Elite Dangerous | System Colonisation Beta Details & Feedback

[Kennzo]

Howdy I did ask on X and got told " Nothing to announce right now we'll let you know as soon as we can share more " . Which basically means their unwilling or unable to answer or they don't want the burning torches and pitch forks to be brandished, was starting to get frustrated with the lack of any reply on here when anybody asked including myself. One thing I have learnt over my time playing ED is that when Fdev are not forthcoming with answers even though a fair amount of people are asking, it generally means they don't want to say anything which makes me think it ain't gonna be anytime soon. But hey you never know it might be sometime in March lol if they don't concentrate on all the other stuff they have to sort with Colonization lol ish

Thanx Daze, I'll hang around Colonia with my FC and wait then

 

[Heinz Volmer]

Feedback: Single Player here, building an Orbis station since 2 weeks. You probably heard the opposite here but I think the amount of required materials to build is good. Building starports like this feels like "endgame" and it should. To me they are more important than fleet carriers so I even suggest you should not get a payment on delivery of materials.

 

[CMDR Matredo]

Feedback: Single Player here, building an Orbis station since 2 weeks. You probably heard the opposite here but I think the amount of required materials to build is good. Building starports like this feels like "endgame" and it should. To me they are more important than fleet carriers so I even suggest you should not get a payment on delivery of materials.

it should cost more credits and you SHOULD NOT get money for delivering commodities, it makes systems priceless

 

[JosiahD]

it should cost more credits and you SHOULD NOT get money for delivering commodities, it makes systems priceless

Sorry but I have to disagree here. Think of colonisation as personal CGs. Remember too that ANYONE can deliver to the construction sites, not just the architect - you expect other players not to be paid for deliveries? The system claim could probably be a higher cost, but as it is, it renders the colonisation process accessible basically to all, which is good for player engagement.

 

[CMDR Matredo]

Sorry but I have to disagree here. Think of colonisation as personal CGs. Remember too that ANYONE can deliver to the construction sites, not just the architect - you expect other players not to be paid for deliveries? The system claim could probably be a higher cost, but as it is, it renders the colonisation process accessible basically to all, which is good for player engagement.

I didn't say it. You as an architect should pay those players, not a jesus or someone else who pays you for delivers now. It is an end game content, it shouldn't cost less than a ship. Even if not an end game content, it is definitely not for a new players.

 

[vanFace]

I didn't say it. You as an architect should pay those players, not a jesus or someone else who pays you for delivers now. It is an end game content, it shouldn't cost less than a ship. Even if not an end game content, it is definitely not for a new players.

If I have to pay players to build my colony, I sure would see it as mine, and expect a much higher payout in the end. An investment with expect ROI. However, this is just not what FDEV envisioned it to be, as it seems.

 

[CMDR Suttorad]

Hello guys, has somebody tried to build Asteroid starport as first? I was kinda late to party so personally I dont know but since it costs same as Coriolis it should be option. Thans for answers

 

[CMDR Ecaep]

I didn't say it. You as an architect should pay those players, not a jesus or someone else who pays you for delivers now. It is an end game content, it shouldn't cost less than a ship. Even if not an end game content, it is definitely not for a new players.

Why not? A new player might take a couple weeks to earn enough money to purchase a colony and maybe a Type-6 or Type-8. Then they could haul and complete an outpost in another week. Join Elite: Dangerous. Become a system architect in your first month! That is a great way to get more players.

 

[SCHROTTUS]

Moin,
Ich hatte da noch eine Idee zur Systembaumechanik.
Wie wäre es, wenn man zu jedem Bauprojekt ein oder zwei automatisierte Frachter mit einem Ladevolumen von ca: 300- 600 Einheiten die rund um die Uhr Baustoffe/Waren zum Bauvorhaben transportieren würde.
Auch dann, wenn Spieler offline sind !!!!
Die erforderlichen Credits für die ersten Wareneinkäufe könnte man ja auf die „Baustelle“ einzahlen, auch als Baukonto.
Dann könnte man dem Frachter nur sagen ... besorge eine bestimmte Ware und der holt sie dann im Umkreis von 150 Lichtjahren bis die erforderlichen Einheiten voll sind.
Das würde selbst „Gelegenheitsspieler“ in die Lage versetzten, ein System zu kolonisieren, der nicht die Zeit oder Lust hat, Stundenlang unmengen an Materialien zu transportieren.
Nach Fertigstellung des Bauprojekts werden die Frachter entfernt und das Guthaben des Baukontos auf das Spilerkonto transformiert.

