Elite Dangerous Tips for New Players | Friendship Drive Guides

Welcome to all the new CMDRs! This video contains just a few basic tips for getting started, but I realised while editing that there were a ton more I wanted to mention so I may have to do a part 2! As always, feel free to ask any questions in the comments or let me know if there's a specific guide video you'd like to see in the future.

[@xD3m0nx]

You got players in discord on ps4?

[@StyxByrd]

The Elite Dangerous community has been one of the most wholesome and welcoming communities I have ever experienced in a video game. I am so glad I stumbled across this game.

Super agree! I've met so many wonderful people in the Elite community!

[@AClRCLEOFLlGHT]

I've played Elite for 5 years, and if I've learned anything over that time it's that credits don't buy happiness or enjoyment. I've rerolled my Commander 3 times since I started, and each reroll came after taking a hiatus from the game due to... well... boredom. I really thought over why this game was getting old to me so quickly, and after my 3rd reroll I figured out why. Credits. Getting stuck in that trap of feeling like I had to make money and own the best ships. This last session has been the longest to date, and I'm not bored at all. Because I'm still flying the little guys. I always thought my Cutters, Anacondas and Vettes were the best ships to have the most fun in, and everything else was just a stepping stone to those ships... but I've realized that's not true. So to help me steer clear of falling into that trap again, I intentionally do missions that offer low rewards, or I go with the influence or item rewards. The mission is still fun, and you do the same things. I mine in an Adder or Keelback. I do combat in an Eagle, and if I feel fancy... I'll whip out my courier. I feel more like a real space commander, because I'm flying the ships I would probably fly in real life if I lived in the future. I wouldn't have a Billion Credits to throw at a company like Gutamaya. I have my little Courier because I'm an imperial, and it makes me feel absolutely rich. It also makes the game more challenging, and there's no better feeling than being interdicted in a courier by another Commander in a Python... and picking up his cargo after you've destroyed his power plant and sent him floating in space.

[@SpaceMissile]

great comment ha

[@obiwanpez]

Small audio skip at 4:46 clips "I use fastest [...] this will reduce..." Nothing important is clipped, but it was something that caught my attention.

[@hobosoco322]

With this game being free on Epic right now I found your videos and they have helped so much learning. Thank you.

Welcome to Elite! I'm so glad the videos have been helpful!

[@dundisdundat7022]

@ me too thank you is there Boop on Xbox now?

[@aloseman]

I got the game on Epic too. Only just got around to installing it last week. It's been fun.

[@patho977]

Your guides hace been my favorite among all the other creators, thanks for making them!

[@LaughingAndy]

While your flying around always scan ships you can see. It’s a good way of collecting data materials.

[@down7own7]

Another wonderful guide! I especially love the "play the way you want"! There's nothing worse in my opinion that being forced into some kind of META just to have fun.

Bless you. 💜

[@edmartin875]

I totally agree. If I have to leave my game for a couple minutes I don't need anyone's permission or approval to point my ship in a relatively safe direction, throttle down or what ever just because I gotta pee. Besides, I'm old (74) and the meds I take force the issue. So when my body says it's time to pee, it ain't joking around. I gotta get up and head for the head right then.

[@TheSlayer117]

I finally found a video that's actually good for new players without putting me off :D Also, I wondered why the AI kept saying friendship drive until I realised its called Frame Shift. Glad I'm not the only one.

[@kennyl1041]

I have just started this game 2 days ago and being overwhelmed is an understatement. I just started out as a PC gamer being a console gamer since the late 80s. I have been watching your videos thank you so much for your help as I enjoy the game so far but have been confused in what to do.

[@Fizzer52]

I am so glad I found your Friendship Drive Guide series! The tips are helping a lot and are straight to the point! For a non english speaker (even tho I'm not so bad), this is great! I recently bought Elite and I found myself overwhelmed by the number of activities you can do :O I didn't expect it to be so massive, but you made me feel more confortable with the basics! Thanks a lot Commander :) I hope the community of Elite Dangerous accepts a new member in his ranks!

[@Jakes_1-1]

Just left the starter system in my shiny new Cobra ||| and at my first stop I grabbed an A-Class fuel scoop...and then I thought: "Wow, I would love anothe r ED video from Psyche...." and here you are...perfect timing!! Day made!Thanks for the great tips! Looking forward to the next video!!

