MISC - Prospector (Mining Ship)

[Drum]

2 hours ago, faquarl25 said:

I am puzzled. I sincerely hope that the orion cannot fully refine minerals as that is the job of planet side refineries. I hope what this means is that the prospector will filter out just rock bits and keep the rock and ore bits while the Orion will be able to separate the ore from the rock, even if it is on the same piece. This could lead to some illegal activity involving players trying to pass low density ore for highly concentrated stuff. 

Not much to be puzzled about since it was one of the main draws for an Orion.

Not only can you deliver raw ore but also refined ingots. It will probably be a slow process and the time to refine it all would probably not be worth it. Much like the refined fuel in a Starfarer. Same same.

Sell the raw stuff and also have some refined (ore or fuel) in the wagon to sell or use. - DRUM out

[Tom Villder]

6 hours ago, GalYurr said:

An Idris with Prospectors inside could be a nice alternate PvE mining setup for the cap ship hehe.  Idris lands, serving as a drop off point for full containers.  Then all aboard again and back home. :]

They'd be like manned mining drones.

Don't forget that you can use Argo ships to ferry the filled containers while they keep drilling (>1000 SCU per Prospector).

And because there will be variants, (if possible) you could add the refinery to the Idris and use a Prospector variant with no refinery and faster mining speed or no refinery and increased capacity (if they exist).

8 hours ago, Irres said:

$140 seems like a lot for this ship

While it does seem excessive for such a small size, I think that it is worth it because, to put this into perspective, you need 2 Caterpillars, a Hull C/Banu MM/Starfarer (base cargo) or a few Freelancer MAXs to haul what a Prospector could make in one uninterrupted sitting.

[VoA]

1 hour ago, Tom Villder said:

Don't forget that you can use Argo ships to ferry the filled containers while they keep drilling (>1000 SCU per Prospector).

And because there will be variants, (if possible) you could add the refinery to the Idris and use a Prospector variant with no refinery and faster mining speed or no refinery and increased capacity (if they exist).

Great point about the Argo  (possibly a separate Concept Sale coming for the Argo)

Don't think that the Idris will ever have any type of refining option or module

1 hour ago, Tom Villder said:

While it does seem excessive for such a small size, I think that it is worth it because, to put this into perspective, you need 2 Caterpillars, a Hull C/Banu MM/Starfarer (base cargo) or a few Freelancer MAXs to haul what a Prospector could make in one uninterrupted sitting.

Again great point but the new Caterpillar from F42 has increased in size and probably it includes a Cargo capacity increase 

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On another note here are some player pictures 

 

 

 

[Yekko]

Now we'll see Big Benny everywhere! 

 

I really like the cockpit of it! Nice view for industrial purposes.

Anyway, the MISC Prospector is officially part of my ship family. 

6 hours ago, Tom Villder said:

Don't forget that you can use Argo ships to ferry the filled containers while they keep drilling (>1000 SCU per Prospector).

And because there will be variants, (if possible) you could add the refinery to the Idris and use a Prospector variant with no refinery and faster mining speed or no refinery and increased capacity (if they exist).

While it does seem excessive for such a small size, I think that it is worth it because, to put this into perspective, you need 2 Caterpillars, a Hull C/Banu MM/Starfarer (base cargo) or a few Freelancer MAXs to haul what a Prospector could make in one uninterrupted sitting.

Like @VoA I doubt we will see that for an Idris, at least not in the beginning, but maybe on the long shot after a year.

But why not use the Orions refinery? I mean an Orion could easily orbit around a planet and have a few Prospectors on the ground, while a small Hull A does some runs with the items and drop them at the Orion? The Orion would just need one pilot and a gunner for protection. 

[Tom Villder]

1 hour ago, Yekko said:

But why not use the Orions refinery? I mean an Orion could easily orbit around a planet and have a few Prospectors on the ground, while a small Hull A does some runs with the items and drop them at the Orion? The Orion would just need one pilot and a gunner for protection. 

