The honourable profession of key cutting has been around since shop keepers wore ties.
Some 1400 years later and although the profession remains, the ties are gone and the premises have now changed somewhat!
This particular establishment (a Nautilus-Class fleet carrier) can be found in orbit above planet 9 A in the Synuefe HP-E B45-7 system some 696 light years from Sol and it's collecting a very particular kind of key, not human but Guardian in origin. These ancient keys are obtained by activating and scanning the Guardian Beacon structures that can be found in many of the surrounding star systems.
Goodness knows what this particular establishment is doing with these keys (although its proprietor is rumoured to have Dark Wheel associations) but they want them fast, they want them now and that seems like a job for the Buckyball Racing Club.
The race starts and ends at the aforementioned fleet carrier, designation "KEYS CUT WHILE-U-WAIT! KNQ-L2B". From there you'll need to visit three different Guardian Beacons, collect one key from each and bring them all back to the carrier. When you get back you'll need to show them your keys before you can land (I didn't like to ask why, the guy seemed kinda twitchy and I didn't want to lose the gig). So jettison them outside (ideally within 5km of the carrier), photograph them with the carrier in view, then scoop them back up, land and sell them to the local commodity market.
To submit your time for the race please use the following Google form:
You'll need to include 7 screenshots of your run (all taken in-cockpit with the HUD clock visible):
1) Landed on the carrier (having returned to the surface), ready to launch.
2, 3 & 4) Taken while cargo scooping an ancient key from each of your three chosen Guardian Beacons.
7) Selling your 3/3 keys to the carrier's commodity market.
There are two race classes you can enter, Unlimited (where you can fly any ship you want, engineered as much as you want), or Regulation Hauler which must be done in an un-engineered Hauler outfitted as shown in the following build:
You can use the '$' icon at the top of that page to find stations selling everything you need to build a regulation hauler. At the time of writing one of the nearest stations to Guardian space is Greenstein Vision in the HIP 23046 system so you could build and fly it out from there (which takes about 20 mins). Alternatively you could fly to the carrier in a longer range Unlimited class ship and then use the carrier's shipyard services to get your regulation build ship transferred out from the bubble. It's also possible that other commanders might offer bus rides out to the starting system in their own fleet carriers (see "Bus Timetable" below). Volunteers should apply in this thread or in the Buckyball Discord.
If you're entering the Regulation Hauler class then you'll need to include additional screenshots of the Modules list in your right-hand panel to show you have the correct build.
Note: Use of either a Docking Computer or a Supercruise Assist module is strictly prohibited in both race classes.
The race starts at 00:00 on Saturday 18th July 3306 and runs until 23:59 on Sunday 26th July 3306.
Good luck, fly fast and collect those keys!
Q) How do I find those Guardian Beacons?
A) There are some great resources out there for finding Guardian Beacons, in particular:
Q) How do I go about getting a key from a Guardian Beacon?
A) I think I'll leave that for you to figure out yourself (hint: you'll need lasers)
Q) Can I use collector limpets to scoop up the keys?
A) No. Although I'm not going to waste everyone's time asking for additional Unlimited Class screenshots proving you don't have a collector limpet controller fitted, please don't - manual scooping is a part of this challenge.
Q) Can I use video evidence instead of screenshots?
A) Yes, you can either video your run and then grab the necessary screenshots afterwards at your leisure or else just upload the entire video and send a link to that in your Google form submission.
Q) Do I have to race in Open mode?
A) Normally I'd say we definitely advocate racing in Open mode in the BBRC (e.g. because of the possibility of running into other racers out on the track) but in this particular instance (pun not intended) it can cause problems since you might drop into to a beacon that's already being activated by another racer. So maybe Open mode if you're just practicing but switch to Solo for your competitive runs?
Interstellar Overdrive (Shaye Blackwood) - departing from Moriosong 16.07.3306BUCKYBALL TAXIS INC (Crank Larson) - departing LFT 1103 at 21:00 (in-game time) 17.07.3306- Tis a Fleeting thing (Sgurr) - departing from Diso (near Shifnalport) on Tuesday 21st at 12:00 (in-game time)
- DJs Party Wagon (DJ Wylie) - departing from Anyanwu on Saturday 25th at 07:00 (in-game time)
Note: could volunteer bus drivers please park their carriers in a Synuefe EF-P c22-28 to avoid cluttering up the race start/finish system!
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