Trapper Tim's Guide to Building the Resource Backbone

[Timsup2nothin]

i'm wandering.. i've looked at your argon patriot story ( the one in your sig) and part one sounds alot like this... but you don't elaborate on how to set this up in a xenon migration route like omicron lyre are there any notes you have on that? i've tried and as far as i can tell unless every CLS pilot has a jumpdrive and emergency jump enabled the network gets chewed up regularly until i can lock the scale plate green and black hole sun xenon gates with some M2s

That was the same basic result, using purely CLS as opposed to the CLS/CAG mix I'm using here.

As to the Xenon, it was just a matter of using experienced CLS pilots, getting to the point where I had enough of them, and equipping them all with triplex scanners. I would lose one now and then when they ran headfirst into a Xenon popping out of a gate, but for the most part they just all went idle whenever the Xenon came through because as soon as one saw them they would all hide.

Occasionally a wandering Q would start tearing stuff up instead of just passing through, and I would have to jump in with a bomber and exterminate it, but that was about all that I really did.

[sithneverdiealone]

As to the Xenon, it was just a matter of using experienced CLS pilots, ...
Occasionally a wandering Q would start tearing stuff up instead of just passing through, and I would have to jump in with a bomber and exterminate it, but that was about all that I really did.

figured it was something like that. that's part of my problem. i try to build up every thing as soon as i can afford it, witch means i expand quickly but i never really brake the 5 million mark (because of constant reinvestment) till i'm most of the way thru the hub, so i don't usually buy many ships heaver than a tm till then

[Timsup2nothin]

As to the Xenon, it was just a matter of using experienced CLS pilots, ...
Occasionally a wandering Q would start tearing stuff up instead of just passing through, and I would have to jump in with a bomber and exterminate it, but that was about all that I really did.

figured it was something like that. that's part of my problem. i try to build up every thing as soon as i can afford it, witch means i expand quickly but i never really brake the 5 million mark (because of constant reinvestment) till i'm most of the way thru the hub, so i don't usually buy many ships heaver than a tm till then

I hardly ever buy ships. If you get a serious trade network rolling it will boost your trade rank and rep with the target race really fast. I hunt freighters of the enemy of whatever my designated race is in their space (in this case Paranids in Argon space) which:

1) Gives me lots of scrap freighters.

2) Reduces NPC competition by at least one race worth.

3) Generates lots of dead fighter drones, which boosts my fight rank and race rep because kills are good even if they are just fighter drones.

With race rep, fight rank, and trade rank high I always get plenty of "please go retrieve my bomber/frigate" missions, and get offered used corvettes for sale cheap on a fairly regular basis. I always keep the first bomber someone sends me to get, because the sad fact is that there is really no problem in the X-Universe that can't be solved by a brace of Tomahawks.

[sithneverdiealone]

on war with the parinids: dosen't that get the crap shot out of you on OFF? my last game spawned a bloody Agamemnon that refused to get more than 1-2 km from the station that gives you all the quests. then i had to get better relations with the parinid before i could do the quest cuz the stupid thing had PSGs

[Timsup2nothin]

on war with the parinids: dosen't that get the crap shot out of you on OFF? my last game spawned a bloody Agamemnon that refused to get more than 1-2 km from the station that gives you all the quests. then i had to get better relations with the parinid before i could do the quest cuz the stupid thing had PSGs

An Agamemnon is definitely one of life's little problems that a brace of Tomahawks will certainly solve.

That said, I can't say that I have done OFF while at war with the Paranids. I only did it once and that was many games ago, so I was probably still playing 'nice with everyone' style.

[Crustyfur]

Hi Tim,

Whilst I have a fairly advanced game on the go I am having a play with this system, so I can understand it fully before I start a new game an implement it fully. I have a question!

Regarding the moving of the EC. I get the first part, CAG buys locally for 13cr, 0 jump range, delivers to Bakery in AM. Then I is confused... The CLS (EC Seller), loads max cargo and then sells to Wheat Farm in The Hole for 14cr, then you mention it flowing through sectors until it reaches Argon Prime, where it ultimately will be sold for 17cr locally. I am sketchy on the bit between leaving AM and arriving in Argon Prime. Firstly are you using the same CLS (EC Seller)? My understanding is that he is loading max space at Station #1, selling max space (+1cr to last pick up) Station #2, then load max space at Station #2, selling max space (+1cr to #2 pick up) Station #3 etc etc ? Is this correct? I assume when he hits the end of the supply chain he flies back to pick up in AM empty?

