For the past month or so my brother CMDR Spydah and i have been bouncing round the idea of bringing a level of Entitlement and gameplay to ED. It seems that as you progress up the levels of Rank with the major Powers you get access to new ships, What about when you level up Experience through professions to Elite , there's no real 'motivation' to put the time and effort in to progress to more developed gameplay.
Questions and comments like 'How quickly can i get a <insert ship type> or 'Make millions' encourage people to take the short get rich quick trip ... so we want to bring a proposal that you have to work hard to..and work to it you will. In the advancement of Human expansion of the Bubble, the Rank you have and the Experience you have gained, should surely bring with it more entitlement...
As John Milton once wrote
“Long is the way and hard, that out of Hell leads up to light."
We believe that Frontier are great at listenign to the community, and that whilst ehy obviously own and control the destiny of Elite Dangerous, a little community input and ideation would go a long way.
So, we would like to offer to you , the community, a proposal. A proposal thats based on current coding, gameplay etc, a proposal that we would hope Frontier would seriously consider as an addition to the game. With the launch of 2.3 we had to smile as even some of the foundation of what we wanted to propose was already being included.
Constructive, discussion and suggestions are always welcome to enhance and refine the proposal. Mods' please leave in the main area for discsussion as this is more than just a 'feature' request...
Please dont make suggestions to be too outlandish, consider the 'coding' impact..if we make it 'easy' to do then it may just be considered!
Anyhow, without further ado..we present.
Summary of Proposal
Entitlement
The Table 1 Below Summarises the initial proposed requirements to be eligible to get the 'Mining Mogul' missions.
Table 1
Upon reaching ALL the above requirements this then 'unlocks' the 'Mining Missions' at multiple systems across the Human Bubble.
These systems will mostly be Refinery/Extraction based systems in line with the Mining theme.
The Mining Missions will be offered by the 'Mining Corporation' and will consist of a number of skills/time/distance based Mining related activies. e.,g
Successful completion will open up access to Certain bases, and Mining Space platforms where the 'Mining Corporation' builds their platforms, to gain access to certain tools, upgrades and ships.
To unlock the Mining Level 2 ships tools and upgrades, you will need either one of the following..
Table 2
Similarly for Level 3 you will need either one of the following
Table 3
Tools, Ships Gameplay Changes
The 'Mining Moguls' have access to an enhanced set of tools and ships that reflect their Mining focus and hence help them acheive greater tonnage of Mining and fun.
The 'Mining Corporation' will have presence in many systems at 'Spaceports' to allow 'Mining Vessels' to dock and unload cargo, 'MC' enable systems/stations will be viewable on the Galaxy Map much like engineers or other filters.. ( Space ports are similar to the ones external to Spacestations). The spaceports will offer the ability to Unload Mined Cargo, Repair, refule etc. Except that CMDR's will have to fly to dedicated 'Mining Corporation' platforms, in orbit, to buy ships and do upgrades, outfitting etc.
We spent a while discussing 'Mining' ships and platforms and came up with this proposal...
Table 4 : Tools
Table 5 Ships & Platforms
The Mining Screen
GAMEPLAY Suggestions
Mining
The objective of these combinations of platforms, ships etc is to bring an element of Multiplayer Mining together with increased tonnage capability.
You first define your mining profile on the mining screen, eg Interested in Painite rocks >40%.
The idea being to bring the towed platforms above an asteroid field and towed it along for a distance upto 10Km tagging asteroids as you go based on the profile on the mining screen.
2.3 brought in Mining ships ( Huzzah) so in conjunction with the proposed ability to 'tag' asteroids one can use these all together to speedily increase the tonnage you mine.
Level 1 towed ships are mostly about increasing the amount of materials you can detect, tag and then mine. The ship is towed and manoevered by a larger ship, using their thruster and FSD capability. The platform can be detatched to free float while the helm ship can help mining, combat. Collector limpits from all ships go back to the main platform refineries.
Level 2 ships are modular platform but then add more mining capacity which you can add as you go. Being a larger ship it needs defence and hence has its own Hanger for either Mining Ships or Fighters.
