Please reduce travel times in the bubble

[Morbad]

The problem with avoiding gravity wells is that you need to have orbit lines on. When that's the case it really diminishes the feel of space to me. I like to have a clear view. I'd get rid of most of the overlay text if I could.

I don't have a problem with orbit lines, but they aren't required for this. You still have sensors in SC and the relative locations of planets are clearly depicted.

The reason why some of us can't do this is because we take all the missions for a particular minor faction in a particular system. I'm assuming you don't play the BGS

Nothing about 'playing the BGS' mandates taking missions that will take an inordinate amount of time to complete. If reading the description and refraining from clicking accept lets you finish your stack of missions faster, then that's the mechanically optimal path for your BGS metagame.

 

[Riverside]

The reason why some of us can't do this is because we take all the missions for a particular minor faction in a particular system. I'm assuming you don't play the BGS

I support a few NPC factions and as you say it's not unusual for me to take every mission they offer. However I will either accept that some are going to take a while (potentially not offering good 'inf per hour'), assassination missions where you have to go from pillar to post can be like that, as can more distant passenger missions) but there aren't enough 'good' missions to take instead, or I take them with the full understanding that I am doing so hoping to be more tenacious than my opposition.

If you are more selective with your choice of missions than I am, I'm going to be at an advantage. So don't complain imo, just get on with it or accept the other guy may be more willing to put that little extra effort in

 

[Lestat]

The reason why some of us can't do this is because we take all the missions for a particular minor faction in a particular system. I'm assuming you don't play the BGS

I have done BGS but I never had to deal with Long travel unless I am not doing research before accepting a mission. See that the difference between me and you. I take my time to accept a mission that closes to the main star unless The Mission payout Warrants the distance.

 

[WinterKing2112]

i'm more than fine with travel times but i will say yes, uss are likely the most boring, pointless, appalingly naive and low developement effort part of the game. i don't even see them anymore.

I am wondering if they were developed for the "engineering's such a grind, getting hold of mats is sooo hard" crowd?

 

[WinterKing2112]

But keep long travel times outside the bubble.

Its stopping me from playing.

For me, 10/20 mins staring at screen to get somewhere is ok if exploring new frontiers or the odd long range mission or something. Not ok for the majority of missions, mining, trade, bounty etc

Another experience that proves exciting things can happen in supercruise: I'm on a delivery mission and I get the warning some n'er do wells are going to start making life difficult for me very soon. Sure enough I get the "Oh boy u got nice goodies, I'm gonna get u" on the comms, so I slow down and drop out of sc, get attacked by a npc thug in an annie, give him a hiding, he runs away. Back into supercruise, lo and behold, the thug is back for more, long story short you can get lots of nice mats from an annie!

My shields took a beating in that fight so I run from the next couple of interdictions, pretty soon I have 2 thugs in annies after me and I want no part of that. I'm getting close to my destination, which is on planet, I get interdicted again, drop out of supercruise again, low wake again and make it to the LZ before I get interdicted again.

That was really good fun, and I got some nice mats from the first annie. So I am still perplexed by the "supercruise is boring and there's no gameplay" crowd. Just as I am perplexed by the "engineering's killed ED" crowd, and the "ED's doomed!!" crowd...... ..... as I have stated before, there appear to be far too many "my glass is half empty" people on this forum. Or are those people just more vocal than the "glass half full" people?

 

[Frank]

...Nothing about 'playing the BGS' mandates taking missions that will take an inordinate amount of time to complete. If reading the description and refraining from clicking accept lets you finish your stack of missions faster, then that's the mechanically optimal path for your BGS metagame.

The missions available to you is random. If you've never been in a situation where the only missions available to you for your current objective are long distant ones then lucky you! Saying that you've never had to accept a long journey mission is a little like a National Lottery winner wondering why other people haven't hit the jackpot

 

[Morbad]

The missions available to you is random. If you've never been in a situation where the only missions available to you for your current objective are long distant ones then lucky you!

Most missions, most place, don't require exceptional SC travel times.

If the missions that do happen to be only missions at your current mission board, you can wait, go somewhere else, or do something else that will shift influence in the direction you desire.

