All the clues are on the F7 screen when you dock. You must read it when you arrive at the destination you've been sent to. Mission stage and status etc should also be given on the F5 screen. You might want to keep a saved game at each stage of the hunt, in case you lose the scent.
Good Hunting.
The Grey Haired Commander has spoken!
OK so I'm a PC user - "you know whats scary? Out of billions of sperm I was the fastest"
i had the same prob, arrive and no clues at all, even after a couple of jumps. ended up cheating a bit by getting the name of the first planet and going there, and the F7 gave the new clue when i jumped into the system.
if you're wanting to take the Constrictor out yourself, if you have the Pirate Coves OXP loaded i'd recommend taking it out - i found every time i jumped in, she'd been ambushed and was destroyed before i could find her.
and another time, she did that "full burn" tactic, ramming me dead - i REALLY hope that gets taken out a future release. next time in she was streaking around for almost a full minute before it appeared her tanks dried up. most vexing.
I tend to agree with KW re the combat with the Constrictor, in other versions I've played, he's been very agile, pretty damn quick, and shields like a rhino hide. To take him out in a dogfight was really hard work, and gave you wrist ache! but when you did get him eventually........a real adrenelin rush. I would prefer the constrictor mission in Oolite to be more like that, it's a bit hit and miss and more luck than judgement and skill sometimes.
The Grey Haired Commander has spoken!
OK so I'm a PC user - "you know whats scary? Out of billions of sperm I was the fastest"
IIRC when I did the mission the train went cold on entering Galaxy 2. I picked it up again by deciding on a methodical search pattern and sticking to it until I came across a clue.
BTW I can still see Cos's spoiler in the first post - can you edit it please?
For those completely lost with this mission, there is a small OXP adding extra hints around at the time when most lose the trail.
Called Contrictor_morehints.oxp or somesuch.
What I cannot understand ist the first message screen you get when the constrictor mission begins. It says there: "The ship you see here is a new model ... blablabla"
I think the "see here" means that it is displayed behind the message text, like the cobra in the splashscreen. But it isnt. Is it a Bug or ... ?
I would find it logical to _see_ what I should search for.
If the mission triggers whilst you are docked, then the command works and you see a rotating model of the Constrictor behind the text giving you the mission briefing.
However, if the mission triggers on docking then although the text appears for some reason Oolite does not show the model.
Found this out whilst testing Asteroid Storm.oxp. If I load a commander saved at the planet where the mission happens, then a model of an Asteroid is shown behind the mission briefing. If however I load a commander and then fly to the system and dock, no ship model comes up.
OXPS : The Assassins Guild, Asteroid Storm, The Bank of the Black Monks, Random Hits, The Galactic Almanac, Renegade Pirates can be downloaded from the Elite Wiki here.
I've actually seen this happen when one is docked as normal. Whilst I;ve been testing the new dream team models, I made a commander ranked Deadly, and the mission trigers every time. If I'm in the shipyard screens when the mission information appears then the rotating ship isn't there.
if I'm just in the main screen or the maps, it seems to work fine.
Think that is the oddity. The commander you loaded had enough kills to trigger the mission. So on loading Oolite scans the script, the mission triggers and the ship model is shown. But if your commander didn't have enough kills so you launched, shot a few ships and docked, then the mission triggered no ship model comes up.
OXPS : The Assassins Guild, Asteroid Storm, The Bank of the Black Monks, Random Hits, The Galactic Almanac, Renegade Pirates can be downloaded from the Elite Wiki here.