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+--- Thread: Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs (/showthread.php?tid=11979)
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - sempai17 - 09-10-2008
Okay, once again, another proposal from me, Sempai17. This time, the subject is commodities. In particular Passengers and VIP.
I'm not sure if you have noticed, but there seems to be a lot of Passenger Ships flying arround, but not many passengers that occupy them. At the moment, it is only profitable to transport Passengers and VIPs in one direction. At the moment, I can only take passengers from Manhattan to Sigma-19, then I'm relatively stranded. I propose that there be specific Passengers/VIPs for each house. Example: Liberty Passenger/VIP, Rhineland Passenger/VIP, Kusari Passenger/VIP, Bretonian Passenger/VIP (Possibly Gallia Passenger/VIP if people like it enough).
Explanation:
The house names indicate a Passenger/VIP's point of departure (Liberty Passenger/VIP are from Liberty). The further a Passenger/VIP has to go, the more a passenger/vip will pay for the trip.
General cost of picking up a passenger/vip in its house of origin, should cost arround plus or minus $500/$1000, and upon arrival at the destination, the passengers/vips pay you about 1.5 - 2.0 times as much. Trips to the Luxury Ships are generally one way, but Tourist Passengers are available and sell relatively low back in the houses (initial cost $300, drop off $500 - $550)
To keep people from "Power Trading" (or "Power Transporting" as it were). there could be a restriction that it is unlawful to carry over 1000 units of Passengers and/or VIPs unless they have a Transport Licence & Insurance that is similar to the Battleship Licence (except not as expensive, probably $20,000,000 to $80,000,000) here would be a possible example:
---
Transport Licence & Insurance
The Transport License & Insurance is a special item that indicates that the owner is permitted to transport Passengers and/or VIPs over the 1000 unit limit. The Transport Licence & Insurance is available at planets Manhattan, New Tokyo, New London, and New Berlin for <$20.0 Million to $80.0 Million>.
Scan Range: 8000m
Cargo Scan Range: 3000m
---
The reason I posted this is to make give more variety to roleplaying and "filling up" empty space. As it stands right now, there are approximately 170 real players on at one time, approximately 5000+ NPCs. With an average of about 150 crew members per ship (NPCs and Real Players) there are only over 800,000 people in space (not counting space stations and bases). With over 4 billion people on a given planet, don't you think we could break 1 million persons in space at a time?
now that my "essay" is over, tell me your thoughts, and stay tuned, I'm cooking up something for Spaceship Crews too... (btw no comments about spaceship crews here please... later)
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - Magoo! - 09-10-2008
... I kinda like it.
Nobody is going to get on board with some creep in a black trench coat going, "Hey... Hey, man. Needa ride? I'm headed to umm... New Berlin, yeah man. Hey, mind if we pay the Outcasts a visit on the way?"
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - cmfalconer - 09-10-2008
Xoria wrote up a small proposal about Orbital Spa and Cruise not having viable trade routes as well. You can view it HERE.
Shattered Worlds has what you suggest, although I haven't really gotten out of Liberty to find what things sell for, it's a decent idea as well.
The issue becomes actually programming it into the mod. Igiss gave a brief tryst HERE on how to add commodities. not easy to do. But with time and patience this idea could work.
I would give it two thumbs up myself. well thought out too.
$.02
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - Kuraine - 09-11-2008
Already attempted to get a similar thing implemented, and turned down. A no for now. Perhaps in later mod versions, though:)Oh and moving this to the mod general forums.
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - sempai17 - 09-12-2008
Wow, I am honored that one of the Admins have actualy read this post, even more so that it was replied to. I really would like to see this implemented soon. As of right now, Passengers and Vips are merely goods to be passed arround. It also allows a chance for people to have a more interesting profession.
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - jpo - 09-15-2008
' Wrote:Wow, I am honored that one of the Admins have actualy read this post, even more so that it was replied to. I really would like to see this implemented soon. As of right now, Passengers and Vips are merely goods to be passed arround. It also allows a chance for people to have a more interesting profession.Yeah, thats why in real life it costs the same to fly from NY to Paris as it does to fly from NY to LA.
/sarcasm.
1. the insurance would be off the hook. you lose 1000 lives and no one will ever fly with your company again, ever, period.
2. the payoff would be higher than the game mechanics would be able to compensate for. Were talking September 11th sized event when over 1000 people die in an act of terrorism.
But basicaly this settles it for me...
Quote:At the moment, it is only profitable to transport Passengers and VIPs in one direction.
I count 73 profitable routes from planet cambridge to other locations.
Don't want to be mr negative here, but thats pretty much my opinion up till the 73 profitable routes part. Theres over a dozen that make 2 million profit in a standard train.
Ok, I am sorry, I do sound too negative here and am trying to think of a way to make it positive.
Here is one angle I do a little RP on:
On one of my traders (LL), I sometimes transport VIP's and only use one third the max. I do that because in the game one cargo unit is slightly larger than a coffin. VIP's take up 5x that, but thats not very big at all. They complain about it in game. Since it is a LL, I figure it has pools, dining rooms, a casino, gyms, all that. Anyway, the point is if I carry 1/3 max cargo that gives them 15 cargo units of room for quarters, Plus the amenities of the LL. I RP that these guys are superpowerful rich guys and the reason I do it at the same price as everyone else is to 'win favors'.
