them and they pay well! Fun too, nice tension to it being fast and making a quick getaway. Hostile ships watch for you. Get in a fight every now and then and pick up some bounties.
You scoop up one or two units of black boxes or canisters with the cargo scoop. They take up hardly any space. I stored one of my cargo holds in fact.

I need to find salvage missions
(never seeen one I think)

OMG Patch 3.0.2!
Get on the hype train!

*runs in circles out to kitchen and back*


/normal

In other news, my launcher froze when I clicked "upgrade" - God hates me, again.

The new ships were on the Beta branch of Elite... I wonder if the new upgrade means they're here?


How exactly do you "stumble" across one? And do they pay better than just the normal bounty-hunting in RES sites?

On the mission board. I was going to check out a gas giant as mentioned, figured I might as well do a courier run out there while I’m going. Saw a nice payday on a salvage, more than I was seeing on kills, so I took it. On the drop off, there was another for more money. As your standing with the faction and rep on go up, the bigger paydays they offer. You can take jobs well above your rank and most have little or no fine if you back out. Even when I got taken out with the cargo aboard, I was able to run it again. I just can’t turn them down! $200-350k per run now, and the one I just did offered an extra $150k per kill when the pirates show up. That would be better for a wing though, I’m lucky to survive sometimes, others I’m fast enough nothing happens. I’ve got my Viper pretty tough and fast now, just not terribly well armed, so I can out run them when they drop in on me. I did pick up 4 limpets to help snatch the containers. There are up to 3 now so it takes longer but the limpets keep it quick.
Feels like bootlegging. LOL
The station I’m doing this out of is also close to most of the runs, and the station is pretty close to where you jump into the system. It’s a good system and fun to run. They keep loading me up, I’ve got about 6 more runs already accepted, just need to run them. One system has had 3 runs in it I have accepted, but I’m wary of running with 3 loads at one time to do them all at once.
Most of these runs are near plenty of action and conflict zones, just get your kills before grabbing the cargo.

Good man

You fly in Open? Or Private Play?

LOL, get it working?

I had an issue for a while where I could not start the game from the launcher any more. So I had to start it from the exe in the ED folder. Eventually it started working again. I have several hundred hours in ED, but my Steam account shows 25 as a result.

Yes, got it working - weirdest update I've seen.
No progressbar and all frozen launcher but suddenly the big blue said "PLAY" instead of "UPDATE".

Got myself a salvage mission and they blew my Cobra to Smitherins!
Guess I need to check what wizard level my guns are, felt useless.

What weapons combo are you running?

I think my Cobra has 2 medium multi-cannon and 2 small pulse lasers, all gimballed.

Solo, the public usually ruins games for me. LOL



Yeah, when they jump in on you while picking up your cargo, it's usually 2-3 of them. Not much you can do, they go straight for your thrusters and weapons right off the bat to disable you. Keep an eye on the radar while picking things up. Don't wait to see if they're friendly--they won't be. Boost your way away from them ASAP and charge your supercruise without navigation. Just get out, you can set navigation for hyperspace once you're on the way. You don't want to wait for the 15 charge up, 5 is hard enough. Come back and get the cargo you missed. If you pick up 1 of 2 or 3, all 3 will likely be there, but you already have one, so you just need what you didn't get before. Better to jump out and come back than get taken out. They will likely follow you back in next time too, so be on the lookout.
I'm not sure what the range of the limpets is? Might be able to put that out and start to rabbit and have it catch up.

Limpet range is module-rating-dependent

I agree with you re: Open Play but it can be challenging sometimes.

Oden -- have you played over here yet? https://coriolis.edcd.io/
Test out some Cobra fits there and you'll be better informed hunting for the modules you want. Where can you buy XXX? This'll help! https://coriolis.edcd.io/

Hung out too long waiting on a 4th limpet pick up. Paid the price. I could practically smell that $500k and got cocky. LOL
Going to practice with spurts of flight assist off in dogfights to see if I can start fighting some off efficiently. I keep getting offers with big bounties for kills on these missions.

Just had the most scary mission so far.

Decided to try a mission to power down a settlement power grid as I imagined that would let me use my hotrod.. eh, SRV that is.

Two jumps to Aulin system and looking for a neighbourhood named Pribylov Settlement.
With no actual idea what I was up to I located the area on a dusty planet and went through the orbit and glide sequences and started to look for a good LZ.


(descending to target)

Jumped into my SRV and steered off towards the site trying to figure out what my HOTAS button would do, not really getting a grip how to control the guns (but I did notice I could switch lights on and off, very covfefe).

