X3TC - Fun with Equipment Docks and Trade Stations

[Nanook]

Not quite. Shipyards actually 'carry' an infinite number of ships of whatever they sell. It's just that you can only buy 10 small ships or 1 big ship at a time. There are no limits on how many you can buy, though.

I can see where you are coming from. However, although you can buy every type of ship they stock, when it comes to m3/4/5 ships, the shipyard often runs out of the 'M' & 'L' versions. But I'll take this as they have run out of shields & weapons, also I don't think the OP is going to be too bothered about this though.

They don't 'run out' as such. It's just that the availability is random. It's all on a timer and has nothing to do with how many are bought. Once they have them, you can simply buy as many as you like. And nothings stopping you from buying the S versions and upgrading. So saying that they 'run out' isn't strictly true, because you can never deplete the supply.

[Morkonan]

They don't 'run out' as such. It's just that the availability is random. It's all on a timer and has nothing to do with how many are bought. Once they have them, you can simply buy as many as you like. And nothings stopping you from buying the S versions and upgrading. So saying that they 'run out' isn't strictly true, because you can never deplete the supply.

This makes sense. The Shipyards are completely independent of supply restrictions in regards to the s/m/l variants. So, that would mean that you should be able to buy them, ad infinitum, during the time period they have been deemed available.

[Coreblimey]

If the 'M' & 'L' stock are not available I always find a few 'reloads' fills them up again. I guess this proves your 'random' point.

[Morkonan]

If the 'M' & 'L' stock are not available I always find a few 'reloads' fills them up again. I guess this proves your 'random' point.

That's true and it's a largely known gimmick to try to get convenient loadouts for fighters. But, I have terrible luck with doing that, so have gotten used to just sucking up the added costs.

However, for a player just starting out with a new game, that is a great tactic and worth the reload times.

[Morkonan]

Update:

Well, I learned a few things that you can't do with CAGs and Equipment docks.

1) You can only list fighters at your EQ dock if you "take over all wares from station" from a shipyard. Otherwise, the Shipyard will not show up in a "add ware from a station" and fighters will not show up in the wares list for inclusion in the normal "add ware" menu.

2) You can't assign a CLS/CAG to an M7.

3) Fighters are not "Wares" in any form/menu other than when adjusting the prices in station parameters/dock/cag-manager screens.

4) However, it does appear that ships without special versions (s/m/l) are "wares." At least inasmuch as can be considered by a CAG. That means that M1,M2,TM,TP, M6, M8, etc.. can be listed and handled as a "ware" in an EQ dock. But, since other races don't trade with player EQ docks and there aren't any ships that could transport these craft (Not sure if the one super-unique could dock TM/TP or not) then the question raised there is moot.

5) You can assign a CAG to a TM, but since a fighter is not a ware, it can't even begin to go buy any, much less allow me to see if it would even try.

6) Stations (ST) are "wares." I haven't tried to work a way to much around with that feature. Besides, I'm not sure I can assign a CAG to a TL. But, I one might be able to transfer a Station to inventory in a player HQ. The question raised there is how inventory levels would be handled. But, since a Player EQD doesn't have an AI script attached to it, I doubt it would have "infinite" levels for such a thing, like a normal NPC station.

Anyway, still mucking around with trying to find neat uses for vanilla EQ Docks and Trade Stations. I shall not be deterred from trying to mutate an Equipment Dock into something that could actually be useful to a player...

PS - Question for the Initiated:

Somewhere, maybe in a dream, I remember something about a way to access a universal command system for CAG or CLS pilots. IOW, a way to muck around with Globals in regards to these types of pilots. (Not the regular Global Settings menu.) Anyone know if I'm just imagining it or if there really is a way to do an end-run around selecting CAG/CLS options without having to go through the interface of the ship they are actually piloting? (And, not the Dock/CAG manager for their home station, unless there is such an access point in that menu that would allow me to access pilots not assigned to that particular station.)

[Libelnon]

I remember using my only EQ back in X2 as a docking port and supply base - I had a number of CLS ships set up to ferry finished goods from my shield and weapon fabs to the EQ docks, where I could send ships to get the weapons etc. they needed. Main advantage to this is that a station wouldn't simply 'halt production' because it was full, which was extremely useful with my only GPPC forge.

[Morkonan]

I remember using my only EQ back in X2 as a docking port and supply base - I had a number of CLS ships set up to ferry finished goods from my shield and weapon fabs to the EQ docks, where I could send ships to get the weapons etc. they needed. Main advantage to this is that a station wouldn't simply 'halt production' because it was full, which was extremely useful with my only GPPC forge.

If they could carry more listed inventory levels of a product, it'd be great. But, they can't. (Not that I know, at any rate- hardcoded.)

I'll stick a freighter there that can be filled with overstock, ready to replace what it is snapped up by any ships I outfit at the dock. I'll probably also use it to buy up missile stocks then have a freighter suck them into its hold and then carry them off somewhere else, once full, for resupply missions or something.

But, there's gotta be an end-run around the EQ Dock problem that can turn it into something,well, I dunno... Something "cool."