Cobra MK III is the best ship in the game. 😤 Thank you for the comment and for watching the videos!

[@eyegameplays6732]

You are my favorite ED youtuber hands down.

Thank you so much!

[@Thalanna]

I found this because of the KZbin algorithm lol, even though I have 1500 hours of Elite :D Doesn't matter, it's a good list overall. Especially #10: I've found the Elite community to be abnormally welcoming and nice overall, compared to the community in other games. While most subreddits are a mess, the E:D subreddit usually is happy to answer any question, even stupid ones. Same goes for the various communities I've found across Discord, Twitch, and such :)

Hi fellow CMDR! o7 I totally agree, I really feel like the Elite community has been the loveliest bunch of people. There's of course the odd bad egg, but for the most part it's been much more welcoming than other gaming communities in my experience!

[@curtisshoe1583]

I'm just getting started in Elite, and find your videos very helpful! So much to learn but I think I will enjoy this very much! Thanks

[@visnau1126]

I'm not super new, I have played the game before. Played for a while when horizons came out but now I have forgotten how to do anything. The map advice was the best advice I have gotten, I didn't know there were so many filters for the galaxy map.

[@mythic2750]

Hey, nice video and girl you have a beautiful voice. I'm an on & off player of ED with some 1000 hours into the game who just happened to watch your video because it was recommended by YT. I concur with all of the tips you've shared here with just one thing to add to help our fellow commanders - when you're out there in a resource extraction site, or a nav beacon trying to find that bounty and earn some quick space cash do exactly as Psyche explained but make sure to outfit your ship with a "Kill Warrant Scanner" and scan your target with that particular scanner before deploying those freshly bought hardpoints to unload your arsenal of space lasers and hot lead onto your target. I cannot stress enough the importance and necessity of scanning the target to confirm that it is indeed "wanted" in the system/systems before shooting it, even if you can see that the patroling units are shooting at it. You will be on the receiving end if you don't scan and confirm if that unit is wanted, and the patroling ships will open fire at you. This is the only thing I wanted to add. Psyche, this particular video is a great resource for beginner players and I thank you for making it. I'd also like to welcome you to the massive world of ED content creators, hope you gain great subs and likes during your journey. To you and to my fellow commanders, may the friendship drive guide you into the vastness of space and propell you towards those uncharted territories where no man has ever set foot before. Out of the millions of stars in our galaxy only a few thousands have been discovered in the past 6-7 years (in elite dangerous galaxy, frontier has confirmed this data). There are millions out there waiting for you to visit, discover and name. So equip those scanners and that fuel scoop, strap on your space seatbelts, charge your friendship drives and shoot for the stars. The galaxy is waiting for you. Psyche, you have earned a new subscriber and a like on this particular video (my first of many, from you). Thank you once again for the time and effort you've put into it. CMDR Mythicent out o7

This comment was so lovely to read, thank you so much CMDR Mythicent! o7 Also I really appreciate the compliment on my voice. It's something I've actually always been self-conscious about. Agreed on the tip for the Kill Warrant Scanner! I mentioned it in my Modules video but it's definitely worth mentioning again. I may actually have to do a second round of Tips for New Players as I came up with a few others whilst editing that one (throttle to zero when jumping, assuming not using Hyperspace Dethrottle, setting your speed to 75% or 0:07 remaining on the timer to avoid overshooting, etc). Thanks so much again for the comment.

[@colummccrudden101]

Starting from scratch again. Good to find someone with a similar accent. Taking my time id probs the one i should takr on the most

[@kahldris1228]

Been playing for a week and just bought a mark 3 cobra. Your guides are most helpful! Cool game

[@elafire818]

Your videos have been a life saver. This game has a steep learning curve.

[@AstroKing9619]

I’ve been binging your videos while waiting for my nav computer to plot a route to Sag A*. Good work CMDR o7

[@Jax_Destro]

I am here before finishing the video. I just want to stress the first tip, which I cannot do enough. I once went from a Python which cost 50 million credits all the way back to the freewinder, all because I didn't have the rebuy. The moment you think, "I am just going from A to B, I will be fine," is the moment you get ground into space dust. There is nothing more humiliating than losing it all over a dumb choice.

[@Kailis89]

Well I certainly followed the play whatever way you want route. I took a trip to Maia and then to Felicity in my basically stock 10,8 LY max jump cobra III while scanning and discovering all the planets (with a surface scan here and there). Yes it took me over 65 jumps and many hours to make it to Gaia, but it was fun

I did something similar when I first started, in a stock Hauler. I went on a ~1500 Ly trip just seeing some sights!

