How can I interact with other players?

[Mike Mayhem]

I just spent my first month in solo as I was doing a lot of grinding and just learning how to play the game and didn't want to be bothered/pirated. Now that I've finally gotten to a point where I have the ships, credits, and experience to have some fun, I decided I'd see if I can find some other players to interact with. I have been playing in open for a few days now and have yet to see a single player. I've been hanging around Hudson controlled systems with haz and high res, figuring those would be high traffic areas, but still nothing. I do see in the traffic logs that hundreds of ships have visited, but I never seem to run into any. Is this normal?

I'm not really looking for pvp. Don't feel like I'm quite ready for that, nor do I see a reason to attack other players if they aren't criminals. I'm primarily a bounty hunter. Ideally I'd like to team up for haz res farming, or maybe fight in a conflict zone.

I'm in LHS 71 right now, farming the haz res by Goeschke Dock. If anyone wants to join, you are more than welcome. I'm flying a well equipped FAS and am proficient in combat. Taking a break for a few minutes but will be on for a few hours afterward. Hope to see someone eventually. [big grin]

 

[yolomcbobbinz]

Well, players are marked as hollow blips on your scanner, you can find them in popular areas like CGs. Most of us are friendly but always be ready to jump out if someone ends up attacking you.

 

[DNA-Decay]

How can I interact with other players?

Weapons deployed.



But joking aside, there are a lot of players that do this thing of fearing Open.
They start out with this notion that Open is an abbotoir that you'd be mad to step into.
OMG YOU'RE GOING TO DIE DONT GO OUT THERE!

And then you get brave, get a few kills under your belt and step out and "Where is everyone?"

Well Two Things:
1) Join a group and not Möbius. We've got some new recruits at HQ and they're doing well, getting mentored. Joining a Player Group populates your friends list, gives you places to go with other people. Wingmates and purpose. Enemies. Heck, I even had someone to mentor me through some PvP. And while the AEDC are hardly known for being a PvP club, we do have training matches.

2) However tough you think you are right now, nothing will prepare you for your first PvP encounter. You will be taken apart so fast your head will swim. You'll be looking at a rebuy screen wondering what happened.




Mind you, making a kill on another CMDR is pretty exhilarating. Hope you make it.

 

[Mike Mayhem]

What's the best way to arrange a group in advance? Is there a specific place to post in the forum, or do you just put up a post like this one?

 

[Mohrgan]

This could be a starting point: [url]https://forums.frontier.co.uk/forumdisplay.php/65-Dangerous-Groups
[/URL]
You could look at the INARA site. It has information on getting involved with player groups. https://inara.cz/

 

[Agony_Aunt]

Join a player group.

 

[babelfisch]

Visit CGs, starter systems, capitol systems.

 

[jasonbirder]

Most players are pretty decent and can easily be identified in your scanner by the hollow not solid square in your scanner
Also they're always Prefixed CMDR something in your contacts once they're scanned...
You can contact all CMDRs in your local area using the comms UI panel generally or speak to a specific CMDR by selecting them.

Most interactions tend to be of the fairly casual meet and greet type..but people are often amenable to winging up - if they're heading to a RES or CZ, going Thargoid hunting etc...you'll probably have to take the initiative and suggest it as you'll be waiting a while for someone else to do it...once you ask tho' you'll be surprised how many like a bit of company!

Explorers tend to be a bit more organised...often doing big "Expeditions" with a set goal that people head towards with Waypoints along the way where people meet up at a specific point/time for a bit of fun and interaction...they'll usually have their own comms/discord to stay in touch on the journey...

Have a look on Inara (Wings) there are plenty of active player wings that work in a similar way...a set of home systems and "wing Missions" that they collaborate on - again often have their own FB page/Discord to arrange wing activities and comms...can be alot of fun and add another level to the game...also good for sharing knowledge/training etc etc

HOWEVER unless you're into PVP I'd suggest when visiting Engineers/Community Goals/Starter Systems...stay in solo or PVE servers...they do have a tendency to be frequented by a certain type of commander who tools around in fully G5 Engineered FDLs (Or Corvette/Anaconda) who takes pleasure in interdicting/attacking poorly armed/shielded Traders/explorers or simply newer players with no warning...they'll generally be engineered for Thermal Effect, Impulse Attacks or Module Malfunctions as they'll have min/maxed their ships to within an inch of their lives...so you REALLY have to be on your game to evade them...TBH unless you're equally "Tooled up" and looking for a fight...its probably not worth it...

