Ships & Modules

I am trying to get into the minutia of EVE (hard as a noob) and I am trying to figure out what the best ship for me to grab would be at this point. I have very solid Cap and Shield skills I had been flying a Raven till her untimely demise but her tank was underwhelming now I am at a crossroads should I go Maelstrom or Rokh. In a small way I am thankfull (thought admitaly I know that is just a salve to sooth my wounded pride) My target use will be mostly running anomalies and ratting in nul sec with a scanning buddy but a hull that could be used in PVP would be a bonus although I am a long way from PVPing in a Battleship. So the last part of my convoluted question on top of which has a better and easier to work shield tank what weapons systems are more versatile the projectile weapons of the Maelstrom or the Hybrid turrets of the Rokh? Also is fitting an Afterburner on a Battleship a good or bad idea for my uses?

Thanks Lads

ABs have their uses in PvE as they are often used to mitigate damage in drone boats orbiting their sentries or non MJD BSs that still need the extra tank.

You're wrong. All of my PVE BS use ABs which are perfect. Not necessarily for use during combat, but for sure to cut down on gate travel time.

All BS should have a prop Mod.

Unless the AB is part of your tank like on a Machariel or used to get within range like with an AC Maelstrom it's a waste of a slot on a mission running battleship. You can use that slot for a tracking computer or shield mod if you're in a missile ship. With most missions you're going to kill NPCs in each room so use the time to travel. Unless you forget to move when you get into the room it shouldn't be an issue. With the one mission you have to tank the toxic cloud while traveling to the next gate an AB is helpful. For that purpose I keep an AB in my item hanger.

Of course that's just my opinion so if you're happy with an AB fitted by all means keep it.

Oh and Maelstrom gets my vote for PVE.

Thanks all for the input I am buying a nice Maelstrom with some CCC's installed on it now (at a substantial discount woo woo) now I am currious as the the advantages / disadvantages of Auto Cannons Vs Artillery I know Arty has much better range and bust Dmg so what would make a guy want to go Artillery and moreover what is lest skill point intensive Auto Cannons or Artillery?

Thanks to all.

What matters here is which one of your weapon skills are the best, missiles, projectiles or hybrids. Assuming perfect skills, personally I would go for the Raven, it has the best range, dps and speed. You lose out on the ability to blap small ships on the approach, but I feel it will still outperform the Mael or Rokh.

The Rokh is quite underwhelming for missions and it has bad capacitor, so it's the one I would recommend the least. Maelstrom on the other hand while it has a really nice tanking bonus, you either have a very short range with Autocannons, or you have to deal with Artillery which has terrible tracking (you'll lose dps even against Battleships if they orbit in close) and requires more management to not overkill things with the huge alpha.

Losing your Raven was probably a lack of skills, a bad fit, or possibly shooting too many triggers and thus getting your ship overwhelmed. Even with relatively low skills you should have no problem doing Level 4 missions in a Raven if you're careful. Here's a reliable low-skill fit similar to the one that I used when I was new (and this was before cruise missiles got buffed and the Raven only had 6 midslots) and it never failed me.

[Raven, L4 Low-Skill]

Ballistic Control System II
Ballistic Control System II
Ballistic Control System II
Ballistic Control System II
Damage Control II

X-Large C5-L Emergency Shield Overload I
EM Ward Field II
EM Ward Field II
Thermic Dissipation Field II
Heavy Capacitor Booster II, Cap Booster 800
5a Prototype Shield Support I
5a Prototype Shield Support I

'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Caldari Navy Mjolnir Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Caldari Navy Mjolnir Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Caldari Navy Mjolnir Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Caldari Navy Mjolnir Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Caldari Navy Mjolnir Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Caldari Navy Mjolnir Cruise Missile
[Empty High slot]

Large Warhead Rigor Catalyst I
Large Warhead Rigor Catalyst I
Large Warhead Flare Catalyst I


Hobgoblin II x5
Hammerhead II x5

This has a massive tank of 792 at worst against Sanshas or 944 against Angels. Does 700dps of any damage type with low skills (Caldari BS IV, Missile Supports IV, Drone Support III). T2 drones are a little bit of a lengthy train but I would not recommend going into L4s without them or you can get caught with your pants down. You can swap one of the mids for a prop mod of choice (MWD, MJD, AB) when required to travel to gates, otherwise stick with the extra tank.

Read Eve-Survival first to check triggers, take out Battlecruisers first followed by Battleships to reduce the dps to a manageable level, always take out scrambling frigs first so you can escape in case things go bad.

Autocannons will get you through most missions with little effort and only the occasional rat chase, artillery is easy mode for other missions, Serpentis Spies comes to mind, warp in ungrouped arties, kill all the close turrets, then kill the frigs approaching from 145km away, (Need a Sebo) then group arties and one shot pop the BS's.

Artillery requires a lot of training, but once done with the tedium of training you will find Arties to be very handy. Personally getting over 1000dps from my Arties, training, Implants, and fit for it.

I started eve 5 years ago, have trained up many toons, they have all used the "old" raven and solo'd lvl4's in them. I bought a raven when I started, that ravens still exist as I have not lost any ships to missions. It probably still has it c-5l XL SB and arbi launchers.
The changed Raven will make it even easier.
Raven's don't have to worry about range and tracking, so can slow boat through any mission without cap issues or struggle by being orbited close by.
I have tried just about every T1 BS in missions with various fits, so I believe I know how they work and how easy they are to use. The only T1 BS I have not yet used for missions is the Hyperion...

I have also flown many navy, T2 and pirate BS's, but you can't compare them to T1..

That answer your question???


BTW.. The Rokh is terrible for missioning in.. but that's my opinion.. if you tried it then you would know it. But each to his\her own..

Reading is hard.

Maelstrom for sure. Easy/Low SP mode is 1400mm Arty, with a MJD. Way less ammo usage, use 2 groups of guns.

Autos are fun, but i got tired of the stacks of ammo i used.