Please redesign the fleet carrier Commodies Market so we can run proper markets

Cmdr Redmail

Cmdr Redmail
The whole carrier market system is currently so basic it hurts :(

A proper market should allow you to set a buy and sell price, with the spread being your "margin" or profit. (spread being the difference between the buy and the sell price)

I want to be able to specify a size of market (say 5,000 units) which I'm prepared to trade in and either a mid-price with a margin level (percentage) or an actual buy and sell price so that I can both buy and sell a commodity at the same time.

The current price entry system is painful. There needs to be a way to either (preferably) enter real digits (as we now can with balance transfers), or select from increments rather than having to haphazardly hit the +/- buttons in a "whacky races" kinda way to get to 125% of galactic average / etc

We also need to be able to set the "minimum hold" value .... so, for example, I can set up a buy/sell spread on Tritium but keep 5,000 units in my hold for personal use, whilst still running a market on the surplus - that way Cmdrs can go source Trit and sell it to my carrier for say 105% of Galactic average and I can then be a central source and sell it at 125% of galactic average (or whatever basis price I set). I can then leave the carrier in place to make money even if I'm not actively logged in for a day ... or my squadron can use it to store commodities they may need for missions/actions and continue to operate even if I have to go to work.


So to summarise

We need to be able to

- set prices more easily
- set a buy and a sell price simultaneously (and thus buy and sell a commodity at the same time)
- set a minimum hold/stock level
- set a max stock level more easily

Please FDev ... make it so! :)
 

Teh Smoo

T
Not having one, I totally agree.

Even further, how about a graph? Pay full price for the first X units, then the price decreases as more are sold. Same interface as the cooling fan graph in graphics card hardware, almost!

control_curve_mainboard.png


Obviously, going down instead for buying from pilots, and going up for selling TO pilots.
 

FrogsFriend

FrogsFriend
I suspect that FD were looking to keep the player actively involved in operating the carrier, managing the market and moving it around, rather than being able to set it up as a passive money making machine.
I agree that the interface could do with some improvements, especially adding a minimum stock level and providing some history of transactions beyond just the total profit per week. And I'd like for my wingmates to be able to transfer goods on or off the carrier in the same way I can.
 

GroG79

G
- set a minimum hold/stock level

It is there.. It is Visible.. Make it work plz! Too much cargo is to hard to come by to just have it on sale without a minimum stock
 

goemon

goemon
  • minimum hold stock is vital, yes.
  • market should store last purchase price/last sell price to make flipping purchase and sell around more easily.
  • market should also store the maximum stock.

- stats are very much missing; it is vital for trading to know how much has been bought and sold over the last xyz time frame. currently i run a spreadsheet for that.

- i see a problem of "passive income" with providing the possibility of buying/selling with profit margin at the same time; still the current design hamers group play. (medium pad system in outbreak - how amazing could it be to cure the outbreak with large pad ships delivering medicines, andmedium pad ships delivering the stock to the outpost). a workaround could be to allow buy-and-sell for the same price.
 

Cmdr Redmail

Cmdr Redmail
We were actively participating in/supporting a civil war last week, moving thousands of units of non-lethal weapons and reactive armour. It was a royal pain having to constantly flip the market as more shipments arrived (multiple 768T Clippers) and were then ferried out on 128T-200T Pythons.

(Ferried in from 100Ly away all because we were low on Trit and didn't want to leave the carrier stranded in the wrong sector)

The Fleet Carrier has amazing potential ... we just need the tools to be expanded so we can make best use of it!
 

Old Duck

Old Duck
The irony is that I think FDev actually created more work for themselves by making fleet carriers so "hands-on".

If a carrier can't be automated for "gameplay reasons", at the very least it would be nice if we could give access to carrier management to select squadron members to lighten the burden. I have a squadron leader who would love to take over carrier management for me!
 

