So.
For Years. We have asked to Own Stations. And the Answers we got was usually something like.
=That will Ruin Economy
=That will make Systems look a mess cause some Systems will have Hundred Player Stations
=That will mess up BGS
=That will make Players Put Stations into Systems that should be outside Reach
etc etc
Now Frontier Added Fleet Carriers. Which are Doing All of that. But even Worse because they can on top of That Jump by themselves and will therefore all Pile up in Key Systems of Interest.....
So. Now that effectively Every Single Counterpoint to Players being able to Own Stations has been Trashed unrefutably by the Existence of Fleet Carriers which are effectively Player Owned Stations that can Move around....
Lets Talk about how we could Add actual Station Ownership to the Game and at the same Time heavily Mitigate the current Trouble Fleet Carriers have bought.
Because at this Point. There is only one thing Left that Fleet Carriers aint Capable of that Stations could Bring into the Mix.
And that is to Allow Players to not just Trade but also Convert Commodities.
So while this is still the Case as Frontier might actually Change that once they add actual Specifications to Carriers like Exploration/Mining etc.
Lets use that to our Advantage.
Allow Players to Build Stations and Planetary Outposts.
These like Fleet Carriers will of course be very Expensive and Require Upkeep.
And of course these Stations and Planetary Outposts will come with Potential for Upgrading.
To Prevent further Crowding. Every Commander is Allowed to Own only 1 Asset on the Server. Which means someone who Owns a Fleet Carrier cannot Own a Station and Vice Versa.
Of course giving a 1 week Full Refund Option upon Release so Fleet Carrier Owners can get their Money Back and Switch to a Station if they want to.
Ok. What exactly will this be.
Pls note the Following is just a Suggestion and can be Changed as needed. It only Serves to Provide a Clear Picture of what Stations and Outposts would be like.
1.
Different Stations and their Tiers.
Pls note. None of these Stations has the Size of a Coriolis Starport or such Mega Cities.
Meaning they will Start about the Size of Outposts. And if Build up become something between an Outpost and a Coriolis Starport.
1.1
Orbital Factories and Refineries.
Orbital Factories have a Chosen Economy which converts Commodity Ressources it can Buy or get Shipped by its Owner. Into more Refined Products.
T1 = Small Orbital with a few Small Landing Pads and 1 Medium Pad. (Space of 10k Tons for Services. And can use Basic Services like Market, Fuel and Offices. As well as having a Production Chain)
T2 = Medium Orbital with several Small and Medium Pads (Space of 20k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use more Advanced Services like Outfitting and Advanced Maintenance)
T3 = Large Orbital with Several Small and Medium Pads as well as a few Large Pads (Space of 30k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use all Services and can have a 2nd Production Chain)
T4 = Huge Orbital with a wide Range of Landing Pads. (Space of 50k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use all Services and can have up to 3 Production Chains)
Production Chains Produce 1-3 Goods depending on what Chain it is. More Sophisticated Goods like Harvesting Machinery etc. Of course will Require a whole Chain on its own. While Simple things will come in Packages of 2-3 Goods Produced. For example Synthetic Meat and Food Cartridges.
To Produce them. They Require other Goods that need to be Delivered to the Station. Hence the Station Buying these Goods or the Player Owning it. Delivering them.
Refineries of course needing Minerals to Produce Metals and Alloys etc.
1.2
Planetary Factories and Refineries.
They work the Same as Orbital Refineries and Factories. However. As they are Planet Bound. They are Cheaper in Maintenance and have only 3 Tiers. With the 3rd Tier being Equal to the 4th Tier of an Orbital. Meaning they are more Efficient. But Harder to Reach.
T1 = Small Outpost with a few Small Landing Pads and 1 Medium Pad. (Space of 10k Tons for Services. And can use Basic Services like Market, Fuel and Offices. As well as having a Production Chain)
T2 = Medium Outpost with several Small and Medium Pads (Space of 20k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use Advanced Services like Outfitting and Advanced Maintenance and having 2 Productions Chains)
T3 = Large Outpost with a wide Range of Landing Pads. (Space of 50k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use all Services and can have up to 3 Production Chains)
Chains work the Same as with Orbitals.
