BGS and the economy

[hiciacit]

Just a question for those in the know. I was trying out some of the 2.1 missions and kept running into bugs for the delivery and the assassination missions. So I thought I tried something I never bothered with before: the bring-us-x-tonnes-of-commodity-y type missions. So I pick a few of these missions, and in order to figure out where I can get the requested commodities, I check in the marketplace to see from where they are imported. Fly there, buy, deliver back. Easy-peasy. First commodity I tried (tobacco) was not available at all in the listed system, and in fact was illegal there. The same was true for each and every of the other commodities and systems from where they were supposedly imported.

I seem to remember some threads from way back in the early days about how import/export systems were flipped or something like that, but I never payed much attention to this aspect of the game. So what gives? And is this indicative of the general state of the BGS and the economy?
And yes, I know I can get the proper info from inara or whatever, but that's not the point here.

 

[cmdr_Havalok]

I run "Source X" missions a few times a week. Food Carts, fish and the likes are generally OK on both ends. Weapons and Narcotics and alcohol depend on where you ar at. For example, the Federation has strict laws so tobacco and liquor are often illegal (in addition to the usual Narcotics and Weapons) in many places but still desired. You might need to pick up stakes and move 60 or 70 light years to an area under another Major Faction.

 

[Navigare Necesse Est]

AFAIK, it won't display the source but the flow of goods in the galaxy view.

 

[the100thmonkey]

AFAIK, it won't display the source but the flow of goods in the galaxy view.

The mission instructions tell you to use the trade route filters in the galaxy map though!

As for the OP, a little knowledge of the game really helps in these missions. If it's a Federation station around the planet, an agri won't let you buy tobacco on the market. Independent agris, however, often do. For battle weapons, head to communist industrial systems (I can get you a good deal, comrade*) for reactive armour, head to anarchy or dictatorship high-techs and so on.

With the implementation of player factions in the bubble, and the influence of local factions on Powerplay overheads, it's increasingly common for the original system to have been flipped to an alternative faction - we're a year and a half into the game after all. Unfortunately, the galaxy map filters won't let you apply two filters at the same time.

*Actually I can't, but yeah.

 

[Jmanis]

Just FYI, I have way too little information to go off at the moment, but I've seen some pretty crazy going-ons with my usual trade systems since the last patch. I'm in a fairly quiet area, and I've noticed a couple things:

- Some of my usual trade-runs which I've not hit of-late have massive demand for, well, demand items, and barely anything for supply items (so much so, that buying from here and selling where i'd usually fetch profit now fetches a loss)
- Some usually-in-supply items are now gone. Immediately after the patch they were available in high supply. For example, progenitor cells and performance enhancers from a HT system.

I think the market system is far more dynamic now. Again, no proof, and fighting against the idea that the markets have never done this before. Need more data points.

 

[hiciacit]

Maybe I should have been more clear, but I didn't have a screenshot handy. I didn't use the trade flows (whatever they indicate) in the galaxy map. I simply looked at the station's marketplace description of the commodity I was requested to deliver (where it says 'imported from'):

Spoiler

So what does it mean when this station tells me tabacco is imported from systems where it is illegal and none of the stations sell it?

 

[babelfisch]

Just a quick reminder: Most systems have more than one economy so it's possible that you are flying to the wrong station. Also systems have more than one jurisdiction, so in theory it's possible that one station sells goods that are prohibited in the main jurisdiction (controlling faction).

 

[Jmanis]

Maybe I should have been more clear, but I didn't have a screenshot handy. I didn't use the trade flows (whatever they indicate) in the galaxy map. I simply looked at the station's marketplace description of the commodity I was requested to deliver (where it says 'imported from'):

Spoiler

https://i.imgur.com/UyrpotN.jpg?1

So what does it mean when this station tells me tabacco is imported from systems where it is illegal and none of the stations sell it?

I think those import/export listings are just based off economy type, and don't take into consideration legality of goods.

 

[cmdr_Havalok]

I think those import/export listings are just based off economy type, and don't take into consideration legality of goods.

Or could also indicate the presence of a Black Market.

 

[hiciacit]

I think those import/export listings are just based off economy type, and don't take into consideration legality of goods.

So you think they would be available if they were deemed to be legal? I'll look for a few other examples later to see if they make sense. Still seems a bit strange to me though that these import/export listings wouldn't simply reflect the (un)availability of these commodities in the nearby systems. How hard can that be?
And can I take home from this that no-one ever really uses this sort of ingame information? Its usefulness does appear to be orders of magnitude below what third party tools offer ...

Edit: the potential advantage of ingame info would of course be that it can be made more in tune with the dynamics of the BGS/economy, if there is such a thing.