 

[Brrokk]

In one of the Mobius groups you'll find a crowd at every CG and other "sightseeing" attractions like Thargoid bases. But basically the issue is that space is really big and you need to go where the people are whatever mode you're in.

 

[Shiro Akai]

Now that I've finally gotten to a point where I have the ships, credits, and experience to have some fun, I decided I'd see if I can find some other players to interact with.

I'm not really looking for pvp.

Hmm... internal contradiction detected. Also - you looking or not for PvP is totally irrelevant. Going open = free and unprovoked PvP with you being the target. YOu don't have the ship, weapons, engineering, skills, will to PvP back? Well, you play in open, be prepared for silent death (read: player shows on your screen, next you see a rebuy. No hails, no greetings, no threats, no nothing. Just pure destruction).

So, if you don't want to PvP because of reasons:
- stay in solo
- join non PvP oriented group (like Moebius)

Because staying in regular open may quickly cure you from wanting player interaction. I'm not saying every CMDR out there is bloody and immoral pirate who enjoys just killing others. But there are CMDRs like that and meeting them at the start is not a pleasant one. Most times you'll face what you already did - emptiness of the void, with no other players. You simply are not in the right places. Go to systems where things happen - CGs, Thagroid space, engineers or high money making systems (ever rolling discussion if it's an exploit or not, you know what I mean).

Higher probability you meet others. Just be prepared for PvP. Your consent for it is not needed.

Cheers and fly safe.
o7 CMDR.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

Most players are fine, but some ruin the whole reputation of Open by just being, well, . Lol

Hollow squares (or triangles) will show you if it's a real player.

A few rules to go by;
DO make sure you have plenty credits of rebuys. Trolls love nothing more than killing CMDRs without enough credits to rebuy.

DO watch your scanner, at all times, but especially in supercruise. If a hollow square or triangle is following you, or acting suspicious, just be prepared to fight or run. I recommend running. Lol

DO NOT go AFK. Anywhere. But especially in supercruise. But also don't take up a landing pad. Log off, it's the polite thing to do, especially at outposts.

DO accept and offer wing invites to CMDRs in your local RES. Bounties are now awarded fully for each CMDR, not split. And no one likes kill stealers.

DO use the block function on dysfunctional players. Lol No one really likes the random murderhobos.

DO NOT block legitimate pirates. Either surrender your cargo, run, or fight. If you're not willing to do this, don't play in open, you're just ruining their gameplay. Lol (and they don't ask for much anyway, it's all just roleplay and fun for them).

DO NOT speed while docking at busy stations in Open. Especially at CGs. Some CMDRs enjoy crashing in to you in weakened ships, so they explode, and you become a murderer. Then the station kills you. Staying below the 100m/s speed limit means it's not your fault.

DO NOT combat log (force quit without using the menu). Ever. It's lame, and a move usually reserved for the most cowardly of murderhobos. It's also against EDs rules. Menu logging is fine and legal, but generally frowned upon.

And that's it I think!

Enjoy open! Lol

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

 

[Marra Morgan]

Interdictor and hatchbreakers are a good start

Other than that, I find shared BgS goals are good fun. You don't even have to be playing at the same time, in the same mode or on the same platform to enjoy a BgS team effort

 

[krylite]

You could also try joining multicrew -> mentoring, or any of the other lawful mission types as a crewmember. imo, easier and more convenient to meet other players who are more open to working together rather than passing by, or those few who do immediate pvp stalking or griefing.

 

[Mike Mayhem]

I went to a CG in open... and they were NOT friendly

To be fair, I probably sent the wrong signal by interdicting an FDL with several crew... I just wanted to say hi [haha] I thought it might be ok since we were both clean, but they apparently took offense to my intrusion.

I was actually able to avoid being destroyed for the most part, by submitting, FSD out, and then emergency exit from supercruise. I'd just sit there for a couple minutes and then take off again, that seemed to throw them off my trail. I get the feeling they could have stopped me from getting away if they really wanted to.. felt like I was being toyed with a lot. Never the less, it was exciting going from lonely space to entering a system filled with CMDR's. Think I'll look into joining a group for PVE, though. Seems like the safer option.

 

[Marra Morgan]

I went to a CG in open... and they were NOT friendly

To be fair, I probably sent the wrong signal by interdicting an FDL with several crew... I just wanted to say hi [haha] I thought it might be ok since we were both clean, but they apparently took offense to my intrusion.

