There has been a change to how Crew Consumption works for all bases that have turned off this function via SRP. As a reminder, this is only available to Official Factions with Core 5 PoBs.
All "Core Crew", which is required to run bases normally, has had the FOW consumption turned off. They must remain on the base. Any additional Crew and Scientists needed to run any of the modules still require FOW upkeep.
So for a Core 5 with only a Hydroponics System installed, you'll only need to account for the 50 crew to keep alive as the 1,000 "Core Crew" will not need any attention. Realistically, this is only affecting a handful of PoBs (Those that are Core 5 with SRP'd FOW consumption removed). Still something to inform everyone about if any Official Factions are working towards similar SRP'd consumption removals.
This is how the system will remain until further notice. Also may be subject to change. . .
22nd Anniversary - Need for Speed Dublin, Pennsylvania, Provence, Shikoku. Racing Event Open participation
DATE & TIME
March 1st, 7:30 PM UTC (racing will be live right after patch)
OVERVIEW
To mark the 22nd Anniversary of Freelancer's release, Discovery has partnered with Regulancer to host a celebration event. A micropatch will be released shortly containing new racing mechanics. To explore how this new gear works, on the 1st we'll be hosting a racing tournament across Pennsylvania, Provence and Dublin.
Racing engines are special Light Fighter mounts that allow you to travel at the Ludicrous Speed of 1,000ms. They have near instantaneous charge times, and function like a temporary speed boost - they burn your power, and once it's depleted, you'll be forced out of cruise again. They also affect your thrusters, boosting your speed to approximately 600ms.
To make good use of this pair of mechanics, you'll need to engine kill and maneuver precisely to preserve your momentum and slide around tough corners. In addition, Aingar's magic means we now have FLHook supported racing that'll track your lap times and add waypoints to each ring. This also tracks the top times for each track using a local leaderboard. This functionality will expand further in the future.
Racing engines will be purchasable from:
Allentown Base, Pennsylvania.
Golden Dragon Casino, Shikoku.
Heisenberg Research Station, Cologne.
Monte Carlo Freeport, Provence.
Noshima Freeport, Shikoku.
Trafalgar Base, New London.
Valley Forge Station, Pennyslvania.
Waterloo Station, New London.
As we want everyone to be able to participate and this is a part of a wider pan-community event, roleplay requirements will be removed in proximity to the races. This is an opportunity to come together and have a good time, regardless of faction or ID. Staff will be hosting the event on the main Discord server's stage as well, with @TheKusaristreaming on Twitch. Please join us if you want to listen in to commentary!
DETAILS
Racing Overview
Staff "Umpires" will be located at the Valley Forge Proving Ground (Pennsylvania), Sayre Gauntlet (Pennsylvania), Shikoku Slalom (Shikoku), and Monte Carlo Tour (Provence) to host qualifying races. Races will be run with between five and ten participants, depending on the level of interest.
Ships that win a race will be eligible to participate in a final race at Dublin to find a champion.
Depending on how many qualifiers are run, this may involve multiple races as groups of qualifiers are narrowed down for a final race.
Betting, commentary and cheering is encouraged, and will in fact be incorporated into the mechanics down the line.
Racing Mechanics
Only staff hosted races count for qualifying, although you are welcome to use any down-time between official races to practice on your own.
To use some of the commands, you must select the first racing ring solar or one of the racers. This will display the track's name.
/race solo <lapCount> [raceNum] - immediately starts a solo race. Must have the first ring of the track selected. If there is more than 1 route for the track, specify the number.
/race host [raceNum] - host a race lobby. The host is also a racer. Must have the first ring of the track selected. If there is more than 1 route for the track, specify the number.
/race join [spectator] - joins the lobby of the targeted player (participants work as well as host) as racer(default) or spectator(if specified)
/race setlaps <lapCount> - sets the lap count for the race. Host only
/race start - begins the race. Host only
/race disband - disbands the lobby if the race hasn't started yet. Host only
/race withdraw - removes you from the race and forfeits your standing
/race status - prints real-time stats of the race (times, checkpoints), triggers automatically when the leading player finishes a lap.
/race info - prints info about the race (host name, loop count, participants)
Rule Changes:
All racers have unlimited respawns.
Interfering with ongoing races is forbidden.
PvP around the racetracks is forbidden during the event.
RP is not required around the racetracks during the event.
Temporary Jump Holes will be spawned to connect the racetracks during the event.
Rewards:
Custom Title
Requires participation in the event.
Racing ships & equipment
Racers who qualify for the finals will obtain a unique holo-roundel to mount on their ship.
The event champion will receive a unique champion holo-roundel to mount on their ship, and a news article featuring their character (staff discretion applies).
Quick announcement to let everyone know that we've created a Faction Leader Lounge on the main server and applied a new coloured role to 1iC's on the main community discord.
This is a private chat that can be used by OFLs to discuss among themselves, and freely consult with staff about regional development ideas, events and similar matters.
Access is only being granted to faction 1iCs (who can choose whether they want to participate or not). 2iCs or other delegates will not be granted access, so it's probably worthwhile for OFs to ensure their leader is actively invested in the game if they want to make use of the option.
For those thinking, "is this a return of the OFL Skype Chat / Story Working Groups?" Kind of, but not really. Previously these groups were considerably held back by a lack of proper moderation. We'll be adopting a zero-tolerance approach going forward; failing to participate courteously will result in loss of access altogether for that faction.
![[+]](/forums/images/collapse_collapsed.png "[+]")
Racing Commands