Self-imposed limitations

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Seon
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Self-imposed limitations

Post by Seon »

I'm curious as to what some of the limitations people have put on themselves.

Like, for example, I've recently thought of starting a game where I limit myself to using nothing but Teladi ships for myself and fleet ships, and then for weapons nothing but lasers.

The head-canon I have in mind for them is basically my empire is a bunch of Kha'ak worshipers. Can't use Kha'ak ships or weapons like I could with some X3 mods, so I figured something like this would be fun.

Something like the Paranid might make more sense for something like this than the Teladi would since it involves worship... But I've never used Teladi ships much so I decided I'd go for that.
Gavrushka
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by Gavrushka »

I miss buying 2nd hand ships. - In X3 TC, I bought nothing but, creating 'garages' (space stations) to park them.

In X4 the only self-imposed one is to crew a Zeus with nothing other than Split. There's only one Split model I've come across at present, so it's a crew of clones.

I'm not really sure what else I can do to personalise/limit how I play at the minute, but I'm sure game improvements in the future will open up a few options.
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quadrapod
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by quadrapod »

I don't play with all of these at once or anything, but these are some of the self imposed limitations I've put on myself in my various playthroughs.

No crystal mining
It's by far the easiest and fastest way to make money in a new game and just feels cheaty. I basically swore off ever doing it the moment I learned about it.

Fight for the HOP
This is something I'm doing in my latest playthrough. The HOP are definitely in the roughest spot of all the factions. On their own their economy has a hard time keeping up with ship building. Very well supplied Xenon constantly come in through faulty logic. They share a contested border with the Argon and the Paranid who constantly push them back. Even the Teladi will shoot at them if they get the chance. Plus the standard trickle of pirates and Khaak in their mining sectors destroying the occasional ship. I think trying to ensure HOP supremacy is pretty fun.

Combat only start.
I find the game's too generous with the early missions. I can go straight from fixing up some satellites for 100X their cost to having a trade fleet. Making all your money through combat and boarding operations really does add some spice to the game.

Carrier speedrun.
This is something I did with a friend. Essentially your goal is to get one of the largest capital ships as quickly as possible. Generally your goal is just to get an EMP as fast as possible and park on the back of a xenon K. It can be fun to play the game in such an odd way for a bit.

No station building missions.
Station building missions are just a little too good. 15,000,000 credits for building a 2,000,000 credit defense station definitely feels like being a military contractor but it's the obvious best way to make money.

No satellite spam.
If you want to see the trades a faction has available buy a trade subscription. This is in part just because I find satellites kind of spammy.

No free ships.
They seem to have turned down the frequency of abandoned ships but there was a time around the game's launch when finding 4 free ships in the same sector was not unheard of. After my first play-through taking everything I decided it didn't make the game very fun never earning anything and started ignoring them.

No crystal mining
It's by far the easiest and fastest way to make money in a new game and just feels cheaty. I basically swore off ever doing it the moment I learned about it.

Fight for the HOP
This is something I'm doing in my latest playthrough. The HOP are definitely in the roughest spot of all the factions. On their own their economy has a hard time keeping up with ship building. Very well supplied Xenon constantly come in through faulty logic. They share a contested border with the Argon and the Paranid who constantly push them back. Even the Teladi will shoot at them if they get the chance. Plus the standard trickle of pirates and Khaak in their mining sectors destroying the occasional ship. I think trying to ensure HOP supremacy is pretty fun.

Combat only start.
I find the game's too generous with the early missions. I can go straight from fixing up some satellites for 100X their cost to having a trade fleet. Making all your money through combat and boarding operations really does add some spice to the game.

Carrier speedrun.
This is something I did with a friend. Essentially your goal is to get one of the largest capital ships as quickly as possible. Generally your goal is just to get an EMP as fast as possible and park on the back of a xenon K. It can be fun to play the game in such an odd way for a bit.

No station building missions.
Station building missions are just a little too good. 15,000,000 credits for building a 2,000,000 credit defense station definitely feels like being a military contractor but it's the obvious best way to make money.

No satellite spam.
If you want to see the trades a faction has available buy a trade subscription. This is in part just because I find satellites kind of spammy.

No building in owned sectors.
This just kind of changes up how you go about expanding your empire and gives you some reason to want to claim a sector from another faction. Obviously the PHQ is an exception but I try not to expand that station any more than required by the main questline.
ajime
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by ajime »

I limit my crew to only use humans and the pilot must be those with proper flight suit/helmet uniform
csaba
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by csaba »

None yet, still hunting achievements. I'd welcome some advice how to get the X-treme fighter one.... I could wipe out a whole sector of Xenon and barely get a dent in that goal....

After that maybe I do a game where I'm not allowed to use small ships for anything outside starting out. I could get into a large miner quite fast but since both fighters and medium traders are infinitelly better for any job, it could be quite challenging to get anywhere in the game while retaining a decent progression. This could be a nice challenge might even install the VRO mod for that so it's less teeth grindy.