I was actually able to avoid being destroyed for the most part, by submitting, FSD out, and then emergency exit from supercruise. I'd just sit there for a couple minutes and then take off again, that seemed to throw them off my trail. I get the feeling they could have stopped me from getting away if they really wanted to.. felt like I was being toyed with a lot. Never the less, it was exciting going from lonely space to entering a system filled with CMDR's. Think I'll look into joining a group for PVE, though. Seems like the safer option.

Weee sounds like fun!

You won't find excitement like that in a Private Group, though. Which is fine, for those who prefer less excitement

 

[Mike Mayhem]

HOWEVER unless you're into PVP I'd suggest when visiting Engineers/Community Goals/Starter Systems...stay in solo or PVE servers...they do have a tendency to be frequented by a certain type of commander who tools around in fully G5 Engineered FDLs (Or Corvette/Anaconda) who takes pleasure in interdicting/attacking poorly armed/shielded Traders/explorers or simply newer players with no warning...they'll generally be engineered for Thermal Effect, Impulse Attacks or Module Malfunctions as they'll have min/maxed their ships to within an inch of their lives...so you REALLY have to be on your game to evade them...TBH unless you're equally "Tooled up" and looking for a fight...its probably not worth it...

Yep, place was crawling with FDL's that seemed like they were 1 hitting my shields. I certainly have no place taking on pvp at the moment, that much became clear very quickly! [haha]

 

[JesusOnEez]

I find that the High/Haz RES sites at Guuguyni 6 are often populated by CMDRs. Sometimes they'll be happy to wing up, other times they want the RES to themselves (should do it in solo really). It's very rare I go those sites and there are no people, so that's a fairly sure-fire way to start interacting.

 

[Clifra Jones]

Hmm... internal contradiction detected. Also - you looking or not for PvP is totally irrelevant. Going open = free and unprovoked PvP with you being the target. YOu don't have the ship, weapons, engineering, skills, will to PvP back? Well, you play in open, be prepared for silent death (read: player shows on your screen, next you see a rebuy. No hails, no greetings, no threats, no nothing. Just pure destruction).

So, if you don't want to PvP because of reasons:
- stay in solo
- join non PvP oriented group (like Moebius)

Because staying in regular open may quickly cure you from wanting player interaction. I'm not saying every CMDR out there is bloody and immoral pirate who enjoys just killing others. But there are CMDRs like that and meeting them at the start is not a pleasant one. Most times you'll face what you already did - emptiness of the void, with no other players. You simply are not in the right places. Go to systems where things happen - CGs, Thagroid space, engineers or high money making systems (ever rolling discussion if it's an exploit or not, you know what I mean).

Higher probability you meet others. Just be prepared for PvP. Your consent for it is not needed.

Cheers and fly safe.
o7 CMDR.

We seriously need to stop scaring people away from open. It is not the "killing fields" some like to make it out to be. I have encountered many commanders in many locations and not been attacked.

There are simple things to remember:
1. Cargo CGs. If your running cargo in open in a CG. You are pretty likely to get attacked.
2. Bounty CGs. You are somewhat likely to get attacked to keep you from stealing bounties.
3. Engineers. In my experience the risk is low. It is there but it is low.
4. Birth systems. The first advice any new player should be given is "Get out of this system NOW!" I did not know that but that is what I did on my first trip and never went back.
5. The new attacked station rescue operations. I did this for a whole weekend and saw many other Commanders and was not attacked. Could it happen Yes. Is it rampant? My experience says no.

I fly around in open all the time. I hardly ever see other players and when I do 95% of them are friendly.

 

[Mike Mayhem]

I find that the High/Haz RES sites at Guuguyni 6 are often populated by CMDRs. Sometimes they'll be happy to wing up, other times they want the RES to themselves (should do it in solo really). It's very rare I go those sites and there are no people, so that's a fairly sure-fire way to start interacting.

I assumed res farming would work the same as in solo, as in any players getting a hit in the last 20 seconds got the bounty even if you didn't finish the kill. After a quick google, it looks like you simply split the bounty among wingmates. From the sound of it, you still make money faster as you're able to wipe out ships at a faster rate. I'd assume for the CG, since you both got a bounty you'd both be contributing to the goal when you turn it in?

 

[Mike Mayhem]

DO NOT combat log (force quit without using the menu). Ever. It's lame, and a move usually reserved for the most cowardly of murderhobos. It's also against EDs rules. Menu logging is fine and legal, but generally frowned upon.

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

Yeah, that is extremely lame. I mean you'd have to be a complete coward to do something like that.

But, like, what if someone DID do that a couple times because they um... got a little in over their head and freaked out or something? Can you get reported for that? What if they didn't know about the rules?

Asking for a friend...