Thoughts on a Beagle Point run: One Side Live

[Hanekura Shizuka]

There is a place we dare not go. Where our navigation is literally blocked from going – a mass of stars a thousand light-years across, many hundreds of light-years high, and a couple thousand light-years deep, around 37000 ly north of Sol. This place that we cannot access, like a wall staring at us from across the Core.

I’ve heard the whispers, half-prayer, half-horror, of monsters out in the black. “Thargoids”, the veterans call them. I don’t know about those… maybe they’re there, maybe they aren’t. All I know is that there is this wide swath of stars that I must avoid, that my navigation computer refuses to allow access.And, like any good explorer, there’s a part of me that wonders what lies behind this curtain of stars. What blocks us from this stretch of space? And, ultimately, how will everything change when we find out?

Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, in my case it means taking a detour of several hundred light-years above the plane. Unfortunately, because any detour is an unwelcome one, especially for planning the run in March. Fortunately, because the neutron star fields – those lands I studied so intently in my early days – are close by.

At any rate, it is good to be entering the core. Once I learned to fly through the core, navigating there became something to love, rather than something to detest. In the core is where a commander truly shines, where the stars truly fly by. Got delayed by my own curiosity; I'm still more in explorer mode than full-race mode. And a part of me wonders at those systems just a few short light-years away…

 

[Hanekura Shizuka]

It is the center of the maelstrom, the rose of the galactic compass, the grand cathedral.

For some racers and explorers, it is more home than any station.

This is my eighth time to visit Sagittarius A*; it never gets old.

On to the home stretch.

 

[Hanekura Shizuka]

Closing Entry - February 23, 3302

Made it back to Asellus Primus system on the 21st. Total time for the round trip: 15 days, 21 hours, 50 minutes, 34 seconds.

In between… where to begin. Actually, begin here; I posted some pictures of my finds there.

I admit I was in a hurry to finish. I stopped at the landing site next to A*; no one was there, so I went on. I pushed to make it back, not exactly making a Buckyball pace, but I wasn’t letting the moss grow under my thrusters, either. The reason why… well, I can tell that now. I found an undiscovered Earth-Like World about 65,170 ly from Earth. Those aren’t easy to find. I didn’t want to publicize it, for obvious reasons; no one likes being scooped. I sweated whenever I read of people making it back to inhabited space, wondering if I’d lose the find.

Fortunately, I didn’t lose the find. And the feeling of discovering an ELW that far out… it doesn’t get much better than that. In the ancient tradition of naming planets after deities, I have dubbed the planet Uzume, after the Japanese goddess of the dawn.

And it's really, REALLY awesome to have my name on that little discovery, so far from Sol, so close to the edge of darkness.

I’ve heard some discussion since then from others regarding the rarity of Earth-like worlds. Good to know it wasn’t just me. I found five on the trip (at least, five that I remember and took photos of). Considering that I treated most systems with the honk-and-run technique, that isn’t that bad.

So, without further ado, I give a song I found myself singing during the exploration portion of the trip (with apologies to the Dead Milkmen):

“Earth-like World, please look at me,
Earth-like World, oh can’t you see
You look nothing like a pearl
Just you and me, Earth-like World.”

***

It is perhaps appropriate that, less than twenty-four hours after arriving back in occupied space, the record would fall again. Hubris on my part, I guess. When a person seeks success through audacity, the thought never occurs to them that someone might try to equal them in audacity.

Still, a second run was planned – ever since I made it back out of the Abyss with a route around the zero axis in tow, I’ve always known I’d make another attempt. I stated from the results of the first what would be needed for a successful single-session trip to Beagle Point. I didn’t have that the first time; in some ways, the first run was a haphazard mess that worked because no one else had ever tried it at that pace.

I know better now. I do better now.

Oddly enough, the difficult part with regard to a Beagle Point run is the scheduling. Alot quite adeptly pointed out the problem with a Beagle Point run: even if done in one sitting, a full trip to Beagle Point doesn’t take just one day; it takes several. It takes being able to get a full night’s sleep the night before, actually taking the trip, and then having at least a day to rest afterwards. I have some ideas for possible times to make the run, including two possibilities in March. Expect it sooner rather than later.