So far I have only set up the Bakery and Wheat Farm. My CLS Buyer for the Wheat Farm sits idle as the supply of Dele Wheat in my game appears to be so low that the price never drops to the minimum credits the buyer is set to buy at, so the station is using the EC's being delivered to manufacturer its own Dele Wheat to sell.

Hope I've have made sense.

Cheers

[sithneverdiealone]

So far I have only set up the Bakery and Wheat Farm. My CLS Buyer for the Wheat Farm sits idle as the supply of Dele Wheat in my game appears to be so low that the price never drops to the minimum credits the buyer is set to buy at, so the station is using the EC's being delivered to manufacturer its own Dele Wheat to sell.

not sure on the first part, but if you turn the wheat farms on,at least temporarily, you can force a depression in the value of wheat. i agree the wheat farms(baring station building) seem to sell at about 70-80% full to npc traders in the argon prime cluster. i had to glut the market to be able to buy any wheat at minimum.

[Timsup2nothin]

The e-cells move one station at a time, and each station has its own ship doing the selling. This keeps every station profitable and supplied with e-cells for their ships that need jump fuel.

So a cell made in AM gets bought by the CAG at 13 and lands at the bakery. It gets loaded on the seller that belongs to the bakery and sold to the wheat farm. Then it gets loaded on the seller that belongs to the wheat farm and sold to the silicon mine in Herron's. Then it gets loaded on the seller that belongs to the silicon mine and sold to the power plant in Argon Prime for distribution by the CAGs. Profit is distributed because the credits from the sales go to the home port of the seller. E cells from all the other power plants get pulled into the stream as it goes by. The sellers are all set up with:

LOAD max cargo
UNLOAD up to 5000
SELL

That way they will never drain their station to empty.
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On your problem with getting wheat...

I use a CLS setup I call the "Simu-CAG". It would be nice to just use a CAG who would buy at the best available price, but a CAG from a wheat farm cannot be set to buy wheat. But CLS Logistician can simulate a CAG by:

GENERATE waypoints buying at minimum (10)
GENERATE waypoints buying at 15
GENERATE waypoints buying at 20
GENERATE waypoints buying at 25
GENERATE waypoints buying at 30
UNLOAD max cargo.

He will start buying up all the wheat because he will beat the NPCs to it at 30. Your CAG will start getting the sales as soon as they become available. NPC haulers that do get loads won't be able to sell them locally and will wander off. After some time your station will be full and your guy won't be able to unload. Prices will start falling. When someone is ready to buy your CAG will load up and jump it, your buyer will immediately unload and jump on the best available price.

You will see a slow bleed on the station account at first, because the profits on sales will be pretty low and credits will be turning into wheat inventory. Then you will see the station account start rising once the wheat is full, because you will only be buying as much as you are selling. Over time it gets more and more profitable because the prices at the suppliers will be driven down further and further.

[Crustyfur]

The sellers are all set up with:

LOAD max cargo
UNLOAD up to 5000
SELL

Excellent, thanks Tim, this is the bit that confused me. Now you've listed it out like that, it makes perfect sense to my aging brain.

On your problem with getting wheat...

I use a CLS setup I call the "Simu-CAG". It would be nice to just use a CAG who would buy at the best available price, but a CAG from a wheat farm cannot be set to buy wheat. But CLS Logistician can simulate a CAG by:

GENERATE waypoints buying at minimum (10)
GENERATE waypoints buying at 15
GENERATE waypoints buying at 20
GENERATE waypoints buying at 25
GENERATE waypoints buying at 30
UNLOAD max cargo.

Again, thank you for explaining this! Believe or not I have only just discovered the 'Generate Waypoints' function, So it didn't occur to me to repeat the buying process with incremental buying prices. I now have plenty of wheat to sell. As a side note, my game only has 9 Wheat farms in the whole Universe and lots of buyers, hence the demand.

Now I can start working on the other wares that are required in the AP sectors.

Cheers