EVE New Citizens Q&A

I've been playing around in RvB for a while now and as expected, have about 19 losses to every kill I get. I do prefer solo play which worked out well as we had a FFA weekend theme.

While getting blown up is educational, it's also extremely discouraging if it becomes a regular thing and it feels like it's not so much my own derp, but rather my fitting choices that hinder me from progressing and learning more - I simply cannot get into range most of the time and thus do little to no damage (slingshotting be damned). =/

Because I bought ships and fittings in bulk before joining I've been stuck with my choices, most of which have been close range brawler fits using afterburner and the standard web/scramble.
I often lose to kiters with MWD who stick around the 20k mark meaning I do virtually no damage.

I also use buffer tanks rather than active tanks since I reasoned it would be easier to learn one thing at a time - and boy have I learned...

So, as soon as my current batch of ships are all blown up, I can look forward to getting a new one, with changed fittings based on what I've learned.

However, there is one thing that still confuses me - AB vs MWD.

TLDR;
Is there a good way to reason around when to fit an Afterburner vs when to fit a MicroWarpDrive?

I'm looking for things like: "if you have a disruptor (20k+ optimal) then AB works best because..." or "if you fly a brawler fit you want to be close but to close that distance use a MWD but you will also be scrambled" etc.
Preferably aimed at solo PvP / FFA but fleeting in small gangs is ofc welcome.

Thanks.

I have tried this, but the problem I have is that these MWD frigs use disruptors and stay at 20k while going 3k m/s while I'm slowboating it at 900 or so. The scrambler only has a reach of about 12-15 overheated (I think) which isn't enough to catch them.
I tried slingshotting and have caught a few this way but I'm usually way into structure by then so I end up losing the fight anyway.

Thanks for the advice though. I've got thermo at level 3 atm (have burned out my guns/webs a few times) so maybe I need to level it to 5?

Would it be better to try and go long range with the weapons and give up the brawlers?

Well, this is mainly frig vs frig with the odd destroyer or cruiser thrown in (cormorants and caracals are evil.. EVIL!) and I can't fly assault frigs yet.

So, let's say I swap to a MWD-brawler fit and keep using the scrambler to kill their MWD, should I turn my MWD off as soon as I get into scram range or keep it going? Worried the big sig radius will do more harm than good or am I completely misunderstanding it?

I guess I'm assuming that if they are kite fit, I need to get under their optimal and they will be quite bad up close, or is this wrong?

Right now you need to be close to use your scram, but have a ship that's not fast. Unless you land a scram on them from the start, they're basically safe when they manage to burn out 12 KM. Their momentum will carry them outside overheated scramrange.

In my opinion; solowork requires a MWD. Either to get in range or to gtfo. Once in range you can start pulsing it to drop sig as much as you can without losing point.
You can dualprop, but not every ship (read frig) can properly do that.

AB solo works in 2 situations:

1. Your opponent is closerange scramfit (and gets close because he wants to kill you)
2. You have a web and start close enough to keep range long enough to kill them before they burn out of webrange.

Cruisers and fleetdoctrines are more flexible.

Also remember kiting can be done at any range, included scram-range. The main reason most will be at 20 or more is the amount of skill required to do it closer.

This rule is not waterproof, but works often enough to go for it in the beginning:
(MWD + scram) OR (AB + web + disruptor)

And you're right about most longrange kiters being in trouble when you get close :)

To add to Yarda, I prefer to always have a web with my scram. This slows them down even more making it hard for them to pull out of scram range.


As you are scram/brawler fitted, fit for MWD. You are already going for the situation where you are committing yourself to a fight by being up close so use that MWD to get there very quickly.

p.s. post your fit here, maybe some regulars can assist you in improving it.

BROTHEEER!
(now expect you to reply "Liquid!?")



Some really useful info here, thanks a lot (meant to all of you, too lazy to quote everyone though).
Most of the stuff I have slowly started to realize myself but good to get some confirmation.

It seems the general consensus is that if I plan to brawl, it's more important to get in close fast (thus MWD) and I should always carry at least a scram to make sure they stay close.
AB seems to be a better choice for situations where I know what I'm up against and know that AB is likely to counter them.
(this to me is flaky as it seems this would pretty much never be the case in solo PvP as my experience is it's more about quick reactions and "come prepared" mindset, picking your targets according to your fit) - that or if I plan to snipe?

I can't post fittings from work, will try to remember when I get back home.

Interesting - I have been looking into the breacher. It seems to be somewhat underestimated (?) and apart from a.. delightful exterior also seems to be able to pack quite a punch - but that is using rockets.
Not sure what frigate (kestrel?) that could pull off using light missiles without sacrificing too much (experience of missiles is limited).

You wouldn't happen to have an example fit of such a theoretical funbox?

Another tip for brawling would be to evaluate where and when you are going to attack. For example, when we roam in FW space it's not uncommon the brawl ships will linger on the beacon inside the site: that way anyone warping into the site can be caught, preventing the 20 km kiting thing from ever happening in the first place. The brawl ship can scram it (bye bye MWD) and web it for added effect. PVP is as much about manipulating conditions then it is about matching up ships against one another.

An AB is really best against heavier ships (where getting under the guns is preferable to trying to kite because they usually have a range advantage) and for counter-tackling to out-last the enemy fleet's MWD/tackle frigates.

It's also good for moving around while under missile fire, the signature bloom from MWD means missiles larger than usual may be able to hit you reliably.

For a beginner, though, MWD = faster = better is probably a reasonable way to go until you actually start having problems with it. By which I mean starting by putting an MWD on every frigate, getting used to it, and then branching out later (or when your fleet's organizer tells you to) is a perfectly legitimate way to start out. Picking one way and getting familiar with maneuvering helps a lot.

At the cruiser level there's a lot more variation in how the weapons and ship abilities work, probably if you think it through there will be a more "definite" answer one way or the other, e.g. if you're in an armor Vexor you're too slow for the MWD to help and you have good force projection, so mostly just tack on an AB so you don't get left out of the fight and drone people to death, or with a shield/blaster gallente boat you really have to get in range to do anything so the MWD is always the necessary choice.

For destroyer, pick one, it doesn't matter: you'll either kill the other guy or get blown up before mobility really comes into play in either direction.