A few questions. Trying to decide. Card in hand.

[Roughrider]

Before backing at $150 I have a few questions.

Is ship progression linear? By that I mean is one of my main foci going to be progressing through ships to get the "best one" or will my newbie single seated fighter be able to do some damage on a cruiser because I'm maneuverable? Is there a "best" ship? Will it benefit me to fly out of dock in a lower classed ship because it has better tactical (whatever that may be) advantages? (this is a huge concern for me)

The way its been explained thus far to me by people in the alpha is that there is a ship grind, and there really is not much purpose on flying a lower tiered ship.

Don't speculate here - is this what we currently have going on in ED? Do we see this changing (if its the case) in the future to a great degree?
---------------

Any crafting (pc or npc) or player driven markets tied to mining? Does mining exist, and are different ships going to be primarily classified as hard hull mining vessels that can get away if picked on by light fighters? (ie: eve online, also kind of ties into my first question)

Does mining currently exist in game in any form other than blowing npcs up that are doing it?

Exploitable derelict spacecraft? (firefly ep1)

Deep space exploration a viable career path?

Is my player the ship (currently as it sits) or are the players going to get interactions outside of the cockpit at some point beyond trading and group combat? Any social distractions planned outside of combat related activities?

Any plans that the development team has in store to make the player persistence portion of the game more viable? (more massively MP in regards to the players as opposed to the universe?)

Thanks guys for your help, I have a credit card at the standby...

 

[Seonid]

First thing to note is that currently ED is far from the finished game, it's really some specific game elements gaffer taped together for the purposes of testing. Only a few systems and ships are available, for some ideas of what is intended can be found here: http://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=25164

 

[ZeeWolf]

The idea of Elite is that you pick a ship that works best for your chosen career, but no ship is specifically tailored towards your chosen career by the manufacturer. You start the game at the bottom of the rung though, with a sidewinder that's actually very maneuverable but suffers from not having much in the way of cargo space. It might serve you well as a mercenary though, you could upgrade it and have a very powerful little ship that could do real damage to something bigger.

In the current Beta, we only have 5 of the 25 ships due for final release, so it's a bit limited still. Also, as most of the game mechanics are still missing there is a bit of a grind to be able to afford a slightly better ship such as the Eagle or Hauler. There are no missions or mining etc. But that may well change in three weeks when a huge update is due.

If you are uncertain if this "unfinished" ride is what you're looking for, then why not try standard Beta at a more reasonable price and start playing the single player today? You will then get full access in just three weeks, the game will probably be looking more like what you're hoping for by then.

 

[ste]

Ships have pros and cons, but you cant really expect a free sidewinder to be as good as a fully equipped 4million credit anaconda. Otherwise you might as well just stick with the freebie

 

[Roughrider]

First thing to note is that currently ED is far from the finished game, it's really some specific game elements gaffer taped together for the purposes of testing. Only a few systems and ships are available, for some ideas of what is intended can be found here: http://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=25164

No I understand that completely. I've been involved in testing cucyles from friends and family alphas since ultima online. I'm currently curious and asking here about some speculated or not speculated features because I know we have a few walking and talking ED wikipedia type guys here.

 

[Roughrider]

Ships have pros and cons, but you cant really expect a free sidewinder to be as good as a fully equipped 4million credit anaconda. Otherwise you might as well just stick with the freebie

There it is... How does my fully capped Sidewinder turbo xl "assravager" model stack up against that anaconda MAX though? Will I just be beating my face against the wall, or will I stand a chance based on piloting skill?

 

[Seonid]

I'm currently curious and asking here about some speculated or not speculated features because I know we have a few walking and talking ED wikipedia type guys here.

Hence my linking the DDF archives as they cover exactly this, usual caveat of "not set in stone" applies as you would expect.

 

[Mephane]

The way its been explained thus far to me by people in the alpha is that there is a ship grind, and there really is not much purpose on flying a lower tiered ship.

The "ship grind" exists only insofar as to if you desire to fly a specific ship, depending on its price can be a lot of effort to reach. But there won't be a linear progression, ship's will fill their roles. My favourite ship, for example, the Eagle, is the second-smallest ship currently in the game and I am doing perfectly fine.

 

[ste]

There it is... How does my fully capped Sidewinder turbo xl "assravager" model stack up against that anaconda MAX though?

If you can keep out of its line of fire, which because the sidewinder is faster and more maneuverable isnt impossible, and get 6 friends to help. You should be be able to take him down pretty easy I imagine, I have only killed NPC anacondas, I normally avoid Human ones with hardpoints deployed.

 

[ZeeWolf]

There it is... How does my fully capped Sidewinder turbo xl "assravager" model stack up against that anaconda MAX though?