1.3
Specialized Stations and Outposts.
These are very Expensive. And Serve a very Dedicated Purpose. Instead of Producing a Commodity they will Provide Services and use certain Position Advantages Unavailable to others.
Shipyards = These Fairly Big Stations will not just have an Installed Shop for Ships. But actually Produce Ships and Equipment by absorbing Commodities from the Market.
They will have Production Chains for Different Kinds of Equipment. Like Weapons, Ships Shields and Thrusters. With the Player being able to Decide what the Station should Produce and thus have in Stock for Producing Ships.
Unlike Standard Shipyard Shops Installed on normal Stations. The Player can Offer Discounts based on how Cheaply he Manages to Produce the Equipment and Ships. Thus Potentially offering Cheaper Equipment and Ships to Players and Gaining a Profit Margin.
Asteroid Bases = These Hollowed out Asteroids. Serve mostly as Mining Base Trade Hubs. Being Located in Hollowed out and then Heavily Shielded Asteroids. These Bases will Produce Minerals for the Player depending on what Ressources are Available in the Asteroid Field where they are Located. As well as having a Market of Course. And Buy Minerals from Players to then Sell them to Traders that Transport them away to Factories. They will Require not just Credits for Maintenance but also Food and Equipment in order to Produce Minerals from Mining.
Unlike Factories. The Yield to Ressource Ratio will be much Higher Compared to Normal Production Chains. But you have limited Control on what Minerals you get. And you cannot Upgrade the Station due to it being an Asteroid thus not having the Ability to gain Additional Chains.
Mining Outpost = Similar to Asteroid Bases. This Outpost found on High Metal Content Planets. Taps into the Planets Crust to Extract Ressources. It has a Mainteance of Food and Equipment and Produces Metals or whatever the Planet it was Build on Provides to it. Unlike an Asteroid Base it cannot Rely on Player Selling it Local Mining Efforts. At least not yet as we dont have Planetary Mining.
So it Produces a way higher Yield by itself.
2.
As Frontier is Worried about People just Generating AFK Money. All these Stations will Require Regular Maintenance by the Player as he can only Set a Limited Queue of Production Orders.
Production Orders will Work Pretty Easily. Depending on what is Produced. The Order Requires the Ressources to be Present at the Station. And then Requires some Time for it to be Produced.
Once the Production of an Order has been Placed. The Ressources for the Order are Removed from the Market. And Reserved for Production.
So the Player can only Queue Up Orders for which he already has the Ressources.
The Maximum of Orders he can Queue Up for each Chain Depends on what Chain it is. And Generally will be Set so that the Maximum Time the Station can Spend Producing without Player Input will be 1 Month.
3.
Stations and Outposts can only be Build inside the Range of Major Space Stations that have the Construction Office Service.
The Range can be Set depending on how far Frontier wants to Allow Players to Settle.
Meaning that Players cannot just Put a Station somewhere 20k Light Years away as it would simply give no way to Construct it there as they cant get any Construction Staff there.
However. Player Stations will Add to the Systems Economy. And might cause NPC Factions to Expand into a System where a Player Station is. To get a Share of the Profits if the Player Station is Generating enough Profits.
For example. A Mining Outpost or Asteroid Base. Might sooner or later Attract a Refinery Station etc.
Meaning that Players this way can Actively attempt to Encourage the Bubble to Extend into a Certain Direction. By having Stations just outside the Bubble in that Direction and Actively use them to Boost the Economy.
Pretty sure Certain Low Temperature Diamond Rings and Painite Rings currently being 30-50 Light Years outside the Bubble might end up Attracting Stations Pretty fast ^^
In Total.
All of this would Really not cause any more Trouble than Fleet Carriers already do.
And in Fact. As Players can only have 1 Asset. This might Reduce the Frankly Absurd Number of Fleet Carriers we have. And thus make Systems actually something you can look at again without using Extensive Filters....
