Background Perk System

[SnuffSaid]

This system seriously needs a rethink. I wanted a miner playthrough, I did the Venghi quest just to get it out of my quest log, didn't realise it would permanently change my background to a new perk I don't want. Literally ruined the entire playthrough, now I have to start from scratch. There is no warning about this and it doesn't make a lick of sense that background perks would be replaced to begin with; it's a background, it isn't just erased because you do something new. Deeply frustrating that I've basically just wasted about 10 hours of playtime, and because of the obnoxious one-save system reloading back to being a miner isn't possible.

[MartinC]

If you go to \SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\Star Valor\Save_Data there is a file called "LastSaveGameDataBackup.dat". If you rename it to "SaveGameData_01.dat" you get the save previous to your last. A hidden 2 save system. Just backup your existing "SaveGameData_01.dat" first just in case.

But I kinda agree with the perk system. It has caught me out too.

[SnuffSaid]

Started again and as soon as I'm in the game my desire to play has dropped right off. That might genuinely be it for me. Such a ridiculous and pointless way to turn me off playing a game I found reasonably enjoyable. I can't be bothered slogging through that early game grind again.

[Sleazy Ninja]

How about this?

- If you unlock a new background you get an option to keep your current one OR switch to the new one
- If during the playthrough you decide you want to switch anyway, you have to go to a station and pay a price to change your "main background" to whatever you unlocked

[SnuffSaid]

While it'd be an improvement, I don't think it would save this game in my view, I have no idea why it has such positive reviews. The leveling system is a farse, your player level shoots up at lightning speed, so you either have to stay in zones below your level and grind knowledge and ship upgrades, or move into zones that match your player level and get one-shot by pirates. Neither is satisfying and it makes the level of a zone an utterly worthless indicator of where you should be. The ship movement is also so slow that it's like playing Sunless Sea but without any of the dread or suspense that made that game good. I didn't mind this as much on my first playthrough but having to slog through the early game grind a second time due to that stupid background perk decision has done me in. Too late to refund so I'll just leave a negative review instead, not often a game pisses me off as much as this one has.

[hareth]

When they ask you in, you can say "NO".
be careful to make decision, just like life.

[SnuffSaid]

Originally posted by hareth:

When they ask you in, you can say "NO".
be careful to make decision, just like life.

Limpest defence of a dev I've ever heard. No reason whatsoever to say "no", it doesn't tell you it's going to change your background perk. As for "in life", given a background literally means your PAST, nothing you do in the present or future should change it. If you worked as a miner you don't suddenly forget how to mine just because you took a job as a soldier. Utter nonsense.

[Ydyp]

Originally posted by hareth:

When they ask you in, you can say "NO".
be careful to make decision, just like life.

That is if they give you a choice, but when you reach honored with PMC or Syndicate your Outis perk is changed to Miner or Trader without any questions asked. And if you start killing PMC or Syndicate ships to try to keep their reputation below that thresshold you get the Maurauder perk after you kill 20 of them.

So I agree with the OP the current reputation system forcing your background perk to swap is really bad and breaking my fun I have in this game. When I pick a background perk I want to stay that perk unless I decide I want to swap it to Miner or Trader.

Also just being marked as Maurauder background after killing 20 PMC and Syndicate ships shouldn't change your background perk either. The reputation hit should be harsher and be enough penalty for going on a killing spree against those factions.

[Laious]

Acquiring a new background perk should, indeed, say that it's going to replace your current one. Specially for new players who are not familiar with the role play aspect of the game.
I'm adding this for next patch. :)

[Arzon]

Originally posted by Laious:

Acquiring a new background perk should, indeed, say that it's going to replace your current one. Specially for new players who are not familiar with the role play aspect of the game.
I'm adding this for next patch. :)

Sorry for potentially hijacking, but I've got a related issue. I spent quite a while trying to unlock lone wolf in hardcore perma death mode and finally hit level thirty. I've got a habit of hitting tab for the sector map frequently while flying and it happened right as I leveled up which immediately rejected the quest ruining my progress. Is there a way to fix this in a run? or a way that I could stop tab from auto rejecting quests in general?

[WeaverSong]

Originally posted by Arzon:

Sorry for potentially hijacking, but I've got a related issue. I spent quite a while trying to unlock lone wolf in hardcore perma death mode and finally hit level thirty. I've got a habit of hitting tab for the sector map frequently while flying and it happened right as I leveled up which immediately rejected the quest ruining my progress. Is there a way to fix this in a run? or a way that I could stop tab from auto rejecting quests in general?

Lone Wolf gives you 3 chances; I believe it's at levels 30, 31, and 32. So you've still got a couple tries for it.

[Arzon]

Originally posted by WeaverSong:

Lone Wolf gives you 3 chances; I believe it's at levels 30, 31, and 32. So you've still got a couple tries for it.

Thank you so much! I would have probably dropped the run without knowing that. It now lives to die another day.

[kinggraves]

Yeah, I think the background perks are what I hate most about the game.

Spent quite a lot of time staying Outis until 30 to unlock lone wolf. Probably should have read the perk a bit better. Once I finally unlocked it, I'm now locked to honored with PMC/Syn, and to neutral with Cot/Ven. Which locks out much of the better equips all around, regardless of what the perk does. And I obviously wouldn't be able to switch, because miner/trader are lower tier and joining Venghi, CoT are impossible now.

It really doesn't seem necessary. Not being able to actually join anyone makes sense. But I'd still trade with them. Siding with CoT or Venghi, makes sense. Blowing up a station, makes sense. Mercs and businessmen however can still keep decent relations.

New players hit things like this, and it's an absolute game ruiner. Those people you've been doing quests for all game? Now they don't like you as much all of a sudden. Waste of time helping them.

[Gold]

1. look up the perks (Wiki) before you choose
2. backup your save file manually, your progress still stays independent of the save file
3. use the mod "Unlimited Skill Resets" from nexus

[Hero_Swe]

Yeah I've seem to run into a similar issue. I was just doing missions to earn money, not realizing that it was going to lock me into a miner background when I learnt from my friend I should have been doing missions with the syndicate for the market insight perk. Not a great system. Market insight should be a level 1 perk you can pick for one point and that's it.

[WeaverSong]

You can still get Market insight; you can get it from supervisors, and the PMC are closely tied to the syndicate; if you work with the syndicate as well, and show both of them that you're an amazing businessman, you can get the White Collar background perk, a combination of both mining and trading backgrounds.