I'm not really into avoiding early game exploits like crystals, abandoned ships and build missions cause the progression outside those options feel like a genuine snail race. Probably the best is piracy which I don't find well worked out in this game to worth my time. Steal an unpiloted trader from minesweeper mission, usually given by the trade guilds, then use it for stealing high value goods, then get into drug trading but there the trail ends.
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quadrapod
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by quadrapod »

csaba wrote: Thu, 17. Oct 19, 13:51 None yet, still hunting achievements. I'd welcome some advice how to get the X-treme fighter one.... I could wipe out a whole sector of Xenon and barely get a dent in that goal....

After that maybe I do a game where I'm not allowed to use small ships for anything outside starting out. I could get into a large miner quite fast but since both fighters and medium traders are infinitelly better for any job, it could be quite challenging to get anywhere in the game while retaining a decent progression. This could be a nice challenge might even install the VRO mod for that so it's less teeth grindy.

I'm not really into avoiding early game exploits like crystals, abandoned ships and build missions cause the progression outside those options feel like a genuine snail race. Probably the best is piracy which I don't find well worked out in this game to worth my time. Steal an unpiloted trader from minesweeper mission, usually given by the trade guilds, then use it for stealing high value goods, then get into drug trading but there the trail ends.
I've noticed that boarding ships tends to do a lot more toward the rank than any kind of dogfighting. X-treme is a seriously high bar though. After rank 2 every rank requires exactly twice the effort of the previous ones. So if you're rank 20 now lets say, then you aren't 67% of the way to rank 30 (X-treme) like you might think or even close to that. You're actually (1/2^10) * 100 or a little under 0.1% of the way there. It's pretty brutal to the extent that I'd be a bit surprised if anyone actually got that achievement legitimately.
csaba
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by csaba »

quadrapod wrote: Thu, 17. Oct 19, 14:41
csaba wrote: Thu, 17. Oct 19, 13:51 None yet, still hunting achievements. I'd welcome some advice how to get the X-treme fighter one.... I could wipe out a whole sector of Xenon and barely get a dent in that goal....

After that maybe I do a game where I'm not allowed to use small ships for anything outside starting out. I could get into a large miner quite fast but since both fighters and medium traders are infinitelly better for any job, it could be quite challenging to get anywhere in the game while retaining a decent progression. This could be a nice challenge might even install the VRO mod for that so it's less teeth grindy.

I'm not really into avoiding early game exploits like crystals, abandoned ships and build missions cause the progression outside those options feel like a genuine snail race. Probably the best is piracy which I don't find well worked out in this game to worth my time. Steal an unpiloted trader from minesweeper mission, usually given by the trade guilds, then use it for stealing high value goods, then get into drug trading but there the trail ends.
I've noticed that boarding ships tends to do a lot more toward the rank than any kind of dogfighting. X-treme is a seriously high bar though. After rank 2 every rank requires exactly twice the effort of the previous ones. So if you're rank 20 now lets say, then you aren't 67% of the way to rank 30 (X-treme) like you might think or even close to that. You're actually (1/2^10) * 100 or a little under 0.1% of the way there. It's pretty brutal to the extent that I'd be a bit surprised if anyone actually got that achievement legitimately.
Yea I might drop that if I can't turn that into something bearable. I'm not one for mindless grinds. Thanks for the info!
Falcrack
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by Falcrack »

I find X4, currently, is too easy, especially late game where I face no restrictions on my economic expansion. So in my current playthrough, I am limiting the amount of stations I can build per sector, and the size and location of stations, and also using a mod that pays my ship crew. My long term goal is to eliminate the Teladi following these rules.

1. I can only build stations in unclaimed sectors or sectors I have claimed myself, with the exception of the HQ in Grand Exchange I, and defense stations in sectors which I am attempting to take over.

2. Each sector in which I build stations can support a maximum of 10 stations, not counting defense stations that lack any production modules. If there are NPC stations in the sector, they also count towards the 10 station limit.

3. Each station can only have a single type of production module, and no more than 4 production modules per station.

4. Before placing any production modules, I am required to place habitation modules that can house a sufficient number of workers to support the production modules at 100%.

5. Each ship I own must have the maximum number of crew.

6. Victory will be achieved only when no more Teladi owned sectors, or Teladi associated pirates (aka SCA) remain in the galaxy.
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quadrapod
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by quadrapod »

Falcrack wrote: Thu, 17. Oct 19, 14:53 6. Victory will be achieved only when no more Teladi owned sectors, or Teladi associated pirates (aka SCA) remain in the galaxy.
Ah you were talking about that some on reddit. It made me really tempted to start a new game with the Variety and Rebalance Overhaul after checking it out from your mod list.
EmperorDragon
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by EmperorDragon »

-No crystal mining, I never actually mined crystals before come to think of it.

