Elite: Dangerous. I broke down.

[Jarhead0331]

^ I love when people mention systems and popping into them and docking here and there like they are next door.  :P

LOL, yeah, I know.  However, in the case of most of those systems they are just one or two jumps from each other, especially the ones around Lave. 

The haul from the Lave cluster to the Witchhaul cluster is the one that takes a lot of time.  It's worth it for the payout.  Rare Goods don't behave like standard commodities as their profits are entirely dependent on distance from their source.  So, you can consistently buy Lavian Brandy at about 3000 credits a unit at Lave, and consistently sell it at Witchhaul for around 13k a unit.  Its worth the trip for a quick buck.

Is the price impacted at all by the number of players who make this run and supply and demand, etc.?

[JudgeDredd]

^ I love when people mention systems and popping into them and docking here and there like they are next door.  :P

Exactly! 200 LY!?!?! I'm afraid to travel more than 10 to 12. Once I start getting too far from space I know and am comfortable with, I start to get nervous.

I've been caught so many times running out of fuel, it's embarrassing!

[SirAndrewD]

^ I love when people mention systems and popping into them and docking here and there like they are next door.  :P

LOL, yeah, I know.  However, in the case of most of those systems they are just one or two jumps from each other, especially the ones around Lave. 

The haul from the Lave cluster to the Witchhaul cluster is the one that takes a lot of time.  It's worth it for the payout.  Rare Goods don't behave like standard commodities as their profits are entirely dependent on distance from their source.  So, you can consistently buy Lavian Brandy at about 3000 credits a unit at Lave, and consistently sell it at Witchhaul for around 13k a unit.  Its worth the trip for a quick buck.

Is the price impacted at all by the number of players who make this run and supply and demand, etc.?

No.  That's the beauty of rare goods.  They're always in demand outside their system of origin.  You can pop one jump away and sell them for a profit.  The profit just increases the farther away from the point of origin that you go. 

The catch is, that rare goods are, well, rare.  You only have so many that you are allowed to buy at a time between 5-15 tons depending on the good.  This is why you can't load up all at one system and just haul it across the galaxy to another station with a rare good and go back and forth. To fill a hold, you need to find several different sources and load up in 5-15 ton batches of multiple goods. 

Standard trading in a committed trade ship with a good route is more profitable, but this is a good "lazy" way to make credits and not have a trade rout dry up on you from overuse.  It's also a good way to make a lot of money in a ship with a small hold.

[Jarhead0331]

^ I love when people mention systems and popping into them and docking here and there like they are next door.  :P

Exactly! 200 LY!?!?! I'm afraid to travel more than 10 to 12. Once I start getting too far from space I know and am comfortable with, I start to get nervous.

I've been caught so many times running out of fuel, it's embarrassing!

This has never happened to me, but I've been close.  When you run out of fuel, what happens exactly?

[SirAndrewD]

^ I love when people mention systems and popping into them and docking here and there like they are next door.  :P

Exactly! 200 LY!?!?! I'm afraid to travel more than 10 to 12. Once I start getting too far from space I know and am comfortable with, I start to get nervous.

I've been caught so many times running out of fuel, it's embarrassing!

This has never happened to me, but I've been close.  When you run out of fuel, what happens exactly?

Self destruct time.   This is why I always have a fuel scoop. 

[JudgeDredd]

^ I love when people mention systems and popping into them and docking here and there like they are next door.  :P

Exactly! 200 LY!?!?! I'm afraid to travel more than 10 to 12. Once I start getting too far from space I know and am comfortable with, I start to get nervous.

I've been caught so many times running out of fuel, it's embarrassing!

This has never happened to me, but I've been close.  When you run out of fuel, what happens exactly?

Send out a distress Signal and you get topped up. Of course, others can see your distress signal afaik and can come pick you off. Or you can self destruct. Ok in your sidey...not so if you are carrying cargo or in a more expensive ship, all kitted out! :'(

[SirAndrewD]

^ I love when people mention systems and popping into them and docking here and there like they are next door.  :P

Exactly! 200 LY!?!?! I'm afraid to travel more than 10 to 12. Once I start getting too far from space I know and am comfortable with, I start to get nervous.

I've been caught so many times running out of fuel, it's embarrassing!

This has never happened to me, but I've been close.  When you run out of fuel, what happens exactly?

Send out a distress Signal and you get topped up. Of course, others can see your distress signal afaik and can come pick you off. Or you can self destruct. Ok in your sidey...not so if you are carrying cargo or in a more expensive ship, all kitted out! :'(

I think they got rid of the distress signal.  I may be wrong on this.

[JudgeDredd]

Well - how the hell is that meant to work. So there's NO option but to self distruct? Weird...and crap.

[SirAndrewD]

Well - how the hell is that meant to work. So there's NO option but to self distruct? Weird...and crap.

I looked it up.  Devs took it out because people were exploiting with it, using it to refuel for free without taking up a slot with a scoop.  They increased the efficiency of the fuel scoop to compensate. 

[JudgeDredd]

But you didn't refuel for free. In fact it cost considerably more than refueling at a station. IT was expensive and I definitely didn't see it as an exploit. Perhaps doing it a couple of times was considerably less than a scoop - I don't know how much scoops cost.