Going up the ramp of the site I started to look around but got stuck and what not (should have had a learner label on my rear) suddenly some frigging alarm sets off.
OK, did I do that?
Suddenly some probes/drones swishes by and shoots at me and what not!
Notice I get tagged as WANTED, oh yeah, this is going well.

Realizing I can't reach my target I drive off the bloody ramp again and circles the site, mind you most GUI is flashing red by now and the small buggers just wont stop shooting at me.

Screaming late era Swedish cuss words I finally find the power thing and tries to get my useless wepons on target.
In ha hail of lasers shot at me I manage to take it out and makes a run for life extraction worried my wheels will break long before I explode from the horrible drones continous fire.

Getting far enough out I notice the drones give up or something and now realise I have no idea where my sweet Cobra is hiding.
Using the view menues I find a button that seems to call my ship to my location and after a few scary seconds it comes roaring past over my head.
I turn 180 and look for it's LZ and soon I'm back in cockpit taking off with screaming tyres (you know, Hollywood style)

Realising I now must show up as WANTED where ever I go I totally panic all the way home to Fosters station where I picked up the mission.

Repeating "never again" some 439 times I return to station and manage to land without getting attacked.

Clicking myself into mission list eager to grab my reward I notice the "COMPLETE MISSION" button with a smile.



Being greedy (and not understanding the game mechanics) I choose the 197k reward.



Then I notice maybe I should stop visiting Aulin in future travels..





A truly heart-pouding experience.

Now, questions for you longtimers:

1. Am I now WANTED in general or just in Aulin or will it even drop off?
2. Can I power down settlements without getting into this mess, that is, did I do something I should not, or even possible, did I miss doing something at the site?

/scaredForLifeOden

Cool story, and they always are from you.

Not done this myself, but I'm a voracious reader, so let me disseminate some sketchy information.

As I understand it, you can complete these missions from your ship, with mines, or missiles with AoE effect.. You do not have to use the SRV, but surely there has to be something you can do with a SRV, so there ya go. I've never bought a SRV, but that's neither here nor there.

Your bounty should have an expiration timer on it, and I believe it only applies in that system anyway, and will become a fine you can settle when the timer is up. You have a few billion other systems to check out while it's cooling down. I also believe you can target the defenses first, to make the SRV run a little less perilous.

Dude, where's my car cracked me up. Interesting you can whistle for it like it's Roach or something

Haha yeah, felt a little Roy Rogers there

Good idea trying to disable it from air, was all focused on using the SRV so it never struck me.
Will stay clear of Aulin for a while but surely going back checking how they fell about me later.

I will try hoover the area next time (if I dare) and see if I can target the generator.

Tried another.
Rusch's Folly in 3006.



Overflew only to get a verbal warning so I extended and aimed in on the marker
Tried lasers/gatling guns/bad language/lasers again.
Nothing.



Jumped into my HotRod again and tried a few shots from distance.
Nothing.



Drove in and got up close and personal.
That did the trick.



Alarm was loud and angry already and I "drove like I stole it" right back to my Cobra, noticed it was marked with a green diamond so it wasn't really hard to find (when not fired at that is)



With a WANTED tag I made the terryfing trip back home (sweet home Foster's)



Grabbed another 180k and is less welcome at LHS 3006





Conclusion:
It seems one has to drive the SRV right into the mayhem and deliver - maybe just maybe one can target the generator from air shooting across the site as it seems to be protected with Tiger Tank armor on the "outside". Will give it a try next time but SRV seems to be required.

Soon to have 2 mil, not bad but as you guys said one million isn't really much.

That explosion shot is great.

Now that I think of it, it's possible that your bounty would extend to any system that shares the same controlling power, not just the system where the bounty was earned. So keep that in mind. Sketchy info, that's my specialty

A million isn't much, no, but it's more than less would be

For example, to A-rate your Cobra will probably cost around 10m give or take?

IIRC, you're wanted for as long as there's a bounty out, but then it turns into a fine after some time. Wait for that period, go back to a similarly-aligned system, dock on a station (or outpost, less guards!), pay your fine and you're done!

If you think that SRV mission was fun, try going back into a station before your oxygen timer runs out..... I'll let you figure that one out! I'm sure old-timers know this situation very well! Some lessons are best learned the hard way

Then there are those that make it back in time..... only to forget to ask for docking permission before going through the slot! They either die trying to get back out or run out of oxygen (and die) before they can get back into station.

