Is there any way to avoid them?
I keep getting killed evry time i fly thru one :(

I found that some of the missions required that I jump long distances. Every time I did I went into an ion storm and, subsequently, got killed by the 100-times-more-powerful-than-me ships that were waiting there.

I solved the problem by breaking my big jump into smaller jumps into unoccupied sectors. Since they're unoccupied you can jump in and out very effortlessly. Someone on '100' told me that the chances of encountering an ion storm are greater the larger distance you are jumping. Since I've been doing things this way (smaller jumps), I haven't encountered a single one. :)

Hope this helps.

Mirth thats been working for me also.

You've learned one of the techniques for safe travel in Vendetta. Congrats!

As I understand it, ion storms are generated randomly in each sector, lasting several hours and sometimes slowly moving within the sector.

They cannot happen in an empty sector, so if you plan your route through the system to avoid "living" sectors, you won't be caught in a ion storm.

What looks like an empty sector on the map is not always that empty though ... ;)

The way to avoid ion stomrms is just avoid all planets and belts(asteriod).Simply by avoiding those the chances of you hitting an ion storm are very very slim. Since i found this out (about 2 weeks ago) out of 2-3 hours of playing a day i have only hit 1.

Also, if you get caught in a storm, point yourself toward the exit. Begin a series of boosts toward it. Always use "x" to keep the nearest enemy targeted so you can gauge your distance from it.

Now, do NOT boost straight for the exit!!! Try to boost in a random pattern that keeps you moving TOWARD the exit, but keep changing directions. If you fly straight, you WILL die.

In addition, look for large asteroids to fly around or between. The bots seem to have a hard time following if you circle around a 'roid or two on the way to the exit.

don't boost for it? how are you gettng killed i've never died in an ion storm the bots can't catch you if you boost it. maybe one popcorn bullet will hit you if you're incredibly unlucky heh

Houn, I don't know where you got that idea...

The only time I ever died in an ion storm was when I set my boost, stepped away from the computer, and en-route to the exit, smashed into an asteroid and blew up. And really, if I'd bothered to zoom in to make sure that my route was clear, I would have been able to set a course that would have missed it.

Hehe. My only fatality in a storm happened the same way as CrippledPidgeon. I had the nav window open and was chatting and BOOM! I don't leave the nav window open for long anymore.

Anyway, I'm guessing that some people are having trouble in storms because they don't have good enough batteries & engines yet. When I hit a storm I simply point at the exit and /+turbo. If I was unlucky enough to enter the sector within 300m of a bot they may get a hit in before I gain speed, but once I'm moving there's no threat because I'm moving fast enough and my battery can get me to any exit in half a charge.

Personally, when starting out (with a new character or after a reset) I stay in the same system and bot until I've gained a few levels so if I do hit a storm the bots are only collectors. After a few levels I can get a good enough batt/engine combo to handle most storms (by level 4 no storm is a problem). That may not be as practical for a new player who can't gain the first few levels in a night. If that's the case, ask around for a mentor/escort (or assemble a group of newbies) for protection. I'm certainly always willing to help.

The really annoying thing is when you are jumping directly from the wormhole to the station you need to get to, and hitting 4 wormholes in a row on the way there. After every one you think "This has to be the last one..."

I think most of the time dying in an ion storm happens when you are in an early ship, such as a bus. You only have a top speed of something like 160 m/s, and the battery runs out very fast. Agressive bots can easily overtake a bus. Later on, the storms don't seem to be too much of an issue. I generally fly straight towards the exit, and only have problems when an asteroid gets in my way, or a bot makes a collision course with me.

Is it a game balance issue if ion storms are very dangerous to new players, but just an anoyance to anyone with more experience? Eh, I got killed a lot as a newbie, and learned from it. Not much of a loss when your ship is free anyway.

I learned how to strafe to avoid getting killed in ion storms. You can get out in a bus but you have to not move is a straight line and I also use "x" and "z" to check if any bots are comming to attack me.

yeah wut sara said is true. basically the ion storms are only threats to ppl in busses and newbs.get urself a medium battery and u can almost always boost sraight to the exit (unless that random meteor starts spinning and decides to whack u :P) But even for ppl in busses its easy. just randomly strafe left and right (a and d) and up and down (r and f). Even with 47's on your butt you can aviod them with these simple movements while your batery is recharging. But a sugession is start to boost while your strafing. It helps in avoiding fire while your getting up to speed.

Besides the Ion storms are what other games would call "random NPC encounters" just these can often be predicted.