Navigation Beacons And "Nav-Jumps"

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

So I had a thought in another thread, which is also based an old idea I had.

Navigation Beacons are one of those things in ED with very little in the way of purpose.
Sure, we can scan them for system data, or hang out and kill NPCs. But that's about it.
Why are NPC's even there for that long anyway?

This idea aims to make nav beacons make more sense, as well as more useful, with balanced risk/rewards. Additionally, they'd also make nav beacons choke points for PvP.

Firstly, Jump From Nav Beacon Directly To Another Nav Beacon (Interstellar Nav-Jumps)
A simple idea, is that when jumping from one nav beacon to another, you get a nice jump range/fuel economy bonus. (Maybe +50~% jump range)?
A map filter will allow you to set this to automatically lock navigation beacons instead of the star, so you can consecutively jump from nav beacon to nav beacon.

These jumps take you directly from normal space to hyperspace, and back to normal space at your destination beacon.
In order to perform a nav beacon jump, you need to stay within 10km of the beacon. Moving outside of the 10km range cancels the jump.

The downside is that navigation beacons aren't the most secure places, some are compromised, and would be extremely dangerous should you pass through with cargo. Normal beacons would also be dangerous for wanted criminals to pass through.
And remember FSD charging for hyperspace takes longer in normal space, so you'll spend longer at risk.
You can only do this from 'primary' nav beacons, which are the original ones at the primary star.

Next idea
Nav Beacon Jumps Within The Same System (Local Nav-Jumps)
Bit of a controversial topic, most will just see this as "easy mode fast travel avoiding all risk". I assure you, it's not. Far from it.
Basic idea is systems can have multiple navigation beacons, which you can jump to and from.

Performing an intra-system jump is a bit different to an interstellar jump.
While at a navigation beacon (within 10km, in normal space), you target your destination beacon, and hit the hyperspace jump button.
You'll charge up your FSD, and away you go.
Intra-system jumps require more time to calculate than regular jumps, so take longer to charge.
You can not just jump to a nav beacon from anywhere, this can only be performed from another nav beacon.
For intra-system jumps, your destination navigation beacon must not be obscured, so you need line of sight. This means, with orbits, some beacons can be rendered useless, potentially for years. Lol
However, systems can have multiple navigation beacons, laid out so you can make multiple indirect hops to reach a distant nav beacon that is obscured from your origin point, or at least get you closer.
Due to how navigation beacons work ,<insert science here>, they must be placed near massive objects. So no, you can't jump directly to a station. Pretty much just stars and, maybe gas giants.
The risks are similar to above, longer time spent in normal space, around potentially dangerous ships.
Fuel use for intra-system nav jumps is also fairly high, ultra long range jumps will likely not be possible without a dedicated ship.
Supercruise is far more economical, and safer, and you can find USSs along the way.

Explorers rejoice!
Scouting New Navigation Beacon Locations
Explorers and other folk can now use the new exploration tools (whatever they are) to find suitable new locations for navigation beacons. Once enough data is handed in, a faction may place one (probably every Thursday... Lol).

Contested Beacons
Nav beacons are essentially shipping lanes, and thus, will be fought over for control.
Beacons are individually controlled by minor factions, and may impose various taxes for use, or other rules, such as submit to scan before continuing, pirate factions are more likely to have compromised nav beacons.
Local security will enforce their laws. Taxes are deducted automatically on-jump, if you must submit to a scan, you can not perform a nav jump until scanned by the controlling factions ships.

Wars will be fought at nav beacons, to gain control, so systems at war will have military ships fighting around the beacons.
Data is required to seize control of a nav beacon, to get the data you must use your data link scanner on it, and hand over the data to the appropriate faction.
However, the act of data link scanning a beacon is illegal so the controlling faction will attack you to prevent the data getting out, and lock you out of Nav-Jumping. (You can still supercruise).
The data is of no use if the beacon isn't contested, but it's still illegal to scan.
Passive Scanning the beacon normally works as is, to reveal the system map.
The balance to this is some kinda of data Vs ships destroyed thingie. It all feeds in to the BGS to determine the controller of the beacon. (I don't know enough about the BGS.. Help?!) Lol.

And thats it so far. Long read. Probably too controversial. But hey ho.

Thoughts?