Cool story! I'm going to have to try that. I haven't done any atmo missions yet, but I did run one SRV training lesson. Reminded me of Mass Effect 1 in the Mako.
1 mil is significant, it's just that it's SO EASY to spend that's the problem. LOL
I've waaay over-invested in my Viper, but I like it. LOL

Why the Viper? I must admit, I loved how the ship looks. The only problem with it was that the bigger hardpoints were UNDER the ship and so they had difficulty tracking targets that were maybe 10degrees above the waterline. Switched to the Cobra where the big hardpoints are up top....

About half the cost of the Cobra IV, more armor, more shields, faster. Short one hardpoint, but otherwise just seemed to have too many positives to ignore it. I haven't had any issue with the weapons, but then I'm not doing a lot of combat. Saving that for the Asp Explorer.
I was going to get a Cobra, but I don't think it would do what I'm doing as well.

Haha oh so true!

Gah, all this chatter from y’all is gonna make me fire E:D up again!
<s>

Can you post your fittings, RK? Would be nice to know.



You do know you're free NOT to read these threads, right, B?

The Viper is a great ship, especially since you can get one so early, and in my estimation it's just a matter of what sort of stuff you want to do in the game. I do believe however that it's the Cobra that has the better armor.

The Viper is considerably faster and has better shields. It's more maneuverable and is half the cost, as RK said. The Cobra has better armor, way more cargo space and better jump range. I seem to remember preferring the Viper's hardpoints,, but I can't remember really which has which.

Any ship in Elite can do virtually any sort of mission, but clearly some ships are more well-suited to some tasks than others. It's telling I think that at the stage I am, I have sold the Viper and kept the Cobra. But honestly, it was only once I had a Vulture that I felt comfortable selling the Viper. It is a really good bounty hunter, and I love that speed.

Welcome back Bo. I recall you and I were sort of in the same place progression-wise. What ship do you have your eye on? What's after your Vulture? I need a goal

Mission accomplished

Well played, sir. Well played!

I may be relying on 3rd party info too much, but it's helped me plan somewhat of a route for my game progression. I haven't had either Cobra to know from experience, but I wonder if the thrusters on the Viper IV are easier to hit for whatever reason? On the chart at https://www.alpha-orbital.com/elite-sct/ it's got more shields and armor, but there's no substitute for an easy target.
On that subject, I wish you could set up a default subsystem target to start with instead of having to scroll to drive or powerplant. I mapped to a button on the stick so I don't have to mess with menus, but it's still too slow.

Made a quick video walkthrough of the current build. I'm trying to resist putting more into it so I can work towards the Asp Ex.
I've used the multicanons, but they always seem to be empty or too slow to fire when I really want them, so I'm giving the frags a chance. Didn't like Missiles much either, too easy to avoid.

Don't get me wrong, I loved my time in the Viper and felt really bad-ass in it too, despite the complaints of the hardpoint location. However, when I stepped into a Cobra, there simply wasn't any going back to the Viper. The hardpoint location alone meant I was more effective in combat as my MCs can track better when it's as far forward as possible and on the top of my ship. It has a much bigger tracking area, basically, and thus greatly improves my lethality.

Here are three comparison builds:








As you can see, the Cobra is only 20m/s slower in normal speed but is faster in boost speed by 30m/s. It's got better jump range and overall jump distance (travel distance?). Damage output is the same but with the weapons layout, I'm more able to apply pressure to the target. The surprising thing is that the Viper has better shields at 214MJ considering it's **only** a 3A shield gen but I guess that's the boost that combat ships get over multi-purpose ships like the Cobra.

Comparing the Viper Mk III vs. the Viper Mk IV, the Mk IV is slower by 34m/s - 39m/s, has better jump range and distance, but the same damage output as before.

If cost is a factor, can you not sell back modules for basically 100% your purchase price? Or have they fixed that? Last I checked, you only lose money when selling back a ship (around 10% loss IIRC??), module buy-back was 100% of the module value, no depreciation at all. However, the Viper fit is only 2.8M, the Viper Mk IV is 7.5M, and the Cobra fit is actually cheaper at 7.4M!

Pity the site doesn't list the maneuverability of the ship, that could be a good factor to consider.



Just to be clear, I'm not dissing the Viper or RK's choice of flying the Viper Mk IV and no offense is intended to anyone. I'd like to discuss the pros and cons of each ship objectively and would welcome discussion in this are. Sorry guys, just have to make that clear. It seems like my posting style (or perhaps my reputation??) is prone to a negative tone when being read by others

It does look like the Viper Mk IV has the potential to be versatile as well, with only a 1.2LY max jump range difference so this thing does have legs which most combat ships don't. Freakin' FDL only has 13LY jump range!! GRRR!!! Anyway, the additional (restricted) hardpoint means it has one more slot compared to the Cobra and thus can be as versatile as a Cobra but with better ability to withstand combat. However, RK said he wasn't doing much combat yet so maybe at this point, the Cobra can actually offer him a better experience?

