All ships should have a dedicated fuel scoop slot built-in.

[CMDR Corlas]

Pretty sure the Eagle originally had three slots, and got a free fourth added specifically for SRV flexibility when Horizons came out.

I feel the original argument is undermined when you basically got what you asked for in your example - another slot, because you don't feel you can be SRV-less - but are again asking for the same thing.

It's like the guy who was asking, pre-engineers, for a 50% jump range buff on all ships. Engineering did just that. But then later, he was was asking for the exact same thing again, because improvements like that are never enough when it's based on that sort of mindset.

It's basic power creep. People want an across-the-board buff, because "oh, wouldn't it be nice if just this one thing...", but after a short while the new baseline is just feels "basic" again, and then we're back to asking for the exact same thing, again.

So, as much as I like fuelscoops, and as much as I like more multirole functionality in my ships, I'm against the idea. It's a never-ending loop.

/edited to add - Eagles work well with a class 1 shield, try that if you are determined to make it work for everything you want to do. It's tiny, but it regens quick, and you're agile. I've done a fair amount of combat in an Eagle with a c1 biweave.

 

[Majic-12]

Dedicated fuel scoop slots would cause a slippery slope so steep it would destroy the universe.

I mean hey, if you're going to straw-man, you might as well dress him in a tuxedo.

 

[JRok]

When moving a ship with limited internals to somewhere that I plan to stay for a while, I'll stick a fuel scoop in just for the trip and replace it when I get there. I also store the fuel scoop for the return trip just in case it's not available there.

Another option is to take a ship with a longer jump range and large scoop and then have your other ship delivered which is usually not that costly for smaller ships. There is the wait, but I can usually find some little mission to amuse myself while I wait.

Eagles work well with a class 1 shield, try that if you are determined to make it work for everything you want to do. It's tiny, but it regens quick, and you're agile. I've done a fair amount of combat in an Eagle with a c1 biweave.

^This.

I run class 2 shields in my Courier as the difference between 2 and 3 is fairly minimal and it's also less weight which of course increases jump range by a little.

 

[NeilF]

Dedicated fuel scoop slots would cause a slippery slope so steep it would destroy the universe.

I mean hey, if you're going to straw-man, you might as well dress him in a tuxedo.

And the suggestion that military slots have been added to some ships to allow "combat" orientaged fittings only (shields cell, hull reinforcement), so the premise that some sort of "Utility slots" are added to allow some types of modules to be put in them such as Fuel Scoops or Discovery Scanners etc?

 

[Majic-12]

And the suggestion that military slots have been added to some ships to allow "combat" orientaged fittings only (shields cell, hull reinforcement), so the premise that some sort of "Utility slots" are added to allow some types of modules to be put in them such as Fuel Scoops or Discovery Scanners etc?

If only.

With all those extra fuel scoops scooping away, depleting all the stars of precious hydrogen, we're facing a future without stars!

Are dedicated fuel scoop slots really worth that?!?

 

[[VR] Mad Mike]

If only.

With all those extra fuel scoops scooping away, depleting all the stars of precious hydrogen, we're facing a future without stars!

Are dedicated fuel scoop slots really worth that?!?

this is something i have daydreamed about myself.

in highly populated systems, i suggest it should be illegal to scoop at (you can do it but if you are seen you are in trouble)

which would leave scooping for low / zero population systems certainly without habitable planets & / or WW. (and before anyone tries the "but i didnt know officer" ignorance is no excuse, and besides scanning the nav beacon could inform if the star was allowed to be scooped from)

 

[Van R Flyheight]

I think he's asking for a dedicated fuel scoop hardpoint not the actual scoop, so you still don't have to fit it.

But you would becuase they are cheap and don't impact your power allowance in most multirole or trade ships. It would still free up a slot and therefore detract from the plyaer/module choices that make our ships different from one another.

Bad idea OP, sorry but no.

 

[NeilF]

If only.

With all those extra fuel scoops scooping away, depleting all the stars of precious hydrogen, we're facing a future without stars!

Are dedicated fuel scoop slots really worth that?!?

Well, our Sun happily burns through 4,000,000t of itself every second, so I suspect a few tons here and there from around the galaxy won't make too much difference

 

[Ben Ryder]

No to dedicatde fuel scoop.

Eg. An Eagle is a short range fighter for local stuff. That's its role.

Giving it a dedicated fuel scoop breaks that role and makes it long ranger fighter because the constraint has been lifted.

This also weakens the positioning of exploration type vessels, by making every ship in the game an explorer of some sort. Fuel scoops have zero weight so your Eagle would no penalities at all (just switch it off when not in use).

If you want jump range go for a ship that is of the correct class and out fit it accordingly.

 

[rootsrat]

Preamble:
Let's start with what started out as my favourite ship way, way back when it was first added: Eagle MK II. Before Horizons, it was a workable if underpowered (especially: too slow) ship. Enter Horizons, enter the SRV. Let's not kid outselves, an SRV is mandatory for so much content. So, we could squeeze one into the Eagle, leaving us with a puny size 1 slot for a fuel scoop.

Has anyone else ever tried moving around with an Eagle at ~18Ly jump range, fuel for 3 jumps, and a size 1 fuel scoop? An FDL (able to use a class 4 fuel scoop on a class 3 tank) feels like the most majestic explorer in comparison.

So besides bringing it out from time to time to hunt a bit in some nearby RES and then put it back to storage and fly a "real" ship, the ship is dead.

