Warfare & Tactics

Copied from http://www.factionwarfare.com/defining-lowsec/#comment-601

Defining Lowsec
Posted by: Subsparx August 12, 2014 in Featured, General FW, Guest Contribution 1 Comment

The following guest article was written by MinutemanKirk for FactionWarfare.com. MinutemanKirk is a long time member of the Gallente Militia living in low-sec. Having been with Quantum Cats Syndicate [QCATS] for almost 4 years, he has served the roles of head diplomat and FC during most of that time. You can find him on twitter @MinutemanKirk.


Eve is a game without bounds… mostly. Players are allowed to do anything they want, within the confines of the game limits. Want to scam someone? By all means! Want to launch bombs in High-Sec? Not so much. This begs the question: if Eve is truly a sandbox game, why shouldn’t one be allowed to use anything, anywhere? The answer is, perhaps, slightly contradictory.

CCP champions Eve’s ability to do anything you want, whenever and however you want. This creates a problem though, there are Eve players already in the game that would absolutely want to make life miserable for just about everyone, new players and veterans alike. So CCP creates a relative safe zone called High-Sec, where new players and players wishing to avoid conflict as much as possible, can dwell in relative bliss.

But then there are players who want Eve unchained, where empires can be scratched out from nothing to eventually grow into super powers, and where anything can happen. Eve: by the players and for the players, so CCP creates Null-Sec to allow just that. A place where anything can happen without any immediate impact from things like CONCORD or gate guns.

In between “known space”, we have a unique area called wormholes. W-space was not designed to be a “home”, or a route one simply passes through. Yet players eventually made it both those things. It is a land where people can amass great fortunes and enjoy relatively small scale warfare with like-minded groups (though even these battles can, in some cases, become quite large). Other entities can use W-space as a shortcut by probing multiple holes, great traps have been sprung, and distances crossed with little trouble.

Finally, we have Low-Sec. Currently a strange, gray area in between all of the above. Pirates generally call these areas of space their home. Their crimes do not go without punishment, however, and camping a gate for neutrals does require some skill or logi in order to be successful. Low-Sec, being between many areas of interest for many groups, is also a great highway, the dark sky lit with cyno’s, or gate flashes of hundreds of ships. This chaotic place also houses Faction Warfare, and a strange conglomerate of bittervets, newbros, retired Null-Secers and other assortments of people often call it home.

The problem

Low-Sec has been in dire straits for some time. Outside of Faction War (FW), the activity levels depend greatly upon where larger groups live or move through. I asked Sugar Kyle, one of the Low-Sec CSM members, to comment on the state of Low-Sec:

“I don’t think Low-Sec is broken so much as undefined. This leads to us feeling [it is] broken because we play Low-Sec in so many different ways that the holes that crop up due to the lack of a solid support structure feel like missing pieces instead of pieces that never formed, which is what they are.”

The lack of content has also been obvious to CCP who, in more recent patches, has seen fit to add Low-Sec-only content to improve life for its residents. From “tags for sec” to Mordus ship spawns, a variety of Low-Sec life improvements have been added. This, however, has only been continuing a trend from CCP regarding Low-Sec: by continuing to add things as they go without giving Low-Sec meaning, Low-Sec simply becomes a rolling stone of random ideas that wouldn’t or shouldn’t be implemented elsewhere. Is this alright? Is there anything wrong with a mindset like that?

To understand this, we must first ask what the purpose of Low-Sec is.

Opinions vary on this question, as they should, without a clear definition of a specific game mechanic, it leaves itself open to interpretation. Many Null-Sec players will say that Low-Sec is merely a stepping stone into null. A place where carebears can begin to learn the aspects of PvP without being required to do CTA’s, or “obey” the alliance CEO without question. FW, they might say, is a further extension of this. With “sov lite” mechanics, it is clearly a training ground with the ultimate purpose of ending up in null. Is this a fair assessment though? Not really. If Low-Sec’s “end game” was to get people moved into Null-Sec, then it would stand to reason that the only people actually left in lowsec would be newbros, terribads, or raging egomaniacs that have no place in Null-Sec. But this isn’t the case at all! Some of the most respected individual pilots dwell in Low-Sec corps, from pure pirate corps like The Tuskers [TSKRS] and Stay Frosty [ST-FR], or FW corps like Quantum Cats Syndicate [QCATS] and the recently defunct Shadows of the Federation [SOTF], to alliances like Shadow Cartel and Snuff Box, there is certainly no shortage of skilled pilots that continue to live (and thrive) in Low-Sec.