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

 

[Ian Doncaster]

The risks are similar to above, longer time spent in normal space, around potentially dangerous ships.

Giving a nav-beacon jump a longer cool-down would be a good way to ensure you actually have to hang around a bit ... though I suspect with the typical NPC behaviour you'd still be able to just boost off into the distance before they noticed you.

Wars will be fought at nav beacons, to gain control, so systems at war will have military ships fighting around the beacons.
The balance to this is some kinda of data Vs ships destroyed thingie. It all feeds in to the BGS to determine the controller of the beacon. (I don't know enough about the BGS.. Help?!) Lol.

It would probably be a lot easier to just make the nav beacons another contestable asset like stations and settlements, or it would probably need a separate type of conflict for nav beacons as to stations - but sure, definitely make the nav beacons into war zones if the owner is involved in the war.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

Giving a nav-beacon jump a longer cool-down would be a good way to ensure you actually have to hang around a bit ... though I suspect with the typical NPC behaviour you'd still be able to just boost off into the distance before they noticed you.

Yeah, you can still give them the run around, but to perform another nav-jump, you need to stay within 10km (or less?). If you're just going to supercruise next, it's no different, you just escape any mass lock and fwip off. Lol

It would probably be a lot easier to just make the nav beacons another contestable asset like stations and settlements, or it would probably need a separate type of conflict for nav beacons as to stations - but sure, definitely make the nav beacons into war zones if the owner is involved in the war.

I'm not sure how any of the BGS works, so whatever makes more sense and works.

It'd just be cool to have wars around the beacons, and a way to influence it.

Imagine just being on a casual nav-jump route to another system, and you drop in to find a pair of capital ships slogging it out.

You could get missions to repair the beacons and whatnot.

Of course, it does raise the question as to how they're so invincible... Lol

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

 

[Lestat]

Ya, I don't care for teleportation. It also ruins interdictions. Why not make a topic called. How to make supercruise great again. Not how turbo boosts or teleports in supercruise. That ruins other aspects of the game.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

Ya, I don't care for teleportation. It also ruins interdictions. Why not make a topic called. How to make supercruise great again. Not how turbo boosts or teleports in supercruise. That ruins other aspects of the game.

Oh, you did read it.
(You did right? Not just skimmed the title?)

This isn't an idea to replace supercruise.
You can still do both, infact, you still need to supercruise from your exit beacon to your final destination. And you can still supercruise the entire way.

Imagine actually how dangerous using nav beacon jumps in low/no security system would be?
It's a proper risk/reward system.

It even adds choke points for PvP related gameplay. Supercruise doesn't allow that.

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

 

[Lestat]

Oh, you did read it.
(You did right? Not just skimmed the title?)

This isn't an idea to replace supercruise.
You can still do both, infact, you still need to supercruise from your exit beacon to your final destination. And you can still supercruise the entire way.

Imagine actually how dangerous using nav beacon jumps in low/no security system would be?
It's a proper risk/reward system.

It even adds choke points for PvP related gameplay. Supercruise doesn't allow that.

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

Here what you keep IGNORING on other topics. Start using common sense gameplay. You know if it TOO FAR. you have a choice not to go there instead of whining about the distance. You know use what frontier gave you. When accepting a mission it has an option to view the galaxy map to the location you need to go to and see if a station too far.

Remember laziness is not a real skill.

It the same thing with Exploration if it too far. You have to start using common sense gameplay instead of complaining about the distance. That moon that 300,000 ls out that worth 100 credit are not worth your time or effort. If it a system with an Earth-like world out 300,000 ls. You have to make the choice. Is the distance worth my time and effort?

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

Here what you keep IGNORING on other topics. Start using common sense gameplay. You know if it TOO FAR. you have a choice not to go there instead of whining about the distance. You know use what frontier gave you. When accepting a mission it has an option to view the galaxy map to the location you need to go to and see if a station too far.

Remember laziness is not a real skill.

It the same thing with Exploration if it too far. You have to start using common sense gameplay instead of complaining about the distance. That moon that 300,000 ls out that worth 100 credit are not worth your time or effort. If it a system with an Earth-like world out 300,000 ls. You have to make the choice. Is the distance worth my time and effort?

Here's the thing...

Not once in this suggestion have I mentioned travel is slow, space is too big, supercruise is boring or missions to distant stars is a waste of time...