-I rarely, if ever, do high-paying missions.

-Trade/smuggle manually with a M freighter as a playership in the early game for making my first few million. Put me on the Kessel run and I'll do it in 5 parsecs! Just ask the Argon police...

-I don't go too overboard with fleets in the late game, a fleet normally consists of 1x carrier and 8x destroyers, with limited fighters. May vary from fleet to fleet. Never have more than 5 fleets (barring task-specific single ships and small flotillas).

-Limited use of Gorgons and Nemesis, they can be quite powerful in large numbers, and fast.

-I never use missiles, only on personal playerships in limited numbers.

-I prefer to build smaller station complexes all across my empire instead of a single all-in-one megacomplex in my capital sector. More ground to cover and more freighters to protect.

-Secure my borders with military stations and fortifications instead of just stationing a fleet there, takes more time and resources to do (yes, military stations is meaningless at the moment but, if we get turret behaviour settings in 3.0, it will be worth it and just as effective as a fleet of ships).

-Build many pointless stations just for beautification and populating owned sectors, stations that produce nothing and generate no income (residential complexes and country estates is a common feature in my empire). Hoarding all the required resources and constructing the stations adds a decent chunk of additional non-combat game time, all just for fun.

-I try not to exploit the locked SCA relations issue too much, sometimes unavoidable and it can be tempting to leech resources off them.

This is not stuff I do to specifically make the game harder or more time consuming for myself, nor is it hard limits. It's just the way I like to play, that's the beauty of sandbox games!
“To be the first to enter the cosmos, to engage, single-handed, in an unprecedented duel with nature - could one dream of anything more?” - Yuri Gagarin
Pares
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by Pares »

I personally really like the Research Overhaul 2.0 mod with the hard version. It completely changes the dynamic of the game, since you need a lot of resources (and a lot of credits) in the PHQ storage to be able to research even the basic mods. This way it doesn't feel like cheating, and it provides some mid- and end-game goals to accomplish.
csaba
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by csaba »

Pares wrote: Fri, 18. Oct 19, 11:48 I personally really like the Research Overhaul 2.0 mod with the hard version. It completely changes the dynamic of the game, since you need a lot of resources (and a lot of credits) in the PHQ storage to be able to research even the basic mods. This way it doesn't feel like cheating, and it provides some mid- and end-game goals to accomplish.
That's an interesting point I might look into it although something similar was mentioned for 3.0 already.

I'd really wish for a total overhaul as the research options are quite bland and the only ones I find useful is the stations scan ones. Teleportation I can live without.
Pares
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by Pares »

csaba wrote: Fri, 18. Oct 19, 15:29
Pares wrote: Fri, 18. Oct 19, 11:48 I personally really like the Research Overhaul 2.0 mod with the hard version. It completely changes the dynamic of the game, since you need a lot of resources (and a lot of credits) in the PHQ storage to be able to research even the basic mods. This way it doesn't feel like cheating, and it provides some mid- and end-game goals to accomplish.
That's an interesting point I might look into it although something similar was mentioned for 3.0 already.

I'd really wish for a total overhaul as the research options are quite bland and the only ones I find useful is the stations scan ones. Teleportation I can live without.
Yes, I too hope that this mod will become obsolete with the 3.0 patch.
Karmaticdamage
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by Karmaticdamage »

If you really want to knee cap yourself. Don't build a wharf or shipyard.
csaba
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by csaba »

Karmaticdamage wrote: Fri, 18. Oct 19, 22:22 If you really want to knee cap yourself. Don't build a wharf or shipyard.
Once you are at that point it's not like you can't buy billions of ships from the AI anyway and you make back the money by refilling the stations every time you order a 100 heavy fighters.
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Nort The Fragrent
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by Nort The Fragrent »

I play with no weapons , haven't fired a single shot. When there is a fight going on I dash in grab what I can and flee. It’s risky, exciting and sneaky.
Bit of a scavenger,
All my station managers are Argon woman, that way you get greeted by a nice Argon voice when landing.
I have no mods to my ships, ( basically cos I haven't a clue how to do it ) so I don't bother.
I haven't opened a single lock box, ( I have no guns so they are irrelevant to me )

Net worth is 50 Billion, you can play without fighting. !

:roll:
Karmaticdamage
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Re: Self-imposed limitations

Post by Karmaticdamage »

csaba wrote: Sat, 19. Oct 19, 00:57
Karmaticdamage wrote: Fri, 18. Oct 19, 22:22 If you really want to knee cap yourself. Don't build a wharf or shipyard.
Once you are at that point it's not like you can't buy billions of ships from the AI anyway and you make back the money by refilling the stations every time you order a 100 heavy fighters.
Not really, it only takes about 250mil to get the wharf and HOP S/M blueprints, and build the station. After this the money printer turns on and you will have a shipyard and every blueprint in the game in less then one game day after.

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