This document is not intended to take the place of reading and understanding Dispatch SOP.  This is a guide intended to summarize key points, and then provide further details and options in the finer details.  For information on all Mecha’s capabilities, visit mecha.fuelrats.com.  For a guide on how to file cases, see this page here: How to File Cases / When to !md, !invalid and !delete cases.

Quick Reference Guides

Extended Guide (with extra information!)

Normal Cases

Prepping and Greeting the Client

When clients enter #fuelrats you will see the following messages which will give you vital information on the case:

<&RatMama[BOT]> Incoming Client: Grünregen - System: HIP 104045 - Platform: PC Odyssey - O2: OK - Language: German (de) - IRC Nickname: Gruenregen
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> RATSIGNAL Case #3 PC ODY – CMDR Grünregen – System: "HIP 104045" (G Yellow dwarf 167.5 LY from Fuelum) – Language: German (de) - Nick: Gruenregen (ODY_SIGNAL)

The client must first be prepped, by using any number of prep commands.  An example of this is:

<Dispatch> !prep-auto 3
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Bitte falle vom Supercruise in den Normalraum und komme zum Stehen. Deaktiviere alle Module AUSSER der LEBENSERHALTUNG (Instruktionen sind bereit, falls nötig). Falls irgendwann der Sauerstoff-Countdown beginnt, lasse es uns sofort wissen.

For more methods of prepping, please see Common Prepping Practices.

If the client is using a language other than English in their browser (mecha will indicate this in the ratsignal), you should ask them if English is okay in their browser language.  For example:

<Dispatch> Hallo Gruenregen, kannst du Englisch sprechen?

If the client agrees, the rescue can proceed in English (you may choose to use the translated facts, though).  Please note, even if you are a native speaker, the rats on the case may not be.  If the client is capable of reading and responding in English it is to everyone’s benefit that the rescue proceeds in English.

Many dispatchers will take an opportunity shortly after prep to greet the client and ask them to report back once their modules have been turned off.  It is best if this welcome is kept as short and simple as possible so as to avoid confusion. An example is:

<Dispatch> Welcome to the Fuel Rats Gruenregen.  Please let me know once you have those modules taken care of.

It is a good idea as well, while you are waiting for your client to prep and while your rats are calling jumps, to examine the rat signal for potential errors or issues.  You might be looking for a system that is likely wrong(ie: Sol), a system that is incomplete (ie: Col 285 Sector), an unusual platform (PC-Legacy), or a client’s commander name being different from their IRC nick.  Mecha will also attempt to provide mostly accurate information about the client’s system and online status, but it is not infallible.

Once the client has responded to your prep-query, you can proceed with assigning rats!

Getting a Rat Assigned

(from this point on, we are assuming Gruenregen has a browser language of English to make things easier for you to follow)

Ideally, multiple rats have eagerly called their jumps in #fuelrats by now.  If not, you may need prod the folks in #ratchat with a stick to wake up the sleeping ones (common pings are ‘psrats’, ‘xrats’).  Worst case scenario, if no rats respond and call jumps after five or more minutes, you may wish to !alertc the case out to our social media.

<Dispatch> !alertc 3
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Successfully sent post "PC rats needed for a rescue near Fuelum! Case #3 (<#>) <link>" to Mastodon & BlueSky

Once you have rats that have called jumps you will have to choose which rat to send.  A rat who is further away will take longer to get to the client, unless the other rats are less experienced.  An experienced rat will likely make quick work of a case, but have they been assigned recently?  We prefer to spread the love and make sure as many rats get a chance to land a limpet as possible.  Another method of choosing is to go with the order called, though this does not take the earlier statements into account, and could result in complications.  Every dispatch has a different preference, but as long as you can explain your reasoning and are fair in your choices, you’re unlikely to run into any issues.

You can send the rats you choose using the command:

<Dispatch> !go 3 Salvuwu
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Gruenregen Please add the following rat to your friends list: "Salvuwu"

You can then follow this with information for adding a friend, if you feel the client may not know how.  A client that expresses they have knowledge of the game may not need this information.

