Elite is a game so big, that a single player can't discover all the activities, and in some cases, whole squadrons or communities do massive efforts to map the galaxy, each ring for mining spots, filtering across a 400Billion milky way, 20K inhabitated systems, and 500K stations and settlements, to find the best places in a changing galaxy. This guides had reviews, with the introduction of updates, or the storyline, and mantain this knowledge take lot of effort.
This is a recommended progression. Mix at your own pace, but if some content become to hard for you, return to the progression and unlocks for the needed upgrades.
PROGRESSION AND UNLOCKS
Buy a better ship than a sidewinder, with A-rated FSD and powerplant, and D-rated Sensors and life support, other cores and most modules A or D-rated. Weapons and special modules (SRV hangar) ignore the letter rule.
Pick the Preengineered modules in the Tech Broker (5A FSD with superior range than the player engineered, DSS probes +40%...).
Farm high grade engineering mats , Crashed Anacondas become better in last engineering patch and work with flaks and collector limpets. This finder will show the nearest HGE Signals for mats that have LOTs of mats. And Jameson Crash Site have lots of beacons, 5/8 in range of SRV well placed, or you can use your ship datalink to scan (weapons deployed to use it) .Previous methods Brain Trees, flaks and limpets in the near Guardian space for all G4 mats. The old Crystalline Shard are valid, but far away than Brain Trees and lack Selenium.
Unlock Engineers and upgrade the modules with the recommended engineering. You can pin 1 blueprint per engineer, but not experimental effects.
Unlock Guardian modules (mostly the Guardian Frame Shift Drive Booster, the others are like G3.5 engineered or weapon against the aliens.)
Unlock the permit locked zones. Selling 5-7M of exploration data in the Gateway megaships is a easy method for Allied rank. Relog after having the permit to update the galaxy map.
Gain Imperial Rank and make a Trader/Miner/Combat Cutter. Summerland system, Henry O'Hare station have a 30% discount.
Gain Fed Rank or (alternative guide), and make a combat corvette, less Fed factions than before, I don't know the current state of this, but apreciate the experience of new players heres). Ochosi-Chakpa have 3 Fed Factions each, and 10-14hours are enough with the new SCO FSD.
Visit Colonia, unlock the 4 superengineers and visit the multiple Lagrange Clouds. Colonia Bridge megaship at 500Ly provide some support in the trip, r/FCOC do regular shuttles, and if you try Neutron supercharge in Jackson's Lighthouse, you can use Spansh.co.uk neutron plotter for the fastest trip. Bring AFMU and repair FSD when <80% integrity.
Buy/unlock the special modules in the Rescue Megaship outfitting and tech broker, and also the Sirius Corporation Megaships Tech Brokers. Overengineered AX weapons and heatsinks among others. Some need very rare mats from alien items, find a youtube guide for each one.
Reach allied with Azimuth Biotech, approach the megaship in LHS 1163, obtain Mbooni permit, land in Prospector's Deep, and purchase the Modified Guardian weapons, a single weapon per transaction. Modified Gauss is the only that I find inferior to Vanilla version.
Pledge a Powerplay NPC, know their mentality
Collect all Powerplay modules
CAREERS
Try EliteTraders guide for easy money
Try EliteMiners current state of mining for more money
Make a Passenger Python for Robigo Mines
Make a Evacuation ship, for stations on fire or under Thargoid Attack.
Make a better explorer ship and visit Sagittarius A*, Beagle point and Oeavasy SG-Y d0, a list of great systems to explore
Take part in Community Goals or the playermade events
Reach the max Credits per Hour, Now Onfoot combat zones need relog inside a SRV. Thargoid payment got nerfed, but also upgraded weapons and the limit up to 6 with Weapon Stabilizers modules. Exobiology provide 100-500M/hour for know route or using spansh body search for HMC, <0.27G with the correct atmospheres, in a popular explored route toward SagA*/Colonia/BeaglePoint. For exploration try some tool for Road2Riches. The best method at the moment is Spire farming. P.T.N. organize trips to Roackham Peak before Public Holiday faction state for the Booze Cruise method.
