NMS Expeditions

[GullyFourmyle]

This bug popped up in 2018 and I see a lot of people discussing things that ‘fixed’ it for them. Talk to the captain, talk to the navigator (with no command stations so he starts the mission), interact with the fleet control terminal, There is one note that indicates that there will be a mission in the log for you to send out a frigate, select that and the command terminal should work. (No indication that that worked for the requester though). One player said that the game gave the blueprints to them after a mission or two. Finally someone on steam shows using the save editor to add those to the known products, I’m on PS4, no save editor for me.

I don’t have a plan for what I’ll do in the game this weekend (the game was consuming my life, I locked it in a room and only let it out on weekends) so I can start a new game and see how the sequence works, and if I can break/fix it.

[jedidia]

@GullyFourmyle

talk to the navigator (with no command stations so he starts the mission)

I’m having the same issue, and I distinctly remember that I talked to the navigator before I built a command room (on the account of slapping myself on the forehead and thinking “oh, right, got to do that first” when he told me to.

[Argh]

I can confirm I did the same (including headslap), and also lack these blueprints.

I had another weird blueprint issue with Expeditions base building. The Construction Terminal normally comes from the Artemis questline, but a reddit post revealed you can build terminals without their blueprints by selecting/pinning their catalog entries. That let me build & staff them all, and play through all their questlines… except for the overseer. Big boss Gek just never wanted to be disturbed! Then last night after exploring some other systems I teleported home and suddenly he’s all, “Hey, how’s it going, here’s some blueprints, let’s build some terminals already, chop chop!”

[DevilinPixy]

@Argh

The Construction Terminal normally comes from the Artemis questline, but a reddit post revealed you can build terminals without their blueprints by selecting/pinning their catalog entries.

It was not intended to be able to pin and get items that way and has been fixed since. Was useful to get the Save Point for example, but also allowed pretty much anything else, including locked QS items.

[Polyphemus]

Frigate Fuel - The Final Attempt

Having failed on several occasions to get the blueprints for 100 and 200 tonne frigate fuel, I decided to have one last try. Now, Dear Reader, hear my sorry tale…

I discovered that the blueprints were listed in my catalogue. They were locked, but they were there. I could pin the formula, and make a mission out of obtaining them. I decided to try.

I pinned the formula, and sure enough, it gave me a mission to create 200 tonnes of frigate fuel.

Unfortunately, it didn’t tell me what to do next - but, hey, it’s a mission, right? I’ll head for my ship!

Once in my ship, the message told me “Product recipe not known - acquire frigate fuel (200 tonnes) recipe from planetary facilities. Locate secure facilities with a planetary chart”.

NOW we’re cooking! The game knows I need the recipe, and it’s telling me where to go!

I headed into space, and sure enough, using the chart highlighted a manufacturing facility. The message told me “New product formula now accessible”. Things are getting better!

I blow open the facility and enter. I scan my hand, and it gives me access. This is it!

Except…

As I scan through the list of products, I can’t see frigate fuel. Only the products I already have.

Oh well, there;s a second product menu…

But that one doesn’t have frigate fuel, either. I can’t believe it. I went to all that effort - and the game actually LIED to me. There IS NO fuel recipe.

I’m sure there’s a moral to this tale, but it’s not clear to me right now.

[sheralmyst]

This has irritated me so much, I decided to start a new Expedition game just to figure out exactly how this is supposed to work.
So here goes, this is for you @Polyphemus . I hope you realize what a sacrifice this is, I mean, look at me.

Fixed my ship and made it into space and then jumped a couple of systems to land in a pirate attack and claim my Freighter

Assumed command and followed protocol

Summary

One thing concerns me, when I was getting the prompt to check in with the new Command Room, I was also being prompted to send out a Frigate on a mission. Since I was awarded some Frigate Fuel for gaining my Freighter, I could have sent my one Frigate out immediately without even checking in at the Command Room…this could possibly throw off the series of events because once the Frigate is launched, the Command Room may put you in touch with the captain and not give the blueprints…just a speculation. I would have to run through it again to find out.
EDIT: Ok, I tried to derp it up but it was a no go…this time the Frigate I had did not have any fuel at all and I was unable to send it out until I inspected the Command Room and received all 3 fuel blueprints.

[jedidia]

So… looks like sometimes you just don’t get them all.

[Polyphemus]

@sheralmyst , thanks for your efforts.

FWIW, I think the problem probably arises from my obtaining my first (50 tonne) fuel blueprint from the freighter upgrade terminal. When I first got the freighter, the first place I looked was the upgrade terminal - and there was the recipe for 50 tonnes of frigate fuel. Since I knew I would need frigate fuel, I took it.

And I think that was probably the source of the problem. Once I had obtained some fuel, the game seems to have assumed I had all the fuel, and locked me out of any more recipes.

