Exactly, it's not that the AI is better, it's that the combat experience is cheap.
Horizons Impossible to play this game for me any longer...
- Thread starter Kholdaimon
- Start date
verminstar
Banned
It's funny ye should say that because I find anarchy systems much quieter than so called "safe" systems. I very rarely get ed in an anarchy system, mission or no mission and get tortured with them in "safe" systems. So much so that I now base myself in an anarchy system and have started plotting my own routes to stay within anarchy systems and I have very little trouble. In safe space, I get ed on average every 3 systems, whereas in anarchy, it's so rare that it's impossible to work out which appears to contradict what many on the forums are saying ^^
This is a MAJOR point! I get interdicted in every new system I jump to, with NO missions or cargo and not by pirates and not all anarchy systems. I am talking EVERY system. There should be absolutely no reason to even be concerned with me. It used to be NPC would scan you no cargo leave. NOW it's a fight to the death EVERY time. And this is not even saying that sometimes, about a 1/3 of the time, I get interdicted multiple times in a system. Most times it is by someone who NOW, I can't outfight. so I just run. The game has become a flee and run nightmare. And as far as I can tell, it is not being addressed. but maybe I've missed it for ALL the threads I am having to read on how to play a game that has become WAY more complicated than it is worth.... but, I hold out hope.
I agree that the NPC interdiction frequency when carrying cargo is a bit over the top presently. I've been focusing most of my mission efforts on Salvage missions both in space and on planets, and getting back to the issuing station with that salvage without getting yanked by a pirate at some point is pretty much impossible in 2.1.02.
You could refrain from mission activities that involve taking on cargo, but that doesn't leave you with many options. One thing I do to help reduce the frequency of interdictions is always remember to SELL OFF the mission rewards cargo! I keep forgetting that missions now pay you in both CR AND 4 tons of something or other. If you forget that you are taking on this free cargo, that will attract pirates to you just as well as any other cargo you deliberately load into your ship.
You could refrain from mission activities that involve taking on cargo, but that doesn't leave you with many options. One thing I do to help reduce the frequency of interdictions is always remember to SELL OFF the mission rewards cargo! I keep forgetting that missions now pay you in both CR AND 4 tons of something or other. If you forget that you are taking on this free cargo, that will attract pirates to you just as well as any other cargo you deliberately load into your ship.
I set a new personal best the other night with 5 interdictions between main star and station, what!
I use a Vulture for fast courier mission so dodging the interdictions is relatively easy. It only becomes hard when I am being actively interdicted by 2 NPC's at exactly the same time! I have 2 interdiction escape vectors on the screen at the same time!
Bally unsporting conduct, what what!
I use a Vulture for fast courier mission so dodging the interdictions is relatively easy. It only becomes hard when I am being actively interdicted by 2 NPC's at exactly the same time! I have 2 interdiction escape vectors on the screen at the same time!
Bally unsporting conduct, what what!
It helps if you have an A rated ship with some good solid defensive weapons equipped. I fly an A rated Python and can generally take down anything that interdicts me wih the exception of a high skilled Anaconda. I've tried to take these out a few times, but even with an A6 shield and Shield Cell Bank, it takes too long to get them to pop now. I always target their power plant, but they are just too darned hardened now. Using C3 Beams and Medium MCs and Large Pulse Cannon. This load out works great for taking out anything smaller than a Conda or a Corvette.
Still... If you are setting off to do a Pirate Lord Assassination mission, you don't want to end up wasting all your banks and heat sinks fighting a random pirate on the way to the mission location!
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Pretty sure those "STACKED" interdictions are a bug. But I know what you are talking about. I haven't had literally TWO running at the same time, but I have escaped one to IMMEDIATELY be hit by a second one. And I do mean immediately! That second one almost always glitches out and gives me the FSD failure notice and the terminally long cool down time!
You can try to play chicken with the NPC until the SA ships show up. That can sometimes give you a chance to take out the pirate with the help of the SA, but if you are carrying illegal cargo, that can also get you scanned and fined or worse too.
