Noob Mining/Trading Question

[Mageta]

Hej Guys,

just a short question from a bloody beginner..

After playing some hours and getting used to the system (I started with the merchant character, so I had already a freighter to start with) I discovered that it is possible to let my ship mine automatically - using the command "mine minerals", I think I got that with a additional update I bought - which is kind of nice. BUT now I'm trying to figure out if it is possible to create kind of of a workflow to let him work independent from me.

Like saying: mine ore in a sector x till you are full and then try to sell it in a collection of sectors {s1, s2, ..., sN} but not cheaper than y credits and repeat. If you fail, sent me a message.

Is that possible?

best regards,
- Ben

[Alan Phipps]

Which X game?

In X3TC/AP there is a command called 'Mine and Trade Minerals' in the Special Command software menu that sets the ship off mining and trading in whatever it mines with no supervision from the Player. The ship will wander about the galaxy looking for mineral sources and then the best sales deals.

Downsides. Other than where you start it off, the Player has no control over where it goes. The last time I used it (a while and several patches ago) the ship jumped to sell its cargo for best profit but always returned to a mining site the slow way across several sectors even though it had jump fuel. It can try to cross hostile sectors and get into trouble that way. In X3AP it could enter war sectors which is always bad news for it.

[Mageta]

Ah sry, forgot to mention this. I'm playing Albion Prelude.

ok, well, that sounds a little dangerous to me, at least without guarding the ship. hmhm..

so, defining a workflow in the way I anticipated is not possible unless there is a update that gives me a command which does the thing out of the box?

[ajax34i]

It would be possible with 2 ships and a feature of the bonus pack called External Logistics Software. You basically set up your first ship to mine, and you set up a second ship to periodically collect the ore and go sell it. You'd need this Logistics Software to program the second ship to pick up the ore and then sell it to various locations (which you can define).

[Solomon Short]

a feature of the bonus pack called External Logistics Software.

Correction, it's "Commodity Logistics Software", "Mk.2" I believe, though most of us just use "CLS2".

One problem with using CLS2 for this purpose is that the CLS pilot has "Levels" of skill (& associated titles), & each level below the lowest can only handle a specific number of stops.

Most people feel it is necessary to level their CLS pilots manually, so at the lowest level (Apprentice IIRC) your pilot can handle 4 stops (& officially won't use the jump drive, but if you remember to turn auto-jump back on manually after every time you issue the "Start External Commodity Logistics" command it will do so anyway), 1 of which will be the miner from which it's collecting the minerals.

The 3 main fixes for this are (1) Train you pilot to a higher level 1st [there's a thread, probably mentioned in the resources sticky, on how to do this], (2) Deliver the minerals to Player-owned station that can sell them [& which may have a normal trade ship running the "Sell ware for Best Price" command assigned], or (3) Acquire a more highly trained pilot from the station where they're available [I usually go for "Cargo Messenger" grade pilots who can handle 15 waypoints, see spoiler area below for instructions].

It should be noted that a ship with CLS2 (or CLS1 for that matter) software needs to be docked at a station the 1st time you run the software, unless you plan ahead in which case you can go to the "Start External Commodity Logistics" command on the "Trade" submenu, the open (IIRC) "Trader Properties" (the 2nd command from the top, the top one is the command to start trading with the waypoints as specified).

I would also note that since the starting "Apprentice" level CLS2 pilot can have upto 4 waypoints specified (with multiple actions at each), it's quite reasonable to assign 1 CLS2 pilot to collect (using the "Load" or "Load uptp" command, but don't forget to install a Transporter Device or there'll be no deep space cargo transfer) from upto 3 miners, before offloading at the station from which the minerals are to be sold (Player-owned mines are good for this, because the CLS2 pilot can just use the "unload" command at them, & ignore the fact that they don't buy what they produce).

