Of Space Slugs and Broken Drones: Let's Play Faster Than Light (FTL)

.... I'm... not really sure on this one. I want to help, but the fact that it says the message in being mass-broadcasted smells a bit fishy... I mean, if that's what he's doing then why are we the first ones to approach him? Are we the first to apporach him? If we take this, where are we even going? Too many unanswered questions.... I don't like this...

Indeed. And this is not a game that's shy about screwing you over on a moment's notice.

But then there's always the temptation of maybe getting some sweet, sweet loot... :)

Arrggg... If that's the case then.... No I really don't want to help. But I'll wait for everyone elses opinion to see what they think and decided then.

I say we take the contract. If it's legit we get paid, if it's not we get to shoot things. It's Win-Win!

We might even get paid to shoot things.

Or, space-dysentery.

I'm gonna hold off a bit and let other space-fans or shipmates chime in. :)

SET PHASERS TO HELP

Soli-chan, any last words particular preferences at this time? :)

Well, I lean towards engaging with the gravest of misgivings. C;

Let curiousity be the end to us~!

ALRIGHT YAYYY

I'm sure everyone will survive just fine!

Oh, okay, duh. I should have just clicked ahead, it turns out we're not committed right off but this sounds pretty tame.



This probably means we just have to make a point to land at a particular beacon on our way to the end of the Sector. As long as we are close enough to that beacon to jump to it before the Rebels overtake us, we should be fine. No, really.

I'm gonna end up being right and we're all gonna die

We accept the contract and the merchant gives us the cargo to deliver - five Drone Parts.



We now have a quest marker. Checking the Sector Map so we can plot our course...




...and it turns out the quest destination is just one jump away. Much ado about nothing, it seems. Let's hit it and quit it - we get the go-ahead from Syncronicity on the FTL drive (which chimes like an airplane's seat-belt light) and Soli-chan breaks on through to the other side.

Coming out of hyperspace, we find the station to which our delivery is bound.



Well well well! We're about to get stiffed for our labor, shipmates.We have a choice here - take the money or keep the parts. The illustrious Grogaboo doesn't have a Drone Bay installed just yet, so the parts aren't of immediate use, but they may be helpful if we survive long enough to buy one and happen to find a store that sells them. On the other hand, the 20 scrap isn't terrible, and we could put it toward ship upgrades right away, rather than holding on to some parts for later.

What do you think - shall we accept payment peacefully and take off, or do we keep the drone parts for ourselves?

What's the hypothetical value of 5 drone parts?

I like the way you think, Ryan. XD

Well, we didn't die, so lets take the money and run! Money for upgrades is always good

If 5 drone parts save us the equivalent of 100 scrap down the line, I'd be inclined to stick with the drone parts. If they're only worth 40 scrap, then it doesn't make much sense to turn down 20 now if that has the potential of making our ship better and earning us more money or saving us from a fiery death.

IIRC you can purchase drone parts at a store for about eight scrap each. It isn't typically possible to sell them, though...

Kalle might have a better idea, but I think they generally go for about 6-8 scrap apiece from the shops that carry them. And stores are hit and miss, too - you can go whole sectors without seeing one, or find them one after another at adjacent beacons. You can get Drone Parts from enemy wreckage, salvage, or gifts and prizes along the way too.

Regarding drones and their parts: Once (if) we have a drone bay, each "deployment" of a drone will consume one part. The 'exterior' drones (which fly around our ship or the enemy's) can be destroyed or generally get left behind after each use, while the 'interior' drones (that do things like repair on-board systems or fight enemy boarders) don't necessarily get consumed. If we're fortunate enough to find or buy a Drone Recovery Arm for the Grogaboo, we'll recover the drone part used to deploy a drone, assuming it isn't destroyed. But again, this is all hypothetical this early on.

Oooh, that's good to know, thanks. Well, me hearties, no selling of consumables makes what Syncronicity said - take the money and run - an attractive option.

Yeah, it'd only be about 40, they're not hugely valuable or terribly rare.

