Starfarer Q&A

[Galatoni]

Hopefully this may answer some of the burning questions

[OldBloke]

Before purchasing I'd be asking myself if a Starfarer even has a role within the fleet's normal run of things.

Can you tell us a little bit more about the state of the fuel mechanic? How important is fuel ingame? Will I have to refuel regularly on a long flight? How important is the size of my fuel tank? Is it useful to have a Starfarer on long exploration convoys?

The fuel mechanic is still being developed and is likely something that will shift significantly based on actual game balance. That said, the general plan is for fuel to be important but not something you are worried about at every turn. Think of the original Wing Commander or Privateer, where you could run out of afterburner or jump fuel and be forced to travel home very, very slowly… but it wasn’t ever the key danger (jump fuel being the more dangerous of the two, as poor planning could leave you ‘stuck’ in a system without a fueling station.)

We expect fuel to be a serious ‘support’ role in Star Citizen. There will be players and NPCs with Starfarers serving the masses… and the importance of fuel will go up depending on the nature of the mission. For instance, a military campaign against the Vanduul might be significantly benefited by supporting Starfarers, as the ships in battle will be taking damage and expending supplies quickly. A force of transports moving through safe space, however, might never need in-flight refueling as they will always be close to a planet.

[Galatoni]

From what I gather about the use of fuel. It will be required for general day to day operations but not strictly essential. It'll be required mainly for maintaining combat operations and escorts. It'll make things faster.

Maybe it won't be needed by us.

[Gorion]

Lengthy exploration missions, as we'd need to be self-sufficient fuel wise.

[TeaLeaf]

I settled on a Gemini upgrade, I'll decide closer to launch if I want to apply it or melt it!

[Obsydian]

Good call.

[TeaLeaf]

Q&A Part II

https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/transmission/14715-Starfarer-Q-A-Part-2

[TeaLeaf]

Q&A Part III

https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/transmission/14716-Starfarer-Q-A-Part-3

And confirmation of the oversight:

The stats page and ship info list the Starfarer and Gemini as having the same weapons, engines, and mass. Is this an oversight? If they haven’t yet been determined, it’s ok to tell us, it would be a lot less confusing.
This is an oversight â€" the Gemini has one size larger turrets and engines. Because the models are very similar and components have not been finished, it’s not possible to measure a more accurate mass yet.