That said, the game is afoot. This should be fun.

I’m not going to be flying much in the next week or two. I have some other things to take care of in-station, so I’ll be light on the piloting duties for awhile.

My thanks to all of those who have provided guidance, who’ve provided discussion and inspiration, and those who push me further on. Also, thanks to my ship, Shiroe, for putting up with a crazy CMDR like me for all these hundreds of thousands of light-years without blowing to bits. A good ship, treated with love, will take a CMDR almost anywhere; a good CMDR will return the favor, and bring the ship home.

 

[domaq]

Such a phenomenal situation and excellent write-up. Would you share the location of Uzume with us DW'ers so we can visit on our trip out? Nevermind. saw it in the other post.
.
I would love to explore some alternative routes to BP re: Svenno or Alintil's information although I don't know if we can carry enough jump materials to make it that far across the Abyss.

 

[Hanekura Shizuka]

Such a phenomenal situation and excellent write-up. Would you share the location of Uzume with us DW'ers so we can visit on our trip out? Nevermind. saw it in the other post.
.

I also sent the list of all the ELWs discovered on this trip to the List of Earth-like planets thread here.

 

[Hanekura Shizuka]

Back again.

An opening occurred in my schedule; explaining the why and how would take a bit. I normally work pretty intensely on Friday (in fact, my first run started after getting home from work on a Friday); however, an odd set of events occurred that caused me to have Friday off – in other words, just enough of a time window for a Beagle-to-Beagle run. In its own crazy way, if it takes the same amount of time that my first run did (over 32 hours… but there was a nap in there), I won’t be able to finish. But… I have two things I didn’t have before.

1. Starting shortly after a good nights’ sleep. I woke up naturally after 8 hours, and started about two hours after waking up.
2. A route through the zero axis. I went through Beagle Crossing first time, a route that added at least two hours to my overall time.

In this case, I had less than 24 hours notice on this run. In some ways, that is less than the notice I had for the first.

Lifted off at 15:13:00 on February 25. I’ve made two changes to Shiroe from the first run. First, I’ve dropped the fuel from 24T (three-jump) to 18T (two-jump and safety). This has boosted my jump range from 39.8ly to 40.26ly. I’ve kept the shields, though, for a very good reason. If even one small thing happens in the launch, that means damage; that means starting again. I didn’t want to worry about that, so I sacrificed a little bit of jump range (about .15ly) to have first launch, without

The second… I got a ship color appropriate to the name. In this case, Tactical Ice. (In the Japanese language, shiro=white). I’d prefer a paint scheme that had more white in it (or, heaven help us, a Platinum Anaconda… you hearing me, Frontier?), but Tactical Ice will do.

The first thing that surprises me is just how this is growing. I was foolish. Here's how I envisioned this happening:

1. Make the initial run. Set a decent record time; get a feel for the run itself. (Done.)
2. Explore a little. (Done. )
3. After the initial run, make a second run in a single session, likely in late March, breaking my own record and setting a time that no one would even think about breaking. After all, who else would be crazy enough to make a single-sitting Beagle-to-Beagle run?

I was foolish because I forgot the tradition I come from. We Buckyballers… we’re two thrusters and a cup holder short of an Anaconda. We’re the sorts of people who try to optimize 8-9 hour runs from Sol to Sagittarius A* - for fun. I shouldn’t have been surprised when Arple made the Beagle-to-Beagle run in a single session, in record time.

So, I start reading on the boards and see a third person – Takaru Minari - trying for the mark. Takaru-san is a capable CMDR who holds several ship records for the A* Challenge, including such unorthodox vessels as the Sidewinder and the Orca; if there exists a commander who is ideally suited to the Beagle-to-Beagle run, it’s Takaru-san. I give my hints as to the run, even while talking about how people generally give hints about making the run rather than state straight out, “Hey, I’m making a Beagle-to-Beagle run!”

