Mission target signals

[Cmdr Snuffler]

What was quite amusing was that the new arrival starting exchanging fire with the wing as well as with me. I'm guessing this was by accident (stray shot) rather than by design (NPCs reading each others' Wanted status) but it was still kinda cool.

Think this might be a bug. During the last combat CG, when stacking assassination missions, this happened constantly...up to the point when I saw a new Corvette jump in I knew they'd help me take down the current Corvette I was attacking, even though they were the same pirate faction.

The one where you get out numbered always seemed to be a solitary conda, all on it's own, sitting still. As soon as you did any damage to it other pirates and other assassination targets dropped in, literally a millisecond after you do the 1st damage.
Any other scenario in the USS, like a conda plus 3 trade ships, this did not happen...but sometimes one of your other assassination targets would drop in, which they do even at the nav beacon.

 

[metatheurgist]

You can be in and out of a black box mission before the complications even turn up.

 

[Martyn W]

In my experience, you can - very rarely - get into fights at a threat 0 POI.

If it's classed as threat 0 it means the game isn't planning to give you a fight but then, when you arrive, there's still a random chance a pirate or scavenger will show up and start shooting.
Having said that, it's been absolutely ages since it's happened to me so maybe it doesn't happen at all these days?

Regarding the black box missions, doing them a bit at a time (in a fast ship) is the best way if you can't fight.
When you drop into the POI you'll have, say, 20 seconds before the baddies show up.
Launch a couple of Collectors, see what they grab and then jump back into SC as soon as they've delivered their loot.
You'll get another mission POI to visit.
Rinse & repeat.

Still happens occasionally