Now, most people don't have a LL for trading, but the principal remains the same. Prisoners and passengers take up one cargo unit each which is very limited space. So if you took 333 vips instead of 1000, they would have 15 cargo units of space to move around. Wouldnt they be willing to pay 3 times as much?
Also, VIP means clout. I am sure they would shell out the extra bucks for more space. There could be another VIP commodity that took more space and paid more money.
The down side I see again though is that pirates would kill your passengers if you didnt pay tax ~ and that would be an act of war, and wouldn't be RP'd as such.
I still don't see how the system isnt already like you propose, in that you do get paid more to take them farther for the most part. ruiz is farther, it pays more. But as I said It just seems like "this powertrade run isn't good because it doesent have a good return run" as opposed to "I want better RP for my passenger ship. I do understand you want some form of passengers back for RP sake.
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - old.steel - 09-15-2008
I love to see new commodities and new routes.
But the balancing is a very delicate, bug finding adventure.
I cannot judge on the current work.
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - Jinx - 09-15-2008
maybe it would already make an impact if passengers and VIPs prices were increased by 100.000 ( the profit margin would remain the same ) - so it would cost a lot more the buy them, but you d get the same amount of cash for a delivery.
the effect is that you will be extra careful, cause loosing a cargohold of 5000 passengers when they cost like 105.000 means loosing over 500 million credits - a loss that no captain ( not even the hardened nonRPing powertrader ) would accept. maybe the margin could even be increased slightly to make it one of the most profitable trades. - but it would require extra caution and responsibilities. - so IF you d be caught be pirates, the option "i d rather die than pay you" is suddenly becoming quite.... unattractive.
you d prolly see heavily armoured liners WITH escorts shipping passengers around - and that would be just the way its meant to be. - at least if its RP and responsibilities we want to create.
also, the price of these two "commodities" CAN be increased like that... cause they cannot be mined. - so there won t be an impact on getting passengers for anything less than what stations ask for them. ( the reason we cannot increase the base price of raw materials is that someone mining them would come to much greater riches cause it would have a direct impact on the margin of his profit.... but with non minable goods, it is possible. )
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - sempai17 - 09-15-2008
' Wrote:Yeah, thats why in real life it costs the same to fly from NY to Paris as it does to fly from NY to LA.
But basicaly this settles it for me...
I count 73 profitable routes from planet cambridge to other locations.
EDIT: (forgot to put this in :$ ) your thinking of Passengers as a commodity (dropping off passengers and picking something eles (such as diamonds), I'm thinking Passengers as Passengers. I'm trying to separate the two from each other
' Wrote:maybe it would already make an impact if passengers and VIPs prices were increased by 100.000 ( the profit margin would remain the same ) - so it would cost a lot more the buy them, but you d get the same amount of cash for a delivery.
the effect is that you will be extra careful, cause loosing a cargo hold of 5000 passengers when they cost like 105.000 means loosing over 500 million credits - a loss that no captain ( not even the hardened nonRPing powertrader ) would accept. maybe the margin could even be increased slightly to make it one of the most profitable trades. - but it would require extra caution and responsibilities. - so IF you d be caught be pirates, the option "i d rather die than pay you" is suddenly becoming quite.... unattractive.
you d probably see heavily armoured liners WITH escorts shipping passengers around - and that would be just the way its meant to be. - at least if its RP and responsibilities we want to create.
also, the price of these two "commodities" CAN be increased like that... cause they cannot be mined. - so there won t be an impact on getting passengers for anything less than what stations ask for them. ( the reason we cannot increase the base price of raw materials is that someone mining them would come to much greater riches cause it would have a direct impact on the margin of his profit.... but with non minable goods, it is possible. )
Wow that's actualy a great idea! Though I see one problem, SHOULD a Liner Captain (be crazy or stupid enough) to venture out on their own, what would stop them from pirates demanding their cargo, or perhaps making a demand, then straight up, blow them to kingdom come? BUT then again... why the hell didn't said Captain hire those escorts, or enlisted local House officials for protection? With higher initial prices for Passengers and VIP, there maybe another platform for role play for those other factions. House military or police will have to think about security detail. Perhaps mercs and bounty hunters would also be able to get in on the action, those transporting people around Sirius should be able to afford good security. (IE: a couple of fighters, a gunboat, maybe even a cruiser for an escort?)
EDIT AGAIN: If it wasn't clear, I'm in support of this notion.
Cost of Fuel: $1,000,000
Cost of Food and Water: $1,500,000
Cost of Escort Detail: $5,500,000
Getting from Point A to Point B safely:
Priceless
Commodity Improvement Sugestion: Passengers and VIPs - Navycross28 - 09-17-2008
I have to agree with Jinx's suggestion and Xoria has some very interesting ideas...
Thank you for posting this subject Sempai 17.