While I like the idea of this op, I think we'll encounter the following problems:

- The Orion's own refinery would be already working with its own mined material.  But nevertheless, if we assume that it has multiple refineries, then it could have one processing its own ore and the other for ore brought in from the Prospectors.  The remaining issue will be choosing the suitable ship to haul the refined material to a station... and honestly I think that a modified Starfarer or even a Banu MM can excel in this task.

- In such a mining op, there will be some clutter.  Each Prospector will generate 4 ore containers at a time, they all have to be ferried to the Orion (or mothership?) for processing and then another set of refined ore containers will be jettisoned by the Orion/Mothership for hauling.  I imagine that such an op will be chaotic at first because you have the Prospectors coordinating with the ferrying ships, the ferrying ships coordinating with the Orion and hauler, and the escort ships coordinating with everyone else and doing their own thing (e.g. scouting, scans etc).  But with training, coordination and just general experience gained from playing, these difficulties will be dealt with in due time.

- With the amount of ore containers lying around, it might delay the termination of the mining op in the event of an emergency.  Again, this problem can be addressed with coordination and training/drills in-game.

[Sky Captain]

I'm just glad to see a smaller mining ship finally.  Its been a long time in the making.  The prospector turned out great in concept.

[CyberianK]

Looks great but I skip on it for now. Got the Orion already and hopefully can make enough money fast in the game for it.

 

Was thinking about melting my Hull E or Phoenix for some combination of buying back Starfarer/Banu/Prospector but I just can't do that. Connie got some sentimental value to me even though it might not be the best ship and Hull E I can't melt for CargoSpace reason.

They have to stop making so many industry ships that really causes me headaches

On topic I really like the details on the laser/tractor area

[Wu Jen]

11 hours ago, faquarl25 said:

I am puzzled. I sincerely hope that the orion cannot fully refine minerals as that is the job of planet side refineries. I hope what this means is that the prospector will filter out just rock bits and keep the rock and ore bits while the Orion will be able to separate the ore from the rock, even if it is on the same piece. This could lead to some illegal activity involving players trying to pass low density ore for highly concentrated stuff. 

Your hopes are dashed sir. They said during RtV that the original concept Orions will be the version that comes with a Refinery. Any Orions that are sold afterward will be base variants that will be able to buy a refinery module. Much like what was done with the Retaliator bomber originally sold with bomb bays then only sold as a 'base model' without bomb bay modules, although you can buy those and equip them yourself.

The Prospector will be able to filter out the rock and keep just the ore to be refined later at a suitable location of your choosing.

[VoA]

2 hours ago, Yekko said:

Now we'll see Big Benny everywhere! 

Yep  - this one is better... than the one above...

2 hours ago, Yekko said:

Like @VoA I doubt we will see that for an Idris, at least not in the beginning, but maybe on the long shot after a year.

But why not use the Orions refinery? I mean an Orion could easily orbit around a planet and have a few Prospectors on the ground, while a small Hull A does some runs with the items and drop them at the Orion? The Orion would just need one pilot and a gunner for protection. 

I don't think any other spaceship willl ever be created or allowed to have an Ore Refinery in it other than the Orion and probably some Shubin ships that players won't have access to.  It is more likely that you will have to either bring it to these two types of ships or to a planetary refinery in a city or colony (CR wants us to travel to planets - this is just another reason to).   Small Haulers like the Hull A (even Hull B), Reliant Kore, Avenger Titan, even Freelancer Max, etc... will need to make a number of runs (see below for bigger ideal haulers) to fully offload the Prosepectors *(8)x128 SCU of ore storage (explained in previous posts) - but there is nothing wrong with making multiple runs - gives you something to do and mining won't be super fast anyway.

Keep in mind - part of the shuttling of Ore is to bring back extra bags....... I hope they will sell "extra" bags as a future module (so your hauler can dump them off and keep the Prospector rolling with its mining operation)

1 hour ago, Tom Villder said:

The remaining issue will be choosing the suitable ship to haul the refined material to a station... and honestly I think that a modified Starfarer or even a Banu MM can excel in this task.

