newbie question on trade (permits and illegal items)

[amud]

How do i determine where i can sell illegal items and obtain trade permits ? I've landed on a few planets but never see a method to buy permits or sell illegal items. Is there a way for me to find these planets ?

[CoryTrese]

Both Trade Permits and Black Market access are services offered by Contacts.

Here is a list:
https://startraders.gamepedia.com/Contacts

[Trese Brothers]

Contacts are your answers for both. Contacts sell Permits and you need to find a Smuggler, Fixer or other Contact who offers Black Market access. As a spacer, you need powerful friends among the gravs.

[Bariel]

For Trade Law and legality I would suggest reading this wiki entry https://startraders.gamepedia.com/Trading

As far as permits are concerned you get them from contacts - note that they are faction specific, so buying a permit from say a Thulun contact won't help you selling at a non Thulun landing zone.

Also note that indie worlds don't care about permits, so you can potentially sell permit restricted goods on their worlds.

[amud]

BUt what are 'contacts' ? I don't see anything in the gui that allows me to use 'contacts'

[Trese Brothers]

Bottom left hand side, "Contacts" button. Contacts are allies you know on world. You start with some, you meet Calagan Faen, etc.

[amud]

Yea sorry was playing. I figured out contracts but haven't figured out how to sell illegal items. Is there an easy way to find a place to sell illegal items? Also the progression with contacts seem really slow but I htink I'm making progress. Also (unrelated) how can I increase my reactor points for combat ?

[davea]

Reactor points are fixed. Some engines allow movement with a lower RP cost. To sell illegal items, you either need to find a low law level planet; or have a contact who offers black market access.

[Trese Brothers]

Originally posted by amud:

Yea sorry was playing. I figured out contracts but haven't figured out how to sell illegal items. Is there an easy way to find a place to sell illegal items? Also the progression with contacts seem really slow but I htink I'm making progress. Also (unrelated) how can I increase my reactor points for combat ?

There are certain combat Talents that will increase your RP temporarily.

[Уединение]

Unfortunately the black market is very limited especially the one with my contact. Doesn't sell anything good and buys everything at F prices. Almost worthless.

[brutusaurelius]

What Economy type does the local Black Market have? Most worlds have at least a few goods they want to purchase

[amud]

Hum. So it is pointless to loot 'illegal' items from ships ?

[Frank "The Senate" Sheev]

Black Market can be a very powerful tool but it inherits the properties of the planet's official market in terms of demand and legality (somewhat). So, to be a real black market tycoon you need a lot of shady connections across the galaxy, preferably all with Ironclad access.

If you want to play this way, you might want too look into the Smuggler/Merchant combo to maximize contact and rumor gain and have margin-improving talents. My favourite way to play it is to max out the permit with one faction and then smuggle their goods to other factions' black markets across the galaxy making a bank on cross-faction trade and Bootleg Profits.

If anyone saw Tom Hardy's Taboo series, that's a lot like how the show's main protagonist built his business.

[nDervish]

Originally posted by amud:

Hum. So it is pointless to loot 'illegal' items from ships ?

Not at all! They tend to be the highest-value sales I make! You just have to go to an Independent world of the appropriate type, because the Indies don't care about things like trade permits or what is or isn't legal.

Personally, it seems to me that you may as well forget the black market even exists because it takes so long to find contacts with black market access, and they remain very few even further into the game. It's so much easier to just find an Indie world (or a low-law faction world for a faction where you have the right trade permits) and sell there than to get a black market contact... who's on the right world to get a decent price... get their influence high enough for them to give you sufficient market access for high-level goods... play the card game... and then finally, if the cards favor you, get a chance to make a sale.

[davea]

Originally posted by nDervish:

Personally, it seems to me that you may as well forget the black market even exists because it takes so long to find contacts with black market access, and they remain very few even further into the game.

The situation is a little better if you focus on a smuggler build, with high contact rating, and choose initial contacts who have black market access. It still won't be something you can use a lot in the early game. It helps to build towards the talents that give more contacts, which merchants, e-tech and (oddly) navigators offer. Once you have a few dozen contacts, the black market is more useful. It's nice to get a +25% increase on the sale value, more with smuggler talents. But if you don't focus, it's hard to get critical mass.

[amud]

This is my first game and the game suggested pirate so that is what i am playing. How or where do I find independent worlds to sell this stuff ? All the worlds I see have flags.