I’ve been playing Elite Dangerous for a few weeks now so I’d thought I’d present some of the things I’ve learnt along the way. These aren’t going to be news to experienced Commanders but may help someone starting out. Given my early experiences of Elite they might just help someone get the best out of the game.
Buy a joystick! I hated using a mouse and a joystick is so much nicer. It also helps build a bit more imersion. Pulling the trigger and watching your enemy exploded is so much more satisfying than clicking a mouse button. I picked up a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro[Affiliate Link].
Unbind the “eject all cargo” key [END]! By default this gives you an easy way to jettison all your cargo into space. Great if you wanted to do that but not fun if you press it by accident when deploying your landing get ([INSERT]). I would recommend changing it to [SHIFT]+[END].
Bind a key for “Enter Supercruise”! I use [M]. The [J] key deals with Supercruise and Hyperspace but you need a destination locked. An enter supercruise button is useful if you need to be in Supercruise but don’t want the hassle of selecting a destination.
Bind keys for 50%, 75% and 100% throttle! These are really useful to get the throttle set in the blue zone when approaching systems or stations. They are also vital in combat.
Cover your rebuy cost! Never, ever fly a ship you can’t afford to re-buy at least twice. regularly check the rebuy cost as it will increase as you purchase upgrades. Cargo isn’t insured so if your ship is destroyed you will need to replace it. Loads of people on the official forum rush out and buy a new ship, fill it with cargo and then are back in a Sidewinder and 1000CR when it is destroyed.
Buy a fuel scoop! If you are making journeys where you have to refuel on the way fuel scoops are easy with a bit of practice and they save lots of time. On long trade runs it really does help. It also reduces the chances of you getting stranded in a system with no fuel.
Target your enemies power plant! When fighting someone using your left panel to target a sub-system. You can often destroy the power plant before you can reduce the hull to 0%. When the power plant is destroyed the enemy ship will explode all by itself. In a challenging fight this is often the difference between failure and victory.
Press [F10] to take a screenshot! Useful whenever you see something interesting and you want a record. I use it in much the same way you would use a point-and-shoot camera while on holiday. See a red sun with solar flares bursting on the surface? Take a photo!
Press [CTRL]+[F] to enable frame rate counter! This appears in the bottom left of the screen. It is sometimes helpful if you are tweaking the graphics settings and you want to gauge the effect.
Safe flying CMDR!
Some of the product links in this post are affiliate links. I receive a small commission based on purchases made via these links. The price you pay is the same.