Hint - Station design and ships

[MrMikey]

I have been asked how the hell i get my stations to work pretty much flawlessly when the autopilots of ships can be lets say it laughable at times and it's actually quite simple.

1. Choose a spot that can have a single side towards ALL gates and pref other stations as well(corners is a good example with a slightly rotated plot)
2. The station emblem on the map is where the ships will aim when traveling to that station before they get assigned a dock... so make sure to have that without any obstructions like buildings in the way (between gates/other stations etc). IE Make the plot in one direction from the emblem save some space and then build the first dock - The result - The visiting ship with fly to the emblem gathering spot.. get assigned an landing slot when getting close and then land nearby after just a turn. (The reason the player HQ is bugging when your close is that its emblem/gathering spot is in the middle of the asteroid)
3. ROTATE the docks appropriately - Dont let all ships turn 90 degrees before they can land. Rather align all slots in line from the emblem/gathering spot.
4. DONT forget to save some space between the emblem / landing spot so he ships can maneuver.

Tips and tricks... if unsure of how the plot is facing in regards of building inside it... make a simple crap pathway on a side... and see where it lands inside the plot when its starting to be made.

If you want to build a ton of stations in a sector... a circle formation is good for instance as all emblems can be rotated without obstruction from other stations ie straight pathways

When done right ships comes to the emblem and pretty much just lands straight away without any additional maneuvering - It might take some time / retries to get flawless but its really awesome when it does... and even if not many of the pitfalls of having the emblem in the middle of the station making traders want to go there before they get an assigned dock is avoided by just knowing how it works.

That basically how i make ship friendly station layout.

Hope this helps!

// Mike