Join AX Combat against thargoids, using Guardian weapons, Weapon stabilizar for up to 6 AX/guardian weapons and fully engineered ships. Kill Scouts, Cyclop and Basilisk (Medusa and Hydra in group or if you are very very good pilot). New Thargoids like Orthus or Glaive melt guardian tech except Hull Reinforcement, Enhaced AX weapons or Sirius preengineered AX Missiles. Enhaced Xeno Scanner provide more range. Caustic Sink and Thargoid Pulse Neutralizer in the rescue megaships for attacks on the titan. A new engineering in Ram Tah workshop avoid the antiguardian field that some Thargoid have, but with a -20% Damage reduction, less total damage than Sirius AX Missiles.
Join a Squadron
Triple Elite Rank. For ships combat, I recommend in KraitMk2+4Salvation Plasma Chargers in AX Combat Zones, Or Enhaced AX Gimballed MC, new Overcharged Azimuth variant is available in Rescue megaship tech broker and give +10% damage and Autoloader. A new method involve Onfoot Safeguard missions threat 5 in some settlements that drop lots of enemies at the same time, but even normal Threat5 or even threat 4 will improve your rank faster than ship combat.
Buy a Fleet Carrier around 5B (more with some modules, at least armory). Tritium Monkeys refuel FC for a fee.
ODYSSEY
Buy Odyssey and keep playing
Explore Pioneer supplies for G3 Suits and Weapons, or use Sharing is Caring thread, restock on thursday.
Install Odyssey Material Helper and farm mats in Anarchy settlements. Enter supercruise and return to respawn settlements, no-settlements work with relog if you have a mission on it and didn't retrieve the mission item. You can sell the same item again and again in your FC Bartender, to unlock some engineers. Buy the easy mats in the same bartenders, or farm in the correct places with the correct respawn mechanic. Now the system CD-51 2650 include Anarchy faction (CD-51 2650 Purple Gang) with lot of different settlements economy, you can go here and kill everybody without bounties or notoriety, while farming mats.
See Stealthboy videos, and the tricks in the Settlement maps
Farm Exobiology for Green-Blue-Red Artemis suits. For max profit/rank use this guide instead
Farm Mercenary Rank for Bronze-Silver-Golden Dominator suits. We have a great guide about Warmongering
LORE AND FUN
Suscribe to Galnet News Digest, there is special playlist with each year for old but important content.
Enter a Thargoid Structure, the door will open when onfoot, if you bring some guardian Relics, drop up to 3 in the device, and scan the central structure, wait outside the central room and defend yourself until the intense heat stop, scoop the new relics.
Explore Canonn Codex , I recommend INRA settlements (older to newer is the correct ), generation ships, and Azimuth Saga
Drew Wagar videos for the Lore between original Elite up to 3307 year.
Visit the Canyons for Odyssey, also launch the legacy horizons for a quick
Visit Rackham Peak (in fleet carrier) ,Systeia Aub BA-A g12 and Trieneou AA-A h2 (highest and lower systems reacheable without FC). Public Holiday increase the price or booze to platinum levels, but only have medium landing pads. Pilot Trade Network manage traffic, a choke system just before HIP 58832 limit FC flow.
Visit Sol and terraformed Mars (Fed rank needed), land and survive Achenar 3 (Imp system), land and survive Koi 1701 1
Try to land and survive Skardee 1-2-3 planets, and go next to World of Death, there is a small safe window for landing and dismiss the ship, SRV and onfoot are perfect safe.
Keep Doing other stupid things.
To the Official Forums, for Alec's best of the forum. The inspiration for this work.
Make a Youtube/Twitch stream and join the Partner program
Note the coords of your discoveries, and home systems, and find them in the IRL sky, while learning astronomy.
Enter a videogame addiction group, and retake contact with your loved ones. Seriously, this game will wait for you, and sometimes you need to play other things or reduce your sessions. We will be here for you. o7