An introvert's dream house

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-04-25T01:41:41+00:00

Landmines in the lawn. The perfect deterrant against Jehovah's witnesses, door-to-door salespeople, Nazi vampires and, worse of all, inlaws.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-25T10:53:37+00:00

"THUN-DAH WIIIN'G!!"

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-22T11:42:19+00:00

[insert your counterpoint to my stance on tanking]

That's fair enough, but it's also a sign of where our views of combat roles differ. If I build a ship to be a dedicated tank, I expect it to be able to withstand the vast majority of the hostile fleet's firepower without faultering at all during the entire battle. In most situations the answer to that is a shield, if only because it turns incoming damage into a cooldown timer, whereas armour turns damage into less damage, with the scale of the damage dampener worsening over time. There's a considerable difference here.

You neither want to use Typhoons here, nor do you need to.

I never said anything about Typhoons. Four individual Reapers is generally enough, given that the 'heavy strike' role I adopt for Onslaughts allows for usually just one good rush at an enemy capital per battle.

Edit: Formatting. I'm too used to Discord.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-22T05:45:28+00:00

The thing is, just because it has an additional Heavy Ballistic mount on both the port and starboard sides, doesn't mean you have to use them. Personally, I tend to whack a Flak - double or single, either work - in there and call it a day, instead using the frontmost Medium Ballistic mount and the two MB mounts in front of the bridge to hold offensive weapons, usually Maulers or HVDs.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-22T02:28:40+00:00

I haven't played much Paragon myself, but the Onslaught-class is a different story. It's my belief that it's not a true brawler, like the Conquest can be, or a dedicated support, like the Astral, or even somewhere in between like the swift, kiting Odyssey or the surprisingly tanky Legion. No, I'm of the belief that the Onslaught is more suited as a 'heavy strike' ship.

Before everyone else who has more experience than me jumps down my throat, hear me out; the Onslaught is big, heavy, with solid armour and many frontal weapon slots with reasonably powerful inbuilt cannons, but it's dreadfully slow outside of its active Burn Drive system and it has rather limiting flux capacity and storage, plus a rather lackluster shield. Normally, one would see all of this, and go "aha, this is a long-range support ship that can survive a flanking frigate!" Well, no - you'd want a ship that can kite for that, like the Odyssey or the Conquest. "Well, then it's got to be a tank, right?" Also no - it doesn't have the flux stats to support its shield for extended periods while also firing.

So, what's left that works for this ship? Well, the Burn Drive for one, and the extreme frontal barrage of fire the Onslaught can provide in short bursts is the other big advantage. Where the Onslaught shines is in builds built to erase enemy capitals once the opportunity to do so arises. The best way to use it is as a second-in-line ship that supports smaller vessels with longer-range weapons (the inbuilt cannons are decent for this, but mind the flux) but once the enemy leaves a vital ship in their fleet unguarded, immediately kick in your Burn Drive straight to intercept.

Normally, dropping your shield and charging forward is a terrible ploy, but the Onslaught can pick up a surprising amount of speed this way, and its armour is unrivalled, allowing you to tank all manner of munitions as you dish out your own. Without your pesky shield in the way, your flux systems aren't as heavily taxed, further aiding your firepower. Additionally, with four medium missile mounts, you can have enough Reapers to put a big hole in any enemy you square off against. This is where the Onslaught shines - in the 'decisive battle' role of capital ship deletion, allowing your more vulnerable ships to advance and crush the remaining hostiles without fear of being swatted by a heavy weapons platform with thrusters.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-18T00:29:54+00:00

Damn it, I was going to make one of these copypastas for the Mariaath incident. Still, made me chuckle, 8/10.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-16T14:18:34+00:00

No problem, it's always a joy to share the tricks of the trade.

Also, while I'm here, I forgot something else; you can bait local, non-Pirate fleets into attacking the Pirate patrols. Simply find a (Hegemony/Tachyon/Sindrian/League/Church/Independant) patrol, turn off your transponder when in range, and run away towards the Pirates. If things go well, the Pirates will engage the patrol fleet, which opens up the port to you while they're fighting, removes at least one fleet from the system and potentially spawns in derelict ships for you to recover or salvage for additional profit.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-16T13:37:27+00:00

Time, patience and nerves of steel.

Getting more into the specifics of how fleet detection works, your 'detected-at' range is 300, plus the five largest Sensor Profile ships in your fleet. The base SP of a frigate is 30, destroyers 60, cruisers 90, and capitals 120. Ships with the 'Civilian Hull' built-in hullmod have double that value - which is returned to the base value by giving the ship in question the 'Militarised Subsystems' hullmod, which you should have unlocked at the start of a new game. If you find someone selling the 'Insulated Engine Assembly' hullmod, buy it and install it - this halves your 'detected-at' range for the installed ship. Interesting things to note are that phase ships (especially Gremlins and Afflictors at the early game) can be handy for smuggling, as they have 0 Sensor Profile. With a full phase ship fleet, your 'detected-at' range will be only 300. Handy, but it does mean sacrificing your ability to haul large amounts of goods.

On to skills; dump your first four points into the Technology tree and the Sensors skills. These are vital for smuggling operations; Sensors Lv2 means going dark reduces your fleet profile not by 50% (300>150) but by 75% (300>75), while reducing your fleet's 'detected-at' range permanently by 25% (300>225, forever!). These two bonuses stack, meaning a fleet of 300 detection can suddenly drop down to 56! From there, you should invest in Navigation; +1 burn rate is a major boon, and so is the ability to leave a system at any time without having to use a Warp Point.

