Finding Exotic/Squid ships?

[Nimarus]

I'm tired of always having to resort to using a portal to go to a spot where someone already found one. That, or using the save editor to just edit the ship into my inventory. For once, I figured I'd try to find one on my own the old fashioned way. I've been camping at trading posts in wealthy systems and...nothing. Load, wait for ships to land, see they are all generic B-C class ships, reload save, rinse and repeat. I've tried this at 5 different systems, reloading my save countless times so far and thought I'd maybe get something. Best I've seen is the occasional Solar.

I guess Exotic/Squid has a 2% chance of appearing. Is there some criteria that I'm overlooking to improve the odds? Lol, you'd think someone would open up a Starship Dealership by now.

[Lindy Bomber]

It's pretty random. I usually find exotics when I'm not looking.

I think the 2% is for S class of regular ships. Spawn rate for exotics us even less.

[Comradovich]

Every system has exactly one exotic. Once you've seen it, if it isn't what you want move on. That's how the exotics get listed on the coordinate exchange in the first place. Someone went out and found this cool ship, and it's located over here.

If you want to ship hunt, and exotics are what you're after, then you'll be visiting lots of systems. It's always one per system. My advice is:

1. Enter system.
2. Enter nearest planet's atmosphere and pop your economy scanner to locate a trading post.
3. Land on trading post and set your save beacon up on top. (The top of the post has the widest field of vision).
4. manual save and reload until the exotic shows up.
5. If it's cool, share it. If not, pick your beacon up and head for the next system.

That's how ship hunting is done.

[John The Bodge]

Don't believe everything you read.

[SaD-82]

How goes the famous advice?
"If you're searching something, stop searching and you will find it by accident in no time."
This is true for ships, too.
Stop searching. Stop save scumming. Stop waiting.
Just play the game and you will find them without problems.
Imagine all that time you've waited at trade and space stations - all that time you could have played the game, visited various systems and maybe already have found several exotic ships. Don't look for them. Atlas can smell your desire.

[tkwoods]

I've found 5 or 6 in 7000 hours. So they are rare. I've 1 as a stranded npc the rest were all flying around.

[cloudtwirl]

There was a Yellow Squid ship that spawned in the System that im pretty much always in and i almost missed it. Only reason i even got it was bc my friend happened to be visiting my system and was in the Station and saw it so he held it for me.

(200+ hrs on this save most of those in this one system b/c my settlement)

[WaterPiglet]

Ive probably played 2000 hrs in total over 3 platforms and I can honestly say Ive never seen one yet

[taniwhat]

I find exotics reliably and I usually have one by around 20h - BUT I'm not hunting exotic ships. Just running Honest Al's starship trading for fun and profit on stations and I'm only doing that so that if I do run into an S-class freighter I can afford it ;).

Squids - it's rare even then. I think one of my saves has one but I prefer the more normal exotics.

Find a trading post in a pirate system then hang out there as that has the best odds. You'll have to beat off pirate attacks on the trading post now and then is the only downside.

[Enigma]

I've got about 150 hours and have found 3-5 exotic ships in that time. I never save scummed except to get my S class freighter (unrelated), just spent some time standing on top of trading outposts and waiting for the right ship to show up. I feel like most of the time i've seen them has been at the space stations

[SteveB]

Someone likely would have opened up a ship trading/selling post by now if that were possible in-game. Alas, it is not.

The rub about probability is this:
If you believe that a 2% chance means that if you visit 100 times, you should see one twice, you would be mistaken. That's not how probability works.

If, on the other hand, you believe that, on each and every visit, you have the same paltry 2% chance of seeing one, you would understand correctly - and accurately understand how low that chance actually is.

Hmm. To think I got rid of my squiddy because I didn't really care for it...
<covers head while tomatoes fly>

[straykaiya]

I have visited 100's of systems. Exotics in and of them self are not hard to get. I have never naturally found a squid ship. I used teh NMSCE to go get one.....ended up hating it after the fact, so i scrapped it. I prefer haulers. They look amazing to me, and have the most storage.

[Nimarus]

I sat on a world for about 15-20 minutes and found an exotic. It was a three star economy system. If a system has an exotic, does that mean it doesn't have a squid? Can an exotic and squid be found in the same system? I just don't want to sit in a system for 20 minutes only to find out that it doesn't have a squid because this non-pirate system has a solar.

[mbrowne999]

Squid is a type of Exotic.

[Galadhlinn]

I have saves where I have never even seen a squid in any system. My current save, I have three systems where squids have come into the space stations. Squids are rare. If you only want a squid, don't limit yourself to 3 star economy systems. Every system has one exotic, so every system has the potential for a squid. My method is to land in the space station and reload 3-4 times. This gives me a decent picture of ships that are on rotation for the SS. Then I land on at least two trading outposts on the planets and reload 3-4 times. I also look around the outside of the SS, as there are always ships flying about. If you see a squid flying, then that system's exotic is a squid. Finally, anytime you enter a system with a freighter battle/rescue going on, look at the ships flying around in the battle area. Again, if you see a squid then that system has a squid, and you know where to camp.
My current squid:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2808948014

[Higuera]

probably the only way to find exotics in a timely manner outside the current odds, if you dont want to deal with low RNG rates, is to get a spawn rate mod that SHARPLY increases Exotic rates