"Don't rush into an Anaconda, do Engineering first...."

Starshot_Jigawatts

Starshot_Jigawatts
Aaaaaand that's exactly when this game went from fun and exciting to something I can barely justify logging in for. The grind is horrible. The complete lack of any in-game direction for this Engineering stuff is unbelievable. I'm juggling 10 different third-party tools and YouTube videos just to get by, and I still don't fully understand the process.

If there's one thing I learned from playing Eve Online it's this: Spreadsheets for a video game is NOT fun and should never be required. Yet here I am again, looking at people's spreadsheets for this soul-sucking endeavor.

This isn't fun. I'm no longer having fun. And I would love to just ignore engineering and merrily go about my business but the upgrades are so game-breaking that they are pretty much required to do anything efficiently so that's not a real option.

This is all to get Felicity Farseer to level 5. To say nothing of all the other Engineers I'm expected to do space chores for to unlock their goodies. The vague and nebulous materials grind is the real problem. I would much rather these Engineers just hand out quests - err "missions" - like every other game on Earth. But nope, instead I'm logging in and out of the game repeatedly to farm the same High Grade Emissions source. Because that's just super fun stuff!

Who thought this was a good idea? Should I just abandon this fools gold and have fun again?
 

MadDogMurdock

MadDogMurdock
Yup, park up the Anaconda and get back in your Python.

Fit it out for materials collection as you go.
Wake Scanner
Collector Limpets

Doing that will get most of the materials you need for G3 and some for G4 and G5.
Mix in reasons to go to the surface and collect raw materials while you’re there.
Take the material rewards for missions.
Basically anything that will get you materials for doing what you’re doing anyway will reduce the grind.

Trying to get a large ship from stock to G5 requires a lot of stuff.
Just don’t try and do it in one go.
 

varonica

varonica
MadDogMurdock said:
Yup, park up the Anaconda and get back in your Python.
Click to expand...

Yep, just engineered my Python, had it for 5 years, now it has a grade 5 engineered FSD, DSS and a few other things, funnily enough despite not actually bothering to go around gathering what I need I actually had it all on me. I guess I just played the game long enough for it to all accumulate, sort of like bellybutton fluff I suppose.
 

Schmack

Schmack
Yes materials can be a grind, and many of us who might respond weren't saddled with the same situation you have - we started in ships and worked to A-rate them with high end modules that only required in game credits. Along the way we eventually started collecting materials. I didn't begin to engineer for quite some time after I had a lot of mats I had no idea about. There were times I'd dump a whole load of exquisite focus crystals into the void because I couldn't get mission rewards otherwise. Back then we couldn't carry as many materials it seems. So when someone advises you to do engineer first, only consider what career you are immediately interested in. A fast ship is almost always a plus, as is ample power to avoid the need to prioritize, so thrusters and power plant engineering is a big deal. Weapons can come as you feel like visiting the engineers. I've been here for years and still don't have all the engineering done and don't plan on engineering some things like cannons or scoops or the AFMU.

As far as the requests to fetch this or that, there's a group of folks called the Teabaggers that live to dump these things right in front of you just to flip the bird to those engineers and the developers. You can really cut down on grind and create content for others by meeting up in game with some folks and getting everything you need pretty quick, so we all realize it's not really content to fetch cigars or brandy (maybe IRL sure), especially when the game trolls you by only giving you a few at a time.

If we could dump materials, that would be even more reason to interact with other players.
 

Pat Healy

P
MadDogMurdock said:
Just don’t try and do it in one go.
Click to expand...

This. Engineering is a lot less grindy if you address it in a non-linear way and sort of let the game lead you into new experiences. Two examples:

-All engineers require lots of manufactured mats. Best way I've found those is to get biotech conductors as mission rewards, then visit the material trader and trade down for all the stuff you need. Best way I've found to get biotech conductors (plus a pile of credits) is Robigo-Sothis passenger missions. Now I have a passenger Python sitting at Robigo full time, and whenever I need manufactured mats I just fly my AspX out there and run passenger missions. I let the game lead me into setting up a sideline passenger business that's very profitable and a nice change of pace from other careers.