I’ve given my hints. I gave a pretty big one that something was at least about to happen on the 65k club board; how many people can ask, in all seriousness, “Just out of curiosity, has anyone ever attempted two Beagle Point runs in the span of a calendar month? Just wondering.” I do wonder how many people are reading between the lines.

18:13:00 Averaging about 2900 ly/hr so far. Decent for the rim areas. Seen more unscoopables than I like. The three-scoop setup I used for the first run alleviated those; now I have to worry about them a bit more. It’s the price I pay for about .45ly of jump range. That said, this isn’t the main area where I worry about unscoopables. There’s an area of unscoopables close to the Abyss that has me concerned. But that is many, many, many hours into the future.

19:33:00 At around the 13000ly mark, there’s an interesting boundary. Suddenly the stars bunch a lot closer together. If the CMDR doesn’t know what they’re doing, plots can take many minutes to complete. On the other hand, if a plot is made properly, the CMDR can truly fly through the galaxy at maximum speed.

As you can imagine, I love piloting through the Core.

20:06:00 It’s scary in its own way. I’m well more than halfway to Sagittarius A*, and it feels like nothing. Or, more to the point, the flight so far feels like nothing.

The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once opined, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” I’m seeing that, as I fly through the galaxy.

Granted, this is the same philosopher who once said, “if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”

21:02:00 Just had first glitch – graphics driver. Took about 3 minutes to fix. Again, it’s just something we learn.

I hope I don’t regret those three minutes later. It isn’t anything like the devastation that such a glitch occurring on an A* run would bring. But… the clock exists now.

21:13:00 6-hour split. At 17600 ly from Sol. I’ve had a few times where I had to replot due to consecutive unscoopables.

21:35:00 Found out Takaru Minari finished. Judging by timestamps of other posts (such as the A* portion of the run), would guess a time of about 25 hours.

It certainly makes things interesting.

23:14:00 8-hour mark. 23700 ly from Sol. 614 jumps.

Takaru Minari’s time was 25:23:06. I can’t say whether I can beat him or not; there’s a lot to do yet. However, for the first time ever, I do believe that under 24 hours is doable. Here’s why.

Takaru Minari’s run was 1807 jumps. I had 614 in the first 8 hours – which, when extended out to 24 hours, becomes 1842 jumps. According to my estimation, that means about (basically, 1807*40.56/40.26=1820.5~1821).

This is the point at which I really start to wonder if it’s possible.

23:54:00 Just passed A*. Didn’t bother stopping. A* is actually about 200ly under my path; I tend to go at about +200 elevation while flying through the core and inner rim worlds, with a planned elevation at +700 to avoid Thargoids around 35000.

So, it would have been about an 8:41 A* run, had I been going for A*.

That’s the other reason why I’m starting to believe a sub-24 hour run is possible. Takaru-san’s time for A* was 9:21 - 40 minutes more – over the distance of 25900 ly. Extrapolate that over 65k light-years, and that paints a very interesting picture.

2:23:00 Managing a nice average clip of just over 3 kylies/hr. Which, at this point, means I’m physically closer to my destination than to my origin.

Right now, I can imagine Takaru-san and Arple-san doing the math in their heads and going “Oh, no, here comes the Thargoid Wall!” It’s planned for. We’ll see if that plan works, but… it’s planned for.

The ‘magic number’ is going down. Which means I’m starting to leave the fun part of the core.

It’s odd at the moment. I haven’t used any music or shows yet to keep me busy. I haven’t had any caffeine, either; I’m purposely holding off on that until at least 16 hours into the run.

3:13:00 12-hour mark. 36150 ly from Sol. 927 jumps made so far. About 29000 ly to go. Thargoids a couple hundred ly away.

At some point I’m going to have to stop for repairs. I’ve done too much damage; eventually, it’s going to get to the point where the FSD malfunctions.

And, oddly enough, right now, I’m thinking of ham. I bought a small amount of jamon iberico as part of provisions; I will enjoy this ham at Beagle Point.

3:37:00 Hmmm. Two straight unscoopables. Been awhile since I’ve seen that.

