Balance Hourly Rates - Exploring needs a huge % Uplift on body values

[Leviathan]

I returned yesterday from a Exploration trip and I have to say:

Yes, trading is better credit / hour

but it is extremly boring ( for me ) and I actually did get a fair amount of credits for my effort ( but not comparable to trading / hunting )


I went out to visit "Rigel", then I went further into the Witchhead Nebula, Horsehead and all Nebulae near it.

On my return I visited the Hind Nebula, Betelgeuse and the Black Hole in Maia.

The trip gave me ca. 1.5 Mio Credits


I have to say though I did not scan many Planets, what I did was:

Arrive in System - do an advanced scan - scan the primary sun and have a look at the system map for earthlike planets or planets with athmosphere

and if there are any I go and scan those if not I move on.

I am not exactly sure but those quick systems ( advanced scan + primary ) seemed to give me between 4k and 17k which adds up after a while


I still hope for a new system where the first one to scan a system should get a bonus and a system view mention like "Discovered by Nutter"

This would also show other CMDRs if a system has been scaned before

 

[Brakespear]

Exploring does not need any more cash incentive. If you're exploring purely for the money, you're doing it wrong.

As a new player (as in, someone who has only been playing since release), I have made about 300,000 from aimlessly wandering and selling some data along the way. I'm in my Freagle, which I have now upgraded to a 16.something LY jump range. My "wear and tear" bills are pretty much nonexistent, even after a long journey.


Most importantly, I've seen things like this:

And that's the real purpose of exploration. In other games, exploration is often an afterthought with no tangible rewards. And while I would love to see greater exploration tools, and more interaction with those tools (scanning gets a bit boring), the fact that I have earned hundreds of thousands from simply flying around and admiring the view is fantastic.

Exploring isn't the pastime of the rich. It's the pastime of those with a sense of wonder. It's also a good way to make some money on the side, while doing other things.

 

[Jordan Cobalt]

Mining seems a little high, I've never made anything close to 400k/hour.

Also you forgot piracy, I usually make 100k/hour sometimes more sometimes less.

 

[bobilon]

i think tthat prices of exploring are just fair. perhaps other rewards are highly overcharged? i dont think that its ok to earn enough credits to buy biggest ship in the game in a week or two. people starts to be bored, when they dont have something to grind for, especially now when there is not so much content.

You should also mind that we should expect some higher levels of scans, which may be paid way better.

 

[WalterHWhite]

Exploring can be more than 50k/h if you're selective about which systems and objects you scan. Definitely more like 100-150k/h

 

[louks]

Exploration missions? Heck yeah. Don't mind the pay per se though (would do them even with current pricing, just 'cause).

I can certainly see how "preliminary" scans of systems (that we do now) could lead to a "detailed" scanning mission to determine habitation viability prior to sending an Orbis Station out for assembly and colonization...

I think it's a great way to inject Commander involvement into the expansion of the galaxy: returning mineral samples from asteroid belts and planets (after planetary mining starts); and creating an "Advanced Detailed Surface Scanner" to physically map planets by doing orbits (kinda filling a meter like you would with fuel scooping, but worth more money).

I really need to go back to the DDA and see what's been suggested...

 

[Korenwolf]

I'm on my way back from a 12,000ly + round trip and I know before I do anything else I will need to spend 330,000 credits on repairs.

The trip has taken a week and I'm still 3,000ly out. I'm hoping to collect around 3,000,000 (Before repairs) for a lot of scanning effort

Interested in those numbers, I'm just back from a trip down to Barnards loop and back (via various other points of interest), ~2500Ly in total. Which netted me (after repairs, reload of the auto-repair module and some fuel from where I was lazy on the last scoop) ~1.8M cr. Just comparing travel distance I would have expected your trip to net a much higher value.

On the main point (should the 'hourly rate' be buffed) I'm in two minds, this comes back to the problem which plagues all such games where we measure "progress" by the stack of credits / gold / purples etc etc. I could have made more by keeping the T6 and rolling back and forth on a selection of trade routes, however I don't feel that I've lost out at all by taking a trip 'down south' (I'm considering following the grid lines from sol to the rim as 'south'). I am planning on spending some time back in human space flying my space truck to build up some more funds (working to that shiny shiny orca) before I head out again into the wild black yonder.

 

[kamenjar]

Don't forget that turning in results will also take forever. I'm guessing when I come back (still 10k LY out from 15k out), i'll have about 2000 systems to turn in. gotta set a day aside for that.

 

[Brakespear]

Don't forget that turning in results will also take forever. I'm guessing when I come back (still 10k LY out from 15k out), i'll have about 2000 systems to turn in. gotta set a day aside for that.

That is one thing I would like to be overhauled really quickly.

There needs to be a "sell all" option. I mean, it's not like data prices vary with distance - either you can sell it, or you can't.

 

[NeilF]

EDIT: I've created a dedicated thread for this sort of list now - https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=95448&p=1486954

Exploring does not need any more cash incentive. If you're exploring purely for the money, you're doing it wrong.

