When QA does fix this bug, also implement a random allowance for the possibility of two to three fragments being produced per surface node.
The way it is now even with the bug feels pretty great when using two to three abrasion blasters. Sometimes you still only get one but occasionally you’ll get two to three fragments too.
Agreed. As I've said elsewhere, because I only ever fitted two blasters I honestly thought this was the way it was meant to work. At least one chunk per hit, with a random chance of a second chunk. It was only reading threads like this one that enlightened me as to what was going on. Once it's been pointed out that it only happens with multiple blasters, it clearly reveals itself as a bug.
Going in the right direction. But I think a result based more on skill than luck is much more satisfying than adding yet another RNG-dependent game feature. So I would lobby for getting one chunk per blaster (up to some capped max) ONLY if you execute your shot perfectly (range, angle, timing, etc).
The problem with that is that it means either leaving the current bugged code in place in its entirety, or removing the extant bug and replacing it with a bunch of custom code to determine the "perfectness" of the players' shots for yield purposes. The former seems unlikely to happen (leaving fortuitous bugs in software is not unheard of, but is rarely embraced) while the latter requires a whole new load of code which could end up introducing its own, worse bugs. Far more likely is that FD will simply patch out the issue causing the current behaviour, most likely a timing issue.
Someone elsewhere suggested an Engineering solution, with the ability to tweak abrasion blasters to increase the likelihood of multiple chunks. This may be my favourite option since it would rely mostly on a "simple" hidden dice roll that's modified by Engineer effects, not unlike the way some other game elements already work. There could also be different grades of blaster for those with the base game or who don't want to Engineer; all grades guarantee one chunk, but the lower grades aren't focused enough to break off further chunks without destroying them. Higher grade or Engineered blasters are tuned for a greater likelihood of extracting a second chunk undamaged, for those deposits that would yield more than one.
Again, this requires custom code so is unlikely to be a quickly implemented solution, even if it was on the table.
FD will do what they feel is right, of course. I just have a gut issue with the whole "mo blasters, mo chunks" thing and any solution that keeps it in place. It felt like a bug, it's been confirmed as a bug, and while there is a skill element of sorts to exploiting it for maximum yield it also feels as though it would result in a mining meta that would negate general purpose mining builds. As an example, I was core mining yesterday when I stumbled upon a non-core asteroid with 6% low temperature diamonds. Because I had a standard mining laser fitted I was able to take advantage. If I was playing the chunk metagame, I'd have only had blasters fitted. That seems like a step backwards to me, but I guess it depends on whether you're looking for a range of engagement with the game's mechanics or pure Cr/h maximisation. We're all different in that regard.
But it's been confirmed as a bug, so it's going to go. What it'll be replaced with, if anything, will be interesting to watch.