I've been thinking a bit about stories recently. I know Elite is not supposed to have a linear storyline and you as a Commander in the galaxy are supposed to be insignificant. I agree with all that. It lets you play out a lot more scenarios in your imagination. But that doesn't mean there can't be smaller sub-plots in the game. I've been thinking about stories from a third-party app point of view, but it led me to thoughts about Engineers.
I'll admit, I'm not really into jumping through all the hoops to play with mods. Particularly not a fan of the RNG/special-effect aspect. But, that aside, I was thinking how "Engineers" could have been more interesting to me.
I would love to see more engagement and connection with the galaxy. Or, more specifically, the people in it. The mission changes in 2.1 have been a step in the right direction there I think. But I would love to see conversational interaction at some point. That, combined with missions/tasks, could have introduced engineers (and other things) in a whole new way. What if they weren't a few special people in a few fixed, special, locations? What if engineers could be anywhere... but you had to run across them?
What if the Contacts tab in the station menu contained additional options? Bars, stores, clubs, offices, etc? I'm certainly not a writer and this was only a quick example thrown quickly together, but perhaps an interaction could go something like this:
Perhaps a little long-winded too. Anyway, just some thoughts.
I'll admit, I'm not really into jumping through all the hoops to play with mods. Particularly not a fan of the RNG/special-effect aspect. But, that aside, I was thinking how "Engineers" could have been more interesting to me.
I would love to see more engagement and connection with the galaxy. Or, more specifically, the people in it. The mission changes in 2.1 have been a step in the right direction there I think. But I would love to see conversational interaction at some point. That, combined with missions/tasks, could have introduced engineers (and other things) in a whole new way. What if they weren't a few special people in a few fixed, special, locations? What if engineers could be anywhere... but you had to run across them?
What if the Contacts tab in the station menu contained additional options? Bars, stores, clubs, offices, etc? I'm certainly not a writer and this was only a quick example thrown quickly together, but perhaps an interaction could go something like this:
Bartender: "I’ve noticed you around here a fair bit recently. Been taking on some pretty shady missions for the Purple Raiders. Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone."
Khelder: "What of it?"
Bartender: "Well… just something that came up the other day… thought you might be interested."
Khelder: "I’m listening."
Bartender: "Ok, look, this woman comes into the bar a couple of days ago. She was going on about her brother being taken by some pirates or something. She was looking for a hired gun but nobody seemed interested. You look like the kind of Commander who can handle yourself. I thought you might be able to…"
Khelder: "What? Go off on a rescue mission for this woman? What would I do that for?"
Bartender: *shrugs*
Khelder: "Where do I find her?"
Bartender: "I hear she’s planet-side. Schade Horizons. Think she’s got a job in Outfitting there."
Khelder: "Can’t hurt to talk to her I guess."
*** flys to Schade Horizons ***
Agnes: "What do you want?"
Khelder: "I hear you’re in a spot of trouble."
Agnes: "Not me. My brother. He’s been taken and I need someone to help. Would you do it? I can pay."
Khelder: "Pay? I doubt you have that kind of money."
Agnes: "Well, no. But I can offer other things. Your Asp there. I bet I could squeeze a bit more power out of those thrusters for you. I’ve done it before. Pilots Federation doesn’t like it. But I like to tinker."
Khelder: "More power? That could come in handy. What can you tell me about your brother?"
Agnes: "Lushertha A 6 a. Well, at least, that’s where they were. I’ve been out there. There are a couple of buildings. But they were surrounded by Skimmers. I couldn’t get close. These are the coordinates…"
Khelder: "Ok. I’ll take a look."
*** the mission continues... ***
Khelder: "What of it?"
Bartender: "Well… just something that came up the other day… thought you might be interested."
Khelder: "I’m listening."
Bartender: "Ok, look, this woman comes into the bar a couple of days ago. She was going on about her brother being taken by some pirates or something. She was looking for a hired gun but nobody seemed interested. You look like the kind of Commander who can handle yourself. I thought you might be able to…"
Khelder: "What? Go off on a rescue mission for this woman? What would I do that for?"
Bartender: *shrugs*
Khelder: "Where do I find her?"
Bartender: "I hear she’s planet-side. Schade Horizons. Think she’s got a job in Outfitting there."
Khelder: "Can’t hurt to talk to her I guess."
*** flys to Schade Horizons ***
Agnes: "What do you want?"
Khelder: "I hear you’re in a spot of trouble."
Agnes: "Not me. My brother. He’s been taken and I need someone to help. Would you do it? I can pay."
Khelder: "Pay? I doubt you have that kind of money."
Agnes: "Well, no. But I can offer other things. Your Asp there. I bet I could squeeze a bit more power out of those thrusters for you. I’ve done it before. Pilots Federation doesn’t like it. But I like to tinker."
Khelder: "More power? That could come in handy. What can you tell me about your brother?"
Agnes: "Lushertha A 6 a. Well, at least, that’s where they were. I’ve been out there. There are a couple of buildings. But they were surrounded by Skimmers. I couldn’t get close. These are the coordinates…"
Khelder: "Ok. I’ll take a look."
*** the mission continues... ***
Perhaps a little long-winded too. Anyway, just some thoughts.
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