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Author Topic: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?  (Read 4362 times)

Akogishi

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Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« on: September 19, 2020, 06:37:47 AM »

Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early/mid game? Or, does the game force the player to progress with fleet side and higher tier ships/equipment.

I want to just junk around with a small clunker fleet taking on on tier missions/bounties. Is this possible?
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Igncom1

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #1 on: September 19, 2020, 06:40:56 AM »

Yes, the game will never force you to build up a big fleet.

There may come times during various pirate attacks that it becomes harder to operate in certain places but otherwise you can operate with a small fleet for as long as you like.
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Thaago

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #2 on: September 19, 2020, 07:07:18 AM »

I'd say the current structure of named makes it a bit difficult to keep bounty hunting small targets. After a few are done the majority will increase in size, leaving only 1 or 2 targets per few months. That said, system bounties will keep happening and those are good sources of either small enemy fleets or fleet battles between 2 factions which you can join in on for a payout.
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Daynen

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #3 on: September 19, 2020, 09:02:21 AM »

Yeah, nothing stops you from keeping your fleet small or even a single ship; the game just doesn't really lead you to a lot of places where that's a better choice, nor does it create situations where you'd actually want to do so.  It does make it easier to pick your battles by giving you disengage options though.
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Akogishi

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #4 on: September 19, 2020, 11:04:56 AM »

Cool, thank you for the replies. I'm just looking to derp around with low level fleet for now.
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SCC

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #5 on: September 19, 2020, 12:01:04 PM »

As far as I know, trading doesn't force you to get bigger. Exploring can be done at any fleet size, so long it fits a tanker or two. Fighting personal bounties scales with bounties completed, so after some time it will become unviable, but system bounties don't scale. Owning a colony, though, is not really viable without a big fleet to defend it.

Locklave

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #6 on: September 23, 2020, 03:41:33 AM »

Low tier meaning Junk ships like Venture? No.

Low tier meaning low tech ships like Onslaught? Yes.
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DubTre6

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #7 on: September 23, 2020, 09:48:40 AM »

Low tier meaning Junk ships like Venture? No.

Low tier meaning low tech ships like Onslaught? Yes.

Not knowing about the super secret Venture meta  :P
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Serenitis

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #8 on: September 24, 2020, 04:01:52 AM »

I'm just looking to derp around with low level fleet for now.
Might I suggest going exploring?
Specifically hunting for ruins and salvage. Most of the stuff you find you'll be tossing overboard because you just won't have the room for it.
But there any many things you can find that only take up 1 space, and are worth several hundred thousand credits. Each.
With a small fleet, supplies and fuel should be a non-issue as you'll likely find more than enough to keep you going.
All you really need is whatever fleet you have now, plus a couple of small tankers. And a few Sheps to both carry extra supplies, and reduce survey costs for uncovering ruins.
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MajorTheRed

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #9 on: September 24, 2020, 06:53:40 AM »

In a way, exploration is easier at low tier-kind of play. Faster, easier to go undetected... Just use a small fleet with most ships with dual role like combat freighter (Wayfarer, Cerberus...) or exploration freighter (Buffalo + survey package) to maximize your ships. It will get easier with each new hullmod blueprint, officer and exotic weapon you will discover. I play this way in most of my new games. Even a Wayfarer or Cerberus  can be quite daunting once leaded by a lvl 10 officer and equipped with railguns, harpoons and better shield.

This kind of play is also useful for smuggling/pirate/corsair kind of game, or with a small but elite force of destroyer looking for bounties in the Core world.

A last tip when doing exploration with small fleets: get a piece of paper near you to write interesting stuff you find in specific system but you can't or don't want to salvage right now.
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Akogishi

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #10 on: September 29, 2020, 06:22:31 PM »

An update...

To clarify what I meant by "low tier early game", I was thinking of maintaining a small fleet mostly composed of frigates, a destroyer, and a few support ships. It has expanded a bit beyond my initial plan. Obviously it was limiting and required me to pick battles and to "sneak around" to avoid engagements with larger fleets.

