So I replaced some modules with more expensive ones in my sizzlin new ship, auto-undocked and got a warning that my oxygen's about to run out. Little counter with like three or four minutes and counting. I didn't know that I could go to side menu and turn modules on and off individually. Being close to the station I wanted to jump back in and see what was causing this life support failure, got docking clearance and could not auto dock. At this time I haven't attemped manual dock yet. With the oxygen clock running I carefully got my ship in the station, lined up and was about to dock. Aaand did not have a clue what the X52 button mapping for landing gear was. While I googled it, the station told me to get out for tresspassing so I manually made it back out running into a couple of ships on the way. As soon as was outside, the oxygen clock started ticking again. This time I did not qualify for the landing clearance and blew up due to lack of oxygen. Too bad I wasn't recording because it would be hilarious. So I learned not to go over the power load when replacing modules, but in case life support module doesn't work on the side menu you can turn modules on and off as well as assign priority level.
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Newcomer / Intro Second night the saga continues
- Thread starter NokturN
- Start date
Oh dear.
Welcome to the harsh and unforgiving Elite Dangerous galaxy!
Yep, sounded like you went over your power limits, your modules weren’t prioritised and so the wrong ones shut down automatically.
Hopefully, a number of lessons have been learned:-
These things will become second nature as you progress, but there is one hell of a learning curve to get there!
Stick with it Commander o7
Welcome to the harsh and unforgiving Elite Dangerous galaxy!
Yep, sounded like you went over your power limits, your modules weren’t prioritised and so the wrong ones shut down automatically.
Hopefully, a number of lessons have been learned:-
- ensure your power plant has enough capacity to run your modules
- prioritise your modules so they shut down in the order you define (e.g. when deploying hardpoints you can set your fuel scoop to
- if oxygen is low, get inside the station
- but only enter a station if approved for docking
- don’t rely on auto docking
- know your bindings
These things will become second nature as you progress, but there is one hell of a learning curve to get there!
Stick with it Commander o7
Hmm, for some reason I can’t edit my post...
I meant to say that you can set your fuel scoop to priority 5
I tend to set my priorities roughly as follows.
- Essentials, FSD, Thrusters, Life Support, Sensors
- Defences, Shields & Boosters, Point Defence, Guardian FSD Booster
- Weapons and Tools, Collector Limpets, Mining Tools, Weapons
- Fuel Scoop, SRV Hanger
- Cargo Hatch
There has been an update to the forum software and some users can’t edit.
There are also a few stations that don’t allow auto dock, and some such as the ones on fire or being repaired where auto dock is turned off.
For me - it depends.
In some cases, there's little choice if I don't want to use an OC'ed PP (which I don't).
But as long as I can do it through power priorities, it's fine. I really don't need the Interdictor while I'm in regular space, and likewise I don't need the scoop when I have my guns out. It's tougher if I have to power down the cargo scoop when deploying guns, but for me still acceptable in a pure combat ship. And I can easily live with manually enabling the AFMU when I need it. But that's about it - manually jiggling around shield boosters and other devices is out of the question for me.
On the plus side, I get a cooler, more agile/faster or farther jumping ship. Worth it in exchange for a single setup session after completing outfitting. And yes, I pre-plan my power budget in Coriolis, so I just have to copy these settings to my ship. One caveat, though: Coriolis isn't 100% accurate. Planning the power consumption to 99.8% may fail...
Plasma accelerators on a Vulture are a good example of where the benefits definitely outweigh the hassle.
It's a small ship, so even efficient modded plasmas can get a bit toasty if you're firing as often as you can. With an overcharged power plant, you might find that you cook your ship in combat. The armoured power plant has a significantly better heat profile, but you probably won't have the power to run everything at once so you set your fuel scoop and SRV bay (if you have one) to turn off when hardpoints are deployed. The end result is a highly agile, very powerful, big ship killer.
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Hmm. I've never had utk use module prioritisation either, just made sure my PP is powerful enough.
Edit just read @the100thmonkey 's post and can see why prioritisation could be needed.
Edit just read @the100thmonkey 's post and can see why prioritisation could be needed.
I'd also add that if - for whatever reason, although I've only heard of it being an issue in PvP - your powerplant gets shot to 0%, it will only output 40% of its maximum power. If you don't have your thrusters, sensors, life support and FSD set to priority 1 with everything else 2 or lower, your ship will be over its power limit and shut down. You won't be able to even move, let alone request docking.
