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Belt rats keep spanking my drones!
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Salpad
Carebears with Attitude
#1 - 2012-08-28 23:17:09 UTC
I mine in a Mackinaw, usually in 0.5 belts, but I just found a grav site containing 5 Mack-loads of ore.

The belt rats can't hurt my Mackinaw's tank, even the grav site rats can't, but the belt rats can spank my T2 light drones into armour damage, and I just came back from a few minutes AFK to see that apparently rats in the grav site had killed one of my T2 drones and spanked another one into armour damage, before my drones killed them.

I have all skillz pertinent to light drones maxed. Literally. Everything. Drone Interfacing, drone specialization. I like drones. Light drones, anyway. So I'm maxed here.

Yet Sansha rats in 0.5 belts can hurt my drones bad, and grav site rats in 0.5 system can kill some of my rats.

What am I to do? I'm thinking my best bet may be to fit some drone-enhancing modules or even rigs to my Mackinaw. Since I don't mine ice (or that special ore type that I've never come across anyway), I've just fit tanking rigs, which are of little use to me. I also have some free MID slots, and I can try feeing a LOW slot although I like having a couple of T2 Mining Laser Upgrades and a T2 Damage Control.

But losing drones is silly, and I'd like to avoid that. What RIG, MID or LOW slot things can I fit, to make my drones better? I think my preference would be something that improves the shield resistance or shield tanking of my drones, but I doubt such rigs or modules exist. So what are my options?

Should I forget about T2 light drones and field 5xT2 medium drones instead? I've never used those, but my Mack has 50 m3 drone bay space, so I could do it. But are they any good against frigate-sized belt rats or grav site rats?
MushroomMushroom
State War Academy
Caldari State
#2 - 2012-08-28 23:23:05 UTC
Have you tried different types of drones? Hornets have the most shield, though not the best damage type against sansha.
Liang Nuren
No Salvation
Divine Damnation
#3 - 2012-08-28 23:28:59 UTC
Yeah, mediums are effective against frigates. Also, going with Caldari drones for the shield buffer is a good suggestion to try.

-Liang

I'm an idiot, don't mind me.
Salpad
Carebears with Attitude
#4 - 2012-08-28 23:44:58 UTC
Thanks. I tend to use Warrior II drones for their speed, but was advised in chat some days ago to try Acolyte rones because they do EM damage, which Sansha belt rats are vulnerable to.

I'll try looking into Caldari drones or medium drones. Or maybe just have the drones in most of the time, and only launch them when the belt rats show up. I can tank belt rats easiy, and by the time I notice I've got their aggro so then I can unleash the drones safely. The only problem with this is in Guristas systems (often Caldari space, e.g. Black Rise) because they ECM jam me so I lose stripper cycles, and if I'm ECM jammed I may also have trouble targetting the rats after I launch my drones. But my Warrior II drones handled Guristas rats fine, even in 0.5 (my drones never got into armour damage), and anyway I am no longer mining in Caldari space.

Another possibility again is to keep one flight of T2 drones and one flight of T1 drones, in most of the time. Then when rats show up, I wait for aggro, then launch my T2 drones and pwn the rats, except if I need to go AFK for an extended period of time (e.g. while sucking on some large roids in a grav site) I can launch my T1 drones. They're cheap, so they're expendable.

But what about modules or rigs? Are there any options there?
Corina Jarr
en Welle Shipping Inc.
#5 - 2012-08-28 23:56:17 UTC
Don't waste money on Amarr drones.

Gallente ones can do any job better than Amarr ones.
Derath Ellecon
University of Caille
Gallente Federation
#6 - 2012-08-29 00:30:57 UTC
How about you keep your drones in until the rats aggro you, and then they won't even touch your drones.
Salpad
Carebears with Attitude
#7 - 2012-08-29 00:34:53 UTC
Derath Ellecon wrote:
How about you keep your drones in until the rats aggro you, and then they won't even touch your drones.


Yes, as I said, that's a possibility, as long as I'm not mining in places where Guristas rats may appear. Or Incursion rats. And provided I don't need to go AFK for extended periods of time.
Paikis
Vapour Holdings
#8 - 2012-08-29 01:28:43 UTC
Salpad wrote:
The belt rats can't hurt my Mackinaw's tank, even the grav site rats can't


So just leave your drones docked and tank the rats. You only have to kill them if you can't tank the damage. Problem solved?
Sturmwolke
#9 - 2012-08-29 01:56:21 UTC
T1 hobs, losing several isn't an issue. You're going to lose drones sooner or later.
There's no reason why AFK miners need to run T2 drones in high-sec, unless they like seeing the "II" pips in the name (in which case it goes beyond silly)

Use a Procurer if you cba to worry about extended AFKness.
Zhilia Mann
Tide Way Out Productions
#10 - 2012-08-29 03:57:46 UTC
If you're in Sansha space you really don't need to worry about killing the rats at all. As long as you're not being scrambled (which doesn't happen in high sec, right?) then just leaving whatever spawns will prevent anything new from spawning. So if your tank is already holding without issue then don't even worry about drones.

