Smugglers - The Galactic Underworld & Black Markets

[Damocles Edge]

Version 1.4.0 is now available. In this release:

• Added primable equipment which allows cagro to be moved to the smuggling compartment during flight.

Can I ask if this equipment an integral part of the smuggling compartment or does it need to be bought as an extra (I am assuming from a rock hermit / free trade zone / space bar / salvage gang or other non-galcop location)?
BTW - can salvage gangs offer maintenance overhauls?

[phkb]

Can I ask if this equipment an integral part of the smuggling compartment

It should be, but I forgot to check if the player already has a compartment and add the equipment if so. At the moment (in v1.4.0), you'll only get the equipment if you buy a new smuggling compartment. I've fixed this in 1.4.1, which I'll release later today. is now available.

BTW - can salvage gangs offer maintenance overhauls?

Salvage gangs have an equivalent tech level of 8, so yes, you should be able to get an overhaul there. I can't vouch for the quality of said overhaul, though!

[Damocles Edge]

Just had something out of the ordinary occur whilst at a Rock Hermit in Cebior (Galaxy2).
Immediately after buying black market items (rock hermit locations and scanner settings) I received a message from Galcop (at a rock hermit ???) informing me that they had been monitoring my criminal activity and were now punishing me accordingly (wish I had taken a screen shot but didn't sorry).
The result being that I now have "offender" status and cannot dock to pay my fines and clear my name at the main station as there seems to be an armada of 6 or so vipers camped at the main station, preventing me from getting anywhere near (deja vu).

I am fighting the urge to fire on the police

Is there anyway that future versions of smugglers can allow fines for infringements to be paid at Rock Hermits / Salvage Gangs?
It just seems a tad unfair that I can be issued with a fine at Rock Hermits but not pay and that I have no way to proceed.
Or as an alternative is there a passive mode that can be employed when police approach - take weapons offline and have an auto broadcast to police and anyone else that you are simply reporting to station to pay your fines (having been a naughty lad). I can tie a white handkerchief to the nose of my boa if that helps?.

Any insight of wisdom or tips regarding this scenario if I am missing something greatly appreciated.

Cheers

[Damocles Edge]

Has anyone got any bee sting cream?

Just realised what wondrous things wiki pages age - especially if we read them properly (rather than a cursory glance as I did).
If I had.........
Then I might have been aware of the following "Please be aware that GalCop have been known to run sting operations at some Black Markets. If you are caught buying illegal information or goods through a Black Market while a sting operation is in place, you will be penalised. Pilots should take take to look for signs that a sting operation is in place before making use of the Black Market's services."
I should have seen this - although in my feeble defence, if there were signs then I clearly didn't see them.
Shoulda gone to specsavers

Ahh well, it's about time I used my escape capsule (think that's the only way I'll get to pay my fines)

[Cody]

Ahh well, it's about time I used my escape capsule (think that's the only way I'll get to pay my fines)

Misbehave, shoot-up the station, then dock without clearance, and get yourself sent for 'attitude adjustment' - that tends to clear most things.

[phkb]

if there were signs then I clearly didn't see them.

There are a couple of signs. Subtle ones, but definitely present.

As for how the penalty is applied, I have a couple of options here.
(1) I could give the player the chance to bribe their way out of trouble (which is a mechanic I'm using elsewhere, so I should apply it here as well)
(2) I could give the player the option of choosing either a hefty fine amount or the bounty increase. And as well offering the bribe opportunity.

What do you think?

(Update) Actually, I'm going ahead with both options: bribing, and choice of fine or offender status. That would cover everyone I think. The question is, how much of a monetary penalty should be paid? 10000cr? More? Less? Percentage of player's current balance? What do you think?

[Disembodied]

Actually, I'm going ahead with both options: bribing, and choice of fine or offender status. That would cover everyone I think. The question is, how much of a monetary penalty should be paid? 10000cr? More? Less? Percentage of player's current balance? What do you think?

I think any penalty should be based around the player's wealth and reputation, but maybe calculated differently depending on whether it's a fine or a bribe. The bribe should always be lower than the actual fine - otherwise, what's the point? Maybe the fine should be a percentage of the player's current balance, perhaps with a set minimum amount (so a player with C*150,000 might have to pay, say, C*30,000, but a player with C*15,000 might have to pay e.g. C*5,000). A bribe, though, might take these values and then knock off an amount based on the player's Elite rating … after all, no-one wants to make an enemy of someone with a Deadly rating!

I think there should be a small chance that bribes fail, though - either they turn out to be another sting operation, or the bribed officer doesn't/can't remove (all of?) the player's bounty. Either way, there would need to be some signal to the player that the deal had gone sour, otherwise it'll just look like a bug.

[Damocles Edge]

I think any penalty should be based around the player's wealth and reputation, but maybe calculated differently depending on whether it's a fine or a bribe. The bribe should always be lower than the actual fine - otherwise, what's the point? Maybe the fine should be a percentage of the player's current balance, perhaps with a set minimum amount (so a player with C*150,000 might have to pay, say, C*30,000, but a player with C*15,000 might have to pay e.g. C*5,000).

I'd better put a move on and get that fine paid before the next smugglers oxp update. With a deadly rating and just shy of 1.8 million credits (my dark rainbow fund) I hate to think what the fine would be
Anyone know if there is an off-shore funds oxp?
Actually that might not be a bad idea - if you were able to invest a large chunk of your balance in say commodities (via an extensive and ambiguous ownership train link for which you pay a fee).
It would keep your money safe from fines and the tax-man (how come nobody in oolite pays tax on their capital). You could make money on your investment (or lose it).
Michael Palin got it wrong all those years ago - I don't want to be a lion tamer, I want to be a chartered accountant
Getting back to some semblance of reality for a moment - I really do need to pay that fine

[Disembodied]

Perhaps there could be an upper limit on any fines/bribes, too …

I wonder if the chance of a bribe being available should depend on the government level of the system? It might be common practice in Anarchy systems, and progressively less likely (and possibly more expensive: the bribed official is having to do more work, and take larger risks) as the government levels increase.