It's not about that, it's simply a suggestion for nav beacons. They've been in the game longer than me, and still have very little purpose.

This idea doesn't effect exploration at all, because it requires nav beacons to work. And the only nav beacons I've found outside of the bubble are half buried in a planet, and I'm 97.2% sure that no one will want to jump directly there...

I don't really want to argue with you on two separate threads on the pleasures of supercruise. So let's keep the argument separate.

I'm happy with the game as it is really. I won't abandon a mission to a distant star if the reward is worth it, unless I simply don't have time (such as assassination missions picking the furthest possible object to spawn at, because ED loves to troll you).

Travel choices are a good thing if they're balanced.
For hyperspace, we've got economical and fastest routes, as well as synthesis boosts, and neutron stars. Which you choose is up to you, all fairly well balanced.
Supercruise, we have 2 choices.
Do it, or don't. Ships don't even travel at different speeds based on their stats. It just doesn't feel right.

But I understand people like to cruise around systems, and even I like to sometimes.
Hence why this suggestion fits in better than boosting or any other. It doesn't interfere with supercruise at all.

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

 

[Lestat]

It does not fit. Because it affects interdiction.

 

[torbach]

This idea aims to make nav beacons make more sense, as well as more useful, with balanced risk/rewards.

noted - (I don't think intra-system jumping should be in Elite-D)

make the nav beacons another contestable asset

this, user engagement and emergent play


needs a small perk to owning the beacon - imo super-powers in control gets +10% jump boost when leaving - the more beacons you own the more your powers get's a highway system
also if explorers could synthesis a primary beacon, they 'pave roads'

challenges - probably needs NPC's to fight against it to prevent 1 super power from owning the galaxies nav beacons

 

[varonica]

noted - (I don't think intra-system jumping should be in Elite-D)


this, user engagement and emergent play


needs a small perk to owning the beacon - imo super-powers in control gets +10% jump boost when leaving - the more beacons you own the more your powers get's a highway system
also if explorers could synthesis a primary beacon, they 'pave roads'

challenges - probably needs NPC's to fight against it to prevent 1 super power from owning the galaxies nav beacons

Ok to be honest I gave you the benefit of the doubt, jumping to nav beacons, since they are near stars, would be little difference to jumping to stars so not a big change to mechanics, then along comes this, no, that sounds really sucky and has nothing to do with emergent gameplay, it's just a way to get around faster.

 

[torbach]

faster.

dont forget, further too...

- cheers

 

[Ian Doncaster]

It does not fit. Because it affects interdiction.

Interdiction is the worst bit of supercruise anyway.
1) Trivial to avoid versus NPCs - if they don't catch you before you've accelerated clear of the star, they can't catch you in 99% of the distance along the way, and a careful twist of your approach angle means they can't catch you on final approach either.
2) Extremely fragmented. It means most of the action if you do get interdicted and don't just win it takes place in relatively boring surroundings (empty space, with no passing traffic)
3) Submit-for-short-cooldown means even if you do think you can't win the interdiction the fight is still basically optional.
4) Unless you stack up a lot of high-ranked missions, average number of interdictions per system is zero anyway.

Compare that with:
1) Long drive cooldown after beacon-beacon jump / need to be near the beacon to slowly spin-up means you can't just escape the fight
2) Known bottleneck means the NPCs are there (and probably players too, if you're in a hotspot system in Open) and will attack you if that's their thing (especially at a CNB, or one that's become a warzone)
3) More dynamic surroundings as the beacon will have other ships arriving and leaving as well. None of this "the police arrive in 30 seconds even if there were clearly none within 5 minutes of you in supercruise before" - they just appear, or don't.

Supercruise is a brilliant solution for exploration, for making the scale of systems clear, for flying around having fun with high-speed approaches. The big weakness of it compared with their original micro-jump idea, though, and compared with the previous Elite games, is that it makes combat except on the player's terms rare, completely optional, and largely disconnected from the rest of the game. Giving people the option to make some of the journey by microjump - at the cost of considerably more combat exposure - seems a reasonable trade-off.

 

[Lestat]

Interdiction is the worst bit of supercruise anyway.

That your words, not mine. The teleportation idea is still a bad idea if 30 second time is added to it.

