Elite is Still Dangerous Even Without PvP

[Lightspeed]

7 jumps out of Colonia, 95% hull about 100 million in exploration data to offload ........... all going well as I smugly scoop up data for another water world ........ suddenly jumped by a NPC pirate demanding the 2t of cargo I had on board, actually two occupied escape pods I'd been carrying for about 15000 lyrs.

First couple of shots took my shields down .... Ok I had only 2 pips there, I was not expecting this, I've been exploring, my combat skills are not at 100% ...... but what kind of weapons are these NPCs using ????

warning of some kind of hull destruction weapon ...... hull down to 75% .... I'm slow ..... I launch the SLF late ! ......

hull 55% ....... hull 17% .... co-pilot complains about losing the SLF ..... I get myself together and low wake ..... then make a quick run for Colonia.

Finally reach Jacques .... remember to ask for landing permission ....... meet Beluga in the slot and we collide (it doesn't give way !) .... hull 12% .......

Finally made the landing ......

But Elite is dangerous enough, it doesn't need PvP

P.S. Nice welcome by a couple of commanders at Jaques ... they don't see too many T-10s there, it seems

 

[Ted Striker]

You legit had me anxious as hell

 

[Lucius-Darcia]

Urgh.....you returned to civilized space with cargo in your hold in an exploration ship?
Next time better give him your cargo or just don't take any in the first time^^ your life is more worth than the life of those in the pods

But i have to agree that Elite can punish you hard for making wrong decisions.
I've thought i can engage a Type-10 pirate in my trade-Python with class 3 Prism shields. Yeah i've did it! With 7% Hull left
Next time the decision will be a better one^^

 

[Crimson Kaim]

I don't feel like Elite is dangerous without PvP (withthe exception of neutron stars) ever since engineers got introduced and they forgot to give NPCs engineers too.
Since that day players have become immortal against NPCs and are more powerful by loadout, not only by skill.

Look at my 210 MJ shields. Bi-weaves on anything really with high resistances usually never break before you either putrun or outdps the NPC.

Giving NPCs access to all engineers and making them equal to players again in regards to loadout might make it fsir and actually damgerous again if they know how to use the special effects.

 

[krylite]

The NPC's are using some specials now. While doing assassination missions in my cutter, I've seen pirate lord condas, corvettes, now even pirate cutters often using specials and firing different colored bolts of some kind occasionally. It almost looked like a different game at some points with approaching bolt-like blue , green , red etc. blasts i.e. kind of like StarWars. One time there was some kind of corrosive effect that seeped through my cutter's shields and damaged the hull down 10%. They're getting smarter and better equipped with some engineer effects and some are firing dangerous missiles.

Nice harrowing escape story, OP. I wonder what type of pirate vessel waylaid your ship.

 

[Eriseley]

I don't feel like Elite is dangerous without PvP (withthe exception of neutron stars) ever since engineers got introduced and they forgot to give NPCs engineers too.
Since that day players have become immortal against NPCs and are more powerful by loadout, not only by skill.

Look at my 210 MJ shields. Bi-weaves on anything really with high resistances usually never break before you either putrun or outdps the NPC.

Giving NPCs access to all engineers and making them equal to players again in regards to loadout might make it fsir and actually damgerous again if they know how to use the special effects.

Honestly they weren't dangerous before engineers either. You could always run. To add, now at least if you fly a stripped-down explorer, and you run into an NPC with rails or even PAs if your thrusters are crap, you might be in for some pain.

 

[GammaZ]

Depends on ship. Had some close calls in large, slow, striped down ships like exploration conda and cargo python.
There is not much one can do in situation OP describes apart from lowaking ASAP, and it does not feel good/safe at all.
That's why i stopped flying exploration conda, smaller alternatives are much safer.

 

[Bortas]

Urgh.....you returned to civilized space with cargo in your hold in an exploration ship?
Next time better give him your cargo or just don't take any in the first time^^ your life is more worth than the life of those in the pods

Or simply don't submit to interdictions. They are so ridiculously easy to avoid these days, you can basically win them while being asleep.

 

[Crimson Kaim]

Or simply don't submit to interdictions. They are so ridiculously easy to avoid these days, you can basically win them while being asleep.

I once won an interdiction without any input. Let RNG do its job and it worked, was eating something. Doesn't work against players unless they decide to do a 180.