When RK originally posted, especially when he talked about cost and speed, I thought he was referring to the Viper Mk III, not the Mk IV but his video shows a 4C fuel tank and a two size-4 slots, so definitely a Mk IV.


*side note --- I'm quite sure 4A multi-cannons did not exist when I stopped playing, but they are there now! I want to try out this weapon!!*

No problem, I know where you're coming from. I think the difference is just how you use it and how soon you want to buy it.
Yes, it's a Mk IV.
I'm jumping up to 20ly I think, but none of my runs are more than 12-13 for now. I'm still cashing in on these missions. They've gotten almost dull now, I've gotten pretty fast with it.

I've got the Viper, which I'll keep but strip, and the cash for the Asp Explorer now. Considering combat isn't my main objective, it seems like a better bet than a Vulture. I'd really like to try out a Python as soon as I can.
Wouldn't hurt the game to have more ships in each price range.

Thanks! Just had to throw that out to be sure

I think we just have the right number of ships. More ships without clear roles or advantages would just be junk/noise or just flying the same ship in a different skin. Look at the Cobra Mk IV --- was a greatly-hyped ship but was a letdown as it was worse than a Cobra Mk III so it essentially sits there unused and unloved (note - this was from when I last played, maybe they've buffed it now?)

Considering the stats above, would you not consider the Cobra? Better speed and boost speed, better jump range, but at the expense of weaker shields.... but with the advantage of better hardpoint placement. I do hope you try the Cobra sometime and see how hardpoint placement can be such an important factor in ship selection

As for the AspE, well, there's really nothing to say. It's one of my staple ships! Only annoying when I find a trade run that's good then I find out my trade ship can't make the same jumps

I’ve had more use for shields than firepower. Many times it was the difference between life and death.
Got the Asp, but from what I’m reading, the Viper sounds like fun too. Might get one of those and sell whats left of the Viper.

This gets me thinking, being as usless as I am dogfighting I really could use those shields.
I still think Cobra is the better overall ship but yeah, I could need some extra shields

Very fair point. Better shields and better hull integrity = better survivability as you run away.

Maybe I could argue that you won't need as much if you were in a Cobra, much faster and boosting away? Then again, the difference might not warrant the transfer to the Cobra.



I think you meant Cobra?

Nope, I got an Asp Explorer yesterday. Going to be expensive, but maybe it will open some doors for bigger pay days.
I'm curious about the Vulture. Not sold on the Cobra.
As for speed, the Viper IV is plenty fast, I can get away. It's surviving the initial onslaught where they target your thrusters that demands attention.
Weaponwise, I was set on the Viper, the shortfall was my own due to lack of dogfighting skills. I'm still working on the turns using the flight assist toggle. Certainly better than before.
It's a lot harder to deal with getting jumped from behind than it is to square up on someone and decide to attack from behind. WIth no horizon it's hard to keep oriented.

With the Asp I've got room to stack shield boosters if I move things around a bit. Should be a tough ship. I'm experimenting with a couple of turrets set to auto attack to cover me some while doing pick ups. Haven't had the chance to try it out yet though.
I set them on the same trigger as the collection limpets, so when they're out these things are at the ready.

AspX and Vulture is my combo. Frankly, I'd say that now that you have the AspX, and a great choice it is, it may make sense to go for the Vulture rather than a Cobra. AspX is a better mission runner, and the Vulture a better dogfighter than the Cobra can be.The Cobra Mk III is a great ship, I still have one, but it's as though you've already moved past that tier when you bought the AspX.

Of course you may want a Cobra for less pragmatic reasons, no harm in that. But the Vulture/AspX is a great fleet for mid game that can do anything you want to do.

I see. It's just that you said you thought the Viper was fun, so you were thinking of selling your Viper



Nope. The weapons on the Asp Explorer are all on the front, with very limited top/down/back visibility, so even with turrets, you can only really engage your forward cone. Might be best to go gimballed.

But dear Lord, the short legs on that thing! Luckily, you can pay now to take that pain away, but I remember having to do 17 jumps to travel the same distance it took other ships 3 jumps!

Yep, it's true. But that's part of it's charm, innit?

All I use it for is bounty hunting. So as long as I keep it stashed at a station with some nearby RES sites, the jump range isn't an issue. But if I want to take it to a CG, then the jump range becomes an, err, inconvenience. Of course I can always fly there in a different ship and pay for it to be brought over.