The problem is, the game isn't really rewarding enough in the area you're talking about IMHO.

If you spend the next X months exploring, you know you'll see nothing else other than versions/varieties of what you've already seen. You know you'll not encounter a single thing that you were not really expecting.

Where are:-
- Civilisation lights on the dark sides of planets/moons.
- Aurora borealis.
- Huge electrical storms on planets.
- Moons with huge geysers leaving ice partical trails behind them.
- Military bases you're not allowed to get too close to, and they sometimes do huge weapons tests!
- Comets (scan them for CR).
- Distress signals maybe go and help another ship (even just to give them some fuel?)
- Wrecks to at least look around (possibly some even have abandoned cargo you can pick up).
- Odd huge asteroids with tunnels into their interiors (maybe even markings/glowing crystals inside)?
- Generation Ships (from the original Elite) to at least encounter.
- Missions based on exploration (eg: find a military base on a moon in system X and scan it.)
- Lots and lots more special rare such things!

In short, exploration is missing the entire feeling of "just maybe"... Instead at the moment, you know pretty much exactly what is around every corner.

 

[Kayweg]

This is NOT a troll bait post either. (i don't think anyone would have had suspected you for that anyway, nutter).

I believe we should be careful not to boil every single game activity down to cr/hour, in my opinion that's the wrong definition of "balancing", and don't many of us argue that ED is not a linear progression gold grind like so many other games out there ?

Exploration (like other activities in game) is a skill based activity. It's about what you scan more than about how many you scan, i'm sure all the experienced explorers in here know that.

Knowing what you're doing, and applying that knowledge.

This may be a bad analogy, but if cr/hour was all that ever drove us, Columbus may never have left port.

 

[Fieldy]

Exploring is certainly not just making money, its about shooting off into the unknown. I'm sure it wasn't initially profitable for Dr Livingstone or any other intrepid explorer..

whats the obsession with credits??

 

[Egan]

Ok here are the very broad average hourly (game time) rates paid by the professions I have tried.

Trading 1,300,000 Per Hour
Bounty 500,000 Per Hour
Missions 500,000 Per Hour
Mining 400,000 Per Hour
Exploring 40,000 Per Hour

This is NOT a troll bait post, the numbers speak for themselves..

I'm on my way back from a 12,000ly + round trip and I know before I do anything else I will need to spend 330,000 credits on repairs.

The trip has taken a week and I'm still 3,000ly out. I'm hoping to collect around 3,000,000 (Before repairs) for a lot of scanning effort.

Everyone talks about balance, I love exploring but I need some upgrades, so I think I will have to start trading. Is this by design? As in - Exploring is a pastime of the rich?

Would anyone form FD like to comment?

Thanks

Nutter

I think that the value of rare objects should be massively increased. I mean tripled at least, and then doubled and then tripled some more... Finding an earth like world, for example, should pretty much pay for your expedition. Likewise, things like pristine metallic rings should make you a killing: In fact, anything that has a viable economic value should pay out more. I would extend this to curiosities - particularly large, or bright, or dense stars, black holes, neutron stars etc.......there is also a need for lucrative exploration missions, perhaps even a way to sell the data to more than one faction..(eg: directly to the Empire or the Feds rather than universal Carto. Actually, I would say that selling to the factions should be more lucrative but should come with the possibility of neg rep with others...)

 

[Lodorenos]

I would love to see improvements to the exploration aspect of the game. So far, most people who explore don't do it for the money at all, but more for fun and of course getting their exploration rank up. I'm a Pathfinder in exploring, and I've had several thoughts on how it could be made even more awesome. The idea of missions is a new one, but I'll add it to the list as well.

1. More CR gained in general! I've visted 1200 systems and gained 6.2m CR. I was trading up to my kitted ASP, easily making 1.25m per hour, it's extremely unbalanced.
2. Add in that level 2/3 scanner, we all have "0" for our stats.
3. Be able to view a "roadmap" of the trip, including stats such as total LY traveled and being able to see/save your path as not only a visual map but also a text based list of locations.
4. Missions! I'd love to embark on a tour to find water worlds for the Empire, great idea!
5. A bonus for "fully" explored systems. Skipped over that single icy planet? No 25% bonus for you!
6. "Found by CMDR Whatever". The more we explore, the further we go, the more systems we have in our name. Make competitions, first player to 5,000 new (fully?) explored systems gets a 250m CR prize or some special "One Small Step" decal.
7. Exploratory in game chat room. Galaxy wide, made for those who like the dark and emptiness, but would like some form of companionship.
8. Co-Op exploration made easier.
9. A scanner loading bar, such as on a cargo scanner or the K-warrant scanner.

Edit:
10. Sell all button!

 

[BLACKHOUND]

I think this would be solved by including "exploration missions" on the bulletin board with variable payouts. E.g., "We are willing to pay for data on earth-like worlds that are more than 400LY away. How does $100k each sound? No limit." Or metallic worlds. Or T Tauri stars. Etc. Add a time limit to make it extra challenging. Or tier it so if you do it within X amount of time, you get bonus money.

good idea.