 

[Jack Schitt]

I read the title. Thought, "I know where this is going." Four posts it took to get there. Four. We may be a divided community but we're nothing if not predictable as a whole.

OP, I honestly thought you were flying an Anaconda until I got to the last line. Wasn't expecting that at all. My last trip out (unarmed Anaconda) I picked up a couple of escape pods and some trade data and I did bring it back to the bubble but I was ready to eject the lot at a moment's notice. I'll bring back the lost if I can but I won't risk my ship and exploration data for them. I also have a self-piloted SLF for sightseeing but I might take a crewmember for my next run. In retrospect it seems daft not being able to take full advantage of the only weapons available, and it's not like I can't afford the wages.

IMO the biggest risk in launching a sightseeing SLF is in getting the helm AI to stay put when you tell it, and not try to follow you into the narrow canyons. I'm hoping crew are a little better at following orders.

 

[Ian Doncaster]

Welcome to Colonia

The way Colonia is set up, Jaques is I think the third worst station an explorer can try to reach (beaten only by the two which don't actually have a Cartographics service) - it's in a Low security system while the rest are Medium, and it *always* has a Beluga coming the other way because Frontier put not one but three tourist beacons next to it. Naturally it's the one everyone goes to because it would feel wrong to sell data anywhere else.

First couple of shots took my shields down

Assuming minimal 6D shields with 2 pips and no boosters or engineering ... the big ships can put out that sort of firepower pretty easily. You'd have under 250 MJ in effective shields, and a huge PA round (unmodded) does 125 per shot plus whatever other weapons it had.

An Anaconda with a typical (weird) mix of NPC weapons, no engineering, could take those shields in 5 seconds if all its shots connected.

warning of some kind of hull destruction weapon

This just means that your internal modules are taking damage, and any weapon can generate this once shields are down.

 

[Enderby]

No.

 

[Agony_Aunt]

It can be plenty dangerous depending on what you are flying and your skills.

 

[Lunchmoney]

OP, looks like you are still enjoying the game, so good on ya!
Right on, Commander!

No.

What an insightful post. Thanks for your input.

 

[Vorxian]

usually I play the interdiction game, never submit in my ASPx - the world goes dark apart from that little circle on the screen

worst case scenario whilst in an unarmed exploration ship designed for deep space photography, and get interdicted by relentless fatboys trying to remove your 3 months of exploration data..... thrown down the vanishing powder (just like a great rogue in WoW does )

 

[Riverside]

I think this thread is more of a useful reminder that complacency can get you killed even in the safest of activities rather than any particular comment about PvP.

Crimson Kaim, if you feel you are in no danger with the shields you have you are a scaredy-cat with too much shields, fly with less. If PvP happens then you are going to have some fun Unless you come up against another wuss with massive shields scared to lose their ship of course.

 

[Auronio]

Nice post, was exciting before reading the end.

I believe that's the reason why all my exploration builds have shields and weapons.
Rather compromise a little bit on jump range than on safety.

You never know what will be around the next star or planet...

 

[Lightspeed]

Thanks for the comments. I was complacent, no doubt about that, and after so much scan, scoop, jump, etc. while exploring I had got into a mindset that was enjoying the sights. When a solid rectangle turned up on my screen 7 jumps out from Colonia, my first reaction was .... what the heck is this doing all this way out? .. instead of .... action stations !

My complacency was compounded by my belief that I could fight the ship that interdicted me (a FGS I think it was) .... I didn't submit quickly enough, then didn't launch the SLF quickly enough, didn't bring my beam lasers to bear fast ..... but the worse thing of all, is that I had forgotten I was not in my tanked up engineered-for-anything Type 10 that I had left at home, I was in an exploration build ! The weapons overheated, because they weren't engineered for efficiency, and that left me in defence-only mode. Useless for combat. I didn't have the class 7 PD on board, didn't think I would need it.

At least I got away. The pirate interdicted me again before I reached Colonia and I knew I had to beat the interdiction in order to survive, which I did. It was an exciting time in the last few jumps for Colonia, that's for sure.

And yes, naive of me to bring those survivors as cargo. I think I've forgotten a lot about this game while flying in the bubble. There is so much to learn .... and to forget ! Of menaces in the slot, Belugas are among the top 1% of menaces out there

 

[Lightspeed]

No.

This wall of text needs a TL;DR