Oolite Bulletins

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 12:57 pm**

OK, I've read through FAQ's and various sites and I'm not getting a simple answer. I'm also picky about my games, so bear that in mind when I ask these questions.

First off, is there NO way to speed up navigation? I'm just starting off, so I have the newbie ship with limited fuel. I warp (or whatever) to a planet and then I have to spend like 3 hours flying towards it before I can do anything. I can't use the intermediary "jump" drive (or whatever it is) because there is always something popping up "mass locking" me from getting to the planet faster. I haven't even been able to find another station yet because of this and I'm sorry, I just don't have the patience to sit there staring at a screen forever watching stars go by before I get there. Quasi realistic? Maybe, but this is a game and it's ridiculous. So is there no way to speed this up???

How am I supposed to get started with missions (or whatever this game calls them) when I cannot even afford simple delivery contracts or I lack enough fuel or engine capacity to get to the delivery location?

I'm constantly getting pounced on by pirates (or whatever) and I'm creamed before I can do anything. All of the stuff I've read said this ship is supposed to be fast enough to outrun everyone until I can get something better, but this doesn't seem to be the case.

Even trying to redock in the first station usually results in a crash (tried it slow, rotating, etc.), I can't just auto lock on or something to redock??

I'm going out on a limb here and am going to assume this just isn't the type of game for me, but maybe I'm just missing something minor. This appears to be one of these cult internet type games, so maybe I'm just missing something or the rest of you guys have infinitely more patience than I do

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 1:28 pm**

Hi tattoogunman, and welcome.

tattoogunman wrote:
First off, is there NO way to speed up navigation? I'm just starting off, so I have the newbie ship with limited fuel. I warp (or whatever) to a planet and then I have to spend like 3 hours flying towards it before I can do anything. I can't use the intermediary "jump" drive (or whatever it is) because there is always something popping up "mass locking" me from getting to the planet faster. I haven't even been able to find another station yet because of this and I'm sorry, I just don't have the patience to sit there staring at a screen forever watching stars go by before I get there. Quasi realistic? Maybe, but this is a game and it's ridiculous. So is there no way to speed this up???

Firstly, choose your destination wisely. Anarchies and Feudal systems are the most dangerous while corporate states and high Tech Level worlds are usually much safer. When you enter the system, angle up about 45 degrees and use the Torus drive ('j' on the keyboard I believe). After a couple of seconds level off and keep the planet at the bottom of your space compass. When you are much closer, angle back down towards the planet. This technique takes you out of the populated space-lanes, so you miss most of the other traffic and don't get mass-locked too much. This will speed you up a lot.

tattoogunman wrote:
How am I supposed to get started with missions (or whatever this game calls them) when I cannot even afford simple delivery contracts or I lack enough fuel or engine capacity to get to the delivery location?

There will be parcel contracts etc available which are suitable for you, but you may need to look for them, as they will vary from system to system. Many do require a certain level of competance, so start with the easy ones and build up a reputation. The game also has several built-in missions, and there are plenty available as OXZs, some of which are designed for newcomers, so check out the Expansions Manager.

tattoogunman wrote:
I'm constantly getting pounced on by pirates (or whatever) and I'm creamed before I can do anything. All of the stuff I've read said this ship is supposed to be fast enough to outrun everyone until I can get something better, but this doesn't seem to be the case.

Your Cobra III is a good fast ship, the more so as you equip it over time, and should be a match for most other ships you come across. Check out some of the forum threads on methods and techniques for both avoiding and succeeding in combat for advice.

tattoogunman wrote:
Even trying to redock in the first station usually results in a crash (tried it slow, rotating, etc.), I can't just auto lock on or something to redock??

A Docking Computer is available, but by the time most players can afford one they don't need it.

Fly to the buoy and stop next to it. Align with the station and approach at a medium speed. On final approach start to rotate to match the rotation of the station until you are safely inside. That's all there is to it.

tattoogunman wrote:
I'm going out on a limb here and am going to assume this just isn't the type of game for me, but maybe I'm just missing something minor. This appears to be one of these cult internet type games, so maybe I'm just missing something or the rest of you guys have infinitely more patience than I do

Well, patience is a virtue, so they say. Oolite is an open-ended game and many of us have been playing for 5, 10 years or more. If you are looking for instant gratification, then it may not be for you certainly, but if you enjoy a challenge, and are looking for a game that won't leave you bored after a couple of months, then this could be it.
There is a ton of advice around this forum, so poke around and you will probably find all the answers you need. If not, come back and ask. We pride ourselves on the helpful, friendly nature of our community.

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 1:30 pm**

Hi tattoogunman, welcome to the boards! This is a hard game by modern standards, and it is a game which rewards patience, but there are ways to speed things up. Although if you're having problems docking, then I'd recommend practicing that before you do anything else: no sense in reaching your destination and then not being able to dock. The best way to dock is: go to the navigation buoy, between the station and the planet. Come to a dead stop. Turn and face the station: you should be bang on line for the docking bay. Head straight towards the docking bay, and match the rotation as you go in. If you've got the rotation matched, enter at a decent pace. The in-game tutorial is helpful.

To avoid pirates until you've improved your ship try sticking to the safer systems: Corporate States and Democracies. Lave, where you start, is a Dictatorship: I'd strongly recommend not going back there. Buy cheap agricultural products from Lave and ship them to an industrial world - try Leesti as your first destination - sell them at a profit, and then take cheap industrial products from that planet to another (safe) agricultural world, e.g. Diso. Rinse and repeat. This is the slow path.

