Pirate massacre missions and the AFK build—Getting rich while you sleep

[lucid ember]

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What are pirate massacre missions?

Pirate massacre missions are currently one of the best ways to make credits, albeit requiring a considerably engineered ship for being able to do them AFK (away from keyboard). These missions are combat missions given by factions in appropriate systems and are issued for killing a certain amount of pirates in neighboring systems. The payout per mission is up to 40 million credits for 30 pirates solo and about three times the amount of pirates for a wing mission. These missions can also be stacked for increased efficiency.

This is a long guide, as AFK techniques have been refined over hundreds (if not thousands) of hours playtime. So make sure to read it carefully before jumping in. Should you just wish to see the builds, the next section is for you.

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I Not going to read that all—where are the ship builds?

Here are some recommended builds for AFK ships with full different levels of engineering. As for the why, please read the complementary guide below. Always fly 402 and get your power priorities right. Thrusters to priority 2, everything else to 1—otherwise you may end up powered down and shieldless, the moment you deploy your hardpoints. Moreover, deploy your hardpoints in your final parking position only.

Why just E-rated thrusters? Because they are cheaper and you will turn them off anyways after reaching your parking spot. Why are there no unengineered builds for the Corvette and Cutter? Don't go grinding just to fly them stock—seriously, don't.

   **I.I   __I have no engineering done, yet__...**

Doing massacre missions without any engineering is possible but very tricky, even under the most ideal conditions (see system security, enemy waves, etc.)—definitely not possible to do it AFK reliably. It is something to start out, but at least a bare minimum of engineering is strongly recommended.

• Anaconda (https://edsy.org/s/vQgH1hf) (https://s.orbis.zone/khvc)

   **I.II   __What is the absolute minimum of engineering recommended__?**

Going with a bare minimum of engineering, greatly improves survivability during massacre missions. It is still not recommended to go AFK, but the ship should survive a coffee break—depending on the circumstances (system security, enemy waves, etc.) even for longer.

• Anaconda (https://edsy.org/s/vMb8c5U) (https://s.orbis.zone/kg1l)

   **I.III   __I do have the Guardian shield reinforcements, too__!**

Now we are closing in on a proper AFK build. That one is able to do AFK for a while, under the most ideal conditions. It is still recommended to keep an eye on your ship and bear in mind, that equipping shield reinforcements is likely to draw enough power, to put your ship offline (and shields down) the moment you deploy your hardpoints. Put your power priorities right.

• Anaconda (https://edsy.org/s/vmkpBmS) (https://s.orbis.zone/kg1m)
• Federal Corvette (https://edsy.org/s/vEdus8r) (https://s.orbis.zone/kg21)
• Imperial Cutter (https://edsy.org/s/v9QAuNy) (https://s.orbis.zone/kg1x)

   **I.IV   __Give me all you have__**__—__**__I want the full package__!**

Fully engineered ships in regards to what is needed to maximize survival during AFK. The focus is on shields and weapons. Every other (plain) module or empty slot may be fitted or engineered to own preference or left stock, as it has no influence.

• Anaconda (https://edsy.org/s/vRfl3C6) (https://s.orbis.zone/kg1t)
• Federal Corvette (https://edsy.org/s/vrSQSEx) (https://s.orbis.zone/kg22)
• Imperial Cutter (https://edsy.org/s/vXhZ394) (https://s.orbis.zone/kg1y)

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1 How does doing missions AFK work?

A misconception is to assume, that a AFK build is for destroying enemies. The AFK build is a shield tank, that encourages pirates to attack you and withstand these attacks until the system authorities do the killing. Pirates will always scan you first to find out if you carry any cargo. If you do so, they will demand a share and attack after a certain amount of time (15 sec), should you not give them any. At that point they are being identified as enemies and automatically targeted by your turreted weapons (if set to fire at will). This is essential, as you will be accounted a kill and a bounty for every enemy attacked by you—even if the kill has been done by someone else. The goal is therefore, to hit all pirates at least once and withstand their attack until the system authorities take care of them.

