Hello All and welcome to the second issue of the The Quarry! The Cornerstone newsletter.

   First of all I want to say thank you and welcome to all of the new faces who have invested time in getting to know the organisation and playing with our community!

   So much has happened since the last installment! We had IAE, multiple org missions (good and bad!). Here's a debried for one of them: Analysis & Exploration Event. Also a particular article written by Capt Sheppard has managed to reach 30 thousand hits!

   Cornerstone is all about being inclusive and helping the community and with the Universal Item Finder, the Planetary Survey and now the Refinery to Aaron Halo Mining Routes we are truly fulfilling our objectives collectively as a group.

 Another special mention has to go to the great guys and gals we have over in Technical Pillar. Thank you for taking the time to show so many people what mining has to offer, theres too many names to mention here but you know who you are.

   We have lots planned over the holiday season, more on that soon, so for now enjoy the newsletter and if you want to get involved in the next edition be sure to let us know! Happy Holidays Brothers and Sisters! 

This month's topics:

Announcements
IAE 2951 Wrap up!
Ship Spotlight: Maggie
Red's Hang'r - Tradin’ Ships!

Announcements

   November was a busy month for Cornerstone. In addition to many members returning to the game following the release of Alpha 3.15, several of our members were recognized for their efforts in helping us continue to build our organization. If you haven’t yet heard, Cornerstone announced the following: 

HONORS:

On 17 November, Quantum Kitty was awarded the Decoration for Outstanding Citizenship. The citation reads: Cornerstone hereby recognizes Quantum Kitty as an Outstanding Citizen, for repeatedly and unerringly demonstrating admirable service to and conduct among the greater Start Citizen community, both in-game and out. The award appears on his member profile.

APPOINTMENTS:

  Effective 17 November, 2Echo was appointed as a Capstone for the Technical Pillar.

 Effective 17 November, CaptSheppard was appointed as a Capstone for the Analysis Pillar.

 Effective 24 November, Cowl was appointed as a Capstone for the Expedition Pillar. 

Thank you all for your time and efforts. We truly appreciate all that you do! 

IAE 2951 Wrap up! 

   It was another fantastic show for this year's Intergalactic Aerospace Exposition, held, once again, at the Tobin Expo Center at New Babbage. And, it was great to see so many members of Cornerstone enjoying the experience.

   From the start, Anvil set the pace with their roll-out of their new Spartan armored personnel transport. Built on the proven Atlas chassis, shared with the Ballista air defense system, Anvil has brought long-awaited safety and mobility for ground forces into the theater of combat. Shortly after the launch, troops began moving out for operations in areas previously identified as too hostile to defend. This new entrant may be the game-changer many ground commanders had been demanding.

   Excitement reached a fevered pitch with the release of the much-anticipated Aegis Redeemer. Nearly everyone participated in some form of activity involving Redeemer operations, all in order to discover the capabilities of this first-ever player-designed gunship. And, although CIG had to make a few adjustments in order to produce a flyable design, the ship was clearly a popular choice among players. Bounties beware! Redeemers are in the air!

   Crusader Industries came to the show guns-a-blazin' with their launch of the twinned Ares heavy fighter platform. Offered in both ballistic and energy weapon configurations, both the Inferno and the Ion pack a Size 7 wallop! The two fighters were designed from the outset to complement one another in the fight to deter and decimate capital-class warships. The Ion steps up first, melting the target's shields, then the Inferno steps in to punch gaping holes through the target's hull, quickly taking them out of the fight. Capital ship owners now have a new, combined threat to worry about!

   Not resting on their laurels with their award-winning workhorse, Argo Astronautics used this year's Expo as the launch event for their new RAFT cargo ship. Obviously a close cousin of the venerable MOLE, the new RAFT continues the trend of winning the hearts of existing Argo customers while also bringing many new first-time buyers to the Argo brand. For over 700 years, Argo has been solving problems and filling gaps in industrial processes everywhere they turn. Since the launch of their Orbital Utility Craft in 2578, Argo has continued to develop and improve solutions for freight handlers throughout the 'verse. And, their new RAFT containerized cargo handler promises to further entrench this legendary company in the minds of industrialists everywhere.

   Not to be outdone, MISC announced the impending arrival of a new self-sustaining exploration ship named the Odyssey. While final details or a launch date have yet to be announced, detailed concept artwork and baseline specifications were released at the show.