The quick(er) path is: sell your ship, and buy something smaller, like a Cobra I. Use the extra cash to buy much better equipment for your new ship. One must-have purchase here is Fuel Injectors, which (as long as you have fuel) will allow you to go much faster, even when masslocked. You can also buy docking computers to auto-dock for you, but these can get damaged and it's definitely worth learning how to do this on your own.

There is one other way to speed things up, which I don't recommend because it's a bit of an exploit (and it's one which will might well become less useful in future versions of the game): get off the spacelane. All the system traffic runs from the witchspace buoy, where you arrive in a system, to the planet, and then to the station (which is in orbit around the planet). Instead of heading off towards the planet, turn and head at 90° away from the spacelane, using the torus drive, for 30 seconds or so. Then head back round towards the planet, or better still, the station - which you should be able to pick out as a small blob orbiting the planet. No traffic, no masslock. Also, very little in the way of game, but you can try this at least if you just want to get started. Or you can edit your savefile with a text editor (NOT Notepad) and give yourself extra money and equipment.

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 2:35 pm**

OK, I'll try that and see where it gets me - thanks!

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 2:47 pm**

As for docking - it can actually be easier at full speed. You'll get the knack, soon enough!

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 3:08 pm**

tattoogunman wrote:
How am I supposed to get started with missions (or whatever this game calls them) when I cannot even afford simple delivery contracts or I lack enough fuel or engine capacity to get to the delivery location?

I would recommend not taking any delivery contracts until you have got the basics of flying, navigating to other planets, navigating to and from the stations, and some basic combat (Note in version 1.80, combat for a new player is a bit too hard - this is being worked on at the moment but it is what it is for now - so it's better to run away than to fight until you have some upgrades). Some of the contracts can be a bit troublesome for a new starter. They also require several jumps, refuelling on the way, and might mean that you enter unsafe systems.
Welcome and good luck out there

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 4:15 pm**

Welcome here, tattoogunman!

Disembodied wrote:
no sense in reaching your destination and then not being able to dock.

So first practice at the original station where you can reload easily.

A way to train your rolling ability:
1. Stop immediately after launch without touching the contorls, so your ship still in the ideal center line.
2. Turn back exactly into the center of the dock.
3. Start rolling until you can keep your ship aligned easily.
4. Increase your speed until you can roll well without losing the sync with the rotation.
5. If you can dock at max. speed in this way then go to the buoy, stop, turn back, increase your speed and go into the dock as fast as you can.

There are other methods which can help if you can not dock after practice (like a smaller ship which do not need rolling) but I think worth to learn docking due to give a big immersion, especially together with [wiki]BGS[/wiki].

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 4:53 pm**

I don't think I've ever bothered rolling. For me, it's all about timing, which I control with the speed of my ship. I line up outside the station, orientate myself, and then wait. Then head straight into the dock, usually at full speed.

Just an alternative strategy if the other doesn't work for you!

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:57 pm**

Parcel contracts are relatively simple as a small additional income source - you don't lose money if you fail to deliver, unlike cargo contracts, and they don't require hold space. And some of the longer runs pay big bucks, sometimes a thousand credits or more. They're useful if you can find one that's going in the way you want to go anyway. But for best results you need to find the fastest routes, which needs a navigational computer upgrade.

And get fuel injection (the go-faster stripes of Oolite) and fuel scoops as soon as you can - the latter are not immediately for fuel (you need to equip your ship for sundiving first) but for grabbing cargo and bits of wreckage.

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:42 pm**

ffutures wrote:
But for best results you need to find the fastest routes, which needs a navigational computer upgrade.

You can make an educated guess though - due to a quirk of hyperspace, two short jumps (in roughly the same direction) are much quicker than one long jump!

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:16 pm**

Cody wrote:
ffutures wrote:
But for best results you need to find the fastest routes, which needs a navigational computer upgrade.
You can make an educated guess though - due to a quirk of hyperspace, two short jumps (in roughly the same direction) are much quicker than one long jump!

True - I was over-simplifying, I find the computer aid very useful since I'm crap at converting days to hours and vice versa in my head.

Reminds me to ask - is there a good reason why contract times are shown in days and hours on the F5 summary, but nowhere else? Would it be possible to change this to hours only, e.g. by game options or an OCX?

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:34 pm**

ffutures wrote:
Reminds me to ask - is there a good reason why contract times are shown in days and hours on the F5 summary, but nowhere else? Would it be possible to change this to hours only, e.g. by game options or an OCX?

They're shown in <units> and <smaller units> - it'll switch to hours and minutes (or minutes and seconds) if you cut it too close. Setting it to be a fixed unit might be possible in future but isn't practical now.

You can change the contract time on the contract mission screen by OXP. This is currently in missiontext.plist

Code: Select all

"oolite-contracts-time-format" = "[oolite-contracts-time-format-hours] hours";

An alternative if you want them to at least both be in days+hours is

Code: Select all

"oolite-contracts-time-format" = "[oolite-contracts-time-format-days] days and [oolite-contracts-time-format-spare-hours] hours";

Posted: **Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:21 pm**

I'll try that when I'm feeling a bit more coherent - right now my main aim is to get to bed.

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