Ships & Modules

Following my early decision to specialize in combat ships, most of my SP are invested in Minmatar vessels, with emphasis on gunnery skills.
I have trained Minmatar Frigate, Destroyers, Minmatar Cruisers, Batllecruisers to 5, and now I can fly most frigate/ruiser vessels with good skills.

At this point I am forced to face a choice: should I invest massive SP into Minmatar BS and the related gunnery/support skills, or should I train into Command Ships, or even train for the full advanced cruiser line?

I am looking for an SP investment that will allow me to perform not only in PVE, but also in PVP, and as much as I like the Tempest hull, the whole Minmatar battleship line seems quite subpar, at the moment.

I have heard that the command ships are both apt PVP and adequate PVE ships.
The cruiser line (Tengu in primis) seems quite the good compromise, and I would certainly manage to make a living off it.

My question is: is the Minnie BS line worth the 100 days of skills?

Provided I decide to keep myself in the BS class, is there any alternative to Minmatar that will serve me well in both PVP and PVE?

Yes, but I can't expect to use Machariels in any sort of PVP environment, and I don't certainly want to become a F1 lemming AlphaMael pilot.

The Mach is tempting, but its applications are far less than enough, given the massive SP investment.

Now more than ever before it is worth training any ship line you fancy.

They key thing you should ask yourself is do you want to spend the time learning how to fly the sodding things not about investing the time/SP in them.

Every race is capable of pve and pvp in their BS's.

I can fly all races Sub cap and I've recently been flying minnie only. go figure. vOv

"Only fly what you can afford to lose." I suggest you first train battleships, because these allow you to make ISKs faster and to cover losses better.

If I am not mistaken do command ships now require several level 5 Leadership skills before one can fly one. So you might want to wait for it until you have more charisma-based skills to train for and do an attribute remap first.

If you currently have your attributes set to Per/Wil then it is easier to simply train battleships and have the gunnery skills follow. You will then train at maximum speed, because in the end do you want to fly command ships and battleships.

Just my opinion, but if you don't wish to become a "F1 fleet lemming" then basically no bs will be a very good fit for you in PvP terms. A solo bs is going to be a dead one when caught by anything with a cyno or a small SIG. Heck bombers are almost specifically designed around solo killing a lone bs.

The reason bs fleets work is because they reach a critical mass of firepower to over come their opponent faster than their support can react. Like or not that is the basis behind the PvP buffer tank meta game. Your best bet is to consign yourself to the f1 fleet or focus on the ABC line of your choice.

Nonsense.

except for the tempest which is rubbish, its worth training

What is wrong with being one? Imo flying solo is a lot more relaxed and simpler than being in a 'F1-lemming-fleet'. (Meaning that being a good and proper F1-lemming-lemming is all but easy.)

You're right, and F1 lemming has to balance "ohshit I'm hungry I need a snack, ahhhh I'm dying FC save me! My F1 key is jammed!?"

Yes, I mainly fly solo or in small gangs.
I take it that you're suggesting to use it as an over-sized Sleipnir: I guess it could work very well, as long as I bring Cruiser/Frigate support with me.
I never thought of it as a small scale combat ship because of the mobility issues: it's slow and ponderous, and it turns with the agility of a small asteroid.
Still, this is quite a good argument in favor of the Minmatar Battleships.