You can easily take out NPC Anaconda's in the sidewinder, in fact the single player missions require you to do so. It's easier in a nice asteroid ring though as you can use the rocks as cover.

Against another player it's not impossible, you can certainly out maneuver him but he will probably be fairly experienced to have got the Anaconda in the first place. You could fly in his wake and try to target a critical system, but you would be better off just running away.

Later on you'll be able to hire protection or fly with friends. A group of sidewinders would be deadly.

 

[RaynMaykr]

There currently is a bit of a ship grind but that's because most systems that are planned aren't in game yet. Based on what I've read there will be reason to use a whole range of ships and class of ships.

Crafting in the sense of EVE is not in. But players can mine and sell to the market. My hope is that a later update after launch puts crafting in.

Derelict craft... See the salvage post in the DDA thread list other people posted.

Deep space exploration... Absolutely... There's 100billion systems and lots of cool stuck has been teased. Also topics in the DDA forum on this.

Walking in stations, ships, and planetary landings are planned as one of the initial expansions.

 

[ste]

Think of it as a career. Its not a 5 minute game. Its a long term game. You start with nothing and you grow, slowly. The game is designed to be played for years, not completed in 4 hours and then part exchanged for the next thing that comes along. I played the original for a decade.

That £150 or whatever will be the best cash per hour played value than probably any other game you have ever bought in your life.

 

[Rhaedas]

There it is... How does my fully capped Sidewinder turbo xl "assravager" model stack up against that anaconda MAX though? Will I just be beating my face against the wall, or will I stand a chance based on piloting skill?

Head to head, obviously not. In different environments, still unlikely, because you're talking about a huge difference in ship capabilities. But with a few friends in similar ships, and teamwork, sure.

 

[Void Sun]

Before backing at $150 I have a few questions.

Is ship progression linear? By that I mean is one of my main foci going to be progressing through ships to get the "best one" or will my newbie single seated fighter be able to do some damage on a cruiser because I'm maneuverable? Is there a "best" ship? Will it benefit me to fly out of dock in a lower classed ship because it has better tactical (whatever that may be) advantages? (this is a huge concern for me)

Some ships tend to be better suited to certain roles plus there are all rounders in the mix. You are right that being good in one department means sacrificing some other features in another. The all round ships aren't excellent at everything just good at most.

The way its been explained thus far to me by people in the alpha is that there is a ship grind, and there really is not much purpose on flying a lower tiered ship.

Don't speculate here - is this what we currently have going on in ED? Do we see this changing (if its the case) in the future to a great degree?

---------------
There is grinding happening in Beta but that is just people who want to try out all the ships. I'm in an Anaconda now but I will soon be trading back down to a Cobra, something more maneuverable and more flexible. The Anaconda has space and firepower but not flexibility speed and maneuverability.

Any crafting (pc or npc) or player driven markets tied to mining? Does mining exist, and are different ships going to be primarily classified as hard hull mining vessels that can get away if picked on by light fighters? (ie: eve online, also kind of ties into my first question)

No crafting, however mining will be present in game. Choice of ship will be yours it will be up to you to install the most appropriate weapons and systems and hull to you chosen ship to most successfully carry out your chosen trade.

Does mining currently exist in game in any form other than blowing npcs up that are doing it?

Yes, mining lasers and some form of skill will need to be used to get the best from discovering resource sites and mining.

Exploitable derelict spacecraft? (firefly ep1)

This is planned although recovery of working technology is unlikely, more likely raw elements and/or non-salvageable components that need to be sold to dealers.

Deep space exploration a viable career path?

Yes, selling data related to system and resource finds on the frontier including new hyperspace routes will all present credit earning opportunities.

Is my player the ship (currently as it sits) or are the players going to get interactions outside of the cockpit at some point beyond trading and group combat? Any social distractions planned outside of combat related activities?

At the moment the player is the ship however even now all aspects of the game are being modeled to allow first person interaction with the game world due in either the first or second feature release.

Any plans that the development team has in store to make the player persistence portion of the game more viable? (more massively MP in regards to the players as opposed to the universe?)

Not at the moment, no player purchasable infrastructure or controlled assets beyond ships is planned.

Thanks guys for your help, I have a credit card at the standby...

 

[Rhaedas]

Think of it as a career. Its not a 5 minute game. Its a long term game. You start with nothing and you grow, slowly. The game is designed to be played for years, not completed in 4 hours and then part exchanged for the next thing that comes along. I played the original for a decade.

That £150 or whatever will be the best cash per hour played value than probably any other game you have ever bought in your life.

I will concur with this. Given the success so far, even with the issues at hand, and the potential, this is a definite win. But I'll play the other side...if you've read everything and seen all the videos out there and it still doesn't inspire you, then maybe it's not time yet to make the plunge.

