Exceeding maximum velocity?

banjo2E · Post by **banjo2E** » Fri Jan 20, 2012 8:26 am

Well, I just got this game yesterday, and it's pretty fun so far, although I keep losing my progress because I don't save nearly often enough. The last death I had was me just after the storyline mission for cleaning a solar panel, engaging autopilot to the next planet, and promptly crashing into said solar panel; now I have to restart from all the way back before the spaceport, and because I'm stupid and didn't realize you can switch to the X/Y plane in nav I have to fly all the way around the planet to do so. And I'm already in the atmosphere, because I'm stupid. At least the scenery is nice, if you ignore the fact that all the plants are apparently bamboo.

But I digress, on to the subject that I made this topic for: I have noticed that if you turn IDS off and use your inertia mode thrusters (default left/right carat), you can fly at speeds much greater than IDS lets you go at. I'm still in the starter ship, so my IDS throttle goes up to 500 some, but I'm regularly flying at around 1000, and keep forgetting to test exactly how fast I can go using this.

Is this intended behavior, or have I somehow discovered a glitch that nobody else noticed?

Cheri50000 · Post by **Cheri50000** » Fri Jan 20, 2012 8:48 am

Hi, banjo2E!

In the vacuum of space, you can speed up your spacecraft up to the amazing speed of light which is 186,000 miles per second! Let's say your spacecraft's limited VNE (Velocity never exceed) speeds of about 1,200 to 1.500 knots KEAS (Knots Equivalent Air Speed) but your true airspeed might be 2,000 knots depending on altitude.

Cheers,
Vincent

SeeJay · Post by **SeeJay** » Fri Jan 20, 2012 8:50 am

Hi and welcome.

It's not a glitch imho.

With the IDS On your set you speed with your throttle and the ship adjust it's thrusters
to maintain that speed. If you throttle to idle thrusters will put you to a stop.
It's space, so the ship must apply "reverse" thrust to stop you. With full throttle
you have a max speed and that can be changed with the IDS multiplier 1-5 (Page 3 in key setup).

In Inertia mode (IDS Off) you are "drifting". You will accelerate as long as you apply thrust in
any direction. When no thrusters are used, you will continue to drift in that direction ... Forever!
Unless you apply thrusters in any direction. You can accelerate until you run out of fuel this way.
That's not a good thing to do thou LOL! Hard to stop with no fuel.

I actually docked with and refueled a pilot drifting in over 6000K with no fuel LOL!
That was a real challenge.

[Edited on 2012-1-20 by SeeJay]

banjo2E · Post by **banjo2E** » Fri Jan 20, 2012 5:48 pm

From post: 124545, Topic: tid=8408, author=Cheri50000 wrote:Hi, banjo2E!

In the vacuum of space, you can speed up your spacecraft up to the amazing speed of light which is 186,000 miles per second! Let's say your spacecraft's limited VNE (Velocity never exceed) speeds of about 1,200 to 1.500 knots KEAS (Knots Equivalent Air Speed) but your true airspeed might be 2,000 knots depending on altitude.

Cheers,
Vincent

I don't believe you. With normal thrusters, you'd encounter relativistic distortions at that speed. It'd be wholly impossible in multiplayer, and singleplayer would become very amusing.

...Unless by Newtonian physics we MEAN Newtonian physics. In which case, hell yes racing light particles!

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Fri Jan 20, 2012 6:03 pm

In the Evochron Mercenary Universe your maximum velocity for your ship is jumpdrive velocity set at 10K what ever that translate to in units! So with IDS on and Afterburners you can speed up to 10k your ships speedometer can not read higher than that. In inertial mode with inertial thrusters forward you can also reach that 10k velocity which is also what your ships speedometer will read when you jump!.....