And a Caterpillar (remember F42 is making it bigger so it will have greater cargo capacity as well = it is being modified) + the Hull C will also be ideal in addition to the ones you mention above..

1 hour ago, Tom Villder said:

, they all have to be ferried to the Orion (or mothership?) for processing and then another set of refined ore containers will be jettisoned by the Orion/Mothership for hauling.  I imagine that such an op will be chaotic at first because you have the Prospectors coordinating with the ferrying ships, the ferrying ships coordinating with the Orion and hauler, and the escort ships coordinating with everyone else and doing their own thing (e.g. scouting, scans etc).  But with training, coordination and just general experience gained from playing, these difficulties will be dealt with in due time.

Per above....  I hope they will sell "extra" bags as a future module

1 hour ago, Tom Villder said:

- With the amount of ore containers lying around, it might delay the termination of the mining op in the event of an emergency.  Again, this problem can be addressed with coordination and training/drills in-game.

Agreed - but this will be a good problem.   I hope they allow us to set up permanent (persistent - so they don't go away after a time) = supply cache / supply depots..... so if you find a good mining site just build a mining depot there.

1 hour ago, CyberianK said:

Was thinking about melting my Hull E or Phoenix for some combination of buying back Starfarer/Banu/Prospector but I just can't do that.

I think that would be a "huge" mistake if you did.   Remember when the PU hits the Hull E and especially the Phoenix will be extremely rare and will likely demand 2x+ their value in an trade with other players who had no access to getting them during the pledge campaign (remember the player population will grow 2-4x at launch as with most games).   A Banu MM will be rare and also demand a premium........ but Starfarers and Prospectors will be extremly common..... and may even sell under-value in the PU as players may even have "excess" ships that they want to trade.

1 hour ago, CyberianK said:

Connie got some sentimental value to me even though it might not be the best ship and Hull E I can't melt for CargoSpace reason.

My favorite ship in game is the Phoenix  and that is with having pretty much all the ships including Javelin / Idris / etc....   It is the perfect size (not to big / small) very profitable / very rare / good meeting ship / good diplomatic ships / decent cargo / good rover / smuggling options / very good at combat (still think it will be favored to win any 1v1 on any ship smaller than a Polaris).

Many don't realize how valuable a Hull E will be (remember Ben said the only Hulls that will have the Battle-Wagon Variant - with turrets as an option on the spindles - will be the Hull D-E).   I am going to use my Hull E as a logistical warehouse (keeping it in one spot and have smaller haulers fill it up - then have the Hull E take it to market when full).

54 minutes ago, Wu Jen said:

Your hopes are dashed sir. They said during RtV that the original concept Orions will be the version that comes with a Refinery. Any Orions that are sold afterward will be base variants that will be able to buy a refinery module. Much like what was done with the Retaliator bomber originally sold with bomb bays then only sold as a 'base model' without bomb bay modules, although you can buy those and equip them yourself.

The Prospector will be able to filter out the rock and keep just the ore to be refined later at a suitable location of your choosing.

Agree and you bring up a point that filtered rock will be more valuable (shipping and storage wise it will be more compact) - than EVA or other type of mining even if it isn't as efficient as hauling refined ore.

[Leonn]

34 minutes ago, CyberianK said:

Looks great but I skip on it for now. Got the Orion already and hopefully can make enough money fast in the game for it.

 

Was thinking about melting my Hull E or Phoenix for some combination of buying back Starfarer/Banu/Prospector but I just can't do that. Connie got some sentimental value to me even though it might not be the best ship and Hull E I can't melt for CargoSpace reason.