   The ensuing frenzy caused a run at the MISC sales booth with buyers who just couldn't be left behind in the race to explore the 'verse. Word on the streets is that deposits on the Odyssey have positioned the new ship as a serious contender meant to displace Anvil's Carrack as the preeminent explorer. Many wait to see whether MISC can pull off this feat.

   Wrapping-up perhaps the most exciting Expo to date was the unveiling of this year's Best-in-Show winners. Although there were rumors and allegations, the judges reported a verdict of an unlikely but unquestionable winner. While Crusader Industries made a respectable run with both second- and third-placings for their C-2 Hercules and Mercury Star Runner, respectively, and Origin Jumpworks made a strong, fourth-place showing with their 600i Explorer, this year's crown was a shocker for many. Argo Astronautics stole the show with their latest iteration of their MPUV-1C cargo transfer shuttle. For an entry first introduced back in 2619, rumors of conspiracy were bandied-about; how could an ancient, diminutive industrial craft unseat the likes of the sleek and mighty Hercules? It appears the elephant is still afraid of the mouse!

   Congratulations to the Argo MPUV-1C... 2951 Best-in-Show!

   See you at next year's Intergalactic Aerospace Exposition!

Ship Spotlight: Maggie

    Today on Ship Spotlight we showcase Maggie, the well known industrial mining ship operated by Cornerstone's own Glumm and Trinarius. This particular Argo Mole is more than a personal toy for the owner. Read on to find out why so many players find themselves joining the crew and what they can expect from their time there.

1. Every veteran ship has a story behind its name: what is maggies and how did it come about?

Glum: "Glumm's dog. Thicc and a little bitey"

Trin: "She's thick in that she has a lot of inertia; we've had our share of mishaps because of it. And, she's bitey because, when you don't pay attention she will give you a bite to let you know it."

2. Did the mission dictate the ship or did the ship dictate the mission, meaning which feature of the game drew your interest first? The mining mechanic or the ship itself once it was available to the public? 

Glum: "Maggie was my first standalone ship purchase. Trin and I did a lot of hand mining in caves when we were new to the game and wanted to expand into ship mining."

Trin: "And, the mining mechanic was really interesting from the start, so Maggie made a lot of sense for what we liked to do."

3. What’s Maggies overall mission? Is it simply to produce profits based on labor or is there another intention for the players who join your crew?

Glum: "Everybody likes credits. We learned mining the hard way as we really didn't have any mentors at the time, so we also spend a lot of time teaching other players how to ship mine as well. We enjoy the mining loop and like the opportunity to help ease the learning curve for others that are curious about the mechanics"

Trin: "It's also a lot more fun to have all kinds of different people join us, regardless of their level of experience."

4. Can you tell us about the way you split up your profits and why you choose to do it that way?

Glum: "Fuel and refinery fees are deducted from the value of the haul, then the rest is even split among everybody that actively participated in the mining expedition (pilot, laser operators, scouts, security). Everybody has an equal stake in the success of the expedition, so everybody gets the same cut."

Trin: "Over the time that we've been mining with Maggie, this approach gives everyone more incentive to learn and apply the tools and techniques, so that we maximize our return."

5. What expectations should players have of themselves if they want to be successful at mining for a virtual career?

Glum: " Mining mechanics are pretty easy to understand--fracture, extraction, and refining. The nuance is really in the details of how various minerals can fracture, equipment combos, best ore locations, and the synergy of the players' skills that are part of the group. Easy to understand, but takes work to master. Patience is absolutely required--both of oneself and crew members.
Mining is kind of like fishing...sometimes the fish bite and sometimes they don't. Patience is also required here too. Cooperative play dramatically increases the chance of success--more fellow miners and/or scouts."

Trin: "I think they should expect that it will take them some time to master the techniques but that the basics are pretty easy to pick up, and they're transferable to all other kinds of mining."

Red’s Hang’r - Tradin’ Ships! 

   Howdy, y’all! Fer those a you who visit’d last time, welc’m back to the Hang’r! Fer the new of ya, I’m Red, short fer Redneck Mech, and this is my hang’r, Red’s Hang’r. Here, we kick back and have a li’l fun talk’in ‘bout ships. Hang’r flyin’ fer those of ya new ta hangin’ out in hang’rs and shootin’ the breeze.

   T’day, we’re talkin’ ‘bout tradin’ ships. In pa’ticaler, medium-sized tradin’ ships. Go ahead, pull up wunna ‘em there stools over yonder, and sit a spell.