Level 3 Ships are self contained for longer mining missions and more self reliant. The Turreted Ultra Mining Lasers can be controlled by a Multi-Crew player to direct at tagged asteroids as teh platform is flown over teh Asteroid field.
Defence
They are not offfensive ships so only have defensive capbilities, with turrets, shields and shield banks... to be managed by a Multicrew player. The objective though is not to make them impenetratable..wheres the danger or risk in that.. but that a decent wing of 4 engineered players should be able to take out the level 3 ship (plus 2 players) with a Hard Fight.
The TBC 1 Ships have basic turrets that can be controlled with multi-crew.
TBC2 Ships similarly have turrets, but also includes fighters that can be lauched to defend the platform should one wish to.
TBC3 has as above but the ability for players to land their ships inside to have them ready to deploy to defend the ship if under attack. So multicrew will let someone control the helm, someone manage the turrets, and someone to leap into a ship and get out to take on the attackers.
Smaller ships should be able to land, be protected by the TBC3 shield while recharging and being replenished for ammo etc. ( A Phase 2 Option would be even to allow other players to 'dock' and replenish.. Imagine the Helm giving Docking permission...)
The Vulture when fitted with 1 Large Mining Laser and 1 Large Beam becomes quite an interesting Gameplay option with TBC3.
Anyhow.... this is very much a proposal where we think some nominal development would significantly enhance the mining experience.
Thus myself and Spyder give to you ...
.. The Mining Moguls
Questions and comments like 'How quickly can i get a <insert ship type> or 'Make millions' encourage people to take the short get rich quick trip ... so we want to bring a proposal that you have to work hard to..and work to it you will. In the advancement of Human expansion of the Bubble, the Rank you have and the Experience you have gained, should surely bring with it more entitlement...
As John Milton once wrote
“Long is the way and hard, that out of Hell leads up to light."
We believe that Frontier are great at listenign to the community, and that whilst ehy obviously own and control the destiny of Elite Dangerous, a little community input and ideation would go a long way.
So, we would like to offer to you , the community, a proposal. A proposal thats based on current coding, gameplay etc, a proposal that we would hope Frontier would seriously consider as an addition to the game. With the launch of 2.3 we had to smile as even some of the foundation of what we wanted to propose was already being included.
Constructive, discussion and suggestions are always welcome to enhance and refine the proposal. Mods' please leave in the main area for discsussion as this is more than just a 'feature' request...
Please dont make suggestions to be too outlandish, consider the 'coding' impact..if we make it 'easy' to do then it may just be considered!
Anyhow, without further ado..we present.
The Mining Moguls
Lore
As the rapid expansion of humanity into space advanced with the development of FTL travel, so came with it those wanting to exploit the natural resources of the Galaxy, be it for personal gain or to feed the mighty refineries and extraction plants producing materials. The weary exploration of the Galaxy created skills and knowledge on where to best mine rare and highly lucrative materials, whilst also feeding the metal mills. Over time those skilled in Exploring and Trading developed their own trade routes and became exceedingly rich off the back of mining vast swathes of untapped resources. They rose in prominance within the Empire or Federation and became known as 'The Mining Moguls'.
Summary of Proposal
The Mining Moguls are players who have demonstrated their time and skills in Elite Dangerous unlocking access to a set of Mining based ships, tools and gameplay that is commensurate with their level. This will allow them to embark on Multi-Crew based mining expeditions to mine vast swaths of belts with all the challenges that entails so far as pirates, haulage etc etc.
Players will :-
Players will :-
[*=1] Have to have played long enough in ED which implies an understanding of the game not available to those who 'grind' fest their way up.
[*=1] Have to have achieved skills levels in Exploration and Trading to 'unlock' the 'Mining Moguls' gameplay.
[*=1] Unlocking, gives access to certain systems across the bubble where a 'Mining Corporation'* is based. * 'Mining Corporation' name to be decided in a fair fight.