I'm sure FD will also balance stuff.

 

[Fieldy]

I would love to see improvements to the exploration aspect of the game. So far, most people who explore don't do it for the money at all, but more for fun and of course getting their exploration rank up. I'm a Pathfinder in exploring, and I've had several thoughts on how it could be made even more awesome. The idea of missions is a new one, but I'll add it to the list as well.

1. More CR gained in general! I've visted 1200 systems and gained 6.2m CR. I was trading up to my kitted ASP, easily making 1.25m per hour, it's extremely unbalanced.
2. Add in that level 2/3 scanner, we all have "0" for our stats.
3. Be able to view a "roadmap" of the trip, including stats such as total LY traveled and being able to see/save your path as not only a visual map but also a text based list of locations.
4. Missions! I'd love to embark on a tour to find water worlds for the Empire, great idea!
5. A bonus for "fully" explored systems. Skipped over that single icy planet? No 25% bonus for you!
6. "Found by CMDR Whatever". The more we explore, the further we go, the more systems we have in our name. Make competitions, first player to 5,000 new (fully?) explored systems gets a 250m CR prize or some special "One Small Step" decal.
7. Exploratory in game chat room. Galaxy wide, made for those who like the dark and emptiness, but would like some form of companionship.
8. Co-Op exploration made easier.
9. A scanner loading bar, such as on a cargo scanner or the K-warrant scanner.

THIS, all of THIS!

 

[BLACKHOUND]

I would love to see improvements to the exploration aspect of the game. So far, most people who explore don't do it for the money at all, but more for fun and of course getting their exploration rank up. I'm a Pathfinder in exploring, and I've had several thoughts on how it could be made even more awesome. The idea of missions is a new one, but I'll add it to the list as well.

1. More CR gained in general! I've visted 1200 systems and gained 6.2m CR. I was trading up to my kitted ASP, easily making 1.25m per hour, it's extremely unbalanced.
2. Add in that level 2/3 scanner, we all have "0" for our stats.
3. Be able to view a "roadmap" of the trip, including stats such as total LY traveled and being able to see/save your path as not only a visual map but also a text based list of locations.
4. Missions! I'd love to embark on a tour to find water worlds for the Empire, great idea!
5. A bonus for "fully" explored systems. Skipped over that single icy planet? No 25% bonus for you!
6. "Found by CMDR Whatever". The more we explore, the further we go, the more systems we have in our name. Make competitions, first player to 5,000 new (fully?) explored systems gets a 250m CR prize or some special "One Small Step" decal.
7. Exploratory in game chat room. Galaxy wide, made for those who like the dark and emptiness, but would like some form of companionship.
8. Co-Op exploration made easier.
9. A scanner loading bar, such as on a cargo scanner or the K-warrant scanner.

Lots of good ideas in there also. good work

 

[Geers]

If it's not about the money to you then you shouldn't care what the payout is. Stop telling other people they're wrong for expecting a decent income from doing one of Elite's major activities.


I went on a semi-aimless wonder recently. Found a system with four stars that had a molten lump that was apparently rich in metals, some gas giants etc. You'd think mining and terraforming companies would be a little more interested in this stuff.

"Hey guys I found a system with a terraforming candidate, the perfect gas giant for hydrogen farming and a giant ball of rock that's 20% palladium!"
"Eh, I'll give you 8000c for it"

I feel like I'm working for J Jonah Jameson.

 

[Nutter]

Thanks all, I'm just rushing to Kelper for .. well you know...

Anyway, no I don't want a balance (Even Earnings), but something around a 150 - 200% uplift - would still make it the worst paid 'role' in credits, but IF you make it back from a long trip you could be rewarded with the opportunity to upgrade something!

 

[kamenjar]

This may be a bad analogy, but if cr/hour was all that ever drove us, Columbus may never have left port.

Yeah, but what about been-there done-that? What's gonna drive me to do it again? It was probably the most risky, lonely, tiresome and awkward feeling. I wanted to run back so many times.

And here's a trading comparison:
I hit a "jackpot" out there where there were neutron stars and black holes and whatever. Let's assume it's all a jacpot and I happen to have a station right thee. Let's compare that to trading.
Jump to neutron star - 20k
Jump to black hole - 20k
Jump to another normal star - scoop, spot earth-like, scan: 30k
Jump to another normal star - spot nothing, 1k
Jump to another normal star - spot candidate, scan: 18k
Total time: 10-15 minutes. Profits: 90k

A crazy ideal situation would be 5 neutron stars in a row and one regular system to scoop. All up to 10 minutes and similar profit.

Compare that to my trading run:
Buy, Jump to a star, scoop, jump - dock, sell
Buy, Jump to a star, scoop, jump - dock, sell
Total time: 10 minutes. Profits: 700k

And this was an ideal non-existing situation.