   He’p yersef ta som’n in the fridge while yer at it.

   Now, we’re talkin’ medium-sized ‘cause there’s lotsa folk lookin’ ta earn some credits, but they ain’t gots a lot t’ in-vest. Not yet, anyway. And. And… the medium-sized tradin’ ships are the next setup up from them li’l ol’ package haulers. Like that sexy li’l Titan, that Beluga whale-lookin’ freee-lancer, and that fragile ol’ Cutlass Black; always relacin’ them front wings, ever time someone comes back from a “mission,” they need their Black repair’d. I keep lotsa spare wings in stock jus’ for ‘em. Them an’ ‘em Red runners…

  Anawho…

   Sure, a ship like ‘at ol’ Black an’ the ‘Lancer ‘ll git ya decent-sized dee-liveries to an’ back from all sortsa back-water outposts, but they’re kinna small. Less than a hunert units a cargo each run. Ya burn a lotta fuel for not much return on yer ‘vestment. ‘Stead a earnin’ only sevr’l hunert credits per run, ya wanna ear a bit more. Som’n ‘at gits ya up inna tens a thousan’s a credits on a haul. That’s where the medium-sized tradin’ ships come in.

   Now, fer what-ever reason the Em-pire honchos thought up, a medium-sized tradin’ ship is anathang ‘at c’n carry anawhere from one hunert ta three hunert-an-fi’ty Stan’ert Cargo Units… eSs-Cee-yoUs fer y’all, if ya ain’t never heard the bree-vee-ayshun b’fore.

   ‘Course, ya might wunner why ya’d care ‘bout cargo units…

   (I wunner why they’s called car-go units, since there ain’t no cars makin’ ‘em go. Oughts ta be called shippin’ units, since we use ships ta haul ‘em, but wha’da I know?)

   Anawho…

   If yer new ta tradin’, buyers p’fer ta buy c’modities in bulk. Shippers p’fer to sell c’modities in bulk, too. (Funny how that works!) But, there’s few thangs more bulky than a stan’ert cargo box, ‘cept maybe a bulk cargo c’ntainer, but that ain’t nuthin’ we’re talkin’ ‘bout t’day. So, when buyers look fer bulk c’modities, they eye-dentify the quantity they need in terms of c’modity units.

   Fer ex-zample, them ol’ boys up at Admin, here at the station, they wants ta buy hydergen gas; anaone stoppin’ at the station wants ta refuel their ship an’ the station sells hydergen fuel, the station needs lotsa hydergen gas ta keep ships filled. The station ain’t gonna buy hydergen by the liter, it ain’t big ‘nough. They buy it in c’modity units, ‘nstead. Lotsa units. Like up ta ni’ty-thousn’ units a minnut. That’s what I’m a talkin’ ‘bout when I say bulk!

   So, if ya dinnent know… one stan’ert cargo unit contains eggs-actly one cubic meter a cargo by vol-youm. The spe-sa-fa-cashuns for the box are one meter on a side fer each inside face of a cargo box, with the out-side dee-menshun at one-an-a-fourth meters on a side. That’s one-point-two-five meters fer those a you not likin’ frac-shuns. It’s aroun’ this stan’ert box size that tradin’ ships ‘r dee-sign’t. This stan’ert size makes it easy fer ship manafact’ers ta build cargo holds fer a given kinna haul job.

   Fer small jobs, like ‘em package haulin’ courier missions, a ship like the Pisces ‘r that sexy li’l Titan ‘ll do ya just fine, with only a few units worth a cargo space. Haulin’ c’modities, though, well, ya need som’n bigger. But, at only forty-six units, a Cutty Black ain’t turnin’ ya much profit on c’modities runs. An’, c’modities is really where the credits are.

   Now, take c’modities like ass-a-tine [editor’s note: Astatine] fer ex-zample… places like Trade Dee-velumpent D’vishun at Area 18 wanna buy lotsa ass-a-tine. Places like ArcCorp Mining Area 157 on Yela have lotsa ass-a-tine ta sell. But, ‘specially ‘cause of the distance and the cost a fuel, haulin’ only forty-six units at a time ain’t very ‘fish’nt.

   C’modities, how-ever, ‘r traded in c’modities units. By volume, one Stan’ert Cargo Unit contains one-hunert c’modities units. That’s an im-portant part of the puzzle. ‘cause ya need ta times yer c’modities num’ers by a hunert in order ta see the right num’ers fer earnin’s.

