I've added an Underground Tools area to http://www.grimytrader.com that has several handy utilities:

1) Alignment Calculator -- Flip red killing somebody and want to find out how many figs it'll take to get your comish back?

2) Cannon Calculator -- A simple tool that lets you take 2 consecutive quasar blasts and tells the setting, remaining ore, and provides a table of the moths and damage it will take to drain it.

3) Colonizing Optimizer -- Want to know what the best method to colonize is from a given location? Even makes the macro's for you!

4) CK's Fig Price Estimator -- Just like what was on CK's Lost Traders Tavern, it will help you decide which way fig prices are going.

Please check them out and let me know what you think or if you have an idea for another utility.

Thanks!

Hey thats cool Rammar! What you trying to make this game easy or what? heh j/k
Just wanted to say thanks for all you done and are doing for Trade Wars. Rock On

Those are kewl RammaR, now that is innovative! [;)]

I am a little confused on the Colo Optimizer, though. What are the four runs for? It also looks like the macro's are repeating over on runs 2-4, (or am I reading it wrong?) Run one is fine though, hey what about including an express-warp option? It would be kinda neat to see the differences between them all. Also on runs three and four for the T-Warp option it says "Not possible with that ship." is it suppose to say this?

quote:Originally posted by RexxCrow

I am a little confused on the Colo Optimizer, though. What are the four runs for? It also looks like the macro's are repeating over on runs 2-4, (or am I reading it wrong?) Run one is fine though, hey what about including an express-warp option? It would be kinda neat to see the differences between them all. Also on runs three and four for the T-Warp option it says "Not possible with that ship." is it suppose to say this?


Rexx, look at the titles of each run. "Cycles per Macro Run: 2", etc. Thats telling you how many trips to terra its taking for each iteration of the given macro. If you look closely at the macros, you'll notice that its NOT grabbing more ore after each run in a multi-cycle macro run. Depending on ship holds and tpw and planet distance sometimes it actually more turn efficient to start off grabbing enough ore for 2 loads of colos and not spending the extra turn to grab more fuel in between them. Thats why there's a Colo's/Turn ratio given, so you can colo in the most efficient manner possible.

If its saying "Not enough turns for this mode." Then that means that the ship you gave it isn't capable of making that number of runs with that warp type (Bwarp/Twarp) because it doesn't have enough holds.

As far as express warping.... Why? Unless you're in an unlim and don't care about being tracked and killed, you should never use express warp to colo. It wastes a horrendous amount of turns and leaves you extremely vulnerable.

Rex, each time you grab ore from the planet it takes 1 turn - so the multiple runs per cycle means that its grabbing enough ore to make 2, 3 or 4 trips before it grabs ore again. Its a distance / ship holds thing -- but often can get you a few more colo's per turn. Hope that makes sense.

Thanks Psion -- beat me to the punch (just like in TCW)

And it says "Not possible with that ship" on trips 3 or 4 if that ship can't carry enough ore for trips 3 or 4.

+EP+

Ohhh, ok I see now, I was thinking they were different options; it is referring to the number of round trips for each macro set. ROFL, I'm an idiot! [:P]

Thanks guys, you really have a knack for explaining things so that us dolts are able to understand them, hehee

That is interesting, I would like to know more about how to determine when it good to stockpile ore, what conditions would you use this in? Is this only to be used if you are really, really, really close to Sol?

For the express-warp it would be good for non-commissioned players and for comparison in stock type games, because very few ships with large hold capacities actually have warp drives on them; but mostly I was thinking it would just be cool to see what the difference is. [:)]

It is almost always a good idea to stockpile ore on a planet you plan on keeping.

And no, express warp coloing is not good for players without commisions. Its not good for anyone. Its a horrendous waste of turns. It would be cheaper to PPT up enough cash to buy a commish and an ISS than to run any significant number of colos using ewarp, especially in a colt *shudder* Even in an unlim where you don't have to worry about turns, it would be ridiculously easy to nail someone ewarp colling. Lay a limp in their path and find their base, then attack and kill them en route. Or just naz their path and let them kill themselves. You should basically NEVER ewarp colo.

Oh, sorry I meant stockpiling fuel in you're holds to save some extra turns. Ok I crunched some numbers and this is what I came up with, I am not sure how accurate this is though...

Figures based on:

5,000 turns
200 Hold ship
3 TPW
12 Sectors From Terra
10 Sectors From Terra
Using a Planetary Transporter to get to Terra and T-Warp to get back.
(Fuel expended from planet is not considered.)

Using Enough Fuel for 1-Trip
5,000 turns
12x3 = 36 holds to accommodate fuel to T-Warp back from Terra.
200-36=164 empty holds to store colonists
Turns used per round Trip: 25
(turns to Terra)10
(turns from Terra)12
(turn to land on planet)1
(turn to land on Terra)1
(turn to refuel)1

5000(turns)/25(turns expended per round trip)=200 Total round trips

200(total round trips)*164(empty holds)=32,800 Total colonists transported


Using Enough Fuel for 2-Trips
I split this into a two part process of 2,500 turns.

Part One:
2,500 turns
12x6 = 72 holds to accommodate fuel to T-Warp back from Terra two times.
200-72=128 empty holds to store colonists
Turns used per round Trip: 24
(turns to Terra)10
(turns from Terra)12
(turn to land on planet)1
(turn to land on Terra)1

2500(turns)/24(turns expended per round trip)=104 Total round trips

104(total round trips)*128(empty holds)= 13,312, Total colonists transported

Part Two:
2,500 turns
25 turns per round trip, (same as in the above example.)
164 empty holds, (same as above example.)

2500(turns)/25(turns expended per round trip)=100 Total round trips

100(total round trips)*164(empty holds)=16,400 Total colonists transported


Part 1 and Part 2 combine to: 5,000 turns bringing 29,712 total colonists.

Which ends up being 3,088 less colonists then fueling for only one trip at a time.

That's why there's a calculator on the site. There are cases for which grabbing ore for two trips at a time comes out ahead instead of behind. The calculator is a quick way to figure out whether your case is one of those or not.

quote:Originally posted by RexxCrow

Oh, sorry I meant stockpiling fuel in you're holds to save some extra turns. Ok I crunched some numbers and this is what I came up with, I am not sure how accurate this is though...

Figures based on:

5,000 turns
200 Hold ship
3 TPW
12 Sectors From Terra
10 Sectors From Terra
Using a Planetary Transporter to get to Terra and T-Warp to get back.
(Fuel expended from planet is not considered.)

Using Enough Fuel for 1-Trip
5,000 turns
12x3 = 36 holds to accommodate fuel to T-Warp back from Terra.
200-36=164 empty holds to store colonists
Turns used per round Trip: 25
(turns to Terra)10
(turns from Terra)12
(turn to land on planet)1
(turn to land on Terra)1
(turn to refuel)1


If you were using a 3 TPW ship with t-warp and using a beamer on the planet it would only be 6 turns per round trip.

1 to take ore
1 to beam
1 to take colos
3 to t-warp back
6

thanks rammer that really handy 2thumps up for the colo. macro figure outter. lol thanks again

Wow, that makes a big difference. LOL I was way off, talk about left field. [:I]

As a side note, there are times where coloing with a colt is worthwhile. Put your planet next to fed, beam to terra, express warp back. For example, chess, where the colt is like 2 tpw but no twarp. You get 41.67 colos/turn. It's rather dangerous, but if you do it right, you probably won't run into trouble with it.