Player Features and Ideas Discussion

Every so often, someone will want something moved in a hurry, but the fastest we can set a courier contract is for a day (and that's after it has been picked up). We can put higher rewards on it, but that doesn't necessarily mean the courier will move it any faster, since they still have a full day to deliver it, and while we can promise someone a higher reward if they move a courier contract in under a length of time, there's no way to really enforce it.

It would be nice to have a way to actually enforce the promise of a higher payout for a faster delivery, so I propose that we have the option to set a bonus reward for a courier shipment that is delivered by a certain time (based on EVE-time). This would provide additional incentive for the shipment to be picked up faster, as well as being delivered faster.

For example, if it's 11:20 EVE-time and you have an 8k m3 shipment going 20 jumps, and you're offering a 10m reward for it, but would prefer it to be delivered by 0100 EVE-time and are willing to pay an extra 5m if it gets delivered by then, you could set the time-bonus to 0100 and offer the additional 5m along in that field. If the contract is delivered by then, the courier will automatically get the time-bonus ISK, but if it's delivered after that time, they would simply get the normal reward.

I think slightly simpler is better:

Keep the two time limits as now. Accept limit, 1, 3, 7 and 14 days, maybe add 2 days to the menu. For your purpose you'd always set 1 day anyway. Likewise keep the delivery limit as now, 1, 3, 7, and 14 days, maybe add a 2 days option too.

But then add additional rewards. "Bonus pay if done in half time", meaning half of delivery time limit, "Bonus pay if done in quarter time" and "bonus pay if done in 1/8 time".

The creator of the contract can leave any or all of the 3 bonus pay fields empty, but he cannot input a smaller reward in the faster fields, that is 1/4 time cannot have a smaller reward than 1/2 time, ut must be equal to or larger, and if left empty it's just ignored ad the courier gets the 1/2 time reward.

The ideal solution would deal with total time, accept time limit + delivery time limit, but I cannot see a good simple way of handling that.

Exactly this.

So you're saying that, by taking a risk with a shipment, the hauler has the potential for a better reward? Wow, we don't want that to happen. I guess you're right, that it's a terrible idea.

I'm being sarcastic, if you can't tell.

In all reality, though, it does boil down to risk vs. reward. You can research a character's past contracts, research the systems along the route, and can gain an incredible amount of intel before you ever even accept the shipment. If something seems off, don't take it. Even if you do accept it before realizing it's probably a set-up, you'd still be able to get the regular reward, just not the timed reward, by sitting on it for a bit. If something has a paltry regular reward, just don't accept it.

EvE could just as easily be called RvR (risk vs. reward).

Howabout a gradually-decaying bonus? You could set the bonus amount and its half-life.

good idea!