Pigpen, this is rubber duck...we got ourselves a CONVOY!
- Thread starter Commander Edison
- Start date
Anyone in a slow mover is going to be stuffed. The pirates will target those at the back of the pack. Like on the Serengetti
Could go down that way. If I were a pirate, I'd be in a faster ship than most traders anyway, so I'd go for the target least likely to missile me to bits. It'd all depend on the make-up of the convoy, and how organised they choose to be.
Convoy protection was one of the reasons I'd like to see some kind of high level tactical command interface: http://forums.frontier.co.uk/showpost.php?p=405877&postcount=12
Like the idea. Might get away with just being able to customise the radar and hud- maybe "painting" escort and convoy ships different colours, and giving them hud stickers to keep track of where everyone is and who is looking afer whom.
Its one of the things thats going to make the game so interesting. The human part of it. It will really bring the universe to life.
It will be like a little civilization. How civilized it will be however remains to be seen
But watching people work together, relationships form, little communities here and there you will probably pass by regularly, notorious gangs of pirates who even their names whispered sends fear into the hearts of every hauler pilot in the galaxy.
It will be like a second life, people will form habits, follow routines you will see your neighbours that you pass weekly, or daily, the same familiar names, - Oh look, theres CMDR Bob on his daily trade run to Aulin, he still hasnt fixed that crack in his canopy. That will be the death of him one day.
Then theres also the complete unpredictability of it all. Theres no safe bit, theres no well its ok, nothing ever happens here, cos that day maybe it will.
You got to be on your guard all the time cos who knws what might happen, who do you trust, who do you not, who do you just shoot on sight cos youve been waring with each other since the day you first met.
And then maybe decide its time to have a truce and maybe it would be better if you worked together rather than against each other. And become unlikely best of friends.
What will you do just to stay alive? best get good at making friends fast as who knows when you might need them to come to the rescue, and maybe try not to annoy 2 many people because what if they decided enough is enough and worked together to teach you a lesson.
Who you know could well become more important than what you know. Making friends could be more important than how you fly...
Excited?? You should be
It will be like a little civilization. How civilized it will be however remains to be seen
But watching people work together, relationships form, little communities here and there you will probably pass by regularly, notorious gangs of pirates who even their names whispered sends fear into the hearts of every hauler pilot in the galaxy.
It will be like a second life, people will form habits, follow routines you will see your neighbours that you pass weekly, or daily, the same familiar names, - Oh look, theres CMDR Bob on his daily trade run to Aulin, he still hasnt fixed that crack in his canopy. That will be the death of him one day.
Then theres also the complete unpredictability of it all. Theres no safe bit, theres no well its ok, nothing ever happens here, cos that day maybe it will.
You got to be on your guard all the time cos who knws what might happen, who do you trust, who do you not, who do you just shoot on sight cos youve been waring with each other since the day you first met.
And then maybe decide its time to have a truce and maybe it would be better if you worked together rather than against each other. And become unlikely best of friends.
What will you do just to stay alive? best get good at making friends fast as who knows when you might need them to come to the rescue, and maybe try not to annoy 2 many people because what if they decided enough is enough and worked together to teach you a lesson.
Who you know could well become more important than what you know. Making friends could be more important than how you fly...
Excited?? You should be
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Time is money, except on very exceptional occasions people are not going to advertise on some board and waste their time waiting for other players who might not show up.
Expecting random people to create convoys is just not realistic, it won't happen.
Pretty much my thoughts on the subject, wasting time *and* spending money on escorts?
It would make more sense as a trader to just say sod that, and switch to single player, it's what I will be doing.
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Convoys could be generated by the mission system. PCs could join them either as traders or escorts, so you'd end up with a mix of NPC and PC ships in various roles.
Players aren't the sole focus in Elite, it's supposed to be a living breathing galaxy remember. It makes sense that they wouldn't be the only ones looking for protection.
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You might end up being right, we'll have to see how the mechanics work out. But experience of Elite tells me that the most profitable trading will be in anarchy systems where a solo trader will get chewed up.
I'm not suggesting that we all form a gigantic convoy conga and refuse to leave port alone. But some routes and some occasions will pay big, and will be a lot safer with company, regardless of whether the threat comes from players or NPCs.
Yes!!!! Other people get it!!! This is the type of emergent gameplay that makes the MP group far superior to SP and will take an already great game and put it in another stratosphere!
Fair warning... If a convoy comes in to a federation system we're trying to influence to fall to the empire. We will crush you!
Edit: but you will need more secure groups than the alliance functionality is currently designed to provide.
Fair warning... If a convoy comes in to a federation system we're trying to influence to fall to the empire. We will crush you!
Edit: but you will need more secure groups than the alliance functionality is currently designed to provide.
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Yep, this is the sort of thing that can turn a sandbox into a universe.
A couple of precautions of the part of those in the convoy will take care of some of the issues that might come up. Submitting all members to a bounty and cargo scan before setting off would be a good start. Honest traders flying quad rail Cobras with no cargo may well find themselves being turned away. What sort of additional security do you feel it needs?
PUG convoys moving valuable cargo could be susceptible to spies in the group that look legit but are communicating with people outside the game client to counter whatever you do.
Sorry about that, asked you a question and just vanished. Turns out I've got a full time job. Who knew?
Yes, spies in the convoy are a danger. There wouldn't be a way to ensure total security, and the nature of the routes they'd be taking would make secrecy highly unlikely anyway.
On the other hand,
1. Looking out for spies in the convoy would be great fun. Of course, people can take this sort of thing too seriously, but I'd like to battle my way out of an ambush and swear revenge on the turncoat who set us up. it'd be awesome.
2. Just being aware of a convoy's existence and disposition aren't enough. You'd have to put together a sufficently overwhelming force to not just stop it but also make raiding it, along with the associated costs for damages and lost ships, worthwhile. Doing this in a short period of time would be difficult for even the most organised pirate gang, considering the size of the galaxy.
The more I think about this, the more fun it sounds. Does depend on how a lot of mechanics we haven't got yet pan out, but it doesn't hurt to dream a bit...
Lugalbandak
Banned
That would be so epic , grouping up with other traders and then reach safely a anarchy system station.
But the convoy need some pew pew power too.
But the convoy need some pew pew power too.
Don't forget, each pirate will come complete with it's very own bounty. So convoy escort is a great bounty hunting gig.