[@whiteclouddakota1451]

Thank you!!!! I literally went into panic mode learning this!!!

[@elkcrossing799]

Really loving these tip videos - easy to understand and super helpful!

I'm so glad!

[@wtfpantera]

Thank you again for this series. I'm not even playing at the moment, but I'm always checking those out to learn more.

Thank you! I hope they'll help when you do play.

[@ShawnFerrell]

I recently tried Star Citizen again, it is an amazing game, but the amount of time it takes to do a single thing brought me back to Elite.

I haven't tried Star Citizen...yet. But I have heard that from people who have.

[@davemardon6756]

Good vid. Tip 4 and 7....This. Like playing Star Citizen (not comparing the games) I just enjoy the playing of the games, no hurry, play my way and my time. Enjoying what's in the games.

I've never played Star Citizen! I may try it some day. But it's just so important to enjoy it your way, instead of playing in a specific way because someone else said so. I've seen so many people give up because they don't enjoy playing it someone else's way, y'know?

[@davemardon6756]

@ Agree. Its funny in that SC is one of only 2 games I have any interest in playing on line, the other being Miscreated which I enjoy despite a lot of the bad reviews and "hate"..Again, good vid and just subbed.

[@silentplaygames]

Thanks for the tips! As a beginner it was quite interesting.

[@agidyne9676]

Started playing this recently. After some bad sprint glitch in AC Black Flag, this game caught my eye. I think it was around 8.00$? Pretty good so far. Shame I can’t return to Matet after some license expired.

[@brkbtjunkie]

Love your videos and your voice is like soft velvet. Keep up the good work!

As someone who was made fun of a lot for her voice/accent, this comment was so nice! Thank you so much!

[@ssPeto]

As a player with just over 100 hours, I agree with this list. Another tip--don't buy the ship someone else wants you to buy. Get the ship You want to buy! Just make sure it can handle the task you want to accomplish with it..

AGREED! I'm doing a ship guide video, and the main theme is "these ships are popular for this role but fly what YOU want to fly...within reason".

[@pottsiesracingaccord]

Loved this! So useful for a new commander, great accident !

[@esaedvik]

Who would run out of fuel in Elite...and call Fuel Rats...on stream.

[@dynghivarn]

Recently got back to the game after a few years. Still a newbie. I loved every bit of your video, commander! I love this game even more knowing there are gems like you out there in the void. I still don't know what o7 means but I think it would be appropriate here as a sign off, perhaps?

o7 is meant to look like someone saluting, so o7 CMDR!

[@Snowburnt]

Great video! New commander here, and enjoying the game.

[@AstraCookie]

Yesssss. I've been waiting for this. Btw quick question. I heard that 2 shield blasters are useless but why?

Do you mean Shield Boosters? If so, it's not useless to have more than one, but they do have diminishing returns after you reach a certain boosted rate. I usually end up with one or two equipped!

[@AstraCookie]

@ Thank you

[@danieledwardsen7912]

Going from no mans sky to this its surprisingly different and alot more indepth but I must admit the battles (training) is lacking but I am still just starting I have subbed you and will be watching your videos alot more, cheers

[@commandericeman8588]

I'm still a noob been playing for about two months. I still make the mistake of having to do the loop of shame. What is the trick or rule of thumb to avoid having to do the loop of shame? I keep getting stuck on the type of mission where I have to assassinate a pirate. I goto his solar system to hunt him down... I arrive at the aforementioned system, then I get a message saying a particular contact knows the pirate's whereabouts and that I need to goto another system to meet the contact. I then goto the designated system to meet the contact but there is no further information given, no contact name or specific location for the contact. In the end I just end up abandoning the mission because I cannot find the contact.

[@Lohlin]

You are doing a good job Psyche, thanks for this and all your other guides

Thank you so much!

[@stockpickingbartender9603]

Great stuff. Keep it up. Just started playing and these videos really help.

[@masonryback2615]

brilliant video series helped me to learn alot about ED

[@Rocketcustompaints]

Yaaaay another video ! Lots of help thank you

[@jonathanwilson4791]

I'm a early game player that decided to come back. Looking for a group to play with. Any tips?

