Hints for Frontier: Elite 2

                 Sent in by Julian Gregory

These hints are in no particular order, just as they came to me.

Start at Ross 154, the recommended start point. This game will
take AGES to complete. You can be playing for months (of game time)
without increasing your status. Just be patient, everything you do
in the game affects your ranking to some degree.

Sell your laser, missiles and atmospheric shielding and head for
Barnard's Star. From there buy computers and go to Sol.  Buy Food
and return to Barnard's Star.

Upgrade to a bigger ship as soon as possible. I have used a
Transporter for a long time now. It has a capacity of 40 tons and
can travel 16 light years in one jump. If you can do without an
energy booster (to speed up the shield regeneration) you could try

an Asp, with a Class 4 engine you can jump approx 21 light years
at a time.

Watch the bulletin boards closely. You may be able to sell your
computers for twice the usual price here. Also watch for packages
to be taken to your next location. You can take any number as they
do not take up any space in the hold, as they are considered to
fit under your seat.

Upgrade to a beam laser as soon as you can. Pulse lasers are a
waste of time and space. I found that a 4 meg beam laser was quite
sufficient and took up much less room than a more expensive laser.

As your ranking increases you will be able to take on more
difficult missions, eg assassinations or spying trips. Only accept
such missions if you can be confident to being able to return
before the specified date. If you fail or return after the proper
date and time your ranking in the game may be set back a greater
amount than it was before you took the mission.

If you choose a career as a spy you should only work for one side.
If you try and work for both sides at the same time any promotions
will take much longer to achieve.

When travelling to another system on autopilot it is better to
travel for most of the time under manual control. You can then
increase the set speed so as to arrive at your destination that
much quicker than you would on autopilot. Trial and error will
soon tell you when to switch back onto autopilot, depending on
your actual speed and the distance left to travel.

Save frequently, even during combat.

Check the bulletin boards carefully.

When taking on a contract always ask for more money. When your
reputation has reached a certain (unknown) level you can get 10%
more. If people are refusing to pay extra you must have done
something to affect your popularity. You can either go back to an
earlier saved position or give money to good causes on the
bulletin board. Otherwise the charities or begging adverts can be
safely ignored.

Always ask for all your money up front. If you can't get at least
half in advance refuse the job. The chances are you won't get paid
at all.













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