Schrottus

PS: Ich kann Bauprojekte immer noch nicht ändern oder löschen!

 

[CMDR T'Verez]

BETA Feedback:

After spending a good amount of time with the update consisting of several star systems and various builds I have a couple of suggestions -

-Insulating Membrane
I feel that the current market stock urgently needs an adjustment to bring the commodity inline with the recent CMM Composite changes.

-Project Cancelling
Commanders should have the option to cancel a project, as long as that no materials have been delivered. This would alleviate any "miss click" placements.

 

[KKomrade Sylas]

Feedback: Single Player here, building an Orbis station since 2 weeks. You probably heard the opposite here but I think the amount of required materials to build is good. Building starports like this feels like "endgame" and it should. To me they are more important than fleet carriers so I even suggest you should not get a payment on delivery of materials.

Sorry, it does not feel endgame in any way. If you want it to feel endgame, then it has to be a money sink. Any player that does 1 trade mission and owns a type 9 can do this, and colonization is even a more accessible activity than exploring with a fully engineered Mandalay or Phantom.

Buying a fleet carrier feels several times more "endgame" than building an Orbis. I am not even sure what your idea of 'endgame' is, there's no previous unlocks here, no late-game or 'endgame'. It's just hauling. Since when is hauling endgame?

I mean no offense to you because this is obviously just a difference in opinion, and I come off pretty opinionated on this, but I feel like making things grindy and incredibly time-consuming for the player is not what fun or endgame means. And I feel some Elite players are just really adverse to people having fun, this is like the equivalent of EA's 'sense of pride and accomplishment'.

This isn't necessarily a criticism of the feature by the way because I love Colonization as a feature even if I'm hung up on the numbers a bit. But this is most certainly NOT endgame content

 

[mkizub]

Hello guys, has somebody tried to build Asteroid starport as first? I was kinda late to party so personally I dont know but since it costs same as Coriolis it should be option. Thans for answers

Hailo Tua - asteroid base was built as first station.

 

[tomalus]

Feedback: Single Player here, building an Orbis station since 2 weeks. You probably heard the opposite here but I think the amount of required materials to build is good. Building starports like this feels like "endgame" and it should. To me they are more important than fleet carriers so I even suggest you should not get a payment on delivery of materials.

50 hours of efficient hauling in a cutter is such riveting gameplay.

 

[alexalsp]

1) The idea of colonization is great, the work done is great and interesting, thank you for that, but the execution requires revision of some points, I hope I will still be able to immerse myself in colonization when something in it will change,

• If the game is only for groups of communities (group colonization), then I think it should have been written that way, that would be ordinary players single players, do not waste time.
• If for all, the increase in the number of resources, a very bad idea, again, loners will not do it, or do other things, or those who came back for colonization, again will leave the game.
• reduce the number of resources. 400,000 and a list of 30 items? I realize you may not want to build fast, but I built one big station and I don't want to build anything else.
• If you are so eager. that players would kill in the transportation of goods, at least remove the limitation on construction time. not everyone has the opportunity to transport goods for 24 hours. People have real lives. Or let the screen displays a message that a month has passed, extend the construction or rent a colonizer or refuse to build. But it's not a good idea to box players in.
• In the conditions of colonization, it is time to do something with aircraft carriers, to increase the capacity at least twice. Race aircraft carrier 20 times for one resource of 400 or 200k is absurd. Yes, you will release large ships, but this is a completely different item of expenditure ...
• Finally make a button to fill the hold completely with the selected goods (double arrow). Already tired of sitting holding the button until 700 tons of goods accumulate.
• At least later make a description of colonization that it would be clear what stations that give what there are not clear indicators and what they mean. In general there is nothing, how to build, what to build, blindly do it is also not the best practice.
• give the opportunity to build anywhere. What's the point of limiting the distance? I may want to build a station in the center of the galaxy, for the researcher, but I can not because you can not. let the construction comes from the faction in which the pilot is a member, it is the same ruling will be, if the player is not a member of the faction, then let him choose from a list of which faction to take a request for construction.
• give the opportunity to set tasks NPC to deliver goods. This will reduce the load on the player and will not be a constant worry, and whether I will have time to build what is already 85% done, but for lack of time all of this will disappear and I will abandon all this colonization square black hole, and the game will end there.

