Should Pirates/Unlawfuls in RP, use Trade Lanes?

[Baltar]

Role play wise, if this game were real life; no, pirates would avoid detection. Look at real life pirates, in the here and now: They appear around the trade lane long enough to capture a vessel, kill its crew, take whatever they can of value, then disappear again. That's real life pirating, they don't cruise up and down the trade lanes of our oceans when not attacking.

In real life ... traders would take the safest route to their destination. Look at real traders. Traders avoid "known" pirate infested routes.

Realistically, in game, you'll often find pirates in the trade lanes. Even if it were standard for pirates to not use them, there are many who only RP when convenient for them and ignore the rules otherwise. For example, I was fired upon in my Miner while docking at Planet Gran Canaria. I saw the Outcast there (I'm IMG in that character) but thought "it's ok, he's in the No Fire Zone." Not only did he fire at me in the NFZ, he didn't even RP an attack, nothing in chat at all about engaging. So expect the people who pirate to do whatever they wish as long as they can get away with it.

Realistically, in game, you'll often find traders using jump holes that take them close to pirate bases. I've seen them fly through Chugoku (next to the Blood Dragon's Kyoto Base) and through the Badlands to the Texas jump hole (next to the Liberty Rogue's Buffalo Base). Traders for the most part avoid role play until they've amassed the cash they need to get their mega-capship ... and then all a sudden they go role playing BHG hunting pirates. :wacko: Give me a break man.

Me, I play my pirate as legit as possible, but I will admit to using a trade lane from time to time when moving to another area of the map; from New York to Coronado, for example. Otherwise I play like I imagined I should and don't use trade lanes. Especially not for local travel. If you think about it, the placement of Battleships along the trade lanes makes using them, by anything smaller than a gunboat, rather hazardous. I imagine that most pirates who use gunboats are being lazy this way as well, besides having a more secure feeling while pirating.

If we did not use trade lanes, the whole pirate role play would not exist. As many "traders" have mentioned ... it takes forever to fly in cruise between planets, bases, etc. Heck ... who wants to waste their time in cruising everywhere for nothing?

We're all supposed to be having fun here. And we're supposed to role play on a role play server. But all we get is people telling people HOW to role play. And everyone's telling pirates in particular how to do so. Its old people ... give it up. Admit it ... all you traders want is a free ride.