[*=1] The 'Mining Corporation' gives out certain Mining Missions that a player must undertake to 'demonstrate' their Levels and skills. ( not just we need 24 tonnes..pfffttt)
[*=1] Completing 3 Missions then 'Unlocks' access to the 'Mining Moguls' toolset and 'Bases'.
[*=1] The 'MM toolset' consists of a number of things Ships, Platforms, Enhanced scanners etc.( we have thought of, and i'm sure the community could dream up too)...
[*=1] The 'Mining Corporation' Bases are where you go to purchase or upgrade your ship/platform etc spread around the human bubble...or maybe further for experimental work!
[*=1]New additions range from Fixed Config Towable Mining Platform for Anaconda and above, to something Just smaller than a Megaship with integral docking for upto 2 players.
Entitlement
The Table 1 Below Summarises the initial proposed requirements to be eligible to get the 'Mining Mogul' missions.
Table 1
| Time in Game | 3 Weeks | |
| Exploration Rank | Broker | |
| Trading Rank | Pathfinder |
These systems will mostly be Refinery/Extraction based systems in line with the Mining theme.
The Mining Missions will be offered by the 'Mining Corporation' and will consist of a number of skills/time/distance based Mining related activies. e.,g
- Travel to ZZ system 200 Lyrs outside the Bubble and Mine 400 Tonnes of XXX within Y Hours.
- Wing Mine XX Tonnes at ZZ system
- Recruit at least 1 Player to 'MultiCrew' Flash Mine YY tonnes within 1 Hour.
- Think of something involving Existing mechanics.
Successful completion will open up access to Certain bases, and Mining Space platforms where the 'Mining Corporation' builds their platforms, to gain access to certain tools, upgrades and ships.
To unlock the Mining Level 2 ships tools and upgrades, you will need either one of the following..
Table 2
| Exploration Rank | Ranger | |
| Trading Rank | Entrepreneur |
Similarly for Level 3 you will need either one of the following
Table 3
| Exploration Rank | Elite |
| Trading Rank | Elite |
Tools, Ships Gameplay Changes
The 'Mining Moguls' have access to an enhanced set of tools and ships that reflect their Mining focus and hence help them acheive greater tonnage of Mining and fun.
The 'Mining Corporation' will have presence in many systems at 'Spaceports' to allow 'Mining Vessels' to dock and unload cargo, 'MC' enable systems/stations will be viewable on the Galaxy Map much like engineers or other filters.. ( Space ports are similar to the ones external to Spacestations). The spaceports will offer the ability to Unload Mined Cargo, Repair, refule etc. Except that CMDR's will have to fly to dedicated 'Mining Corporation' platforms, in orbit, to buy ships and do upgrades, outfitting etc.
We spent a while discussing 'Mining' ships and platforms and came up with this proposal...
Table 4 : Tools
| Size | Engineer Upgrade Options (Suggested) | Description | |
| Mining Lasers (ML) | Large | Reduced thermal impact/Less Destructive | Fits to Existing Ships |
| Ultra | Same as above | Fits to TBC2 and Above Mining Platforms, Greater distance 2Km | |
| Mining Scanners (MSC) | 2 | Wider Area/Deeper Penetrating | New Material Scanner for use with New Prospector Limpit. Gives Rough Composition. +-10% |
| 4 | Same as Above | As above but fitted to Mining paltform to be towed 'across' Asteroid for Mass tagging. More accurate Composition +-5% | |
| Prospector Limpet (PL) | Faster/Collect More Frags | Upgraded prospector limpits that can TAG an asteroid you want to mine. When used with Level 4 scanner can tow across a mining field to tag asteroids to mine. | |
| Refinery ( RF) | 8 | More Efficent | For the Larger Platforms and Ships they produce more tonnes quicker than the domestice versions. Tonnes Refined per Bin = 2 |
| 10 | Tonnes refined per Bin = 5 | ||
| Ore Storage (OS) | 10 | Hull Hardness etc | 512 Tonnes of Ore Storage for use with Modular Mining ships. |
Table 5 Ships & Platforms
| Name | Type/Level | Tonneage | Core | Defence | Multicrew Option | Notes |
