Long time player and very experienced Trader here.
Ways to avoid Pirates.
Use your "Long Range Scanner" (chat screen). Check the next system you are going to for names that you recognize as Pirates.
ALWAYS fit a 'Discovery Scanner' as soon as you can afford it. That few extra K's make all the difference when trying to avoid Pirates.
Using the 'trade lanes' is all well and good, BUT, it is *so* easy for a Pirate to sit halfway up a lane and keep disrupting it. If you happen to be using that lane....
Mix it up a bit and cruise from one Gate to another, sure it's going to take you longer, but you may just avoid a Pirate.
The same thing goes for Gates. You don't have to use them and finding the right Jump Hole may cut a big chunk of travel time out of your route.
There are a few other tricks I have up my sleeve, but I need to keep a few to myself, I still have a Trader. :P
Note that I DO still get stopped by Pirates.
I don't mind the Pirates who ask for 1 or 2 million, when they do that I still have a chance of breaking even or maybe making a profit.
There are 'stupid' pirates out there though.
Like the pair that stopped me and wanted 3 million credits..... EACH. That's SIX MILLION folks.
The cargo I was carrying was going to get me maybe 1 million.
Obviously somewhere along the line one of them scanned my cargo, because their request was rapidly downgraded to 2 million....split 2 ways. That I paid. I was not a happy Trader though.
All I ask is that the Pirates out there make *reasonable* requests, as soon as a Pirate asks for more than 2-4 million, I know that I may as well just try and run for it or fight it out (and I have won a few of those fights.....just) because I'm not going to make any profit on that run, depending on what I am carrying.