They have to stop making so many industry ships that really causes me headaches

On topic I really like the details on the laser/tractor area

Definitely keep your hull E. This will be a niche area as not many players will have these and as far as making money goes hauling on a large scale is extremely lucrative providing you have the funds to fill it or trust of your clients/org. It will be a brilliant role to play in game and you will be a major asset to the organisation. Even if you only use it 2 or 3 times a month it will be worth it. They have stated that the D & E have major roles to play in Large Orgs outside of just moving kit. Also as part of a large Org you will not have any problems finding scouts and escorts. Getting to fly beside one of these beasts during a large scale logistics operation with all the escorts flying around will be an awesome experience.

On Topic;
With regards to the Prospector and its hauler partnership it will depend on wither or not CIG will allow multiboxing.
In EVE I used to run mining operations and I had 6 accounts personally. One Rorqual/Orca (in-space leadership/booster/refinery ship) and 5 Miners. The Miners just keep dumping all mined ice into the mother-ship which was serviced by a hauler/s.  It was an amazing amount of money being generated each hour. This of course IS NOT EVE  and being able to run two accounts at the same time with one comp is going to be very taxing. We will have to wait and see. It may be regarded as illegal by CIG anyway! The way things are going with regards to how interactive & labour intensive they are making each task I am not sure we will even be able to run two tasks at once. Sending a second account off to a station to drop off your mined ore should not present too much effort though.
 

The type of ship to use as a partner for the Prospector and the Orion for that matter will require the above to be answered first. Then it will come down to Location, Security Requirements and number of mining ships (Solo or group play).

Planet Mining - no security required = Hull series
Planet Mining - security required = Hull series + Escorts OR BMM / Starfarer (personally I think the BMM is going to kick ass when finished)

Space Mining - no security required = Hull series
Space Mining - security required = Hull series + Escorts 

The Hull series will be better suited for space as it has the ability to automate the collection and replenishment of cargo units whereas the BMM and Starfarer have to land to do this. Also when the ship docks at a station I believe all transfers of cargo can be automated so the ship lands, unloads and takes off again without the need for the pilot to do anything. I am not sure if this is a Hull Series only function or this will be available to all cargo ships at a station. I am pretty sure all 'cargo' ships including the BMM & Starfarer will have this function when using a station or that would be pretty unfair on BMM owners.

As usual we will have to wait until we know more. But I love this little ship. Great Job CIG! I think the ship designs are getting better and better and we are going to see all the original ships getting major overhauls before final release.

[AstroJak]

Since we briefly touched on refining variants for other ships, i would propose a refining (mining) variant of the starfarer/gemini! where they change out the gas refinery equipment for mining refinery equip. I was sure i hear Ben make a comment to this effect but i haven't been able to locate the source, so lets just say its my idea...

 

AJ

[Tom Villder]

1 minute ago, AstroJak said:

Since we briefly touched on refining variants for other ships, i would propose a refining (mining) variant of the starfarer/gemini! where they change out the gas refinery equipment for mining refinery equip. I was sure i hear Ben make a comment to this effect but i haven't been able to locate the source, so lets just say its my idea...

 

AJ

Quite a long shot imo because for a significant number of people, it will invalidate the need for the Orion i.e. if the Starfarer was capable of accommodating ore refining equipment, then tthe Orion would lose a bit more value because:

- Orion is much rarer (and a larger, juicer target for bandits/pirates) than a common Starfarer... so replacement time will be much shorter.

- Modularity - if this variant existed, then the Starfarer would be able to cover fuel AND mining extraction i.e. equipment can be quickly changed in the hangar without the need of another dedicated ship.

- Starfarer requires a MUCH smaller fighter complement/escorts than the Orion... maybe a larger crew to cover the turrets though?

- Not sure about cargo capacity of the Orion, but could the Starfarer carry half fuel containers (so it could refuel the Prospectors mid-op) and half solid cargo containers to hold some extra refined ore while the hauler comes back?

Don't get me wrong, if such a variant came out I'd get it immediately because it covers my 2 favorite roles, but honestly its a bit OP.

