Ships & Modules

First off, hello all! I'm a newbie here and in EVE, so bear with me if I say something foolish. That said, let's get down to business.

I have a bit of a project I'm trying to work on, and the idea is this: I would like to be able to solo exploration sites (low and null), but with a fit that will allow me a chance to turn the tables on a ganker that warps in on me. I understand that my best option would, of course, be to fit stabs and just run, but I want to try something different. I'll admit that imagining the look on a pirate's face when his juicy target turns and opens fire is... appealing.

So far, my idea of the basic requirements of such a fit would be as follows:

-1 high slot for cov ops cloaking device

-1 Mid for analyzer

-1 Mid for scram (I don't expect explorer gankers to fit stabs, but maybe I'm wrong? the scram is mostly to turn off MWD)

Beyond these basic necessities, the other modules would be specific to the strategy I'm employing.

At the moment, I'm playing around with fits on a Stratios. My thinking so far has led me to focus on neuts and/or ewar, and let drones do the hitting. My primary concern with that is, of course, missile and projectile turret ships.

At this point, I'm hoping you may have suggestions for tactics/fits/different ships to use for this crazy scheme; either that, or just a solid indication that what I'm trying to do is absolute madness, and should be stopped before my insanity infects others.

TL;DR- I would like to fit an exploration ship in a way that allows it to run exploration sites AND fight back against gankers.

Thanks in advance for whatever help you can provide!

Taking a quick peek at your employment record, I can see that your character is barely over a month old. With this in mind, let me give you some seemingly harsh, yet sincerely well-intentioned, advice.

1. If you have already purchased said Stratios, leave it docked somewhere in hisec for at least a year while you train up your combat and support skills. Expensive faction cruisers are notoriously easy to lose by pilots who think that being able to undock in one is the same as being able to properly fly one.

2. Go buy a T1 exploration frigate and spend some time running sites in hisec. You need lots of practice both probing down the sites and hacking the containers, and doing it in the relative safety of hisec is a great place to start.

3. After said hisec practice, give losec a try. Now, you'll have to run your probes and hack the containers all while watching both local and your directional scans. The key to not being gank-bait in an exploration site is to know that someone is going to be joining you before they land on grid if at all possible.

4. After you've got some practice running sites in losec, pick up a T1 ship of your choosing and practice PvP-ing in it. Expect to die a lot, so pick something not horrible expensive.

5. By the time you've done all of those things, a year will probably have passed and you'll likely have both the character skillpoints and the personal experience to fly a Stratios as you suggested.


I'm sorry if this sounds harsh, but EvE is harsh. You can't just jump into shiny, expensive ships as a new player and expect them to live.

You should also listen to this man above me.

I'd like to apologize ahead of time for any lapses in grammar or spelling, as I'm replying from my phone.

To begin with, I would like to thank you all for your sound advice, and reassure you (or disappoint any pirates among you) that I have no expectation of attempting this with my current skills and experience. Mostly, I'm curious as to whether the idea is even viable. I truly have no idea; as you have (accurately) pointed out, I lack the skills and practical experience to make any educated assuptions.

This is what I propose: treat the concept as nothing more than a thought experiment. If you were to attempt such a thing, how would you go about it? Or are we to agree that this is a fool's errand, and trying to fit for exploration and pvp is simply a matter of being poorly equipped for two tasks instead of properly equipped for one, as has been suggested.

To be honest, I had feared that might be the case.

it's really hard (if not impossible) to fit covert cloak + probe launcher + data analizer on a stratios pvp fit, you have the slots but you really lack the cpu, even if you faction/deadspace fit you need CPU modules and they cripple your pvp abilities.
so as the other said already pick one path, fit for pve and run or you fit for pvp but then it will be almost impossible to pve in that ship

I use a Stratios in low sec (WH hacking sites) relatively often and the only reason I use a Stratios instead of a cov ops frigate is because I run combat sites in it as well as relic and data and look for Mordu's cruisers/frigates in belts. I tend to stay out for long periods of time across multiple regions using wormholes to move around and so I carry extra supplies and modules for refits as needed. Speaking of which you forgot to add in a second -1 high for probe launcher.

I don't expect to fight anything in my PvE Stratios (even with almost 100 mil SP) and wipe any rats that point me off the field asap and get well off the warp in when taking acceleration gates. The upside is that for anything that is not anomalies any would-be ganker is going to have to probe you out and often this means many solo or even small gangs will not be able to find you at all. Also know your acceleration gates. When doing a 3/10 that Hyperion on scan is no threat to you even if he can probe you because he can't activate the gate. Do yourself a favor and add probes to your overview and scan for probes within close range of you while running sites with anyone in local. The more probes there are on shorter scans the less time you have to get moving. As soon as you see one combat or even a core from someone else kill or burn off from any rats that have you pointed double time and get out of there or at least get aligned. Whoever is probing you is trying not to spook you by spiking local until they have you. Stay cloaked until the coast is clear. Don't worry about trying to beat a PvP ship in a PvE ship, their entire fit is devoted to killing you, the same can not be said of you. If you want to fight the guy(S) coming for your ship then by all means do so, but fit for PvP before you do.

All that being said, if you happen across someone running relic and data sites in a cov ops (or T1) frigate there is a good chance you can pop him quickly while he's busy hacking cans if you're in a Stratios and any risk to you is very low, just watch local for revenge site invasion. I've done it a couple of times and they make for easy (possibly lucrative) prey if they are careless, don't be caught out being careless.

I'm not trying to tell anyone not to do anything, I've seen tons of unconventional things work in my time in this game. The OP asked about the viability of his chosen strategy I've simply pointed out potential pitfalls and workarounds to avoid them if he wants to go ahead with his plan.

The biggest thing, which has nothing to do with player age at all, is PvE and PvP fits rarely meld well. The lost web on a Stratios due to your data analyzer can very easily make the difference between a won and lost fight. As I said I carry the pvp fit in cargo and will use it if required (or opportune) but I will always try to avoid a fight when the PvE fit is being used.

That being said if you do get caught in a PvE fit you absolutely should try to fight unless the situation warrants otherwise like you can make it to a gate (with reasonable assumption the other side is clear) or station, but caught out in a site you stand a much better chance of survival if you fight back. Pilots will rarely make mistakes if they are not under pressure of taking damage so don't let them just have free reign. If you didn't get out while fighting back you definitely weren't going to make it by rolling over.

Get in a rookie ship with a probe launcher, cov op, and analyzer, go to null sec where most pods are killed, and make some friendship... if you get into a good corp, you'll learn 10x faster than you'll ever can by playing solo, your corp mates will help you... in the beginning...

EvE is indeed a sandbox, and one that new players can enjoy right out of the box.

However, it's also a sandbox with a complex set of rules that is populated by kids bigger than new folks who know the rules better than them.

I don't see anything acidic in this thread, I see people suggesting that the OP take his time, learn the ropes gradually, and then jump into the deeper stuff. That's not acidic, that's prudent. The advice I gave above was based on my own experience in which my corp & I jumped in, time and time again, without really knowing what we were doing. Largely as a result of that, I am the only one of the dozen or so friends I started off playing with still playing. They all got frustrated and quit.

Jumping right into the deep end as you have (rather successfully mind you, I'm a fan of your videos) can be successful. Wildly so even. But in my experience, it has a much greater chance of frustrating new players and driving them off. So, I base my advice to new players on the balance and encourage them to be somewhat patient without flat-out telling them that they're stupid to try. Had the OP replied to my advice specifically indicating that he still wanted to fly the Stratios, I would have gladly told him how best to do it.

Don't mistake experience and prudence for acid.