Teladi Trafficker

General discussions about the games by Egosoft including X-BTF, XT, X², X³: Reunion, X³: Terran Conflict and X³: Albion Prelude.

Moderator: Moderators for English X Forum

Post Reply
ancienthighway
Posts: 1663
Joined: Tue, 24. Apr 07, 05:25
x4

Teladi Trafficker

Post by ancienthighway » Fri, 23. Sep 11, 11:28

I was in the middle of the Hub in my last game when I had the urge to start a new game. I decided to forgo my usual Argon start and went with the Tormented Teladi. I wanted a start with a transport only which ruled out most of the other starts.

The arms race between fledgling trading companies has reached new heights, presenting the danger of trade wars harming innocent civilians, and government owned facilities and ships. After years of negotiation, the Commonwealth has collectively agreed to stop selling combat ships and marines to the highest bidder. Elements of the Commonwealth Council attempted to block the civilian purchase of weapons and missiles also, but a compromise was reached that allowed trading companies to purchase weapons and missiles for defensive purposes.

The ground rules:
1. I cannot buy combat ships from any shipyard. I can buy transports, to include the TM, though.
2. As a trader first, I could not be the aggressor in any non-plot related combat, and had to avoid putting myself in harms way if I could run away. Only plot, to include corporate plot, combat missions can be accepted.
3. I had to pilot a transport of some sort unless the plot/mission "required" a fighter to do it. Required is a subjective call on my part based on what the task at hand requires me to do. Scanning asteroids in a crowded asteroid belt requires a smaller ship. An assassination mission that is successful only if my personal ship shoots it down requires a combat ship. Defending a station, patrolling a sector can both be done from a transport supported by fighters, so I had to stay in a transport.
4. If I manage to acquire an M1 or M7 that can hold 6 or more fighters, I can pilot it.
5. Marines cannot be hired. Mercenaries from Pirate installations can be hired though, and CW military installations can train them.
6. There are no restrictions on the use of Terran technology once the appropriate plot has finished. Until the plot is finished, only transports may be purchased (need to earn their trust).
7. No nividim mining until required for a plot.
8. At a point to be determined, the non-aggression rule will be abolished. It will probably be based on the amount of credits I have.
There you have it.

Restrictions on nividium mining and combat severely crimp money gathering in the early game. I can't go out and try to capture all the pirates I run across, because I can't be the aggressor. And with pirate installations being the only place I can get mercenaries, I need to maintain some semblance of a friendship with them anyway.

I tossed in the non-aggression rule because in past games, I tended to primarily take Combat and Build missions from stations and bypass everything else. I'm forced to do Think and Trade missions more in order to raise credits.

As frustrating as it is not to be able to buy combat ships from a shipyard, I'm enjoying this rule. I can buy second hand ships. I can claim derelicts. I can steal ships. I can use corporation reward ships. And if attacked, I have a chance to capture ships. So when I decide a fighter is right for the task at hand, I have a choice of ships that I normally would have glossed over to fly my favorites, which I have yet been able to acquire. (I've seen one Nova Raider for sell, and unfortunately it was out of range for me to buy it, and I was in a follow mission that had to be completed.)

The lack of credits has been a constant thorn in my side. It took forever to scrap up enough to put my first sector trader into play, even saving money by buying second hand transports. I've had to juggle the money for buying transports, and second hand fighters, then equipping them for basic service. Anticipating the need for mercenaries, once I found a source for them, they've become another credit sink to hire and train them.
Last edited by ancienthighway on Fri, 23. Sep 11, 12:07, edited 1 time in total.

ancienthighway
Posts: 1663
Joined: Tue, 24. Apr 07, 05:25
x4

Post by ancienthighway » Fri, 23. Sep 11, 11:55

It was a journey, but after 4 days, 5 hours and 3 minutes, I've reached 30 million credits. My current fleet:

1 Mamba
1 Mamba Raider
2 Mamba Vanguards
1 Nova Raider
4 Falcon Haulers (purchased from shipyard, justified as TL support ships)
2 Busters
2 Buster Sentinels
1 Buster Raider
1 Buster Vanguard
1 Scorpion Sentinel
2 Discover Vanguard (lost a 3rd to a Pirate Nova)
1 Harrier Sentinel

1 Elephant
1 Boa
1 Zephyrus
2 Caiman
1 Caiman Hauler
1 Caiman Tanker
2 Vultures
1 Vulture Hauler
1 Mercury
1 Mistral
1 Iguana Vanquard
2 Toucan Haulers
1 Scabbard (unintended purchase, but making the best of it)

43 Mercenaries

All of the TS ships are on ST/LT duties. The TP ships on Mercenary hiring/training duty.

I've reached the top race rankings with the Teladi, Split, and Argon races. Boron is at level 8 (King's Knight), and Paranid at level 6 (Priest Protectorate). Fight rank is Novice, Trade rank Manufacturer. Pirate Rank is a level 5, and Yaki at -1.

I messed up when I bought the Falcon Haulers, and considered sending them off on a suicide mission or cheating them away and reimbursing me the purchase value, but then justified keeping them as they are on the TL simply for refueling it. I bought the Scabbard for a Terran deliver ship mission, but failed to upgrade it's speed to finish on time, so I had to buy another one for that mission.

I've completed 2 missions in the Terran Plot, and initial missions for the Terracorp and OTAS corporations. The initial missions for The Hub, A Sunny Place, and the PHQ (script to start early) plots have been given, but I've delayed starting them do to the cost of starting or taking advantage of the rewards.

With my 30 million, I'll be looking at setting up some complexes with the sole purpose of making money from the AI. 1MJ and 5MJ shields, space weed, space fuel, maybe satellites. Of course those will quickly eat up the 30 million, even before I get them all in place, and support transports need to be purchased also, so priorities must be set.

User avatar
heratik
Posts: 1210
Joined: Tue, 3. May 11, 16:31
x3tc

Post by heratik » Fri, 23. Sep 11, 12:00

Nice work, but you didn't get yourself the Enhanced Kea? that ship is a great acquisition, if only for the great extra cargo capacity it could add to any ship it's docked at...

ancienthighway
Posts: 1663
Joined: Tue, 24. Apr 07, 05:25
x4

Post by ancienthighway » Fri, 23. Sep 11, 12:07

My bad....Teladi Trafficker start.

User avatar
heratik
Posts: 1210
Joined: Tue, 3. May 11, 16:31
x3tc

Post by heratik » Fri, 23. Sep 11, 12:10

ancienthighway wrote:My bad....Teladi Trafficker start.
:D

No worries fella!

User avatar
Masochisto
Posts: 378
Joined: Wed, 20. Jul 11, 16:20
x3tc

Post by Masochisto » Fri, 23. Sep 11, 13:38

Interesting set of rules. Thanks for the write up, I enjoy reading about how other people play the game.

Are you skipping fight missions entirely?

ancienthighway
Posts: 1663
Joined: Tue, 24. Apr 07, 05:25
x4

Post by ancienthighway » Fri, 23. Sep 11, 15:44

If it's not plot/corporate, I don't take the fight. It's a different way of playing with the goal of keeping the Harmless rank, but I'm not smart enough to keep the harmless rank and do all the plots. :lol:

So Cattle Ranch L alpha needs protecting, he needs to find someone else. The Xenon are migrating? I get out of their way and pass up that PX and LX.

Post Reply

Return to “X Trilogy Universe”