i agree trading and exploring is easy . I maxed in no time , Combat is real hard .. well hard!.. it takes a long time!! compared to the 2 others.
Void Opal Mining - Broken?
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i agree trading and exploring is easy . I maxed in no time , Combat is real hard .. well hard!.. it takes a long time!! compared to the 2 others.
And I suspect you are grossly over-generalizing it.
My point was that if you gave 100 players the developer's access to set things exactly how they want it for the time commitment required to get each elite rank, you'd end up with 100 different settings for it. Individuals all have their own idea of what time-reward value is appropriate. You're focusing on the two extremes, whereas most players are likely between the two.
Slopey
Volunteer Moderator
I've been playing Elite since '84 on various computers, from the ZX Spectrum, up through Amiga, and through the Frontier series.
Time was when "Elite" used to mean something. It was a hard earned achievement. It was a sense of accomplishment. Something to strive towards. An exclusive club.
Back in Alpha/Beta, that was almost still true.
Now, it's less than a day.
A large part of me feels sad about that.
Time was when "Elite" used to mean something. It was a hard earned achievement. It was a sense of accomplishment. Something to strive towards. An exclusive club.
Back in Alpha/Beta, that was almost still true.
Now, it's less than a day.
A large part of me feels sad about that.
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Lestat
Banned
I think I am on target. Having 40 years of gaming experience and watching and Knowing people get to end game of any game and poof they leave. So when I was able to get to Elite in Trade in a few hours for many players that an end game. All they have to do is Exploration which only takes a few Days and that leave Combat. If you do only attack Elite Combat Ships it might take the longest time. All you have to do to speed that up is Drop any cargo in your cargo hold and they come to you.[/QUOTE]
No it would not prove anything of the sort. The design can be fantastic but people may just not like mining. The game is basically a first person shooter after all and every ship has hardpoints and the basis of the game really is about fighting wars against aliens...and against humans. Mining is a more passive endeavor that I happen to like. I think the new mechanics are great, certainly beats the hell out of just mining lasers and watching chunks fly around for an anorexic reward. Certainly their were rarely if ever this many mining discussions in the past.
Very logical and a decent opinion
I do totally disagree though, it is not just a game as it is my escape from work, cooking, washing, worries, not partner though
(she is the best) ... and many other things.Having taken a long time to get trade and exploration Elite(I am slow
) it now means much less seeing as how I have already done Elite exploration 4 times over just in the few weeks I have been on DW2.Ignoring everything, and my opinion, it is just a game as you said(I am a software engineer and logical)
Yep, and it's extremely shorted sighted for FD to cater to that crowd when they wont be around as long as the other crowd.
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Indeed untill 3.3 launched I was 1700 hrs in, high dangerous in combat and similar level in trade and exploration. I was fine with that (admittedly I made lots of rules to slow progression, I could have been triple elite long ago) but as the game has gone on I have felt forced to ignore more and more and deliberately play poorly. 3.3 broke the camel's back, I enjoy the new mining (in beta) but can't do that and it is simply impossible to ignore exploration getting to elite.
IF FD want to reduce the grind then simplify getting gear for engineering, it is daft it is so hard to get bits of iron ore etc anyway but money makes the world go round and the elite ranks are central to what elite is about.
So for now at least in trying to pander to people who just want to see everything in a handful of hrs they have ripped the soul from the game. At this point in 2020 I really hope for a full reset and that FD keep hold more of the reigns.
IF FD want to reduce the grind then simplify getting gear for engineering, it is daft it is so hard to get bits of iron ore etc anyway but money makes the world go round and the elite ranks are central to what elite is about.
So for now at least in trying to pander to people who just want to see everything in a handful of hrs they have ripped the soul from the game. At this point in 2020 I really hope for a full reset and that FD keep hold more of the reigns.
ED is now a joke. But, operating as intended!
Thanks all for contributing to the topic. And a surprisingly civil conversation to boot. Well done all!
My (personally biased) take-aways from reading all posts are:-
- VO mining is a welcome addition to the mining career path.
I agree with that principle; however, the over-abundance of said “motherlodes” trivialises not only other forms of mining but also most other forms of earning credits. A good idea badly implemented, perhaps?
- It's not all about earning credits.
That's true, engaging game-play loops are also key; however, VO mining isn't that either.
- Credits are no longer a gateway to what ED has to offer; Engineering is.
If this is true then it has been done at the expense of nearly all sense of progression in the early to mid stages of all career paths. (Not to mention the number of now redundant game assets.) I find it difficult to believe that any sensible developer would countenance such a notion.
