Freezing On Jettison

We've all run across the following problem from time to time. You've got some valuable cargo and a pirate on your tail. Despite your best efforts, the pirate is getting the better of you. You wisely decide to jettison your cargo using the the "j" key (by default).

Suddenly, your controls freeze. You can't move. The pirate will generally quit firing because he's more interested in the cargo than you (dumb mistake), but you're stuck.

The Problem

What's happened is that the jettison didn't work right. This is a glitch in the game. Normally your pod opens and the cargo is blasted out away from you. In certain cases, especially when you are close to the ground, the pod opens, but the cargo stays put or bounces back to get "stuck" on you.

The image below shows some Ore "stuck" to the bottom of my Neo-Tiger. This Ore was jettisoned, but didn't go anywhere. It's right beneath my Moth and I'm frozen in place:

I took the above shot by targeting the Ore and using the F5 key that presents "Target View". As long as that Ore is stuck to me, I'll be frozen on the spot.

The Solution

To get out of this mess, target the jettisoned cargo and release your drone to pick it up. The drone will pull it off your Moth and put it safely back in your pod. You will be "unfrozen" as soon as the drone picks up the cargo. If you fly off, you may leave your drone and cargo behind.

This whole freezing mess can be avoided by gaining altitude before jettisoning and hitting your jettison key ("j" by default) two times quickly. The most apt time to get frozen is when you are jettisoning in a tunnel or very near the ground.

Ghost Cargo

Another cargo related malady is the presense of "ghost cargo". This is cargo you can target, but can't pick up. It's always out of reach even though you appear to be hovering right above it.

This is a glitch in the game that occurs when cargo is jettisoned "below the ground" or "off the map". I saw this occur recently. A trader was being Grounbased to death and jettisoned his cargo. That cargo became ghost cargo and couldn't be picked up.

My guess is that the Groundbase had the trader locked onto the ground when he jettisoned his cargo. The jettison's blast put the cargo through the ground and off of the game's map.

You can tell if a cargo is a ghost cargo or not by targeting it and pressing the F5 key. If all you see is a black square on a colored background, you've got some ghost cargo. Make a mental note and move on. You can't get this cargo.

Normal cargo laying on the ground will show up as a normal cargo container when the F5 key is pressed. The background will be the usual landscape of Titan.