The responses have pretty much summed up what I have been doing. I started with a Wolf and Shepherd. From there I worked on some system bounties. Then I took some missions transporting goods. Followed by some more system bounties. This led to a profiteering hustle which involved selling goods to a pirate station and then fighting them in the same system because of course they were raiding and there was a system bounty. This involved some sneaking around a bit to get the station to sell the goods. A couple of times I was caught wiped (thank you oh lord of the save scum). Eventually this ended when I was locked out of the station for engaging and destroying a fleet too close to the station. The reputation hit for failing the mission was not a problem as the faction relation with the pirates was already at 'vengeful'. Not a big loss. Moved to another system with an abandoned station where I started stockpiling weapons and items. Took on a few more system bounties and defended a neutral station from raiding pirates. By this time my account is full of credits, almost 2 million cr. Maybe chump change to some but for me and my officers, we were rolling. It was at this time I saw a pristine Medusa at market and did not buy it. After which I bought another Buffalo and a few more Shepherds and tried my luck at exploring.

My fleet for most of this has been made up of four (4) Wolfs, two (2) SO Hammerheads (1 D-mod), a Shepherd, D-Mod Buffalo, and a Mule. The main combat force has been the Wolfs and Hammerheads. Off and on I have also tried to use two (2) additional escort kitted Wolfs (Wolves?) and a Condor with two (2) Wasp wings. The primary reason for this was to counter other fighters as none of my combat ships used PD. Over the course of this play through, I have scummed a few times when wiped or caught off guard by something I was unaware of (kited into fighting a station by a smallish fleet...). But overall have only lost a few Wolf ships and the Condor went down once too. I am not a fan of that brick.

Ambition creep appears to be setting in. I want to own a colony. I think I am going to need a larger stronger fleet if my colony gets too big. With that said, I have a few questions. Can I establish a colony and install a few upgrades to get it operational (producing raw materials, I guess?) and it be viable. By viable, I mean somewhat profitable?

I also want to attack some of these stations that are raiding some of these systems. I tried once and quickly realized I was not strong enough to even think about attacking it. So I put that off. I am assuming I am going to need a cruiser, two?

BTW, I pilot one of the Wolf ships. Ion Pulsar, Ion Cannon, and (2) Atropos-class Torpedo Racks. Hull mods include Hardened Subsystems and Expanded Missile Rack.
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Megas

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #11 on: September 29, 2020, 07:19:17 PM »

Once you build a colony, you will need a way to deal with three-at-a-time capital spam expedition fleets that will attack your colonies eventually.  (They do not start so big, probably a single fleet about 150k-200k bounty strength, but will build up to 300+k x3 strength.)

Expedition fleets eventually become stronger than factions' system defense fleets.  If you can defeat the huge expeditions that invade your systems, you are more than powerful enough to destroy their star fortresses then sat bomb all of their worlds until they all die.

As for colony building, you have time to build one structure/industry before pirates try to raid it.  The first thing to build is an orbital station so that it can back your fleet up.  Next, build patrol HQ so that your fleets can claim your system's relays (if the enemy steals them) while you are away.  Then build an industry or some ground defenses.
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Gothars

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #12 on: September 29, 2020, 11:46:56 PM »

Once you build a colony, you will need a way to deal with three-at-a-time capital spam expedition fleets that will attack your colonies eventually.

Factions only send fleets when you compete with their industries, don't they? I had smaller waypoint/techmining outpost sit undisturbed by all but some pirates.
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Megas

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #13 on: September 30, 2020, 06:48:08 AM »

Factions only send fleets when you compete with their industries, don't they? I had smaller waypoint/techmining outpost sit undisturbed by all but some pirates.
Yes, which is a very low bar, especially when your colony grows bigger.  Just about everything that produces profitable exports competes with their industries.  The only export commodity producing industry that did not send expeditions at my colony when it is small was Farming.  I had Tri-Tachyon go after early colony with Mining (on planet with high ores), and League/Diktat with everything else, especially from Fuel Production and Heavy Industry.

Tech mining does not produce commodity exports, and is safe.  (In the previous release when it did produce exports, it brought down the wrath of Diktat/League.)

Waystation is a mere structure.
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Akogishi

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Re: Can players choose to endlessly play low tier early game?
« Reply #14 on: September 30, 2020, 07:08:31 AM »

Will they attack even with friendly relations?
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