Science & Industry

Gotta admit that it's hard for a newb to make enough isk to plex every month, or any month or just once!!! >> so I decided to look long-term and start training to build some higher value items (when I eventually get my skills up) to keep the isk-plexing fun continuous, if it ever happens...

Problem is >> I have no idea where to find these high-value blueprints (i.e. besides contracts, which are a rip-off in my opinion).

For example, if I wanted to build a 'Smokescreen' Covert Ops Cloaking Device II, I couldn't find a blueprint if I combed all of New Eden.

I've tried every website which inevitably simply lists the materials needed and ME/PE stats, and other useless information when you don't own have the blueprint!!! If everything in New Eden comes from some pilot that manufactured the item in the first place, then there must be an original source if the item exists. Contracts are not the answer (in my particular case) because they cost too much isk in the first place.

Can someone point me in the right direction? To a website that houses this info or possibly knowledge of how to find this info.

Reward: For the person with the most forthright and detailed answer as to how/where, I will provide them with the second high-value item that I build (free) >> possibly a 'Smokescreen' Covert Ops Cloaking Device II... depending on where this leads >> first one's gotta go on my Cheetah!

Note: high-value means produces high-value mods (i.e. has nothing to do with amount of research already performed on it).

Thank you Thur - that was very informative. So, if I were to carry on with the original example, I would need to farm... what epic-arch missions to get a 'Smokescreen' Covert Ops Cloaking Device II bpc??? Is there a list 'somewhere" that says what bpc usually come from which agents in space? am I that dense that I can't find this information in the website that you linked >> which is a very good/informative site by the way.

Then, I'd probably need to hang around Caldari space to farm Talocan parts for a while and then... manufacturing time

:-)8

Yea, storyline stuff is not really long term. Try rigs or ammo or common pvp mods, they are what most new manufactures start off doing.

Also where you sell your stuff is often more important than what you make.

The COSMOS missions can be hard (some are trivial), and some will give interesting blueprints. You can only do these missions once per character. Not all of the items are worth making.
http://wiki.eveonline.com/en/wiki/COSMOS

Some items produced from COSMOS BPC's will have better stats than their T2 equivalents and a smaller number will be the best out of all available in that type. But the majority of the COSMOS items do not have decent stats bar maybe a drop in CPU/PG requirements.
Those ones that are genuinely better or actively sought after, for Incursion ship fits for example, are known about and those BPC's will rarely come up for sale. If they do come up for sale on contracts they can often sell, or be listed, at over 100 million ISK per BPC. Sort of similar prices to the ship interface BPC's which have had their prices smashed by about seventy percent due to the Odyssey exploration revamp.
You can only do the COSMOS missions once per character. Best policy is to read up on the guides for them - there are some very good ones you can access via the EVElopedia etc. Please note that the rewards listed in terms of the BPC's are almost all incorrectly listed so don't expect to get the ones shown. It is best to 'farm' the objects required to complete the COSMOS missions before taking them on as it is often difficult to get them with some others farming them as an income stream. Also be aware you may have to enter low sec to complete even some of the high sec ones and that some of the level four combat ones are pretty tough if not semi-suicidal to complete.
Once you have the BPC's if you wanted to produce the items yourself you would then need to acquire the skillbooks or buy them off contracts. They are not cheap to buy and are rare or limited drops. Then you would have to 'farm' the COSMOS parts from specific locations which is again not without risk and rarity of some item drops is prohibitive.
On the plus side completing for example all the COSMOS missions in high sec for eg. Minmatar will raise your standings with the Republic up to or over 8.00 effective which is handy. Be aware that some of the COSMOS missions will give standings increases for pirate or sub-pirate organisations such as the Thukker Tribe. Receiving standings increases with Thukker Tribe will knock back your Gallente standings.

I'm not particularly trying to put you off the COSMOS idea - - so much as putting you in the picture as to what it would involve. CCP have mooted that they may look at COSMOS again and make the items have better stats. Maybe put them all above T2 in ability or maybe even higher. Given their rarity I personally believe this should be the case. COSMOS were, I think, initially introduced into the game before T2 hence their current position in the scheme of things. Of course I would much prefer CCP fixed Corporation/Alliance Roles & Permissions first before they do anything else but a revamp of COSMOS would be nice.