THIS THREAD IS NOW OBSOLETE: CURRENT DETAILS ARE AVAILABLE INTHIS THREAD
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OK, now that the warp patrol scenarios are pretty much done for naval pilots (aside from the joys of bug fixes), I'd
really like to put the zing into playing a pirate in OP. The pack is in beta mode, sometime tonight I'll update it with (I think) everything implemented except the "wanted" feature.
http://www3.telus.net/NuclearWessels/sfc/downloads/EDWarpPatrols.exe [Last updated Nov. 8]
Blackmail, finder's fees, and protection rackets In various scenarios, the pirate captain will have the opportunity to rescue someone (for a fee), charge someone protection fees, salvage or capture valuable cargo, protect someone who
has paid their protection fees, try to smuggle items past naval/customs vessels, etc. Most of these scenarios operate under the same mechanism as the naval scenarios in the new mission pack.
Pirates can carry contraband All pirate vessels, but only pirate vessels, can carry a certain amount of contraband.
You can carry one item of contraband per hull box, and ten items of contraband per cargo box.
Contraband items carry over from mission to mission, and are transferred over when you buy a new ship (if there is sufficient space in the new ship)
Contraband items are lost if your ship is captured or destroyed.
LimitationsI've had to add a couple of restrictions in the contraband rules to handle limitations in the scripting api:
- If there is a "host left" situation the script will not do any cargo updates, due to the possibility of mis-identification
- If there are
more than two humans in a mission only the player who initiated the mission will receive cargo updates.
I might simply set up the storyline so that if more than one human is in a mission then the black market opportunity falls through (there are too many witnesses or some such thing)
Carrying contraband makes you a smuggler Many of the scenarios you encounter will involve naval vessels from the different empires, and they will want to scan your vessel to make sure you aren't smuggling anything.
Sometimes they won't detect the contraband even when they do scan you (you put a lot of effort into masking it).
Sometimes when they detect it you'll have the opportunity to put a team aboard their vessel with a hefty bribe, and they'll let you go.
Sometimes you'll be forced to either fight or run away.
Fighting with or running from the cops makes your vessel wanted If you run away, or pick a fight with the navy and don't finish them off, then they will issue a warrant for your vessel, and in subsequent scenarios you will automatically be assumed guilty. How badly you are wanted increases every subsequent time this happens, but goes down in missions where you manage to bribe the naval officer. At some threshold a shoot-on-sight order is issued. (Hmmmm .. I should probably set this up so that each different navy has their own classification of how badly wanted you are.)
The warrant goes with the vessel - if you sell the ship most of the grief goes to the new owner. Of course, when you buy a new ship there is a chance you'll inherit its history.
Acquiring contraband You can acquire contraband in three different ways:
(1) salvaging wrecks: if you destroy a vessel carrying contraband then 10-20% of the contraband survives and can be salvaged if you have space available
(2) capturing vessels: if you capture a vessel carrying contraband then 30-60% of the contraband survives and can be transferrred to your vessel if there is space
(3) the black market: when you encounter non-hostile pirates, civillians, bases, and planets there is a chance you'll be able to purchase contraband from them (you quartermaster knows the going rates, and will ensure you don't get ripped off)
Selling contraband You can sell contraband on the black market when you meet a non-hostile pirate, civillian, base, or planet.
The prices at which contraband items are bought and sold depends on the type of item and the race, inidicated here as High/Medium/Low. I haven't put any rhyme or reason into who pays well for what (I'll rework that later) but each commodity has an equal price distribution across the races, and each race has an equal price distribution across the commodities. I've also rigged it so that, using traditional alliances, each side has an equal distribution of prices/commodities.
| Race | Dilithium Crystals | Nova mines | Romulan Ale | Tribbles | Alien Artifacts | Weapon schematics | Medical Supplies | Medicine Jars |
| Federation | H | H | M | M | L | L | L | L |
| Gorn | L | L | L | L | H | H | M | M |
| Hydran | L | L | H | H | M | M | L | L |
| ISC | M | L | L | H | M | L | L | H |
| Klingon | H | M | L | L | H | M | L | L |
| Lyran | L | L | H | M | L | L | H | M |
| Mirak | M | M | L | L | L | L | H | H |
| Romulan | L | H | M | L | L | H | M | L |
| BeastRaiders | L | H | L | L | M | L | L | L |
| Camboro | L | L | L | H | L | L | M | L |
| Korgath | L | L | L | L | H | L | L | M |
| Orion | H | L | L | M | L | L | L | L |
| Prime | M | L | L | L | L | H | L | L |
| Syndicate | L | L | H | L | L | M | L | L |
| TigerHeart | L | M | L | L | L | L | H | L |
| Wyldefire | L | L | M | L | L | L | L | H |
OK, there's the plan ... any thoughts?
dave
Topic: Smuggler's Cove: Piracy and profiteering in OP (obsolete thread) (Read 1445 times)