Penal Colony Suggestion

[Zapgun]

Here's how this usually goes:

1. Get a small fine usually by mistake (for example, in combat accidently hitting a patrol vessel).
2. Go to pay the small (~100-3000cr) fine at your local station - as indicated by the message attached to said fine.
3. Find out you're going to a penal colony in addition to paying the fine - said penal colony is 100 +LYs from your currently location.
4. Because you are in a small fighter craft, (and likely new to the game), you can make somewhere around 10 LYs per jump, and the penal colony offers no fuel scoop.
5. If you're lucky enough to not be a new player, you can call another faster ship to your location (which will take 30 minutes to arrive and probably cost +100,000 credits).
6. With some friends? They can wait for your return - either because you are now jumping around looking for fuel scoops before making the 17-jump return trip, or waiting for your alternative transport to arrive. (And add another half hour for your fighter craft to get back to where you were with your wing if you called another ship - that's an hour of waiting for them in either case).

In short, the currently implemented penal colony penalty is poorly conceived game play which is tedius, expensive, and often annoying. It would be better if the penal system were only activated after a serious crime was committed, or a certain fine amount was reached. Additionally, the current bounty message indicates you can 'pay your fine' at any aligned station but does not say you will likely face jail time - this should be corrected.

 

[varonica]

It would be better if the penal system were only activated after a serious crime was committed, or a certain fine amount was reached. Additionally, the current bounty message indicates you can 'pay your fine' at any aligned station but does not say you will likely face jail time - this should be corrected.

It is, you don't think shooting a security ship is a serious crime?

There are many fines you can pay off without being sent to a penal settlement, in fact if it's only a fine you don't actually get sent there, you can pay it anywhere. Of course you could always go to an interstellar factor in a non-aligned station of base to pay it off.

 

[Zapgun]

In theory going to a factor works - if you are near one in a ship that can make the jump in a decent time and without a fuel scoop (due to the poor and misleading interface messages you may not realize that in time however).

As for accidently shooting a security ship in the heat of battle. No that is not a serious crime (as no real damage was done due to shields). If I had sustained fire, damaged the hull, or blew up the ship, then yes, that's serious.

And if the current crime IS considered serious, I would then expect more than a 3000 credit fine and a message telling me to pay it in a nearby starport. I would like to see something clearly indicating jail time in my future long before I land at the local starport.

The system as it is now for is very harsh, poorly executed, and not well explained.

 

[varonica]

As for accidently shooting a security ship in the heat of battle. No that is not a serious crime (as no real damage was done due to shields). If I had sustained fire, damaged the hull, or blew up the ship, then yes, that's serious.

I can't imagine a situation where shooting any sort of security or police wouldn't be a serious crime, whether serious damage is done or not, in fact I don't think you actually get a bounty for just a single hit, it has to be more than one hit to gain a bounty otherwise it's just a fine, and you don't get sent to prison for a fine.

But regardless of whether you think it's a serious crime or not, the security service does, so you need to play accordingly.

 

[Hell Razor5543]

Shooting an Authority Vessel is VERY easy to do, as they do not have any situational awareness, will fly across an obvious fire lane, and expect not to be hit by the vessel generating said firing lane. I have been fined (and had to leave the area in a hurry) because an Authority Vessel flew between me and a valid, WANTED vessel when I have been using multi cannons with a decent rate of fire. Taking my finger off the trigger does not affect the ordinance already inbound!

 

[Zapgun]

I don't think it works that way, a single shot seems to be enough (or maybe beam weapons are an issue?). Regardless of how friendly fire is handled in this game, serious crimes need to be more clearly indicated and handled. As it is now its confusing and misleading.

 

[Hell Razor5543]

In the past, just giving an Authority Vessel a dirty look was enough to earn you a fine. At a different stage of development in the game you had to bludgeon them with a sledge hammer for them to even consider you had hostile intentions towards them! It is always going to be tricky, as you have to consider the condition of the Authority Vessel (full shields and no damage, or as fragile as a cracked egg and with collapsed shields) and the ordinance that hit them (from a tap with a Pulse Laser to an impact from a huge PA heavily engineered).

My feelings are this; If I am attacking a legitimate target (I am CLEAN and the target is WANTED), there is a line between myself and the target vessel that is the fire lane. Any other vessel that crosses the fire lane has only themselves to blame for any damage that occurs to their ship. Saying that, I should (and do) release the trigger as soon as I am aware of the changing situation. With instantaneous weapons (such as lasers) this means that (from my end of the lane, at least) there is nothing dangerous heading towards the target vessel. However, for ordinance with a distinct delay (missiles, cannons, etc.) even when I release the trigger there are still dangerous projectiles heading towards the target vessel. Any vessel (regardless of who it belongs to) that crosses the fire lane has to accept the consequences of their actions (within reason).

