What have you been up to in Elite?

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SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

Pretty slim pickings this morning in the Thos.Cook travel dept. Several jobs to the same system but all to different stations within the system ... not good if you don't like messing about.

There is one little enigma though ... the high paying gigs in the Bhotega system region are three ports:

1. Moros system 40,000 Ls to port
2. Aktzin system 40,000 Ls to port
3. LHS 1065 system Freycinet port 80,000 Ls

The first two are half the distance of the third, obviously ... but take twice as long to reach! 2 X 10 mins as opposed to 5 mins to Freycinet. Confused

Then it dawned on my thick skull ... the ship can reach insanely higher speeds the longer the trip to a port. And it has much more distance to slow down ... space mechanics being what they are you only accelerate to the halfway point going A - B before you have to stamp on the brake pedal. Shorter jumps reach much slower maximum speeds. Hence the time discrepancy.

PS. Don't try this if you're thinking of heading to Katzenstein Dock unless you have a very high boredom threshold. The payouts are brilliant. But then they should be for having to suffer 45 mins of thumb twiddling. 0.14 Ly doesn't sound too bad on paper.....

I only use the cruise assist to line up the port then floor the accelerator until 7 - 800 Ls from target then drop speed back to SC. Much quicker than allowing the CA to do the work. Driving

SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

I've finally bit the bullet and bid a fond farewell to my DBX. Undecided

It has served its purpose admirably and the jump range is marvellous... but,

The limitations become obvious (as with every ship) over time. So I've traded it in for a Fed Dropship and A rated it up as far as possible and engineered the FSD for triple the jump range.

I may buy another and load it up for mining (I'm too bone idle to mess around chopping and changing modules) ... unless I get bored with it again and decide to flog it. Big grin

Sinxar

Sinxar avatar
Level badge Cruguey (18)
Posted 4 years ago.

Aww poor DBX.

What was wrong with it? I don't recall what I use as a taxi (I think just an engineered hauler). Was it the lack of slots?

SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

Basically yes Sinx. The Fed Drop has a lot more to go at. I've engineered the FSD and now get a quite reasonable 20 Ly jump out of it as opposed to the standard 6/7. Those Mat traders are a bunch of robbing buggers BTW! All stripped down to the bare essentials to make it lighter and faster. And it carries more armament up front as I've A'd the power plant and most everything else.

I did use an AspX for long enough but again the power plant wasn't up to the job.

BTW When the hell are Fed Dev going to get their fingers out and give us an SRV that's fit for purpose. I got stuck on a rock today and no way could I get it to move so have to self-destruct. Anything over a 20 deg. gradient and the stupid thing comes to a grinding halt. And only able to cart two canisters? A pile of junk.

KikiPitts

KikiPitts avatar
Level badge Stickguey (8)
Posted 4 years ago.

WaveHey, guys, thanks for the info on engineers...I have core mined up to 1.75B so I think I can live off that for a while. LOL

If you guys want to know where to go to clean up on core mining let me know. I found ice rings near a station with highest payouts...no problem sharing with anyone interested. You can easily make 10-30M credits in an hour...so, even if you don't like it, you can finance that next ship quickly. [If you know how to core mine. Plenty of videos on that.] But be glad to share what I know.


I love my Python, Kiki Pitts VII. I have pushed ice asteroids out of the way with her and no damage to her hull, but - in combat she gets killed way too easy, so engineers here I come!

I have never transported anyone, so it would be for the experience and to see another facet of ED. I think I have gotten into a rut.

Another thing I am totally ignorant of is alliances, i.e. belonging to some ED "group" or "nation." I cannot deal with the politics of a real country, like our US right now, much less a fictional one. LOL

Guess what I am saying is that I am open to new experiences that really are interesting in ED. All recommendations listened to.

Make a fantastic day! (And a better night!!)

KP


coloured textCommander Kiki Pittscoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured text
SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

Forget alliances ... I've gone back independent.

Another milestone passed today ... Just call me 'Master' Big grin

SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

Passenger Missions 101 for KP (I'll try and put in as much as I can remember being somewhat addled and chronologically challenged!)

1. Ship. ORCA! Forget the Beluga it's a brick. The Dolphin, though a nice ship, is a little too small to make a fast buck. And the Orca is beautiful to look at. My son said 'Dad! You're flying a boat!' ... so I named it ''Das Boot'' Big grin

2. Fit 3 X Passenger modules 2 X First-class 6 slots and 1 X first-class 12 slot. These are all you will need. Forget Luxury as the requirement is rarer than rocking horse shit. First class covers 99.999999% requirements and somebody wanting only 3rd class or business class isn't going to moan if you dump them in First are they?

3. Forget weapons, not needed. I don't have shields or shield boosters either to save weight and hence a longer jump range. Otherwise, A-Rate all other modules, Power Plant, FSD etc. The Orca can shift like sh1t off a stick anyway, on a par speedwise with the Mamba. I am nonplussed that most seem to ignore the Orca as it is quite capable of many roles and certainly more than able to defend itself if fitted out correctly. You will be interdicted during missions, that is a given, but... ALWAYS SUBMIT TO INTERDICTION ... Dur? you may well ask ... as soon as interdiction commences throttle back to ZERO (Again ... Dur?) When you drop out of supercruise immediately hit the gas to max and start jumping (4 Pips to Engineering and 2 to Systems ... you won't need any pips on the weapons as you won't have any) As soon as your FSD comes back on line start the jump to the target station again ... the interdictor ship's FSD will take far longer than yours to come back online and he won't be able to follow.