   **1.1   __What does mission stacking mean__?**

For doing pirate massacre missions, a mechanic called mission stacking can be utilized—one killed pirate contributes to one active mission from every faction. Should you have stacked missions from four different factions each, one killed pirate will contribute to all four missions that way. Multiple missions from the same faction however, will be done as usual—one after another.

   **1.2   __Which ships are recommended__?**

The recommended ships for an AKF build are the Anaconda, the Federal Corvette, and the Imperial Cutter—in the order of worst to best. While the Anaconda has no prerequisites, the Corvette requires a federal rank of a Rear Admiral, and the Cutter an imperial rank of a Duke. A Type-10, while being historically the initial ship to do so, has been disregarded in favor of the Anaconda. While the Type-10 can accommodate a shield generator of one size larger than the Anaconda, it provides still less shield strength.

   **1.3   __What type of cargo do I need__?**

For making pirates become aggressive, you must carry cargo. Otherwise they will leave without attacking you. However, the type or amount of cargo does not matter. As the point defense struggles with hatch-breaker limpets in recent updates, the strategy has been adapted in favor of mission-related cargo—as it can be scanned but cannot be stolen. Therefore, one mission-slot is used for a cargo delivery mission, making a point defense obsolete and providing one additional slot for a shield booster instead.

   **1.4   __Do I need a ship launched fighter__?**

It is not mandatory to use a ship launched fighter (SLF) and it does not necessary increase survivability, if all preconditions are ideal. If you however chose to hire a pilot, always get one with the lowest rank and bring her/him up to Elite. It will take some time, but you will end up with a share of 10% instead of 12%. Be aware, that this share is a cut on all your earnings in the game then, regardless if your crewmember is active or not, for how long she/he stays in your service.

For a low rank pilot, the recommended fighter is a fixed-beam Taipan (Gelid F). Once she/he gets deadly or above, a switch to a fixed-beam Gu-97 (Gelid F) increases effectiveness. Deploying the fighter with its default defend behavior, is likely to increase it and your survivability.

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1.5 Which shield generator do I need?

The recommended shield generator is the largest bi-weave generator your ship can fit (7C or 8C). While it is still viable to use a prismatic generator, it is not advised for an AFK build due to its drawbacks. One of the most important factors for that build is the generator's regeneration time (from 50% to 100%)—a normal one needs around 2.5 times longer than s bi-wave and a prismatic needs double the time of a normal (values my vary for different engineering types). Thus, while a prismatic generator provides considerably more strength than a bi-wave, it cannot regenerate substantially between enemy waves.

   **1.6   __Do I need shield boosters__?**

Yes. Just by equipping eight unengineered shield boosters, you gain around 80% more effective shield strength. Fully engineered (G5), that boost rises the effective strength (thermal) of your shield generator for up to 780%. 0A type boosters are recommended at all times.

   **1.7   __Do I need Guardian technology__?**

For a proper AFK build, yes. Equipping guardian shield reinforcements, provides you with an increase of around 5% to 10% to effective shield strength per module—depending on the shield generator used and the grade of engineering.

   **1.8   __Do I need any engineering__?**

Again, for a proper AFK build, yes. Engineering is however not strictly necessary for doing pirate massacre missions while keeping an eye on your ship—but it is strongly encouraged to do a bare minimum for better survivability.

Shield strength should be the first priority, as already grade 1 engineering for shields and eight shield boosters provides up to 73% more shield strength (thermal), topping at around 470% at grade 5. Second priority are weapons, as every grade of long range engineering gives pulse lasers a 20% boost to maximum range and negates all falloff ([email protected] → G5@6km). For more advanced builds power consumption may become an issue, making the engineering of a powerplant mandatory, too.

Please note, that it is always better to engineer all modules to a lower grade, than just a few to their maximum. See the build section for recommendations about the type of engineering and experimental effects.

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2 What engineering materials do I need?

All blueprints and respective engineering materials required for every grade are in Inara (https://inara.cz/elite/blueprints). See also the suggested ships and the sections below, for minimum build requirements.