Alright! I like how you guys think. Let's take the money and fly off without giving these jerks a taste of our Death-ray Zorchers.

I'm excited. This LP can only end well.

And by that, I mean in a fireball...

After the peace-loving members of the Grogaboo Crew accepts the somewhat underwhelming but still welcome payment, we have 49 spacebucks Scrap to our name. While most everyone agrees that booze and strippers pizza are always welcome, Tech Specialist RyanMM points out that with just one shield layer, he can't exactly guarantee our continued health and safety.

A valid point. Let's look at the Upgrades screen and see what we can do.



...curses. See the new (yellow) bar on our Shields? That cost 20 credits. The next upgrade is 30. We have 29. The space-gods may be mocking you. Just saying.

Oh well. We'll have more scrap very soon, I'm sure. Here's our beauty, still looking fairly new and not even on fire at all!



We've one more bar of shields, but everything is connected - we need (1) another bar of shields to complete a new shield layer (the blue bubbles under "Shields," top-right)and (2) two more upgrades to the Power Core to give that thicker shield some extra juice.

Let's see what else the galaxy has to offer - Beacon Map, it's jumpy time!



Ohhh, snap. See that ominious red area? Rebel Fleet. That's the location of its forward element at the time of our landing from this jump. Let's take the closest beacon again, just above our current location.

Kalle starts flipping the laser turrets on and shooting nearby space debris out of boredom just as Soli cranks it. We hit hyperspace and...



...come out the other side in a really lovely area of space with an Earth-like planet in the background. So peaceful.



Well. Shit.

Bah, it's just a rigger. You can smash that thing to pieces.

Dramatic tension!1!!

DUN DUN DUNNNNNN!!!

SET PHASERS TO FIREBALL

Ah hell. Here we go. *checks tools*

BATTLE STATIONS! :O

Klaxons sound throughout the ship as Soli-chan swoops into evasive maneuvers! Kalle engages power on both weapons to bring our boom-boom online! Syncronicity engages retro-boosters to smooth the power-flux on both engines, ensuring we maintain velocity at optimal efficiency!

Meanwhile in the Shield Generator, RyanMM gently puts down his snifter, adjusts his monocle, and glances irritably at the exterior hull.



So, Rebel Scouts are assholes because they try to get away and warn the fleet. (Note the "Enemy FTL Charging" text at the top of the Target window.) If they succeed, bad things happen. So our fight has a time limit. We want to stop them before they can get away, which - with our superior crew capabilities and fabulous hair - we can probably handle. Probably.

Weapons come online and Sgt. Kalle fires both missiles and pulse lasers simultaneously, aiming for the enemy Shield Generator.



A hit! A couple hits, in fact, and one miss. We damage their shield gen; their own shots pass harmlessly by as Soli and Sync dodge the laser bolts.

During the next exchange, Kalle holds back on the missiles given that we've got the shields down for a moment.



He targets the enemy weapon systems so we can take them offline as well, and scores two solid hits! Looks like enemy shields are almost online, however - we'll want to attend to that in the time-honored tradition of FIRE ZE MISSILES.


Ready, aim... what comes next again?

FWOOSH



Boom! Another big hit, right in the shield-hole. They're on the ropes, now. It's almost too easy, this crew is just that good.

A couple more exchanges - we take a couple shots, but TechSpc Ryan has no problem keeping the shields up. Sgt Kalle continues alternating between weapons and shields, keeping the enemy ship basically powerless. Someone observes that he's playing with them like a drunk kitten at this point. A few more shots...



...and they're nearly dead. What were we even worried about again?



Ohhhh, right! I knew there was something we were forgetting.

"Prepare to fire!"
"Sir, which weapons?"
"ALL OF THEM!"

That sounds about right. Forget the main objective in light of all the bloodthirsty fighting! Charge! Charge! Oh shiet.

Some of the crew may have forgotten certain bold, red warnings, but not Kalle. Not today. Not on his watch.

