Decent Pirating

[alance]

A real trader would protect his cargo since he has a contract with the person he's moving the cargo for.

That all depends on whether the Trader is a speculator plying the trade lanes on a whim, or Allied Trucking hauling goods for someone else. Depends on that trader's RP.

I agree about the human cargo though, definitely something you should be allowed to risk. Then again, if everyone RP'd human cargo as an automatic pay-out to pirates, we'd see every pirate hanging out in Bering, or no traders hauling passengers anymore.

I've still never seen a pirate ask for cargo rather than $$. I've done it several times as a pirate/junker, seems like others might try to RP that way rather than just looking to line their pockets with cash.

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"To gain a hundred victories in a hundred battles is not the highest excellence;
to subjugate the enemy's army without doing battle is the highest of excellence."

[Lohingren]

i also agree with morrigan, i don't think human passengers should be classed as a INSTANT yes to tax, as i said on another thread i like taxing for the hunt not the profit making em instantly saying yes would just be God dang boring. but then again i don't think traders should all be doing the same route. and if they are doing it they should be doing it together in a convoy with fighter and GB support, so they don't need to say instantly yes i shall pay.

so in ways if they're doing it alone and get taxed its they're own fault i think they deserve it

because lets face it who in they're right mind would dive into a Transport that is going through hostile territory in this case pretty much every system you come across can hold danger's. i personally wouldn't be going near a rig with no friendly support covering my back.

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Reapers of Sirius Database

[Monk]

I rarely get pirated. Why? Because I RP. Huh, how? Well any smart freelancer trader would use his long range scanners to pinpoint pirate activity and then plots the most profitable trades around those hot spots. And, when I do encounter a pirate I always at least try to bargain. I am a business man after all and I want to take the least damage to my equipment and cargo while shelling out the least cash. Trading can be boring folks so why not get into to it by RPing.

I've talked down a pirate from 2mil to 500k based on the value of what I was hauling. It doesn't always work but isn't playing online about interacting with others? Just a thought.

[Archelon]

That all depends on whether the Trader is a speculator plying the trade lanes on a whim, or Allied Trucking hauling goods for someone else. Depends on that trader's RP.

I agree about the human cargo though, definitely something you should be allowed to risk. Then again, if everyone RP'd human cargo as an automatic pay-out to pirates, we'd see every pirate hanging out in Bering, or no traders hauling passengers anymore.

I've still never seen a pirate ask for cargo rather than $$. I've done it several times as a pirate/junker, seems like others might try to RP that way rather than just looking to line their pockets with cash.

But you at least get my point.

I don't expect a 100% guarantee for payment because someone is carrying passengers. The most profitable route is Cambridge / Theta. Interesting the traders don't seem to have trouble with Corsairs and Red Hessians on that route. Probably because they get their rep good with Corsairs and Red Hessians before taking on that route. Especially since Omega 5 and Omega 41 are heavily populated with Corsairs. But the traders never seem to get shot at by these NPCs. What's the RP reason for every trader being friendly with Corsairs. Not to mention some Corsair PCs I've encountered who protect traders in Omega 41.

Now, what I do expect is the traders to be real about this. They've gotta expect pirates to hang out where the most lucrative trade routes are. This is because there's usually more trader activity (more targets) and the traders on these routes can generally pay the demands we ask. I would hope the traders would think more about protecting their cargo as being just as important as protecting their cash. A destroyed trading vessel should be considered worse than paying a pirate. But I hear too many traders say, "I'd rather die than pay a pirate." Come on, like your passengers would agree this. You'd likely have the passengers rioting aboard your ship trying to tell you to give into the pirates demands so they can remain safe.

Morrigan ... once again, don't take one side of this argument. You wanna talk realism here, don't just concentrate on how a pirate pirates. Start getting these traders in line with realism. Stop being one sided.

[Unseelie]

another thing to add to achelon's post...
you lose more money by dieing...

so...why do we do it?

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[alance]

I play and support both sides Arch. I agree with a lot of things you say about piracy and trading, especially when it comes to crap like "i'd rather die than pay you". That's just horrible RP. But you know, most of those guys aren't flying trade ships for RP reasons, they're doing it solely to fund their capships or factions or system purchases.

They don't want to be interrupted or slowed in their money making and likely beileve you should get your own ****ing trade ship and stop bothering them. That mindset is tough to break when they can't or won't look beyond the need to fund their "real" characters in favor of RPing the tradeship they're flying.

I'll condemn every one of those people's RP actions and motives; nobody would risk their 20mil ship for a 2mil tax if they don't have a really strong chance of escape. But, I also hope to see more variety in the pirates I meet when i'm trading, and that's not happening. So I argue for better RP and more self-examination of how we play, be we trader or pirate, arg! Plus I often get bored at work. :unsure:

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"To gain a hundred victories in a hundred battles is not the highest excellence;
to subjugate the enemy's army without doing battle is the highest of excellence."

[Raekur]

On the topic of piracy, what ships are a pirate allowed to use? Someone had mentioned that it was a gunboat fighter only but I was unable to locate this in the rules section.

[alance]

On the topic of piracy, what ships are a pirate allowed to use? Someone had mentioned that it was a gunboat fighter only but I was unable to locate this in the rules section.

The pirate ID says Fighter, Bomber, Freighter, or Gunboat. Generally the IDs tell you what class ships you can fly.

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"To gain a hundred victories in a hundred battles is not the highest excellence;
to subjugate the enemy's army without doing battle is the highest of excellence."

[Archelon]

I play and support both sides Arch. I agree with a lot of things you say about piracy and trading, especially when it comes to crap like "i'd rather die than pay you". That's just horrible RP. But you know, most of those guys aren't flying trade ships for RP reasons, they're doing it solely to fund their capships or factions or system purchases.

They don't want to be interrupted or slowed in their money making and likely beileve you should get your own ****ing trade ship and stop bothering them. That mindset is tough to break when they can't or won't look beyond the need to fund their "real" characters in favor of RPing the tradeship they're flying.

I'll condemn every one of those people's RP actions and motives; nobody would risk their 20mil ship for a 2mil tax if they don't have a really strong chance of escape. But, I also hope to see more variety in the pirates I meet when i'm trading, and that's not happening. So I argue for better RP and more self-examination of how we play, be we trader or pirate, arg! Plus I often get bored at work. :unsure:

Morrigan ... YES - we are in total agreement on this. I think you've made your best points in this post.

These are the traders I have no mercy for - those who are trading for the sole purpose of getting that battleship. I've heard from these traders on several occasions, "just you wait till I get my battle cruiser, then you'll be sorry." Yeah - this is the trader I'm gonna hit on a daily basis. If you ask me, these type comments from a trader should be considered OOC and sanctionable.

Traders that trade for the sole purpose of trading in their Container Transport for a Battle Cruiser or whatever are definitely not here on this server for RP. Those traders that do so strictly to support a faction are more in line with RP so long as they act like a trader. There are many traders I do not pirate from because they are associated with factions friendly to mine or because they provide humanitarian aide to my people.

Keep in mind, Nayehiya is not strictly a pirate faction. Piracy is only one tool we use to help keep our people alive. We also conduct smuggling operations. We have even been known to run a rescue operation here and there. Oh yes, and we also have a Nomad License allowing us to participate in this trade (one of the few legal things we do).