The trouble is, unlike any other item you need in the game, the freighter fuel recipes can’t be obtained anywhere else. You get one shot (and that is not explained). If you mess it up, or do something slightly different, you’ve missed your chance.

It seems my only option now would be to start Expeditions again. Since it only has another month to run, it seems hardly worth it. I’ll just manage with 50 tonne batches for the next few weeks.

All the same, thanks again for your help.

[AdaRynin]

@Polyphemus

can’t be obtained anywhere else. You get one shot (and that is not explained). If you mess it up, or do something slightly different, you’ve missed your chance.

I want to be mad at HG, but I work among software developers and this is a very common topic.
How many ways are there for users to mess this up? We literally hired a maths phd to calculate all the permutations, and the minimum set of human-possible quality tests that’s needed to prove that we accounted for preventing the maximum number of human-possible errors. (Our customers also have to prove to their auditors that they are covering “all” cases.)

Procedural generated content multiplied with all paths that a player could take in an open world game =

(Man I would love to listen in on a conversation between our maths guy and Sean about that topic)

[sheralmyst]

Without re-reading all your posts, I can’t remember- have you tried winning another Freighter in battle?

[Polyphemus]

@sheralmyst

have you tried winning another Freighter

Yes, this is my second. I also had a chance at a third - an S class - but it was too expensive, given that it didn’t seem to offer any improvement in performance (but that was the subject of another post).

[jedidia]

@Polyphemus

FWIW, I think the problem probably arises from my obtaining my first (50 tonne) fuel blueprint from the freighter upgrade terminal. When I first got the freighter, the first place I looked was the upgrade terminal - and there was the recipe for 50 tonnes of frigate fuel. Since I knew I would need frigate fuel, I took it.

Huh, yes, now that I think about it, that’s what I did too! I think you got it, Sherlock!

[Polyphemus]

Well, Inspector Lestrade, my trusty companion Doctor Watson confirms it. The case is solved.

[GullyFourmyle]

@Polyphemus

FWIW, I think the problem probably arises from my obtaining my first (50 tonne) fuel blueprint from the freighter upgrade terminal.

I don’t think that is the problem. I did it that way and it worked fine, Reloaded and took a nexus mission to get fuel and tried without the 50ton recipe which also worked. I tried building the room before talking to the navigator, that worked. Interacting with the command station before anyone else (except to buy the freighter of course) wouldn’t let me in , but it worked once I sent a mission. I sent one mission and let it complete without accessing the command room and it still forced the blueprints on me before debriefing that mission. If I had not yet sent the first mission I did not get the blueprints. Once I started a mission I did not find a way around the prompt to download them.

I didn’t try refusing the first freighter (we get a second chance?), I’ll have to restart to test that path, I didn’t download the save file until after accepting. It’s only about 2 hours into the game or maybe a little less, I had a run in with lightning that was comical; it hit me inside a building and killed me. Before the next scene fully faded in it hit me again, and again about a dozen times before I killed the game. When I visited the grave, nothing was there… all vaporized I guess. Set me back a bit but I had a good laugh.

[Polyphemus]

@GullyFourmyle

I don’t think that is the problem.

Curses, Watson! It seems the Napoleon of crime, Professor Moriarty, has had a hand in this affair!

[Polyphemus]

When I got to the end of Expeditions, I was awarded the Golden Vector ship. After some pimping up, it’s very nice.

Then I completed the weekly mission - and on visiting the quicksilver vendor, I discovered that he was also offering Expeditions prizes - and one of them was the Golden Vector. So I took it.

Now I have two.

[jedidia]

@Polyphemus

and on visiting the quicksilver vendor, I discovered that he was also offering Expeditions prizes

I think that’s supposed the way to redeem expedition prizes in other savegames (i.e. they show up in the quicksilver shop once you have them). Looks like that also aplies to the current savegame.
I’m not sure I’ll be able to finish the expedition. Stellaris 1.3 just came out… Still, there’s a lot of time left, so I maybe I can squeeze it in somewhere after the initial rush passes…

[Clemm]

@jedidia

I’m not sure I’ll be able to finish the expedition.

. Me too. Too much work and home priorities. Plus after a work full day at the PC, I usually have see fatigue.

Weekends turn into grocery and restaurant meal pickups plus house and outdoor work. Sigh.

Think if I cry to Hello Games they will extend Expedition #1 a month?

[LordMarkov]

@jedidia

I maybe I can squeeze it in somewhere after the initial rush passes…

Unfortunately, some of the Milestones require new discoveries. Some people I know that started later had difficulty finding new discoveries without warping significantly away from the rendezvous areas. (So that you’re aware)

[jedidia]

Oh, I’m already thousands of lightyears away from the route. It’s not like that is a problem in NMS, where a halfways decent hyperdrive can get you 700+ lightyears in one jump. From there it becomes pure geometry. With the surface of the sphere growing at the square of distance, it doesn’t take you too far out to push your chances of the next jump ending in an undiscovered system well over 90%…