Scanning Missile Launcher(s):
Capacity: 5 SKWRA scanning missiles
Damage: 0
Velocity: 210m/s
Repeat: 1 every 5 seconds
Fuel: 20 seconds
Lock-on period: 5 seconds with target within 500m
Effect: When the missile hits, it immediatly scans the enemy ship for cargo, weapons, health, and engine/battery layout. After the selected information is retrieved, it is beamed back to its mothership and displayed as a drop-down of the target info screen. Displayed for 5 seconds

MMmmmmmm.... Better make it large-slot only, though. Wouldn't want the valk-flying pirates to get their hands on this... :)

why not? does no damage, and all you get it to see the cargo and such inside
and it takes up a small slot, so ou only get dual flares

Yeah, but what if, say, missions incorporate taking secret packages somewhere and not getting them stolen?

well even if you get scanned there's no problem because it's just gonna read "top secret package". if you die you fail anyway.
and that's one less weapon port, "eat my tri flares sucker! Wait, DAMMIT!!"

You have A NEW IDEA. It's not often we get those anymore. Grazt.

I'd rename it 'scout drone' to make it clear that it isn't intended to destroy things. I had thought about missiles that extended your radar range, but not ones that extended your scanning range. These, since they take up a weapons slot, should do both.

you being sarcestic cele? :P

i like the idea but you should be able to get diffrent types like ones that scan the univers for people and if its after you then you can kill it befor it gets back the the owner it will be grate for bounty hunters

"i like the idea but you should be able to get diffrent types like ones that scan the univers for people and if its after you then you can kill it befor it gets back the the owner it will be grate for bounty hunters"

Yes, we could name it the "Fireplace Special".

[/satire]

Seriously, though, that's a good idea for when the playerbase gets a bit larger..... They'd have to be prohibitively expensive, and probably only available on the black market....

One of those would have been nice for our Joyce-recovery mission a while back. Instead of having a couple of newbs guard the WHs while Miharu and Monk scouted the system sector-by-sector, we could have left the more competent people at the WHs, then fired off a few drones and waited for some sign of Jex.

Gundog's idea has potential, as does Humpy's. Like Rogue said, there could be a mission involving highly sensitive packages.

Actually, there's potential in this for a total rewrite of the datapad delivery mission.... Something like THIS (forgive the somewhat messy nature of the outline):




1) Player A, with high-level standing with Faction Q is scanning through the available missions, when he randomly is given access to a mission involving transporting a datapad with sensitive research results on it. The mission would only be available if Player A had low standing with enemy Faction Z.

2) Player A has to transport the cargo from Point A to Point B.

3) As Player A leaves the station, an alert goes out to nearby enemy Players B and C, who have low standing with Faction Q, but high level standing with Faction Z. They're told that an enemy courier has research that would be very valuable to Faction Z's scientists, and that a handsome reward will be paid to whoever brings the data to a Faction Z base. They're given Player A's point of departure, as well as the destination.


**First Branch**

........1.1) Interception Fails

................4a) Player A successfully avoids B and C, and delivers the datapad for a ~100k reward


OR


........1.2) Interception Successful

................4b) Players B and C move to intercept Player A, and Player B destroys Player A and makes off with the datapad, with Player C escorting.

................5) Player D, in a nearby sector/system, is alerted that enemy agents have captured the datapad, and moves to intercept.


................**Second Branch**

........................2.1) Datapad Retrieved

................................6a) Player D intercepts Players B and C and retrieves the datapad. Player C then returns to any Faction Q base and drops off the datapad there for safe keeping, ending the mission string and earning him a 200k reward.


OR


........................2.2 Datapad Successfully Stolen

................................Players B and C manage to get the datapad past Player D and make it to Faction Z space, earning Player B a 500k reward, which he splits with Player C because he's a really nice guy. =D

hardly new... only the 'missile' concept, which I must admit I really don't like anyway... it should be a beam, not a missile (wtf? why ordinance? you gotta scan it anyway... it's not like a tracking bug... (but that would be cool too))

I do like the idea of having equipment capable fo scanning vessels though...

Bump

Holy crap, this is an old thread.

But, er, yeah. Some kind of ship scannamajig would be quite tasty.

{EDIT} Oops, didn't notice I was on page four ><

bump, but loooooose the nissile part, make it a advanced scanner or a drone as suggested by someone.

Meh, no need to make it a pirating device or drone. Have a prospecting variant that shows a list of roid compisitions within 1,000 m (automatic scanning). It doesnt track though, just a straight line through the roid field until it hits something, or you choose to detonate the scanner missile.

Maybe even add in a F9 view toggle for each one.
(and make these things around 225-240 m/s)

-Nautargos

I like the tracker idea. I thought as I read this, what about a tracking device that sticks to a ship? Then Cunjo touched briefly on just that. Maybe a homing "magnetic" missile that does no damage and is small and hard to detect. It sticks to your ship, and whoever stuck it to you can at any time check his PDA to see exactly where you are. Maybe an advanced version that also reveals cargo hold contents. Some stations may offer as a service to scan your ship for bugs, and depending on how advanced/trustworthy the station is and how advanced the bug is, they may or may not find one if it's present. If you're paranoid you can buy a new ship, and it won't have bugs.

Better yet, to borrow again from Trade Wars, a scout drone that could be sent to a specific sector to tell you what and who is in that sector. They could be specific to mining or ship identification and would be a one-shot deal. Anywhere in the universe, speed of a rail gun, size of a missile, destructible. Thirty seconds in system data transmission. Perhaps six to ten per large port.

Perhaps certain variants of ships would simply have the ability to scan for weapons, cargo, etc., like the Raptor All Weather Fighter has an integrated storm extender? I imagine that the IBG, SVG, and WTD would all be suited for this kind of equipment. To scan for pilots with illegally equipped ships as they slipped across the border, or something would be neat. Plus it'd be quite handy for the Itani/Serco border fighting that goes on.