[@cryodragonbane4614]

I have been playing elite for years. (well since 2016 give or take.) and i enjoy the sights of space, i know my way of playing can be boring to some, but im primarily a trader as i dont have very much fighting experience. I have also recently started the planetside exploration for some xenobiology :)

[@mutantlavalampderg412]

Im horrible at using the warp drive, i always overshoot my mark or go way past it

[@Schye-]

Went to try and help a compromised science vessel yesterday and switched out my fuel scoop, i was going to maia to get Meta Alloys and luckily i noticed i got too close to the sta and my scoop didnt activate before warping until i was empty lol. *phew* Oh and i was playing solo so no fuel rats

[@FuchsiaShocked]

Thanks for the reminder to just play the way I enjoy- I got all messed up by trying to minmax and that just sucks ALLLL the fun out of it

[@Sickmave72]

Ok how did you change your ships colors of exterior and interior

[@NoahChinnBooks]

Good stuff. Fly safe, CMDR! O7

You too! o7

[@danshaffer8339]

Tip number 7 is great thank you

[@SidMajors]

Underrated channel.

Thank you!

[@rigjockey67]

Love your accent!! Excellent vid, very informative!

Thank you!

[@theoporcet]

Hello, how did you change the colour of the HUD of your ship? Purple is nice!

Thank you! I have a super short guide here for changing your HUD colour on PC: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJq6pJZrbc-DZ6M

[@theoporcet]

@ im on PS4, but thanks!!

[@TheCe1ticZombie]

Thanks for the video. New player here and can’t wait to sink a few hundred hours into this game. Can you own multiple ships ? I’ve probably spent more time watching videos on this game than actually playing it. From that time I’ve learned that the community is very helpful and something I’d like to be a part of.

Sorry for the late reply, but welcome to Elite! You can own multiple ships. 😊

[@TheCe1ticZombie]

@ Thanks for the reply. I just bought an Adder and I’m still exploring the beginning area.

[@rodneylopez5073]

Just got this game yesterday, and found your videos today! 👍👍👍👍 Request: Can you do a video on mapping a controller (PS4) or just what the key bindings mean? And which bindings are the most used? Thank you!

I'm not sure I could do a full mapping video as I think they're pretty personal (and I don't know the best way to map controllers as I rarely play on PS4) but I would be happy to help breakdown the key bindings, because I know they're a bit confusing and very overwhelming! Thank you for the suggestion!

[@LaughingAndy]

This is my advice, Map each group of functions to the same button. So all the weapons controls go to X. X-up on dpad for highest threat.x-right on dpad for next target and so on. My other advice is to map increase speed to top right of touch pad, speed down to bottom right. This gives you good speed controls and frees up the shoulder buttons for thrust left and right.

[@rodneylopez5073]

@@LaughingAndy Wow, mapping increase to the touch pad is a GREAT idea. i would have never thought of that. I've been piecing stuff together, but I'm still trying to figure out a lot of stuff in the mappings/game.

[@rodneylopez5073]

@ Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[@michelrekoert5458]

@@rodneylopez5073 i started playing a few weeks ago on the ps4, so certainly not an expert, but what helped me greatly was going to the control section to find and assign keys for go to supercruise and select next target on route. These 2 keybinding helped me to stop fighting the ships controls.

[@zacharycamper2460]

is there a way for me to friendship drive closer to a station in a system. when i jump into arangorii its got two stars, but the station i need to get to is over 400,00 ls away. its got an A and B star and the station is closer to B, but i always jump to theQ star. so im just wondering if there was a better way to jump into a system or i just have too deal with it especially when i have a time sensitive mission.

[@FlugHerr]

Thanks Psyche!!

[@designsinorbit]

I decided to buy a gaming console JUST for space exploration... since it's my only hope of doing so. But as I start out, I realize that I am trapped and can't explore without building an intensive career. Am I wrong?

[@edmartin875]

I never heard anyone describing exploration as an "intensive career". It does require certain equipment modules like a fuel scoop and a couple different scanners but can be done is almost any ship. You do need a ship that can mount all those modules. In fact your beginning ship, the Sidewinder, is quite small but can be used to wander around picking up odd jobs to finance upgrades and your first new and bigger ship.

[@gabriellobartolo8447]

Can you actually have the 3rd person point of view? if yes how do you do that? I mean, where is the option for changing it

[@edmartin875]

Loved your video. Subscribed.

