Where should I start?

[SievertChaser]

I started as a Terran Cadet, and the xenons pasted me in the fight at the jump gate. I must suck badly. Which start option should I pick instead, when I have little clue yet about what I want to do?

[conrado.lacerda]

Did you complete the tutorials?

[Soberlife420]

you can find crystals on asteroids of varying rarity which you can then take to any station that has a merchant that you have to directly talk to sell the crystals its an easy albeit boring method of making some very early game money, the next thing to do is to buy some M class miners and have them mine sectors with plenty of ore silicon or ice that have nearby station that can process those resources for cash

[Mind The Spectrum]

Terran Cadet is probably the best start for someone new to the game.

[Xautos]

My starting objectives is this:

-Find the Odysseus Vanguard in Faulty Logic.
-Get the destroyer out of xenon space, preferably with your starting ship docked.
-Sell the destroyer equipment at the Vigor Syndicate shipyard and get Veteran Marines.
-Find a Shuyaku Vanguard with minimal marines and board it with the marines.
-Take over the freighter and sell the destroyer.
-Sell the most valuable or trade out for cheaper equipment and load marines at the Vigor Syndicate shipyard once more.
- Find an Atlas in Paranid space, board and take it, then strip the equipment off it and park it in Vigor Syndicate space near the shipyard, also load up on marines for the freighter.
- (optional) find an Asgard, preferably from an intervention taskforce, board it. use the Atlas to transfer more marines to your freighter and load up on more at the vigor shipyard.
- Target construction ships for boarding and supply ships as well. sell their equipment, transfer the marines and sell the ships.
- Once 100m is made, get the PHQ storyline completed and research the module hacks.
- Gather and craft or buy bombs and hack station production schematics, all of them if possible.
-Build engine parts and claytronic factories. board or buy mining ships to supply.

That's what i do within the first few hours all the time regardless of starting scenario. I tend to leave the storylines as late as i can to draw it out since storylines in this game are not very long, at least compared to previous games.

Originally posted by Soberlife420:

you can find crystals on asteroids of varying rarity which you can then take to any station that has a merchant that you have to directly talk to sell the crystals its an easy albeit boring method of making some very early game money, the next thing to do is to buy some M class miners and have them mine sectors with plenty of ore silicon or ice that have nearby station that can process those resources for cash

The crystal mining method was nerfed into the ground long ago, there is no value in crystal mining any more, you are better off buying a M sized miner and mining Nvidium then selling it and the cargo for a tidy profit.

[YouTube.com/StoneLegion]

Originally posted by Soberlife420:

you can find crystals on asteroids of varying rarity which you can then take to any station that has a merchant that you have to directly talk to sell the crystals its an easy albeit boring method of making some very early game money, the next thing to do is to buy some M class miners and have them mine sectors with plenty of ore silicon or ice that have nearby station that can process those resources for cash

crystal farming not even the same as it use to sadly. They nerfed it to crap a long time ago.

[Sphinx of Black Quartz]

Terran Cadet is a pretty great start for new players. If you have completed the tutorials, you're off to a good start. Just reload from an earlier save (or restart, if you don't have one) and remember you don't need to do all the work on your own; let your squadmates carry some of the weight.

X4 isn't like Wing Commander: One plucky little pilot in a light fighter won't be able to annihilate four fighter squadrons and a destroyer.

[SiliconStew]

Originally posted by SievertChaser:

I started as a Terran Cadet, and the xenons pasted me in the fight at the jump gate. I must suck badly. Which start option should I pick instead, when I have little clue yet about what I want to do?

It's been some time since I've done that start so my memory may be fuzzy, but if you are talking about the part where you follow your wingman into another sector that happens early on, you aren't supposed to stay and fight. You need to stay in travel drive as you pass through the gate to blow by any enemies near the gate and just keep going deeper into the sector until the mission changes to return home. Then turn around and fly back through the gate as fast as you can, again avoiding the enemies.

If you happen to be talking instead about the big fight around a station later, that can certainly cause trouble if you try to take on too much. Advice there is to hang back, attack one ship near the edge of the battle, and then retreat away from the battle to let your shield recharge, before returning to attack another target. You do not need to kill all the enemies here, only survive long enough for the mission to complete.

[Xautos]

Originally posted by SiliconStew:

Originally posted by SievertChaser:

I started as a Terran Cadet, and the xenons pasted me in the fight at the jump gate. I must suck badly. Which start option should I pick instead, when I have little clue yet about what I want to do?

It's been some time since I've done that start so my memory may be fuzzy, but if you are talking about the part where you follow your wingman into another sector that happens early on, you aren't supposed to stay and fight. You need to stay in travel drive as you pass through the gate to blow by any enemies near the gate and just keep going deeper into the sector until the mission changes to return home. Then turn around and fly back through the gate as fast as you can, again avoiding the enemies.

If you happen to be talking instead about the big fight around a station later, that can certainly cause trouble if you try to take on too much. Advice there is to hang back, attack one ship near the edge of the battle, and then retreat away from the battle to let your shield recharge, before returning to attack another target. You do not need to kill all the enemies here, only survive long enough for the mission to complete.

The Cadet start is about investigation of satellites around Mars at first and your wingman complaining about being put on to this tedious assignment. Eventually a distress call triggers from a cargo ship which turns out to be a Xenon trap. That's essentially the first half of the cadet start storyline.

The second half comes after the Solborn Militia storyline completes. You are placed on a covert operation in Pioneer space to uncover the nature of their secret project which leads to the PHQ. That's the other half of the storyline.

[trooperrob]

Some fights you may find being cautious is a better plan.
Can't remember if that was one, but if it gets too much, strafe or play for time / find a friendly to stay close to. Some fights the enemy will die anyway. You don't have to do it all yourself.
as said above.
Later game you can spec up or bring an aircraft carrier to a canoe fight.

[Sphinx of Black Quartz]

Originally posted by trooperrob:

Later game you can spec up or bring an aircraft carrier to a canoe fight.

There is no feeling quite like meeting a challenge with overwhelming force. Fair fights are for chumps.

[Zloth]

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2954241930

[SievertChaser]

Originally posted by Sphinx of Black Quartz:

Originally posted by trooperrob:

Later game you can spec up or bring an aircraft carrier to a canoe fight.

There is no feeling quite like meeting a challenge with overwhelming force. Fair fights are for chumps.

"If you're in a fair fight, you failed at strategy".

[Xautos]

Originally posted by Sphinx of Black Quartz:

Originally posted by trooperrob:

Later game you can spec up or bring an aircraft carrier to a canoe fight.

There is no feeling quite like meeting a challenge with overwhelming force. Fair fights are for chumps.

until the chumps turn you into chum.... you should be careful of those sharks out there in the vast blackness of space. It's better to be a chump than chum if it comes down to one or the other.

Even chumps can win their battles under the right circumstances, even if it's just by dumb luck alone.

[Sphinx of Black Quartz]

Originally posted by SievertChaser:

"If you're in a fair fight, you failed at strategy".

"If you're in a fair fight, the Intel Corps screwed up... again."

[SievertChaser]

Originally posted by Sphinx of Black Quartz:

Originally posted by SievertChaser:

"If you're in a fair fight, you failed at strategy".

"If you're in a fair fight, the Intel Corps screwed up... again."

"Fair is me and my boys coming home. ♥♥♥♥ the others."