<Dispatch> !fr 3
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Gruenregen: To send a friend request, go to the menu (Hit ESC), click SOCIAL, and search for your rat(s) in the upper right. Click them, then click ADD FRIEND.

You can include both pieces of information at one time by using the command:

<Dispatch> !gofr 3
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Gruenregen Please add the following rat to your friends list: "Salvuwu"
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> To send a friend request, go to the menu (Hit ESC), click SOCIAL, and search for your rat(s) in the upper right. Click them, then click ADD FRIEND.

Once the rats call fr+ in chat, you are clear to proceed to the team/wing portion of the rescue!

Adding the Rats to a Wing/Team and making sure the beacon is lit

You can now instruct the client to add their rats to a team/wing by using the command:

<Dispatch> !team 3 (!wing 3)
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Gruenregen: To invite someone to your team, go to the comms panel (Default key 2), hit ESC to get out of the chat box, and move to the third panel (Default key E). Then select your Rat(s) and select Invite to team

In some cases, the rats may skip calling tm+/wr+/bc+ if the next step in the rescue is more relevant or fuel+ is imminent.  A pause here may indicate that they were so close to the client that they dropped nearly immediately and are entering the instance, fueling the client as soon as possible.  It can be easy to become frustrated by the lack of information, but remember that the rat’s directive is always “Aviate, Navigate, Communicate” and fueling comes above all but the aviate.  If you are concerned, you can always ask your rats about the team/wing status.

Otherwise, once the rats have been added to a wing/team, you may need to instruct the client to light their beacon.  Beacons start lit by default in PC live and will remember their on/off setting between sessions. In all other game modes they are off until lit for each login.  You can instruct a client to light their beacon by using the command: 

<Dispatch> !beacon 3
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Gruenregen: To light your beacon, go to the right panel (Default key 4), navigate to the SHIP tab (Default key Q), then in the FUNCTIONS sub-screen select BEACON and set it to WING/TEAM

Closing the Case

Provided you run into no issues, you should have a rat call fuel+.

You can then close the case to the rat who scored the first limpet using the command:

<Dispatch> !close 3 Salvuwu
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Successfully closed case #1 (Gruenregen).

After closing the case, some dispatchers like to include a send-off message to the client.  This should ideally also be brief, especially if there are other cases going on in the rescue channel.  It is also recommended that you prompt the client to check their in-game chat to facilitate the debrief for the rat who got first limpet.   An example of this is:

<Dispatch> You should now be receiving fuel, Gruenregen.  Thank you for calling the Fuel Rats.  Please say “hi” to Salvuwu in game and fly safe o7!

Rats may also request the use of #debrief, where you can direct the client if necessary.

Code Red Cases

Prepping and Greeting the Client

When code red clients enter #fuelrats you will see the following messages which will give you vital information on the case:

<&RatMama[BOT]> Incoming Client: srFax- System: Crucis Sector TD-T a3-0 - Platform: PS - O2: NOT OK - Language: English (en-CA)
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> RATSIGNAL Case #7 Playstation (Code Red) – CMDR SrFax – System: "CRUCIS SECTOR TD-T A3-0" (Brown dwarf 35.4 LY from Fuelum) – Language: English (Canada) (en-CA) (PS_SIGNAL)
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> SrFax Please log out of the game immediately by pressing MENU and selecting Exit followed by Exit to Main Menu!

Unlike in a normal case, Mecha takes care of quitting the client for you.  It is highly recommended that you check with the client immediately and make sure that they have exited the game to main menu (if it is an Xbox case, mecha will even check on sending the signal).  You might choose to do that like this:

<Dispatch> Hello srFax, please let me know when you have exited the game and are in the main menu where you can see your ship in the hangar.

Once the client has responded to your prep-query, you should make it clear to the client that need to stay in the main menu until told to log in.  This is an example of how you might do that:

<Dispatch> srFax, please stay at main menu from this point forward until you see me give you the GO GO GO signal to log in.

Now, you can proceed with assigning rats!

Assigning Rats

In a CR rescue, it is important that as soon as the client is logged out to the main menu that you assign your rats as soon as possible so that they can verify and monitor that the client has not logged into open.  As above, if drilled rats are not calling jumps in #fuelrats, you may need to ping in #ratchat to wake a few up.  If that is ineffective, you may also alert on social media for CR cases, though it looks a little different.

