Trying really hard to enjoy it here.

[Harry Krishna]

I think we can be realistic about the situation. Mines are there to be used. The attack trader button is there to be used. People use them.

This game isn't about playing pattycake with other players. It's about killing and being killed and taking as much of the universe for yourself and your team as you can before it all comes crashing down and a new game starts.

Edit: I realize that other players and teams may have other goals than this. I wish them all well in their endeavors.

[neto]

killing in neutrals is different from killing in racials.

<Freon22>Edit: No flame bate, I see no point in having yet another thread messed up just because you want to get something started.

[qiraz]

After his pod, this player was given a lot of advice that he has chosen not to share here. My basic tips ifor arming would be:

1) Get MGU and plan your arming route.
2) Have plenty of turns to spare when you go to arm your ship.
3) If you find yourself getting into a minefield (anything more than the occasional sector), back off and consider alternate routes.
4) If you are determined to get through these mines and will lose your newbies doing it, make sure the scout owners are not online when you do.
5) If you are an inexperienced player, it is worth simply messaging the scout owners asking them to help you out. If you had done this yesterday, I would have made sure we got you safely where you wanted to go.

I was not intending to point out people specifically, I should have blurred out the names. I appreciate the advice I got afterwords, but it didn't resolve my real concerns. I'm not here to whine about dying, it just feels like a lot of things could be done to make this game more friendly to starting players than it is now, while still keeping it similarly exciting/fun for the veterans.

I use MGU. Without it I wouldn't have much idea where to go to get anything I need. Without having any overview of what the warp pathways are like, it's very difficult to figure out alternate routes anywhere. Also, it does not let me choose the order in which it finds things along an arming route. If i want a Bank, then an FU, then armor/shields, then whatever, it just finds some route that has all of those in it, and it might have the bank last, or the CDs first, or something else equally silly. So I have to sit there and try to work out a route, without knowing anything about what sectors are "hot" (now I know due to advice here).

I did have plenty of turns, and the most possible newbie turns before getting underway.

It never occurred to me that I could have asked somebody for help outside of my own alliance. Every encounter with non-alliance players before yesterday resulted in a free escape pod. It also says WAR right next to everyone else's names. I am also not accustomed to other players being generally ingelligent and friendly in online games I thought EVERYONE was simply out to get me.

I was reading through some of the NHA web boards before getting invited to another alliance. I skimmed over stuff I already knew, read some of the things I didn't. There's a ton of info there. Most references to combat that I came across said stuff like "if there are hunters online, log off and wait until they're not online".
-----

I had 50 armor because that's what the basic ship comes with. I didn't realize I had to get into a fully armored ship with 100 newbie turns available to go buy a new one. I also don't know whether any of those shields or armor would transfer to the new ship.

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I don't think you need a seperate newbie game. I can imagine a set of changes that could make it better in both ways. I understand there are several player ranks, Newbie, Beginner, Fledgling, etc. I think you should have to get at least one kill before making out of beginner. I think the invisibility thing going on with newbie players (i think?) could be expanded on. Essentially creating games within the game. A fledgling player might no longer be able to see Newbies, but could see the next rank up. Sort of a 3-rank visibility range [rank-1, rank, rank+1]. I dont recall how many ranks there are though.


Additionally, perhaps in a later version release, the game could be made to have more linear progression. New players unable to come close to affording trades of high level goods, a deeper array of ships available as a player levels up (both in current game level and player rank). The higher level ports dealing in high end goods would only have the higher end goods, and a whole lot more supply/demand as well.

The downside would be figuring out all new pricing schemes to match the progression. You would need to have a progression from lower level ships, weapons and goods, to mid level, to high level. A "beginner" player might have a current-equivilant of 6/12 rating, or 300*8 trade ability, while a veteran could be at 60/100 or 1800*10 trade ability. All ships, weapons, and goods would have level requirements.

Ports would only buy/sell certain level ranges of goods in order to make it so those areas could be made dangerous by mining/hunting/etc while not hurting newbies.

Having a higher player rank would enable a level 1 player to level up much faster.

Finally, player level would have a much bigger impact on combat.

Back to work.....

[Shtoopid]

Lets just stop needlessly mining neutrals and shuting down traffic or necesary travel routes and necessary shops that are there for everyone.

Telling new players there is detailed instructions on the NHA web board about how to do this is like telling little kids that knives fire and water are no fun to play with. It doesent work, and to think it will is Re'Tah'ded

*cough* I seemed to have forgotten but I could have sworn some alliances mined up a galaxy with singles pretty early on and caused more then a few noobs to die to mines. You want to stop single mining, weaken cloak. Our big reason for massive numbers of singles is that some people run around in high level cloakers and we cant hit them otherwise.

<Freon22>Edited: Removed flame bate.

[Harry Krishna]

I like qiraz' ideas.

[kerkem]

lol qiraz actually has had some of the best ideas for these problems that i have heard on here.
Lotus, some of the stuff you say is really interesting and helpful and some of it is so rediculously untrue and biased.

[qiraz]

Gonna copy my ideas into a new thread on suggestion board.

[Ardbeg]

Incidentally, if you want to go back and take a look at the NHA message boards at any time, they are posted on this board in the newbie help section.

http://smrcnn.smrealms.de/viewtopic.php?t=6907

[Grey]

qiraz, welcome to the game and welcome to the web board. Always nice to see someone new get into the community.

In all honesty, I haven't read all the posts on this thread so forgive me if I'm repeating something that others have already said.

Maybe next time get into chat and have someone help you find a route for getting a ship. Anyone with half a conscience would help you without taking advantage of knowing where you'd be going - right guys?

Now for some more direct advice/answers.
- You asked if the shields/armor will transfer to your new ship. They will. In fact all your equipment will if the new ship has room for it. Cargo is lost, however.
- Always, always get a scanner if you can in any way (and you can!). Plot you course and walk on local map so you can see the surrounding sectors. If there are mines or ships in the neighboring sectors, they will show up on local map.

Now my post became a little longer than I wanted. Guess stuff like that happens.

[Kal]

Newbie/Vet games aren't the answer. It was that way when I started playing and it had it's problems, and you will still face the exact same scenario once you join the main game anyway.

When I promoted from the newbie game to the Vet game Small Ping Bastards were the dominant alliance of the day, with mines everywhere. I simply made killing mines my goal for the game, and instead of trading/hunting I simply got a couple of basic weapons from local shops and smashed myself into mines while trying to avoid the mob that came out