And I haven't even put discovery scanners into the equation: with a huge proportion of even the bubble starting out as unexplored, not having an ADS at the very least feels crippling even while inside the bubble. Yes, it is workable - you can buy map data, you can use the nav beacon etc., but it all feels like using crutches and workarounds for what should not be an issue in the first place inside the bubble.

Other ships that suffer from this problem are the Sidewinder and the Imperial Eagle. Most other small ships have at least enough compartments of sufficient size to squeeze in a workable selection of modules, which I would define as shield generator, SRV bay, and a fuel scoop of at least the same size as the fuel tank.

This brings me to my solution for this issue: give every ship a dedicated fuel scoop hardpoint in addition to what they already got, which should always at least have the size as the fuel tank, preferrably however one larger. Especially ships with low jump ranges and small tanks can offset this a bit with a 1 class oversized fuel scoop, and while still being much slower in terms of interstellar travel times, at least not cripplingly slow; I am looking not just at the smaller ships like the Eagle here, but also the FDL and the Federal Corvette.

I disagree.

First - the Eagle is supposed to be a short range fighter, not an exploration ship.

Module outfitting is one of the most essential parts of the game to me. You need to consider what you need the ship for and equip it accordingly. You gain something by losing something. I see it as an equivalent of choosing right gear for your character in a fantasy MMO game.

Scanning nav beacon or buying a map is completely different to pinging a system with ADS, as the latter won't give you all the details, just discover the bodies.

Not a very good idea at all IMHO.

 

[Poseidal]

First - the Eagle is supposed to be a short range fighter, not an exploration ship.

I don't think it is, because it can fit an FSD, people expect it to be able to jump to another system and work outside an immediate sphere of influence (near enough to be station deploys).

The actual short range fighters are in the game: GU97, Condor and Taipan. They strip away FSD and are small an nimble.

Lastly, in Frontier Elite 2, the Eagle was called the Eagle Long Range Fighter.

 

[Marklar_]

I could see a small dedicated fuel scoop slot, maybe limited to class 1 or 2. It makes sense that all ships would have a small emergency scoop.

But if you want a sweet class 6 scoop, that should take a slot.

 

[Ben Ryder]

Really dont agree with this , why not go the whole hog and give every ship a docking computer, 2 scanner slots, a refinery, HRP, SCB, Repair limpets, module reinforcement single SRV and so on cos its stuff folk do right?

 

[Maka Gucci]

I've heard this suggested a few times, and I'm not with it.
I love my iEagle, and the fact I can get close to 20ly a jump is already pretty extreme for a tiny dedicated combat ship. Scooping is a drag, as it is in all my dedicated combat ships, but they are not explorers, they are combat ships.
Putting a scoop on there should disadvantage me against someone who has thrown an HRP in there instead. The ships we have are far too muti-role as it is.

How big would this proposed scoop be, by the way?

I'd be down for dedicated explorers with restricted slots that only took a fuel scoop, vehicle hanger, afmu, or something. Then if you want to turn it into a combat ship, that's cool, but you gotta work within those restraints.

 

[Muzz UK]

The fuel scoop isn't just a scoop though it uses a lot of power to convert the sun/star energy into power and fuel for your ship.

It does a lot of jobs for a simple module that its not really simple.

 

[Stealthie]

Really dont agree with this , why not go the whole hog and give every ship a docking computer, 2 scanner slots, a refinery, HRP, SCB, Repair limpets, module reinforcement single SRV and so on cos its stuff folk do right?

Careful.

A fair number of people seem to want exactly that. [where is it]

Speaking as somebody who likes to fit oversized fuel scoops to some ships and tiny fuel scoops to other ships, the thought of being forced to accept a specific size of scoop makes me cringe.

I wouldn't want to be, for example, forced to make do with a C4 scoop on an AspX any more than I'd want to use up a C4 slot with a scoop on a Vulture.
I'm much happier having the freedom to stick a C6 scoop on an AspX and a C2 scoop on a Vulture.

 

[Craith]

I have an Exploration Eagle, with 3A Fuelscoop, 2G Planetary Hangar, ADS and DSS - 28-30 LYs jump range, although only 2 jumps in the tank.
No shields, no weapons, but I have another eagle for combat, a hull reinforcement in the military slot helps against some bad luck during landing canyon racing.
I am all for getting some more improvements, some kind of niche for small ships, but just upping their capacity is not the answer imo ... increased Supercruise Accelleration, some smaller stations with only small pads, ... there are lots of ideas, but making the small ships smaller medium ships is not the solution. Again, IMO.

 

[Deleted member 110222]

There is no choice in a fuel scoop, you need one or you don't and every other module have to go if you need one

You do not a fuel scoop at all if playing within the bubble.

Outside the bubble, most modules are useless.

 

[Maka Gucci]

I don't think it is, because it can fit an FSD, people expect it to be able to jump to another system and work outside an immediate sphere of influence (near enough to be station deploys).

The actual short range fighters are in the game: GU97, Condor and Taipan. They strip away FSD and are small an nimble.

Lastly, in Frontier Elite 2, the Eagle was called the Eagle Long Range Fighter.

It needs the FSD to enter SC though doesn't it?
Long range fighter compared to a ship launched fighter sure, but it's not a DBS.

 

[Majic-12]

Really dont agree with this , why not go the whole hog and give every ship a docking computer, 2 scanner slots, a refinery, HRP, SCB, Repair limpets, module reinforcement single SRV and so on cos its stuff folk do right?

Indeed. Why even bother to discuss the pros and cons of fuel scoops when we can just make up any straw man argument we want and plug away at that?