For example, let us say that a particular missile type takes 4 seconds to travel its full range. I have engaged a target at the limit of missile range. An Authority Vessel drops into the fire lane at the mid point, and I release the trigger. There are still 2 seconds worth of missiles between me and the Authority Vessel. I have no control over these missiles; they are on their way to my target. If the Authority Vessel takes damage (or, worst of all, is destroyed) due to my missiles I should not be held responsible for the stupidity of the Authority Pilot! However, should I continue firing while the Authority Vessel is in the fire lane I should be accountable for ordinance expended AFTER the Authority Vessel got in the way! This would mean that the first 2 seconds of missiles should be considered to be stupidity on the part of the Authority Pilot, and any subsequent missiles are stupidity on my part.

 

[MoonRacer]

I can't imagine a situation where shooting any sort of security or police wouldn't be a serious crime, whether serious damage is done or not, in fact I don't think you actually get a bounty for just a single hit, it has to be more than one hit to gain a bounty otherwise it's just a fine, and you don't get sent to prison for a fine.

But regardless of whether you think it's a serious crime or not, the security service does, so you need to play accordingly.

Well - this discussion here is moot, isn't it? The OP said fine and there is a difference to bounty. The problem seems to be that you get transported with a fine.

If it is a bounty, things are according to the rules, you hand yourself in or you pay off the bounty with a factor. But there are more and more posts where CMDRs report, that they were transported to a penal colony while paying a fine! They cannot all be wrong and have a bounty in addition to the fine, or a bounty instead of a fine.

The first day I played I clumsily selected the wrong pad in a station and received two loitering fines, 800 Cr in total. After landing on my pad I had anonymous access, and then looked up what to do. After this I selected contacts and just paid the fine, all was well. But this was before the last three patches.

Could there be something changed? I do not remember an unclear interface, or something like that. I selected pay your fine, and this was it. So - how do they suddenly get transported, as if they had handed themselves in with a bounty? Are they all wrong and have a bounty instead of a fine?

If you do something and receive a bounty - however small - then we can discuss if the rules should be changed slightly. But as it is now, you receive fines for a lot of relatively harmless things. And the rules state clearly, that you can and should pay off a fine, to clear it.

So what really is behind these reports, where CMDRs suddenly are treated like they had handed themselves in, but having only a fine to pay? What player error can you make, that this happens?

 

[Ian Doncaster]

Well - this discussion here is moot, isn't it? The OP said fine and there is a difference to bounty. The problem seems to be that you get transported with a fine.

Could there be something changed? I do not remember an unclear interface, or something like that. I selected pay your fine, and this was it. So - how do they suddenly get transported, as if they had handed themselves in with a bounty? Are they all wrong and have a bounty instead of a fine?

Shooting at an authority ship is Assault, which is a Bounty-level offence. So in this case, they may have said "fine" but they meant "bounty". This has been the case in most of the "transported for a fine" cases I've seen.

The interface for paying off fines is perfectly clear. The interface for handing yourself in for a bounty, unfortunately, looks very similar to the "pay off fine" interface, and doesn't make clear what it's about to do.



I think the best approach would be:
- scrap minor fines
- make smuggling fines (the only large fine) into bounties instead
- discard any bounty < 1000 credits if you make a hyperspace jump (those are basically just "get out of here or we'll shoot you" levels of bounty anyway) and scrap "hand yourself in"

I don't think that loses anything from the current system, but it would be a lot simpler, and make smuggling a bit riskier too.

 

[Zapgun]

The interface for paying off fines is perfectly clear. The interface for handing yourself in for a bounty, unfortunately, looks very similar to the "pay off fine" interface, and doesn't make clear what it's about to do.

Probably this happened. I do recall carefully reading the message the second time this happened to me, and it saying something like 'go to a base supporting this faction and see the authorities to pay off your fine' and making no mention of serious crimes, jail time, etc. In the case of bounties, it really should be updated to say something more significant.

 

[Berpol]

Personally I would say anything under 10.000 is a fine, you pay and leave.
But anything from 10.000 and up is a bounty, you pay and get deported (or get shot).

In my last encounter I was fighting an Anaconda and it one or two of the Police Vipers. Strangely enough they turned enemy but I didn't get a bounty.
P.S. I had enough time to finish the conda and run.
P.P.S. I possibly worsened the situation by having a heavy beam laser turret.

 

[Zapgun]

Personally I would say anything under 10.000 is a fine, you pay and leave.
But anything from 10.000 and up is a bounty, you pay and get deported (or get shot).

In my last encounter I was fighting an Anaconda and it one or two of the Police Vipers. Strangely enough they turned enemy but I didn't get a bounty.
P.S. I had enough time to finish the conda and run.
P.P.S. I possibly worsened the situation by having a heavy beam laser turret.

Agreed, that does make more sense in terms of the fine / expected penalty you will incur. Then you know when you've crossed the line more clearly.