Oolite Bulletins

Just a spitballing idea, nothing more:

So you've successfully ejected your pod and made it back to the station. A Tech 1 agricultural world. And yet you still get a replacement Fer de Lance with all the possible extras. Seems a bit unlikely.

I know you could explain it narratively by saying it was shipped to the planet you're on from wherever, but what about this as an option: You're given a replacement ship plus whatever extras you had that that world is capable of producing. The rest is provided to you in credit and it's up to you to go to a higher tech world to get it replaced.

Alternatively, you could be given a list of ships. At the top is your exact same ship (fitted out as close as possible) and underneath whatever else is available in the showroom, in case you felt like trading up (or down).

I like it. Maybe your next escape pod could cost more as well. Or you could be "encouraged" to take a finance agreement with the black monks?

Crush wrote:

I like it. Maybe your next escape pod could cost more as well. Or you could be "encouraged" to take a finance agreement with the black monks?

Cute, but the Black Monks aren't even in the OXZ list yet

Actually the expensive escape pod idea would be good - it makes sense for insurance purposes. However, the price would also need to go down the longer you've gone without getting splashed, until eventually it's back down to 1000 credits. I don't know, over the course of a year (on average how long does a year of in-game time pass?).

So, let's say it doubles each time. If I buy a replacement right off the bat, the new one costs 2000, and if I got splashed on the same day again it goes to 4000. But if I went six months without getting killed after that, the cost would be down to 2000 and if I went the full year without getting shot down its down to 1000 again?

Other ideas: scale the cost of the pod to reflect the cost of your equipment as well, and add "Insurance Upgrade" as a buyable item.

For example, You start with a stock Cobra MKIII and get an escape pod right off the bat before anything else. That's 1000cr. Then as you buy various items, you see "insurance upgrade" pop up as a new buyable item which is actually an extension of the escape pod purchase. Let's say after buying 10,000 credits worth of equipment for your ship, the "insurance upgrade" listed is for 100credits (1%)

If you buy that upgrade and you're forced to eject, you get your ship back plus all covered items. If you didn't buy the upgrade, you get the stock Cobra only. Naturally if you buy the upgrade now and then go on to buy another 10,000 credits worth of equipment, you'll need to get another insurance upgrade as well.

Ha, this subject has been discussed before.....more than once

Smivs wrote:

Ha, this subject has been discussed before.....more than once

Heh. Figures

It's a good point though, and one that's never been resolved....

Smivs wrote:

It's a good point though, and one that's never been resolved....

I imagine an OXP for the first idea could be easily made: double the Escape Pod cost each time it's used, have cost drop over time until back to stock price after XXX days?

As for the other idea of "insurance upgrade" that might be trickier, since it would require (I assume) something that tracks all equipment purchases and keeps a running score that ties in with the Escape Pod and tells it what to replace when it's used. But if it worked it would make for a more immersive experience.

I'd love to see an OXP for idea no. 1.

As for "insurance", I imagine the way to do it would be to get the trade-in value at 100% (when you don't need a maintenance overhaul), and then count 1% of that. Since the trade-in already covers the value of the ship and equipment.

Alternately, you could access the list of all equipment (something like player.ship.equipment?) and add ship price and count 1%.

Not that difficult if you know how to code.

By idea 1 are you referring to the very first post (only getting equipment for your replacement ship based on planet's tech level), or later when two new ideas were presented (the increase in Escape Pod cost the more you die vs the insurance top ups required as you buy more equipment for it?)

Increase in escape pod cost the more you die was 1.

The very first post is neat but not as interesting.

Zireael wrote:

Increase in escape pod cost the more you die was 1.

The very first post is neat but not as interesting.

Agreed. I just wanted to clarify for those who come in looking for consensus (and hopefully to take on a project )

I was just musing about this again on the way home - I don't think you should be able to clean your legal record by ejecting either.

Crush wrote:

I was just musing about this again on the way home - I don't think you should be able to clean your legal record by ejecting either.

Perhaps treat it the same as when you rescue an escape pod of an offender: Sometimes a bribe (paid by the insurers) clears you, some times it doesn't. Perhaps you spend some 'game-time' in jail?

Venator Dha wrote:

Perhaps you spend some 'game-time' in jail?

In-game, that's known as 'attitude adjustment' and it can take some serious time!

Crush wrote:

I was just musing about this again on the way home - I don't think you should be able to clean your legal record by ejecting either.

I believe Anarchies as well as one of Wildeblood's OXPs change that.