The timescale i would set would simply be "reasonable" and the way the game is structured it isn't.
[Video] Open letter from community to Elite Dangerous
- Thread starter Yamiks
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Yes but reasonable is a subjective so one players reasonable is another players unreasonable.
That would be an individual preference wouldn't it? But for most, it would just be flying around, doing a little exploration, some combat, a few missions here and there, maybe a bit of mining. You would be surprised what you can pick up in the way of credits and mats by just being observant
That would be an individual preference wouldn't it? But for most, it would just be flying around, doing a little exploration, some combat, a few missions here and there, maybe a bit of mining. You would be surprised what you can pick up in the way of credits and mats by just being observant
By just doing that I wage nobody would get a G5 engineered ship, even the trip to their bases can be a chore of itself (no engineers = no taxi ship). Credits are easy enough to come by, rare mats? Not really.
We're arguing semantics here, but I think most people here recognize that the engineers required to get your kit upgraded to PvP capable status takes an ungodly amount of time, very very focused time. For reference I played for a bit over 4000 hours and never earned a Cutter or a Corvette, for instance.
Again: if you don't have a timescale and could care less about your goals and don't mind spending hundreds of hours bumbling about hoping you'll gradually accumulate the things you need, you can't possibly see the point of a player who doesn't feel like bumbling about but instead wants to get into the action at a CG.
And I thought not having them after 1800 hours was odd, goes to show the odds of getting high end equipment without grind.
To be fair I could have had them, I don't mean to say that it takes more than 4000 hours to get them if you're being focused or anything quite that extreme, but the take away is that they certainly don't just fall in your lap.
It depends on your frame of mind. Want G5 mats, you can get them:
By doing missions! As you said, credits are easy to come by so forgo that big reward and take the mats instead
When exploring. Instead of just honking, and just scanning the planets, scan for FSSs as well - any HGEs that pop up and are close by, drop in and get the goodies. Or if you see a CZ or REZ, drop in there, always a good number of mats floating around.
Heck, even mining! I wonder how many have the raw mats excluded when mining ...
Also, I think too many are fixated on finding a specific mat and ignoring anything else and they forget that mats can be traded and exchanged. Yes the exchange rate is abysmal but you can use the mechanism. I also wonder how many will go out and grind mats to engineer a module that they already have sitting in store or on another ship they don't use and have no intention of using again (i.e. they have forgotten about it or what modules it has).
Finally, how many will engineer to a G5 level, but not realise they could have stopped at G4 and they wouldn't have lost much in capability? They could have used that time they saved in well 'GIT GUD' training
As for getting around, yes it can be a chore but I took the approach that I was getting to know my new ship. Recently decided to get a Mamba and fully kit is out. Since it is combat focused the jump range won't win any awards but I had a great time making my way to each engineer so I can not only engineer but also get the experimental (which often make or breaks the engineering improvement right). Along the way I got some mats, got to try out the modules pre and post engineering so I knew the difference and could appreciate it.
Having said all of that, the process is down to personal preference. If someone has decided that not only do they need their new ship RFN, but they also need to have it fully engineered RFN, the entire game will feel a grind and worklike.
It depends on your frame of mind. Want G5 mats, you can get them:
By doing missions! As you said, credits are easy to come by so forgo that big reward and take the mats insteadWhen exploring. Instead of just honking, and just scanning the planets, scan for FSSs as well - any HGEs that pop up and are close by, drop in and get the goodies. Or if you see a CZ or REZ, drop in there, always a good number of mats floating around.Heck, even mining! I wonder how many have the raw mats excluded when mining ...
Also, I think too many are fixated on finding a specific mat and ignoring anything else and they forget that mats can be traded and exchanged. Yes the exchange rate is abysmal but you can use the mechanism. I also wonder how many will go out and grind mats to engineer a module that they already have sitting in store or on another ship they don't use and have no intention of using again (i.e. they have forgotten about it or what modules it has).
Finally, how many will engineer to a G5 level, but not realise they could have stopped at G4 and they wouldn't have lost much in capability? They could have used that time they saved in well 'GIT GUD' training
As for getting around, yes it can be a chore but I took the approach that I was getting to know my new ship. Recently decided to get a Mamba and fully kit is out. Since it is combat focused the jump range won't win any awards but I had a great time making my way to each engineer so I can not only engineer but also get the experimental (which often make or breaks the engineering improvement right). Along the way I got some mats, got to try out the modules pre and post engineering so I knew the difference and could appreciate it.
Having said all of that, the process is down to personal preference. If someone has decided that not only do they need their new ship RFN, but they also need to have it fully engineered RFN, the entire game will feel a grind and worklike.
If you need to specify what you have to do in order to get the mats then it hardly is normal play, you are already doing things with that in mind unless there's another reason to visit an engineer other than, well, engineer.
Rare mats are easy. When you're in a system, scan the nav beacon. That will tell you where the HGE's are. All you need to do then is go fetch. Raw mats are also easy: when you're out exploring, scan the planets within easy reach. Look for geographical signals on the planets that have what you want. Go to that planet, drive around and shoot some rocks.
All this stuff is just a side effect of playing the game for most of us. I think the rest just want to make things difficult for themselves so they can come on this forum and whinge.
Pretty much all my ships are G5 engineered. The only grinding I had to do was unlocking a few of the engineers, but it was worth it considering how much engineering improved my ships.
Many rare mats spawn only in very specific systems and many do not scan nav beacons as they have the honk instead.
At the moment I'm working on access to Etienne Dorn, the engineer in Colonia that requires 25 occupied escape pods for ... reasons. That could quickly become a grind if I was 100% focussed on finding these. Instead I grabbed a Cobra Mk IV (as you do), added a variety of limpet controllers to it (collector, fuel and recon) and went on rescue/salvage trips. Great way to explore Colonia as well. While neither bank or Arx balance are increasing at any great place, I'm having a blast.
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Theres this one decomissioned megaship in colonia you can get those from easy with hatch breakers. You dont even get a bountyAt the moment I'm working on access to Etienne Dorn, the engineer in Colonia that requires 25 occupied escape pods for ... reasons. That could quickly become a grind if I was 100% focussed on finding these. Instead I grabbed a Cobra Mk IV (as you do), added a variety of limpet controllers to it (collector, fuel and recon) and went on rescue/salvage trips. Great way to explore Colonia as well. While neither bank or Arx balance are increasing at any great place, I'm having a blast.
Theres this one decomissioned megaship in colonia you can get those from easy with hatch breakers. You dont even get a bounty
Thanks for the hint! I'll meander back (in my E-rated Cobra) and check it out. Need to get back anyway to upgrade module classes. The Burro is awesome at the moment, with an amazing boost speed of 300 m/s and a jump range of 8 ly...
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This. The one thing you definitely shouldn't skip whilst grinding towards your self imposed goal is having fun because by the time you get there you are sick of the game and you haven't enjoyed yourself. If you like grinding that's fair enough, if you don't like grinding then you should stop and pootle about for bit in your favourite ship.
Which is a long winded version of "grinding is its own punishment".
Its internet spaceships if it isn't fun you are most definitely doing it wrong.
How many hours do you have in game already ?. The average playtime of a video game is (IIRC) about 20 hours.
That's where you play the video games you like in the ways you like and subsequently enjoy yourself.
It takes about two hours to G5 a brand new ship, provided you have the right blueprints pinned and you've been scooping mats as you go. Add on an extra hour or two to nip round and apply the experimentals.