A Bit Of A...Shift...

[McNeo]

Juan, I am well aware of that, because I watched the news article. I actually meant around secure countries, and the main Ocean for shipping, the Atlantic.

Think of the political fallout of a Supertanker was attacked? When I said what I did, I meant it referring to the countries of this world that actually have the largest cargo haulage vessels in the world. Because that is what we are comparing to here. Supertanker = Adv Train/Heavy Tanker.

Last night, I hired a Freelancer to escort my IND trader 1 1/2 systems (sigma 13, sigma 19) whose name was muddy water. Reason is that I had nearly finished my route. Now, he had been looking for work, and at least three traders had said "no thanks". I found it fun to give him money to escort me, even it it was small. I felt sorry for the guy, to be honest.

Just a shout out for "MuddyWaters" because he's the Freelancer that was trying hard to get a job.

And Doom... If the Container transport had the gunboat killing loadout that is possible with 12 turrets, you may have had a run for your money. If the Luxury liner had a similar one, then you definatly would have been in trouble...

[pipsqueak]

And what will hiring escorts do for the NPCs?

Answer: Escorts generally have CM and when you jump in a system with two escorts, the NPCs have three targets to CD.

As far as cruise disruptors and trading is concerned. My take is as follows. So far discovery has been all about traders. All the huge Battleship flyers out there...guys... you know you made that money by trading, some times mindlessly. The BS can not be funded by mere fighters/Bombers/Gunboats.

Now look at the current sutuation. Freighters are afraid caause their cash cows are drying up.
There are still simple techniques to trade well. I will list a few to help those who think all is lost.

1. Hire a escort. If he is a good pilot, find a level 29 or lower. Have him run a trade lane ahead. Let him stop you from following him if he spots a pirate.

2. Avoid pattern trading. Change your route every one or two runs

3. Pirates are willing to provide passes. Buy em use em. Tell the pirates they need to provide support you in th systems you are running the trades.

4. Run with firepower support. Tough for 1 fighter to pirate you if a bomber is knocking up his tail pipe.

Yeah, as a trader this sux.....but really so far life has just become too lazey to be a trader. And the pattern of people starting out, getting a cash from a faction, trading their butts off and then buying a huge battleship is just crappy.

PEACE

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[Igiss]

Strange that this issue is brought up again. If you are not satisfied with lack of CM, go for a trading ship with cargo capacity less than 4000. If you wish more, hire escort, or face the danger. That simple.

[Doom]

And Doom... If the Container transport had the gunboat killing loadout that is possible with 12 turrets, you may have had a run for your money. If the Luxury liner had a similar one, then you definatly would have been in trouble...

i said they did..they were very well armed...and they had battleship as escort...
my point was...it didn't help them....they died just the same...

[frozen]

anyways, bottom line is, as a trader hire an escort, or pay the pirate. im sure paying them a mill or even 4 wont hurt your net balance.

okay, the cds may need to be sorted out, BUT. remember, a transport is not supposed to very strong, and not supposed to be flying around without sufficient backup in the first place.

that way, you can help the increasing number of jobless mercs earn a living, instead of flying about aimlessly doing nothing, or even begging for a job.;)

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[Drake]

Strange that this issue is brought up again. If you are not satisfied with lack of CM, go for a trading ship with cargo capacity less than 4000. If you wish more, hire escort, or face the danger. That simple.

One of the points raised is that the CMs are of barely any use currently. CDs are a bit too effective, and even the best CMs have very little chance against them. I don't think any of us are asking for the big transports to get CMs, we'd just like the CMs on the smaller transports to work reasonably well. That's why someone would fly a smaller transport in the first place.

[Sonja]

I don't think Counter Measures would work against Train Cruise distruptors, because of the high explosion range of the Train Cruise Distruptor.

Howabout, instead of a speed decrease, a rate of fire decrease for the Train CD launcher, leaving the others unchanged. This could work insofar as preventing lone pirates innundating transports with Train Cruise distruptors as their Counter Measures desperately try to deploy.