Still haven’t put on music or a show. Just haven’t seen the need for it.

4:03:00 Not absolutely sure, but I’m pretty sure the Thargoid Wall is behind me.

4:13:00 Just over 1000 jumps in 13 hours. Approaching the outer edge of the Core; within the next 20 minutes, I’ll be out of it entirely.

6:10:00 The slowdown that results from leaving the core is absolutely painful.

6:45:00 Need music. Not going to last long in current state if I don’t.

6:52:00. Two songs in, and I’m realizing how much I needed some music. Being alone with your thoughts is sometimes not a good thing. In fact, under certain conditions, it’s just asking for trouble. Normally I’m fine with flying solo… but I’m starting to understand why DW exists. Sometimes companionship is needed on a long trip.

First three songs: “Jedi Drinking Song” by the Dust Rhinos (what I usually start the playlist with), “The End of The World” by Angela, “The Joker” by Steve Miller Band.

Also, is it just me, but does the thought of the ship computer’s voice singing “The Joker” sound like something Frontier should do?

And thus do we come to a conclusion I came to after the first run: A sane person cannot complete this run. In order to do this, some level of disconnect from reality is necessary.

7:12:00 Just as I’m about to hit the 16-hour mark, I hit the second glitch. Lost about 2 minutes. That said… I now allow myself to have any caffeine I desire. Don’t want it quite yet, though. I’m good, for the moment. The music, as stated, is helping; iTunes is choosing some good ones.

47380 ly at the 16-hour mark. Others may curse the Thargoid Wall… I curse the few thousand ly that came after. Looks like it’s getting a little better… but man, that was a slowdown. 29-jump kylies are the sort of thing you expect 62 kylies from Sol, not 42!


7:24:00 Suddenly I feel the need to ponder the oddity of a phrase to indicate infidelity (“Take the long way home”) and its appropriateness for a Beagle Point run.

Let’s face it: Beagle Point is about the longest way home I can find. Then there’s the fact that this particular song is sung by a band called The Outfield (the Supertramp song of the same name is also on this huge playlist).

7:35:00 The 27-jump kylies are back. Not as good as the 25-jump kylies in the Core, but a lot better than blasted 29-jump kylies. I can live with that, if they take me to the Abyss.

That said, I have a choice. Do I take my route through the Abyss, or do I take Arple’s advice and just go a little east of 0? Here’s the thing… I don’t think my path is a good one. To understand where it came from… I initially went west to the traditional Svenno crossing, then moved a little east. On the other hand, I have the route there.

8:13:00 Seventeen hours gone. Over the 50 kylie mark. This is going to be interesting.

Going to take Arple’s route. If I run into trouble, I may shift – don’t think it would take too great a problem, as they are fairly close early on.

8:55:00 I’m starting to feel the time pressure. I get the feeling that the time that’s going to be important is 20 hours. My feeling is, if I can get to the Abyss in 20 hours, I should have a chance to get to Beagle in 24. And yes, it’s probably going to be very close to 20 hours. Keep in mind that a 3-kylie-per-hour rate would get there in 19.5 hours.

9:13:00 There’s something beautiful about this dance. Been at it 18 hours now. Over 53k down. Beagle is 12 kylies away. But, as anyone who’s been there will tell you, those are some tough kylies.

It’s interesting seeing people go offline, then come back online many hours later. Makes me wonder how well they slept.

I’ve been lucky so far in one respect. I haven’t had to stop for repairs. No malfunctions, other than the power distributor going wonky once, and the docking computer going offline (I forgot to turn it off!)

9:45:00. I hate unscoopables… there’s a patch of them at around 54000-55000. Bleh.

9:55:00 One thing I’ve noticed with this one. Actually, two things. First, I’m far more talkative later on in this run. I’d actually slept by this point in the last run, and Second… as strange as it sounds, I’m a bit more businesslike in this one.

10:23:00 Starting to thin out. Just drew a 28-jump kylie.

More I think about it, the more my route sounds good. Very good reason. I don’t have to HUNT for it. Thanks for the reminder, Arple.