-Same idea with raw mats gathering - the Outotz sector is great for this but it's like 1200ly from the bubble. Good excuse to turn my AspX into a real long-range exploration ship, which was lots of fun and led me down all kinds of other interesting rabbit holes.

All of which is incredibly frustrating if you JUST WANT TO GET FELICITY TO L5!!!!!!!!!!! I don't mean to be unhelpful - I get it and absolutely experienced the same frustration. This is the best approach I've found to making it fun.
 

Navigare Necesse Est

Navigare Necesse Est
Pat Healy said:
This. Engineering is a lot less grindy if you address it in a non-linear way and sort of let the game lead you into new experiences. Two examples:

-All engineers require lots of manufactured mats. Best way I've found those is to get biotech conductors as mission rewards, then visit the material trader and trade down for all the stuff you need. Best way I've found to get biotech conductors (plus a pile of credits) is Robigo-Sothis passenger missions. Now I have a passenger Python sitting at Robigo full time, and whenever I need manufactured mats I just fly my AspX out there and run passenger missions. I let the game lead me into setting up a sideline passenger business that's very profitable and a nice change of pace from other careers.

-Same idea with raw mats gathering - the Outotz sector is great for this but it's like 1200ly from the bubble. Good excuse to turn my AspX into a real long-range exploration ship, which was lots of fun and led me down all kinds of other interesting rabbit holes.

All of which is incredibly frustrating if you JUST WANT TO GET FELICITY TO L5!!!!!!!!!!! I don't mean to be unhelpful - I get it and absolutely experienced the same frustration. This is the best approach I've found to making it fun.
Click to expand...
You know what's even less grindy? Not bothering at all, tossing it into the bin and playing something more fun instead.
 

Northpin

Northpin
Starshot_Jigawatts said:
Who thought this was a good idea? Should I just abandon this fools gold and have fun again?
Click to expand...

Yes.
Don't turn engineering into a grind if it appears for you like that Take it slower
But you'd still have to use at least Inara to see what materials you need for a certain blue print (and for info on how to unlock engineers)

I for one - i've always seen it as a series of quests...
 

Vedmo

Vedmo
Starshot_Jigawatts said:
instead I'm logging in and out of the game repeatedly to farm the same High Grade Emissions source. Because that's just super fun stuff!
Click to expand...

If you don't enjoy grindy exploits, don't do them.

You've played the game for a few hours now, so credits are just about meaningless. Prioritise materials. Check the occasional USS, drop in for the free mats if it gives them. Scoop the good stuff after combat. Always select material rewards over credits. Always cycle through ships while in super cruise. Toss a wake scanner on a cargo/mission ship and scan some wakes as leave stations. It really doesn't take long and you'll be able to trade down at a material trader and easily G3-4 the important stuff as you start unlocking different engineers.

Guides and videos almost universally send people down the worst route possible assuming you want to enjoy the game.
 

Schmack

Schmack
Vedmo said:
If you don't enjoy grindy exploits, don't do them.

You've played the game for a few hours now, so credits are just about meaningless. Prioritise materials. Check the occasional USS, drop in for the free mats if it gives them. Scoop the good stuff after combat. Always select material rewards over credits. Always cycle through ships while in super cruise. Toss a wake scanner on a cargo/mission ship and scan some wakes as leave stations. It really doesn't take long and you'll be able to trade down at a material trader and easily G3-4 the important stuff as you start unlocking different engineers.

Guides and videos almost universally send people down the worst route possible assuming you want to enjoy the game.
Click to expand...
No scooping!

Get a limpet controller and some limpets. Let them do the work while you kill things or mine or whatever.
 
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