What is it That Makes Exploration so Interesting?...

[UnmarkedBoxcar]

I have always been curious as to what the drive might be.

I have, more than once, toyed with the idea of outfitting a DB Explorer with 33ly range and running away from civilization to see how far I could get, but...exploration takes a while, and I have always been fairly certain that after a few hours I'd be bored and want to turn around. What do you explorers out there do to keep from self-destructing out of boredom? Is it relaxing? Is it monotonous? What are the risks? The rewards? Is it a pain being so far away from wingmen?

*interrogate*

[Kiltrathi]

Just try and turn around when you've had enough. I found it interesting to see what I found out there. Just to find that habitable planet which noone in the game has seen before, put your name tag on one of the planets in Elite.
I started on Friday night and turned back on Sunday, like a weekend's drive to the country.

[Soulmirror]

I have tried bounty hunting, hauling and mining so far and the pew pew is the most fun. I have outfitted an explorer, but have time restrictions atm.

How about trying this:

You do not lose much when outfitting smaller ships so to try exploring, set up a Cobra (max 28 ly jump) and make a 2 hour loop anywhere in the galaxy. I did this one night and it was enjoyable because I was enjoying the scenery not worrying about being shot. I also found a good radio station to listen to, because I did not have to listen as closely to my cockpit / game noises. Exploring by itself could be monotonous but if you mix it with something else you like it can be fun. Below is a description of the Cobra and the ship builder.

http://elite-dangerous.wikia.com/wiki/Cobra_Mk._III

http://www.edshipyard.com/

P.S. What makes exploring fun? Being the first to see something and get your name in the game!

[Feldspar]

It's relaxing and can get kind of hypnotic, but I'm usually doing something else on the second screen.

[Xebeth]

I've only ever done the one trip, a 2k jaunt to Barnard's Loop and back, and whilst the nebulae were interesting, it seemed to mostly consist of jump-scan-jump-scan-etc... I think you are either an Explorer or you're not. It takes a lot of dedicated commitment, unlike the other professions, it's not something you can dip into for a short while and then go do something else.

I'd probably be more tempted to do it again if there was more 'stuff' to discover, this isn't a criticism, I'm just to lightweight to get that excited about my 50th planet.

[Eva]

When I was exploring to tag things, I didn't enjoy it much at all. It was mildly cool to know that I was the first person to go somewhere, but it ran out rather quickly. When I was exploring to see notable landmarks though, I had a good time. I went to the Pleiades then swung around to the Witch Head nebula (going via Betelgeuse), then on to Barnard's loop (it's the big red circle with a dot in the middle that you always see in the backdrop of inhabited space - I've BEEN there! :p) and it's surrounding nebulae. I also filled my tank from Rigel, which was intense and scary but felt like an achievement ^^ saw a few black holes and neutron stars along the way too.

All up, I had a fun little holiday visiting very pretty things only a relatively short distance from inhabited space and now I grin every time I see Barnard's loop because I know I flew right through the middle of that big red target and looked back on the galaxy from the other side. You could try this kind of exploration out ; ) space tourism.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

[UnmarkedBoxcar]

You could try this kind of exploration out ; ) space tourism.

Now that sounds a little more up my alley...

[BrocMcGregor]

heya buddy

in a lot of ways everything that I've been up to is to rig out a ship (now either an Adder or a Diamondback Explorer, realistically actually the Adder.)

and the funny thing is, I may not actually be "exploring" that much. I still want the advanced discovery scanner and surface scanner because knowing my luck, I'll get 1500ly out and actually need them.

But my plan is actually just to explore the known systems we know about. And particularly to start with all the celestial navigational systems, and the constellations. And hopefully for the little half-pint it'll be a grand adventure for her too.

As far as going way out into the black? I'll probably end up out there eventually, but the fact the game has estimated the known systems and where they'll be 1300 years or so from now, that's freaking COOL, and regardless of the rest, that's what really drew me into this game.

and you know what? http://kotaku.com/one-thousand-gamers-e ... 1677603818

is far more romanticized and well written than I can do it justice. But, after reading that article, I had to buy Elite Dangerous.

[TorTorden]

I have only done a short trip (2000ly round trip to Barnard's loop) but exploration arent dangerous apart from two things, crashing into suns or running out of fuel, but this is true for k-space as well.
Don't stress it, do like Kirk. Pick a direction and go

Having good jump range is great but only a must if your going to the edge.
Get a great fuel scoop , biggest you can fit and afford, less time spent scooping is less heat exposure faster travel, this an the advanced scanner pays for itself, and you get your money back when you sell it.

In fact only time anything costs anything in this game is if you die and pay the insurance, or the 10% loss from ship sales.
But go for the sights, not the money, never be afraid to make giant detours for shiny things
Take your time and take screenshots of whatever you fancy.

The asp is the defacto explorer because pre 1.3 it had the mix of a big tank, the fsd is somewhat oversized so you get great jump range and distance, after 1.3 we can add extra fuel tanks so even a Sidewinder can get to a 100ly range between refueling stops. And it could fit lots of various extra modules like field maintenance kits and heat sinks.
That said you only need heat sinks if you screw up, and you only need the AMU'S when you have screwed up on multiple occasions.

Ship integrity is something you can just forget about, it will decrease from hypercruising no matter what.
Even if it gets to 0 it just means your total Max hull strength has decreased by 30% you won't risk decompressing or anything.

[stummies]

I've done a few short trips, it's not for me though. My biggest problem is if I take the plunge and take a trip to Sag A* or something further I am dedicated to completing it. I struggle with the idea that I'm essentially locking myself into a single role until I return. I can't decide today I want to do anything other than explore. Knowing myself I'd make it a few days, get bored and lazy and just run the ship into a star to return instantly... or stop playing altogether because I'm not having fun.

I think part of my problem is I can't mentally remove myself from the idea that it's only a game. I'm not actually exploring anything except a rendition in a video game. There is plenty I see in game that is pretty but anytime I see something interesting all I see is post-processing effects, procedural objects and graphical rendering. I'm not bashing those that can look past these things, I can't though... nature of my brain.