<Dispatch> !alertc 7
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Successfully sent post "Playstation rats needed for a CODE RED rescue near Fuelum! Case #7 (<#>)<link>" to Mastodon & BlueSky

Once you have rats to assign, you can assign them using the command:

<Dispatch> !go 7 tblFlop A1Jack
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> srFax Please add the following rat to your friends list: “tblFlop” “A1Jack”

If you feel that a client may need additional instructions on how to add a friend, you can use the fact:

<Dispatch> !frcr 7
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> srFax: To add a friend on PS4: press the PS button, open the friends screen from the functions area, search for your rat's name, and add them as a friend. On PS5: Press and hold the PS button to go home, select the search icon in the top right, navigate to "Players", search for your rat's name, and add them as a friend.

For PC, this fact will change the normal instructions to direct the client to add the rat from the main menu, like this:

<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> To send a friend request, stay in the Main Menu, click SOCIAL, search for your rat(s) in the upper right. Click them, then click ADD FRIEND.

Once you have rats assigned, you can start to ask the client for information that will help you rescue them!

Information Gathering

A large part of a cr rescue is getting information as a dispatch which will allow you to make decisions to preserve the safety of the client.  Because the client is logged out, you should be aware that they may not always have (or remember) all the information you will want.  In the worst case scenarios, clients remember information incorrectly.  How you respond and react with this information will sometimes determine whether the case ends with a limpet or a rebuy screen.

The first thing that you should ask your client is if they remember how much oxygen is left on their timer (without logging in, of course).  This will inform every other decision you make.  An example of how you might do this is:

<Dispatch> srFax, without logging in, do you remember how much time was left on your oxygen timer when you logged out?

Remember that the logout timer takes 15 seconds, so you should subtract those 15 seconds from whatever the client tells you.  

The second thing you should attempt to determine is roughly where in the system the client is.  This will allow you to position your rats as sensibly as possible for the first login.  For example:

<Dispatch> srFax, without logging in, do you remember roughly where you were in the system (by the main star, near a station, far from any landmarks/fell asleep at the helm, etc)?

The last thing you should do is verify with the client that the system shown on the main menu matches the system that you have on record.

<Dispatch> srFax can you please look at the top right corner of the main menu and confirm that the system name matches : Crucis Sector TD-T a3-0

Hopefully, once you have all the information you need from above, your rats will be in system and ready for you to position them.  If not, you may want to advise your client on roughly how long it will take the rats to be ready.  Be careful though, as sometimes clients will take this to mean that they should log in after that many minutes!

Position your Rats

You should position your rats with the information you have gotten to make best possible use of the first login.  If there is a decent amount of time left on the timer, the first login will likely be a bearing check (see first login for more information) and you’ll want the rats either near the entry star or near the largest landmark that the client knows they were near.  If there is limited time (ie: 45 seconds or less), you may choose to position the rats based on the location information you obtained earlier.  For example, if a client said they flew about 2 minutes towards a station, you might position a rat in between the entry star and the station.  Such positionings are risky, and make it harder to take bearings, so use them only in dire circumstances where no better options are available.

Prepare your Client for Login

While the rats are getting into position, you will want to provide your client with instructions on how the login will work on their end.  An example would be this:

<Dispatch> srFax, in a few moments we will attempt to rescue you.  Please read the following instructions carefully, and let me know if you have any questions.
<Dispatch> srFax you will need to 1. Log into OPEN play (NOT YET!) 2. Add your rats to a WING 3. Make sure your BEACON is set to wing 4. Report back here with your TIMER reading
<Dispatch> !wing 7
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> srFax: To add the rats to your wing hold the square button and press up on the D-pad, move to the third tab (default using R1), then select the name of a rat and select [Invite to wing]
<Dispatch> !beacon 7
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> srFax: To light your wing beacon go to the right panel (default tap the bottom right corner of the touchpad). Switch to the SHIP tab (default L1/R1), then in the FUNCTIONS sub-screen select beacon and set it to WING
<Dispatch> Do you have any questions srFax?