Seems better than reducing the effectiveness of the whole range of Cruise Distruptors, in my opinion. Besides, it may make the Mosquito be used more widely for PvP distruptions and mine traps.

[P*Funk]

I don't think Counter Measures would work against Train Cruise distruptors, because of the high explosion range of the Train Cruise Distruptor.

What does the explosive range have to do with it? The counter measure isn't attacking the warhead, but the guidance system. And it doesn't make sense to me that a more powerful warhead should be as fast as others, and the guidance system be as effective, if not more effective, than the others.

Game balance design has always been to nerf one advantage if maximizing another. The counter measure is supposed to do what they do in real life (for once in this game). It is meant to distract the guidance of the missile or torpedo and send it off on the wrong target. The problems of the CMs now is that A) the CD is far more effective, hence the new more effecitve, in theory anyway, CMs; B) that the CD is so fast that no matter the effectiveness of CMs that you can't throw them out fast enough to be effective in terms of percentage (you know 80% or 90% effective) and that those that do get out aren't far enough from the ship.

Realistically the larger wrahead should be easier to evade by the simple grace that it is more effective. Bigger boom means slower propulsion. That is blatantly true in the divide between torpedoes and missiles. CDs are a mini universe of missile and torpedo balance and the relative effectiveness of each should reflect this logical balance.

Besides, why should the train disruptor be impervious to CMs when the train isn't gonna have them? Isn't this just abuse of the weapon since the only people who are gonna have a chance to use CMs against the Train CD will NOT be trains? Hello people!

Last night, I hired a Freelancer to escort my IND trader 1 1/2 systems (sigma 13, sigma 19) whose name was muddy water. Reason is that I had nearly finished my route. Now, he had been looking for work, and at least three traders had said "no thanks". I found it fun to give him money to escort me, even it it was small. I felt sorry for the guy, to be honest.

Just a shout out for "MuddyWaters" because he's the Freelancer that was trying hard to get a job.

Hey! I hired that guy too! RepEx-Shipping|552 was ready to leave New Berlin on the Tokyo diamond run when a corsair comes into town. RepEx security is far away so I hire him to help assail this dastardly demon of doom. Then I get him to escort me with other RepEx security through the Sigmas on my way back to New Berlin. I gave him a bonus. He got paid 2 mil for defending New Berlin and another 1 mil for the escort home. Heh, he deserved it too since he only asked for 10% of my profits one way (6 mil or so). I said screw it and gave him the full million. Good guy. Definitely hire him.

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Out of hibernation. Gauging the winds.

[Maria.Fondevila]

I say leave the Train Disruptors as they are.

I just had a long chase (asked for 500.000 but he didn't want to pay:D) from Theta to Sigma 17 all the way down to New Berlin, trying to get his Advanced Train shields down with my Supernova and Paralyzer, trying to stop him with my Wasp (i know...) and trying to avoid the CDs the fleets of NPC bounty hunters / Rheinland ships fire at me and throw me out of cruise while the trader escapes...

Face it, without these Train Disruptors there is no chance of stopping a train whatsoever.

And how can I afford one if I don't even get 500.000 ?:P

[alance]

I say leave the Train Disruptors as they are.

I just had a long chase (asked for 500.000 but he didn't want to pay:D) from Theta to Sigma 17 all the way down to New Berlin, trying to get his Advanced Train shields down with my Supernova and Paralyzer, trying to stop him with my Wasp (i know...) and trying to avoid the CDs the fleets of NPC bounty hunters / Rheinland ships fire at me and throw me out of cruise while the trader escapes...

Face it, without these Train Disruptors there is no chance of stopping a train whatsoever.

Nobody asked to have the Train Disruptors removed. The request was to split the speed difference between 4.83 and 4.84beta4 so that CMs would have some chance of working. Adv. Train doesn't even have a CM so that point is moot.

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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."