Pilot transfer

[S3B4ST13N]

It is a thought though. You put forward the reward and other commanders accept or decline the contract. Then you can't log on until you are delivered?

I wouldn't trust this lot *waves hand to indicate ED community* with a potato gun let alone the task of delivering me to a destination.

Though, I think it would be cool if Cmdr's didn't teleprescense, but rather were actually aboard the ship with another Cmdr; then that Cmdr could fly somewhere and drop their passenger Cmdr off at her destination.

I think that might be possible in the future though; DB has stated he'd like to be able to sneak aboard other ships; which, by extension, could mean Cmdr's could put up passenger contracts and then fly as passengers aboard NPC or Cmdr ships.

 

[Winterwalker]

And just have to sacrifice playing time and money to be there.

This is the critical line of the OP for me, meaning pilot transfer wouldn't be casual and shrink space, reasons why I argued against ship trasnsfer being instant. I can't see this being a high priority but in principle I'd support it, like I'd support anything that increases your options and represents a reasonably believable galaxy.

Send to station, ship transfer, would be a higher priority for me but I personally see scope for random things happening to you on the way, creating interest and throwing you curve balls. For instance, ship transfer you might pay less and get a faster transfer with an 'independent' service but your ship get's randomly damaged or the cowboys nick some of the modules, the risk you take. Maybe some services offer random engineer upgrades. That's just example and I think there are better examples for pilot transfer but I think you need elite feet and the overall game to be quite a bit further developed first if looking at options for safe and dangerous transfers.

I don't personally see it being any weirder than ship transfer. Not highest priority maybe but not against it either.

 

[Badben]

well, if there was pilot transfer, you'd only be able to transfer to a station you already had a ship at, or be brought directly to the shipyard screen of the base and not let you do anything until you buy a ship. and seeing as ship transfer is usually longer than it would take me to fly there myself, why would pilot transfer be any different? meaning there's no reason to use pilot transfer until we get space legs.

 

[Barking_Mad]

This might make more sense and be worthwhile if/when you could walk about. That brings in the possibility of taking a ride and either being boarded by pirates, and have to make a decision as to what to do (chose a side like in a war zone), or you instigate an act of piracy yourself. Alternatively sit there, enjoy the ride and mix a few drinks. Oops, wrong 'game'....

 

[SMcA]

I wouldn't trust this lot *waves hand to indicate ED community* with a potato gun let alone the task of delivering me to a destination.

Fair point.
But then I bet half of them would use the spud gun as part of a high velocity carb diet. [where is it]

Though, I think it would be cool if Cmdr's didn't teleprescense, but rather were actually aboard the ship with another Cmdr; then that Cmdr could fly somewhere and drop their passenger Cmdr off at her destination.

I think that might be possible in the future though; DB has stated he'd like to be able to sneak aboard other ships; which, by extension, could mean Cmdr's could put up passenger contracts and then fly as passengers aboard NPC or Cmdr ships.

Bags I being one of the demanding ones.

 

[the source 0179]

To be honest, I doubt very many people would use it - but I can see how it would come in handy for those with limited play time who wanted to be somewhere; or people who were planning on going to Colonia but had to go on holiday instead.

It would be perfect if say you wanted for example you wanted to go to colonia but play time was tight. You could pay the large price and take the hit of not able to play even if you wanted to for example 4 or 5 days. Then when you log back in after that time you either hop into a ship you may have stored there or buy a new ship. And for example if you didn't have a ship or the money to buy one you get made bankrupt or have to sell a ship to get money to pay for a new ship. It wouldn't be cheating or casual or easier or make the size of the galaxy seem smaller because if you did do this you have negatives to it. One cost and two not being able to log in and play the game for the length of time.

 

[S3B4ST13N]

It would be perfect if say you wanted for example you wanted to go to colonia but play time was tight. You could pay the large price and take the hit of not able to play even if you wanted to for example 4 or 5 days. Then when you log back in after that time you either hop into a ship you may have stored there or buy a new ship. And for example if you didn't have a ship or the money to buy one you get made bankrupt or have to sell a ship to get money to pay for a new ship. It wouldn't be cheating or casual or easier or make the size of the galaxy seem smaller because if you did do this you have negatives to it. One cost and two not being able to log in and play the game for the length of time.

That's how I saw it as well.

Though I stand by my suggestion of being able to login but the game just puts you inside an passenger observation lounge, with a different view of space every hour or so, as well as a count-down timer somewhere to let you know how long you have left.

 

[SMcA]

That's how I saw it as well.

Though I stand by my suggestion of being able to login but the game just puts you inside an passenger observation lounge, with a different view of space every hour or so, as well as a count-down timer somewhere to let you know how long you have left.

Upping the anti:
Let it be like multi-crew. You could have the cockpit view and/or control of the external camera. So the mechanism is almost there.
If the pilot were online the pair of you could chat to pass the time.

 

[the source 0179]

Ship transfer has been in the plan since the DDF.



.... unlike CMDR transportation.

I remember quite a few threads and QnAs that FD got asked if they would implement ship transfer and both FD and quite a few cmdrs said NO. It would ruin the galaxy size and immersion. And look its implemented and I bet those cmdrs use it.

