I was just looking through the online manual (looking for some script commands) and I decided to read the description of my characters profession...again.
Everytime I do this I get irked about the primary point in which engineers are short-strawed by the developers.There is no other profession for which their primary weapon automatically de-equips everytime they log.His robot is his weapon and protection, and an Engineer is easily recognisable by his ever-present automated friend.
You may point out that crats and MPs have the same problem, but they also have direct damage. Engies do not.
Many complain that Engies are the buff-begginist bunch in the game, but we wouldn't be if our gun (pet) didn't disappear when we fall asleep.
With the recent dispersion of crowds in Trade (moving of the grid and bank) and the hard-siding of Tir, you've destroyed two of the three places that this lonely neutral engineer can ever find da buffs.
Com'on FC, everyone else can buff up to their primary weapon (self buff or 3rd party), put it on and keep in on. In your own words the engineer's "robot is his weapon," so let us have the same priviledge. Stop forcing us to be annoying buff beggers and allow soloists to lead the semi-solitary lives they want. The bot should either log with us and reappear when we do, or there should be tools or nanos that allow us to pack and recreate a bot, previously built, without having to rebuff for it.