Player Features and Ideas Discussion

TLDR - Move the Drone Damage Amplifier from a Low to a High Slot Module (as advertised).


OBSERVATION - From my very first day of EVE, I knew I wanted to fly Drone Boat ships, even though at the time I was told the only Drones worth using were Hobgoblins, Warriors and Sentries. Fast forward a couple years, and while I love everything CCP have done to rebalance drones and make them worthwhile (beyond worthwhile in a few cases), it seems to me that Drone Boat ships can never be properly balanced so long as drones remain a secondary weapon system... and it seems to me drones will always remain a secondary weapon system so long as they aren't competing with other weapon systems for High Slots.


PROPOSAL - Move the DDA from a Low Slot Module to a High Slot Module. Why the DDA? The basic thinking here is to create a direct trade-off of DPS for DPS between Turrets and Drones. In theory a ship would gain the choice to either fit Turrets in the High slots, leaving Drones as a secondary weapon system, or trade out the Turrets for DDAs to augment the drone damage and effectively turn them into the primary weapon system. It also seems (at face value) an elegant solution that doesn't interfere with the way Drones currently operate (previous suggestions I've read, usually involved adding some variation of a Drone Bay Module to the High Slots).

Once moved to a High Slot, the sky's the limit...
* Instead of a 15% bonus (Tech 1) with stacking penalties, a DDA could drop to a consistent 10%-12% (I'm not nearly qualified to pick a correct figure) per DDA, allowing larger ships with more High slots to get better output from their Drones than smaller ships with less High slots (same way bigger ships can fit more guns).
* DDAs could become an active module, using cap like other primary weapon systems, and perhaps even be overheated for even more damage (since from what I've read, an increased rate of fire isn't possible).
* Perhaps such changes could even allow Drone Boats to add back in the module slot they are penalised for being Drone Boats.


POTENTIAL DOWNSIDES (I'm not sure which of these actually are downsides, but worth consideration...)
* Full balance pass over all Drone Bonused Ships would likely need to accompany such a change. Ideally I'd love to think this change could be mathed out without needing to adjust the ships, but that's highly unlikely - It's a simple change, but with big implications (particularly if DDA were changed to an active module).
* Ships bonused for both drones and a second weapon system could be an issue (Guristas in particular come to mind) as the DDAs competing with Turrets could be problematic.
* Carriers could be an issue, as the DDAs would now compete for space with Drone Control Units (though depending on what CCP have planned for Carriers this could be a non-issue (DCUs may go the way of the dodo).

I'm far from any kind of authority on EVE Online, so by all means, feel free to rip this to pieces or expand on the potential benefits/consequences a change like this might have on the game.

This.

My PvP Gila fit uses both drones and RLMLs. The drones are to shoot you. The missiles are to shoot drones you send at me, then shoot you when your drones are gone.

How about no way, as in -1.

Why would we want to increase the balance hassles In the game for a change like this? What problem would it solve?

All of the other modules that increase DPS or damage application are mid or low slots so why change ONLY the DDA to a high slot?

No one else has said this so allow me.
It seems like you have serious trouble when you are fighting against drones ships and want to nerf them because of it.
Or perhaps you dislike having to fight what amounts to 2 ships every time you come up against a drones ship. See the post above by Iain Cariaba for an example of what i mean by fighting 2 ships.

Turrets and launchers don't get stacking penalties either.

It's a bad idea.

Uber Hull tanked Domi with full rack of DDA's + T2 Ogres...

And? What is your fit and how would this change actually affect it and the performance of your Gila? I presume the lows are filled with DDAs and Highs are filled with missiles launchers, otherwise this suggestion wouldn't even touch your Gila - would it really hurt your Gilas performance if those lows were suddenly free to fill with Ballistic Control Systems instead?
I have a Gila too - CCP saw fit to remove an entire module slot from the ship recently, presumably for the specific purpose of ensuring one less DDA is fitted by pilots. What if this change allowed that Module slot back? What if, instead of returning to the lows, that module slot was added to the highs, to help accommodate both turrets and DDAs?

There have been variations of this idea before, and personally I love the thought of being able to choose between say sending out, say, 5 Heavy Drones or 8 Mediums. Sadly, CCP over the years have been actively reducing the number of drones that ships can pump out to help game performance, so it is highly unlikely they will ever do anything to add more drones to a ship (there's always the possibility though that whatever system they are implementing for carriers could be scaled down for a Battleship).


Um, no. As previously mentioned, Drones are my preferred weapon system. There's nothing another drone ship can do to me that I can't just adopt for my own use. What I dislike as a droneboat pilot are all those empty high slots, the feeling that I am losing out on DPS if I don't include a full rack of guns on my Droneboat, and being encouraged to fit a shield rather than armour tank on Gallente droneships. I like using Drones as a primary weapon system, and would like them to feel like a primary weapon system (without losing their unique playstyle). If anything, I'd like to see this change buff Drones a little rather than nerf them, since it would result in sacrificing a turret or neut to fit the DDA, but balance and numbers are CCPs thing.


A valid concern, but did I? Additional CPU, Powergrid and Capacitor don't magically appear out of nowhere. What would really be possible that isn't now, what sacrifices would be needed to accomplish it, and why isn't it already being done currently?

Simple, it would remove my Gila's ability to engage your drones. Your suggestion would make it so that I don't have room to fit launchers in the highs because that's where the DDAs go.

Remote repping Domis/Ishtars
Laser Vexors for AFKing POSes
The entire Guristas ship line.
Neuting Curses

All that would pretty much die because you want to nerf drone boats.


Then why do you want to nerf drone ships? Drones are rather easily lost, so why should drone boats almost completely lose the ability tomfit other weapons/utility modules?

Also...

I suggested ishtars with a medium neut, a remote shield repper and 2 small cap transfers for NS ratting ships to deal with an AFK cloaker. Not possible with moving drone damage mods to the high slots.

Besides, lets look at where the modules that boost turret and launcher damage sit...oh...low slots. Mag stabs, gyros, heat sinks, and ballistic guidance systems are all lows.

Sorry, just GTFO and stop posting, OP.

I want to see drone ships be required to fit subcap-sized drone control units that cost powergrid in order to get their drone control hardpoints which they will need to even launch drones out of the bay.

How about gun boats have to fit modules to fit guns!

Oh, and also...can we target your guns and launchers too? Just your guns and launchers.

Holy crap.