[GalYurr]

I'd like to see a refinery module for the Endeavor, along with a set of expanded cargo ones.  Then just add the hangar to store a couple Prospectors and you've got a little mining platform.  Better for in space, unless the detachable shuttle could be used to ferry through the atmosphere while leaving the main part in orbit.

[Yekko]

6 hours ago, Tom Villder said:

While I like the idea of this op, I think we'll encounter the following problems:

- The Orion's own refinery would be already working with its own mined material.  But nevertheless, if we assume that it has multiple refineries, then it could have one processing its own ore and the other for ore brought in from the Prospectors.  The remaining issue will be choosing the suitable ship to haul the refined material to a station... and honestly I think that a modified Starfarer or even a Banu MM can excel in this task.

- In such a mining op, there will be some clutter.  Each Prospector will generate 4 ore containers at a time, they all have to be ferried to the Orion (or mothership?) for processing and then another set of refined ore containers will be jettisoned by the Orion/Mothership for hauling.  I imagine that such an op will be chaotic at first because you have the Prospectors coordinating with the ferrying ships, the ferrying ships coordinating with the Orion and hauler, and the escort ships coordinating with everyone else and doing their own thing (e.g. scouting, scans etc).  But with training, coordination and just general experience gained from playing, these difficulties will be dealt with in due time.

- With the amount of ore containers lying around, it might delay the termination of the mining op in the event of an emergency.  Again, this problem can be addressed with coordination and training/drills in-game.

I like the problem sum up but I was thinking of planetary mining far from Asteroid fields, which since the Orion will be limited to Asteroid fields only.

Reason why I mentioned that the Orion would be orbit and only require a pilot and a gunner  So this would liberate the refinery and have it for the Prospectors. Basically actually transforming the Orion in a sort of forward base refinery. And use its cargo to stock processed minerals because it has quite some cargo space, for both unrefined and refined minerals. 

 

So basically putting the Orion in between the chain.

Basic chain: 

Prospector -> hauler -> Refinery Station (Pay Process, if we can just use a station with a fee to refine) -> Haul -> Sell refined

Prospector -> hauler -> Sell unrefined at Refinery Station/other Stations/other persons.

Orion Chain:

Prospector -> hauler -> Orion Refinery (Free Process) -> Haul -> Sell refined

What do you think of this?

1 hour ago, GalYurr said:

I'd like to see a refinery module for the Endeavor, along with a set of expanded cargo ones.  Then just add the hangar to store a couple Prospectors and you've got a little mining platform.  Better for in space, unless the detachable shuttle could be used to ferry through the atmosphere while leaving the main part in orbit.

This would be a GREAT addition to the Endeavor! Especially with its hangar this would make it actually a perfect ship to replace my Orion Chain.

4 hours ago, VoA said:

I don't think any other spaceship willl ever be created or allowed to have an Ore Refinery in it other than the Orion and probably some Shubin ships that players won't have access to.  It is more likely that you will have to either bring it to these two types of ships or to a planetary refinery in a city or colony (CR wants us to travel to planets - this is just another reason to).   Small Haulers like the Hull A (even Hull B), Reliant Kore, Avenger Titan, even Freelancer Max, etc... will need to make a number of runs (see below for bigger ideal haulers) to fully offload the Prosepectors *(8)x128 SCU of ore storage (explained in previous posts) - but there is nothing wrong with making multiple runs - gives you something to do and mining won't be super fast anyway.

Keep in mind - part of the shuttling of Ore is to bring back extra bags....... I hope they will sell "extra" bags as a future module (so your hauler can dump them off and keep the Prospector rolling with its mining operation)

 

Yes that was quite the idea I thought aswell, and if they module every ship to be everything they want I doubt we'll see much diversity after.

I hope people will understand that modularity will have limits and not make any ship any thing they want.

Yes it definitely looks like the cargo storage quite match up and I really hope they did that on purpose!

I also wonder if we'll be able to just use this ship as a "hauler" as well. I mean since the bags are squeezable, might have a little spot for a container when folded up.