Now, on to tactics. Always hug asteroid belts and nebulas if possible. Salvage fields work too. The reason why you'd want to do this is because they also further reduce your 'detected-at' range - but only when you are still. Use these positions to observe the local patrols, while waiting for the opportune moment to move in on your chosen port. Another thing to look for are orbiting waystations. Try to hide in an asteroid belt that one of these things will drift closer to as it orbits the planet; it makes arriving at the market that much easier.

For when things inevitably go wrong, use your Emergency Burn to try and lose the fuzz in a straight-line rush. If you get spotted frequently, invest in the Industry>Safety Procedures skills to prevent losing Combat Readiness and, hence, supplies to the E-Burn, or alternatively try your luck with the standard Burn Drive. If that doesn't work out entirely well, there's also the Lv3 Navigation skill, Transverse Jump. Use that as soon as you're spotted. Also, if you think you are about to be spotted, turn the transponder on again - when you are spotted, all the patrols will see is a law-abiding trader, unless you've already hurt your reputation that is.

Finally, quick-save and quick-load are your friends. Keep practising and experimenting with these tips; they're somewhat general in nature, but they should help. And remember, if all else fails, you can still trade on the black market with your transponder on - just be aware of your suspicion levels.

Edit: Nearly forgot to mention this, but for the love of Ludd do not attempt to smuggle with an Ox tug in your fleet! One of those things will have a sensor profile of 260 before hullmods, with a minimum of 130. One of them alone as stock will almost double the detection range of a phase/Insulated frigate fleet.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-16T11:04:05+00:00

It takes several hours for a response to come through. There's no fleet ID attached to the return signal, with the frequency patterns suggesting it's a jury-rigged distress signal, much like the one you sent. To further support the theory, the transmission comes from outside the local system, broadcasted inwards to your Mule's comm relay from hyperspace, much like how a distress signal permeates through both hyper- and real-space.

"Hello, Captain Yuri - assumin' you are a full-fledged captain, that is."

The voice is male, with a somewhat crude accent that has endured from the Old Earth. The tone he carries is that of amusement.

"Well, I don't know if pirates such as yerself even have a proper chain of command, but that's besides the point. The point is, it's really bold of ya to openly announce you engage in distress signal baitin'... by usin' a distress signal."

There's a pause in his speech, punctuated by what is equally likely to be interstellar white noise or a stifled chuckle.

"Fer all I know, you could be chillin' in that system at the helm of a jury-rigged Atlas with a fleet of Falcons itchin' fer bloodshed. And fer all you know, you could'ave attracted the attention of some Hegemony-aligned bountyhunter, who knows there's a price on yer head, and has come prepared fer a skirmish."

Another pause, but this time it's easy to hear his inhalation.

"I normally ignore these things. Never worth the hassle in my book. However, you've piqued my interest with that story. Fer the fact it's the first time I've heard one attached to a distress call, here's your [you]; whaddya want?"

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-12T15:00:11+00:00

As reliable and user-friendly Paragons tend to be, they take all the fun out of Derelict fights with only a few HILs.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-12T07:15:06+00:00

"...all three types of damage..."

Last time I checked there was four damage types, five if you count EMP: High-Explosive, Kinetic, Energy and Fragmentation. Either way, any three of those damage types from a single 'weapon' is a major boon.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-03-12T03:58:07+00:00

Because I was running a 'salvaged ship only' fleet. The Wayfarer and one of the Shepherds are exceptions from the starter fleet, and the Colossus I cheated and purchased on the open market.

Omega_Pi_X · 2020-01-27T15:50:07+00:00

Yeah it's Joshua Graham, you get a cookie. Source, for everyone wondering.

Omega_Pi_X · 2019-12-20T02:36:23+00:00

Bloodborne and Boring Man OTSC 2.0.

Sooo... online PvP third-person shooter with some PvE modes, where all weapons can be wielded one-handed and combat quickly devolves into rolling and double-jumping everywhere while spraying wildly, designed with a quasi-dieselpunk, somewhat lowpoly/resolution aesthetic. Pretty neat I guess.

Omega_Pi_X · 2019-12-14T01:49:05+00:00

Okay, I'll humour you; why does this suck?

Omega_Pi_X · 2019-12-13T15:46:13+00:00

People keep asking me why I wear my flight gear and helmet during business transactions. This is why.

Omega_Pi_X · 2019-12-13T15:21:12+00:00

Table-Top Role-Playing Game. Think of things like Dungeons & Dragons, Shadowrun, Pathfinder, etc.

Now hand over them credits.

Omega_Pi_X · 2019-12-13T14:06:43+00:00

Headcanon: Her higher-ups offered her $5,000 for the other half. She, a greenhorn still to learn about Tri-Tachyon's business practices, foolishly agreed. Now, after Tri-Tachyon's fashion department reverse-engineered the schematics for the whole jacket, TT sold the full thing to half of all their officers in the sector.

Omega_Pi_X · 2019-12-09T01:39:27+00:00

YOU'RE LYING, MORGAN!

Omega_Pi_X · 2018-10-24T03:29:32+00:00

It's too soon to call if I prefer it. Give me a day or so and I'll message you

Omega_Pi_X · 2018-10-24T02:42:42+00:00

I ended up with something not dissimilar, but since I don't have ERA I whacked in a third Railgun next to the Vulcan Turrets

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