For Years. We have asked to Own Stations. And the Answers we got was usually something like.
=That will Ruin Economy
=That will make Systems look a mess cause some Systems will have Hundred Player Stations
=That will mess up BGS
=That will make Players Put Stations into Systems that should be outside Reach
etc etc
Now Frontier Added Fleet Carriers. Which are Doing All of that. But even Worse because they can on top of That Jump by themselves and will therefore all Pile up in Key Systems of Interest.....
So. Now that effectively Every Single Counterpoint to Players being able to Own Stations has been Trashed unrefutably by the Existence of Fleet Carriers which are effectively Player Owned Stations that can Move around....
Lets Talk about how we could Add actual Station Ownership to the Game and at the same Time heavily Mitigate the current Trouble Fleet Carriers have bought.
Because at this Point. There is only one thing Left that Fleet Carriers aint Capable of that Stations could Bring into the Mix.
And that is to Allow Players to not just Trade but also Convert Commodities.
So while this is still the Case as Frontier might actually Change that once they add actual Specifications to Carriers like Exploration/Mining etc.
Lets use that to our Advantage.
Allow Players to Build Stations and Planetary Outposts.
These like Fleet Carriers will of course be very Expensive and Require Upkeep.
And of course these Stations and Planetary Outposts will come with Potential for Upgrading.
To Prevent further Crowding. Every Commander is Allowed to Own only 1 Asset on the Server. Which means someone who Owns a Fleet Carrier cannot Own a Station and Vice Versa.
Of course giving a 1 week Full Refund Option upon Release so Fleet Carrier Owners can get their Money Back and Switch to a Station if they want to.
Ok. What exactly will this be.
Pls note the Following is just a Suggestion and can be Changed as needed. It only Serves to Provide a Clear Picture of what Stations and Outposts would be like.
1.
Different Stations and their Tiers.
Pls note. None of these Stations has the Size of a Coriolis Starport or such Mega Cities.
Meaning they will Start about the Size of Outposts. And if Build up become something between an Outpost and a Coriolis Starport.
1.1
Orbital Factories and Refineries.
Orbital Factories have a Chosen Economy which converts Commodity Ressources it can Buy or get Shipped by its Owner. Into more Refined Products.
T1 = Small Orbital with a few Small Landing Pads and 1 Medium Pad. (Space of 10k Tons for Services. And can use Basic Services like Market, Fuel and Offices. As well as having a Production Chain)
T2 = Medium Orbital with several Small and Medium Pads (Space of 20k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use more Advanced Services like Outfitting and Advanced Maintenance)
T3 = Large Orbital with Several Small and Medium Pads as well as a few Large Pads (Space of 30k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use all Services and can have a 2nd Production Chain)
T4 = Huge Orbital with a wide Range of Landing Pads. (Space of 50k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use all Services and can have up to 3 Production Chains)
Production Chains Produce 1-3 Goods depending on what Chain it is. More Sophisticated Goods like Harvesting Machinery etc. Of course will Require a whole Chain on its own. While Simple things will come in Packages of 2-3 Goods Produced. For example Synthetic Meat and Food Cartridges.
To Produce them. They Require other Goods that need to be Delivered to the Station. Hence the Station Buying these Goods or the Player Owning it. Delivering them.
Refineries of course needing Minerals to Produce Metals and Alloys etc.
1.2
Planetary Factories and Refineries.
They work the Same as Orbital Refineries and Factories. However. As they are Planet Bound. They are Cheaper in Maintenance and have only 3 Tiers. With the 3rd Tier being Equal to the 4th Tier of an Orbital. Meaning they are more Efficient. But Harder to Reach.
T1 = Small Outpost with a few Small Landing Pads and 1 Medium Pad. (Space of 10k Tons for Services. And can use Basic Services like Market, Fuel and Offices. As well as having a Production Chain)
T2 = Medium Outpost with several Small and Medium Pads (Space of 20k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use Advanced Services like Outfitting and Advanced Maintenance and having 2 Productions Chains)
T3 = Large Outpost with a wide Range of Landing Pads. (Space of 50k Tons for Services and Goods. Can use all Services and can have up to 3 Production Chains)
Chains work the Same as with Orbitals.