 

[the source 0179]

Because they said no when it was brought up, several times, prior to this. It would make things far too casual and render distance meaningless.

So running by your thought process. You have never gone on a plane to another country or continent. You have always driven your own car or taken your own boat or plane.
Trust me sitting on a plane for 15 hours getting flown to another continent doesn't render the distance meaningless or the size of the world smaller. In fact it makes you realize how big it is because your stuck in there not being able to do anything and wait till you can get off the damn thing.lol.

 

[Valethar]

So, you get to your new port and then what? Do you just magically appear in the shipyard screen... If the station has a shipyard...
Not seeing how this makes my game better.

It doesn't. It just speeds things up for the lazy people.

Next they'll be asking for one of these.

 

[Valethar]

So running by your thought process. You have never gone on a plane to another country or continent. You have always driven your own car or taken your own boat or plane.

Trust me sitting on a plane for 15 hours getting flown to another continent doesn't render the distance meaningless or the size of the world smaller. In fact it makes you realize how big it is because your stuck in there not being able to do anything and wait till you can get off the damn thing.lol.

Not my thought process, professor. FDevs. I merely repeated their position on the matter.

 

[Arthur Shappey]

It doesn't. It just speeds things up for the lazy people.

Next they'll be asking for one of these.
...

Arguably we already have this. Unless you engage in PvP regularly, there is very little that isn't easy in Elite: Dangerous, and precious little that is actually "Dangerous". I mean - in Solo - there is NO ship that will attack you unless you are carrying cargo [pirates] or you break the law, or took a mission that warns you.

 

[Winterwalker]

Upping the anti:
Let it be like multi-crew. You could have the cockpit view and/or control of the external camera. So the mechanism is almost there.
If the pilot were online the pair of you could chat to pass the time.

It could be hilarious; "Are you sure this is the way to the airport??" .. erp, that's 1000Ly in the wrong direction.

Emergency spacewalk, personal rescue-me beacon on and hope a rescue rat is passing by?
Elite: Hitchiker; SaggA - and back -on foot.

[video=youtube;bbYan4RbKQ0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbYan4RbKQ0[/video]

 

[Van R Flyheight]

They really should have a megaship jumping between the bubble and Colonia one a month or summat.

Make it infrequent enough that people sufficiently motivated would travel by themselves but it'd also provide an opportunity for "tourists" to hitch a ride there to see what it's like.

Also, for those who operate out of Colonia, it'd mean they could load all their ships onto the megaship, take them back to the bubble, offload them again, get them engineered and then ship them back to Colonia on the megaship the following month.

+1 for this. To be honest I don't really have a problem with the idea set out by the OP but I wouldn't use it because I'd rather be playing (no judgement on those that would, you aren't ruining my immersion ). This idea though is much better. I want to get an engineered Corvette to Colonia eventually but it would be almost impossible to get there by itself and the transfer fee would be extortionate. A megaship once a month would be great and also not so often that travelling by yourself became redundant. If you want to sell it lore wise then isn't Galnet banging on about mass migration due to Thargoid fears at the moment, Just saying.

 

[S3B4ST13N]

It doesn't. It just speeds things up for the lazy people.

I'm genuinely curious how being unable to play whilst the game transfers you (likely in the same time frame as it takes you to do it manually) "speeds things up."

 

[the source 0179]

I'm genuinely curious how being unable to play whilst the game transfers you (likely in the same time frame as it takes you to do it manually) "speeds things up."

Agreed. It would just be another option for everyone. It would actually be more immersing and be closer to lore. As there are passenger ships and missions. And the invisible ship carriers that transfer ships

 

[GammaZ]

It may sound strange but i actually expected ability to physically transport other CMDRs as a part of multicrew. And that we will pilot fighters as we drive SRV... Apart from simply transporting other CMDR from station to station it would have opened up so much new cool (non-pew-pew) interactions between players... but they went for cheap&easy "telepresence", so i really doubt we will see anything like this any time soon, if at all...

As for "CMDR transfer" with similar constraints to ship transfer - IMO it will be silly. How long does it take to transfer ship to colonia? A week? Or something like 1-1.5h to maia? Being essentially banned from the game for this amount of time does not sound good at all...

 

[Slopey]

So since there is ship transfer which is cool. Why can't there be pilot transfer? There are passenger ships and cruise ships in the game now. So why cant for instance that if you wanted to get to a station somewhere you pay an amount of money and a time frame to get delivered to the station or outpost you wanted to go. That way you could have a ship in colonia and the bubble. And just have to sacrifice playing time and money to be there.

Just a thought

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Although on a serious note - how would that transfer work?? To get my AspX back from Colonia is going to take 61 hours. If pilot transfer was implemented, does that mean I couldn't play the game for 61 hours because I was "in transit"? I don't see that being workable to be honest - preventing people from actually playing always goes down like a lead balloon. The way around that is to speed up the transfer and make it instantaneous, but then that makes ship transfer irrelevant and insta-teleport is certainly not popular.

You've sort of got pilot transfer now with a Suicide-Taxi, but of course, it's only one way

 

[Flin]

Might be a useful feature, but something FD hasn't put on the to-do list.

Personally, got higher priority items for them to focus on than this option.

Your priority list may differ and that's OK.