Engineers AI Worries - Heading Back After a 3 Month Exploration Expedition

[Muetdhiver]

I returned from 2 months of exploration with no problems.

Since then I run the bubble in a lightly armed / lightly armored mission/do it all ASP.
I had zero problems dealing with NPC's, either by killing them or fleeing.
NPC's fly better, and using pips and FAOFF a bit does help.

I have been : doing rare trading, normal res, lvl1 thread weapon fire USS, killing small ship interdicting me. No deaths on my side.
Btw, interdictions are now easier to fight.

So : unless you are really unlucky and get one of the NPC's with bugged OP weapons mods or
really fly like a potato, anyone should be fine. IMO : there is a lot of hysteria and people are
conflating a few clearly bugged OP weapon mods with improved AI.

 

[OriginalBadBoy]

Hi all.


As the title says, I'm heading back to "the bubble" after having spent around 3 months exploring because I wanted to get my Elite Exploration rank. I didn't make it back before the Engineers update was released and now I'm worried, after seeing all the posts and a YouTube vid regarding the AI ships near insta-killing players before they've managed to deploy their weapons and turn around.


This is my Asp build: http://coriolis.io/outfit/asp/05A5D...i2f.AwRj4yvI.AwhMJBGacjUqJ4g=?bn=Asp Explorer


As you can see, it's hardly a light, stripped down, unarmed exploration ship, and I even have access to a player escort. But it still scares the poo out of me that, even in the first inhabited and Independent system I come to, and with a player as an escort, that these reportedly stupid AIs are going to ruin 3 months of work by killing me before I've boosted out of it's weapons range.


Is it worth me waiting until this AI stuff is sorted? Or is this new AI "working as intended" and I may as well YOLO and try, then rage-quit forever and ever if I get dead? XD


Thoughts?

You should be worried ... Its called Elite Dangerous after all.

To be fair you will probably be alright, just head for a system on the edge of the bubble that you can hand your data into. There probably wont be much traffic.

 

[Coslany]

3) Enter at a station with a very short trip (under 100ls) from the drop point that's very close to the edge of human space.

And do not fly direct to the station. Fly a semi-circle in which the initial course does not point toward a body. You now know that anything tailing you is probably looking to interdict you.
As you slowly make your turn you can target any ships behind to see if they are turning to follow.
If they do don't panic. Have your high wake jump set. Do not slow down at 7 seconds if they are on your tail! Instead overshoot and begin a series of deliberate 'loops of shame' in ever decreasing circles until you can drop. They will find it nigh on impossible to get on your 6 if you do this.

Good luck CMDR!

 

[MatYNWA]

To be fair, i would wait until those one shoting machine gun like plasmas will be fixed. If you encounter them, you are dead, no matter what you will do.

You can still escape even improved AI, if you know what you are doing, but those new bugs are really nasty.

 

[CaptainKremmen]

Use your Galaxy Map to plot a course that only stops at unpopulated systems in the bubble (of which there are many).

So, filter on "Government: None" or "Allegiance: None".


I don't believe you'll see a single NPC in systems that have "population: 0".


I did this coming back from Distant Worlds, and didn't see a soul until I reached my final destination, where I intended to dock and sell my data.

 

[Navigare Necesse Est]

I didn't run into any special OP NPCs over the week-end so there's that. I either defeated or flew away from opposition. The hardest thing to tackle was all the jumbled keybindings.

Don't go tackling +++ ground installations alone though - they got ships now to defend:

I was chased in the SRV with RAILGUNS. Railgun shots left and right, it was like artillery bombardment. In the end missiles took me out in a single blow.[knocked out]
I'd have dodged the railguns for some more just for the sensation.

 

[SpocksOddSocks]

To the OP, I've not had an insta-kill personally, but a few close calls. And then, only when seeking out combat, never from an interdiction. Much of that was in an Asp with regular 5A shields. I reckon you'll be fine as long as you don't look for trouble.

However, I don't engage in powerplay. Are you still pledged to Aisling (as you have prismatic)? In the past, interdiction rate was much higher if you are pledged, guessing that's still the case.

Also, if you are worried, I wouldn't drop into any signal source other than threat level 0. Whilst most 1s are easy enough, I've had 2 close calls when the contents have been pirate wings of 4 small ships.

 

[22SAS-Wimp]

Thanks to all who posted advice. I am now "home".
Docking at the first system I came across that had a station was uneventful, and I did have my player escort too. The trip to my home station was also uneventful.
I saw from the news threads that the NPCs are mostly fixed now, as of this morning (Sunday 5th June), so it was perfect timing for me.

NPCs
- Fix NPCs ending up with overpowered hybrid weapons
- Stop NPCs deciding to attack if they only attack opposing powers and the player and AI powers are aligned to the same superpower
- Slight rebalance of the ambient AI rank chances, should see slightly less of the top end and more of the low/mid range

 

[Wylie28]

Call iridium wing, they escort explorers
edit: never mind then...

 

[22SAS-Wimp]

lol Thanks anyway Wylie. [up]

 

[Mr T]

If it was me, I would upgrade the thrusters so you can escape faster. I had class C on my ASP Explorer which were reasonable but recently upgraded to class A as the AI are still significantly harder than they were previously. They don't have the super modified weapons they had before the latest patch but I've found their combat rank and ships to be much harder to defeat than before 1.6/2.1.

 

[22SAS-Wimp]

Well... first, I have in fact refitted my Asp to this -
http://coriolis.io/outfit/asp/05A5A...wBhBYzBmaEYEKuO5zFEA===?bn=Asp Explorer Refit

Secondly, upgrading the Thrusters so that I can escape NPC while I try to dock at the first station after my exploration, first requires me to dock at a station to upgrade them.

 

[Mr T]

Secondly, upgrading the Thrusters so that I can escape NPC while I try to dock at the first station after my exploration, first requires me to dock at a station to upgrade them.

True that [yesnod] ...There's been a few instances where I've hurried into the no fire zone so system security can take care of my attacker...

 

[Cmdr Esteban]

Use your Galaxy Map to plot a course that only stops at unpopulated systems in the bubble (of which there are many).

So, filter on "Government: None" or "Allegiance: None".


I don't believe you'll see a single NPC in systems that have "population: 0".


I did this coming back from Distant Worlds, and didn't see a soul until I reached my final destination, where I intended to dock and sell my data.

As usual, wise words from you Kremmen!

I'm beginning to understand what Carla sees in you...

 

[gooddoc]

Iv used my trusted method of a low risk return from expeditions or well over a year now.

I don't do PP or pledge to anyone. Additional: I keep my pewpew rating low - currently 81% Mostly Harmless

I picked a system that was right on the edge of civvy space - it happens to be Caucuma - it has stations within 100LSs of entry.

I got Allied with EVERY faction within the Caucuma system - through selling my data from earlier trips

All my ships are stored in Caucuma

I then swapped my Asp for my Python on return from any trip & steadily spread out system by system becoming Allied with all the nearby systems by selling data.

Now I know that I can return from any trip & at least arrive in safety from my trips before deciding what to do with the data.

BTW I find like CaptainKremmen suggested, now Im flying around the bubble doing Engineers upgrades for my ship, I plot my routes if need be system by system & only jump to those with 0 population.
I have yet to encounter a NPC in these systems. I only use a populated system as the final destination to pick up a needed commodity or head to an Engineer's base for the upgrade.