4. Docking and supercruise assist are a must if you've got snail-like reactions (as I have!) Supercruise is handy as it stops you crashing into stars! and will auto line you up for the target station (Speed must be in the blue for it to activate) Once lined up ... put the gas pedal to the floor unless it's a short jump to the target in which case leave it in supercruise assist mode and this will do the biz and drop you at the station all by itself. On the longer-range missions throttle back to the blue at about 800 LS from the target station and supercruise assist will kick back in. You still have to request docking permission of course.

5. Which missions to pick?

Sightseeing ... forget it! They're a real pain in the arse and they're usually a major-league camel hike to the destination ... AND YOU HAVE TO BRING THEM BACK TOO before you get paid. I've only ever done one (shortish) sightseeing mission and that totally did my head in. Some sound quite benign 'Passenger wishes to visit Rings of Pluto + 1 more 24Ly 1,000,000 credits' It's the '+ 1 more' that's the killer as it will be yet another camel hike in the wilderness. And back!

a. Stick with ordinary transport missions to a particular system/station where you get paid at the destination. Never try to mix destinations ... this way lies madness as you'll end up chasing your tail in ever-decreasing circles. STICK TO ONE DESTINATION IN ONE SYSTEM.

b. Some systems have more than one station and you will be offered missions to multiple stations within that system. Forget it. Try and pick missions that ALL GO TO THE SAME STATION. even if they're lower value credits. This may sound dumb but you'll see what I mean as you get more adept at picking missions from the pot. This morning I took three missions to one port from three different factions and scooped 10 million for the one mission to the one station. Not bad for ten minutes work! The highest reward I ever claimed was three separate missions to one port ... 40 million! (But it was the Katzenstein grind ... a 40 minute schlep due to the distance from the system star to the docking port 0.14 LY!) The shortest I ever did was 9 LS from the star! Inevitably I did the loop of shame!
If there is nothing worthwhile at a destination station i.e. nothing that offers more than a million creds ... the exception being if you can take three missions at say 750,000 credits to one station of course, the ship isn't bothered if it's filled to max capacity, go back to your home port and start again. I recommend Savitskaya Ring in the BHOTEGA system as a home port ... as it isn't far from the system star and it's High Security and there are (at least) 3 systems nearby which offer high rewards for missions, Moros, Aktzin and LHS 1065 ... not that there isn't plenty to be made at other nearby systems of course.

c. Missions have 3 options for rewards ... the higher your faction reputation ... the bigger the rewards of course. So ... at the outset always choose rewards that give higher reputation. i.e. You may be offered 1,000,000 credits with only '+' increase in rep ... Go for the one that offers '200,000 credits and +++++ reputation' and you'll soon be heading for the big paydays as you become ultimately allied with every faction at a system/station. Some missions offer materials as rewards ... some of which are necessary for engineering. Some offer '+++++ influence' Don't bother with that.

d. Which passengers to choose?

ALWAYS CHECK CAREFULLY THE SCRIPT OF THE MISSION. ANYTHING IN RED IS AN OBVIOUS WARNING TO AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE and is easily missed if you rush it. ''Passengers may be wanted'... they inevitably will be and you may end up getting sorted by the Federales or end up in Sheriff Joe Arpaio's tent city keeping your back to the wall!
Also avoid 'Secretive/hunted/wanted/does not like being scanned' and definitely those which say 'Criminal' You'll end up getting blown up by your own Security forces! ... unless of course you are an expert at silent running ... I'm not ... I tend to damage/blow up the ship!

e. 'Missions within a mission' ... Passengers will demand various things en route ... Visit tourist beacon, Obtain consumer goods (Why the hell they'd want a fridge on a flight is a mystery), Visit conflict zone ... Don't bother, ignore them (UNLESS THEY'RE OFFERING Megacredits ... which they never do. They will offer you something like 30,000 credits for what is in effect a completely separate mission!)

You may lose a few missions by the passenger cancelling because they're pissed off that you take no notice of them (The Scum!)... but it's worth it in the long run.

A lot to take in at once KP ... but I hope it goes some way to setting you on your way to a career in the travel industry Wink XX

BTW On arrival at any station ALWAYS refuel, restock if necessary and get ship integrity back to 100% in advanced maintenance BEFORE you offload the passengers. Then log into the Passenger lounge. Those factions who you are delivering the stiffs to will have a red '!' at the RHS and they will be at the top of the list.

Don't do what I used to do and arrive at your next destination with a load of irate passengers that you should have dumped at the previous station because you didn't pay attention! ;o)

You will also need to watch the planetary landing you tube vids as some passenger missions require it. It's a bit daunting at first but practice makes perfect as they say (Though I still manage to screw it up totally on the odd occasions)




Bazr

Bazr avatar
Level badge Proguey (12)
Posted 4 years ago.

good post SD! Smile

KikiPitts

KikiPitts avatar
Level badge Stickguey (8)
Posted 4 years ago.

