I've even registered =D
This game is great. And it's been developing in right directions so far, but…
The coming changes in skill system are a bad turn, as I see it. Let me explain. The feel of Starsector is always a feel of realism so far. About pirates, factions, player story development and skills. As in real life, when we need some skill – we lean it. We spend time grinding books about that exact staff and eventually we gain knowledge of “managing a settlement”. We do not lean metallurgy or waste recycling but how to manage a settlement to it not to starve and gain profit. And this is a great part about Starsector. I learn a skill that I need right now like I would in real life. When I start my game as mercenary in a wolf and plan hunting pirates, fighting factions - doing combat staff or just know, that I will fend of hostilities and not run, first skill points go to maneuverability and speed. I start in cruiser – I dump them in weaponry and armor to tank and kill faster. When I want to play early game as an explorer, I dump points in ability to save fuel and sensors. No, this time I play, as a trader, I learn wide fleet skill to make me faster to outrun all trouble. And this how game progresses. I learn what I need to make my stories. At a time I played a military hero who was fighting for others and decided to fall of and fight for himself, dump his last points in colony management and it was perfect that he had not to learn salvaging, he despised salvaging, he even killed those space graveyard robbers on sight. The free skill system is what makes half of role-play in Starsector and that you are about to kill with MMO like linear professions. At least I hope you make it possible for mod makers to revert such changes back, otherwise it will be a huge loss for a game.
As for “story points” as described, it's more like a cheat reward for gaining levels. In my opinion it must be about forging stories. You deliver food to a starving colony – you are a kind man, people heard of your deed, take 1 point. You deliver food to a starving faraway hostile colony – take many points, people think of you, as an “honorable man who cares about them”. You save a distress call, take your point. You answer a faction call to rescue an expedition fleet on the edge of the map god knows what from – fuel loss, supplies shortage, enemy blockade – you save them – take your points. Helping fend of raids gives you points. Helping raiding, committing atrocities earns you point (or even bad points that kicks in randomly to *** you up in return).
Story points must be about forging a story, making you do stuff, not hoard EXP. That way my upgraded Onslaught will feel like a part of story, earned for my deeds, bad or good. Not just another reward for grinding.
By the way, about evading scan bonus – it can be even better. You specialists use story point to forge same fake id for a certain faction (or all factions for many points). All patrols of that faction no longer bother you. But the length of the buff start degrading as you get in sensor range of a faction fleet. The more fleets you pass, the faster it expires (because high ranking officers start asking questions, they eat their bread not for cute eyes). You mast activate bonus out of sensor range of any ship and loose that bonus the same way, otherwise a standing hit with a faction that caught you. That would be awesome mechanic and fully explain all this cheaty smugglers lurking around.
EXP boost smells like some lootboxes or premium accounts, by the way. You reach level cap fast enough already, it will wind away all feel of progression. And if story points are exp-earned, it's better make them separate from level progressing, maybe story-exp amount based on difficulty of missions and battles.
I think that's it for my humble opinion. I truly love this game.