But free it was not 

[SirAndrewD]

But you didn't refuel for free. In fact it cost considerably more than refueling at a station. IT was expensive and I definitely didn't see it as an exploit. Perhaps doing it a couple of times was considerably less than a scoop - I don't know how much scoops cost.

But free it was not 

Scoops are pretty cheap.  A low tier one is 300 credits, although it would take you forever to refuel with one. 

I never ran out of fuel so I don't know.  It is pretty well impossible to run out of fuel with any mid range scoop in the 30k-50k price range.  If you're doing a lot of jumping, that pays for itself.

[JudgeDredd]

lol

I can't get 30 to 50k to buy a ship let alone decent kit for it. I had to sell my Eagle to get a Hauler. Then I had to get rid of weapons and shields to get a mining laser and a single refinery!

With the mining laser and refinery and an hour, I'll make 2-4k credits depending on what crap I pick up. That's my world.

As for running out of fuel, it's my lack of understanding of the galaxy system and the jump abilities of the ship I'm in. I often find I've jumped to a couple of systems where there's nothing and BAM...out of fuel. That was in BETA...hasn't happened in GAMMA, though I was close (unless it has happened once in GAMMA and I just can't remember!)

[republic]

I've converted from a bounty runner to a space trucker.  Using some of the trading tools like this one:  http://elitetradingtool.co.uk/ I've finally started turning a worthwhile profit.  I really wish they'd add some benefit to running with a group, it'd be neat to run a convoy with escorts etc.

Really all they'd need is a group wallet, let everyone pool their money or buy 'shares'.  Whatever profit made gets divided evenly.  Maybe then we'd then see something akin to the Spanish gold fleets.

[SirAndrewD]

lol

I can't get 30 to 50k to buy a ship let alone decent kit for it. I had to sell my Eagle to get a Hauler. Then I had to get rid of weapons and shields to get a mining laser and a single refinery!

With the mining laser and refinery and an hour, I'll make 2-4k credits depending on what crap I pick up. That's my world.

As for running out of fuel, it's my lack of understanding of the galaxy system and the jump abilities of the ship I'm in. I often find I've jumped to a couple of systems where there's nothing and BAM...out of fuel. That was in BETA...hasn't happened in GAMMA, though I was close (unless it has happened once in GAMMA and I just can't remember!)

I hate mining.  Bounty hunting is insanely more fun and profitable.  Trading is insanely more profitable, and probably just as high (actually higher) on the fun scale when you get the hang of it. 

I'd suggest possibly relocating to The Founder's World on Shinrarta Dezhra if you haven't already.  As a Beta backer you'll have a permit to go.  At Jameson Memorial terminal, you get a discount on all ships and all ship components, and the Shinrarta Dezhra system is located in a very prime sector of space for trading.  There's always a good 15-30k fetch mission available, and they can typically be fulfilled by a short trip to nearby stars like Nuenets and Buda, both reachable in one jump on a low end FSD in a Hauler. 

For extra range, strip your Hauler of weapons, and if you dare, shields.  You won't last long in a fight anyway, and it decreases your insurance costs if you do get popped. 

Try to upgrade to an Adder asap.  It's a great multipurpose ship with good firepower, great maneuverability and good range.  It's essentially a baby Cobra, and has the same utility on a smaller scale.  You can even bounty hunt in the Adder, and you'll find good pickings in the Founders World system.  Lots of random Sidewinders, Eagles and Haulers with 2-4k bounties that can fund expansion. 

[mikeck]

I went with the viper and like Jarhead, was a bit taken back by the fuel cost. Takes a few hundred to fill the sidewinder but over $1500 to fill the viper. Not a great explorer. Anyhow, I wanted to keep 20k for insurance and cushion in case I came across a great trade deal...so I could only afford 2 multi cannons. A beam laser (for shields) and an upgrade power generator.

One thing I did notice is that my gimbaled multicannons often don't want to fire. Looking back, they are underneath the viper and farther back on the hull than one would think. For that reason I think it loses track of anything above the plane of the viper. Thinking of movie them to alea 3 and 4 (top of hull) since they are my main weapon

Found a great bounty hunting cheat/trick though. I head to a resource site and find a cobra that is wanted. I sit back and wait for the Feds to attack it. Once they have it weakened, I accelerate in and unload on it keeping the bounty. Taking down cobra shields is tough so why not let someone else do it?

My multi-cannons are mounted on the top of the hull. They definitely work great up there.

I'm torn between beam lasers or burst lasers. Right now I have two pulse lasers which just don't seem to be deadly enough for me. I'm afraid beam lasers will eat through power too fast. Which power generator did you upgrade to and do you really notice a difference?

I don't remember the details of the generator as I am at work...BUT, I bought on that is a bit lighter than the stock power generator and adds 1 more MW of power. I went from 9 to 10. I use a beam laser and multi cannons. Of course the beams overheat every few seconds but when I am running fast In combat, the ship never gets close to getting to hot. So yes, I have noticed a difference but don't need it at this point. I am anticipating adding some toys (extra shields, warrant scanner, etc) and I want to make sure I have the power.

the only thing that helps the lasers recharge is putting pips into weapons. Not sure if the generator has an impact on the "power" of each pip.

Generally, I use the beam laser to take out the shields and then the multicannons