Player Features and Ideas Discussion

First off, a disclaimer: This suggestion does not feature numbers and hard stats, that part is CCP's job - at least for the first draft.

This is a suggestion for a new range of T2 destroyers to act as an electronic warfare counterpart to the current Interdictor range. Instead of the AoE warp disruption probes dropped by Interdictors, Electronic Suppression Destroyers (or ESDs) would utilise a new sphere launcher, loaded with a range of probes which instead of the warp disruption/drag effect, applied electronic warfare and similar penalties to all craft within its area of effect. ESDs would be fairly light on offensive firepower and buffer, and would be reliant on speed, support and their own e-war projection to survive. Like Warp Disruption probes, those craft normally immune to electronic warfare effects would be susceptible to electronic warfare probes. Effectively, these ships would be to Interdictors what Electronic Attack Frigates are to Interceptors (and by that I hopefully don't mean "still underpowered and unused")

The ESD range would use the recently added destroyers as their base hull for invention and ship model purposes, and what offensive capabilities they have would take their T1 hull as a starting point - the Minmatar ESD would be missile based, the Gallente ESD would largely rely on drones over mounted weaponry, etc.

Some suggested examples of possible E-War probe effects: target painter bubbles, sensor dampening bubbles, tracking disruption bubbles, capacitor neutralisation bubbles, remote repair module degradation bubbles, heat damage acceleration bubbles. I'm sure anyone suitably inclined can think of more.

interesting so being within the bubble would have a chaff like effect and would damp(lock or range) or ECM..or web or sig radius? sounds interesting..

if the ECM one works on capships too it could make t2 destroyers the "anti-blob" mechanic null has needed forever

I feel like this effect would force fights to disengage more frequently than they do currently. Warp bubbles are intended to do the opposite - keep one side from fleeing. I feel like these would encourage it.

The idea itself is interesting, but I wonder if there's a way to implement it without discouraging someone from staying on the field with one active. I don't feel that warp bubbles should be a requirement for using these - that is to say, I don't think that the only method of keeping someone on the field with an ECM bubble should be a warp bubble.

I'd definitely be interested in seeing where this thought process will lead.

There is potential here.... hmmm....

Definitely would give an excuse to turn the new destroyer hulls into a new TII model.

Check the second post - I left ECM bubbles out deliberately!

I'm always sceptical about any claims of an 'anti-blob mechanic' so I would certainly hesitate to claim it for a suggestion of my own, but a range of AoE ewar could act as a deterrent for static and/or densely packed blobs.

I was thinking that the AoE suppression effect would be less potent than a targeted module - while I said I wasn't going to go into specific numbers, a web bubble effect with a penalty of something in the 20-25% range (and a 'no stacking' clause so that multiple bubbles of the same type don't have any further effects) probably wouldn't be terribly overpowered. I agree it's certainly something to keep in mind with the idea though.