Obviously, the best solution to this whole problem would be to have FD dial back the interdiction frequency. It just seems over the top right now, and these stacked interdictions are a prime example of what can happen when you have the frequency set to "11".
verminstar
Banned
Same thing happened to me yesterday...got into a fight with one the ultra hard NPC who ed me but managed to survive long enough that the cops arrived. Best advice is run while they go head to head if ye got illegal cargo like I had (slave smuggling for the fed navy...go figure)
Usually at stations, being scanned results in a hefty fine which can impact the mission if they specifically ask ye to avoid being scanned, although I don't think it fail the mission, just cut into the payday. Haven't been killed by cops yet but thats why heatsinks are such great devices...just don't forget to disable the auto landing comp because ye will get scanned ^^
Usually at stations, being scanned results in a hefty fine which can impact the mission if they specifically ask ye to avoid being scanned, although I don't think it fail the mission, just cut into the payday. Haven't been killed by cops yet but thats why heatsinks are such great devices...just don't forget to disable the auto landing comp because ye will get scanned ^^
You really don't need to disable the DC. Just don't throttle back to zero after asking for landing permission. Instead, when you get your pad number, just fly the approach manually and once through the slot, throttle back to zero and let the DC engage and finish the landing for you. This is what I do any time I am carrying illegal salvage back to the issuing station. The reason is exactly what you said... The DC is too slow at lining up the approach and landing which opens you up to the risk of being scanned during your approach. If you do what I do and manually fly the slot, you can quickly get into the station and then let the DC take over and set down the ship.
The NPCs are bugged if you're on a mission. You're flagged as a target and that's it, they're going to interdict you and keep on until you're destroyed.
I was doing a simple deliver boom data mission, got interdicted the moment I came out near the star. Escaped (low wake, which i didn't know anything about low vs high because the game doesn't prepare you). Interdicted again, after about 10 seconds security ships started attacking the pirate. Great! I join in and get an $18k credit voucher! Cool, right? Except I proceed on to the station, get interdicted again by the same NPC who had just been destroyed! I come out near the station, and he follows me into the No Fire Zone and gets destroyed a second time. But seriously? Even if it was a second ship (which it wasn't, it had the same name), I feel like I've done my part. I escaped not 1 but 3 interdictions, let it go! It gets old very fast, or simply frustrating if it goes on and on until I'm destroyed.
Thanks to Cap Kremmen for his Escape videos, but it hasn't been enough. I'm on Xbox, in Solo, and only 3 weeks into this game. I'm not good at combat, and don't want to have to git gud. I want to do other stuff, which I find interesting and fun! My Adder isn't equipped for fights because I want to do exploration. I'm running missions to build the credits to outfit it for that and get the flock out of the bubble. But FD forces me into combat all the time. It's not fun. I do Fallout 4 for combat, and there I find it fun and understandable. Here, it simply makes no sense 90% of the time.
I was doing a simple deliver boom data mission, got interdicted the moment I came out near the star. Escaped (low wake, which i didn't know anything about low vs high because the game doesn't prepare you). Interdicted again, after about 10 seconds security ships started attacking the pirate. Great! I join in and get an $18k credit voucher! Cool, right? Except I proceed on to the station, get interdicted again by the same NPC who had just been destroyed! I come out near the station, and he follows me into the No Fire Zone and gets destroyed a second time. But seriously? Even if it was a second ship (which it wasn't, it had the same name), I feel like I've done my part. I escaped not 1 but 3 interdictions, let it go! It gets old very fast, or simply frustrating if it goes on and on until I'm destroyed.
Thanks to Cap Kremmen for his Escape videos, but it hasn't been enough. I'm on Xbox, in Solo, and only 3 weeks into this game. I'm not good at combat, and don't want to have to git gud. I want to do other stuff, which I find interesting and fun! My Adder isn't equipped for fights because I want to do exploration. I'm running missions to build the credits to outfit it for that and get the flock out of the bubble. But FD forces me into combat all the time. It's not fun. I do Fallout 4 for combat, and there I find it fun and understandable. Here, it simply makes no sense 90% of the time.
I can only imagine how frustrating the current game would be for brand new players. Its hard enough earning $$ and stuff with the low paying mission rewards you get as a new player. But having to now contend with the constant threat of destruction would be a real problem if it were me.
If I am having as many close calls with an A rated Python armed to the teeth along with all the defensive hardware you can buy, new players or simply traders and explorers are not going to have a chance in hell!
