Lining Guide DATE: 2012/12/11 Nothin' could be finah than captainin' a linah. * Before you start This guide assumes you are generally familiar with the game Chosen Space and understand how to move a starship to any location in the game space's systems, expanses, sectors, and grids. If you are not yet familiar with the above topics, we recommend you read first Nihilant's guides on Chosen Space game basics [link] and movement [link]. * What is "lining"? "Lining" is the Chosen Space term for transporting non-player passengers from one inhabited planet to another for pay. It is an economic activity built into the game, and doesn't require interacting with other players. * Why should I line? $$$. Dinero, Gelt, O-kane. L'argent. Money. Lining is the most reliable way to earn the maximum number of credits per turn spent playing Chosen Space. Even if you find other parts of the game more to your liking, which is certainly your right, sooner or later you will become involved, or initiate yourself, a project for which you need a lot of credits as soon as possible. If you do not have a sugar daddy willing to foot the bill, you will need to start lining. Money may not buy happiness, but it goes a long way toward getting everything else you need. Rumors have it that the game administrators have the ability to alter the relative profitability of various game activities by adjusting game parameters. Lining is on average the most profitable activity under the current game configuration, but if the rumors are true the administrators can make lining more or less profitable at will and without notice. * What do I need to start lining? Lining requires a transport class starship. Transports are subclassed by size as follows: | Class | Code | Size | Capacity | Points | |-----------------+------+-----------+----------+--------| | Light Transport | LTR | 10k-40k | 32,000 | 4,574 | | Transport | TR | 40k-80k | 72,000 | 9,374 | | Heavy Transport | HTR | 80k-130k | 100,000 | 15,380 | | Bulk Transport | BTR | 130k-190k | 150,000 | 29,671 | (The above numbers are representative figures. Actual starship specifications vary according to their design.) * How many passengers can my transport carry? Click on the link to your transport's design on the starship information page. [screenshot: starship info. page] The value of "..." specification is the maximum number of passengers your starship is capable of simultaneously transporting. [screenshot: design specification page] * What passengers are currently aboard my transport? Click on your transport's name link on your ship list page or on the navigation panel, or your transport's design link on a planet or OP's starship list. [screenshot: player ship list page] [screenshot: nav. panel] [screenshot: planet starship list] The panel at the bottom of the starship information page lists the destinations, numbers, and per passenger payment for passengers currently aboard your transport. [screenshot: starship info. page] * Where can I pick up passengers? Every inhabited planet [link to table of inhabited planets by system (with controlling faction, leader, population, election info., ...)] has a passenger terminal where groups of passengers await transport to one or more other planets. Move your transport to a planet, then click the Terminal button in the planet details panel. [screenshot] The left half of the terminal page shows a table with the number of waiting passengers and per passenger payment for each destination planet and system, with an input box for the number of passengers to pick up and an Accept button. The input box for each destination is preset with the smaller either the number of passengers waiting for transport to that destination or the number of passengers your transport still has capacity to carry. The right half lists passengers currently aboard your transport whose destination is the planet where you are currently located. * Which passengers should I choose to transport? You will be payed the amount shown in the terminal passenger list for each passenger you drop off at the indicated destination planet. The amount payed varies with the distance of the destination, so you get payed more per passenger the farther you have to carry them. In general, you should accept groups of passengers that maximize the total drop off payment you recieve given your transport's passenger capacity and the distance your ship can travel with your remaining turns. (Remember to allow for a reserve of turns to move your starship to your space dock and dock at the end of your game session.) Here are some guidelines for selecting groups of passengers: 1. Determine the total potential revenue for each group of passengers in the terminal by multiplying the per passenger payment by the smaller of the number of passengers in the group and the available capacity of your transport. 2. Choose groups of passengers bound for planets in the system with the highest total potential revenue, starting with the group with the highest per passenger payment. 3. If you still have unused passenger space, consider picking up passengers bound for the system with the second highest total potential revenue IF the per passenger payment is fairly high * How do I drop off passengers? * What if I don't have enough turns to deliver all my passengers? If you do not have enough turns to transport passengers already on board to their destination, simply dock your starship and carry your passengers on to their destination later when you have enough turns to do so. You will receive the same pay for transporting a group of passengers * What should I do after I drop off my passengers? Do NOT leave your transport in orbit about the planet where you dropped off your last passengers. There it is vulnerable to attack and boarding. Before you log out, always dock your transport at one of your faction's space docks. If you don't have enough turns to reach the nearest space dock, move your starship to any empty space sector a few sectors away from the planet, and leave it in an empty grid. * What does lining have to do with planet leader elections? Besides earning filthy piles of credits, lining plays a part in planet leader elections. When you or a fellow member of your faction is running in a planet leader election, transporting passengers bound for that planet increases your faction's rating on that planet and improves the chance that you or you faction mate will win the election. Therefore, it may sometimes behoove you to pass up the highest-paying passengers and instead seek out and transport passengers bound for a particular planet. * Further reading Arvy has written a short lining tutorial [link] (though it commits the grave sin of passing up the highest-paying group of passengers in its example run). Nihilant has written several other guides on various Chosen Space topics. [link] * Metadata Local variables: mode: org End: