Gerbil Protection League demands reinforced structural integrity

General discussions about the games by Egosoft including X-BTF, XT, X², X³: Reunion, X³: Terran Conflict and X³: Albion Prelude.

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jlehtone
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Gerbil Protection League demands reinforced structural integrity

Post by jlehtone » Sat, 3. Feb 18, 16:00

... for natural mineral deposits.

Far too often a stray shot in the midst of combat fatally injures legal Asteroids and leaves a mess of rocks. The GPL's spokespersons are not fond of rock fields. "Rubble is trouble", as they say. They prefer big, hard 'roids.

The old 'roids are said to have been so sturdy that you could crush Stations with them. These brittle X3AP remains you cannot sneeze at.



I do know that a prospectors report about the place and the current list of Asteroids does not match. I think I've been involved in catching a criminal recently in Barren shores. So much for the "grand plan" to build a Silicon Mine. For now. :cry:
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Alan Phipps
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Post by Alan Phipps » Sat, 3. Feb 18, 17:18

Heh, good post. You can still crush stations with towed asteroids with cheap mines on though. Also the full-size (sector map and mine-suitable) asteroids are quite resilient to all but the mining laser and high-yield missiles. I do heartily agree about the fragility of even the biggest of rocks below full asteroid size though.

I find that PSGs or even PBGs are quite effective roadsweepers when unwanted rubble is already generated. For the reasons we are complaining about, they can deal with any size of rock cluster given a bit of shoot-wait-shoot persistence - just watch out for onlookers and passers-by getting too close to the sweeper in operation. :D
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fireanddream
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Post by fireanddream » Sat, 3. Feb 18, 18:03

The thing is rocks have this filthy few seconds of invulnerability after being broken apart.

Otherwise I would have taken it as my personal responsibility to clear every rocky sectors with my PSG mounted agamemnon.

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Post by Alan Phipps » Sat, 3. Feb 18, 19:25

That is the 'shoot-wait-shoot' bit. :wink:
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Joe McCracken
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Post by Joe McCracken » Sun, 4. Feb 18, 06:30

I have found in my game (AP) that the 'roids regenerate. I thought they were supposed to be gone once you destroyed/harvested them? :?
I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun, hide in the asteroids and laugh at what I done, put a blood blister upon each bun, I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun.
Some people are like slinkies, not worth a whole lot, but they bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.

jlehtone
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Post by jlehtone » Sun, 4. Feb 18, 10:27

(Map) Asteroids are supposed to respawn. How long it takes ... "days to weeks" is the estimate I can find with websearch.

If you do build a Mine, then the selected Asteroid is permanently removed.

Rocks is where the games differ. In X3R and X3AP they are gone once harvested. You can always get new rocks by breaking a (respawning) Asteroid.

In X3TC the rocks are consumed only in some conditions. The OOS harvesting is apparently not one of them. In other words, in X3TC rock harvesting can be infinite without re-breaking Asteroids.
Alan Phipps wrote:Also the full-size (sector map and mine-suitable) asteroids are quite resilient to all but the mining laser and high-yield missiles.
Not in my game. I've seen many Asteroids blow up (usually near PPC/PSP touting ships). As result, I have many sectors thick of rocks ... and the respawned 'roid in their midst. Well, in hectic combat there can be all kind of ordnance in the void, but somehow I've gotten impression that it is usually weapons fire.

I would jump to UFJD sector to do weapons testing (to validate hypothesis), but alas my UFJD is currently slightly broken.
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Post by Alan Phipps » Sun, 4. Feb 18, 19:18

I just jumped into my vanilla X3AP Pteranodon and gave an untouched full sector asteroid a sustained 8 x PPC continuous barrage that would have severely dented even station shields. I even used fully charged volleys. The asteroid shrugged it all off without a scratch.

I think the rock explosions you may see are from large rocks rather than full asteroids, or perhaps are the result of wayward heavy missiles or torpedoes (that your PPC/PSP touting ships were the intended targets of).
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jlehtone
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Post by jlehtone » Sun, 4. Feb 18, 21:13

Alan Phipps wrote:I think the rock explosions you may see are from large rocks rather than full asteroids, or perhaps are the result of wayward heavy missiles or torpedoes (that your PPC/PSP touting ships were the intended targets of).
I'm certain of the full asteroids blowing up, and yes, the likelihood of lingering missiles is high enough to explain it.
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Post by Alan Phipps » Sun, 4. Feb 18, 21:19

Hmm, random muse on that topic.

Say you had a mining ship with a MDS in the back turret that was hit by any stray bullet from the battle, and then it maybe decided to retaliate. Very slow asteroid-breaking bullets with very long lifetimes could easily miss the intended target (not that they'd do it much harm anyway) and then end up going anywhere ...
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Post by Joe McCracken » Sun, 4. Feb 18, 23:23

Rocks is where the games differ. In X3R and X3AP they are gone once harvested. You can always get new rocks by breaking a (respawning) Asteroid.
This is what I'm talking about. Rocks. Not the ones that are on your map, the the ones you put mining stations on.

In my games of AP, I go to Scale Plate Green, to the Niv rocks, and mine them to extinction. I leave the sector, come back, and there they are again. I have done this many times in a row to see if they will disappear and they are always there again when I come back. I have even tried mining ore or silicon so that I could clear out an area around a station then leave and come back, and the troublesome rocks are back.

What am I doing wrong? :?
I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun, hide in the asteroids and laugh at what I done, put a blood blister upon each bun, I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun.
Some people are like slinkies, not worth a whole lot, but they bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.

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Post by Alan Phipps » Mon, 5. Feb 18, 11:31

@ Joe: That is not the correct vanilla behaviour for X3AP. (Unless the devious devs deliberately coded in a constant Nividium source just for there only. :o )

That wouldn't even happen in vanilla X3TC because some mined-out clusters would be respawning *before* you could 'mine [all of] them to extinction'.

In either vanilla game you should be able to clear any rocks for good with weapons fire.
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Joe McCracken
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Post by Joe McCracken » Tue, 6. Feb 18, 05:42

Well, I went to nathan's voyage, and decided to test this permanent destruction of rocks. I have an adv sat sitting around 0, 22500, 0, and there was some clusters of rocks around it. I used hurricanes to destroy several clusters worth of rocks.

Low and Behold! I left and came back and they are STILL gone! That is the first time I have ever seen the rocks disappear for good. I don't know whats going on with the Niv 'roids though. They are still there after leaving and coming back.

Thanks Alan.
I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun, hide in the asteroids and laugh at what I done, put a blood blister upon each bun, I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun.
Some people are like slinkies, not worth a whole lot, but they bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.

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Hank001
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Post by Hank001 » Sat, 10. Mar 18, 01:56

Just started my first new storyline in X3 Reunion, was zipping though the Ore Belt when Pirates hit. By the time the cops and I finished off the pack there was rocks evrywhere. And while setting up to jump out NPC's start crashing into them. Loot Haul! Filled up and THEN jumped out!
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Post by Timsup2nothin » Sat, 10. Mar 18, 05:53

I'd have to try it out, but it does seem possible that Niv rocks are set to respawn while most rocks aren't.

On the rock field clearance issue, a towed mine is good for this too. Complete clearance is possible, but at the very least clearing a large bore passage along normal flight paths is reasonably efficient.
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Hank001
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Post by Hank001 » Sat, 10. Mar 18, 06:05

Starting to like this towed mine idea. Does the game catch on? Or is it something that slips past the games cop AIs?
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Timsup2nothin
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Post by Timsup2nothin » Sat, 10. Mar 18, 08:16

Hank001 wrote:Starting to like this towed mine idea. Does the game catch on? Or is it something that slips past the games cop AIs?
That's an interesting question that I can't answer from knowledge, but I'll speculate. Collisions generally are viewed as your responsibility (which does frequently seem unfair) so I'm guessing you're gonna take the blame if you plow your mine into things.
Trapper Tim's Guide to CLS 2

On Her Majesty's Secret Service-Dead is Dead, and he is DEAD

Not a DiD, so I guess it's a DiDn't, the story of my first try at AP
Part One, in progress

HEY! AP!! That's new!!!

Joe McCracken
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Post by Joe McCracken » Sat, 10. Mar 18, 08:23

I would be interested in seeing if anyone else has the same result as me with the Niv 'roids in scale plate green. I haven't tried it in any of the other sectors that have Niv 'roids. I suppose I should try it to see if there is a difference.
I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun, hide in the asteroids and laugh at what I done, put a blood blister upon each bun, I'd like to shoot you in the butt with a EBC gun.
Some people are like slinkies, not worth a whole lot, but they bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.

Timsup2nothin
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Post by Timsup2nothin » Sat, 10. Mar 18, 09:59

I haven't tried it out...hip deep in another game ATM...but it would surprise me quite a bit if Niv rocks react differently in different sectors. Anything is possible, but...
Trapper Tim's Guide to CLS 2

On Her Majesty's Secret Service-Dead is Dead, and he is DEAD

Not a DiD, so I guess it's a DiDn't, the story of my first try at AP
Part One, in progress

HEY! AP!! That's new!!!

DrSuperEvil
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Post by DrSuperEvil » Sat, 10. Mar 18, 13:10

I personally use a Kyoto loaded with Hayabusas using CLS for mining debris fields. It can collect about 56k space worth of minerals an hour just by ramming the rocks.

Asteroids respawn after 72 hours but if a mine is placed on them they do not respawn (so protect your mines at all costs and never waste an asteroid with a small mine).

You can tow your own mines without consequence but it counts as an attack against NPC mines so will periodically drain rep. It is good to move NPC stations to block jump gates.

If you want to use stations as wrecking balls use small wheat farms and place them inside your target station and then use the tractor beam to twist.

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