But, on the other other hand...if you see the possibilities, think about that expansion pass that will not be available after the 29th as well. I don't think we have a clue what each expansion will cost, and all expansions might not be for everyone, but still, I wouldn't pass it up, if you believe that this game will have staying power.

 

[VR jefranklin18]

Before backing at $150 I have a few questions.

Is ship progression linear? By that I mean is one of my main foci going to be progressing through ships to get the "best one" or will my newbie single seated fighter be able to do some damage on a cruiser because I'm maneuverable? Is there a "best" ship? Will it benefit me to fly out of dock in a lower classed ship because it has better tactical (whatever that may be) advantages? (this is a huge concern for me)

Ship progression is not linear as such - you could start with your Sidewinder, amass 4million credits and jump straight to an Anaconda. In the full game there will be 25 playable ships total, no doubt covering the entire range of prices. When playing Frontier, I went from the starter ship to a Cobra to an Asp to a Panther clipper but that it because that path fitted my career as a trader.

Any crafting (pc or npc) or player driven markets tied to mining? Does mining exist, and are different ships going to be primarily classified as hard hull mining vessels that can get away if picked on by light fighters? (ie: eve online, also kind of ties into my first question)

Does mining currently exist in game in any form other than blowing npcs up that are doing it?

Not sure with respect to mining - videos have been shown that show ships zapping asteroids to mine the contents. Based on experience with Frontier, you will be able to get a mining laser (high power but low rate of pulse fire). When planetary landings arrive, I expect MB40 mining machines to be available (drop them on a planet, come back later and there be gold in them thar hills).

Exploitable derelict spacecraft? (firefly ep1)

Nothing directly mentioned but an early Kickstarter video hints at this being out there. The thing is, you will have to look for it and there are a lot of star systems to explore.

Deep space exploration a viable career path?

I hope so, that is the one I want to do.

Is my player the ship (currently as it sits) or are the players going to get interactions outside of the cockpit at some point beyond trading and group combat? Any social distractions planned outside of combat related activities?

Coming as an expansion, yes - both in terms of being able to explore your ship interior or ports. Maybe when planetary landings arrive, also that as well.

Any plans that the development team has in store to make the player persistence portion of the game more viable? (more massively MP in regards to the players as opposed to the universe?)

Not sure I get your question here? There will be thousands of players potentially, but instancing will limit that to 32 people at a time (I think). That may sound few, but given how spread out space is, it actually makes sense.

Thanks guys for your help, I have a credit card at the standby...

Whatever decision you make, welcome on board
Also keep in mind the $150 gets you all the currently planned expansions as well.

 

[gazzareth]

Aren't these form of games always about the grind, however when there is a wider selection of ships it will be better, plus there will be more ways of making money in the first place.

You need pretty decent weaponry to take on an Anaconda, I wouldn't be taking one on in a Sidewinder just because of the amount of time it will take to kill the shields, if nothing else.... plus it would have to be a pretty hopeless PC not to be able to take a newer Sidey pilot..

G

 

[Roughrider]

The idea of Elite is that you pick a ship that works best for your chosen career, but no ship is specifically tailored towards your chosen career by the manufacturer. You start the game at the bottom of the rung though, with a sidewinder that's actually very maneuverable but suffers from not having much in the way of cargo space. It might serve you well as a mercenary though, you could upgrade it and have a very powerful little ship that could do real damage to something bigger.

In the current Beta, we only have 5 of the 25 ships due for final release, so it's a bit limited still. Also, as most of the game mechanics are still missing there is a bit of a grind to be able to afford a slightly better ship such as the Eagle or Hauler. There are no missions or mining etc. But that may well change in three weeks when a huge update is due.

If you are uncertain if this "unfinished" ride is what you're looking for, then why not try standard Beta at a more reasonable price and start playing the single player today? You will then get full access in just three weeks, the game will probably be looking more like what you're hoping for by then.

Does anyone know when the current MP phase is going dark? Would hate to punch up $150 and only have access to the MP portion for a few days. (I know the turnover to beta starts on the 29th.)

 

[ZeeWolf]

Does anyone know when the current MP phase is going dark? Would hate to punch up $150 and only have access to the MP portion for a few days. (I know the turnover to beta starts on the 29th.)

So far, the multiplayer servers have only gone down for an hour or so during the day of release, most people are too busy being excited about the new build to care about playing the old version during that time.

 

[Void Sun]

MP phase will not go dark, there will be a reset on the 29th when the standard beta players join the Multiplayer environment.

Credits will be reset and all will be rolled back to the standard sidewinder, more star systems will be introduced and then all start from the same point. As mentioned above the servers will be down for just over an hour while these changes are made to the back end.