Please keep in mind, that the engineering process is requiring multiple re-rolls per grade. Meaning, the game dynamically determines how many times every single grade has to be applied, until it qualifies as done—each time consuming the given amount of material for that grade. A rule of thumb for the worst-case is 2 rolls for grade 1, increasing by 2 rolls with every further grade, giving a sequence of 2–4–6–8–10. Also, while unlocking an engineer, more retries are to be expected.

   **2.1   __Do I need to engineer my power plant__?**

It is possible to leave the power plant unengineered. However, this will require some manual power management and/or sacrifices to other modules for a build fitted with Guardian shield reinforcements. It is strongly recommended to do at least the first grade of overcharged engineering with the monstered experimental effect. The resulting heat efficiency is absolutely sufficient for a A-rated power plant. Engineers in the Bubble are Felicity Farseer (G1), Elvira Martuuk → Marco Qwent (G4), Liz Ryder → Hera Tani (G5), while in Colonia it is Liz Ryder → Etienne Dorn (G5). The required engineering materials for a minimal build are listed below (one roll).

• Overcharged (G1) – 1  Sulphur
• Monstered (experimental effect) – 5 Grid Resistors – 3  Vanadium – 1 Polymer Capacitors

   **2.2   __What type of engineering do I need for the shield generator__?**

The shield generator should have thermal resistance engineering with the hi-cap experimental effect. The fast charge effect is negligible in this case, even for the bi-weave generator—so the extra MJ from hi-cap are welcome. Engineers in the Bubble are Elvira Martuuk (G3) and The Dweller → Lei Cheung (G5), while in Colonia it is Elvira Martuuk (G3) → Mel Brandon (G5). The required engineering materials for a minimal build are listed below (one roll).

• Thermal Resistance (G1) – 1  Distorted Shield Cycle Recordings
• Hi-Cap (experimental effect) – 5 Worn Shield Emitters – 3  Flawed Focus Crystals – 1  Conductive Polymers

   **2.3   __What type of engineering do I need for the shield boosters__?**

While having eight shield boosters, the best split is having three heavy duty and five resistance augmented, all with the super capacitors experimental effect. Engineers in the Bubble are Felicity Farseer (G1), The Dweller → Lei Cheung (G3), and Tod McQuinn → Selene Jean → Didi Vatermann (G5), while in Colonia it is Elvira Martuuk → Mel Brandon (G5). The required engineering materials for a minimal build are listed below (one roll).

• Heavy Duty (G1) – 1 Grid Resistors
• Resistance Augmented (G1) – 1 Phosphorus
• Super Capacitors (experimental effect) – 3 Untypical Shield Scans – 5 Compact Composites – 2 Cadmium

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2.4 What type of engineering do I need for the lasers?

All pulse lasers, regardless of size have to undergo the long range engineering. The experimental effect does not matter much and is not mandatory for a minimal build. However, the most benefit may come from scramble spectrum, as it is prone to randomly disable modules on attacked ships, when their shields are down. Engineers in the Bubble are The Dweller (G4) and Liz Ryder → Hera Tani → Broo Tarquin (G5), while in Colonia it is Elvira Martuuk → Mel Brandon (G5). The required engineering materials for a minimal build are listed below (one roll).

• Long Range (G1) – 1 Sulphur
• Scramble Spectrum (experimental effect) – 5 Crystal Shards  – 3 Untypical Shield Scans – 5  Exceptional Scrambled Emission Data

   **2.5   __How do I unlock the Guardian shield reinforcements__?**

The exact procedure of going to the Guardian ruins and farming materials is a topic for another guide, that is currently in the making. The procedure is in short going to a Guardian ruins site, gathering the materials listed below, and bringing them back to the Bubble, to a Guardian technology broker—which is a station's service and can be found through the search function in Inara (https://inara.cz/elite/nearest). This has to be done one time for permanently unlocking all sizes of the module.