- “The money from Void Opal mining is currently spot on, it's in a very good place.” - ObsidianAnt
I'm not here to take a pop at folks, but aren't you some sort of ambassador for this game? Unless I'm misunderstanding you, this is a very odd position to take on a mechanic that is so very clearly undermining the game's founding precepts. (I'm not suggesting this is the only broken mechanic negatively affecting the game.) Elite (ED*) was meant to be about building your career(s) in the 34th century, following in Jameson's footsteps toward Elite rank, wasn't it? How valueless has that become with a mechanic that allows you to so easily short-cut your way thru both. On the other hand, and probably more likely, maybe you're an ambassador for a game that isn't what I thought it was.
* "Absolute pedantry corrupt's absolutely." -- Someone, somewhere, whenever.
My (personally biased) take-aways from reading all posts are:-
- VO mining is a welcome addition to the mining career path.
I agree with that principle; however, the over-abundance of said “motherlodes” trivialises not only other forms of mining but also most other forms of earning credits. A good idea badly implemented, perhaps?
- It's not all about earning credits.
That's true, engaging game-play loops are also key; however, VO mining isn't that either.
- Credits are no longer a gateway to what ED has to offer; Engineering is.
If this is true then it has been done at the expense of nearly all sense of progression in the early to mid stages of all career paths. (Not to mention the number of now redundant game assets.) I find it difficult to believe that any sensible developer would countenance such a notion.
- “The money from Void Opal mining is currently spot on, it's in a very good place.” - ObsidianAnt
I'm not here to take a pop at folks, but aren't you some sort of ambassador for this game? Unless I'm misunderstanding you, this is a very odd position to take on a mechanic that is so very clearly undermining the game's founding precepts. (I'm not suggesting this is the only broken mechanic negatively affecting the game.) Elite (ED*) was meant to be about building your career(s) in the 34th century, following in Jameson's footsteps toward Elite rank, wasn't it? How valueless has that become with a mechanic that allows you to so easily short-cut your way thru both. On the other hand, and probably more likely, maybe you're an ambassador for a game that isn't what I thought it was.
* "Absolute pedantry corrupt's absolutely." -- Someone, somewhere, whenever.
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Such pedantry, sir!
The problem with VO is they can be dropped.
People can do RMT now using mining goods has currency.
After the mining changes there is alot of new sellers on RMT trade plattaforms selling credits at chinese prices - since they can stack up mining goods on alt accounts to drop the cargo to the customer account.
Maybe mining goods should be threated like materials? can't be dropped or if it is dropped it will insta-explode?
There is no problem in the guy going to mine and earn the credits in his account, the problem is when he just trow some $$ in someone hands to get already refined opals to sell on the market
People can do RMT now using mining goods has currency.
After the mining changes there is alot of new sellers on RMT trade plattaforms selling credits at chinese prices - since they can stack up mining goods on alt accounts to drop the cargo to the customer account.
Maybe mining goods should be threated like materials? can't be dropped or if it is dropped it will insta-explode?
There is no problem in the guy going to mine and earn the credits in his account, the problem is when he just trow some $$ in someone hands to get already refined opals to sell on the market
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I finally found a few cores to crack. I gave up on the tedium of Void Opals, and went into a Pristine Metallic ring hoping to find a rock but also have other types of mining on the table for something to occupy the time. (Thanks to a squadron mate for suggesting this).
It took 2 hours this session before I found one. (and then I found 3 in relatively short order).
Here are my thoughts-
1) The process of core mining itself (setting charges and abrasion blasting after) is fun.
2) Limpets are awful when you fly fully FA: OFF. The AI for them is truly horrendous. They are also so slow that it is much, much faster to simply fly right up to an asteroid and visually look for fissures rather than wait for the super slow prospector to waddle over to them.
3) For a wealthy individual, it's not worth doing. It takes forever to find a rock and crack it. If you already have money, it's a boring, boring grind to no real benefit. If it didn't pay out hugely, no one would do it. The cores are too rare for normal gameplay by far.
It took 2 hours this session before I found one. (and then I found 3 in relatively short order).
Here are my thoughts-
1) The process of core mining itself (setting charges and abrasion blasting after) is fun.
2) Limpets are awful when you fly fully FA: OFF. The AI for them is truly horrendous. They are also so slow that it is much, much faster to simply fly right up to an asteroid and visually look for fissures rather than wait for the super slow prospector to waddle over to them.
