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- Jan 1, 2015
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TL;DR
50K mass cruiser or smaller, must have a pirate skull and crossbones.
No insults, be a gentleman.
Ships obviously smaller than 50K mass are not fair game, nor are obvious miners.
Those you challenge CAN bring ships that are bigger!
*
Many of us bemoan the lack of anything to actually do in Starmade for the time being, short of mine and build. Some have taken to the role of reavers in response, creating risk by willy nilly attacking any and all. Meanwhile there are players who would prefer to be largely left alone while they mine and build, who are on multiplayer servers solely for community. This proposal is an attempt to create a middle ground.
So ya wannabe a pirate, eh? I propose the gentleman pirate, the "Dread Pirate" <insert username here>
A gentleman pirate is a sportsman, and follows sporting rules. A gentleman pirate is first and foremost a gentleman, and they conduct themselves appropriately. They do not insult their prey, they do not belittle someone who avoids a fight. Someone who hides in their homebase is someone to perhaps come back to check upon later is all. You can 'encourage' them to come out and play, but it must be done politely.
To be a gentleman pirate is to accept defeat graciously. Your job is to enjoy a challenge, knowing that the rules you follow permit those you challenge to defeat you. There is no challenge assaulting people while you are flying a 500K mass titan. A gentleman pirate flies a ship no larger than 50K mass. This is a cruiser sufficiently large to give a serious fight, yet not so large that you could not easily replace it. A very well designed, built and piloted 50K mass ship might however be able to defeat the typical 500K mass newb cube. Now there is a nice challenge worthy of the sport.
Your 50K cruiser can be as tough as you can build it, but should not exploit bugs 'solely' meant to create lag. Winning by lagging the server is not sporting. You must also have a clearly visible skull and crossbones on the hull of your ship, ideally more than one, so people can see that you are a pirate.
Any ship that is close enough to 50K or bigger is fair game, 'except' for ships that are clearly simply mining ships. A mining ship might carry some armament, but just because it is armed to deal with NPC pirates does not mean it is ok for you in your 50K cruiser to use it for target practice. It is not a challenge. Battleminers however ARE fair game. A ship that is a miner but is also clearly designed to obliterate pirate stations and fleets is enough of a warship that you may attack with impunity. Such ships are typically substantially bigger than your 50K cruiser and so even with the mass they devoted to mining should be able to put up a fair fight. If you are in doubt as to the miner being a battleminer, either ask if it is, or assume it is not and leave it alone. (Yes, some people may lie, it is their loss in cred.)
Ships that are 50k mass (visually) or larger and clearly not mining ships can be fired upon on sight. However it is generally more sporting to greet your prey first with a gentlemanly, "Your money or your life" or something else similarly apt. They may be willing to pay for free passage instead of fighting. You should graciously accept their surrender.
You can if you wish fly a ship that is less than 50K mass. However you still must not attack players who are significantly less than that, otherwise players will not have a way of opting out of being fair game.
Other dread pirates ARE fair game. Just because you yourself are a pirate does not mean other pirates cannot test their mettle against you.
Be forewarned, there will be times you challenge someone and they come out of their station in a 200K mass battlewagon. Them's the risks you take. They won't get much in the way of bragging rights for defeating you. You on the other hand will get respect simply for accepting the challenge. And if you prevail, well, 'now' you've earned some serious dread.
How to not be a target of Dread Pirates:
Keep large ships docked. Fly around in ships that are visibly smaller than 50K mass. 10K mass will be pretty obvious as too small for worthy game, but you might get away with 20K as well, depending on how you built your ship. Don't look like a big juicy target!
Miners are not fair game, even if they are 50K or more in mass. If you are flying a miner however, make sure it looks like a miner and not a battleship, to prevent mistakes. Note that Battleminers 'are' considered fair game. A battleminer is a ship built to be both a miner and a major warship. You can lightly arm your miner to deal with NPC pirates, but if you arm it heavily, it is likely to be seen as a battleminer and be fair game.
If you really want to fly around in big ships but don't want to run too much risk of being blown up by dread pirates, fly a 'really big' ship. Dread pirates never fly ships bigger than 50K. If you are flying a 100K ship, you will have a significant advantage. If you doubt your skill, make it a 200K mass ship. Be aware however that even though they are flying smaller ships, some Dread Pirates are very skilled pilots and ship builders, and they may still come after you and still be able to defeat you.
