Going to Colonia
- Thread starter Alec Turner
- Start date
Time difference between Alec and myself is quite spread apart so while he plays I sleep more or less.This has become a bit of a daily routine for me, get in from work, have dinner with the family, watch some crap on the tellybox and before settling down for the evening, must catch up with how Alex is getting on on the other side of the galaxy.
awesome series!
So yeah, first thing I head for after work is to see this thread, the adventures with the pictures and videos and the humer.
Day 33 - 22.01.3307
MALFUNCTION!
Despite my concerns over fuel it turns out that the on-board route plotter can easily find me a route to the nearest M class star thanks to the large number of neutron stars in this area so before long I'm refuelled and considering my next move. I'd love to find an eartlike down here to put the galactic plane into perspective plus I've also spotted another system even further down (just over 3000ly) that I should be able to get to. However, as I start to make my way across I run into another problem.
Dammit, all the neutron boosts to get down here have taken their toll on the frame shift drive.
That's alright tho' - I'll just drop out of supercruise and repair it. Except ... disaster! Where the hell is the AFMU? I scroll up and down the modules list half a dozen times but there's no escaping the awful truth ... I forgot to re-install it!
Now I have a real problem. I'm 2,500 light years below Colonia in a region only made accessible via a chain of a dozen or so neutron jumps and I have a mulfunctioning frame shift drive and no repair unit.
What are my options? The first thing I try is a reboot/repair sequence ..
.. but alas that does nothing to improve the condition of the FSD (is it my imagination or does that only repair modules that have completely failed? I really should have read the Krait owners manual before I set off.)
OK, I could be in serious trouble here. I put the idea of calling the Hull Seals to one side for a second and decide to see if I can find any fleet carriers in the area offering repair services. There's nothing nearby by there are reports of one around 1800ly away (just over half way back to Colonia). I'm really torn as I desperately wanted to continue exploring down here and for a moment I'm tempted to just push on through the FSD failures and try to get further down. I take another look at the stunning view ..
.. but what was appealing before now just looks like death. Sanity takes hold and I plot the 7 jump route back up towards salvation.
It's a nerve wracking journey, alternating between moments of relief as the jump finally engages ..
.. and moments of cold dread when it won't.
But eventually I make it. Hello carrier Katarkis, boy are you a welcome sight!
Tune in later for part two of today's adventure when we go to the ballet!
MALFUNCTION!
Despite my concerns over fuel it turns out that the on-board route plotter can easily find me a route to the nearest M class star thanks to the large number of neutron stars in this area so before long I'm refuelled and considering my next move. I'd love to find an eartlike down here to put the galactic plane into perspective plus I've also spotted another system even further down (just over 3000ly) that I should be able to get to. However, as I start to make my way across I run into another problem.
Dammit, all the neutron boosts to get down here have taken their toll on the frame shift drive.
That's alright tho' - I'll just drop out of supercruise and repair it. Except ... disaster! Where the hell is the AFMU? I scroll up and down the modules list half a dozen times but there's no escaping the awful truth ... I forgot to re-install it!
Now I have a real problem. I'm 2,500 light years below Colonia in a region only made accessible via a chain of a dozen or so neutron jumps and I have a mulfunctioning frame shift drive and no repair unit.
What are my options? The first thing I try is a reboot/repair sequence ..
.. but alas that does nothing to improve the condition of the FSD (is it my imagination or does that only repair modules that have completely failed? I really should have read the Krait owners manual before I set off.)
OK, I could be in serious trouble here. I put the idea of calling the Hull Seals to one side for a second and decide to see if I can find any fleet carriers in the area offering repair services. There's nothing nearby by there are reports of one around 1800ly away (just over half way back to Colonia). I'm really torn as I desperately wanted to continue exploring down here and for a moment I'm tempted to just push on through the FSD failures and try to get further down. I take another look at the stunning view ..
.. but what was appealing before now just looks like death. Sanity takes hold and I plot the 7 jump route back up towards salvation.
It's a nerve wracking journey, alternating between moments of relief as the jump finally engages ..
.. and moments of cold dread when it won't.
But eventually I make it. Hello carrier Katarkis, boy are you a welcome sight!
Tune in later for part two of today's adventure when we go to the ballet!