In fact, the amount the player has to pay in fines and bribes could vary depending on the wealth of the system, too. A fine or bribe could be much, much more expensive on e.g. Ceesxe (Production: 56320 MCr) than it would on Maesin (Production: 768 MCr).

[Cody]

In fact, the amount the player has to pay in fines and bribes could vary depending on the wealth of the system, too.

This is how it works in RL - the poorer the country, the lower the bribe/fine.
It might not even be cash - I once used my camera as a bribe.

[Commander_X]

[...] I once used my camera as a bribe.

Hah, I sincerely hope it was either a brand new (boxed) one, or a cheap Polaroid. Otherwise expect an "ExCameraRevenge" site to haunt you until the end of the Internet

[Damocles Edge]

Too many questions buzzing around in my head now after hearing that a camera was used as a bribe....
On a slightly related thought...

I managed to make it to the Galcop station courtesy of some very rapid flying and illegal docking, only to find that the fine is only payable 14 days after I leave the system (why can't we have on the spot fines?)
So I will be restricted to using only rock hermits for quite some time.
This makes me think of 2 points concerning one of the main points of smugglers which is to make Rock Hermits the resource docking point for people have chosen not to be squeaky clean.

1. A better choice of equipment needs to be available at non galcop locations and more crucially the ability to have existing equipment repaired and maintained when not at galcop locations.
2. Would it be possible to have a memory module available for purchase which integrates with the compass to store the locations of non galcop dock locations that you have visited and be able to use them with the space compass (the same way that black market bought rock hermit locations are). So you have a choice of paying for black market info or finding rock hermit locations for yourself and storing them to enable revisiting in future.
This would give offender / fugitives a more viable chance of continuing to operate, as at present the bias is aimed towards keeping low and out of sight until such time that you can make a desperate dock to pay fines and get back to being clean.

Anyone else think this - or is it just me?

[Damocles Edge]

Just an update on my observations since my previous whine concerning fines (the timescale and how they are paid).
I have to to revise my initial observations concerning fines. My current misdemeanour currently has 6 days left before I can return and pay (this started out at 18 days).
During this time I have largely kept away from main stations (the few that I have docked at involved injecting at high speed and a 5k fine for docking without permission). I have largely kept to rock hermits (where I could find them) meaning that my cargo revenue plummeted, encounters with criminal elements and bounty hunters have meant that my repairs have shot up as I'm often too beat up to rely on my ships self repair system (I now seem to be losing money rather than gaining capital).

But all that said - I HAVE REALLY ENJOYED IT. It has forced me to play in ways that are not the norm for me - keeping the game fresh and interesting - I guess my dream Dark Rainbow will have to wait longer. I may also try removing multiple lasers to change game balance a tad (the front quad rimmer ace lasers on my Boa CC overheat at a frighting speed)
Can I ask a couple of questions please? (and please accept my apologies if these points have already been raised).

1. On a number of occasions my smuggling compartment which was at level 3 has become damaged - once it has been repaired (usually via the self repair oxp) I have found that the level of my smuggling compartment drops back to 1 - is this intended?

2. It seems odd to me that smuggling compartments can be bought at galcop stations - who if they later find it then prosecute you and remove the work which they sold and installed to you
Would it be more in keeping with the theme of the oxp if smuggling compartments were not available at Galcop locations?

Thanks again for this great oxp and keep up the sterling work

[phkb]

I HAVE REALLY ENJOYED IT.

That is such good news! I'm so glad you're having fun with these packs.

My current misdemeanour currently has 6 days left before I can return and pay (this started out at 18 days).

Just for clarity, this behaviour is part of the  Bounty System OXP, not Smugglers specifically. Smugglers may slap you with a fine if you get caught, but the Bounty System is the one that holds onto your offender status and limiting your payment options rather than letting it degrade as the core game allows it to.

1. On a number of occasions my smuggling compartment which was at level 3 has become damaged - once it has been repaired (usually via the self repair oxp) I have found that the level of my smuggling compartment drops back to 1 - is this intended?

Hmm - that seems odd. The level of the compartment shouldn't be affected by the damage/repair cycle. I'll check it out.

2. It seems odd to me that smuggling compartments can be bought at galcop stations

That also seems odd. I thought I'd prevented it from being bought at GalCop-aligned stations. I did a quick test and confirmed that (at least on my setup) this is working as intended. Is the GalCop station you're docked at one of the core, default ones, or an OXP station? If it's the latter, and it's the main station, there might be a problem with how I'm working out the allegiance of the station. Anyway, if you can let me know what type of station it is, that will help me track down what's going on.

Anyway, I'm so glad you're enjoying these OXP's, and thanks for reporting these issues. I've got a new version of Smugglers in the works, and I'm hoping to get a release out later today, if things go well.

[phkb]

OK, version 1.5.0 has been released. In this version:

• Added new options for when player is caught in a sting operation: pay a fine amount, accept a legal penalty, or attempt to bribe their way out of trouble.
• System productivity now has an influence on the amount you need to offer when bribing officials.
• Calculation of the maximum smuggling compartment size now factors in current smuggling compartment size so all downgrade options are available (not just the ones that would fix in the current available space).
• Fixed damage/repair process.
• Fixed issue with smuggling compartment damage resetting the tech level of the compartment.
• Fixed incorrect description lookup key.
• Improved integration with the "Escape Pod Tweaks" OXP.
• Code cleanup.