• Guardian shield reinforcement – 8 Hardware Diagnostic Sensor –  1 Guardian Module Blueprint Fragment  – 17 Guardian Power Cell  – 20 Guardian Technology Component  – 24  Pattern Delta Obelisk Data

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3 I have a ship—where is the action?

You have to find yourself a pair of suitable systems—a source for missions and a target for killing pirates. To do so, you can go to https://edtools.cc/pve. Specify your home system, the radius in light years (Ly) you want to go, and select large pads only. Source per target do not matter much. The resulting list of systems is sorted by distance—you may sometimes want to go further away, to have a system to yourself. Important things here are the L-pad (large station) distance and RES/rings. The first being feasible up to around 50k Ls and the second indicating at least 1 ring. Follow the source system's link to EDDB to have a look at the stats there.

   **3.1   __What systems are suitable__?**

There is always at least one source system (where massacre missions spawn) and a target system (featuring a anarchy faction, where pirates have to be killed). Massacre missions do always spawn in source systems with a suitable target system within a 10Ly distance. The source system has to be in the best case a high population system (1 billion or more) with 7 factions. All factions (except the controlling one) should be either below 7%, or at least 5-10% apart. No factions should be in or near a conflict, as these will not provide any massacre missions.

A target system has to feature a ringed planet with a low resource site (low res)—what can be only verified in-system. A medium or high security level is beneficial. However, security forces in a high security system, while helping out with killing pirates, may present also an issue. They may scan and attack pirates before they get aggressive towards you—thus, stealing your kills. Also the presence of many system authority ships around you, may accidentally get one them into your line of fire. Even if not intentional, you will instantly gain a bounty for firing at an authority vessel and get killed by them—only to respawn on the nearest prison ship.

You can use https://edtools.cc/pve to locate most suitable systems and ask in #elite-talk if in doubt.

   **3.2   __I have heared of hunting at nav beacons and high resource sites__!**

Yes, that is possible (even at hazardous resource sites) albeit not recommended. Nav beacons do feature slow enemy spawn rates—while all resource sites with an intensity above low, do feature too intense waves of enemies for an AFK to work reliably.

   **3.3   __How am I supposed to get there__?**

Good question, as your hunting ship will jump somewhere around 15 Ly and have no fuel scoop. Just get into your favorite ship or take an Apex shuttle, jump to your source system's station, and let your AFK ship be brought to you.

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3.4 How do I get the missions?

At a station in the desired source system, stack up to 19 massacre missions. The indicated threat level is meaningless for doing them AFK and they spawn as solo or wing missions. The only difference is, that wing missions, while allowing to be shared on cashing in, require about three times the amount of pirates to kill. It may take several board-flips to stack all required missions. The station boards flip every 10 minutes spawning new missions—just exit and enter the station menu to refresh the boards. As the last mission, you have to take a cargo delivery. It does not matter what cargo, how much, or where to. It matters only, that this cargo can be scanned but cannot be stolen by pirates.

You have to take all available massacre missions for several days, to build your reputation up to allied status. Only then you get the best paying missions—up to 40 million credits for 30 pirates solo. While being picky and lucky, you can accept up to 19 missions paying 30-40M credits average. Thus, making 570-760 million credits for one run. Additionally, you will earn bounties of around 50M.

   **3.5   __There are conflicts in the system__**__—__**__I cannot get good missions__!**

Be aware, that what you are doing is affecting the background simulation (BGS). Meaning, the influence levels of the factions you are doing missions for will change. This may lead to pushing factions into conflicts sooner or later—depending on the system's population size. The larger it is, the longer it will stay stable.

Should conflicts (wars, elections) appear, it is best to sit them out. Even as conflicting factions do not provide pirate massacre missions, the remaining ones will still do. It may take longer to fill all 19, but it will not hurt anything else. It is however not advised to engage in conflicts, as it will hurt your reputation with one of the factions considerably.

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4 How do I hunt for pirates?

