Player Features and Ideas Discussion

Nearly every class of ship that exists in real life has an analogue in Eve, but not the torpedo boat. I feel like adding these buggers could not only make fleet warfare a lot more interesting, but also give more options to new pilots than just "tackle frigate, tackle frigate, tackle frigate".

I can see them being very similar to their RL counterpart: very small ships (smaller hull than frigates), which carry extremely high-payload weapons with the purpose of destroying battleships and carriers. A part of the role of frigates and destroyers then becomes protecting battleships from these guys. In terms of game mechanics, this would mean the following:

Torpedo boats would carry torpedo launchers that would have a very low rate of fire but which would be capable of taking out a battleship in only a few hits. The torpedoes (not to be confused with the torpedoes that already exist in-game) would have very high explosion radius and low explosion velocity, making them effective only on battleships and capitals. They would also have an extremely low velocity, requiring the torpedo boat to get up close and personal and making it easy for the torpedoes to be outrun or destroyed with defenders if they don't. Torpedo boats would get a role bonus to fitting these modules so any frigate or cruiser can't just decide to fit them, and their low velocity would make them useless on anything bigger.

They would have very little tank, but also an extremely low signature radius. While frigates and small drones will be capable of killing them, they won't be nearly as effective at it as destroyers, which will get a role bonus to the sig radius of their turrets as well as targeting speed.

Obviously, having a small, cheap hull capable of doing massive amounts of damage would make it a lot cheaper and easier for suicide gankers to do their thing, so to keep this from causing chaos in high-sec, Concord will shoot on-sight any ship fitted with a torpedo boat's launchers.

These boats would make fleet warfare a lot more interesting, would finally make destroyers a viable option in pvp and give them a real use, and would give newbies something to do in fleets other than just tackle - they could also either fly torpedo boats or destroyers.

And before you say stealth bombers: Stealth bombers may technically carry what are called torpedoes in game, but they serve a purpose completely different from that of the torpedo boats I describe, and the torpedoes they carry are completely different from the type of torpedoes that torpedo boats would carry.

Stealth bombers are not the same thing as torpedo boats. Yes, they are small ships that carry torpedoes, but their role is not even remotely close to the role of torpedo boats as I described them, and the torpedoes they carry are not the same as the type of torpedoes that torpedo boats would.

Did you even read the post? Bombs are used against small targets. Torpedoes are used against large ones. Bombs detonate 30km away from where they were launched. Torpedoes must be launched up close. Bombs are AOE. Torpedoes are not. Bombs are launched by stealth frigates. Torpedoes are launched by non-stealth craft smaller than frigates. Next are you going to try to tell me an elephant is a banana?

Yeah, what you're talking about is essentially a Stealth Bomber with more DPS.

Stealth bombers excel at taking out many small targets, not individual large ones. Torpedo boats are extremely dangerous to battleships, which is why destroyers (original short for torpedo boat destroyer) started being used to protect capital ships from them. They are a completely different ship, serving an entirely different purpose.

Actually... a single bomb will barely scratch a frigate or cruiser so long as they don't activate a MWD. Several bombs will do the trick though (which isn't very cost effective).


Indeed. Torps are effective against cruisers that are target painted and very effective against battlecruisers and larger.


Actually... a well skilled Stealth Bomber pilot can lob Torpedos from 50+ km away. Using certain fits, you can even engage ~90 km away. Hardley "up close" weaponry when the average "close range" weapons typically have an effective envelope of ~5 to 30km (depending on the weapon).


Leave your preconceptions about how things should work and start looking at how things work given how the mechanics operate. Moreover... learn WHY certain mechanics are in place the way they are.

For example:
Stealth Bombers are designed to be the "poor man's'" counter to heavy ships (i.e. battleships). Five bombers of decent skill can effectively terminate the existence of large a group by launching bombs a certain way... or can use their torpedoes at range to wipe out a single (or few) large ships.
However, Stealth Bombers pay a penalty in being able to do this. They have little in the way of defense and their weapons are very ineffective against small foes.
This encourages teamwork both ways. Stealth Bombers who specialize and team up with like-minded people can take on ships far beyond their class. At the same time, it encourages fleets to always have "interception" ships on hand to defend the fleet from such threats.

tl;dr... Stealth Bombers are designed to use their cloak to get into position and gank. Nothing more, nothing less. They are not designed to be fair (this works both ways).

Along with virtually everyone else, tbh.

Rofl

So bad...

i believe you are, um, well, really confused....
oh btw phoon fleet issue is a wonderful torp boat

I think what you are looking for would be a new module or bomb. Call it a T2 presicsion bomb that only effects a single ship. This might be more of what your looking for.