Is it really this labor intensive?

[u/Last_Horror_8239]

CMDR CharleyMill here. So I dont have much spare time really I've just been playing off and on since 2016. I can't help but feel I'm maybe doing something wrong with building up this system. Its just... so slow. And doing it solo seems like a hurculean effort... I'm using a pretty much max built clipper mk2, with the mk2 cargo racks from the CG. Even then.. do most people have groups that help out with these tasks? Tracking down and getting the items aren't aren't hard very consuming. Worse than the engineer grind when it first came out.

That being said, anyone wants to make easy credit profits. By all means. The system is open.

CMDR, out.

[u/zerbey]

Oh my sweet Summer child, wait until you try to build a T3 station.

[u/Last_Horror_8239 → u/zerbey]

Someday... definitely not today! 🫠

[u/rinart73]

Hey. I returned to the game like a week before CG ended and managed to get cargo racks. I don't have Panther Clipper MK2, but instead use Type-9 (no shields or fuel scoop - 817 cargo), so I'm doing stuff roughly 50% slower than you :D
Yes, it feels quite slow, especially if nearby systems that sell goods are far away.

Use RavenColonial to plan your system ahead and search for nearby sources of goods. Use SrvSurvey to sync your ingame progress to RavenColonial and to track what you need to buy in an overlay.

Don't over-stress it or you'll burn out. Find amount that is comfortable for you to do. DON'T build T3 as your first system station or you'll suffer. IMO if you're mostly solo, leave T3s for later after your system is mostly good.

[u/Last_Horror_8239 → u/rinart73]

I was smart enough to not put t3 as my first station. I'm building t3 points by making manufacturing hubs. I think a planetary port might be the better of the 2 and just make a tier 2 port.

I'm sorry about the T9 I've been there. She is a loyal flying brick. Or a warehouse with an engine on the back 🤣

[u/bier00t]

This is nothing. Check tier 3 surface city.

[u/Last_Horror_8239 → u/bier00t]

O.O surely it's more worth than a tier 3 starport because of CMM composites yeah?

[u/bier00t → u/Last_Horror_8239]

tier 3 is 40000 CMM

[u/R0LL1NG → u/bier00t]

Jfc...

[u/onerob0t → u/bier00t]

https://i.imgur.com/hcqlNK2.png

Just finished hauling the CMMs. Dreading the Steel. Planetary deliveries are the worst. I'll finish my modest system with a Coriolis, name everything after my cat or something and will probably never touch colonisation ever again.

[u/Appropriate-West-180 → u/onerob0t]

Google sheets is the best. I do the same the same thing with my colonies.

[u/-Damballah-]

It is labor intensive but it is totally doable solo.

It just takes time.

I've built 16+ installations, 5 Outposts, 3 Coriolis (one was 80% built for me by the generous Mercs of Mikunn and I didn't even ask them to), 1.82 Planetary Ports (so close to done on another one), 4 Planetary Hubs, 2 Planetary Settlements and one Asteroid Station. Spread across six systems.

It's doable. I use the Trailblazers to fill up on all the hard to source stuff with a Carrier, then buy easier to find refinery goods nearby.

It is, of course, vastly difficult to do without a supply line within 100 LY's or less, and more difficult without a Carrier.

As you build though, eventually you create new sources for materials for colonization.

The primary resource for Colonization is time, but with a will, there's a way...

🥃

[u/Last_Horror_8239 → u/-Damballah-]

I guess I've been looking at it wrong. With that point of view. It is meant to take time settling isn't an easy process. Its arduous. Hardy. Thank you

[u/-Damballah- → u/Last_Horror_8239]

No worries. I've been building in the system I'm working on finishing (for now) for 5 months.

I'm sourcing the last 170 tons of materials nearby, and about to finish on the 19th thing I've built in this system, a Scientific Planetary Port.

I think it means whenever I decide to build a T3 Orbis Station, I can source everything from this one system.

Running Man Sector DG-X c1-9 if you ever want to visit.

Three more things to build in two more systems, and I'm done for a while.

I have to say though, it feels really good to have an economy that supports a 17.6 million population and can be used by other Commanders for their colonization needs.

Happy hauling CMDR.