Just flew my first missions in half a year. Ran some rich tourist transports in the Asp X. Still a bit rusty, remembering what is assigned to what on the stick and so forth. But I managed to do a few with no issues, earned a couple mil toward whatever is next. I said earlier that my Asp X JR is around 34, but it's 26, at least as currently configured, with the 6E economy class passenger cabin and all the bits and bobs.

If I get a Vulture it will be just for some combat fun, maybe give working for the Feds a shot? The Asp should be the money maker/main ride. Once I get it upgraded I may try to learn about exploring for money, or those passenger missions DBond mentioned. Still having fun with the game, but I need to mix things up or it’s going to get dull.
X3 is still set up and waiting, calling my name, but the grind here has me. Must aquire stuff!

Yeah.... until your target makes an 18LY jump leaving you twiddling your thumbs!! Hahaha!
(I'm referring to an intelligent target, not AI )



IIRC, some people have even resorted to building a whole new ship near the CG area, then pay to have it flown to the CG. Saves more depending on the initial travel distance. God, I feel sorry for the guy who has to ferry the ship over! It has to be a guy, right? The AI is too stupid for this, judging by how many times I need to intervene during docking



Passenger missions were supposed to be a thing, with them preferring the passenger ships as opposed to just a big hold with some seats in it I wonder if anyone here has tried it?



I like the grind in X3 better as the BGS is better. I like the fact that stations MUST be supplied with raw materials either by you or by AI traders, otherwise they'd produce nothing. Very interesting if you want a certain missile or laser and find out that the local factory does not produce any due to lack of raw materials. It then becomes a quest onto itself to get the factory back up and running. Such a scenario does not exist in Elite

As for Asp making money, depends on what you're doing, really. Outside of combat, the Asp is versatile enough that you can do trading, mining, cargo transport, etc.

I heard that. Same thing happened to me. Was having fun then suddenly I realized I wasn't. The 6 month layoff helps to cool the burnout. The passenger missions are different, yes, but I fear won't do much to keep it interesting, Just fly from A to B and collect your space ducats. But they can pay well. I accept a transport, then head to the missions board to see if any are to the same place, and can usually tack on some data deliveries or a cargo mission. If I am not being completely lazy I might check the imports for the destination and see if that can be bought where I am.

I am 'Broker' level and the missions I took today paid 190k, 1.5m and 260k. None were more than 13 light years, so it's a single jump and get your cash.

And make sure to read the fine print on the transport missions. A demanding passenger may ask you to make a few stops along the way. You get more money if you do them, but less than the original price if you do not.

Wanted passengers are a big risk. Some passengers are secretive and don't like being scanned Some are scared and don't like taking hull damage. That sort of thing.

I don't know, seems a good gig to me. Like a job where you drive rich people's Ferraris or Bugattis to them after they've flown to their summer house. You get to fly the best ships, and get paid! Not a bad gig at all.




Yeah, Beluga, Dolphin and Orca, right? These are the only ships that can install a Luxury cabin. Otherwise, there is no specialization of the passenger category.

I flew a few more transport and cargo hops last night, earned a little more cash. But I still have no idea of what I am working toward.

One of my goals from the start was to earn entry to Sol, but my Fed rank is progressing slowly. Another thing I wanted to do was discover a system, but I have no idea the best way to go a bout it, or how far I'd need to travel, or in which direction, or if it's even possible for me. I've made some very long trips in this game, but never close to anything that might be considered a frontier, with unexplored space beyond.

What sort of goals are you guys working on?

Trader rank of Elite is one goal. I think I'm on the next tier down. But this goal was just a result of the original goal which was to get a Python. When I started the game, that was my target ship and felt good when I finally had it, but then I wanted to A-rate it which meant more money, so sold it for a Type-9 IIRC and stayed there for a good while grinding credits until the Anaconda proved to be a better trading ship. Sold the Type-9 for that. Grind again. Sometime later, they introduced the Fed Corvette and Imp Cutter. Guess who wanted one? Me.

The grind to get Imperial ranking was different; I just used the chuck-money-at-it route which due to my trading, I had loads of. Eventually got enough rank and cash for the Cutter but I knew I wasn't going to fly it very much so grind some more so that I wouldn't have to sell the Anaconda, but I think I sold it eventually; I don't have the Anaconda on my hangar. Around the time I stopped playing, all I needed was my Asp Explorer anyway to do the Robigo runs.

I did plan to have a stable of A-rated ships that I like, so that'll be a Cobra and Python at least. Maybe an Anaconda too. I'm not sure what to do with my Cutter, feels like a white elephant at the moment.



I never really played the game outside of testing a few bits, joined a couple of CGs, but that's it. Don't find anything in the SRV interesting, although I've tried a couple of surface missions. I like flying spaceships.