   Now, keep in min’ there ain’ no promise you’ll see these ‘zact num’ers when yer tradin’. This all is just fer ‘splainin’ how one ship compares ta ‘nother. Don’t come back ta me if yer hauls ain’t makin’ ya credits like ya see here; this is just fer ex-zample.

   Usin’ an apples-ta-apples like ex-zample, y’all c’n buy ass-a-tine fer somewhere ‘bouts seven-an-a-half credits per c’modities unit, an’ sell it fer ‘bouts nine credits per c’modities unit. That means y’all c’n make roughly… I say roughly… one-an-a-half credits fer each c’modities unit of ass-a-tine ya haul. Now… that ain’t pure profit. Nope, that’s the net earnings, b’fore ya take out fer fuel an’ ship main-tain-ance, crew wages, an’ even escorts, sometimes, if ya know what I mean.

   ‘Course, which ship ya fly, an’ how much crew ya have, can be a big differ’nce fer the bottom line. So, don’t go takin’ these num’ers fer gospel, now. We’s jus’ tryin’ ta give ya some idears why a bigger ship might be a good choice. Which brings us ‘round t’ our topic… medium-sized tradin’ ships.

   At only one-an-a-half credits per c’modities unit, a Cutty Black can earn ya ‘bout sixty-five-hunert credits per run. Unless it’s a really short run, ‘r ya have som’n else ta haul the other direction, y’all ‘ll spend a lotta yer credits in fuel. That makes it hard ta be profitable with c’modities in a Cutty. ‘Speically with how much time ya have ta put inta haulin’ so few units.

   Now, ya move up to a medium-sized ship like the Merc’ry Star Runn’r, yer haulin’ up to a hunert-an-fourteen Stan’ert Cargo Units. That means ya might be makin’ ‘bout sixteen-thousan’ credits per run, b’fore ‘spences.

   If y’all c’n afford ta upgrade to a ‘Lancer Max, y’ll might make ‘bout a seventeen-thousan’ credits per run; the Max carries up one-hunert-an-twenty-two Stan’ert Cargo Units.

   The Cons’a’lation Taurus carries up to one-hunert-an-seventy-four Stan’ert Cargo Units, which might earn ya ‘bout twenty-four-thousan’ credits per run. NOW! Now, we’re talkin’ a good use a y’all’s time, an’ makin’ some good money!

   If’n ya wanna look at som’n a bit bigger but still in the medium-sized category, ya might even consider a Starfarer. Now… take care with som’n like the Starfarer… she’s a big ship and she drinks fuel like it’s goin’ outta style. I got a pilot ‘at brings in his company’s ships for refit, an’ he spent some time flyin’ a ‘Farer. Said she handled like a hippo in a mud-hole, all wallerin’ ‘round whenever he had ta fly her in atmo’. Said she wasn’t one to be taken lightly, pun intended, ‘cause ya burn a LOT a fuel both landin’ and takin’ off, an’ even the slightest breeze will push her ‘round. But, if ya gots yerself a handle on the big ladies, she’ll haul up ta two-hunert-and-nin’y-five Stan’ert Cargo Units worth a goods, an’, usin’ the same num’ers as the others, could earn ya over forty-thousan’ per run.

   So there’s lotsa option out there. An’, if yer willin’ ta wait fer dee-livery, GATAC Manafacter’n’ announced their Xi’an cargo ship, called the Railin. They ain’t brought none over ta Stan’n, yet, but they’s s’posed ta haul up ta three-hunert-n-twen’y Staner’t Cargo Units. That’s a lotta ass-a-tine! Bet lotsa haulers lookin’ forward ta that’n.

   After that, yer up inna large-size an’ capital-size haulers. Then ya has ta worry ‘bout ‘vailable supply. Them large ships, like the Cat an’ the Herc have so much cay-pacity, suppliers sometimes don’t have enough to fill ‘em. So, there’s a sweet spot when it comes ta haulin’ c’modities.

   If y’all ‘r in’erested in buyin’ any of the ships we talked ‘bout, hop on over to wunna ‘em dealers shown below:

   Crusader Industries Showroom, Orison
      Merc’ry Star Runn’r 5.0m aUEC

   New Deal, Teasa Spaceport, Lorville
      ‘Lancer Max 2.2m aUEC
      Cons’a’lation Taurus 3.3m aUEC
      Starfarer 6.7m aUEC

   Be safe out there, and happy tradin’!