After accepting 19 massacre and one cargo missions, get the cargo and jump to the target system. While flying to your desired low res site try avoiding interdictions. Best to fly full speed and let supercruise assist take over just for the last 7-8 seconds. If you cannot avoid being interdicted, submit and instantly boost away into supercruise again.

As you drop in to the resource site, you may notice, that asteroid rings do have one smooth and one rough side—with asteroids positioned further out from the belt. The smooth side is preferred for better controlling how enemies approach you. Further, the resource site marker may be shifted more towards one side of the asteroid belt—then this one is preferred. Align yourself about 6km from the the site, your nose pointing at the center, at an angle of about 45 degrees from asteroid belt.

Deploy your hardpoints (set to fire at will), your fighter (set to defend) if you have one, only after reaching your final parking position. Also verify your pips to be 402. Disable your thrusters in the modules panel (if your power priorities did not do that already), the FSD, and power distributor to conserve fuel. As your ship does have to stay there for hours, you have to watch your fuel consumption and reserves—you want to return to your source system, after all. Disabling the thrusters serves another purpose. It prevents your ship from being pushed around by the attackers and you will keep your position at all times that way.

   **4.1   __What are enemy ship waves__?**

As you are approaching your parking spot, the first wave of enemies might be already upon you. That wave has to appear almost instantly and feature only small ships (best in a group of three) with one Sidewinder, at least. Also further waves must spawn small ships only—with the exception of an Asp Scout/Explorer allowed among them. Should that be not the case, log out to menu and log in again to re-initialize the waves. The pattern of enemy ship waves is set at the time of entering the area (i.e. dropping in from supercruise or logging in again). The benefit of having a particular pattern is, that no harder enemies are going to appear and the spawn rate will be high—making up to 60 pirates appear per hour.

   **4.2   __I see manufactured materials everywhere__**__—__**__I do want to have them__!**

Best to equip a multi-limpet controller for mining, as it can spawn collector limpets with an endless lifespan and a range of 5km (currently bugged to their default range of around 1km). Leave the cargo hatch open, spawn your limpets, and let them collect. Do keep an eye on your contacts list to exclude all commodities from the collection list—as it will fill up your cargo quickly and the limpets stop collecting. Just do not forget to remove whatever you want from the list again (e.g. while going mining). Some NPCs also do use explosive projectiles (missiles) that will destroy your limpets unintentionally.

   **4.3   __I have been destroyed__**__—__**__where am I, what happened, what do I have to do now__?**

That may happen due to different reasons. One has been already described above—attacking (unintentionally) a system security vessel. You will wake up in prison, then. Always accept to pay all bounties and rebuy costs, or you may lose your ship otherwise. Take an Apex shuttle from there to your source system and let your ship be delivered to you again. You will have to abandon at least your cargo delivery mission and take another to continue. You won't loose any progress on the massacre missions, though.

Should you be destroyed or run out of fuel, you have to rebuy your ship again, and you will most likely spawn in a suitable station within your target system. Also in that case you will have to abandon your cargo delivery mission and take another. It does not matter what mission it is—only the presence of cargo in your hold counts.

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5 All missions done—how do I get my credits now?

Provided you had not misjudged your fuel consumption, retract your hardpoints and turn on all your modules again. Jump to your source station and hand in all missions—alternatively share wing missions one-by-one while handing in. Do not forget to hand in the bounties you have collected, too.

   **5.1   __Can I really multiply my earnings while handing in__?**

Yes. If you have done any wing missions (blue wing symbol), you can share them with a teammate while handing them in. For that purpose, you both have to be in a private or open session and teamed up. While in the station, go to the left panel and select the first (top) mission from the transactions and share it—the teammate has to accept it now. Best to remember the payout of the mission, as you have to find it in the hand-in menu in the station. The top mission in the transactions is usually the bottom one in the hand-in menu. This way your teammate can hand in that mission for the same payout, too.

   **5.2   __Wait, aren't there engineering materials to be earned__?**

Yes. Taking a slightly reduced payout in credits into account, you can earn high-grade engineering materials from many of those missions. That is a trade worth taking.

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Thanks for reading and have fun farming credits!

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