[@ezioauditore3128]

American/ Northern Irish or Canadian/ Northern Irish. Can't decide. Helpful vid. Thanks!

Just Northern Irish!

[@jason-qc5lr]

what does the when category in the miners tool mean? some say 4d some say 3h. what does it mean?

I believe that is the last time it was reported, so if it's 3h for example that price/demand was reported by a player 3 hours ago and is more likely to be accurate than one from a few days ago!

[@jason-qc5lr]

@ ohhh, thanks

[@Schye-]

I personally prefer system scans to make my bucks. After a few jumps boom 100k. To maia and back, boom 5m

[@garethde-witt6433]

Thought it was frame shift drive but friendship drive sounds better

[@andrewadams8601]

Tip #11 - Try the game in VR if you can - it's so cool!

[@nathanpino3192]

Thx for the rlly good explenation

[@ogrepa]

Thanks!

[@TheSPEEZY99]

Just got it on gamepass, definitely a fun game, but clearly gotta crawl before you walk

It does not hold your hand, haha. Hope you enjoy Elite!

[@Antonio_Laur]

I just buy this game i had no ideea what to expect :)

[@MgtowRubicon]

If you never fly without rebuy, then how can you earn enough credits to rebuy?

[@TioAe]

I decided to write a silly rhyme to thank you for the wonderful time With explanations so precise I understand everything without an exercise Look, her ship is purple and way faster than a turtle I love the Friendship drive Charging it with no strive Her tutorial on exploration has no time exploitation Watch me scooping fuel from a Star without diving in too far No doubt on which Ship to buy Now I can just relax and fly Changing the HUD Colour is fantastic Made me feel so enthusiastic Thanks for all the help with this Electronic Toy Hope to see you Space Cowboy

[@aliakeel]

what do you think is the best mining ship for beginners?

The Adder is a great place to start, or as a previous comment says, the Diamondback Explorer isn't a bad option. I personally would wait til I had a Cobra Mk III (349k for the ship, a bit more for the build) which you can get from running some data courier missions or doing the Road to Riches I talked about in the video!

I'm having a hard time fitting everything I want for mining in my adder. Don't really want to remote the crutches (auto-docking, hello!) yet. :)

[@niallryland1559]

Go MK III. If deep core is your thing, Keelback is a fantastic progression from there. If you mine, you'll earn the credits to buy and outfit these ships VERY quick. Keelback pays for itself in a single run

[@aliakeel]

@@niallryland1559 got the cobra and made 40 million with it right before they nerfed mining, I'm planning on buying a type 6 now but I just don't know what to mine anymore

[@niallryland1559]

@@aliakeel with that much you can buy and outfit an AspX if the Keelback isn't good enough for you. As to what to mine - market for void opals and LTD's are quite volatile and can vary immensely. Alexanderite and Grandidirite are reasonably stable (you can find plenty of places to sell for a quarter mill per unit) by comparison.

[@williamhood7548]

Liked for, "Friendship Drive."

[@dallasnateweyes3288]

Trip for New players

[@chrismathewsjr]

thank you my friend

[@fistsofsnake5475]

What append at 4:47? ha ha ha

Oops, I must've cut the voiceover off before I said "route". 😂

[@yanhanna]

Nice 😃

[@LordCullBot]

I can't wait to be a space vagabond

[@jasonzelda]

you are AWESOME 😎😎😎

[@draconusspiritus1037]

Making money in ED is easy. Seriously, if you do much of anything more than PHART in ED, you're going to make money for doing it. Making money FAST in ED can be a bit more difficult. The same for building rank to unlock Empire of Federation ships like the Imperial Cutter or Federal Corvette. You can and will build rank even if you effectively ignore it and just do what you want when you want.

[@YeezyTeezy]

I feel kinda personally attacked. Got the game last week and made it my first task to grind out elite trader through mining to get to jameson. But I will slow down from there and explore a bit, in an anaconda.

[@diogopinto6039]

Tip #7

[@nuclearhominoidea]

but why is it called friendship drive?

[@edmartin875]

It's actually a frame shift drive but many people seems to pronounce it as friendship drive. I always thought it was my poor hearing until I saw others comment on it.

[@theninja224]

Wait.. Y'all have friends?

[@diffsmasher4824]

I joined Boop! weeee

[@x5starhustla]

i wish that there were mods on console

Do you mean the HUD modifications?