Newcomer / Intro Downward Spiral!

[Ca$hback]

I've been playing for about three weeks now. Got my keyboard controls figured out. Got my cobra with gimble lasers and class 2 gimble cannons. Got my tobacco trade route...

It all started when I upgraded some ship system (either power plant, thrusters or FSD...can't remember) from 4E-4D or 4D-4C. Loaded my cargo, taking a chance on insurance. All set to take off. Launch. Suddenly "Thrusters Offline" and I have 5 minutes to leave the station. Here's me scrambling to figure out how not to get blown up. Reboot ship...nothing.
Put all systems except thrusters on secondary...nothing. Maybe if I lighten my load by dropping my cargo...nothing. Fined for dropping cargo. Scrambling...panicking...crying in my cockpit going "not like this...not like this". Time runs out...loitering...bounty...shot dead.
Pleasant surprise: you can go into debt instead of losing your ship. Okay...laugh it off. It's like starting over in a Cobra...No big deal. I'll make my money back.
Buy cheap commodities, gonna double'm. Claw my way back. Launch. "Thrusters Offline" back to the scramble. Go to modules, accidentally press SPACE BAR. Thrusters online. Well, piece of cake, there's an on/off switch as well as the ability to set to primary, secondary etc.. Somebody flicked the off switch while installing the new system (seems like a glitch to me) and cost me 200,000cr in ship and cargo. These things happen, no biggie.
Double my meager cash a few times with fish and leather, return with pesticides, go back with tobacco, return with land enrichers etc. Full load of tobacco smuggled in. Accidentally hit launch instead of station services. Repeated requests for re-docking ignored. Peeked out of the mailslot on silent running, request docking...granted. Takes too long to turn around, scanned and fined 14,000cr and station turns red. Ships start yelling "die, bootlegger!" and shooting at me. Run away.
Now I get shot at all the time and suddenly suck at docking. Out of principal I hate the federation now and really don't want to have to repair my rep with them but guys are chasing me into the station to shoot me down!
I'm 100,000cr in debt for having died 3 or four times, always with cargo (I make a little money back and then BAM!). I'll save my insurance money once I can afford to but it all has to go toward cargo right now. I feel like it just gets harder and harder to play. Also, if they know you're smuggling (they must because my rep seems to go down every time I successfully smuggle goods into a station) what's the point? Might as well be legit if you get caught anyway even when you don't get caught. . Or is it "get caught once and your smuggling career is over because they always know who you are"? Only making 1100cr on tobacco. Better off running boring old coffee and making 600cr. I had fun smuggling but everybody can see me coming from 10km away and can scan me on silent running. Lame. So lame. Really frustrating. If the game wasn't so good I'd have ragequit over my thrusters being offline (the start off all this miserable misfortune). Now I'll need about eight hours just to get back to where I was except that I'm going to get shot at everywhere and I've lost my ability to fly properly.

Anyway, anybody else lose all their momentum because of "Thrusters Offline" or accidentally hitting launch instead of station services?

 

[cmdr lowest]

Yes. The old mistake cost me dearly post. Elite Dangerous is a cruel mistress at times but that is why we love it. It doesn't hold your hand, it demands that you learn from your mistakes and improve.

I offer advice such as "always check your modules/firegroups" before taking off in a new ship. Pay special attention to power consumption as you can sometimes also find out the hard way that without proper power management your ship dies when you deploy hardpoints. Not the best of times for your ship to die unexpectedly either, I am sure you would agree.

I also offer the advice of never (ever) leave the starport in a new ship without having the insurance to buy it back. That's the golden rule of the galaxy. Ideally you should have enough spare credits to cover the insurance cost 2 or 3 times over (in case of multiple mistakes) and enough left for a full cargo hold of trading to get you going again.

What to do next is your choice. Seems you're down a hole. You could take what you've learned, work around it and try to climb back on top or you can opt to restart, get back in your Sidewinder and use your new knowledge to make better choices, the benefit being your rep with the feds will be back to normal. There's no right answer, it's up to you.