1) Long drive cooldown after beacon-beacon jump / need to be near the beacon to slowly spin-up means you can't just escape the fight

Yes it make it easy mode for PvP.

2) Known bottleneck means the NPCs are there (and probably players too, if you're in a hotspot system in Open) and will attack you if that's their thing (especially at a CNB, or one that's become a warzone)

Yes I can see CG blockage and everyone will be forced in solo mode. Sound so great, doesn't it? It caters to PvP. See Interdiction has that chase factor.

3) More dynamic surroundings as the beacon will have other ships arriving and leaving as well. None of this "the police arrive in 30 seconds even if there were clearly none within 5 minutes of you in supercruise before" - they just appear, or don't.

So you want it Bounty hunter on a high-speed chase to be able to chase Park ship. Ya, it sounds so fun, doesn't it? There no risk at all. While an NPC starts spooling up for teleportation you can park your ship scan it and attack them without a chase. Sound so great, doesn't it? It makes Elite Dangerous into Elite Easy.

Supercruise is a brilliant solution for exploration, for making the scale of systems clear, for flying around having fun with high-speed approaches. The big weakness of it compared with their original micro-jump idea, though, and compared with the previous Elite games, is that it makes combat except on the player's terms rare, completely optional, and largely disconnected from the rest of the game. Giving people the option to make some of the journey by microjump - at the cost of considerably more combat exposure - seems a reasonable trade-off.

So you want combat targets to sit in one spot so it make it so easy even a drunk bounty hunter can attack a pirate. That easy mode. There no risk and the game will have come boring.

Listen. Let stick with what the game has to offer now. Before accepting a mission research the mission first. If the station too far. Look at the amount earn+Distance and determine if the distance is worth the payout. If you think the distance is to far you can accept another mission closer to a main star. You can always go to the other 15,000 systems that has stations that are closer to the main star. It common sense gameplay. At least this feature work for everyone but lazy players.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

I'd just like to add, I haven't been interdicted in weeks while trundling around with guardian cargo.
And I was almost surprised when an NPC jumped me the other day. But I just submitted and killed my attacker and carried on.

But here's the thing...
I've travelled across the length of the bubble multiple times, over the course of a month.

AND ONLY HAD 1 INTERDICTION.

I don't even avoid low/no security, because Interdictions are so rare, and a joke when they happen.

On the other hand, PvP Interdictions are unwinnable for the defender. And PvE Interdictions are entirely optional if you have a hand available to use your controls. That said, I escaped an Interdiction with my big toe once, because I was eating.

Lestat, you're attacking a PvP mechanic that's quite natural, fits in with how PvP should usually work in games (aka, choke points) and defending a mechanic that's seemingly completely broken. I don't understand your logic here.

And not to mention (again) it's all entirely optional.

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

 

[Ian Doncaster]

That your words, not mine. The teleportation idea is still a bad idea if 30 second time is added to it.
Yes it make it easy mode for PvP.

You did read the original suggestion enough to see that this was in *addition* to supercruise rather than instead of it, right? Because all your responses so far seem to be assuming "instead of". And if the original suggestion had been "instead of" I'd have been against it too.

This would actually be an interesting gameplay choice - make the long trip in supercruise, potentially risking interdiction ... or jump between nav beacons (still making shorter supercruise trips to the actual stations where your lower speed makes it easier for interdictors to catch you there too) for a quicker trip but one you're almost certain to be attacked on.

Yes I can see CG blockage and everyone will be forced in solo mode. Sound so great, doesn't it? It caters to PvP. See Interdiction has that chase factor.

In *theory* interdiction has that chase factor. In practice because of the way supercruise speed curves work you can't really be caught except at the start or end of the journey anyway.

Also, this would still be optional, and some people like doing CGs in Open precisely because of the possibility of attack, so I doubt it would change the Open:Solo ratios there in the slightest. If anything it might make things safer by splitting the PvP attackers between patrolling supercruise and camping the nav beacons.

So you want combat targets to sit in one spot so it make it so easy even a drunk bounty hunter can attack a pirate. That easy mode. There no risk and the game will have come boring.

We could call it a Resource Extraction Site.

"There is no risk" indeed - given one can dodge or reliably evade every single NPC interdiction and therefore never need to fight in real space except for when you deliberately seek it out in designated and labelled combat areas (or find an ultra-rare PvPer) ... where's the risk now?

