Why is it that Traders should fly in packs, rather than pirates? Thats simply pirate bias, and nothing more.
The suggestion that on a 200 player server, with a map and wealth of systems the size that we have, that Capships or transports, or anyone else, for that matter, should fly in groups or with escorts ignores the fact that we simply don't have enough people to do that even most of the time. Hence why Bombers and GBs are so prevalent for piracy: Lone pirates can successfully (pretty much 100% of the time) pirate in them, and if you can't find a friend (face it, a lot of the time you cannot) then that's paramount.
The lesson is, Transports lose every fight. And you're telling me that I, as a transport captian, don't deserve a chance at coming out of a pirate encounter on the winning side? Lets recap: I'm flying a big, heavy ship, on long, drudgerous voyages, Pointing and clicking my way into cash which feeds piracy, feeds factions, buys new players full loads of cargoes, or buys people who've lost everything back into the game. It gets sucked up by admins into Faction proposals, drawn off into development, and squandered anytime anyone wants to switch ships. The credits I earn fund all of these operations, they buy the pirate's ships and guns, they feed their children, in the rp, and they bleed into bounties and merc jobs. Sure, I get a good measure of fun out of the rp itself, but these ships are not particluarly great. They're frustrating in any sort of PVP encounter, and its a PVP game. And you're telling me I deserve that? That its "fine, really" And asking me to believe that? You're full of it.