FD doesn't need to dial back the AI because I think it makes sense now. But they definitely NEED to dial back interdiction frequencies, or at least give the player better odds of escaping the attempts. Back in the old days, it was relatively easy to evade an interdiction, but these days, the odds seemed highly stacked against you getting out of most of them.
If I am having as many close calls with an A rated Python armed to the teeth along with all the defensive hardware you can buy, new players or simply traders and explorers are not going to have a chance in hell!
FD doesn't need to dial back the AI because I think it makes sense now. But they definitely NEED to dial back interdiction frequencies, or at least give the player better odds of escaping the attempts. Back in the old days, it was relatively easy to evade an interdiction, but these days, the odds seemed highly stacked against you getting out of most of them.
Well I can't and won't deny that. It might well, although people did buy into the game prior to 2.1 so I don't know. Obviously if the 2.1 change hadn't happened, people would still buy the game, but it happened, so that point, at least, is moot.
However, current changes have, at least if the forums are to be believed, already caused people to stop playing, and by extension to stop paying money to FD. So it's a case of one way might cause people to stop, the other way has.
It's just my opinion, but I think it's been harmful already.
And yes, it's less about the AI skill and more about the triggers, the OP weapons and so on. Sure not everyone is affected, but unless FD were looking to lose players, it's been handled badly.
You need to get into a Cobra & set yourself up for running, pips to sys & eng, spam boost & high wake out. NPC's can & will follow you if you low wake without killing them. They will not follow you into Hyperspace though. Usually (but not always) they will also have disappeared once you return to the system too.
The adder is as slow as molasis so isn't very good at running away. The cobra on the othet hand has a max boost speed of 400(?) very quick anyways & can run from everything but a clipper especially with an upgraded power distributor (one of the first things I upgrade) as it can provide you with continual boost & allow for more energy to be transferred to shields.
Taking on missions increases the risk of you (and your cargo) becoming a target so you have to expect to be interdicted, especially if you take on higher level missions. This means that you have to be prepared to run away if you do not want to fight, combat is a central mechanic of ED so is unlikely to be removed or even made optional.
HIGH WAKE to another system. I know its a pain, but this form of FSD use is not effected by mass lock of ships. I always have a High Wake jump already programmed into my nav system when I am interdicted and about to submit.
I fly an A rated Python and can usually destroy the attacker, but if it is something like an Elite Anaconda, I won't even try. Just high wake out and recharge shields in SC there and then jump back to my original system.
You MUST use your FSD to jump to another system not to jump into supercruise. You say you are not a novice but you made a novice mistake.
You CANNOT BE MASS-LOCKED when you use the FSD to jump to another system. Read that again - make sure you understand it. Whatever ship you fly you CANNOT BE MASS-LOCKED when trying to jump to another system.
You should ALWAYS have a destination system set ready to go - ready to jump to if you get interdicted. I fly a Conda - a-rated - its tough and can only be mass-locked by one of the two bigger ships - but I ALWAYS have another system ready to jump to if I need to get away quickly. And I have had to use it.
Lets me speak with myself for a moment...
0. Always have route planned to 1 system beyond target system
1. If NPC with a name send me a message, reduce speed to 75% and charge FSD
1.a. Check contacts, decide to fight or run
1.b Submit but during submissionD) keep targeting escape vector OR
1.b1 FSD charged - engage!
2. If under sudden (no notice) interdiction, reduce speed to 75%, try to avoid being interdicted - there is a nasty problem behind.
2.a On my Hotas-X, press green button with my thumb to switch lateral thrusters on rocker-switch from analog to digital
3. If not in the mood for interdiction minigame, submit and run in a way described above with FA off
4. Do not fly directly towards the destination, last 6 Mm to the destination - full speed.
I can avoid 8-9 from 10 interdiction (and I am really bad pilot).
If interdicted, AI will hit me badly but there will be short timeframe opened, before further attack, to run away.
I always fly with min 8.000.000 Cr cargo, interdiction rate - sometimes.
If I find gold canisters floating in space, I run.
Those 5-wing pirates will kill me.
I approve AI behaviour after recent patch-fix and will sacrifice black chicken to RNG goods every 1000 years.