[Tom Villder]

To help set the atmosphere, here's Tellers video on the Prospector (plus my favorite music track from eve):

 

4 minutes ago, Yekko said:

So basically putting the Orion in between the chain.

Basic chain: 

Prospector -> hauler -> Refinery Station (Pay Process, if we can just use a station with a fee to refine) -> Haul -> Sell refined

Prospector -> hauler -> Sell unrefined at Refinery Station/other Stations/other persons.

Orion Chain:

Prospector -> hauler -> Orion Refinery (Free Process) -> Haul -> Sell refined

What do you think of this?

I didn't think about planetary mining, so good thing you mentioned it.  And yes, if the mining op is large enough (and continues long enough) I think that the "Orion" chain would be very suitable, especially for planetary mining since the Orion won't be doing any extraction.  Though I'd suggest that the first leg of the journey should be done by a shuttle craft (like an Argo) rather than a hauler, because you're carrying one (or two?) cans at a time... imo I'd put the hauler on standby in a remote location on standby (minimal power, no scan) until the Orion starts making refined cans.  The last thing we want is to draw attention with so many ship signatures in one area.

Speaking of signatures... one way I was thinking of reducing ship signatures is to have some (or all?) of the escort ships park on random asteroids in the vicinity with all systems off except life support, like the hauler at the start of the mining op.

1 hour ago, GalYurr said:

I'd like to see a refinery module for the Endeavor, along with a set of expanded cargo ones.  Then just add the hangar to store a couple Prospectors and you've got a little mining platform.  Better for in space, unless the detachable shuttle could be used to ferry through the atmosphere while leaving the main part in orbit.

Never thought of this! I was thinking that we park an Endeavor somewhere safe and use its particle collider to make rarer ores/alloys/minerals from the stuff we mine... could be used to make some powerful/rare components?

[JohnWhiskey]

i finaly figgured out what this ship reminds me off, the worker bee

5 hours ago, VoA said:

8 hours ago, Yekko said:

this pic is what pushed me into thinking of this ship as a bee

[Yekko]

44 minutes ago, Tom Villder said:

To help set the atmosphere, here's Tellers video on the Prospector (plus my favorite music track from eve):

 

I didn't think about planetary mining, so good thing you mentioned it.  And yes, if the mining op is large enough (and continues long enough) I think that the "Orion" chain would be very suitable, especially for planetary mining since the Orion won't be doing any extraction.  Though I'd suggest that the first leg of the journey should be done by a shuttle craft (like an Argo) rather than a hauler, because you're carrying one (or two?) cans at a time... imo I'd put the hauler on standby in a remote location on standby (minimal power, no scan) until the Orion starts making refined cans.  The last thing we want is to draw attention with so many ship signatures in one area.

Speaking of signatures... one way I was thinking of reducing ship signatures is to have some (or all?) of the escort ships park on random asteroids in the vicinity with all systems off except life support, like the hauler at the start of the mining op.

Never thought of this! I was thinking that we park an Endeavor somewhere safe and use its particle collider to make rarer ores/alloys/minerals from the stuff we mine... could be used to make some powerful/rare components?

Yea exactly! A small utiliy ship would do the trick and is likely better than a hauler!

So that changes the chains to:

Basic chain: 

Prospector -> Argo/(mini utility ship)/Hull-A/Reliant -> Refinery Station (Pay Process) -> Big Hauler -> Sell refined

Prospector -> Argo/(mini utility ship)/Hull-A/Reliant -> Sell unrefined at Refinery Station/other Stations/other persons.

Orion Chain:

Prospector -> Argo/(mini utility ship)/Hull-A/Reliant -> Orion Refinery (Free Process) -> Big Hauler -> Sell refined

Possible chain:

Prospector -> Argo -> Orion -> Argo -> Endeavor Particle Collider -> Hauler -> Fleet/Sell

 

The ship is really big actually. Especially quite fat actually... When you see the comparison with a Hull A it is quite bigger.

