Fuel leak

[Cheri50000]

Hi, guys!

In Evochron Mercenary, I noticed the fuel is leaking at about 1 unit about every 3 minutes even when the engines and RCS is not firing. I don't know if guys noticed this problem. Please check it out. Thanks!

Cheers,
Vincent

[49rTbird]

Your ship will use fuel even at a stop. It must be using it to generate energy and thrusters also.

[Maarschalk]

Also you might have one of your strafe thrusters firing a little bit while docked at a station close to a sun or planets gravity field to compensate!
To make sure no thrusters are firing check your sounds for thrusters noise!.....

[DaveK]

Quick bit of research:

Edit: 65 minutes - full stop in the middle of nowhere - no fuel "leak"

3 minutes of continuous cannon fire - no fuel use

3 minutes of continuous 360 degree turning - no fuel use (about 40 revs, so very dizzy )

one unit of fuel used per six seconds of straffing with a lateral thruster


EM-Tools gives you a readout of your pX, pY and pZ positions - you can check whether you are moving slowly for some reason, but one unit of fuel per 3 mins isn't a lateral thruster.




[Edited on 8-3-2012 by DaveK]

[Gnou]

No directly linked but, with a very smooth piloting you burn almost zero fuel. In Inertial as in IDS.
As example, you can reach 5000+ speed without any fuel lost just using inertial looping... The real price is Time, but not so much in this case (a few minute).

[DaveK]

what is intertial looping?

I'd love to try the technique

[Maarschalk]

Interesting, I like to know too about inertial looping!.....

[Gnou]

What I call "Inertial looping" is very basic but efficient maneuver.
It require to have (at least) Vertical Strafe on axis.

To experiment it fully, start with your ship at total zero velocity in intertial mode.
Then up slowly your vertical strafe engine and maintain it while you follow the move with your pitch axis at distance, lets call it Delta.
Your ship will now begin a smooth looping and accelerate regarding the Delta.
If the Delta is null, you fix the speed. If the Delta is "negative", you decelerate.
To leave the looping, simply take a null Delta and off the strafe engine.

It take a bit of time depending your ship agility. But if you are smooth enough it cost zero fuel.
You can reach higher speed, it only require more time (once again, this parameter depend directly from the ship agility) but as your ship agility decrease while speed rise, it is exponential time cost.

[DORN]

Hi Gnou,

This sounds really interesting, but I have no idea what your instructions mean.

Would you try explaining this in different ways and with a more basic how to?


Thank you,

Dorn

[Gnou]

I will try.

All is based on this fact :
the more progressive you are while maneuvring (inclued main thruster), the less fuel you use.
If you are smooth enough on your control, you consume "almost zero" fuel unit. For the game, it is zero (but you need at least 1 fuel unit in any case!). Thats a true Law, even under IDS mode.

Global Concept :
We know that each speed (main, vertical, horizontal) are just 3 vectors which give our "true speed" once combined.
Recall : Starting without any speed, I set my vertical speed to 100, then give my pitch +90, I get now a 100 main speed. I have simply converted my vertical speed to my main (forward) speed.
In order to save fuel, you must setup the vertical strafe on axis because it is the only way to have smooth enough control on it.

On the paper :
This Inertial Loop use the same Law, but in continous way. You just combine both step at same time : vertical speed up + pitch rise.
So, your ship begin to draw a circle because your vertical speed vector continously move due to the pitch action.
The circle will grow as you take speed.
Your vertical speed will be the radius circle, and will be multiplicate (not true but good image) by your forward speed to give your final speed.
Your initial forward speed is zero, right. But his first rise will come from the momentum generated by your pitch raise.

In the cockpit : (for a positive vertical speed)
On your HUD, you have a vector indicator (little blue square in center), it give you "where the ship go", not "where the ship point" (this is the pitch).The difference between those things is the Delta I spoken before.
So as the vertical strafe push your ship on his 90°, the more vertical speed rise, the more this square move up. If you let the little square rise to 45° (marker in your HUD too) then keep it at this angle using your pitch, you will have the most effective speed gain.
While the pitch still "under" the square, you accelerate. When the pitch pass "over" the square, you decelerate.
If you match the pitch on the square, your speed stand constant. So if you do that and end the strafe action, your ship fly forward with his final speed, you leave the famous Inertial Looping !


[Edited on 3-12-2012 by Gnou]

[Edited on 3-12-2012 by Gnou]

[Twilly Frost]

Oh. That's much clearer, thanks.

[DaveK]

so when I measured one unit of fuel per six second of strafe it was because I wasn't being smooth - just bombing off to the side?

[Gnou]

Happy to be more "understandable" ^^

You have to be smooth in all way.
Strafe speed can be maxed without fuel cost if you take care to be very progressive, but you have to hold the strafe controler before it's max range
(nb: the longer axis you have, the smoother you can be!).
But you have to be more smooth with your pitch. The lesser your frame agility, the smoother you must be.
And for sure: higher is your speed, smoother must rise the pitch!

I learn this practice for civilian frame with low agility & low thrust... & low fuel budget! It works even with the crappest ship you can design
Agility only help you to save time during the maneuver.

[Edited on 3-12-2012 by Gnou]

[Edited on 3-12-2012 by Gnou]

[Maarschalk]

Cool to know, thanks for sharing and explaining will try it out next time I have some time to play!......