Engineering for expeditions?

[Mrat13]

So, as far as I've read in different threads, most explorers who partake in expeditions, engineer their ships.

Is this really nescessary? I'm more asking hypothetically, but it seems annoying that someone like myself, who depises engineering and would rather do chores around the house than it, would be forced into it to go on an expedition with other players.

Can someone clarify this, because it seems rather brick wall to me, for people who actually want to interact with each other, while not having to pray to RNGesus.

 

[Bigmaec]

You want at least the increased FSD range.

Lightweight mods are optional but increase range quite a bit.

edit: It is not needed, but makes live convenient.

 

[Marklar_]

You might have a hard time keeping up, but the FSD is the easiest module to engineer so you might as well go ahead and do that.

 

[kpmop]

You can also engineer your DSS to increase the scan speed - definitely worth it if you're planning on lots of scanning!

 

[verminstar]

Not all explorers engineer their ships...Ive ignored them almost entirely since their inception...hasnt really had that much of an impact on how I play or what I do. My last expedition was some 5 months in an unengineered T9 to Sag A and the core...sub 20ly range...why would I need more?

 

[Makya]

As Bigmaec said, it's primarily to increase jump range. Keep in mind a lot of exploring was done before engineers. The Asp X and Anaconda were the ships of choice then. I'm currently doing the Colonia expedition in a Type 10 with a jump range of 33. It's engineered but you should be able to match that with a AspX and better with an Anaconda with no engineering. For exploring, high jump range is primarily useful for getting somewhere asap or to jump to distant stars on the edge of the galaxy.

 

[Mrat13]

You might have a hard time keeping up, but the FSD is the easiest module to engineer so you might as well go ahead and do that.

Exactly how hard a time though? What kind of ranges does one need to compete with. I was fiddling on Coriolis.io a while back (few months max), and I found I could, making sacrifices, get my DBX to have around a 39y jump range (sacrifice SRV and smaller fuel tank). My current in that ship is around 36.

Is that still really off the mark though?

 

[Bigmaec]

Thats fine, but for examply my G5 engineered DBX (without god rolls, most rolls tried 1-3 times) jumpes 57 lightyears.

 

[Marklar_]

Exactly how hard a time though? What kind of ranges does one need to compete with. I was fiddling on Coriolis.io a while back (few months max), and I found I could, making sacrifices, get my DBX to have around a 39y jump range (sacrifice SRV and smaller fuel tank). My current in that ship is around 36.

Is that still really off the mark though?

Anything above 30 LY is plenty for exploration. You could gather the mats and engineer your FSD in an afternoon, if you want, even one roll would make a big difference. But you don't really need engineering to explore.

 

[Mrat13]

Anything above 30 LY is plenty for exploration. You could gather the mats and engineer your FSD in an afternoon, if you want, even one roll would make a big difference. But you don't really need engineering to explore.

I was talking about expeditions, where you fly in groups. Solo exploring is at your own pace. For instance, if I was in a group where the minimum was 45, I'd struggle to keep up. But, if it was 40, I could manage.

So I guess the question is, what kind of jump ranges do ships on expeditions usually have.

 

[Alex Brentnall]

Some helps but none is required.

I'd go for:
FSD first for range, easy to unlock engineer and do (Farseer).
Powerplant low emissions next as same engineer as above (Farseer).
Then scanner for either quick scan or long-range scanner, personal preference)

Then either Lightweight Life support & Sensors if you are really pushing for range.

Aside from that if you want to mega-optimise you can fit a smaller distributor and engine mod it so that it's lighter but can still boost. Thats really pushing it though, no real need.


As before none is required but the more you do the quality of life improves, for those that explore for weeks/months at a time the small savings like long range surface scanner really ends up mattering imho.

 

[Adhock]

\So I guess the question is, what kind of jump ranges do ships on expeditions usually have.

That's entirely a design question and how well you can manage your weight.

Generally if you're hitting 30-40LY you're fine. Average distance between systems is 12-16Ly. 20 lets you skip the odd system here and there but the point of an expedition is to hit all systems nearby.

Essentially if you're in a ship where the FSD drive is the same size class as it's reactor and engines and you manage your weight well, you'll have no problem keeping up.

 

[bnrgator]

It makes a huge difference if you are planning a long trip. Consider how long it will take to unlock Farseer and get an upgraded FSD. A few hours likely.

Now consider how many hundreds or thousands of jump loading screens you are going to save yourself from having to watch over time.

She also can upgrade your planetary scanners. I used long range upgrade last time and it really helped the scan time of systems by not having to go so far into gravity wells to scan.

With Farseer, you would also get access to Dirty Drive up to level 3 which while not exploration useful, sure helps all of your other ships to handle better and go faster.

If you only unlock one engineer ever, do her. It makes life in Elite much better.

 

[Winterwalker]

If you're joining an expedition .. then maybe jump in on any thread or website started by the group and ask.

If there's a route plan, it should give you an idea on the kind of Ly's per day or per week the expedition is aiming to cover and you can work back from there.

Obviously the better your range, the more easily you'll keep up but I would think most expeditions will cater for 'reasonable' exploration builds as opposed to uber ones.

 

[damon8r351]

At a minimum, I'd recommend engineering the FSD for increased range, but only if you're exploring on the fringes where stars are far apart.

Other things I've engineered, but they're optional:
-My undersized 2A power plant with Overcharged to increase power output. Undersized plant reduces weight.
-Thrusters with Clean Tuning to increase my flying speed near the surface, but this was really more of a patience thing.
-Modified the Detailed Surface Scanner with Fast Scan, again, more of a patience thing.

I've actually not engineered my FSD because I can squeeze about 33.75 light years out of my Asp and it's worked fine so far. It may change if I want to try something crazy.