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Day 33 (part 2)- 22.01.3307
EXPERIMENTAL HABITATS
Now fully repaired I decide to return to the Dove Enigma to re-install the AFMU so future expeditions won't have to be cut short. I make a mental note to return to Colonia Point and try to get even lower but in the meantime, thanks to a tip-off, I re-read Galnet news a bit more carefully and spot the following.
Experimental habitats? Well that sounds fascinating and definitely worthy of a visit (I wonder if they have a gift shop?). First up is EOL PROU PC-K c9-221 - just one jump away and a quick scan with the FSS reveals the location.
The artificially created habitat is in orbit about this rather lovely gas giant - mini David nods his head in approval.
I drop in and read up on what this is.
Inside I initially encounter the inky blackness often found in the depths of a lagrange cloud and eventually discover one of its inhabitants lurking within, a peduncle pod.
Closer to the edge where the cloud's red colouration can be more easily seen I find another and uncover one of its traits. They occasionally emit a small jet of ... something? ... which propels them through the void. They're actually very endearing and seem to be entirely harmless.
It's time to try out the research limpet, a piece of equipment I confess I've never used in six years of being a pilots federation member.
The limpet attaches to the pod, takes a small sample (which appears not to distress the creature at all) and then returns to my ship with its payload of, eurgh, dead tissue.
I explore the rest of this site and find maybe a dozen more of these creatures scattered throughout the cloud. On to site number two in EOL PROU LW-L C8-99 which is basically more of the same. I deploy the Guardian fighter for a closer look ..
.. and then take another tissue sample (this time it's live tissue). Here you can just about make out the research limpet returning to my ship having taken its sample.
Finally for today we move on to the third of the four experimental habitats in EOL PROU KW-L C8-301 and actually get to follow one of the pods in the fighter as it propels itself off into the cloud.
As part of my ongoing series of similarly themed images taken in unusual locations I present ...
Fighter Retrieval Sequence Initiated
Just as I'm about to stop for today I find a cluster of six pods who proceed to perform a rather beautiful ballet for me. At the start of the video see if you can guess which pod is going to be the last to exit the stage!
Tomorrow we'll visit habitat number four. Will it be more of the same or something different, and will we finally find the gift shop? (I fancy getting myself a pencil rubber shapped like a peduncle pod or perhaps some fudge?).
EXPERIMENTAL HABITATS
Now fully repaired I decide to return to the Dove Enigma to re-install the AFMU so future expeditions won't have to be cut short. I make a mental note to return to Colonia Point and try to get even lower but in the meantime, thanks to a tip-off, I re-read Galnet news a bit more carefully and spot the following.
Experimental habitats? Well that sounds fascinating and definitely worthy of a visit (I wonder if they have a gift shop?). First up is EOL PROU PC-K c9-221 - just one jump away and a quick scan with the FSS reveals the location.
The artificially created habitat is in orbit about this rather lovely gas giant - mini David nods his head in approval.
I drop in and read up on what this is.
Inside I initially encounter the inky blackness often found in the depths of a lagrange cloud and eventually discover one of its inhabitants lurking within, a peduncle pod.
Closer to the edge where the cloud's red colouration can be more easily seen I find another and uncover one of its traits. They occasionally emit a small jet of ... something? ... which propels them through the void. They're actually very endearing and seem to be entirely harmless.
It's time to try out the research limpet, a piece of equipment I confess I've never used in six years of being a pilots federation member.
The limpet attaches to the pod, takes a small sample (which appears not to distress the creature at all) and then returns to my ship with its payload of, eurgh, dead tissue.
I explore the rest of this site and find maybe a dozen more of these creatures scattered throughout the cloud. On to site number two in EOL PROU LW-L C8-99 which is basically more of the same. I deploy the Guardian fighter for a closer look ..
.. and then take another tissue sample (this time it's live tissue). Here you can just about make out the research limpet returning to my ship having taken its sample.
Finally for today we move on to the third of the four experimental habitats in EOL PROU KW-L C8-301 and actually get to follow one of the pods in the fighter as it propels itself off into the cloud.
As part of my ongoing series of similarly themed images taken in unusual locations I present ...
Fighter Retrieval Sequence Initiated
Just as I'm about to stop for today I find a cluster of six pods who proceed to perform a rather beautiful ballet for me. At the start of the video see if you can guess which pod is going to be the last to exit the stage!