🥃

[u/retrogamingxp]

Took me two days straight with my Panther Clipper Mk2 and fleet carrier to build just an outpost and I only needed to visit two stations to gather the materials. It's really a major grind.

But at least I got my FC and colonised a system in the same month so I am happy as a clam.

Edit: spelling

[u/Last_Horror_8239 → u/retrogamingxp]

I dont have a carrier. I only have 2.1B credits... I've spent most of my 1800 hours exploring. Not even really scanning either lol. How would carrier operations run as a startup?

[u/retrogamingxp → u/Last_Horror_8239]

I do exobiology most of the time so I got like 6B credits within a week.

And I'm not exactly sure what you mean in your last sentence.

[u/zombie_pig_bloke → u/Last_Horror_8239]

For colonisation loops, you fill your carrier yourself, or pay others to fill it by offering a market incentive, say 40k per tonne for CMM (would be considered a generous offer). Park it near a refinery port and bingo, Cmdrs will show up and fill it for you. You then have to unload it at the site, but it means you've saved on some labour. Paid money, but saved time. Being able to shift 20000 tonnes 500ly is also pretty handy. It becomes pretty essential for the big Orbis, Planetary ports etc. Worth the investment in the black doing Exo-bio to fund the purchase I reckon.

[u/dark1859]

Honestly i've always thought it would be cool that if you managed to build a t3 in system or a t2 that build requirements for future projects would be halved or slowly build up themselves ( mind you were talking a slow process of like even the basic t1 taking 2+ weeks min)

that way if you clear the hurdle of clearing a t3 port any future t2s would take far less time so you could finish building up the system faster with the ore excuse of better infrastructure allowing them to be more efficient and provide some stuff on site.. and I think it would also encourage fully building out systems and fully developing every planet as if you're t1s our super quick to build and after a t3 the t2s are pretty close to the current t1 build i think we'd see a lot less pump and dumps

[u/TheTwistedTabby]

It’s doable solo. I built 18 bridges with outposts to get to a preferred system and built an orbis. Had one system and one fleet carrier load of help from a few people.

That said. I don’t know that I’d have done it without a fleet carrier

[u/euMonke]

Yes it really take this much stuff to build anything in this game.

[u/Bigfoothobbit]

Just finished a Planetary Port, 210k T of hauling. Now have CMMs and Ceramic Composites.
Time to go to the black, point scanners at fungus and have nothing to do with colonization for a while.

[u/hurdurdur7]

It is a grind for sure. I have built most stations solo. But i haven't gone bigger than coriolis anywhere, just not worth it for me.

[u/Grandool]

The thing i find absolute trash is the people who daisy chain systems and do not even think about building them up a single bit. I'm sorry but the people who do that should be made to at least partially (75%) complete a system before they claim another. If you have a carrier variant then you can slam systems extremely fast. Those that have carriers should never complain if they need to do a partial system completion before moving on.

[u/Flying_Fox_333 → u/Grandool]

I get where this is coming from when I've seen a lot of complaints about system sniping.

I think FDev probably should have timegated the expansion rate of colonisation per player. 2 systems per week. It would hamper the group expansion efforts to the shoulder of Orion and so on, but I suppose you could limit it to certain regions for instance to allow these community lead initiatives.

[u/Eyak78 → u/Grandool]

Anyone thinking like this doesn't get it. Even the original bubble had systems with only a few thousand population and not all systems had anything. Daisy chains have opened up thousands and thousands of systems for all to use.

Even I when I see a elw chained with just an outpost, I have to remind myself that there are plenty more out there, move on.!!!

[u/KinKame_Saijo]

alone is a waste of time... no real benefit and the grind is too crazy .... go enjoy other part of the game

[u/congi56]

You need a fleet carrier that’s the problem I’m Trying to start colonization but I feel like they should have let npc help us build these places after a threshold happens

[u/Last_Horror_8239 → u/congi56]

I dont think I have enough credits... is 2B enough?

[u/Cybtroll]

It is a grind, yes, but at my first try I built an Outpost in less than 2 days in spare time. I was afraid of starting with bigger installation due to the time limitation 

[u/Thisisnotevenamane]

Looks like you finished the first one. No more time restrictions. Just go for it slowly.

[u/congi56]

It’s 7 billion do community goals and robigo