In regards to piracy

[Capt. Henry Morgan]

Actually there is no rule about that you can pirate only ship with cargo or trader.

You can rob everyone you want. Just place the gun to the neck and demand. Simple.

You'd be amazed how many cap pilots are completely stunned when they get pulled over and told to pay up for passage.....

I've lost count of the number of Gunboats the Buccaneers have pirated, not to mention cruisers and the occasional Battleship. (yeah, we actually got a BS to pay 3 mil once after a pitched fight...)

Don't let the fact that it's not a transport hold you back from smacking it in the back of the head with a brick and going through it's wallet!

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Natio Octavarium
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[Govedo13]

Well,
I have only few things to say, please don?t speak about value at all in piracy.
For one new player 1 mill can be really much but for somebody with 400 mill in his bank its nothing.
Since the mining mod is introduced ,the pirates may hit a big transport full with ore in value around 70-85 mill, so demanding 50 or 60 mill tax must not be considered as OORP.
The most of the pirates may be don?t know the exact value of the traders goods,so if they ask more than the value of the goods selled at the end of the traders destination, the trader must try to explain in RP that he is asking really too much.
And about the halt or stop, it must be considered as a command, so if the trader don?t stop the pirate can start shooting at him,as a pirate it?s impossible to cut the line, RP nice in whole sentences , CD and pursue the trader at the same time. There is no RP at all when the traders try to run fast and remain silent .
The other important point is that if the pirate is really good he cannot even make the half of the credits made by the trader in one hour(I mean till now, now with the mining mode will see),so traders don?t be so frustrated when you are pirated,the pirate gain for sure less then you.For me being successful pirate means team work ,only one single bomber can easily go down, but 2 bombers 1 VHF 1 GB and Pirate transporter are really a powerful strike team, why the most of the traders fly alone? The most of them are too greedy to hire even a escort. So the pirating rules must be balanced in order to have nice encounters and fair game.
EDIT: The other not so funny thing is when you rob or kill a trader with name for example John Smith , to have in 5 min hunter or enemy cap with the same name chasing you, it is not a Role Play not at all.
:nyam:

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€œ

Official faction players that are often accused of elitism, never deploy them and have those weird, immersion killing "fair fight/dueling" suicidal hobbies. (yes, i've seen enough of those lolduels, where house military with overwhelming force on the field willingly loses a pilot in a duel. ffs.)

[Thurgret]

Only read that last post here, and I'd not respond except that you mentioned you yourself play a pirate...

Yes, a pirate asking for 50 or 60 million off an ore transport -is- excessive. Even if the transport has 70 million worth of ore, it's quite probable that that 70 million is to be divided amongst a few people for what may have been quite a considerable amount of time spent filling the transport. If you're going to cut those earnings down to something like 3 million per hour (by means of robbing the ore), they might as well just revert to conventional trading.

And before anyone posts 'get escorts', I'm just speaking about a situation in which a pirate does manage to catch an ore transport.

[Capt. Henry Morgan]

Bah! What's this crap about demanding 50 or 60 mil? Seriously? Has fair play deserted the community that greatly?

I'm telling you, the secret to making piracy enjoyable is to keep your demands reasonable. If you try to wring every credit out of a trader, then they're not going to cooperate with you at all. You make it so they can still make a reasonable profit, and many traders may be more willing to RP. Not all, of course, but that's why you bring friends to help you dispose of the more recalcitrant traders. I have never asked more than 2 million credits, even from a 5k supertransport, and my demands are usually a lot lower.

EDIT: Oh, and if the trader gets out of CD range, in the name of all that's great about Disco, don't go chasing them! You've already lost that payday, and you'll lose out on countless others while chasing John J. Powertrader all over the f'n system......

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Natio Octavarium
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[Canadianguy]

Bah! What's this crap about demanding 50 or 60 mil? Seriously? Has fair play deserted the community that greatly?

I'm telling you, the secret to making piracy enjoyable is to keep your demands reasonable. If you try to wring every credit out of a trader, then they're not going to cooperate with you at all. You make it so they can still make a reasonable profit, and many traders may be more willing to RP. Not all, of course, but that's why you bring friends to help you dispose of the more recalcitrant traders. I have never asked more than 2 million credits, even from a 5k supertransport, and my demands are usually a lot lower.

EDIT: Oh, and if the trader gets out of CD range, in the name of all that's great about Disco, don't go chasing them! You've already lost that payday, and you'll lose out on countless others while chasing John J. Powertrader all over the f'n system......

The thing about the 50-60 mil demands was about ore, but yes, while ore is very profitable, its still a bit much.
A nice let say 10-20% of cargo, which for 70 mils of ore is about 7-14 mils is well enough. And the trader will be much more collaborative.

And yes how much the trader will collaborate is often based on how much the pirate demands.

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[beunt]

I also find 60 or 70 M excessive, but nevertheless there is something true here. As a foreword, I'm a trader and I will talk about pirates vs traders. If you do not want to read all of the following, in short I'll try to show why pirates should raise their taxes, because paradoxically the whole economy and RP could benefit from it.

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Why all of this money ? Money is way too easy to earn, since it is purely virtual. I mean, the currency is not based on a finite amount of real resources like gold or platinium as RL economy (in theory) do : it is simply created out of nowhere when a trader sells its cargo. However there is no inflation, and although the market is flooded with more and more money its value never decreases. Like in a pre-1929 era, except that no market crash will occur in Disco.

Therefore, why should traders worry about piracy since their business never will be dramatically harmed ? Why would megacorporations engage economical war since there is enough money for everyone ? All in all, when everybody can successfully become rich to hundred of millions, do the money worth anything ?

IRL there are mecanisms preventing money to loose it's value, namely central banks. Basically they grab money out of the market and destroy it, so the value of the remaining money increases. Depending on the situation central banks raise or lower the taxes in order to keep the balance right. There is no central banks in Disco, but there is pirates. So let pirates raise or lower their taxes to keep the balance right, and in the current context I would say "raise".

If pirates raise taxes and money becomes harder to come by :

* players could not afford capital ships by themselves anymore, and only active factions could purchase one thanks to common share. This means less lonely lolwut flying BS bought by a single powertrader.
* pirates factions could have substancial incomes and could play full-time pirate RP instead of relying on secondary powertrader characters.
* escort jobs for freelancers/mercs will eventuallly be more interesting since the threat justify such an investment.
* same argument for the police forces.


Now there are still open issues... if pirates regulate traders incomes, who will regulate the pirates ? However Disco economy is another subject.

To summary, taxes up to 30 M for the richests players are harsch but fair, if they were too cheap to hire an escort for 5 M.

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[Elsdragon]

Let me get this straight, and I shall reply, in quotepain

it is simply created out of nowhere when a trader sells its cargo. However there is no inflation, and although the market is flooded with more and more money its value never decreases. Like in a pre-1929 era, except that no market crash will occur in Disco.

Not IRP, and If you dont think there is INflation, Check Vanilla Prices, to Todays Prices. A Market crash will occur when xoria says it will.

Therefore, why should traders worry about piracy since their business never will be dramatically harmed ? Why would megacorporations engage economical war since there is enough money for everyone ? All in all, when everybody can successfully become rich to hundred of millions, do the money worth anything ?

Bussiness IS dramatically harmed by even a single piracy. Tacking a new, Average trade route, and the new " 5 Mil ar die" you just lost half your money on that leg. THere is not enough money for everyone, Just ask the billions of destitute Men in liberty.

IRL there are mecanisms preventing money to loose it's value, namely central banks. Basically they grab money out of the market and destroy it, so the value of the remaining money increases. Depending on the situation central banks raise or lower the taxes in order to keep the balance right. There is no central banks in Disco, but there is pirates. So let pirates raise or lower their taxes to keep the balance right, and in the current context I would say "raise".

If pirates raise taxes and money becomes harder to come by :

* players could not afford capitol ship by themselves anymore, and only active factions could purchase one thanks to common share. This means less lonely lolwut flying BS bought by a single powertrader.
* pirates factions could have substancial incomes and could play full-time pirate RP instead of relying on secondary powertrader characters.
* escort jobs for freelancers/mercs will eventuallly be more interesting since the threat justify such an investment.
* same argument for the police forces.

1) Only powertraders would have caps, as they afre the ones who prefer to trade, and not RP. THis means more Lolwhut BS's.
2) PIrate Factions DO have substantail Incomes. Just ask the LH, the buy Spyglasses with their piracy money.
3) " HALT % MIL AR DIE" " NO U" *Pirate ignore escorts to explode the transport before it can escape* "LOL!'
4) Police dont get paid.

Now there are still open issues... if pirates regulate traders incomes, who will regulate the pirates ? However Disco economy is another subject.

To summary, taxes up to 30 M for the richests players are harsch but fair, if they were too cheap to hire an escort for 5 M.

Pirates are not there to regulate the economy, and they have no regulation. Furthermore, If you charge 30 Million, Not only will they not pay, But you would get a dozen bounties out of spite. And their arent escorts around when you need them.

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No longer a slave to the man!

[beunt]

You are talking about RP when I'm talking about gameplay. My point is that today the only reasons when a trader loose money is when buying a new ship, buying influence, of paying contribution to their faction. There is absolutely no bad beat and the route to wealth is straight, and rather monotonous. I even enjoy to be pirated because it brings RP but no real danger, neither for my character's life nor his bank account.

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[Michaelis105]

Bah! What's this crap about demanding 50 or 60 mil? Seriously? Has fair play deserted the community that greatly?

I'm telling you, the secret to making piracy enjoyable is to keep your demands reasonable. If you try to wring every credit out of a trader, then they're not going to cooperate with you at all. You make it so they can still make a reasonable profit, and many traders may be more willing to RP. Not all, of course, but that's why you bring friends to help you dispose of the more recalcitrant traders. I have never asked more than 2 million credits, even from a 5k supertransport, and my demands are usually a lot lower.

EDIT: Oh, and if the trader gets out of CD range, in the name of all that's great about Disco, don't go chasing them! You've already lost that payday, and you'll lose out on countless others while chasing John J. Powertrader all over the f'n system......

Agreed, I've met pirates who were completely unreasonable people. If I remember, I was selling 1.8 mil worth of commodity, and on the way, a pirate demands 4.5 mil from me. I was like, what the heck? Then I told him, I'd be making, or actually, keeping more money if I refuse than give it up, but he didn't care.......luckily, Kusari police came in time to save me. (Thank you Kusari).

I am willing to RP (well, I mean, give up some of my profit for my survival and completed delivery, not getting pirated) if pirates are reasonable in demand. Yeah, it's either fair play just deserted the community or there are a few people who are just outright mean.

[Elsdragon]

Well, Roy, 30 Mil is an hour of trading. If you think Its fair play, at all, to lose mroe money than you make, its up to you. I do know , if anyone makes an exorbant demand, that they will get bountied, hunted, smashed, And otherwise made to change their tune.

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No longer a slave to the man!