When I first started out I opted to smuggle all I could, even sub-targetting cargo hatches of wanted criminals and taking their free goods. Rep wasn't as important to me in the early days and it's a good little earner. Since the game has been updated though there's probably more profitable ways of starting out now such as bounty hunting and even some rudimentary exploration.

Fly safe commander. Glad to see that the annoyances haven't got you down but only strengthened your resolve.

 

[clivewil]

opt to restart, get back in your Sidewinder and use your new knowledge to make better choices

i'd take this route in the above situation - you haven't got too much invested in it yet and so not much to lose, you've made a mess in your nest, and you know where you went wrong. time for a clean slate.

 

[the100thmonkey]

You must spread some reputation around before giving it to CMDR Lowest again.

You have some power management issues that can be sorted by looking carefully at what's going on with your power in the right hand UI menu under the modules tab.

If you decide to stay with your current save, the Alliance will take you, no questions asked, as will the Eranin People's Party. The Federation is a pool of scum on the beautiful shore that is the universe. They must be destroyed.

 

[andyraptor]

<snip>

If you decide to stay with your current save, tha Alaiance will take you, no questions asekd, as will the Eranin People's Party. The Federation is a pool of scum on the beautiful shore that is the uneverse. They must be destroyed.

You been eating dodgy bananas again ?

LOLZ

 

[Undecided]

If you don't want to start over I recommend selling your cobra and buying a cheaper ship to take you to Imperial or Alliance space. Fit the best FSD you can find and bring a fuel scoop so you won't have to dock at federal stations. Remember, silent running and heat sinks are your friends.

Personally I recommend the Empire. We have slaves and Clippers!

 

[Cula-Ta]

Let me know where you are and I will offer assistance. Won't be until tomorrow. Sure I can work something out. I fly with the Mobius group but could switch to open to assist if needed.

I like to help people who are down on their luck. They might give me the same dig-out one day.

Same name in game. Friend me up.

 

[Sonoskay]

I would say sell the cobra, buy an adder an adder and go exslporing for a few hours. Should be enough to rebuy your cobra, but make sure To buy a DSS and have a jump range on atleast 12 yl, it's not ideal but it's a cheap way to make credits , ( you could also go bounty hunting but that's much more risky ) and are you sure it's the entire federation that's after you? And not just the faction in that station? ...

But yea I've been in a situation like that before, but not since my first hours in elite, lol

 

[huwthomas]

Join the Empire instead, all right-thinking pilots have done that already so consider this setback as the universe giving you a second chance

If you prefer to repair your reputation with the Feds (and the Empire values pilots who can come and go throughout settled space, so that's the sensible thing to do in any case), you might find it easier working from an outpost rather than from a full starport ... less security. That said I have never been on any of the factions' Kill-on-Sight lists, so cannot promise you won't have any problems at an outpost ... but I reckon you'd find life easier there.

Then do some step-and-fetch missions to fix your rep, missions can pay reasonably well so it would help you get back on your financial feet as well. Avoid doing assassination missions since they are currently bugged (sometimes not completable) in a way that could cost you even more rep.

 

[Ca$hback]

Update: So I declassed everything back down to 4D except my power plant and distributor, did a few fetch and stomp missions and I now have a full cargo hold and about 78,000cr. I'm also out of debt. Found a few bulletin board slave missions AT a slaveport (easy 40,000cr).

I still managed to smuggle my way into the Fed station that was giving me the trouble. I even managed to get out with some shields left! Last time I'm doing that though...hopefully.

I've got a home system of sorts where 2 of the three stations love me and the 3rd wants me dead. Been running smokes there, marine equipment back. Been making a tidy sum with just supercruise for the last little while.

 

[the100thmonkey]

You been eating dodgy bananas again ?

LOLZ

Nope - typing at speed on my phone with spellcheck turned off!

Death to the Federation and Empire! Viva la revolución!