You may instead use the following command, if you choose:

<Dispatch> !crinst 7
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> srFax: Once you get told (NOT NOW!), please log into OPEN PLAY, INVITE all your assigned Rats to a Wing and finally make sure your BEACON is set to WING!

Once your rats are in position and your client knows the drill, it is time for the first login!

The Login

Before login, you should check with everyone to make sure they are ready. For example:

<Dispatch> srFax tblFlop A1Jack are you all ready?

After everyone replies, you can send your GO GO GO:

<Dispatch> srFax GO GO GO.  1. Log into OPEN play 2.  Add your rats to a WING  3.  Set your BEACON to WING 4.  Report here with your TIMER reading.

Your instructions in the GO GO GO message should match whatever you chose to use above.  Some dispatchers like to send the Mecha commands for wing/team and beacon after their GO GO GO message.

The wait between GO GO GO and your first piece of information is some of the most stress that a dispatcher experiences.  Take care to keep calm so you can respond quickly and clearly to anything.

From here a few things can happen.  It can turn into a bearing check, rats will fail to instance with the client, rats can instance with the client and deliver fuel, or rats will fail to deliver fuel to the client in time.

Bearing Check

If there is sufficient time on the timer, it is likely that the first login will either result in a bearing check, or rats getting in instance.  If the client is too far for the rats to reach, they should take a bearing and you will need to quit the client.

<Dispatch> !quit 7
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> srFax Please log out of the game immediately by pressing OPTIONS and selecting Exit followed by Exit to Main Menu!

You can use the following tools to determine how far is too far:

• Supercruise Times
• !sctimes

You should have at least a rough idea of how long a supercruise takes, as you don't want to start reading pages on confluence once you have received a bc+ call.  A good way of doing this is by referencing the sctime information with the approximate o2 time remaining and determining what the maximum distance you are comfortable letting the rats fly is, before the client logs in.

If it will take the rats a long time to reach the client’s location, you will want to advise the client on how long it will take.

From here you will proceed to log the client in again, in a similar fashion to the way you just did once rats are in position.  (see “The Login” above).

Instancing Fails

Instancing fails when rats drop on a client, and the client’s ship is not there.  This results in an immediate quit for the client.  For more information on troubleshooting instances issues, see Instancing below.

Fuel Delivered (or not )

A CR case ends in one of two ways. 

If the rats reach the client and deliver them fuel, they will call fuel+ and the case is closed as a success, just like a non-cr case.

<Dispatch> !close 7 tblFlop
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Successfully closed case #1 (srFax).

Many dispatchers will send a similar message to the one they use for normal cases, thanking the client.  For example: 

<Dispatch> You should now be receiving fuel, srFax.  Thank you for calling the Fuel Rats.  Please say “hi” to tblFlop in game and fly safe o7!

If the rats fail to reach the client the case will be closed as a failure (rats may report this as “client destroyed”).  

<Dispatch> !close 7 -p tblFlop

This will close the case and send paperwork to the rat provided, without marking them as having received the first limpet.

Dispatchers will typically send a more somber message to the client, in place of their default send off.  An example might be:

<Dispatch> srFax, we are so sorry we couldn’t make it to you in time.  Please say hi to your rat in game and fly safe o7.

It is easy, when cases fail, to get caught up in the emotion of it all.  It might be wise to take a break after losing a client to make sure your head is clear before dealing with more cases! 

Resolving Instancing Issues

In the Exclusion Zone

For a normal case, a client that is in the exclusion zone will need to make a supercruise hop.  You can use this fact to help instruct the client:

<Dispatch> !schop 
<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Reactivate your thrusters and Frameshift drive, then Un-target everything and jump to supercruise. Fly away from the star for about 5 Ls, then drop back down into normal space.

For a cr case, rats will need to tfp to reach the client.  This is a manoeuvre best performed by trained rats.

All other inst- cases

A supercruise hop is still the default solution for all non CR inst- cases

In the event that a SC hop does not remedy the situation, the next step is a relog of the game for all involved parties.