The main thing to remember is that half, if not more, can't live in the game like some....

I've been playing for 7 years, targoids I missed almost, released colonization, rejoiced, but my joy did not last long. ))) If nothing changes, I will simply go back to periodic missions, and colonization for me will end. and not started.

I hope you'll do something about it.

 

[corpsbringer]

So, some time has passed since the introduction of the colonization feature, and it’s now possible to provide feedback.

1. Resource requirements for colonization. In my opinion, the amount of resources required is quite reasonable. If you’re a solo player, building an outpost or a Coriolis station isn’t a problem. If you have a stable wing to play with, you can even construct more advanced stations. Colonization is meant to be a challenge and shouldn’t be something you can complete in just 20 minutes.

2. Building additional stations after the main one. Once the primary station is built, constructing others isn’t too difficult. Tier 1 installations can be built in an evening. As you develop the system, goods will start appearing on your stations, reducing the need to import them from other systems.

3. The requirement to build Tier 1 installations before more advanced structures. I like this mechanic—it adds a sense of progression.

What could be improved:

1. Adding colony missions:
- Missions to transport people for station development (e.g., picking up a specialist from another system and bringing them to your colony, which could provide bonuses to station activities).
- Missions to steal/find specific resources for your ground settlement (e.g., plant samples from a designated system).
- Settlement defense missions against marauders (similar to conflict zones).

2. Hiring options:
- Mercenaries for system defense (e.g., paying 10 million credits per week to increase system security by 2 points).
- Freight carriers to deliver resources to your station.
- A bulletin board for pilots where you can post delivery orders (similar to station quests or community goals). The reward would be paid from the pilot’s funds who placed the order. The minimum price would depend on the delivery volume and distance, with a minimum order size of 500 tons to avoid cluttering the board with small orders (e.g., a delivery of 10,000 tons of steel for 50 million credits). This would be a great way for billionaires to spend their wealth.

3. Resource storage: A storage system similar to a fleet carrier’s cargo hold, but for the main station in your system, with the option to expand it.

4. Station upgrades: Improvements that can be purchased with resources/credits to increase available goods, production rates, or system defense stats.

5. Interface improvements:
- Currently, I often forget which installations are located where. Adding descriptions alongside the names would help.
- A “shopping list” feature to pin a list of required goods for delivery to stations in quick access. Right now, I have to open the galaxy map, then the system map, and search for the specific station to see what’s left to deliver.

Further development ideas for colonization:

A very interesting idea would be to separate roles into architect and system owner. For the system owner, I would remove the distance restriction but add a mandatory mission to transport a faction to a remote system and deliver a platform for construction (the owner would start with only an outpost, from which they could develop their colony in deep space). Alternatively, the delivery of a large platform could be done using a fleet carrier (a separate option for deep-space colonization).

• Finally make a button to fill the hold completely with the selected goods (double arrow). Already tired of sitting holding the button until 700 tons of goods accumulate.

It would be better to add a field for specifying the exact number. Delivering 367 tons is more challenging than simply waiting until 750 tons are accumulated.

 

[Ian Doncaster]

Hello guys, has somebody tried to build Asteroid starport as first? I was kinda late to party so personally I dont know but since it costs same as Coriolis it should be option. Thans for answers

You can do it, but only if the selected "first station" point for the system (which you don't get to choose) happens to be on a ringed planet or asteroid belt.

Unless you get lucky you'll need to build something else first and then put the asteroid starport on the ringed planet later.

