Elite: Game talk

User308550
24 Mar 2021, 8:24pm
OtohaSingle best way to tank a faction's influence? Is there one?


This is my understanding based on the latest research and my own tests. Think of Influence in the form of points. Each system has a basket of 10 influence with a maximum percentage that it can be moved. When factions are in conflict, their influence is locked. This max movement percentage varies based on population. If you're in a system with small population (less than 100,000), no active conflicts and you're the only player interacting there, you can move the influence by as much as 9 or even 10 percent on average. This number increases the lower the starting influence and decreases the higher the starting influence. Faction states heavily impact what actions move influence through generating points. Some states can double influence generation for a particular activity. Other states can prevent it. As "None" or "Boom" tends to be common, I'd recommend the below actions.

  • The murder of system security (1 kill used to be worth 5 points but is now worth 2 points).
  • Selling trade goods at a loss. (diminishing returns based on both number of sources and value)
  • Black market trading (same as normal trading).
  • Doing influence missions for other factions. (1 to 5 points each)

You'll need to experiment a little with activities to see how much you can move the needle based on how much activity exists where you are.
Rat Catcher
24 Mar 2021, 8:47pm
OtohaSingle best way to tank a faction's influence? Is there one?


Blow up their clean ships & security forces.
(Possibly not the very best, but a lot of fun!)
Kaizimm
24 Mar 2021, 9:19pm
I would discourage murdering system security and clean ships in general, it's not exactly worth the hassle of bounty/notoriety when you can do other things with almost zero downsides. Unless the system is an anarchy system, of course.

My go-to strategy is:

- Do one or two simple missions for all other factions in the system
- Fail missions for the target faction (by letting the time limit expire. Most easily done with donation missions since they have a very short time limit, about 3.5 hours)
- Fail passenger missions for the target faction by damaging your hull / blowing up your ship (i have a dedicated cheap ship with passenger space for this)

This strategy will ensure that the faction you're trying to tank will be the one whose %inf is being used for the others' gains.
User60590
24 Mar 2021, 9:20pm
Sakashiro
OtohaSingle best way to tank a faction's influence? Is there one?


Accept all their missions and let them expire, if I remember correctly.


I was abandoning them. Is there a difference?
Rat Catcher
OtohaSingle best way to tank a faction's influence? Is there one?



Blow up their clean ships & security forces.
(Possibly not the very best, but a lot of fun!)

It was my understanding this got nerfed a while back. Used to work though. Lots of patches since i last ran bgs
Kaizimm
24 Mar 2021, 9:27pm
Otoha
I was abandoning them. Is there a difference?


Yes. A major difference: abandoning missions does not affect BGS in any way. It only affects your reputation with the faction.
You have to fail the mission, either through letting the time limit run out, or (in some specific mission types) by dying.
Rat Catcher
24 Mar 2021, 10:45pm
Otoha

It was my understanding this got nerfed a while back. Used to work though. Lots of patches since i last ran bgs


It appears to be still quite effective - but if one has an aversion to being a criminal, with the notoriety and bounties that accompany it, then it obviously is not one's best method. I just find it far more fun than failing missions or just running missions for rival factions for the sake of it - but we all play our own way and there is no 'right or wrong' way, just personal preference.
Aleksander Majjam
25 Mar 2021, 2:37am
I'm late. Did they patch the egg yet???
Ryan Murdoc
25 Mar 2021, 6:32am
OtohaSingle best way to tank a faction's influence? Is there one?


EDBGS Discord can also help with that question and others.
Tengri Umai
25 Mar 2021, 8:26am
Failing missions are not effective. It has some effect on BGS, but minor. Killing system cops was nerfed and not so good anymore too. Best way is to turn in bounty vouchers. Easy and fast, very effective. Problem is you need to have at least one system under your control with CNB/haz res site where you can farm this vouchers. Also the more levers of BGS you will push the better, but don't forget about influence cap per tick.
User60590
25 Mar 2021, 10:37am
Tengri UmaiFailing missions are not effective. It has some effect on BGS, but minor. Killing system cops was nerfed and not so good anymore too. Best way is to turn in bounty vouchers. Easy and fast, very effective. Problem is you need to have at least one system under your control with CNB/haz res site where you can farm this vouchers. Also the more levers of BGS you will push the better, but don't forget about influence cap per tick.


I'm not sure how this suggestion works. I want to decrease one factions influence, specifically. Bounty vouchers will only improve things for the controlling faction, which is who im trying to tank. Far as i can tell this is backwards, i dont want to help them i want to tank them and take control
JB Threepwood
25 Mar 2021, 10:40am
If it's the controlling faction then hammer the black market (if they've got one) or hunt their wanted ships...if they're the controlling faction they'll show up a lot more compared to trying to do the same to evict a faction.
User60590
25 Mar 2021, 10:41am
To be specific, i have one system i want to tank the controlling faction and initiate war state for control. And another system I'm trying to tank the 2nd most influential faction under mine, force them straight into retreat if possible to default their to stations to us. Thems the goals
Rat Catcher
25 Mar 2021, 10:43am
There is plenty of good advice on BGS manipulation already mentioned.
The system you are trying to retreat and take control by default, providing there is no support for the faction, should be fairly easy using the levers suggested.

Any opposition at all will make it considerably harder to achieve.
JB Threepwood
25 Mar 2021, 10:44am
Just bring them up and fight them for their assets... it'll be easier and better in the long run too. They'll just go into wars/elections on their way down.
User60590
25 Mar 2021, 11:02am
Rat CatcherThere is plenty of good advice on BGS manipulation already mentioned.
The system you are trying to retreat and take control by default, providing there is no support for the faction, should be fairly easy using the levers suggested.

Any opposition at all will make it considerably harder to achieve.


I chose my squadrons home system and faction pledge with extreme care. We are on the very edge of Federation space, trying to control systems that had 0 player presence before we showed up. On the edge of the 30ly we bump into other player controlled systems, but we don't push in those systems at all, only focusing on systems with only default factions present. Haven't had any kind of resistance yet. We dont want any drama. If another group wants a system they can have it. We'll take the ones nobody wants

Post a reply

You must be signed in to post here.
Elite:Dangerous related questions, answers, tips and help. Simply anything that is directly related to the game and its gameplay goes here.
For the discussions about the community, other stuff related to the game like astrophysics and so on please use the General talk thread.

What does belong here:
  • Questions, answers, tips and guides about ship loadouts, game activities like exploration, mining, combat and similar things that directly relate to the gameplay.
  • Game technical issues and problems, if you are looking for a help. For the bug reports please head to the official FD forum.
  • Discussion about "official" events from GalNet and community goals.
What does not belong here:
  • Discussing player actions and activities, general topics about Elite community and player events, topics related to the game but also real world (like astrophysics and similar). Please post these to the "General talk" thread instead.
  • Any off topic discussion, please post this kind of stuff to the "Offtopic" thread.