Geo-survey team feature is ... well can be improved!

[Nibelung44 (OP)]

Hi,

I don't know about you, but I find the 'new' feature much less interesting than the old way, pre 6.0.

I find super boring to drop teams on a lot of bodies, given their crappy chances of doing anything. Right now, I have ceased doing that for any non exploited body.

Also, before, we had some fun events, like a raise in concentration and things like that. Now, if I manage to get a low concentration mineral finding 1 out of 20 try, I find myself lucky.

Bottom line, the 'new' feature is really a let down for me.

[Alfapiomega]

Hi,

I don't know about you, but I find the 'new' feature much less interesting than the old way, pre 6.0.

I find super boring to drop teams on a lot of bodies, given their crappy chances of doing anything. Right now, I have ceased doing that for any non exploited body.

Also, before, we had some fun events, like a raise in concentration and things like that. Now, if I manage to get a low concentration mineral finding 1 out of 20 try, I find myself lucky.

Bottom line, the 'new' feature is really a let down for me.

Well the thing is if there is a system that can work from an orbit and detect minerals, it is very unlikely it will "miss something". I would say that the chances are the same as if you search the grass for a lost ring with a metal detector and then again by naked eye.
Now believe you me, I got annoyed by this a bit too. But the system is imo fine. Higher chances would make the game very, very easy.

[TheDeadlyShoe]

It's basically not worth Geo-teaming tiny bodies, so don't bother. Geo team the big suckers that you're already exploiting or colonizing anyway.

[Starmantle]

Aww.  That does sound kind've sad. 

[Maxsimal]

Yeah agreed, with no progress reporting and low odds to find anything, geo teams are super boring, feels like a waste of time.

[Nathan_]

Well the thing is if there is a system that can work from an orbit and detect minerals, it is very unlikely it will "miss something". I would say that the chances are the same as if you search the grass for a lost ring with a metal detector and then again by naked eye.
Now believe you me, I got annoyed by this a bit too. But the system is imo fine. Higher chances would make the game very, very easy.

Actually they now miss even larger deposits, Instead of finding 100k minerals over and over again you get 1-3 giant finds on large planets typically, if anything gets found that is. I usually only survey planets that had minerals on them already.

[alex_brunius]

I got annoyed by this a bit too. But the system is imo fine. Higher chances would make the game very, very easy.

I don't think anyone is requesting more total minerals being present...

But you can lower how much ships find in order to increase how much and how often teams find minerals.


I agree that ships should seldom miss large deposits at all however, so I think the current parts where sending teams to bodies without minerals found from orbit being a waste of time a good system.

[Alfapiomega]

I don't think anyone is requesting more total minerals being present...

But you can lower how much ships find in order to increase how much and how often teams find minerals.


I agree that ships should seldom miss large deposits at all however, so I think the current parts where sending teams to bodies without minerals found from orbit being a waste of time a good system.

Well I had teams finding very large deposits! The game I am currently running on Youtube is a great example. After I found no minerals on Luna I send the geo team and after two months they found a deposit of 2,5 million tons of Neutronium with accessibility of 0.9. They also found new minerals and improved accessibility on Mars and Venus.

They are not useful for most planets but the big ones where they spend a lot of time works good. Also try to get a team with very high rating that helps!

[alex_brunius]

They are not useful for most planets but the big ones where they spend a lot of time works good. Also try to get a team with very high rating that helps!

I have (assuming 140+ is high rating enough). They still don't find anything except perhaps on 1 out of 20 or 30 surveyed (all of them having minerals before from space survey).

Perhaps I am only unlucky... But I would like to see the team find minerals on half or so of their attempts to make them interesting.

[Paul M]

The rating has no effect on their finding something or not.  The chance of there being something not found from orbit is fixed, only the time until the game rolls against it is dependent on the teams rating.

My team has so far found extra minerals on Io and Calisto but that is all (around 25-30 bodies surveyed I'd guess) so a bit worse than 10% chance.

[Nibelung44 (OP)]

and who is enjoying shuttling back and forth 30 times for nothing a team on planets and asteroids? I find the feature lacking...

Sure, you can cheat with team instant teleport, or you can ignore the feature, but this is not satisfying either. Just imagine that you could not put as conditional order 'survey next five system bodies'... that would be just awful, here we are a bit in the same situation.

[TheDeadlyShoe]

So don't survey 30 bodies, just survey bodies you are already exploiting or are considering exploiting.

[Nibelung44 (OP)]

yes, that's what I do 

Please don't take badly the critic, I really love Aurora, it has been the only 'thinking' game I have been playing since 2 months now. But if Steve can improve this feature, that would be better than 'if you don't like how is done, just don't use it' 

[Alfapiomega]

yes, that's what I do 

Please don't take badly the critic, I really love Aurora, it has been the only 'thinking' game I have been playing since 2 months now. But if Steve can improve this feature, that would be better than 'if you don't like how is done, just don't use it' 

I would, if I could, streamline the process. But I wouldn't change the chances.

But I guess there isn't much to do with that. Other than (that is what I decided) only surveying big plants with a dedicated shuttle.

[alex_brunius]

So don't survey 30 bodies, just survey bodies you are already exploiting or are considering exploiting.

What if you currently are exploiting 30 bodies and considering exploiting 30 more?

My civilians usually expand their mining operations to at least 10 bodies in Sol alone...