So... pirates are hanging around at the wormhole exits in UIT systems. We need policing for these sectors!

How do we position NPC guards there? Or do we just have to take it?

You have to take it, until the faction system gets revamped. I suggest equipping mines. The problem is that pirates are able to keep their factions high in those spaces, so they can keep on killing folks, while protected by the strike forces, until they kill the wrong person.

Actually I expect it's in Verasi where there are no monitored wormholes. I have no idea why there aren't any monitored wormholes there. Maybe it's designed to be a training ground for newbie pirates who aren't ready for grey space.

Errrrm, actually Martin, he might be talking about Dau, and Harry, im at -1000 UiT :P

Since the pirates are players, shouldn't the guards be players too? Right now there is no reward for patrolling for pirates, but perhaps with the new mission editor we could have pirate missions (liberate x cu of cargo in a specific worm hole sector) and guard missions (stay in a sector for a certain time, mission fails if a friendly NPC trader dies in the sector).

Well, we certainly need guards at our borders. Seems like criminal negligence on the part of the UIT planning commission. ;)

In my case (I wouldn't bring it up if I hadn't been a victim) it was in Verasi... and I don't want to name any names but it was a pirate whose name starts with 'tumblemonster'. :D

Hmm... 'pirate-hunting guild' has a nice ring to it.

Pirate-hunting guilds work only insofar as they keep the pirates in B-8 because they all go have huge furballs there :P

The best solution to avoid pirates is to plan your route ahead of time and have some mines. Hiring escorts is a good option, but an even better one is to call for help from one of them pirate-hunting guilds (VPR, IA, SKV... no wait, SKV has Niki, they're pirates too) coz these guys work for free since it's in their charter to hunt pirates.

Don't expect miracles from them, tho, just that they distract the pirate long enough (most times, the pirates sees his adversary and starts laughing so hard he falls off his chair) for you to get away.

Oh, and if a pirate's waiting for you outside a station, pull out an unarmed Moth and fly around but DON'T leave the No Fire Zone. Eight out of ten times the dumb pie rat will try to kill you inside the zone and get blasted to bits by the SF, or at the very least, get so engrossed killing it that you can slip back inside, grab yer cargo, and make a run for it.

Sorry jex, a certain VPR got upset with me today after i refused to fly to Bait for him to hunt me for my 3 mill bounty (im supposed to goto him, yeah, sure, thats how hunting works), please leave them out of ANY anti-pirate discussion, they DO NOT run to the aid of n00b cries in Dau/Arta, they do NOT leave b8 in hunt of people with bounties (do they not realise the marshals give location info on those with bounties?) PLEASE do not mention VPR in the same statement of Anit-pirate, the best of em aint even got a clue how to track a bountied person. VPR are simply another PVP guild with an RP excuse. (ok, this is the wrong place to say this, but its true, you show me a VPR that patrols UIT space *where I pirate, I DO NOT PIRATE IN B8*)

> do they not realise the marshals give location info on those with bounties?

But you have to be in the same sector as the Marshal to get that, which makes it tough to solo it. You need at least two people, one of whom just sits w/ the Marshal sending updates on "last seen" locations. I think I've suggested Marshals be able to be sent messages from other sectors, lemme see if I can find that...

Ah, here it is, I suggested it as a reward for a bounty hunter medal: http://www.vendetta-online.com/x/msgboard/3/8636

Uhum, When i bounty hunt, im in a group, and I have a person sitting in a station, updating the moves as they happen (with about a 5 min delay)

[edit] I am talking about a guild, not a solo person.

I feel sorry for the poor sod who has to sit w/ the Marshal... boring, IMO. I still think it'd be nice if the Marshals responded to messages even if you're in a different sector.

Sorry Beo, its still VPR aint anti pirate, they just use that excuse to shoot pirates in the back in B8, point me to a VPR that patrols UiT space.

Not arguing that. I was off on a tangent, sorry.

/me points at me for example

[IA] Stands ready to assist traders in need. Announce distress on channel 100.

Join a guild that looks out for their own?
If I announce I'm under attack to the [TGFT] Guild Chat, anyone who is online will most likely drop what they're doing and come for the fight.

That is, if it's needed. I usually make it out intact either by escaping in a home-made minefield or paying off the pirate.

Btw, Shape, you rock at moth-hunting. Teach the other pie rats, willya?

Anyway, my point is: Let's NOT solve this in gamecode, but in player cooperation. That's alot more fun and takes 0 seconds developer time.

Yeesh, that's one big chip you've got on your shoulder there, yoda.

I patrol UIT space all the time (when I'm not helping my guildmates out in B8), and I occasionally ask on channel 100 if any traders require assistance/escort. As a guild we recently escorted an ST6 moth convoy to their destination, successfully in spite of pirate attack.

The way I see it, there are so few people online anyway, it will be better that we as a guild have honed our PvP skills so that when there are hundreds of newbie traders flying around, we'll have the skills as a guild to defend them.

I could just as easily make the argument that there's no such thing as a pirate guild. Bottom line is that we need more players to make this work.

Well, its OK you vprs saying that, but how many times have you actually fired at me somewhere that hasnt been sedina b8 ? I', sure the psoter of this thread wouldnt be posting if you had run to his aid (or even given him some advice) when he ran into the unamed pirate tumblemonster.

Well anyway, i took it off topic, and they need to fix the guards in Dau before they start adding them elsewhere :P

The things is... that an organized military should never be able to catch someone with Yoda's skills...

A centralized force will always be at a disadvantage to a "guerilla" group like [CLM] and other pirate groups. If you make all the Nation space wormholes airtight... then... like... eugh... that's not even realistic (what is?)... Guarded borders can always be penetrated... with the proper skill.

Get a player group to escort you... or don't wander around alone.

I should actually become a real pirate... but that's kind of hard in a centaur... >_<

That's the thing... we're not a police force we're an anti-pirate force. That means while we will come to a trader's aid and we will hunt "pirates" we can't police all of UIT space, there just aren't enough of us to do that and not enough players online to make it worthwhile. We're not telepaths, people need to ask us if they want escort.

Also, a pirate vs. trader conflict is usually resolved long before we can get there unless we were already escorting that trader.