Cmdr Fido

Cmdr Fido
There’s being actively involved.. but carriers are persistent and human players are not.

Carriers have crew. I’m paying 24M credits a week for the privilege. The least I should be able to do is task my crew with executing my orders in my absence ... if we’re going to go down this whole “crew” game play.

Rather than just sitting in the crew room doing nothing while I’m asleep, I’d like to see my crew doing something for their upkeep. Running the market and allowing other players to interact and trade ... NPCs too!

I’m still involved, looking for places to situate the carrier so we can make profit from market conditions. Be it fuelling a war, helping an outbreak or just space trucking.

Is much rather have NPCs and other Cmdrs help import the 20,000 units of food cartridges than have to do upwards of 30 round trips in a cutter just to fill the hold. Pay a few credits more than at the station but everyone gets involved and makes a few credits. I then jump 300 Ly and sell the cartridges for a 400% markup and again NPCs and Cmdrs cash in as I sell them slightly below market rates in that system so they help to unload the carrier. (Replace food cartridges with Tritium, LTDs, Void Opals, etc, etc)
 

Old Duck

Old Duck
XloubellXX said:
Quick question, are you able to switch the whole market thing off to n an FC? I’d like to get an FC but I don’t want any of this stuff active on it. Thank you.
Click to expand...
The button is always there and enabled in the FC menu that everyone sees, but you can choose to have an empty market... Kinda dumb how markets are mandatory but refueling and repairing your fleet is optional. These should have been called "Market Carriers".
 

Cmdr Fido

Cmdr Fido
and while we're at it, can we have the ability to filter the market in order to help find things?

ie enter a partial string text to reduce the list of items displayed (so I can find "modular terminals" or "reactive" without scrolling and scrolling and scrolling and ... oh there it is!

:)

Thanks
 

FrogsFriend

FrogsFriend
Cmdr Fido said:
and while we're at it, can we have the ability to filter the market in order to help find things?

ie enter a partial string text to reduce the list of items displayed (so I can find "modular terminals" or "reactive" without scrolling and scrolling and scrolling and ... oh there it is!

:)

Thanks
Click to expand...
Market filters are available on the 'manage commodities' menu, on the top-left of the display. I find 'Imported', 'Exported, and 'In Stock' is a useful combination to see just what you currently have and your active orders.
 

Cmdr Redmail

Cmdr Redmail
FrogsFriend said:
Market filters are available on the 'manage commodities' menu, on the top-left of the display. I find 'Imported', 'Exported, and 'In Stock' is a useful combination to see just what you currently have and your active orders.
Click to expand...

Ok, so I'm trying to add a buy order for something I don't have "Bioreducing Lichen" ... how to I find that without randomly scrolling up and down 20 times until it suddenly appears?

Or Beer, or Power Generators .... things I don't have but want to buy from someone heading to my carrier with a boatload in his hold. The current system is less than intuitive :(
 

Kellan Fell

Kellan Fell
All of this was brought up during the Beta and basically ignored. Setting up a useful, useable market on your FC is basically a several hour exercise in menus and mouse clicking.
 

Old Duck

Old Duck
Kellan Fell said:
All of this was brought up during the Beta and basically ignored. Setting up a useful, useable market on your FC is basically a several hour exercise in menus and mouse clicking.
Click to expand...
Sounds like a job for a macro. As the old saying goes when it comes to ED, if you want something done right, you got to do it yourself.
 

6millionliraman

6
Being able to set a miminum stock hold would be hugely helpful. It looks like someone just forgot to insert the button in the UI, because you can set maximum stock when buying stock, but when you switch to "sell" the button disappears, yet on the right-hand panel there's a (completely useless) "minum stock hold" field.
I can kinda see why you can't buy and sell commodities simultaneously (the NPC/BGS markets can't do that either), but generally the fleet carrier market management is so super basic it feels more like something from Tonka toys. Definitely a whole lotta margin for improvement!
 
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