11:05:00 At the Abyss. Here we go…

11:28:00 Something’s off.

I think I’m running on pure adrenaline… it’s been over 20 hours, I haven’t had a lick of caffeine, and I’m wired.

The routes I came up with before are one-way… sort of. Nothing stopping me from choosing a midway point – and I have all of the stops on the old route.

11:41:00 Oh. That song’s appropriate. “All I Need Is A Miracle” by Mike + the Mechanics.

That said, liking my progress through the Abyss.

11:55:00 iTunes s just having fun with me now. “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees.

12:04:00 Space is beautifully empty… an hour into the Abyss, and I’m loving the progress I’m making.

I’m starting to make silly mistakes. This isn’t a good thing. Hopefully I can hold it together to the end. That said… it’s not a good sign. For all my adrenaline… it does not necessarily steady hands or itchy trigger fingers.

12:13:00 21-hour mark. At 60500. Holy cow… I averaged 1800 kylies/hr through the most treacherous part of the run. If I can keep that pace up… More “Really, iTunes?” moments: “Only Time Will Tell”, from Asia.

12:36:00 The Abyss is largely behind me now. I’m reminded of something professional golfers do sometimes: walk the course backwards. By walking the course backwards, they see the tricks the course designer put in, see what the designer intended with the placement of trees, traps, and other obstacles. That’s what happened here. Just about all of the obstacles and difficulties and traps I’d seen before – backwards – on my way out.

13:11:00 Just over two hours left. Currently at 62,540.

And right now I’m REALLY thinking about why solo teams were banned from the 24 hours of Le Mans. Think it was 1952, iirc… but a driver was leading going into the final hour, then did something stupid addled by fatigue and wrecked. Nowadays, Le Mans requires at least three drivers, and has maximum shift and overall driving times. I don’t have any other drivers. As the final hour approaches and Beagle Point looms closer and I haven’t stopped to repair anything and the adrenaline starts to fade… yes, it’s something I’m thinking about.

14:13:00. One hour to go. And I’m at Ceeckia CY-I B29-0.

I still want this system renamed the Stulli Step.

14:34:58. Note to self: When going into a destination system, throttle down BEFORE taking the time shot. Total time: 23 hours, 21 minutes, 58 seconds.

Done. That was insane.

Thanks to all those who have given advice, who have kept up with going on, who have pushed me further. I think it’ll be about a week before I get back in the cockpit…

 

[Hanekura Shizuka]

An analysis of a 24-hour Beagle-to-Beagle run.

Disclaimer: Sitting without moving for long periods of time can have potentially hazardous health consequences. Perform this run at your own risk. Please research and understand the risks before making such an attempt, and refrain from making an attempt if it would not be safe for you to do so. Also, please be sure to remain active while piloting, in particular getting up and moving every so often and exercising and moving your legs while piloting, to help mitigate these health issues.

The analysis of the Beagle-to-Beagle run can be separated into three sections: The Highway, The Abyss, and the Step.

It should be noted that this analysis is for a ship that (1) is equipped with scanners, including DSS and ADS, and (2) does not have FSD boost. A boosted ship may yield different results; however, for the purposes of presenting an ‘official time’ to Beagle Point, FSD boost is not allowed, so that non-Horizons ships may be allowed to compete.

Part 1: The Highway – 0 to 58,500 ly.

It may seem strange to consider 80-90% of the Beagle-to-Beagle run under one banner; however, for lack of any better way of putting it, The Highway is comparatively uniform compared to the later portions of the run. There are a handful of obstacles in the path; however, those pale in comparison to the issues that occur with regard to the Abyss or the Step. Moreover, the Highway can be compared to other, similar races and events, and as such wisdom can be gleaned from those races as well.

I hate to belabor the obvious, but the key to the Highway is speed. It is, with the exception of the Thargoid Wall, the equivalent of an A* run, only for a much greater length. As a result, we can analyze some of the more effective A* runs, as well as the time constraints involved, to get an understanding of the speed required for a successful 24-hour run.

