Communications questions

[jefflackey]

Just to make sure I'm not missing a switch or button somewhere - playing as a terran miltary commander, MK3, for a while, figuring the game out, read the manual, appendix, vcms, etc.

Is there a way to make a radio call for military help (i.e., call for the cavalry?) when under major attack? Also, I haven't noticed any communications (e.g., radio calls, etc.) from anyone outside of my crew - is this normal?

Thanks.

Jeff Lackey

watch your spelling is subject titles please

[ 12-31-2001: Message edited by: Tyrn ]

watch your grammer in spelling corrections please

[ 12-31-2001: Message edited by: Jeff Lackey ]

[Thomas Braun]

As far as I know, you can't communicate with any other ships or stations. If anyone knows how, it would be nice if they would post here.

[Tyrn]

quote:

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Originally posted by Jeff Lackey:

Just to make sure I'm not missing a switch or button somewhere - playing as a terran miltary commander, MK3, for a while, figuring the game out, read the manual, appendix, vcms, etc.

Is there a way to make a radio call for military help (i.e., call for the cavalry?) when under major attack? Also, I haven't noticed any communications (e.g., radio calls, etc.) from anyone outside of my crew - is this normal?

---

The only off ship comms you can make (other than giving orders to your crew which they will promptly bungle half the time until they realize they are not veggies ) is issue an SOS (read the manual for details on that).

Other comms will play a role in MP but not in single mode.

[jefflackey]

Thanks for the replies - just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something (VERY easy to do in this game, with the wide variety of options.)

My understanding and experience is that the SOS call only calls for a tow, not for military assistance, correct?

- Jeff

[Pedro Pablo Laracuente]

Yep, communications will play a big role in MP.

Jeff Lackey,remember to update your signature with your system profile link on it. More info is on the important announcements thread.

Over and out

[ 12-31-2001: Message edited by: Cmdr. P. Laracuente ]

[Rico Jansen]

Yep, only tow assistance. But you can also get messages from other NPCs incase it is scripted in an ACM.

You can get reinforcements if you have fleet command and a probe in the region of a friendly station. You'll have to select them yourself though. It's not a "I need help"-"Ok, we're comming." And they won't be there immediatly. Cavalry.... Now that's something new!

[Supreme Cmdr]

LMAO!! @ Jeff & Tyrn

[Supreme Cmdr]

quote:

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Originally posted by Cmdr. P. Laracuente:

Jeff Lackey,remember to update your signature with your system profile link on it. More info is on the important announcements thread.

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Not required. He is a media junkie. You know, those guys (like the testers, dev etc) who NONE of my rules apply to.

In fact, Beta testers and dev don't need it either.

[Supreme Cmdr]

quote:

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Originally posted by Jeff Lackey:

Thanks for the replies - just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something (VERY easy to do in this game, with the wide variety of options.)

My understanding and experience is that the SOS call only calls for a tow, not for military assistance, correct?

- Jeff

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The reason there is no NPC communications is due to the scope of the game, the wide variety of race/caste options....and the fact that it was one can of worms I had NO intentions of opening up.

In fact, there is a detailed discussion about that somewhere on the board in which I discussed my earlier plans for an NLP* (you can do a search using NLP and it might turn up the discussion) and which I subsequently canned.

Communications will play a major role in multiplayer.

HOWEVER, in my XP1 wish list, I have an item which involves requesting task force support from a nearby friendly station (without Fleet C&C), in the same way that SOS works. Of course, most people are going to abuse it, then come ***** at me when a massive 50+ ship fleet battle ensues and brings their PII 300 rig to its knees....because they created it.

Fleet C&C gives you minimal support because it lets you requisition troops (in fact you can build an entire fleet of your own) from any friendly station, including roving NPCs. The manual contains an extensive discussion of this. And you can use the Playmod cheat to achieve the required rank if you don't want to waste time acquiring the required EPs.

[jefflackey]

Heh, no I want to play by the rules - I'm a gamer first, a writer second. Hopefully the sig will show up correctly now.

I'm also getting my butt kicked by the game, big time. Still trying to figure out a lot of things, through reading here, reading the help files and tutorials on disk, the manual, but mostly by trial and error. For example: I saw an insurgent fighter floating in space, sending out an SOS. So I sent out a shuttle to tow it back to my carrier. However, it couldn't dock with the fighter in tow. Never did figure out what to do with it.

I'm also struggling a bit trying to figure out cargo in general - when I dock, is all of the cargo I might have picked up via floating cargo from wrecks picked up by shuttles, minerals mined by drones, etc. automatically available for trade?

First impressions: this is a game that demands a lot of study, a lot of time, and a lot of playing if you want to get the most out of it and enjoy it. If you want a traditional game that lays out a story for you, this isn't it - if you like creating a story in your mind, a la old fashioned role playing, BCM gives you a large universe in which to do so.

Jeff

[Rico Jansen]

quote:

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when I dock, is all of the cargo I might have picked up via floating cargo from wrecks picked up by shuttles, minerals mined by drones, etc. automatically available for trade?

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Thankfully not. It's so easy to get illegal-cargo violations if you mindlessly unload your shuttles after a cargosweep. (and more often in bc3k as it had debris fields)

Picked up cargo is in your shuttle's hold, but minerals still in your drone if you haven't retrieved them from it. So the floating cargo is only automatically available if you dock the shuttle at the station and trade.

[ 12-31-2001: Message edited by: Rico Jansen ]

[ShoHashi]

quote:

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example: I saw an insurgent fighter floating in space, sending out an SOS. So I sent out a shuttle to tow it back to my carrier. However, it couldn't dock with the fighter in tow. Never did figure out what to do with it.

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You can't dock your shuttle to your CC while it's towing something. I usually just have the shuttle deliver the ship it is towing to a nearby statstation.

[jefflackey]

Do you get credit for the delivered starship?

[Rico Jansen]

Money and experience points. (appendix/ep.html)

[Supreme Cmdr]

quote:

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So I sent out a shuttle to tow it back to my carrier. However, it couldn't dock with the fighter in tow. Never did figure out what to do with it.

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You can only bring back your own units into the CC (manual section 7.3).

Normally, you would have your shuttle tow and deliver the ship to a station. You then get EPs and money, depending on the caste you are playing.

quote:

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I'm also struggling a bit trying to figure out cargo in general - when I dock, is all of the cargo I might have picked up via floating cargo from wrecks picked up by shuttles, minerals mined by drones, etc. automatically available for trade?

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When you retrieve a shuttle, all its cargo remains in its own independent cargo hold. If you want to trade those items, you can dock (while your AE is actually flying the shuttle) with the shuttle at a station or starbase. But if you want to trade using the CC, you can dock and access them directly from the shuttle, or you can transfer them from the shuttle to the CC cargo hold. The minerals in drones also have to be unloaded in order for them to be available for trading.

Be very careful when extracting cargo pods. Sometimes hostile NPCs will booby trap them by leaving a mine inside. The effect of this is that they will detonate based on proximity or when the TB is engaged.

quote:

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First impressions: this is a game that demands a lot of study, a lot of time, and a lot of playing if you want to get the most out of it and enjoy it. If you want a traditional game that lays out a story for you, this isn't it - if you like creating a story in your mind, a la old fashioned role playing, BCM gives you a large universe in which to do so.

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Thats one of the strengths of the game...and one of the things that others consider to be its bane. In actuality, thats the game I set out to design and develop and so far, its the only truly freeform game of its kind in the industry. Period.

Even the scripted ACM campaign scenarios are freeform in themselves.

[Supreme Cmdr]

Here is the thread where I discuss the business of NLPs.