Player Features and Ideas Discussion

If your scout doesn't know how to counter this then you don't deserve to know how many there are.

It's called d-scan

On a different note, certain people claim that it is so easy to set up and cloak. Every time I move to a system I intend to AFK cloak, and everytime I leave, I run into a minimum of 2 gate camps set up just for me, the average is 3-4, and most of them are the same people using jump bridges to move ahead of me. I as the AFK Cloaker have an extremely limited amount of options when it comes to logistics and it is hard for me to set up anywhere if the locals just figure out what all the other AFK Cloakers hate.

There are a very specific set of strategies used to counter the AFK Cloaker, one example is baiting. The trick is that you have to counter them when they are active, and since you don't know when that is then you'll just have to remain vigilant all the time, which should be the case anyway. Removing/modifying local will make gathering intellegence an active role in the alliance and smart scouts will be needed to ensure the safety of the area.

People say that AFK Cloaking is lazy and cowardly, I say that 100% accurate intel and safing up even when someone is not even at there computer is even worse. They are petrified that they might lose, or they might get ambushed. If this is the case, you deserve to lose, your letting your own fears control you and you don't deserve to hold the SOV that you seem to think you earned. Fight for you little piece of EVE, if you won't do it, then let someone have that little piece that will.

Either way I don't care because at the end of the day will you be able to say that you contributed to you home, when all you did was cower in the station waiting for the scary man parked outside to leave! Step up or shut up.

It's called carebears. vOv


Yes, they're regular heroes they are, what with the huge risk they're taking.

I'm not assuming they have all the advantages, I'm saying they have a lot of them, and if they're non-******** they'll be pretty damn hard to catch and kill. They are hard to catch and kill now, them not showing up in local (or local not even working in the first place) give them a lot more options for how to avoid any retaliatory fleet setup to fight them.

But whatever, I'm done with this. Local should just be removed (or cloaky ships removed from local) so I can point to these threads half a year later so I can point out that my predictions (or conjecture if you must) did come true.

Context is hard.

You're quite right: the risk for the defenders is ridiculously small, even if local is removed.
…and disconnecting cloakers from local would neatly solve that little problem. It would also allow for surprise attacks (in both directions), unlike the current situation.

You don't seem to understand how covert ops don't have any unnecessary modules because they dont have the cpu and grid for it.

Not entirely true when it comes to intel gathering. All you need active for that is cloak and (maybe) probe launcher. Probes have the drawback of being scanable though, and if you are trying to keep your presence completely hidden they are a risk, small risk if careful, but mistakes happen.

Intel officer does not need any other modules active while actually gathering intel. For getting in/ out of position maybe, but even then if you actually need (for example) a MWD then you have probably been "made" and have blown your chance at being undetected already.

The only issue I have with AFK cloakers (and not a major one for me) is the ability to hot drop. Looked at from one way, it does seem to give a cov-ops ship the ability to punch far out of it's weight class. Bombers/ recons can be dangerous by themselves if used correctly, add the possibility of an entire fleet dropping on you and that could be a little OTT.
Naturally at this point it's no longer one player that is involved, but several, which requires a little more planning and preparation. However BO/ cap alts are not hard to come by either, and can also be kept AFK (or logged) until needed. I am curious whether the whines would be as prevalent if measures were taken to restrict the use of hot-dropping as a valid tactic? If all you had to deal with was one ship and one pilot, rather than the potential for a fleet, would AFK cloakers really be that threatening?

So you say, with yet more conjecture.

the fact this is even a discussion is ********.

Cloaking is working fine. the problem is Local. Once local is gone/delayed or 'on sight' only, then nobody will complain about afk cloakers

Lets understand what we're complaining about here. A guy who by definition, is not even at his keyboard. Grow a pair.

Okay, let's dissect this, then. Who do you think afk cloaking works against?

Not just that, but anyone that also isn't prepared to take risks or that expects to safely do what they want in null sec.