It does for me anyway. On combat/pvp ships If you use an armored PP it cools you down, increases the power output, and you don't have to worry about your PP being snipped (as easily anyway). My first pvp ship would overcook after firing one volley of PAs; but after I changed my PP to armored it was a clear difference. After I learned more heat management tricks I was able to mitigate it to the point where I could fire as much as I wanted too without worrying about heat because the PD would run out before my heat would.
You just can't use an APP without power priorities so most newcomers choose OC because they don't want to fool with it. Ill say though. When I finally made the switch it really opened up new possibilities for me and I'll never go back to OC unless I absolutely have too.
Truth
That’s a fair question.
And I think the answers above have helped explain why.
TLDR It depends. But yes, the benefits often outweigh the hassle - and you should avoid overcharged power plants wherever possible.
Here’s an actual example of this, my armoured trade Cutter
Coriolis EDCD Edition
A ship builder, outfitting and comparison tool for Elite Dangerous
coriolis.io
- My PP is Armoured, with Thermal Spread. Because 1. It has a high integrity and won’t get blown out as quickly. 2. It runs cool, and I never overheat
- I do not have enough power to run everything at once. For that, I would need to go Overcharged which would make my ship run hotter, and my PP would be more vulnerable to attack
- But my power management means that when I deploy hardpoints, only my fuel scoop and docking computer automatically shut down - I need neither in combat. I set this up once, and never have to worry about it again, it’s automated. Minimum hassle.
- My key modules are set to priority 1, and come in below 40%, because if my PP blows, I only have 40% power. Everything else would shut down. On this ship these are Thrusters, FSD, Life Support, Sensors, Power Distributor. These modules will stay active, allowing me to escape, and survive.
Setting up your power management only needs to be done once, it is not a hassle.
You should do it on every ship anyway, to ensure your key priority 1 modules come in at under 40%.
It allows you to run cooler, with a better armoured power plant, and crucially if your PP drops to 0% you can escape.
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Mine are all usually ludicrously overpowered...so I guess that evens things out!
Here's some other example for an exploration loadout running a 2A power plant.
The two benefits are: Less weight from the PP so more jump range, and less power consumption so running colder.
s.orbis.zone
You don't need the stuff all at once, and some you need really rarely...
The second heat sink is just "spare ammo", so I don't need to have both active.
When using AMFU, you'll be in normal space anyway, and most likely you will have your FSD shut down (to repair it).
When using the vehicle hangar, you'll be landed anyway and the thrusters will be offline (-> note the power priority so no accidental crashes if it reamains on).
The Rail Gun is not for combat, but for fuel dumping. Very special case squeezing out jump range where you'll spend time setting up the jump anyway.
And as has been said: setting up power priorities is a (one-time) thing you should do on every ship.
Even before PP is at 0% PP health, it can malfuction when suffering damage, dropping power output temporarily to 40% as well.
The two benefits are: Less weight from the PP so more jump range, and less power consumption so running colder.
Coriolis EDCD Edition
A ship builder, outfitting and comparison tool for Elite Dangerous
s.orbis.zone
You don't need the stuff all at once, and some you need really rarely...
The second heat sink is just "spare ammo", so I don't need to have both active.
When using AMFU, you'll be in normal space anyway, and most likely you will have your FSD shut down (to repair it).
When using the vehicle hangar, you'll be landed anyway and the thrusters will be offline (-> note the power priority so no accidental crashes if it reamains on).
The Rail Gun is not for combat, but for fuel dumping. Very special case squeezing out jump range where you'll spend time setting up the jump anyway.
And as has been said: setting up power priorities is a (one-time) thing you should do on every ship.
Even before PP is at 0% PP health, it can malfuction when suffering damage, dropping power output temporarily to 40% as well.
I've unlocked the Guardian powerplant and distributor, I slot one of each into any new ship, and always have plenty of power, as they're effectively pre-engineered.
Armoured is better for heat management, so that's usually my next choice if my ship tends to run hot. Or for warships, as better heat management is always a good idea for a warship.
Armoured is better for heat management, so that's usually my next choice if my ship tends to run hot. Or for warships, as better heat management is always a good idea for a warship.