The reason I think this is an important issue is the same reason why Low-Sec needs “official” recognition as to what most players currently utilize Low-Sec for, solo and small gang combat on a near limitless scale potential. There are always groups of pilots that traverse Low-Sec daily. Whether due to FW, WH entrances, or simple roams for a change of pace, fighting can be found, to some extent, in many areas of Low-Sec.


One additional note to make before offering a suggestion, currently due to the size, nature, and capabilities of Null-Sec blocs, Null-Sec residents are able to interfere with Low-Sec residents and their plans with little to no inconvenience to themselves. W-space residents can make incursions into other areas of space, get some kills, and disappear with almost zero chance of immediate repercussions. Low-Sec residents have no such method “interference” of any significant scale. Sure we do, one might say, have those pesky little siphon units, but if a Null-Sec alliance was to start seeing a difference in income, a single POS gunner could log in and fix the problem. Low-Sec needs a way to be able to make an impact on other areas of the game without needing hundreds or thousands of pilots, capitals, and assets to use.


A possible solution, and the benefits therein

Currently, there are three options to avoid Pandemic Legion ruining your day if you choose to deploy capitols. First is deploying them in very small numbers. By limiting the number of capitals on field, you significantly reduce the interest PL, or others like them, of dropping your little gang. This, however, is severely limiting to the number of structures you can target with any haste. Most large, hardened towers take some time to knock over, time a half dozen caps simply don’t have. It also limits the escalation ability of Low-Sec group fights. Secondly, you can deploy a mobile cyno inhibitor to prevent caps from jumping in within a small radius of it. This, however, is almost entirely useless if intending to fight a group determined to enter the system as it is simply a matter of warping the cyno to a different location, jumping in, and then warp into the grid. This is also be circumvented by simply destroying the inhibitor itself. Finally, it you can also try to negotiate standings with all the relevant Null-Sec blocs.


None of these options are healthy for Low-Sec. None of these options improve the ability of Low-Sec residents to significantly hinder operations of others, and none of these options “guarantee” that supers unlimited will not come knocking. So what do I propose? Making a jump drive inhibitor script or module for Heavy Interdictors that, of course, jams jump drives system wide. Why this, and why a HIC?


1. HIC’s currently have almost zero usefulness in Low-Sec. In fact, the only time you ever see them used in a fleet is when you are hunting caps. In those situations, they are generally used for ghost riding. By having a “legitimate” use for something other than supers, HIC usage would go up.
2. By providing a way to interrupt jump drives, not only can Low-Sec residents have a chance (more on this in a moment) of putting caps on field in systems they actually live in, it offers a form of protection against invincible “teleporting” supers by making them think twice before deploying.
3. Even well tanked HIC’s cannot have more than a couple hundred thousand EHP’s, far less than a tower. This would give opposing fleets a chance to destroy it with what is on the field.

Some clarifications: First, these modules or scripts would require fuel so that they could not be perma-AFK run. Once activated, HIC’s running it would also broadcast a beacon (like a cyno). This would allow for anyone to find them and, since they would not be able to activate it within a POS or even move, would be able to be destroyed. Note that the friendly HIC could still receive reps, EWAR, etc.


To answer some concerns I already see coming:

“What about my logistics! You would paralyze the economy by freezing Jump Freighters!”

First, think about this: There are LOTS of ways to get to Jita and, since there are a number of Low-Sec systems that one can go through, I’m quite certain that goods would still be moved. Would this add risk to JF’s? Absolutely, but aside from putting too much ISK in a hold or being dumb during a Burn Jita campaign, not that many JF’s are lost in comparison with how often they are used. A compromise would be to make a special JF only module that could be put in one of the new slots making them immune to this so that your precious cargo can still get to the market in time.


“This would totally cripple our ability to move around the map!”

Well… yeah! That’s the point! But again, if you seriously can’t find another system to go through, are you really worthy of having that power to begin with? Currently, nobody has a SINGLE way a non-bloc entity can seriously impact a large bloc’s ability to move at will. When PL wants to move, PL moves, and no number of Low-Sec residents will stop them. This is totally contradictory to the aforementioned ways that WH’s, High-Sec, and Null-Sec have of slowing or preventing cap movement in controlled space.

first !

also the title is a bit lackluster, not at all descriptive of the proposal, and shouldn't this be in the F&I subforum?

first : makes hics usefull in lowsec
second: can keep supers in system until they kill the hics that aren't on grid with them

and who said anything about using caps to bash structures? I want Battleship fights! Not my fault if Crosi can't be arse'd to read the whole thing but still wants to reply.

Doubt im alone. After like 2 paragraphs of a whine post if the problem isnt identified i kinda lose patience.