50K mass cruiser or smaller, must have a pirate skull and crossbones.
No insults, be a gentleman.
Ships obviously smaller than 50K mass are not fair game, nor are obvious miners.
Those you challenge CAN bring ships that are bigger!
*
Many of us bemoan the lack of anything to actually do in Starmade for the time being, short of mine and build. Some have taken to the role of reavers in response, creating risk by willy nilly attacking any and all. Meanwhile there are players who would prefer to be largely left alone while they mine and build, who are on multiplayer servers solely for community. This proposal is an attempt to create a middle ground.
So ya wannabe a pirate, eh? I propose the gentleman pirate, the "Dread Pirate" <insert username here>
A gentleman pirate is a sportsman, and follows sporting rules. A gentleman pirate is first and foremost a gentleman, and they conduct themselves appropriately. They do not insult their prey, they do not belittle someone who avoids a fight. Someone who hides in their homebase is someone to perhaps come back to check upon later is all. You can 'encourage' them to come out and play, but it must be done politely.
To be a gentleman pirate is to accept defeat graciously. Your job is to enjoy a challenge, knowing that the rules you follow permit those you challenge to defeat you. There is no challenge assaulting people while you are flying a 500K mass titan. A gentleman pirate flies a ship no larger than 50K mass. This is a cruiser sufficiently large to give a serious fight, yet not so large that you could not easily replace it. A very well designed, built and piloted 50K mass ship might however be able to defeat the typical 500K mass newb cube. Now there is a nice challenge worthy of the sport.
Your 50K cruiser can be as tough as you can build it, but should not exploit bugs 'solely' meant to create lag. Winning by lagging the server is not sporting. You must also have a clearly visible skull and crossbones on the hull of your ship, ideally more than one, so people can see that you are a pirate.
Any ship that is close enough to 50K or bigger is fair game, 'except' for ships that are clearly simply mining ships. A mining ship might carry some armament, but just because it is armed to deal with NPC pirates does not mean it is ok for you in your 50K cruiser to use it for target practice. It is not a challenge. Battleminers however ARE fair game. A ship that is a miner but is also clearly designed to obliterate pirate stations and fleets is enough of a warship that you may attack with impunity. Such ships are typically substantially bigger than your 50K cruiser and so even with the mass they devoted to mining should be able to put up a fair fight. If you are in doubt as to the miner being a battleminer, either ask if it is, or assume it is not and leave it alone. (Yes, some people may lie, it is their loss in cred.)
Ships that are 50k mass (visually) or larger and clearly not mining ships can be fired upon on sight. However it is generally more sporting to greet your prey first with a gentlemanly, "Your money or your life" or something else similarly apt. They may be willing to pay for free passage instead of fighting. You should graciously accept their surrender.
You can if you wish fly a ship that is less than 50K mass. However you still must not attack players who are significantly less than that, otherwise players will not have a way of opting out of being fair game.
Other dread pirates ARE fair game. Just because you yourself are a pirate does not mean other pirates cannot test their mettle against you.
Be forewarned, there will be times you challenge someone and they come out of their station in a 200K mass battlewagon. Them's the risks you take. They won't get much in the way of bragging rights for defeating you. You on the other hand will get respect simply for accepting the challenge. And if you prevail, well, 'now' you've earned some serious dread.
How to not be a target of Dread Pirates:
Keep large ships docked. Fly around in ships that are visibly smaller than 50K mass. 10K mass will be pretty obvious as too small for worthy game, but you might get away with 20K as well, depending on how you built your ship. Don't look like a big juicy target!
Miners are not fair game, even if they are 50K or more in mass. If you are flying a miner however, make sure it looks like a miner and not a battleship, to prevent mistakes. Note that Battleminers 'are' considered fair game. A battleminer is a ship built to be both a miner and a major warship. You can lightly arm your miner to deal with NPC pirates, but if you arm it heavily, it is likely to be seen as a battleminer and be fair game.
If you really want to fly around in big ships but don't want to run too much risk of being blown up by dread pirates, fly a 'really big' ship. Dread pirates never fly ships bigger than 50K. If you are flying a 100K ship, you will have a significant advantage. If you doubt your skill, make it a 200K mass ship. Be aware however that even though they are flying smaller ships, some Dread Pirates are very skilled pilots and ship builders, and they may still come after you and still be able to defeat you.
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