Spoiler

Show

If you acquire the pilot for your ship on the Free Argon Trading Station in Herron's Nebula, the level is randomised, if you fire the already assigned pilot a new pilot is assigned, so with a ship docked at that station, you can just keep firing pilots until you get one with a level acceptable to you, "Cargo Messenger" is the lowest level that can both use the Jump-Drive & pilot TLs/Bigships, so this is the only level I've bothered to memorise, so I don't know how often higher levels show up, if at all. I believe the probability of a level appearing as the level goes up.

[Snafu_X3]

[...] but don't forget to install a Transporter Device or there'll be no deep space cargo transfer)

Transporter device can only be utilised by certain level pilots in TC (check CAG/CLS info FAQ); I don't know if this has changed for AP but I seriously doubt that Apprentice-level pilots can use TD

Spoiler

Show

If you acquire the pilot for your ship on the Free Argon Trading Station in Herron's Nebula, the level is randomised,

up to level 4 of 6 max; L4 (Cargo Messenger for CLS) is top level to attain in this way. You won't get a max-level pilot by doing things like this; they still need experience

[Triaxx2]

The Jump Drive requires a certain level. Any level pilot can use a Transporter device.

[Mageta]

hej, thanks for the big reply! I'll try this in my next session.. let's see if it is as complicated as it sounds

One more thing though.. as of what you said, it sounds like I need to have a station first - to unload the minerals and stuff. Is that right?
And if not - well I hope so, as I think, it might be a long way to go for me till I can build one - how are the ships supposed to exchange the minerals if one is mining and the other selling? Can they meet in space? Never saw this happen.

[Vim Razz]

A Transporter Device allows two ships to transfer cargo out in space, without having to dock anywhere.

It sounds like you've just got one Mercury, though? Mine and Trade Minerals is probably your best bet for the time being.

While in the ~long~term~, it's important to keep an eye out for the problem that Alan Philips mentioned, it does takes quite a long time for that to be an issue.

And you don't have a lot of ships cluttering up your property list yet, so it's not like you're going to forget about it or loose track of where it is.

[Snafu_X3]

The Jump Drive requires a certain level. Any level pilot can use a Transporter device.

Technically correct, but I believe only a certain level pilot can have a <ship> as destination (again, TC only appliies)

[edit] Found it! CLS <Supplier> (L3) pilot needed to transfer stuff to/from 'large ships' according to the BP PDF [/edit]

[Mageta]

A Transporter Device allows two ships to transfer cargo out in space, without having to dock anywhere.

It sounds like you've just got one Mercury, though? Mine and Trade Minerals is probably your best bet for the time being.

While in the ~long~term~, it's important to keep an eye out for the problem that Alan Philips mentioned, it does takes quite a long time for that to be an issue.

And you don't have a lot of ships cluttering up your property list yet, so it's not like you're going to forget about it or loose track of where it is.

well thats right, at the moment I only have this one ship freighter but I gathered 2m credits and thought it might be feasible to buy 1 or maybe two more and then it would suck to coordinate them all the time manually

so, its nice to know about the possibilities with all the complexity this game has.

[zerome1221]

So I am near the same point as Mageta. I am having problems even hiring pilots. I am currently docked at the Herrons Nebula free trade station. I don't know where a menu is to hire pilots. I am running AP.

I bought myself a new ship not long ago, a mercury super freighter. I kept my beginning mercury and was wanting to use it to make me some money somehow but have been having a terrible time figuring that out on my own. Also been having a lot of trouble finding guides that really help me, they are always missing some bit of information, like where to buy some random bit of technology that it says you need.

[Solomon Short]

To get a new CLS2 pilot, you need too access the Command Console for the ship on which you want the new pilot, then go: Trade > Start External Commodity Logistics > Trader Settings

On the Trader Settings screen, check the "Training Level", I don't usually settle for anything other than "Cargo Messenger". if you see something else, select: Fire Trader > Yes

Then go back & check the new pilots rank (when you fire the old pilot a new one is generated, or possibly it's done when you go back to "Trader Settings").

[Playbahnosh]

If mining seems a lot just yet, why not go trade for a while, do some missions. Acquire a little more money and experience and revisit the topic some time later. This approach helps many people