Article - Abstract Game Strategy: Firefly Style Play

By Sepulchre

Disclaimer: As we currently know

very little about how this game operates, this entire article will involved several assumptions, indexed below.

While other strategies may favor bulk or hacking, this style favors one thing: survival. This strategy uses preconceived notions about space warfare to its advantage; it ignores them. While other players try and gain traction in a player community where hacking is seen as better than strength, this strategy uses a combination of hacking and isolation to gain a foothold in the games economy. 

Part one of this strategy focuses on ship design. This ship should be small & fast. When size is decreased, there is a less likely chance of being hit. This comes in handy as guns are minimal. Shields are more important, but are only marginally more significant. One section of the ship should have a networked dcpu that is isolated from the ship. On here, your basic hacks will run. The only hacks used are those of avoidance. Try and disable sensors, and, if needed, weapons. Their shields should remain; you do not want to fight.

Part two of this strategy involves the work done. Looting. You find abandoned ships & retrieve cargo. When you need a job, you run goods from player to player. If your ship is optimized for speed, this turns into a viable business. Your goal is to avoid conflict. While others may fight over resources, you scavenge the remains as well as transporting supplies to both sides. Your job is not to usurp, but to survive.

Assumptions:

1: Hacking: This article assumes that the dcpu's can influence the ships' behaviors in such a way to potentially cripple important functions.

2: Ship Design: This article assumes a level of ship customization in areas of firepower, shields, speed, & size.

3: Scavenging: This article assumes that you can both scavenge from ships, as well as there being ships to scavenge from. (I believe Notch said there would be, but I'm not sure)

4: Economy: This article assumes an in game economy complete with transportation & blockades.

Comments

[Colin vH]

It should be noted that the presence of shields is also an assumption.

[Sepulchre]

Yes, thank you. I believed he had said that earlier. It was actually a cloaking device that he mentioned.

[redsquadron]

one great idea for hacking is to just fly by everyone and shut off their life support. now, i think that would be a very interesting situation.