Astrophysics

From Mushpedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Astrophysics is the task of searching for and analyzing Planet.png planets before going on expedition. Proper astrophysics work is necessary for safe and productive expeditions. It is performed at the AstroTerminal on the Bridge.
The AstroTerminal on the Bridge.

Scanning for Planets

When not in orbit around a planet, you can search for new planets to explore.

Scanning costs 3 Action Point and has an 80% chance of success.

If the Planet Scanner in the engine room is broken, the chances of successfully finding a planet will decrease to 50%.

Analyzing Planets

Once you have found a suitable planet, you may perform a surface analysis.

For 2 Action Point or 1 IT Point you can reveal one zone on the planet.

  • You can reveal 1 additional zone if the BIOS Setting BIOS CPU Priority is set to Astronavigation.
  • You can reveal 1 additional zone if you are Icon Astrophysicist.
  • You can reveal 1 additional zone if your ship has completed NERON project Quantum Sensors.
  • You can reveal 1 additional zone and save 1 Action Point while approaching/orbiting the planet.
    • All of these bonuses do stack with each other, for a maximum of five zones for an Astrophysicist in orbit.

Additionally, if you have the Icon Magellan Liquid Map artifact in the shelf at the bridge while scanning, it will reveal 1 to 2 zones upon initial discovery of the planet.

The table below shows the Action Point cost of revealing a planet, not including any possible Liquid Map bonus. Colored cells indicate inefficient scans (.e.g. you are scanning a 5 Zone planet with 4 zones revealed per scan, requiring you to scan once to reveal 4 zones, then pay another 2 Action Point (which would reveal 4 more zones) to only reveal 1 more zone.)

No. of Zones 1 Zone Per 2 Action Point 2 Zones Per 2 Action Point 3 Zones Per 2 Action Point 4 Zones Per 2 Action Point
Example: No Bonus Astrophysicist + CPU Priority + Quantum Sensors
2 4 Action Point 2 Action Point 2 Action Point 2 Action Point
3 6 Action Point 4 Action Point 2 Action Point 2 Action Point
4 8 Action Point 4 Action Point 2 Action Point 2 Action Point
5 10 Action Point 6 Action Point 4 Action Point 4 Action Point
6 12 Action Point 6 Action Point 4 Action Point 4 Action Point
7 14 Action Point 8 Action Point 6 Action Point 4 Action Point
8 16 Action Point 8 Action Point 6 Action Point 4 Action Point
9 18 Action Point 10 Action Point 6 Action Point 6 Action Point
10 20 Action Point 10 Action Point 8 Action Point 6 Action Point
11 22 Action Point 12 Action Point 8 Action Point 6 Action Point
12 24 Action Point 12 Action Point 8 Action Point 6 Action Point
13 26 Action Point 14 Action Point 10 Action Point 8 Action Point
14 28 Action Point 14 Action Point 10 Action Point 8 Action Point
15 30 Action Point 16 Action Point 10 Action Point 8 Action Point
16 32 Action Point 16 Action Point 12 Action Point 8 Action Point
17 34 Action Point 18 Action Point 12 Action Point 10 Action Point
18 36 Action Point 18 Action Point 12 Action Point 10 Action Point
19 38 Action Point 20 Action Point 14 Action Point 10 Action Point
20 40 Action Point 20 Action Point 14 Action Point 10 Action Point
21 42 Action Point 22 Action Point 14 Action Point 12 Action Point
22 44 Action Point 22 Action Point 16 Action Point 12 Action Point

Example: If you are an Astrophysicist and currently have the CPU Priority set to Astronavigation, having just located a 13 Zone planet, it will cost you 10 Action Point to reveal all zones.

Empty Space

  • When the Daedalus is not in orbit around a planet, it is considered in "Empty Space".
  • While in empty space, everyone is able to scan for new planets and the AstroTerminal will keep records for up to two planets per crew member. These results are private and cannot be shared with others to verify results or to help with the scanning.
  • If you want to delete a scan from your workspace, you can click the Delete this scan icon to permanently delete this planet. You will not be able to visit this planet once it has been deleted.

Attributes

Every planet has the following attributes:

  • Direction: Determines the direction that the commander will need to point the Daedalus.
  • Distance: Determines how many fuel are required to get to the planet. Ranges from 2 to 9.
  • Size: How many zones to explore. Ranges from 1 to 22.
  • Name and Appearance: Random and purely decorative.

