So it seems the Starfarer role has changed a bit but will still be needed for fleet engagements as a lot of the combat ships do not have a way to generate their own thruster fuel as well as future iterations of the fuel system will make it more difficult for ships to generate their own thruster fuel.
Fuel Intakes will do a basic conversion on a limited range of gas types.
Using your Fuel Intakes in regular space may scoop limited quantities of gas or none at all.
Fuel Intakes will do a basic conversion on a limited range of gas types.
These tanks can only store one type of plasma at a time.
On top of that I fully expect Starfarer's to be at mining spots anyways refueling the fleet of transport ships and security forces. While it is interesting to find out they might not be harvesting quantum fuel directly it just means they will be getting ore shipments from the Orion to process the Quantum fuel on site instead of jumping off to a gas giant.
There is no idea that they will need mining ship for this, most of it is just speculation at this point. All that has been clarified is that it will become a harvestable resource, of which they don't want the Starfarer to become the vessel to directly do it, more the one to collect basic gases and refine the quantum matter. Again, the Starfarer is sold as "Designed to collect and refine Quantum fuel"
I have said this already on spectrum and of which I now avoid spectrum because its gone too tiring now to read.
The Starfarer is a ship designed, or sold as such to collect a certain type of material (fuel in this case) in large quantities and refine it, hence it being a large based ship with a refinery.
Take for example an Orion, it is designed to harvest ore/minerals in large quantities and refine them, what happens when there is one mineral/ore that you have to get out and harvest by hand, or outsource to others so you can refine it?
Same rule applies on the Reclaimer as the above sentence.
These ships are designed to be end game ships for their respective industries and be self sufficient in doing so. This now introduces gameplay of either having to hop out of your ship to hand collect the raw matter, which is said to be highly unstable now as well, or use other means/ships to do it.
I get it, it means more gameplay, still doesn't take away the fact they changed how it was advertised to backers and how now due to one statement, it's gameplay has to be changed.
Again this is all my personal view and right now there is a ton of speculation, all we can do is wait and see what comes from it
