Warfare & Tactics

I'm still a noob but have been having some success with a Tormentor kiting fit. Mostly I've killed other T1 frigates (when I can find them) but I've had a few engagements against thrashers where I might have won if the fight hadn't of been interrupted. This all had me feeling pretty good about myself and my fit when I managed to do everything right that is and not pull some noob stunt. But it seems I've found my kyrptonite. Arty fit thrashers.

The first time I encountered one I attacked in my usual manner. Set orbit to 16k, load scorch and send the drones in. I knew something was immediately wrong when 3/4 of my shields melted after the first salvo. I think I panicked at that point and froze up allowing the thrasher to blow up my ship with the next shot or two.

The next time I met one I was watching for that huge damage spike and when it came I MWDed in and tried to orbit at 500 to get "under his guns". I think I may have made it within 8km before my ship exploded. I've attempted this maneuver twice more since then and always the same result. I know the MWD blooms my signature and makes it easier for him to hit me but I don't think slow boating in would have any better results.

So although I've had some success with the Tormentor I think I'm ready to retire it. That leaves me with the question "what now?" Plexing is how I support my PvP and also how I find PvP. And within these plexes Thrashers seem to be quite common. I prefer to stick with Amarr ships for RP reasons although I realize that limits my options. Should I return to the Punisher? Maybe it would fair better against artillary but what of short range ACs? I really can't see a Slicer doing much better because it essentially flies the same way as the Tormentor. Can the Coercer handle the job?

Also although I know this post is getting kind of long. I'm kind of lost on what ship progression I want to follow. I was going to remap my attributes but until I can come up with a plan that spans at least a year I'm kinda stuck. Maybe you all could suggest some ships that fit my style of flying. Primarily I like to solo plexes. And I seem to like to fight at range instead of brawl. I like lazors, missiles and drones. I like to keep it cheap, at least for the next year until I gain some confidence and ISK. For future goals I wouldn't mind fleeting a little in a BS or an Oracle where I could provide some long range DPS. But as far as solo ships I can't see past the arbitrator or navy omen. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.

The coercer is a great ship - unless you want to be able to point your targets. A pulse coercer could handle an arty thrasher IMO, however the arty thrasher will just warp away when he starts to lose.

If you want solo, and you want minor plex fighting ships, I am afraid to tell you that Amarr is NOT a great option (though slicers are decent but they are faction). This is because destroyers rule the minor plexes, and coercers only have one mid.

Unless you have a 2pt scram fitted on your ship, it is very difficult to get under the tracking of a thrashers artillery since the thrasher can burn away from you to reduce transversal, and all destroyers have a built in tracking bonus.

if your fit is any thing like the inquisitor that i have been using then you are not going to be able to kill an arty thrasher very easily. Its tracking is just to good. That being said your best possible hope is to land a scram pull in real tight and hope that the two drones you have will be enough because your turrets are not going to be doing much for you. the punisher actually would be a decent ship for killing thrashers just get in tight on arties or pull out to 8000 and load scorch against the ac ones. Also dont let one ship type discourage you from flying the inquisitor. every ship in eve has its kryptonite the trick is to avoid it and kill the things you match up well against.

Yeah I just hate being pushed off the field because of a ship I cannot engage. I guess the best anyone can hope for is to pick a ship that has the fewest known counters.

Also regarding the coercer, there are some nice beam fits out there that probably match your style of kiting, however, not having a point really hurts you since as soon as they start to lose they'll just warp out. With Pulse coercers however, most ships can't warp out because they die before then.

Hmm that sounds interesting. Will that help a lot you think?

Maybe you should look into a tracking disruptor, and try alternatives to MWD because it makes you a pretty big target.

Yeah I was kinda waiting for the second round of ship balancing before trying the crucifier. All I know is I don't really care for brawling. Thanks for the help.

Actually I was just considering re-rolling to Gallantene or whatever lol. I'm really confused at this point. The catalyst looks like a good kiter with rails but looking at fits on battle clinic it looks like all the other ships of that race are always fit with blasters. I just wish the Coercer wasn't stuck with just one mid.

Yeah this is exactly what I've decided on. I hate to throw away all my training just for RP reasons. I'll tough it out with what I have to work with until the next round of ship balancing. Maybe that will give me a couple more ships to play with. For now I'm going to stay away from thrashers (at least the arty fit ones) seeing how I lost 4 ships yesterday and I'm about broke. Btw, is it possible to use the "look at" feature to tell what turrets a thrasher has equipped? Is there a big difference in how they're modeled?