Saying that you've never had to accept a long journey mission is a little like a National Lottery winner wondering why other people haven't hit the jackpot

I'm saying no one has to accept any mission they aren't willing to do.

BSG work is no reason to make all missions trivially easy to complete...quite the opposite in my view.

 

[varonica]

Simple: let people shoot each other in Supercruise. The only solution to any gameplay issue.

SC, multiples of the speed of light, lasers, travel at the speed of light, you see the issue? Most time we will be moving away from an opponent faster than their fastest weapon can propagate.

 

[Frank]

Most missions, most place, don't require exceptional SC travel times.

If the missions that do happen to be only missions at your current mission board, you can wait,...

It could all be down to a difference between what you and I perceive as exceptional travel times.

I like your answer "If you don't want a mission that takes up your time waiting to arrive someplace in Supercruise then you can always take up your time waiting for a better mission at the BB."

 

[Morbad]

SC, multiples of the speed of light, lasers, travel at the speed of light, you see the issue? Most time we will be moving away from an opponent faster than their fastest weapon can propagate.

Not if certain weapons have SC drives of their own...

That said, I don't think combat in SC, other than perhaps some new mechanisms to knock people out of SC (I always liked the idea of a Freelancer stile cruise disruptor), would be beneficial.

 

[Morbad]

It could all be down to a difference between what you and I perceive as exceptional travel times.

The specific cut off is irrelevant, as long as it's enough that a significant portion will fall on either side of that line.

I believe that there should be a portion of missions that any given CMDR will not do because the player does not find the gameplay they involve appealing...which gives some advantage to those that do.

Not every mission is equally viable to everyone and this is a good thing.

I like your answer "If you don't want a mission that takes up your time waiting to arrive someplace in Supercruise then you can always take up your time waiting for a better mission at the BB."

Like most of your other assumptions, this isn't an accurate reflection my statement or my opinion.

Waiting does not imply waiting at the BB, doing nothing.

 

[Frank]

The specific cut off is irrelevant, as long as it's enough that a significant portion will fall on either side of that line.

I believe that there should be a portion of missions that any given CMDR will not do because the player does not find the gameplay they involve appealing...which gives some advantage to those that do.

Not every mission is equally viable to everyone and this is a good thing.

Yes there is that. I have nothing against the Supercruise system, and having a few missions that you should avoid. But I'd prefer the line to be drawn a little less on the tedious side.

I just want Supercruise to be faster so that all journeys are quicker and it's easier to meet up with players to wing up or duel.

Like most of your other assumptions, this isn't an accurate reflection my statement or my opinion.

Waiting does not imply waiting at the BB, doing nothing.

I don't sit poised on my couch with my gamepad frozen in my hand waiting in anticipation of the game letting me do something worthwhile. But whatever I do, it's still an unnecessary wait to be allowed to do the thing I wanted to do

 

[Seizewell Warrior]

tl:dr on most of the thread...

My view is, if you have an G4/G5 engineered dirty drive then this should give you superior acceleration/deceleration in SC as well as normal flight. Enough to shave a couple of minutes off a 20k LS transit from the insertion point. Top speed not so much an issue as, unless you're going to Hutton, doubt you would see it anyway.

 

[Lestat]

tl:dr on most of the thread...

My view is, if you have an G4/G5 engineered dirty drive then this should give you superior acceleration/deceleration in SC as well as normal flight. Enough to shave a couple of minutes off a 20k LS transit from the insertion point. Top speed not so much an issue as, unless you're going to Hutton, doubt you would see it anyway.

So you are asking for an Easy mode for PvPers?

 

[varonica]

Not if certain weapons have SC drives of their own...

That said, I don't think combat in SC, other than perhaps some new mechanisms to knock people out of SC (I always liked the idea of a Freelancer stile cruise disruptor), would be beneficial.

