New Player

[djrr]

Wanted to say Hi to everyone.  Just found Star Traders 2 weeks ago and have been enjoying the game.  Bought all the unlocks to support the game but am trying to play it straight and only use ones I earned.  I seem to have peaked when I hit crazy (lots of captain deaths ) so am looking for new ideas.

A couple of questions I have:

Do I really have to choose between soulless corporations and  oppressive nobility?  How do people choose what faction they like to play?  I play mostly De Valtos or Javat but wonder why people are so dedicated to Cadar or some other faction.

Do you lose rep with your target if you take on an independent contract?  Sometimes it looks like I do not.  Is there any advantage to taking an independent contract and does anyone use that as a strategy.

Thanks for the help and look forward to learning and playing more.

[qbspy]

Hi djrr. Are you still playing? I'm not as expert as some, but I'll try and field a response. Soulless and oppressive? You gotta employ your imagination to truly appreciate this monster. You can go independent nowadays in the quadrant. I think its mostly for completeness though. Regarding contracts on independent worlds, the main purpose is just to help you out. You can earn credits, get ideas, and get paid to space over to an area you'd like to visit anyway.
This game is quite open ended. The only thing I can think of you can't do is fly into a star. Choosing factions is great isn't it?There are lovers of every faction around here. The descriptions provided when you choose are helpful, but it was through actual play that most of us got preferences. Welcome to space by the way. Now tell me, why do you like to play as Devaltos or Javat?

[Cory Trese]

Do you lose rep with your target if you take on an independent contract?

Sometimes they are pretending to be Independents, or are an Indy Captain carrying a Faction operative. This is very common in the ST universe.

Thanks for playing my game, and double thanks for buying the Unlocks!

[pendell]

"Do I really have to choose between soulless corporations and oppressive nobility?"

That's what is said in-game by the enemies of the factions. The factions don't necessarily see themselves that way.


"How do people choose what faction they like to play?"

I typically choose none. I play pacifist. I start with a faction but pretty quickly get trade permits with everyone, then start selling electronics and weapons to build rep with all factions. This isn't just because I have no interest in the pointless conflicts between the factions, it's also survival. Having everyone as your friend means a relatively quiet life, apart from the occasional indy pirate or alien.


"I play mostly De Valtos or Javat but wonder why people are so dedicated to Cadar or some other faction."

Playstyle complements faction choice. Cadar provides better military ships, so those who enjoy a military game naturally gravitate to them. For much the same reason I tend to prefer De Valtos, because the world are centrally located for useful trading and are quite rich.

"Do you lose rep with your target if you take on an independent contract?"

Not necessarily. Independents target other independents as well. They aren't a faction per se , so you lose no rep for executing that contract.

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[djrr]

Thanks for the feedback. I figured everyone was busy playing Startraders 4X, so I went and played that some too . Cool Game.

For Star Traders I can now survive on Crazy until I meet an alien. Need to read the threads on fighting Aliens. Beat one by ramming it, but mostly just die whenever I run into one .

I have had most success playing a Pirate for Cadar or a Star Trader/Explorer for Javat. So I guess those are my favorite factions. Game is really cool but frustrating sometimes. I tried to earn the black heart award, but everytime I did something bad against someone it was a benefit to someone else and I finally ran out of money without getting negative with everyone.

Look forward to learning more.  I am an old stategy and tactics type gamer so these are definitely more fun to me than first person shooter stuff that is so popular.