EDIT: Personally I think exporation should still be done first hand so if it can be sped up and improved without using drones all the better. eg:-
- Detailed Surface Scanner Turret - https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=117901
- Detailed Surface Scanner Video Closeup - https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=118841
^^ I think these would be better than a Discovery Drone. However, a service drone (as mentioned at the bottom) would still be very usedful!
Imagine you could buy different sized/calibre Discovery Drone Modules for your ship, which you could then launch/fire off to independently scan objects in a system for you.
So you could fit say 4 of these modules into your Asp, target - one by one - four remote objects and deploy a drone to each. You could then scan local objects while the 4 drones go off and do the remote ones for you.
You could buy multiple of these modules, using up your standard internal compartments, and when in a system, you could lock onto an (unexplored) object and deply a drone. It would then SC off (shown only on your scanner) do a scan and then return to yout ship and give you the information on it. More expensive/bigger ones could incorporate more than one drone? Be faster (travelling) and also incorporate a details surface scanner?
If you leave the system with a drone still flying around, you lose it, and will have to "Re-ammo" the module undoubtably for a large proportion of its original cost.
This feature would at least mean:-
1) Discovery becomes a little more involved.
2) Discovery becomes a little less time consuming as you can get drones to do some of the more menial tasks/scanning.
ps: I'd suggest if you've deployed a drone to an object a little marker is displayed against the object in your navigation pane to show a drone is dealing with it. Ideally, you'd go up and down the objects in system on this pane and simply fire off your drones to them. You could also then use a similar same mechanic to recall them if needs be.
ps: Imagine if you could also deploy these/similar drones to collect cargo/objects for you to! So they would be useful for that too (eg: mining!) ie: Buy some cheap "service drones". A Class 4 module would contain say 4 of them, so you could collect 4 things at once easily! A pirate would even find a couple of these useful too for picking up cargo.
- Detailed Surface Scanner Turret - https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=117901
- Detailed Surface Scanner Video Closeup - https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=118841
^^ I think these would be better than a Discovery Drone. However, a service drone (as mentioned at the bottom) would still be very usedful!
Imagine you could buy different sized/calibre Discovery Drone Modules for your ship, which you could then launch/fire off to independently scan objects in a system for you.
So you could fit say 4 of these modules into your Asp, target - one by one - four remote objects and deploy a drone to each. You could then scan local objects while the 4 drones go off and do the remote ones for you.
You could buy multiple of these modules, using up your standard internal compartments, and when in a system, you could lock onto an (unexplored) object and deply a drone. It would then SC off (shown only on your scanner) do a scan and then return to yout ship and give you the information on it. More expensive/bigger ones could incorporate more than one drone? Be faster (travelling) and also incorporate a details surface scanner?
If you leave the system with a drone still flying around, you lose it, and will have to "Re-ammo" the module undoubtably for a large proportion of its original cost.
This feature would at least mean:-
1) Discovery becomes a little more involved.
2) Discovery becomes a little less time consuming as you can get drones to do some of the more menial tasks/scanning.
ps: I'd suggest if you've deployed a drone to an object a little marker is displayed against the object in your navigation pane to show a drone is dealing with it. Ideally, you'd go up and down the objects in system on this pane and simply fire off your drones to them. You could also then use a similar same mechanic to recall them if needs be.
ps: Imagine if you could also deploy these/similar drones to collect cargo/objects for you to! So they would be useful for that too (eg: mining!) ie: Buy some cheap "service drones". A Class 4 module would contain say 4 of them, so you could collect 4 things at once easily! A pirate would even find a couple of these useful too for picking up cargo.
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