3) For a wealthy individual, it's not worth doing. It takes forever to find a rock and crack it. If you already have money, it's a boring, boring grind to no real benefit. If it didn't pay out hugely, no one would do it. The cores are too rare for normal gameplay by far.
Hey, only twice more and you can transfer your Vette
Someone mentioned regular trading for big money per hour. Thing is, you often need a decent, mid range cargo hauler or better to do so.
An Adder (Sub 2 million cr build)with 8 tons of cargo, and basic mining gear can rake in nearly 25 million credits in one trip, assuming they sell at full price.
I can start a new account right now, and have enough money for a Python or better in no time.
An Adder (Sub 2 million cr build)with 8 tons of cargo, and basic mining gear can rake in nearly 25 million credits in one trip, assuming they sell at full price.
I can start a new account right now, and have enough money for a Python or better in no time.
It sure beats the old system lol.
All those hours wasted, scraping rocks for a mediocre paycheck.
I didn’t know any better back then.
All those hours wasted, scraping rocks for a mediocre paycheck.
I didn’t know any better back then.
The whole game feels like it needs a major balance pass to be fair. Combat activities and ranking have been lagging behind the other two professions for a long time now when it comes to profits.
The mission boards be like:
Kill pirate: 120,000c
Destroy turrets: 100,000c
Salvage this: 80,000c
Massacre 100 of these: 1.500,000c
Mine 1,000t of this: 2,000,000c
Or just go deliver us 80 of these to the next system for 5,000,000m.
The pay for combat missions (despite requiring more skill, better ship, more engineering/more time etc...) don’t hold a candle to simpler missions...
Little story:
I just started a new CMDR from LHS 3447. Jumped straight to Frigaha and did my thing with the FSS, then did 3 jumps to Aphra to sell the data and bought a DSS for my Sidewinder.
Went next door to V1688 Aquilae and probed three planets, then two jumps to Clayakarma and probed another four planets. Then one jump to Yorua and managed to straight up purchase:
D rated DBX
5A Frame shift drive
4B Fuel scoop
2.5mil left in the bank and the controlling faction are so pleased with me for dumping over 10mil of exploration data on them that they’re now offering me another 2mil to fetch a black box for them from the system next door...
It shouldn’t really be possible for it to play out like this.
The mission boards be like:
Kill pirate: 120,000c
Destroy turrets: 100,000c
Salvage this: 80,000c
Massacre 100 of these: 1.500,000c
Mine 1,000t of this: 2,000,000c
Or just go deliver us 80 of these to the next system for 5,000,000m.
The pay for combat missions (despite requiring more skill, better ship, more engineering/more time etc...) don’t hold a candle to simpler missions...
Little story:
I just started a new CMDR from LHS 3447. Jumped straight to Frigaha and did my thing with the FSS, then did 3 jumps to Aphra to sell the data and bought a DSS for my Sidewinder.
Went next door to V1688 Aquilae and probed three planets, then two jumps to Clayakarma and probed another four planets. Then one jump to Yorua and managed to straight up purchase:
D rated DBX
5A Frame shift drive
4B Fuel scoop
2.5mil left in the bank and the controlling faction are so pleased with me for dumping over 10mil of exploration data on them that they’re now offering me another 2mil to fetch a black box for them from the system next door...
It shouldn’t really be possible for it to play out like this.
I miss when you could stack massacre missions. There was a nice risk/reward aspect there.
Now they want you to spend all day killing 90 ships for like 5 million credits. Might as well just go bounty hunting in a hazres at that point, you'll make that in a half hour with less effort.
Assassination missions can earn you a quick 2-3 mil in the right places these days, and take about 10 minutes to complete
Now they want you to spend all day killing 90 ships for like 5 million credits. Might as well just go bounty hunting in a hazres at that point, you'll make that in a half hour with less effort.
Assassination missions can earn you a quick 2-3 mil in the right places these days, and take about 10 minutes to complete
Agreed. The game has a massive Risk vs. Reward problem.
Stacking massacre missions in Combat Zones was fun and dangerous. A true Risk vs. Reward situation. I don't mind that you can't get double/triple credit for kills, but I hate how terrible the payout is, especially considering how heavily engineered the targets are in combat zones.
Similar with surface skimmer killing. It was a hell of a lot of fun to airstrike bases and blow stuff up. But instead of fixing the stacking problem, they removed the ability to destroy skimmers from the air by not spawning skimmers until you're on the ground. FDev tossed the baby out with the bath water on that one.