The fastest A* Challenge runs, their times, and the corresponding speed are listed below (speed is indicated as a straight line from Sol – as the photon flies, not as the ship flies). Note that, for an ‘official’ Beagle-to-Beagle run, scanners are required.

CMDR	Hrs	Min	Sec	Ship	Scanners?	Speed
Alot	7	54	19	Anaconda	No	3276.29221
StokeMeAClipper	8	21	13	Anaconda	No	3100.455558
Hanekura Shizuka	8	32	1	Anaconda	No	3035.057453
Alot	8	43	43	Anaconda	Yes	2967.253286
Rusticolus	8	48	16	Anaconda	Yes	2941.696113
Turambar	9	12	41	Anaconda	Yes	2811.736679
Rusticolus	9	17	30	Asp Ex	Yes	2787.443946
Takaru Minari	9	21	6	Anaconda	Yes	2769.559793
Samwell Drakhyr	9	22	8	Asp Ex	Yes	2764.468691
DeadlyMercury	9	23	27	Asp Ex	No	2758.008696
Kligg	9	31	16	Anaconda	Yes	2720.270743
Hanekura Shizuka	9	35	12	Asp Ex	Yes	2701.668985
Raiko	9	36	58	Asp Ex	Yes	2693.396499
Kerenn	9	51	44	Asp Ex	Yes	2626.182965

There are two important pieces of information to take from this: The fastest speed at which an Anaconda equipped with scanners has gone for distance is about 3000 ly/hr. The fastest speed at which an Asp Explorer has gone for distance is about 2800 ly/hr. It is theorized that an Anaconda with scanners could probably fly at an average rate up to 3150 ly/hr at distance if a CMDR could theoretically keep full concentration and full planning for the entire route while implementing a minimum weight (10T of fuel, no shields); however, this is likely an upper limit for the Highway, due to other obstacles (such as diverting to avoid the Thargoid Wall) and the issue that a greater percentage of the route is on the rim, rather than the core.

The route from Beagle 2 Landing to the Abyss is roughly 58,500 ly. The amount of time, in hours, that it would take to reach the Abyss, given particular speeds:

Speed (ly/hr)	Time (hrs)
3300	17.72727273
3200	18.28125
3100	18.87096774
3000	19.5
2900	20.17241379
2800	20.89285714
2700	21.66666667

Based on the results from the run, the absolute maximum amount of time that the Highway should take while having an opportunity at a sub-24-hour time is about 20.5 hours. In order to accomplish that, a speed of at least 2850 ly/hr is required.

Thus do we get to the first conclusion of a sub-24-hour Beagle-to-Beagle run. It must be run in an Anaconda. Even assuming that the Asp could make it past the Abyss at the zero-coordinate, by the time it gets there, the opportunity for a sub-24-hour run has passed.

The second conclusion is the sort of skill required to run a sub-24-hour Beagle-to-Beagle run. It must be run in a racing style, with the sort of skill shown only by the top racing CMDRs. To understand what is meant by this, some explanation may be in order.

There are three things that must take time while traveling through the galaxy.

1. Witchspace, the hyperspace jump from one system to another.
2. FSD charge, in which the frame shift drive is charged.
3. FSD cooldown, in which the FSD is recovering from a recent hyperspace jump.

A skilled racer, in a good ship with an A-rank fuel scoop, will only take time with these three things under normal racing conditions. Everything else that is needed while traveling, such as fuel scooping and lining up with the destination, occurs while either the FSD is in cooldown or is charging for the next jump. There are exceptions to this, most often due to the need for additional fuel scooping due to a previous unscoopable; however, for an experienced racer, the rhythm of fuel scooping while the FSD cools down, flying away from the star once the FSD starts charging for the next jump, and aligning with the destination before the FSD fully charges, is almost unconscious.

