Just a suggestion for FD devs:
There should be life beyond the frontier. Not commonplace, but out there nonetheless.
NPCs that appear to spring into existence out of nothing without a fuel scoop in far-off systems as described by explorers appears to be nothing more at present than a indication that something is screwy with a random encounter table somewhere. I think they should make more sense, they should have a backstory and an explanation. Perhaps their presence could indicate that somewhere nearby, a system is less empty than everyone assumes? There could be pirate outposts in "uninhabited" systems, extraction operations on behalf of shady types, drug or other biotech operations on a secret agricultural planet or two, black budget military shipyards for the factions...
It would mean that exploration could have a real extra element of danger, if you trespass in the wrong system and invite the wrath of the inhabitants. And that exploration data could be worth a massive wedge of cash - if you make it back to known civilisation alive.
Or maybe all that is the case, but people haven't done enough looking yet.
There should be life beyond the frontier. Not commonplace, but out there nonetheless.
NPCs that appear to spring into existence out of nothing without a fuel scoop in far-off systems as described by explorers appears to be nothing more at present than a indication that something is screwy with a random encounter table somewhere. I think they should make more sense, they should have a backstory and an explanation. Perhaps their presence could indicate that somewhere nearby, a system is less empty than everyone assumes? There could be pirate outposts in "uninhabited" systems, extraction operations on behalf of shady types, drug or other biotech operations on a secret agricultural planet or two, black budget military shipyards for the factions...
It would mean that exploration could have a real extra element of danger, if you trespass in the wrong system and invite the wrath of the inhabitants. And that exploration data could be worth a massive wedge of cash - if you make it back to known civilisation alive.
Or maybe all that is the case, but people haven't done enough looking yet.
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