For CR cases, a SC hop is not possible, so a relog is the best possible first step.  From there on out, it gets more varied and complicated depending on the specific situation.  There are troubleshooting guides made specifically for Xbox and Playstation and a general guide that can be found here.

Uncommonly Used Facts

Many cases can be completed by using a small collection of facts and commands like !go, !wing or !prep.

Here are some facts you rarely come across but might still be useful in certain situations:

!invite <case>:

<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> See this short guide on how to accept wing invites: https://t.fuelr.at/inviteen

Use if: your client failed to execute Wing/Team invites and you asked your rat to reverse team.  This link explains to the client how to accept the request.

!fueltank

<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Please take a look at this for reading the fuel gauge: https://t.fuelr.at/fueltanken

Use if: your rat needs to do a long supercruise or there is some other delay and you want to judge how much fuel the client has left. With this link they can better estimate their reserves.

!reboot

<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> To reboot/repair your ship, go to the right side panel, open the ship menu and select reboot/repair at the top right. Click, wait 3 seconds then select confirm reboot.

Use if: the case is not a fuel case at all and the client can help themself by repairing their broken FSD/Thruster for example

!donate

<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Although our service is entirely free, if you wish you can help us cover expenses such as server cost by donating at https://fuelrats.com/donate

Use if: at the end of the case if the client asks how to return the favor

!multi

<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Please ignore messages that do not have your name in them, as we have multiple rescues ongoing in here at a time, and this may lead to confusion.

Use if: clients get confused with messages intended for another client. You can use !multi to remind them that there are multiple cases going on.

!pqueue

<%MechaSqueak[BOT]> Hello, and welcome to the Fuel Rats rescue service! Please log out to main menu at this time, as we have quite a few people looking for help right now. We'll get to you real soon!

Use if: the rescue channel gets so busy that you cannot keep up.

The amount of cases where this becomes appropriate might differ between dispatchers but is probably more than 2 or 3 cases. 

Miscellaneous Tips

Dangerous Situations

Client's hull drops while escaping EZ:

The client is failing to enter supercruise, but their FSD is overheating their ship.  Immediately instruct the client to shut down their FSD module, or consider exiting the client to the main menu as an easier instruction.

Client’s hull drops in deep space:

The rat will usually provide helpful info that indicates if the client is under attack, or has “Silent Running” enabled.  For the former, instruct the client to perform evasive action, and high-wake to the nearest system.  

Client is near a planet:

If the client is at risk of falling into a planet’s gravity well, instruct the client to power their Thrusters module back on.

Communications

Until “fuel+” is called, the dispatcher handles all communications with the rat and client.  As such it is important to be clear, concise, and patient with all parties.  This section contains some specific comms tips to make your dispatching go as smoothly as possible.

2 Minutes “Rule”

It is a good rule of thumb to seek an update on a case after 2 minutes of inactivity.  This ensures clients maintain their attention in IRC, and that cases progress along smoothly.  Two minutes is usually a good amount of time to allow clients to read and follow instructions.  

Client-Dispatch Comms

Clients come in all shapes and sizes. While many clients are new Cmdrs, we end up helping pilots of varying skill levels.  Use clues such as the case details and client behavior to determine the skill level of the client.  Not every client needs every step explained in detail.  Above all else, be patient and understanding of clients.  They are often brand new to the game with close to zero experience, and this may be their first interaction with other Cmdrs, so make it a good one!

English as a Second Language (ESL) - Many of our clients natively speak languages other than English, but are comfortable or fluent speaking English.  In this case it is helpful to leave out colloquialisms and idioms.  For example instead of “Let me know when you’ve read that” try “Tell me when you are done reading the instructions”.

Rat-Dispatch Comms

Rats are the eyes and ears of dispatchers in Elite and will usually provide helpful info to the dispatcher.  It may be necessary to manage less experienced rats more closely.  While you should avoid distracting rats unnecessarily, do not be afraid to ask for updates when needed.  You can always use #ratchat if additional discussion is required.

Conclusion

We can’t say that we have included everything, but this should be an overview of most common facets of dispatching.  Dispatching is difficult and encompasses many areas of knowledge and skill.  We always highly recommend training to really get comfortable with dispatching before taking on live cases!