Tomorrow we'll visit habitat number four. Will it be more of the same or something different, and will we finally find the gift shop? (I fancy getting myself a pencil rubber shapped like a peduncle pod or perhaps some fudge?).
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Deleted member 182079
D
Following the footsteps of CMDR Turner
Day 34 - 23.01.3307
THE GIFT SHOP
Today it's time to visit experimental habitat 004 in the EOL PROU PC-K C9-154 system. I decide to film my arrival.
The eagle eyed may have spotted something I missed initially and instead I follow one of the many tourist ships we find visiting these locations.
This habitat is largely similar to the other three and contains more of the peduncle pods that we've seen jetting around elsewhere.
However, it's only as I'm exploring the cloud further that I suddenly see it ... hallelujah, they do have a gift shop! (masquerading as a Beckett class science vessel).
Vowing to pop back later to buy my souvenir eraser and fudge I head back into the heart of the cloud to take some more bio-samples. In the first shot if you look closely you can actually see the limpet attached to the pod (it's tiny by comparison) ..
.. and here's another shot of the limpet returning to my ship with its sample.
It's around about this point that an idea suddenly pops into my head ... could I push one of these pods all the way to the science vessel which is currently some 12.5km away?
The answer is yes. It's a slow painstaking process which takes a good 15 or 20 minutes, nudging and shoving the reluctant pod bit by bit, and every few minutes it lets out another jet which sends it shooting away in the opposite direction.
But eventually we get there, in my mind to the sound of laughter and applause from the folks inside who've no doubt been wondering what the idiot in the Krait has been trying to accomplish.
Hmmm, and then a darker idea occurs to me. The massive engines at the back of the science vessel can damage a ship, I wonder what effect they'd have on a peduncle pod?
And so begins another session of bumping and jostling as I wrangle the reluctant pod around to the back of the megaship.
Discovered - NEW TRAIT - when shoved into the engines of a megaship the peduncle pod quite literally craps itself!
If nothing else the megaship itself appears to have taken an evil delight in my antics today!
Time to leave before things go all "Event Horizon" I think!
As I get further away I'm struck by the fact that I've never really looked at one of these Lagrange Clouds from the outside (we always drop right into the middle from supercruise).
They're really very beautiful, like a tiny nebula.
Anyway, that's it for today ... and I must say I'm very pleased with my souvenirs too!
THE GIFT SHOP
Today it's time to visit experimental habitat 004 in the EOL PROU PC-K C9-154 system. I decide to film my arrival.
The eagle eyed may have spotted something I missed initially and instead I follow one of the many tourist ships we find visiting these locations.
This habitat is largely similar to the other three and contains more of the peduncle pods that we've seen jetting around elsewhere.
However, it's only as I'm exploring the cloud further that I suddenly see it ... hallelujah, they do have a gift shop! (masquerading as a Beckett class science vessel).
Vowing to pop back later to buy my souvenir eraser and fudge I head back into the heart of the cloud to take some more bio-samples. In the first shot if you look closely you can actually see the limpet attached to the pod (it's tiny by comparison) ..
.. and here's another shot of the limpet returning to my ship with its sample.
It's around about this point that an idea suddenly pops into my head ... could I push one of these pods all the way to the science vessel which is currently some 12.5km away?
The answer is yes. It's a slow painstaking process which takes a good 15 or 20 minutes, nudging and shoving the reluctant pod bit by bit, and every few minutes it lets out another jet which sends it shooting away in the opposite direction.
But eventually we get there, in my mind to the sound of laughter and applause from the folks inside who've no doubt been wondering what the idiot in the Krait has been trying to accomplish.
Hmmm, and then a darker idea occurs to me. The massive engines at the back of the science vessel can damage a ship, I wonder what effect they'd have on a peduncle pod?
And so begins another session of bumping and jostling as I wrangle the reluctant pod around to the back of the megaship.
Discovered - NEW TRAIT - when shoved into the engines of a megaship the peduncle pod quite literally craps itself!
If nothing else the megaship itself appears to have taken an evil delight in my antics today!
Time to leave before things go all "Event Horizon" I think!
As I get further away I'm struck by the fact that I've never really looked at one of these Lagrange Clouds from the outside (we always drop right into the middle from supercruise).
They're really very beautiful, like a tiny nebula.
Anyway, that's it for today ... and I must say I'm very pleased with my souvenirs too!
