I should explain.
Dropping the landing gear (or opening the cargo scoop) restricts your maximum forward thrust.* When you let off your variable throttle, the throttle will return to the last value specified so setting it to zero will cause it to return to zero, allowing for fine forward and reverse speed control.
*The T-9 is so slow that not even 7A thrusters can get it over 99 with the gear down.
Beta 2.4 patch notes.
This is for the closed beta, and won’t be live on the general server for a few months probably, but there’s some nice things in there. And end to the mission stacking that everyone on Reddit seems to care so much about, but also an increase in the range of the galaxy map route finder from 1kly to 20kly, and adding neutron star boosts to it.
I’ve got this game for the PS4 now, and am enjoying it generally - the music and sound design is especially pleasing. Not sure I’ll want to do multiplayer though unless I get fairly good, and have a decent ship, so that I’ve got some freedom in what I do.
I remember the wireframe BBC Micro version of Elite when I was too young to really enjoy it; I still have that feeling of being overwhelmed by the game’s complexity and vastness to this day…
I’m deadfred77 on the PS4 if anyone needs me.
You don’t need to worry about that if you join a PvE-only private group.
They also have a Facebook presence. If you’re interested in joining and on Facebook, I suggest joining them there first and see who can get you into the PS4 group.
Put all the money i got from the trip to SagA* into a new python, the Fuzzy Logic, which I’ve kind of upgraded a bit, but not as much as I’d like, and will now use as a mission runner to try and (slowly) get a bit of fed rep and try and get my money back up. Although it does look like short range tourist missions are the best money makers at the moment.
Nice twist on donations. Gave Hutton Orbital Truckers 450K and now I have a contract to haul a couple units of palladium for just over 500K.
Yeah, I’ve been making semi-regular runs to Hutton Orbital. Got 9 mil out of my last job.
I’m late to the party; just picked up the game on sale the other day. I’ve done a handful of missions in my Sidewinder MkI and have managed to scrape together about 770,000 credits. I’ve got my eye on a shiny new Cobra MkIII
Before I read through 500+ posts, maybe I can get a few quick questions answered.
When I dock at a station, is there much point to entering the hangar? It seems like I can access all the station services from where I land.
Sometimes when I jump into a system, I’ll be fairly far (like 90,000Ls) from my destination. It takes me a while to get there. Is this just how the game is, or am I making a rookie mistake?
I had a problem a few times when, jumping into a system, my ship overheats and it’s tricky getting the FSD to work again. Is this because of how my ship is equipped, or mainly because of the star I jump next to? Each time this has happened it’s been around a bluish-white star, so maybe it’s particularly hot.
You don’t particularly need to enter the hanger usually, no. If it’s something you do need to enter the hanger for (such as ship outfitting), the game will pull you in when you select it. However, what it does do is get you off the pad - if you’re playing in Open and it’s a busy station (like at a Community Goal, where there’s a lot of people), it would be polite to clear the pad. Especially if you’ve got a large ship that needs the large pads like an Anaconda. At the start of the game, it’s nothing to worry about.
That’s the game. If you’re taking on missions, I think it now tells you how far away from the sun the mission target is. Don’t take missions to Hutton Orbital on Alpha Centauri unless you’re willing to spend a literal hour getting there from the sun. If you do, don’t forget your mug.
It’s related to the star, in that it’s easier to get caught in the big hot ones, but they will all do it. Basically, when you jump in, you’re pointed at the sun, and you need to change direction quick to avoid the heat situation. There are ship configurations that can mitigate it, because at some point you’ll want a ship with a fuel scoop to refuel from the suns, but at this stage in the game you want to get away as soon as you can.
Cobra MkIII is one of the best mission runners in the game.
Taking a bunch of delivery missions there is quite profitable, though. Just remember to go into Advanced Maintenance and repair your ship’s integrity upon arrival.
Bulk passenger contracts in the Procyon neighborhood are a very good source of credits. Can’t remember where it was but I’ve seen offers in excess of 50 million for transporting people to Katzenstein Dock in 36 Ophiuchi; that’s almost as far out as Hutton Orbital. Their organization didn’t like me enough, though.
Dunno if they still do this but I’ve had NPCs chase me all the way to my assigned landing pad at outposts. Entering the hangar in that instance is a great way to not get shot.
I’ve done a bunch of runs to Faraday Orbital. It takes a while to get out there (about 330,000Ls), but I earned about 2.8 million credits in my last run and hardly anyone tried to kill me.
I’m upgrading my Cobra MkIII’s systems, and thinking about trying my hand at exploring. I’m not really sure how to go about it (besides getting a fuel scoop and a good discovery scanner).
That’s basically it. Advanced Discovery Scanner to get an entire system in one whack, the best Fuel Scoop you can afford, and the best Frame Shift Drive you can afford. Also a Surface Scanner if you have the credits. Dropping cargo bays and weapons will net you a slight increase in jump range.
Open your map and set a target. They’ve changed the map for to allow for a 20k LY maximum when plotting a speed course (economic plotting is limited to the original 1k maximum) and the last scoopable star on your route will be marked as such. I’ve found blue/white primary stars (G and above) to have the most interesting systems. Last time I was out, I filtered out everything but those and non-sequence stars (i.e.: black holes, neutron stars, etc.) Exploration was my first, and so far only, Elite rank.
Here are a couple of handy guides.
BTW: another method of exploration is to fit a First Class passenger cabin, a small cargo bay, and take on a Famous Explorer. You’ll get credits from them for a round trip plus any discoveries you turn in to Universal Cartographics.
That’s odd. I was able to buy a Federal Dropship without any sort of rank with the Federation. Maybe the wiki is out of date.
I can make decent money doing data runs between two systems. I’m not sure that it isn’t blind luck that I haven’t been blown up yet. I’ve escaped a few interdiction attempts by ships with a Master combat ranking. Once I get my new dropship properly outfitted, I’ll have to look into bounty hunting to get a little combat experience.
Nice. I think it’ll take me a while to get this ship decked out, unless credits suddenly become easier to come by.
I’m thinking of doing that famous explorer thing. I got one offering me about 38M to bring them to a system near the galactic core. Is there a trick to plotting a course over such a long distance? It exceeds my (current?) maximum range, probably by a lot.
A good fuel scoop and the best jump range you can afford. Plot fastest routes using jet-cone boosts.
Exploration is a great way to gain favor with minor factions. Whatever data you turn in goes to the faction in charge of that station and will raise your standing with them.
I’m taking a Famous Explorer out right now. Forgot that they’re secretive so you’ll want to avoid being scanned, each scan will reduce their happiness and too many will prompt them to jump ship.
Oh, don’t be concerned with being scanned by other ships at your passenger’s final destination. They’re there for the same reason you are. 