Also, wrong forum.

Super capitals can be pointed by scrams and disruptors in low sec. Problem solved.

How is this possibru? Same way that DD can't be used in low sec.

For me the lack of structure to low sec is precisely what makes it appealing. Freedom to do *most* of what you want, without the interference of pesky NAPs that literally put you to sleep with blues or empty systems for 30 jumps in every direction.

Sov needs some work but I won't comment because I don't care.

To help with power projection though I think you can solve it quite easily with a pretty simple two part solution. Part one, expand the distance between stars about 25 to 30% without any increase in jump drive/bridge jump range with the exception of black ops which would have their jump range increased by the same amount as would the remote sensing skill for PI to keep them where they are now. Black ops do not have anywhere near the power projection issues caps do which is why I feel they shouldn't get shafted. Affects jump drives while normal gate to gate travel is completely unaffected.

Second add a jump cooldown timer to pilots who have used either a jump drive or bridge which lasts 10 minutes. This is easy to justify from a lore perspective. You know that implant in your brain that allows you to transfer your mind to your next clone on death? Well when you move drastically through space in an instant the connection gets a little shaky and needs a short time to be re-calibrated before you can use a jump drive or bridge again or it would risk severing the connection altogether (not that I would suggest we allow that risk to be taken at all).

As a sandbox game you need to be able to move around EVE at a reasonable pace, otherwise moving becomes too massive an ordeal but this must be weighed against the influence one gains by being able to move around quickly. If you are able to move too quickly stagnation results from power projection, too slow and stagnation results from people setting up shop and never leaving because it's too big a pain in the ass to make the round trip. Now strategic objectives get reinforced for the better part of two days and this should be just full on invulnerability for the duration of reinforced timers. If the trip from one end of null to more or less the opposite side were to take 1-2 hours it would give you enough time to be there for pitched battles by jumping people out as timers ticked down. Meanwhile the jump timer delay combined with the reduced distance you can cover in a single jump means that the fastest possible response time to make that trip would be 1-2 hours and so if the battle of B-R or Asakai were to break out suddenly again many of the coalition forces would not be available for some time as their travel time takes a lot longer than it does currently. Chances are the fight would be over by the time reinforcements hit the field.

In this way a massive coalition could possibly survive because allies could arrive in time for a major fight but the long trip there and back when called upon would leave a lot of players getting very sick of the run around and so hopefully you'd see the dissolution of some of the coalition parts which live far apart. Their ability to help each other at short notice would take a huge hit after all. If you are dealing with a deployment of some kind then you can set up within a single jump of your incursion and your ability to attack or respond quickly will not really be hampered only your ability to call in another thousand ships from out of alliance at a moment's notice will suffer.

Some people suggested completely removing bridges and jump drives but I feel this will only lead to stagnation of a different kind. True EVE did not have these things in the beginning and "stuff got done" but a lot of that is nostalgia for a time that isn't coming back and chances are it wasn't as good as people remember it. Besides when people have no other options than to do things the hard way, they do things the hard way. Jump drives and bridging became a thing and we are in to deep to just pull the rug out now. The inclusion of bridges and jump drives allows a smaller group a lot of options for attacking a larger one where without them the conflict could be locked out by massive camps on choke systems when your spies inform you things are getting real so I do like them conceptually. Stagnation is avoided by striking the proper balance between being able to move quickly enough to be bearable while not being so fast as to ensure you can field your full coalition in every fight. Right now we are weighted much too heavily to the rapid deployment side. No amount of preventing hot drops in low sec will fix it.

I vote silly.

I actually read all that and here are my thoughts:

- You write even longer walls of text than James315 does. Commendable.

- I don't see anything wrong with lowsec myself. The identity is the same as always, the playground where it is easier to find action at an individual level but said actions are much shorter lived and cause much less of an impact in the long run. This is because all the conflict generators are of lesser value but occur more often than other areas of space (fw complexes vs hour long roams that take hours to prepare or rageroll, the frequency of clone/mordus spawns vs officers, system sieges vs sbu lagfests or eviction battles, gatecamps and playersspread over 500 systems versus 2500). To be honest, as someone that has lived in all areas of space I find it to be in a fair spot all things considered despite being my least favourite. If anything, lowsec has more of a consistent group identity than other areas of space.

- There is nothing anti-sandboxy about arbitrary mechanics. It's how the game has been balanced around for the past 11 years and every game is subject to its bounds of linearity at some point, no matter how open it claims to be.

- Getting hopdropped by PL is only a symptom of the real issue, not the problem itself. Power projection is the elephant in the room, not lowsec.

tl;dr grr PL lowsec fine