This post is just going to layout what I think Elite Dangerous should offer in the way of exploring.
I wouldnt expect to see any improvement implemented overnight but wouldnt mind seeing Frontier working towards some of what I suggest, if they took it on board.
Right Exploring is currently jump, honk, scan, repeat. This is quite unsatisfying to some explorers.
I think the missions should offer some more involved exploration missions.
1. Finding Planets. A minor faction may send you to a certain system to find a metal rich world. Maybe another faction needs to find an Earth Like planet within an area of a certain system. You fly out there, find and scan the planet and return for payment.
2. Another type of exploration mission may be mapping a route to a certain system. You travel from the home system to the target system, honking each system you pass through so you map out the route in your scanner. Vary up how it pays out, if there's a long term transport need, the mission pays out for finding a route that does not require high jump ranges in between jumps. Or if it's short term, finding a lesser amount of jumps pays out more.
3. Finding certain areas on a planet. A faction may want to build a settlement on a planet, so they task you with finding an area. you fly over, try and find a reasonably flat area that could be built on and return. The flatter it is the higher the payout as less work will be needed to build. The more hilly the area the less you get paid and if its too up and down terrain you cant scan it. This would involve a new scanner that can only scan certain areas. The better the scanner the more of an area it can scan. I'd suggest using the radar to show the scan area. Another example may be a faction wants to set up a research camp on a certain area of a planet. You fly up there to see if there is a suitable site. Some of these missions can be chained on from the 1st missions I came up with.
I also think that Frontier should develop some things like ruins and shipwrecks that are procedurally generated into planets and finding them and scanning them results in a higher payout. but they need to give us better mapping options when flying over the surface also
These are just a few basic ideas I've had. only really addresses short term explorers. There still is an issue with the long range explorers but I think thats a task in itself to improve.
I wouldnt expect to see any improvement implemented overnight but wouldnt mind seeing Frontier working towards some of what I suggest, if they took it on board.
Right Exploring is currently jump, honk, scan, repeat. This is quite unsatisfying to some explorers.
I think the missions should offer some more involved exploration missions.
1. Finding Planets. A minor faction may send you to a certain system to find a metal rich world. Maybe another faction needs to find an Earth Like planet within an area of a certain system. You fly out there, find and scan the planet and return for payment.
2. Another type of exploration mission may be mapping a route to a certain system. You travel from the home system to the target system, honking each system you pass through so you map out the route in your scanner. Vary up how it pays out, if there's a long term transport need, the mission pays out for finding a route that does not require high jump ranges in between jumps. Or if it's short term, finding a lesser amount of jumps pays out more.
3. Finding certain areas on a planet. A faction may want to build a settlement on a planet, so they task you with finding an area. you fly over, try and find a reasonably flat area that could be built on and return. The flatter it is the higher the payout as less work will be needed to build. The more hilly the area the less you get paid and if its too up and down terrain you cant scan it. This would involve a new scanner that can only scan certain areas. The better the scanner the more of an area it can scan. I'd suggest using the radar to show the scan area. Another example may be a faction wants to set up a research camp on a certain area of a planet. You fly up there to see if there is a suitable site. Some of these missions can be chained on from the 1st missions I came up with.
I also think that Frontier should develop some things like ruins and shipwrecks that are procedurally generated into planets and finding them and scanning them results in a higher payout. but they need to give us better mapping options when flying over the surface also
These are just a few basic ideas I've had. only really addresses short term explorers. There still is an issue with the long range explorers but I think thats a task in itself to improve.
