Elite is a game with no "professions", when you see a profession as something you are specialized, professional at. It simply offers lots of ways to "waste your time" and you can always do something else without "reskilling" or grinding(!) your new equipment. I really love the way that works in ED.
But of course there are many things to improve.
Trading is basically fine, but lacking some features.
- The markets do not yet seem to be driven by production and consumption or player influence, they rather seem to be randomly adapted depending on certain triggers (instance resets?)
- Trading missions should point the pilots towards trade routes. E.g. "Deliver as much as you can of this commodity to where it is needed (based on real demand" (+5/10/20/.. % on price), or "bring us as much of this rare goods as possible" (% bonus on price or 150LY price if closer)
- There should be a chance to generate profit with other commodities too. ATM there are a handful of profitable commodities. Why does a starving colony not pay 600 Cr. for food cartridges or algae and offer special discounts on their domestic appliances? Or a station devastated by a plague - why don't the even have demand for medicines? This also could be combined with missions.
- Different Cargo Racks for different goods. There could be Racks optimized for frozen goods, for metals, ores, liquids, technology, slaves, weaoons or waste, Like planned for the passengers...
- Special permits required for certain goods. Maybe because they are illegal if sold to someone else but the ruling faction or because not anyone would be allowed to transport (toxic waste, slaves, uranium, whatever)...
- An Info-Sheet, where you can see the prices of your last visit to a station (or more detail than now on sys.map)
Bounty Hunting is also fine atm, but also could be improved.
- for the bounty hunters CGs were the greatest fun in the past. More, more, more
- persistent NPCs would also be very nice. In far future there could be an option to post your own (extra) bounty on NPCs who attacked you.
- Bounty brokers. Someone you can sell your acquired bounties too at a lower rate (e.g. 70%)
- I am not a specialist here, others will fur sure have more ideas.
Exploration has a lot of open odds and ends. It still needs a lot of love.
- not only the diversity and variety in space but also
- the reward over time can be improved
- as well as the equipment, that could help to collect data faster from very distant objects or bring another level of detail (probes, limpets with a new type of controller)
- a log, markers, something to keep track of your journeys and let you find interesting locations you already visited
- exchangeable stellar data. E.g. lipmets again, with data of up to 100 Systems scanned, that can be retrieved after destruction or traded with other players.
Mining already received an update with 1.3 which was good and the right step, but not yet brings mining to a really good level
- Prospector limpets are not really interesting. A prospection scanner would have done the job better (the drones should be launched from SC to see what to find in the belt). Another option would be prospector drones scanning more than one roid, and make the roid itself a target with information, then take off to the next.
- Refineries are a bit "small" atm and could be improved by some automation (the existing ones would become a bit cheaper, and the new ones are sold separately at a higher price).
- Mining lasers (at least small ones) could be made mountable to utility slots.
Salvaging is missing at all. We already read great ideas here in this forum
- Shipwrecks with either floating cargo or salvage to be cut from it with a laser
- Interesting things like ancient (in deep space) or recent (after a conflict zone ended) battlegrounds or abandoned stations, docks, outposts, shipyards, ...
- New rares to find
- New (old) crap to find (e.g. a guitar, an old TV, ... things that can be saved for future use in a Cmdrs. Cabin as decoration)
- All salvage should become basically legal if not tagged as stolen or illegal (narcotics, weapons, etc.)
Passengers are to come, we don't know when, but they will come and I don't want to write all I already wrote in so many threads once again, but It offers lots of opportunities:
- Sightseeing tours
- Combat tours
- Bring- and Return services for hotels
- Espionage (bring an Agent to XY, or retrieve him)
- Diplomatic Missions with guards (e.g. requires wing of 3)
- Bus-Service for Workers,
- and much more
Piracy needs to be rethought. One the one side it is a great thing for the ones and a massive "gamebreaker" for the others.
- pirating NPCs doesn't really work due to the lack of communication
- pirating Players drives them to Solo / PvE Groups
- This is, where "cargo insurance" gets in. Insurance brokers also could be a very nice addition to the bulletin boards.
- Piracy is risk. There should be a short timer for police forces to arrive and claim the bounty.
- Pirates need "hideouts" with a black market, where goods can be bought too.
- Pirated goods should be marked by the trader afterwards, e.g. with a timer allowing to tag it after 10 minutes and only for one hour. All salvage should become basically legal if not tagged as stolen or illegal (narcotics, weapons, etc.)
Smuggling needs better rewards and some thrill
- for the first time, commiting a crime like that, a small fine will do, the second time within the same jurisdiction it will become more expensive, the third time you bring in a T9 full of narcotics the station would send their Vipers, then scan you and shoot you out of the Entrance-Slot
- black markets would need to make a difference between illicit cargo and stolen goods. Stolen goods, available on the regular market get normal or lower prices, illicit commodities ware much better paid.
- opening black market sales would be a beautiful addition
- ... also smuggling isn't my sphere of activity, so here others will have much more and better ideas and whishes
Soldiers or Mercenaries should be treaded differently than Bounty Hunters. ATM both professions feel the same, even if PowerPlay opens this as a new profession
- Soldiers or Mercs should have something like a "letter of Marque" from their clients. After buying or earning it for a faction, there shouldn't be a bounty for interdiction, attacking and killing enemy military or "secret service" targets outside a combat zone
- there could be a connection to fed. and imp. ranks
- and a lot of new missions
- It could be built on PP-Powers and minor/major factions with different rewards.
- hitting a civilian or collateral damage at all would result in lower profit, loss of the "letter of marque" or getting a bounty
These are my ideas, that came to my mind spontaneously and I hope someone notices them, thinks about them, and comments or discusses them