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Day 35 - 24.01.3307
THE KRAKEN 100
One of the things I've been doing at the start of each day out here is to check for unobscured jumps on the Trophy Dash run and also to see if Kraken's Retreat is in daylight. Today the latter came true so I spent some time looking to see if the ridge leading up to Etienne Dorn's hangout could be made into an interesting new Buckyball SRV time trial challenge.
The idea I'm currently working on is a 100km long endurance race (finishing at Kraken's Retreat) which will use the repair rules established for the 8WD SRV Endurance Championship where you have to recall your ship in order to repair (i.e. no synthesis allowed).
This is the view along the ridge with my ship hovering just above the 100km line.
Looks pretty easy doesn't it? Unfortunately that's proving to be deceptive thanks to large quantities of ninja rocks scattered liberally across the ridge positioned precisely where you don't want them to be.
Anyway, testing continues so hopefully I'll have a clean demonstration run to present here soon and not just days and days of videos of me exploding!
THE KRAKEN 100
One of the things I've been doing at the start of each day out here is to check for unobscured jumps on the Trophy Dash run and also to see if Kraken's Retreat is in daylight. Today the latter came true so I spent some time looking to see if the ridge leading up to Etienne Dorn's hangout could be made into an interesting new Buckyball SRV time trial challenge.
The idea I'm currently working on is a 100km long endurance race (finishing at Kraken's Retreat) which will use the repair rules established for the 8WD SRV Endurance Championship where you have to recall your ship in order to repair (i.e. no synthesis allowed).
This is the view along the ridge with my ship hovering just above the 100km line.
Looks pretty easy doesn't it? Unfortunately that's proving to be deceptive thanks to large quantities of ninja rocks scattered liberally across the ridge positioned precisely where you don't want them to be.
Anyway, testing continues so hopefully I'll have a clean demonstration run to present here soon and not just days and days of videos of me exploding!
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I'll be heading over to check out the ridge this week.
@Alec Turner Went to check the ridge out this evening, but it was dark when I arrived so I've landed and will check again in daylight. As I haven't got any engineers in Colonia visible, I had to take the coordinates from your footage to find the location. I can see Kraken's Retreat now I am near, but it is marked red - I presume if I get too close I'll have problems. I guess I'll find out how close in daylight.
Ooh interesting, I'd forgotten that engineer bases could be hostile if you haven't been invited. I'm really curious to know what will happen to you. Can you even access the base via the SRV I wonder? (an intriguing loophole if possible)@Alec Turner Went to check the ridge out this evening, but it was dark when I arrived so I've landed and will check again in daylight. As I haven't got any engineers in Colonia visible, I had to take the coordinates from your footage to find the location. I can see Kraken's Retreat now I am near, but it is marked red - I presume if I get too close I'll have problems. I guess I'll find out how close in daylight.
Day 36 - 26.01.3307
THE KRAKEN 100 (continued)
Not much to report. A second day of light on Los A 2 b means that viability testing for the "Kraken 100" SRV time trial continues apace.
Three almost full length runs today. Since I'm almost certainly going to insist that racers must survive their run the first two definitely fall into the "close but no cigar" category ..
.. while the third run (included here in its entirety), well ... I won't spoil the ending!
THE KRAKEN 100 (continued)
Not much to report. A second day of light on Los A 2 b means that viability testing for the "Kraken 100" SRV time trial continues apace.
Three almost full length runs today. Since I'm almost certainly going to insist that racers must survive their run the first two definitely fall into the "close but no cigar" category ..
.. while the third run (included here in its entirety), well ... I won't spoil the ending!
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So, I did manage to complete the run this evening:
Not sure on time as I didn't take a note. I was expecting the telemetry to be displayed on the stream, but for some reason that wasn't picked up. I could work out a time from the video I'm sure.
Nearly lost the ship again. Once I'd reached the base, I then left and went 5km out to recall. That's far too close! Lost half the hull before I realised, but was able to dismiss in time. I drove on until I was over 20km away, and recalled. That seemed safe enough (no attack on either landing), but my ship decided it didn't want to land after all. I gave up at that point and will try and work that bit out later!
Not sure on time as I didn't take a note. I was expecting the telemetry to be displayed on the stream, but for some reason that wasn't picked up.