Thus, the most likely candidates for eventually completing a Beagle-to-Beagle run in 24 hours or less are those CMDRs found in the first chart – in other words, CMDRs familiar with generating a fast rhythm for jumping from system to system. Other considerations, such as familiarity with / preference for the Anaconda and long-term flight endurance, will affect this candidate list. (Takaru Minari is a fascinating case in this regard, as his Beagle-to-Beagle run was his maiden voyage with his ship; given the time for his A* run in comparison to his total time for the Beagle-to-Beagle run, along with difficulties that Takaru-san had in the run, it is very likely that his skill with the Anaconda improved over the course of the run.)

Unscoopables

Several points exist along the Highway in which unscoopables could become a significant problem. The most famous of these points is the Aucoks region, roughly 1000 ly north of Sol; however, it is by no means the only one. For instance, there is a group of unscoopables roughly 54000-55000 ly north of Sol that can cause significant problems for a CMDR, at a time when the CMDR sorely wishes to avoid problems.

As these unscoopables usually occur within 100 ly of the galactic plane, their presence is oftentimes mitigated by traveling about 200 ly above the galactic plane. Thus, for most travel through the rim and core, it is recommended that the CMDR travel at this elevation. (Note that this does not eliminate unscoopables entirely, but merely renders them less common.)

The Thargoid Wall

The Thargoid Wall is a series of sectors, usually referred to as Bleia(number) or Preia(number), that cannot be accessed without a permit. No indication is given as to how a CMDR would obtain such a permit; it is theorized that nonhuman entities currently block hyperspace entrance into these systems. The Thargoid Wall, going from about 35000 ly north of Sol to about 38000 ly north, blocks the most obvious route of the zero axis for roughly 2000 ly east or west, and roughly 700 ly up or down.

Thus, the easiest method to avoid the Thargoid Wall is to simply go around the wall, either above or to the side. That said, if a CMDR is unprepared for the wall, it is likely that a detour of at least 1000 ly, and possibly several thousand ly, is needed. As such, it is important for a commander to adjust their route at least 5000 ly in advance, with the intention of bypassing the Thargoid Wall by going above or around it.

Hanekura Shizuka’s run

I stuck to the zero axis of the east-west plane, and ran at an elevation ranging from 125 ly above the galactic plane after the first 1000 ly to a gradual increase to 200 ly above the plane by the time of reaching the core. I then increased elevation by 100 ly per kylie, starting at 30000 ly north of Sol, so that the elevation was 700 ly above the galactic plane by the time of the Thargoid Wall. I had initially planned a gradual reduction back down to 200 ly above the plane after the Thargoid Wall; however, this reduction was hurried after progress slowed due to leaving the Core at about 40000 ly north of Sol, to the point that I ran just above the galactic plane. I later had to elevate 150 above the galactic plane at 54000 ly from Sol upon encountering a patch of unscoopables, and remained at this altitude until the entrance to the Abyss was in plotting range. My total time to complete the Highway was 19 hours and 52 minutes, for a speed of 2945 ly/hr.

Part 2 - The Abyss – 58500 to 61000 ly from Sol

In terms of distance, The Abyss is the smallest of the three portions of the run; however, because of the unique challenges of the Abyss, it can be the most intimidating.

Consider the situation from the perspective of the CMDR. The CMDR has been flying for somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 hours. This CMDR must then navigate a sparse area of space in which many nearby stars cannot be plotted, where available plots are reduced to only a few hundred ly at a time, where a CMDR with a 40ly Anaconda may have to take 40-50 jumps to go 1000 ly, and where a CMDR may possibly be unable to progress and forced to backtrack.

Thus do we come to the conundrum of the Abyss. In order to effectively cross the Abyss, a CMDR must be at their very best, and possessed of all of their higher faculties and critical thinking skills. However, in a speed run, a CMDR will be denied those very higher facilities due to having flown for almost 20 hours.

The solution to this problem is to use those higher faculties at a time when those faculties are available. In other words, the route through the Abyss must be planned jump-by-jump in advance of the run itself, gained through an exploration, either forward or reverse, of the Abyss. The reason for this: if a CMDR does not have a planned jump-by-jump route, they will waste valuable time attempting to find a viable route – time that is quite precious in a Beagle-to-Beagle run. Also, such a route will remove the possibility of running into a dead end in the Abyss, and being forced to backtrack.

