Because it doesn't take 5 people to chase up a cargo shipment.

I was wondering the same thing........an away team options if you will.

Yep, just a little "Max number of away team members" box in your map properties, with the ability to set it to 0 if so desired. I don't think we're asking for a lot.

I don't mind them. I use them as place markers. Once I scan or access or whatever, I place one of the BOs there and move along. In case I miss one, I can easily tell if I've already been to a console/life form/whatever when I have to go in search of the missing one.

If I don't feel like them tagging along, I just plant them on one spot and go my merry way.

That's what I do too, but the point I'm trying to make is that when I'm asking a low level character to go and check whether a cargo shipment has arrived, it's a total immersion-breaker to enter the cargo bay on your own, and then once inside a team of 4 armed personnel beam in to join you.

It's pointless, and as I said, immersion-breaking.

And the secondary problem I'm having with my AI Away Team is that due to the placement of crates in said cargo bay, the whole team starts doing acrobatics all over the place, trying to get to their default "stand-to" locations because there is scenery in the way.

For now, I'm weaving it into my dialogue, tongue-in-cheek.

"Hey, you brought your 4 best friends again."

"Why does the captain always travel the ship escorted? *gasp!* Is he
from the mirror universe? *gasp!* He just looked at me!"

Well, I'm not wasting any more time with it until this issue is fixed and we're granted the ability to place game doors on our maps to lead out of the mission and into social areas like ESD's lower deck.

I'm just designing things on paper in the (hopefully not vain) hope that they will address these issues soon.

Not to mention a diplomacy mission loses virtually all it's immersion with four armed & armored individuals following behind you.

I was trying to make a mission when Tribble got taken down yesterday, it was going to be the equivilent of a flashback, a KDF mission where you remember the events which led to your initial command, it was going to be mostly conversation and console interaction (you're not in command yet, after all) with a one-on-one combat encounter at the end where you kill your CO for cowardice and assume command.

I was just begginning (writing the initial dialogue) when Tribble went down, and since, I've realized that I'm not going to be able to do it, for two reasons;

1. An away team is sure to be following most players who play through it.
2. One-on-one fights are not possible in the current foundry toolset.

Bummer!

It's a shame, that, Katic, cos it sound like a really good mission

You can tell this game was really designed with only one type of mission in mind, can't you? Go to x place, kill group of y mobs, press your combadge and hail starfleet.

At least they put their weapons away now. Can you imagine your diplomacy missions back when they never put their guns up?


On this topic I agree to some extent. I know there are a few missions where you are only allowed 2 BOs whereas most are 4 and the occasional none. I'd like the possibility.
On the one hand, Riker was insistent that Captain Picard almost never beam down to planet surfaces, and he certainly never did so alone (I'm sure someone will whip up an episode where Picard is alone but the point is it's an exceptionally rare occurrence.) So there's definitely precedent for not letting the captain travel alone. On the other hand, It's a different time. Starfleet's spread pretty thin so it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to have every captain in the world with an entourage. You could say the chance of attack is higher so that requires more security, but having an armed starship in orbit ought to be security enough.

so no BOs at all? It should be possible, I suppose, but I hope it's not common. Less than 4? Yes, definitely.