Having said that, you want Hammerheads or Hobgoblins. If you absolutely must buff them, the best way to do it would be with a Drone Durability Enhancer.
Marcus Gideon
Triglavian Assembly
#11 - 2012-08-29 05:04:24 UTC
I can't tell if this is a troll, or what.

Seems he's answered his own question?

There are rigs that would make your drones live longer...

There are mid mods to make them fly faster, or shoot straighter...

There are low mods to make them do more damage...


If you want your drones to perform better, use those!
Aaewen Hrothgarson
eXtreme Co
SLYCE Pirates
#12 - 2012-08-29 06:19:49 UTC  |  Edited by: Aaewen Hrothgarson
Losing drones to belt rats is sooo annoying (because it is so unnecessary). But it is easily avoided by a simple tactic:

Keep them inside until you need them.


Deploy them as soon as you are aggroed by all rats (no hurry, you said you can tank them!).
If they jam, wait untill you are able to lock again (target the nearest. Barges/Exhumers have low targeting range). Sent drones after it. From then on they work their way through the rats on their own (as long as the rat is within 60 km of you - if you are really maxed out).

Retract drones if a new rat shows up during fight and redeploy them after you have aggro.

You may either use two different flights of light scout drones, or one light and one EWAR, or one medium (if you expect to encounter cruisers).
Maeltstome
Ten Thousand Days
#13 - 2012-08-29 08:23:22 UTC
Derath Ellecon wrote:
How about you keep your drones in until the rats aggro you, and then they won't even touch your drones.


This.
Caldari 5
D.I.L.L.I.G.A.F. S.A.S
Affirmative.
#14 - 2012-08-29 09:07:57 UTC
Use Mediums and only launch them after you have agro.
Use drones appropriate to the area that you are in, iirc Sansha are weakest against EM and then Thermal, I would probably put 3 EM and 2 Therm.
I wouldn't worry about the drone improvement modules on a mining ship, unless they are for mining drones.
Ravnik
Infinate Horizon
#15 - 2012-08-29 10:28:37 UTC
The problem is he may be afk while mining, so cant launch drones as and when he needs them.

Of course, the solution is to NOT go afk. Eve is a non-afk game im afraid, even travelling afk through high sec isnt safe any more!

The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long - and you have burned so very, very brightly..........
Salpad
Carebears with Attitude
#16 - 2012-08-29 10:37:14 UTC
Marcus Gideon wrote:

There are rigs that would make your drones live longer...

There are mid mods to make them fly faster, or shoot straighter...

There are low mods to make them do more damage...


But what are those rigs and modules called? And can they be fit on an Exhumer?
Pinky Denmark
The Cursed Navy
#17 - 2012-08-29 14:58:55 UTC
If you are so lazy to be afk mining with drones launched you deserve to lose them. If you were playing just wait launching drones until you are attacked (your ship has a good tank you say). If not try to use other types of drones as suggested.
Derath Ellecon
University of Caille
Gallente Federation
#18 - 2012-08-29 15:14:21 UTC
Ravnik wrote:
The problem is he may be afk while mining, so cant launch drones as and when he needs them.

Of course, the solution is to NOT go afk. Eve is a non-afk game im afraid, even travelling afk through high sec isnt safe any more!


Thing is he apparently doesnt need them

salpad wrote:
The belt rats can't hurt my Mackinaw's tank, even the grav site rats can't


The real question is, if you can tank the rats, just leave the drones in the bay. When you come back from AFK you can deploy and kill if you want to.
Gabrielle Lamb
Pator Tech School
Minmatar Republic
#19 - 2012-08-29 15:21:10 UTC
Overall best light drones is Hobgobs IMO. Thermal which is generally nice (i prefer it over EM for Sansha) as well as the highest damage multiplier. That said, Drones are pretty easy to kill but if you grab aggro from all rats first then you will not have any problems at all because most rats never switch target until their current one is dead.
Gronn
Sebiestor Tribe
Minmatar Republic
#20 - 2012-08-29 15:27:29 UTC
Derath Ellecon wrote:
How about you keep your drones in until the rats aggro you, and then they won't even touch your drones.


This! Don't AFK mine and you won't have any issues...
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