How exactly do you attach a SC drive to a laser? Remember once anything leaves the area of your ship it drops into normal space so trying to fire a weapon at another ship in SC would it's payload to leave your bubble, travel through regular space and then enter the bubble of another ship moving at possible hundreds of times the speed of light. Yes it's a game and we could pretend that frag round you fired is equipped with its own SC drive, or every one of those hundreds of rounds you are firing from your mutli-cannon has it's own SC drive somehow built into it, as well as a fuel tank and PP to power that SC drive, but then how do you explain why a ship launched fighter can't have SC?

I suppose you might argue that a missile could have SC built in, but then we still have the problem of actually hitting something traveling hundreds of C.

We already have a SC interdictor, which takes skill to both use and evade. Oh yes just looked up your Freelancer style cruise disrupter, it appears just what we need...not!

Players often use Cruise Disruptors while camping an enemy base, hitting traders leaving the base to allow the player to destroy the trader ship and tractor in its cargo for sale elsewhere.

Attention gankers, come and get us!

 

[varonica]

tl:dr on most of the thread...

My view is, if you have an G4/G5 engineered dirty drive then this should give you superior acceleration/deceleration in SC as well as normal flight.

These drives only work in normal space, they are mass effect thrusters, why would or should they have any effect during SC?

 

[Morbad]

How exactly do you attach a SC drive to a laser?

You don't, well not unless it's attached to some sort of drone that has a frameshift drive.

We already have a SC interdictor, which takes skill to both use and evade.

The interdiction tunnel game is one of the most binary and boring mechanisms we've got.

Always winning vs. NPCs, and it nearly always being more advantageous to submit vs. CMDR interdiction, renders it's very existence nigh pointless.

Oh yes just looked up your Freelancer style cruise disrupter, it appears just what we need...not!

Don't knock it till you try it.

I see a great deal more potential gameplay in mechanisms for pulling ships out of SC than the tunnel game could ever provide, even if it were correctly balanced.

Attention gankers, come and get us!

'Gankers' can already interdict you, you just have few gameplay mechanisms to avoid it once they've maneuvered to be in a position to engage that tether than you would in any system I'd envision or propose.[/QUOTE]

 

[Crank Larson]

The interdiction tunnel game is one of the most binary and boring mechanisms we've got.

Always winning vs. NPCs, and it nearly always being more advantageous to submit vs. CMDR interdiction, renders it's very existence nigh pointless.

That's primarily because NPCs try to interdict you at ridiculous angles (i.e. they'll fire the interdictor as soon as they have a target, but due to angles it is easy for the target to then move out of range). Humans tend to ensure they have a good position first, and then it is very difficult (usually impossible) for the target to escape. The mechanic is the same either way. NPCs need to git gud.

 

[Morbad]

That's primarily because NPCs try to interdict you at ridiculous angles (i.e. they'll fire the interdictor as soon as they have a target, but due to angles it is easy for the target to then move out of range). Humans tend to ensure they have a good position first, and then it is very difficult (usually impossible) for the target to escape. The mechanic is the same either way. NPCs need to git gud.

Even if I manuver to allow an NPC to line up the perfect tether, they will almost invariably fail to interdict almost any ship I'm flying, if I fight the interdiction.

In the case of CMDR interdictions, I have two choices, fight it and risk a long cooldown, or sumbit and virtually guarantee escape because of the short cooldown. Even if I could win 99% of CMDR interdictions it would still be safer to sumbit, because a 45 second cooldown one time in one-hundred would be more risky than a million eight second cooldowns.

 

[Helvellyn]

Even if I manuver to allow an NPC to line up the perfect tether, they will almost invariably fail to interdict almost any ship I'm flying, if I fight the interdiction.

In the case of CMDR interdictions, I have two choices, fight it and risk a long cooldown, or sumbit and virtually guarantee escape because of the short cooldown. Even if I could win 99% of CMDR interdictions it would still be safer to sumbit, because a 45 second cooldown one time in one-hundred would be more risky than a million eight second cooldowns.

I've only ever had a handful of CMDR interdictions so I've never been entirely sure of the mechanism but isn't it a quick cooldown as long as you submit before it ends? Seems to be for me - may as well try to fight it, if it's going badly then submit. The risk is then just dodgy instancing (I lost an interdiction to a CMDR once that the game was telling me I was winning).