| TBC | Towed Platform/ Fixed / 1 | Fixed 1024 2 x OS10 | MSC 2, Refinery Existing, 2 PL | 3 Defence Turrets, Shields, 2 utility | Just for Defence Turrets | Platform is towed by Min Anaconda but has own thrusters that are controlled by 'Helm' on main ship |
| TBC2 | Towed Platform/ Modular / 2 | Max 2556 2 x OS10 + 3 Optional OS10 | MSC 4, RF 8 x 2, 2 PL, 1 Hangar for Ships | 4 Defence Turrets, Shields, 4 Utility | Above + 2 Ships | Ships can be used for Mining or 1 Defence 1 Mining |
| TBC3 (Nostromo Class) | Self Powered/ Huge Modular / 3 | Max 10240 10 x OS10 | MSC 4, RF 10 x 2, 5 PL, 2 Small Landing Pad | 6 Defence Turrets, Shields, 6 utility, 3 ML(turreted) | Above + 2 Players in Small Ships ( Small Landing Pad) | Has Small Landing pad for player ships to dock to launch & help mine or defend when under attack. Only has turrets to defend. |
The Mining Screen
The Mining Screen is a screen where you define a profile of what type of materials you are wanting to tag. It shows the minerals, and then a sliding scale of the minimum %age of mineral you want in that asteroid. As the Mining Scanner Scans the field, any Asteroid that meets or exceeds the %age will be fired a Prospector limpit to TAG it and get a more detailed analysis ready for mining.
GAMEPLAY Suggestions
Mining
The objective of these combinations of platforms, ships etc is to bring an element of Multiplayer Mining together with increased tonnage capability.
You first define your mining profile on the mining screen, eg Interested in Painite rocks >40%.
The idea being to bring the towed platforms above an asteroid field and towed it along for a distance upto 10Km tagging asteroids as you go based on the profile on the mining screen.
2.3 brought in Mining ships ( Huzzah) so in conjunction with the proposed ability to 'tag' asteroids one can use these all together to speedily increase the tonnage you mine.
Level 1 towed ships are mostly about increasing the amount of materials you can detect, tag and then mine. The ship is towed and manoevered by a larger ship, using their thruster and FSD capability. The platform can be detatched to free float while the helm ship can help mining, combat. Collector limpits from all ships go back to the main platform refineries.
Level 2 ships are modular platform but then add more mining capacity which you can add as you go. Being a larger ship it needs defence and hence has its own Hanger for either Mining Ships or Fighters.
Level 3 Ships are self contained for longer mining missions and more self reliant. The Turreted Ultra Mining Lasers can be controlled by a Multi-Crew player to direct at tagged asteroids as teh platform is flown over teh Asteroid field.
Defence
They are not offfensive ships so only have defensive capbilities, with turrets, shields and shield banks... to be managed by a Multicrew player. The objective though is not to make them impenetratable..wheres the danger or risk in that.. but that a decent wing of 4 engineered players should be able to take out the level 3 ship (plus 2 players) with a Hard Fight.
The TBC 1 Ships have basic turrets that can be controlled with multi-crew.
TBC2 Ships similarly have turrets, but also includes fighters that can be lauched to defend the platform should one wish to.
TBC3 has as above but the ability for players to land their ships inside to have them ready to deploy to defend the ship if under attack. So multicrew will let someone control the helm, someone manage the turrets, and someone to leap into a ship and get out to take on the attackers.
Smaller ships should be able to land, be protected by the TBC3 shield while recharging and being replenished for ammo etc. ( A Phase 2 Option would be even to allow other players to 'dock' and replenish.. Imagine the Helm giving Docking permission...)
The Vulture when fitted with 1 Large Mining Laser and 1 Large Beam becomes quite an interesting Gameplay option with TBC3.
Anyhow.... this is very much a proposal where we think some nominal development would significantly enhance the mining experience.
Thus myself and Spyder give to you ...
.. The Mining Moguls
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