 

[[VR]Deniax]

Feedback: Single Player here, building an Orbis station since 2 weeks. You probably heard the opposite here but I think the amount of required materials to build is good. Building starports like this feels like "endgame" and it should. To me they are more important than fleet carriers so I even suggest you should not get a payment on delivery of materials.

Totally agree (solo player as well) .. except, you're still transporting the goods, so I expect payment. (As it is, it is enough)

 

[Alice of Altair]

Maybe the cost of claims should ramp up after the first one. 25MCr for the first claim is reasonable and allows almost everyone to participate in colonisation. I think that is the Dev's idea in keeping the initial cost so low. After that it could go up to, for example 50MCr for the second, 100MCr for the third and keep going up for each subsequent one.
This idea would provide an incentive to build up colonies already claimed instead of spamming the galaxy with one-outpost-only systems. A refinement of this idea would be that systems whose building slots are entirely built do not count towards this cost increasing effect, providing an incentive to complete building in each claimed system.

 

[vicwarrior]

I dont disagree with an orbis being an "endgame" goal, that may take an entire month to complete, plenty of videogames have long term goals, they however dont consist of the same monotonous activity for hours.

Stations with markets that have commodities over 50% filled should offer missions that reward players by letting them choose to send commodities to a colonisation project in range. That way within the bubble,or within developed areas , or developed systems, with flush markets it should be easier to develop and expand colonies, without creating commodities out of nothing where there aren't any.

Ideally, construction sites/colonisation ships could also have its own missions pulling commodities from sorroundings, that reward interacting with your new system, getting to know it and falling in love with it, since you are making it yours. As well as establishing it is not "yours" but rather a joint project between your faction and all the npc "investors" you manage to pull. A lot of people seem surprised that they are not allowed to walk around the place like they own it (because they dont) but its understandable when they have had to deliver thousand of tons of crap, including stocking the goddamn fridges of the new station.

In any case, while i do believe grinding should be less, we must ABSOLUTELY HAVE MORE ACTIVITIES involved, haulers are still valuable if you want to develop systems away from civilisation, or need your station today, but goddamn, even mission hauling is more engaging than this.

 

[CMDR Richard7129]

My feedback on the feature, for FDev:

For context,

• I am a solo player and have not requested any help from others and, according to my spreadsheet tracker, I have not had unsolicited help either.
• It took a week to complete my first starport (a coriolis). I finished it just before the weekly tick. It took a long weekend and a few late nights to do so.
• I have since build 3 other small ports, each taking a couple of days, playing casually in the evening after work and family-time, etc.

The feedback,

• The cost of the initial claim is lower than I expected: I expected 100M+ to exclude those 'too new' to the game. However, the higher the initial cost, the less happy I will be with the initial port time-constraint, and the possibility of losing it all.
• I felt a lot of pressure to complete my initial port within the 4 weeks. In the end it was done in 1 week, but I did have a 4-day weekend and had a couple of late nights to get it done before the weekly tick.
• I think the material quantities are 'about right'. It's a lot of hauling, but doable as a solo player. Especially once the time constraint is removed for your second build onwards.
• I think we should be able to set the 'buy' price of the materials at the construction site. Maybe inject our own credits for this purpose, to encourage other commanders to help with hauling, if we want.
• I think we should be able to cancel our constructions if we want, and reclaim construction points.
• I think the point-cost of a tier 3 structure is too high (6 required, to build my first, seems a lot). Especially if this doubles, as I've heard (although, I've not got that far so have no experience).
• If, as it seems, you are insisting on requiring the necessary supporting infrastructure to support tier-3 constructions, I think the initial port should be restricted to tier 1 - to force the progression. But, lower the point costs so it's more attainable.
• I think the system architect should have 24h from the colonisation contact going live before it's available to other commanders.
• I think we should be able to rename our system. The same pre-generated names mechanic (same as for ports) would work. I'm on the fence about allowing people to set custom system names.

Ultimately, colonisation is meant to take time and I think how it is set up is a pretty good balance, and anything that speeds it up significantly will take away from the feature. On the other hand I have a limited amount of free time to play games so I don't want it to absorb all my time. I'm just glad we can resume other game loops once that first port is done, to break up the gameplay.