Travel

  • To travel to the planet, you will need to make sure that you have the exact amount of Fuel loaded that is required, as determined by the planet scan.
Cautionicon.png Over or under loading Fuel will mean that you miss the planet and you will need to start the scanning process from scratch.
  • Once you move the Daedalus, all previous scan results are lost (with the exception of the planet you are moving to, if you're moving into orbit).
  • When the ship starts moving to or from a planet, the AstroTerminal behaves as if it were already the end of the journey.
    • For instance, if you're moving to a planet, even though you're not there yet, everyone will see the planet scan results and be able to uncover any zones that might still be covered.
      • If you're moving out of orbit and back into empty space, you can start scanning for new planets as soon as the ship starts moving out of orbit.

Notes & Tips

  • Scan only with 8-12 Action Point since it is an expensive activity, and incomplete scans may go to waste.
  • If you will be consuming anything to scan (Icon Coffee, Icon Standard Rations, etc), or several people are scanning, it is not a bad idea to go to the lab to use the Icon Stainproof Apron to eat, or borrow it to use at the bridge.
    • Even though it can use up some Movement Point, if you get Icon Dirty and have to shower before continuing, that negates most to all of your Action Point gain.
  • First look for a planet. If it has 6 to 12 zones, proceed.
    • If it has fewer than 6 it may not be worth analyzing unless you are looking for one specific thing. Generally a smaller planet has a lower chance of being worth the trip.
    • Conversely, an extremely huge planet may not be worth proceeding to analyze as is more likely to have lethal zones in addition to resources. Keep in mind that an average expedition covers 9 zones.
  • Another factor in analyzing a planet is the amount of Fuel needed to get there.
    • If your ship has very low Fuel you may want to hold off on analyzing a planet that takes 5 or 6 Fuel to get to and see if you can find a closer planet instead.
  • Once you have a suitable planet to analyze, start advanced analysis only if you have enough Action Point to uncover most to all of its zones.
    • If you don't have enough Action Point, see if you can acquire food or a mission. If you can't, generally it is better to wait until you regenerate enough Action Point to carry out the full analysis before beginning.
      • Since it is usually not a good idea to move to a planet until a full analysis has been made, forging ahead to see what just a few zones from a planet contains is rarely helpful. It could end up being a waste of Action Point if you end up in a desperate situation and need to move ship to escape hunters/asteroids. Or, if your ship is in urgent need of finding a planet to explore, someone else might start scanning and find a suitable planet before you finish yours, rendering all your Action Point used a waste.
  • Stop at any point if your analysis shows Zone Mankarogs (likely member death), Zone Volcanoes (possible group death), or Zone Seismic Activity (possible member death).
    • Unless the ship is desperate for certain resources such as Oxygen, delete that planet and do not spend more Action Point on it. These planets are generally considered too risky to explore.
      • When going to dangerous planets anyway, exploring three zones at a time in a Patroller may be a more costly but less risky alternative to sending the Icarus.
      • Zone Mankarogs zones may yield a Icon Starmap Fragment, so if you have a Icon Diplomat to at least avoid the fight event, it may be worth the risk.
  • Once you have completely analyzed a planet, post for everybody to see the direction, fuel needed, and a list of every zone so that the exploration group can be fully prepared.
  • Unless the Daedalus moved since the discovery of the planet, you can still travel there if you know its direction and required fuel, even when a person who found the planet is dead.
  • To move to open space if currently in orbit, you must load one Fuel into the Combustion_Chamber and have the Icon Commander move the ship one part in any direction

Note about scans

  • Only you can see the results of your planet.
  • Once the ship moves, all scans on the terminal will be deleted except for the planet the ship is moving to. For this reason it is a good idea to coordinate with your shipmates to only have one analysis going at a time.
    • If more than one person scans simultaneously, then one person's Action Point will likely be wasted. This is why it is a good idea to only analyze if you have enough Action Point to uncover the whole planet - you won't overlap with someone else if you can post your results right away.
  • Mind that the existence of Zone Forest or living creatures on a planet does not guarantee an oxygen atmosphere!
Retrieved from "http://www.mushpedia.com/index.php?title=Astrophysics&oldid=13368"