The original Elite you'd be interdicted (well, the original's equivalent) multiple times on the way to an Anarchy or low-sec station. FE2/FFE you'd be intercepted multiple times by wings on the way in-system. Elite Dangerous ... you might be interdicted once, which you can be avoided in multiple ways before you even get to being in the same bit of normal space as the aggressor.

But yeah, encouraging people to travel to dangerous normal space environments in ships other than combat-focused ones would be easy mode.

Listen. Let stick with what the game has to offer now. Before accepting a mission research the mission first. If the station too far. Look at the amount earn+Distance and determine if the distance is worth the payout. If you think the distance is to far you can accept another mission closer to a main star. You can always go to the other 15,000 systems that has stations that are closer to the main star. It common sense gameplay. At least this feature work for everyone but lazy players.

Yes. Absolutely. It's only lazy players who think "travelling fifteen minutes in a straight line in perfect safety because the speed curves make you impossible to interdict" isn't compelling and exciting gameplay. I'm pretty sure it was mainly the lazy players who *liked* the forty-minute passenger runs most, because it was the greatest money for the fewest key presses - actually having to alt-tab to the game more than once an hour like the current high earners require seems to have upset them.

Me, I don't *personally* care, because I live in Colonia where pretty much every station is within 4000Ls of the primary star, and none of them are further than 30,000Ls. Where the station is >4000Ls it's because there literally isn't a closer suitable planet in the system.

 

[Lestat]

I'd just like to add, I haven't been interdicted in weeks while trundling around with guardian cargo.
And I was almost surprised when an NPC jumped me the other day. But I just submitted and killed my attacker and carried on.

But here's the thing...
I've travelled across the length of the bubble multiple times, over the course of a month.

AND ONLY HAD 1 INTERDICTION.

I don't even avoid low/no security, because Interdictions are so rare, and a joke when they happen.

On the other hand, PvP Interdictions are unwinnable for the defender. And PvE Interdictions are entirely optional if you have a hand available to use your controls. That said, I escaped an Interdiction with my big toe once, because I was eating.

Lestat, you're attacking a PvP mechanic that's quite natural, fits in with how PvP should usually work in games (aka, choke points) and defending a mechanic that's seemingly completely broken. I don't understand your logic here.

And not to mention (again) it's all entirely optional.

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

Well It could be your low rank. Let take your other topic. I Need An Asp You are asking to get an Asp. I ask if you had an Elite in any of your ranks. You said no. So that could be why you are not being interdiction as much.

Nope, stopped chasing those ages ago.

I could technically grind trade up to Elite, but considering trading is my least favourite activity, it'd feel kinda weird I I got trade Elite above combat or exploration. Lol

What do I need the founders world for anyhow? Everything in one place sounds kinda... lame. Lol

Plus i bet they don't sell guardian wreckage or obelisk data.

 

[Ian Doncaster]

Well It could be your low rank. Let take your other topic. I Need An Asp You are asking to get an Asp. I ask if you had an Elite in any of your ranks. You said no. So that could be why you are not being interdiction as much.

Not that. I have a Deadly combat rank (and the other three are Elite). I get plenty of Deadly Anacondas *asking* to interdict me as a result of cargo or missions, plus various other smaller ships. It goes like this.

NPC: "There's the target. It's not getting away."
Me: "Ooh, a fight. I need some combat rank."
NPC: <is stuck in a planet's gravity well>
Me: "Well, I'm not going to sit stationary in supercruise for three minutes while you catch up. See you at the station."

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

Well It could be your low rank. Let take your other topic. I Need An Asp You are asking to get an Asp. I ask if you had an Elite in any of your ranks. You said no. So that could be why you are not being interdiction as much.

I'm rank 9 in all 3 areas, so I wouldn't consider that "low", and I regularly take missions for Elite, and haul mission cargo around that I forgot I had.

Like Ian said, half the time, the NPC's crash in to stars or planets before even trying to interdict you.

 

[Lestat]

Yes. Absolutely. It's only lazy players who think "travelling fifteen minutes in a straight line in perfect safety because the speed curves make you impossible to interdict" isn't compelling and exciting gameplay. I'm pretty sure it was mainly the lazy players who *liked* the forty-minute passenger runs most, because it was the greatest money for the fewest key presses - actually having to alt-tab to the game more than once an hour like the current high earners require seems to have upset them.