It is also important to note how this jump-by-jump route should be used. The route will likely be created as the result of several plots that take a CMDR step-by-step through the Abyss. There is no guarantee that those plots will be reversible, nor is there any guarantee that the plots will repeat exactly. However, because it is guaranteed that there is a viable route with this sequence of systems, by selecting a star along the route that the CMDR can plot a route to, a CMDR may efficiently traverse through the Abyss, provided that the ship the CMDR takes into the Abyss has a greater or equal jump range to the ship used to construct the route. This is why a jump-by-jump route is important: even though the plots may not be reversible, having that jump-by-jump route will allow a CMDR to efficiently retrace the route.

It is suggested that a CMDR construct a route just east of the zero meridian, as efficient routes through the Abyss are known to exist in that area.

Hanekura Shizuka’s run

While returning from a previous run, I had traversed the Abyss near the zero meridian in reverse, and recorded jump-by-jump the route, using EDDiscovery. I actually debated which course of action to take to traverse the Abyss – whether to go with this plotted route (which I had misgivings about) or to go with an improvised route just east of the zero meridian; I eventually went with my plotted route. The route plots were not completely reversible; in these cases, an intermediate star along the jump-by-jump route was selected and plotted. While some debate exists as to where the Abyss actually finishes, the result was that I was able to traverse the most difficult portion of the Abyss at a speed of roughly 1800 ly/hr. Within 90 minutes, I had cleared the 61000 ly mark, and was in the ‘briar patch’ of stars beyond the Abyss.

Part 3 – The Step – 61000-65279 ly

After The Abyss, The Step is almost anticlimactic. Until about the 64800 ly mark, the density of stars is similar to that found in some of the more sparse rim areas (so, for a 40ly Anaconda, about 28-32 jumps per kylie). After the 64800 ly mark, starting at Ceeckia CY-I B29-0, the route is well-documented.

Thus, The Step is itself in two parts:

1. Race through the ‘briar patch’ to Ceeckia CY-I B29-0 – the beginning of Stulli’s route to Beagle Point
2. Stulli’s route to Beagle Point, found here, under #8

In this case, the trip to Ceeckia CY-I B29-0 is not strictly north along the galactic plane. The route is somewhat north-by-northwest, as Ceeckia CY-I B29-0 is roughly 800 ly west of the zero median. So, as a CMDR flies through the ‘briar patch’, the direction will be 200-300 ly west for every kylie taken. The travel is completed in a typical ‘racing’ format as outlined above.

Once Ceeckia CY-I B29-0 is reached, a documented route to Beagle Point (found here) can be used. In this case, a method similar to the method used for the Abyss can be applied. The galmap will not plot a route directly to Ceeckia ZQ-L C24-0 from Ceeckia CY-I B29-0; however, if a 40ly Anaconda is used, the galmap will likely be able to plot a route halfway between the two, using the stars posted on CMDR Stulli’s route. Once this first route is completed, a second plot should take the CMDR within 3-4 systems of Beagle Point; from there, a route to Beagle Point may be generated, followed, and concluded.

A proper run through the Step should take less than two hours.

Hanekura Shizuka’s Run

The run through the ‘briar patch’ took about 97 minutes; I reached Ceeckia CY-I B29-0 at the 23-hour mark. From there, using CMDR Stulli’s route took roughly 22 minutes to complete, and to reach Beagle Point.

Total time: 23 hours, 21 minutes, 58 seconds.

One last note: Upon jumping to Beagle Point, throttle down. This will allow you to access the galmap and take a picture of the time, thus proving your total time, without running into the star. Given that, by this point, close to 24 hours will have elapsed, it’s a necessary reminder. (At least, it was for me!)

Fly fast, fly dangerous, and good luck, CMDR.

 

[Jack Hound]

WOW!... really... just... WOW!

 

[Makc]

I had one hour to fly and spent most of it reading this thread. No regrets. Congratulations, CMDR, and a thoughtful and thorough write-up! Rep tank only holds enough for +1, I'm sorry to say. Well done!