0. Always have route planned to 1 system beyond target system
1. If NPC with a name send me a message, reduce speed to 75% and charge FSD
1.a. Check contacts, decide to fight or run
1.b Submit but during submission
D) keep targeting escape vector OR1.b1 FSD charged - engage!
2. If under sudden (no notice) interdiction, reduce speed to 75%, try to avoid being interdicted - there is a nasty problem behind.
2.a On my Hotas-X, press green button with my thumb to switch lateral thrusters on rocker-switch from analog to digital
3. If not in the mood for interdiction minigame, submit and run in a way described above with FA off
4. Do not fly directly towards the destination, last 6 Mm to the destination - full speed.
I can avoid 8-9 from 10 interdiction (and I am really bad pilot).
If interdicted, AI will hit me badly but there will be short timeframe opened, before further attack, to run away.
I always fly with min 8.000.000 Cr cargo, interdiction rate - sometimes.
If I find gold canisters floating in space, I run.
Those 5-wing pirates will kill me.
I approve AI behaviour after recent patch-fix and will sacrifice black chicken to RNG goods every 1000 years.
I am flying an unarmed ASP exploration ship, surveying systems in the back of beyond.
I am carrying exactly no cargo, yet every second or third system that I jump into I am interdicted by NPC ships that bring my shields down very quickly, & make escape after submission far from certain.
FD - if I wanted to fly combat, then I would buy a combat capable vessel & do it properly. However I decided to try exploration, but now find myself in unwinnable dogfights on a regular basis anyway. If this continues then it is only a matter of time before I lose the ship (900k rebuy) plus all of my exploration data.
That will be the point at which I stop playing.
As I've been in-game for over two years now, that will not be an easy decision to make, but quite frankly, the game is now ridiculously difficult, even playing a nominal non-combat role.
I sincerely hope that FD rebalance the NPCs, & do it quickly, because it is clear from the forums that many people feel the same as I do.
I am carrying exactly no cargo, yet every second or third system that I jump into I am interdicted by NPC ships that bring my shields down very quickly, & make escape after submission far from certain.
FD - if I wanted to fly combat, then I would buy a combat capable vessel & do it properly. However I decided to try exploration, but now find myself in unwinnable dogfights on a regular basis anyway. If this continues then it is only a matter of time before I lose the ship (900k rebuy) plus all of my exploration data.
That will be the point at which I stop playing.
As I've been in-game for over two years now, that will not be an easy decision to make, but quite frankly, the game is now ridiculously difficult, even playing a nominal non-combat role.
I sincerely hope that FD rebalance the NPCs, & do it quickly, because it is clear from the forums that many people feel the same as I do.
Thanks GG7 & Fossil, you are correct it was a novice mistake as i didn't know that you couldn't be massed locked if jumping into another system, TBH I never tried to jump to another system because I mainly get interdicted in my final destination system.
When i have been interdicted in my trade cutter during my route i never took notice when because i couldn't be mass locked and could always jump away to the next system
Thanks for the tip, i will remember that from now on, will take some adjustment
Also Vindicator Jones posted this video on how to cop with Interdictions post 2.1 using mines, very effective. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzRLt0Zm8Nk
When i have been interdicted in my trade cutter during my route i never took notice when because i couldn't be mass locked and could always jump away to the next system
Thanks for the tip, i will remember that from now on
, will take some adjustmentAlso Vindicator Jones posted this video on how to cop with Interdictions post 2.1 using mines, very effective. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzRLt0Zm8Nk
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yep i agree with you..... honestly i think this could be a chance to improve the game and give it more depth.
for example if we are friendly/allied with the station we buy goods from we wont be interdicted (so long as its not mission related this is mission free trading)
for example if we are friendly/allied with the station we buy goods from we wont be interdicted (so long as its not mission related this is mission free trading)
My father was stricken with horrible brain damage, that in every way ruined the last 50 years of his life. I mention this only to say, in advance, that I'm not insulting you with impunity for the lulz.
So. Having said that:
I don't believe that this sort of physical challenge is the baseline level for the combat mechanics. But there have been many good suggestions on how to deal with 2.1 combat; I hope they can be of use to you.
That's if people keep playing long enough to adapt. I have a number of friends that have now stopped playing until the AI is adjusted due to constant attacks/deaths whilst out mining away from any RES's.