He's been waiting for this, see. He's got Missiles online and ready to fire. At least someone's on top of things.



He leans nonchalantly across the weapons control panel and languidly presses the Big Red Button.

FWOOSH


Trust me, if you're that Rebel ship, that is not where you want an Artemis missile.

EXPLOSIONS


This supplementary explosion is brought to you by the letter J.




Boom. The Rebel scouts explodes into fiery bits! GO GO TEAM GROGABOO



And a little something for our troubles. Thanks Rebels!

With that, we're done here. The crew kicks back to relax and discuss how to spend those spacebucks - some Power Core upgrades? Weapon Systems? We also have the Subsystems - Cockpit, Sensors, and Doors. Decisions, decisions!

Weapon systems! Assuming we have enough power of course...

Also how many missiles do you have left?

You know what wise man once said "Gosh, I really regret buying upgrades to my shields and powering them."

No one. In the history of ever.

Just six missiles We'll probably want to conserve as much as possible, but it's kind of hard holding Kalle back from the copious explosions.

Keep in mind we may want to start saving money to buy cool stuff at Stores, too!

I was hoping we might have enough to buy both a Shield and a Power upgrade but nope... two credits short, we're at 48 Scrap right now.

Here's where we stand. From L to R, those are the Shields, Engine, Oxygen, Weapons, and Medbay systems up top, and the Cockpit, Sensors, and Doors (subsystems) at the bottom. The cost for each upgrade rank is listed under the symbol for that System.

I say we save our scrap in case we hit a store so we can buy bigger guns. After that the priority should be a teleporter, so we can board enemy ships and get more loot.

I prefer engines over shields generally but it's a tough tradeoff early on.

Oh, and never, ever, buy just one bar of shields. You need two bars for another level of shields so always save up so you can buy both or don't buy one at all.

You need to get those doors upgraded to level two as soon as possible - and I'd suggest sensors, as well, honestly - though that's less of a priority. (Especially if you get a slug!) In a ship with no rockmen or mantis crew, you REALLY want to get those level two doors, so you can vent the boarders to space.

Boarders aren't really a problem in the first sectors unless you hit Mantis-controlled space. Which isn't to say that upgraded doors are not important, just that I don't make them a priority until sector 3 or so.

Yeah, there's no shortage of useful upgrades, it's just a matter of priority at this point. Normally I'd prioritize Engines over Shields, but getting that second bubble would be helpful. Quat's right though, Level 2 Doors are cheap and easy, we'll definitely want to get that soon too.

For now let's just continue on, since we don't have an immediate need for any of the upgrades available to us. Space-beers in hand, the crew gathers on the bridge to consult the sector map and determine their course.


You can go anywhere you like, as long as it's right there.

Only one Beacon accessible from this jump point. The verdict is unanimous: let's go there! The Rebel Fleet is getting closer, though - it's actually inside the Sector now, and gaining on us with every jump we make. DUN dun dunnnn

Everyone buckles in and stows their tray tables in the upright position. "FTL jump in 3...2...1."

The stars blur momentarily... and we arrive. Instantly the comm array lights up on an unauthorized channel. We're being hailed at mid-range by a strange ship. Maybe another mercenary contract? Nope... slavers. Scum.



Wow. That's just evil.

So, gang - a turning point. Do we lose a random crew member to the slavers, or deliver a pulse laser bitch-slap by way of a reply?

Lose our drinking buddies? NEVAH

The prudent course would be to spend your scrap on your second shield bubble now. All you need do after that is ensure you take out your enemy's missiles/bombs first, and you will fear no one.

I do not counsel prudence.

Save your scrap, wait for a shop and get more guns
BIGGER GUNS

One, I don't like my odds in that lottery. Two, I know we can take down that ship without breaking a sweat. Three, they're slavers. Kill them and take their stuff.

I suspect it is at this juncture that we are sung back to the aether. v____v

I AM ALL FOR GIVING THEM WHAT FOR because slavering scum should always be stomped~