But I guess the Hull-A isn't really made for a long deep space travel, a Prospector kinda is (well I hope, and would make sense)

 

[MarcusReed]

On 4/5/2016 at 11:07 AM, Xeen said:

I don't like the idea of playing the game by not playing the game at all...

I think that's the whole idea of have capital and/or large ship with either NPCs or human players as a crew. I imagine there will be ship communication system so I can check in or bark orders to different parts of my ship while i am in my captains quarters relaxing, drinking coffee, or having a conversation with my engineer about why the hell can I get more power out of our engines.

Not having to sit at my PC to do every little task is huge for me. I can sleep in my captains quarters over night while my over night crew continues fuel harvesting runs.

[VoA]

 

[Fizzlefuse]

So.. I'm torn.

Right now I have three ships, Hull B, Sabre and my Freelancer DUR (package).
I'm really really tempted to get a MISC Prospector but I'm not willing to shell out another 150+ bucks (with VAT), so I'm contemplating on either melting my Sabre (since you can't downgrade ).. which would also mean losing the only flight ready ship I have right now. I would have 30,- in store credits left after purchuase of said Prospector though, to potentially spend on something coming down the line.

Or I could upgrade my Hull B... which means paying a little extra but losing my hauler. 
Upgrading the Freelancer would be losing LTI on the Prospector, so I don't really consider that much of an option, although LTI has been said to not be that much of a deal.

Ugh. Choices.

[MarcusReed]

I wouldnt sell the Sabre, EVER. Its my favorite and sexiest combat ship also very well armed.

[Karmaslap]

6 hours ago, AstroJak said:

Since we briefly touched on refining variants for other ships, i would propose a refining (mining) variant of the starfarer/gemini! where they change out the gas refinery equipment for mining refinery equip. I was sure i hear Ben make a comment to this effect but i haven't been able to locate the source, so lets just say its my idea...

Take a look at the recent jump point with the starfarer design. Chris originally wanted it to be capable of mining as well! They drafted it up with room for the equipment and everything. 

 

I think an Orion in orbit working on asteroids + a few prospectors on the planet and assisting the orion will be a good mix. It all depend son how fast the refinery is: if it can refine as fast as it can mine it isn't useful for a group like this, but if it can refine faster (with a player operaring it instead of an NPC, perhaps?) then it should be profitable. Get a player with a Hull B to fly back and forth between planet and orion full time, and enough defense forces to stall incoming aggressors.

I definitely think there will be extra storage modules sold. Land a few prospectors, and have a hull D/E in orbit with a few orions nearby. Bring the hull full of empty storage packs, and have it leave with full ones.

 

as of right now I just have the starter package and an Avenger, I locked my wallet in the car yesterday because I was so tempted to get the prospector. 

[Wu Jen]

10 minutes ago, Karmaslap said:

as of right now I just have the starter package and an Avenger, I locked my wallet in the car yesterday because I was so tempted to get the prospector. 

You must not be planning on going anywhere anytime soon as the Prospector will be on sale till May 2nd!

[VoA]

34 minutes ago, Fizzlefuse said:

Right now I have three ships, Hull B, Sabre and my Freelancer DUR (package).

I wouldn't melt any of those ships for the Prospector (and you'll need the Hull B to work with it efficiently)...... but you also want to Explore (DUR) and fight (Sabre)......

So........ I think you'll just have to up your pledge to get the Prospector

 

[Wu Jen]

Remember while the sale is going on, if you have $140 worth of store credit you can put a bunch of prospectors on your buy back list.

Use store credit and buy Prospector, melt, buy Prospector, melt, buy Prospector, melt. etc.

Then at a later date you decide you want the ship you can either use store credit buyback token, i.e. every 3 months, or just pay real cash and pick up one from your buyback list.

It's also good if another squad member missed the sale but wants they ship. They can pay you the exact amount for it and you just transfer it over. Pay it forward.