1.3
Specialized Stations and Outposts.
These are very Expensive. And Serve a very Dedicated Purpose. Instead of Producing a Commodity they will Provide Services and use certain Position Advantages Unavailable to others.
Shipyards = These Fairly Big Stations will not just have an Installed Shop for Ships. But actually Produce Ships and Equipment by absorbing Commodities from the Market.
They will have Production Chains for Different Kinds of Equipment. Like Weapons, Ships Shields and Thrusters. With the Player being able to Decide what the Station should Produce and thus have in Stock for Producing Ships.
Unlike Standard Shipyard Shops Installed on normal Stations. The Player can Offer Discounts based on how Cheaply he Manages to Produce the Equipment and Ships. Thus Potentially offering Cheaper Equipment and Ships to Players and Gaining a Profit Margin.
Asteroid Bases = These Hollowed out Asteroids. Serve mostly as Mining Base Trade Hubs. Being Located in Hollowed out and then Heavily Shielded Asteroids. These Bases will Produce Minerals for the Player depending on what Ressources are Available in the Asteroid Field where they are Located. As well as having a Market of Course. And Buy Minerals from Players to then Sell them to Traders that Transport them away to Factories. They will Require not just Credits for Maintenance but also Food and Equipment in order to Produce Minerals from Mining.
Unlike Factories. The Yield to Ressource Ratio will be much Higher Compared to Normal Production Chains. But you have limited Control on what Minerals you get. And you cannot Upgrade the Station due to it being an Asteroid thus not having the Ability to gain Additional Chains.
Mining Outpost = Similar to Asteroid Bases. This Outpost found on High Metal Content Planets. Taps into the Planets Crust to Extract Ressources. It has a Mainteance of Food and Equipment and Produces Metals or whatever the Planet it was Build on Provides to it. Unlike an Asteroid Base it cannot Rely on Player Selling it Local Mining Efforts. At least not yet as we dont have Planetary Mining.
So it Produces a way higher Yield by itself.
2.
As Frontier is Worried about People just Generating AFK Money. All these Stations will Require Regular Maintenance by the Player as he can only Set a Limited Queue of Production Orders.
Production Orders will Work Pretty Easily. Depending on what is Produced. The Order Requires the Ressources to be Present at the Station. And then Requires some Time for it to be Produced.
Once the Production of an Order has been Placed. The Ressources for the Order are Removed from the Market. And Reserved for Production.
So the Player can only Queue Up Orders for which he already has the Ressources.
The Maximum of Orders he can Queue Up for each Chain Depends on what Chain it is. And Generally will be Set so that the Maximum Time the Station can Spend Producing without Player Input will be 1 Month.
3.
Stations and Outposts can only be Build inside the Range of Major Space Stations that have the Construction Office Service.
The Range can be Set depending on how far Frontier wants to Allow Players to Settle.
Meaning that Players cannot just Put a Station somewhere 20k Light Years away as it would simply give no way to Construct it there as they cant get any Construction Staff there.
However. Player Stations will Add to the Systems Economy. And might cause NPC Factions to Expand into a System where a Player Station is. To get a Share of the Profits if the Player Station is Generating enough Profits.
For example. A Mining Outpost or Asteroid Base. Might sooner or later Attract a Refinery Station etc.
Meaning that Players this way can Actively attempt to Encourage the Bubble to Extend into a Certain Direction. By having Stations just outside the Bubble in that Direction and Actively use them to Boost the Economy.
Pretty sure Certain Low Temperature Diamond Rings and Painite Rings currently being 30-50 Light Years outside the Bubble might end up Attracting Stations Pretty fast ^^
In Total.
All of this would Really not cause any more Trouble than Fleet Carriers already do.
And in Fact. As Players can only have 1 Asset. This might Reduce the Frankly Absurd Number of Fleet Carriers we have. And thus make Systems actually something you can look at again without using Extensive Filters....