Wow! Awesome guidance. I notice you are hanging in Bhotega all the time. DONE! Went to Diaguandria at 15% off, so will outfit it this weekend and see you in Bhotega!

Wait til you see the new Kiki Pitts VIII ! She will be a doll!

coloured textCommander Kiki Pittscoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured text
SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

A doll? Kiki Pitts,Kiki Pitts, Don't show off your naughty bits!

I specialize in doggerel verse.....

See you in Bhotega Big grin

KikiPitts

KikiPitts avatar
Level badge Stickguey (8)
Posted 4 years ago.

My bits find mitts when drinking Schlitz.

Backatcha...

Is there a good reason to join a group? I mean it seems we have one here almost. I was thinking that to be online at the same time would be a thrill but who has the flexible schedule to make that happen often? So, how about a group that can link up live but also have things to do for/with the group asynchronously. Or are we all loners out here in cold space.

Or maybe what we are doing here, just by staying in touch and sharing/offering advice is enough.

Dunno. Just asking.

I have learned a LOT from you guys and appreciate it.

KP

coloured textCommander Kiki Pittscoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured text
SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

It would be nice to meet everyone in game KP but ... not everyone shares BST!

Schlitz? Wouldn't wash my socks in it! Timothy Taylor's Boltmaker or Landlord IPA every time! Beer


KikiPitts

KikiPitts avatar
Level badge Stickguey (8)
Posted 4 years ago.

Okay! Am at Savitskaya Ring in Bhotega.

Was able to get the 3 compartments - all 1st class: 1 - 12 and 2 - 3 for total of 18 1st class. Think I read you right. Notice missions are asking for more space than 18. however.

Upgraded fuel scoop and shield generators
FSD, Thrusters, etc all top of line as can go.

I notice two planets have icy rings so maybe should bring Kiki Pitts VII Python here to do some mining when needed!

Thanks for help...maybe we can meet up outside Savitskaya Ring for looksee at each other ;-)

Grateful KP!


coloured textCommander Kiki Pittscoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured text
SKYDOG1

SKYDOG1 avatar
Level badge Markoguey (10)
Posted 4 years ago.

Hint: First do missions for the Controlling faction (It tells you who they are underneath their title) in the stations and take the ones that give Five +++++ on reputation regardless of reward. Rep is everything! Once you increase from 'neutral' to 'allied' you'll get the cream of the crop in the passenger (and other missions) dept. Don't worry, being 'allied' doesn't place any onus on you to keep them happy. I think a better term would have been 'Most favoured'

In Bhotega it's the Bhotega Labour faction ruling the roost. Hopefully, our UK Parliament will NOT end up with Labour as the controlling faction.

UK leftie hatemail (and I get lots of it from lefties being as they consider anyone to the right of Marx as right wing extremists, and myself therefore being a hated right-wing, nazi fascist-extremist, racist, bigot, nazi. Yawn!) ... Leftie hatemail, usual address please. :p

I'll keep an eye out for you in the area.

KikiPitts

KikiPitts avatar
Level badge Stickguey (8)
Posted 4 years ago.

Beer BricksYes, yes, we are having gobs of that crap here in the US. Yawn is about right. The key word is devisiveness and our president is the best at following Old Julie's advice on "Divide and conquer" so he has roiled people up here so that we are not just divided we are rabid about it. It is 6th grade playground...and beneath all of us - well, obviously not.

My point, then will get off my soapbox: We are all different, even identical twins aren't. So how far are you going to take this? The ultimate would be, "Hey, your fingerprints are different than mine! Die, Scum!!" 'Getting along' feelings good in the gut, so I feel pretty sure that is what our nature wants us to do. It is why fiction always has dramatic polar opposites of good vs. evil, innocent vs. bully, etc. because it is so different from our true nature we feel entertained by it. Unfortunately our President still thinks he is on a reality show, situated on a Monopoly board, where he can just buy Greenland on a whim. Or whip China into shape with tariffs that hurt most everyone, except the President. Bricks

(LOL: I am not familiar with UK politics but I have watched a lot of BBC mysteries. My wife and I are great fans of Vera, Foyle's War, Whitechapel, and Luther, etc.)

But it is all about hurting vs. helping people is it not? And not always very clear as to who is being helped and who is being hurt?

As George Gently says, "Can we all just get along here?" Beer

~..~

Again, thanks for the advice, Skydog. It has been invaluable. And if you ever want to make a quick 100M let me know and I will reciprocate with help on core mining.

~..~

Do you know if the icy rings around your solar system in Bhotega are rich in ores or not?

Is the Nav Beacon full of action in Bhotega?

If so, I will import Kiki Pitts VII Python and settle into Bhotega for a bit.

ONE MORE question: Where is the nearest station I could visit and upgrade my Orca to 5A levels?

Space out, Commander!

KP

coloured textCommander Kiki Pittscoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured textcoloured text
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