I could work out a time from the video I'm sure.Nearly lost the ship again. Once I'd reached the base, I then left and went 5km out to recall. That's far too close! Lost half the hull before I realised, but was able to dismiss in time. I drove on until I was over 20km away, and recalled. That seemed safe enough (no attack on either landing), but my ship decided it didn't want to land after all. I gave up at that point and will try and work that bit out later!
Day 37 - 27.01.3307
THE GHOST OF KRAKEN RIDGE
While I keep lookout on the ridge like a watchful Meerkat ..
.. I'm joined by Ian Doncaster and a mildly troubled Crank Larson.
We make a number of attempts at the Kraken 100, variously exploding and/or falling off the ridge until a point where Crank (who does not have permission from Etienne Dorn to be here) has his ship gunned down by a passing patrol during a pit stop and finds himself stranded on the ridge with nothing for it except to head for the city and see if he can sneak in and maybe steal a replacement ship (or something like that, we'll work it out when we get there). Anyway ... I assist Crank's stealthy approach to the Retreat by guiding the way with fireworks.
Unfortunately Crank (now more than mildly troubled) suffers a series of impacts that he's now unable to repair (at least under the rules of the race) so by the time he gets to the outskirts of the base he's down to 0% hull with nothing more than prayers and rounding errors to keep himself alive. And then, as if matters aren't bad enough, he comes under fire from a patrolling Goliath!
As Crank carefully makes his way to the entrance tunnel I try to position my ship between him and the Goliath and then make the fatal decision to open fire on it with my firework launchers.
I'll now hand over to my critical cockpit companions to finish the story.
Epilogue - While Ian and myself kept the Goliath busy, Cmdr Larson did eventually manage to sneak into the city but alas was still denied docking access. Rumour has it that he eventually died while aimlessly roaming the back streets of Kraken's Retreat and that his ghost can still be seen racing along the ridge ... the only commander to ever complete The Kraken 100!
THE GHOST OF KRAKEN RIDGE
While I keep lookout on the ridge like a watchful Meerkat ..
.. I'm joined by Ian Doncaster and a mildly troubled Crank Larson.
We make a number of attempts at the Kraken 100, variously exploding and/or falling off the ridge until a point where Crank (who does not have permission from Etienne Dorn to be here) has his ship gunned down by a passing patrol during a pit stop and finds himself stranded on the ridge with nothing for it except to head for the city and see if he can sneak in and maybe steal a replacement ship (or something like that, we'll work it out when we get there). Anyway ... I assist Crank's stealthy approach to the Retreat by guiding the way with fireworks.
Unfortunately Crank (now more than mildly troubled) suffers a series of impacts that he's now unable to repair (at least under the rules of the race) so by the time he gets to the outskirts of the base he's down to 0% hull with nothing more than prayers and rounding errors to keep himself alive. And then, as if matters aren't bad enough, he comes under fire from a patrolling Goliath!
As Crank carefully makes his way to the entrance tunnel I try to position my ship between him and the Goliath and then make the fatal decision to open fire on it with my firework launchers.
I'll now hand over to my critical cockpit companions to finish the story.
Epilogue - While Ian and myself kept the Goliath busy, Cmdr Larson did eventually manage to sneak into the city but alas was still denied docking access. Rumour has it that he eventually died while aimlessly roaming the back streets of Kraken's Retreat and that his ghost can still be seen racing along the ridge ... the only commander to ever complete The Kraken 100!
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Brilliant story!
Poor Crank, one of my friends fell foul of Colonia engineers bases when accompanying me, he forgot that he hadn't unlocked the invite in the bubble first!
Poor Crank, one of my friends fell foul of Colonia engineers bases when accompanying me, he forgot that he hadn't unlocked the invite in the bubble first!
Make it a bigger oval and on ice and I'm in.
That's awesome ... I love it!May I suggest a new discipline for the BRC..
Boogity, boogity, boogity! Let's go dirt-oval racing!
What? No?
No visible 'spin-outs'... If that was me driving...May I suggest a new discipline for the BRC..
Boogity, boogity, boogity! Let's go dirt-oval racing!
What? No?
All I see is one large spin-out.
@Alec Turner Excellent write-up. Though technically that run wasn't complete, as I didn't stick to the ridge (I did a few km on the ridge to the left, and some more along the ravine bottom, until I could find my way up again). The run I did later was a proper run, I believe, though I wasn't really intending to do it (hence not knowing how long it took!). The problem with SRVs is that once I get in them and start driving, I just get carried away...