For a lot of players it roll playing. But I looking at more on gameplay design than asking for teleportation mechanic. On the other lame topic, I posted on.

But use the ideas posted here like Walking around ships. Maybe a Research lab. Maybe using ideas from Subnautica. We can leave all the repair modules or hull repair modules and have manual repair Where you go around and repair hull integrity and minor hull breaches manually working on Modules. Which give us more room for Modules for collecting Samples from Earthlike worlds lifeforms and be able to study and take back to a station. Some of it could hurt people. We can also have a location for a hydroponic grow room. That supplies water and Food so you can stay out longer. So you do have to Monitor and maintain that. If you destroyed an SRV. You can pick up scraps and locate other scraps from destroyed ships from USS or planet and harvest it to make another SRV. All these ideas would be great in long distance supercruise.

Even if we could not walk. Make ship schematic and you can zoom in to locate the ship issue. But I would love to be able to make a research station on an unused Module space. All of this would require time. Depending on what the users dose. they can make it their own. The user can get deep into it water worlds, frozen worlds or earth-like worlds and gas giants and astroids and such. But can't do it all To scan and study study different type of life forum. yes I know we can't get to the Inhabitat worlds yet. But the New 3.4 Surface scanner ammo might give us some clues. Unlike CMDR Cosmic Spacehead and TrailBlazer 143 who are asking for our system to shrink. I am asking for a game mode that work for us. I don't want to eliminate the vastness of space I want to make part of the gameplay into the 15 Minutes.

I want stuff I can do while flying 15 minutes. study collected data and how to sell it to stations that would be able to gain from it the most. And make the most money from Basically sort the data. So I can sell it to the right stations. Be able to repair my ship manually. If People toss ideas. It could be used while going to bubble like buying animals and be able to study them and sell it at another location. Maybe be a player that research and incorporate Alien hardware components in part of your ship. Which also take time.

Me, I don't *personally* care, because I live in Colonia where pretty much every station is within 4000Ls of the primary star, and none of them are further than 30,000Ls. Where the station is >4000Ls it's because there literally isn't a closer suitable planet in the system.

See you have a system that caters to you. Bad thing lazy players don't do that.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

For a lot of players it roll playing. But I looking at more on gameplay design than asking for teleportation mechanic. On the other lame topic, I posted on.

Even if we could not walk. Make ship schematic and you can zoom in to locate the ship issue. But I would love to be able to make a research station on an unused Module space. All of this would require time. Depending on what the users dose. they can make it their own. The user can get deep into it water worlds, frozen worlds or earth-like worlds and gas giants and astroids and such. But can't do it all To scan and study study different type of life forum. yes I know we can't get to the Inhabitat worlds yet. But the New 3.4 Surface scanner ammo might give us some clues. Unlike CMDR Cosmic Spacehead and TrailBlazer 143 who are asking for our system to shrink. I am asking for a game mode that work for us. I don't want to eliminate the vastness of space I want to make part of the gameplay into the 15 Minutes.

I want stuff I can do while flying 15 minutes. study collected data and how to sell it to stations that would be able to gain from it the most. And make the most money from Basically sort the data. So I can sell it to the right stations. Be able to repair my ship manually. If People toss ideas. It could be used while going to bubble like buying animals and be able to study them and sell it at another location. Maybe be a player that research and incorporate Alien hardware components in part of your ship. Which also take time.

See you have a system that caters to you. Bad thing lazy players don't do that.

I made several long trips today, mostly for engineering.
And home old home system was a suitably small system, with no "large" systems nearby to throw me off. (I once lived too close to Alpha Centuari, and kept getting missions to Hutton, so I moved.. lol)

So I do think ahead. I generally don't avoid these systems entirely (some hold engineers, CGs or alien bases, so you can't really avoid them without giving up content). I just don't like the lack of gameplay in the middle.

Your suggestion is good, and I've suggested things to do in supercruise myself (ages ago).
But, whatever "stuff" FD add to supercruise, it'll probably get old quite fast, and we'll be asking for more "stuff".

Not saying I don't want "stuff" to do. Just pointing out an inevitability.

My suggestion (which is just a suggestion, not a demand), is simply a choice on how you navigate a system, and has no impact on supercruise at all.

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead