EVE New Citizens Q&A

Hey all,
I currently have an amarr character with a Coercer - I have just done a few level 2 security missions and while the last one was a bit tricky, I took on a 2 cruisers and 7 frigates, the one I am currently attempting has a bunch of sentry missile platforms and I'm just getting absolutely roasted.

It seems, from my noob perspective, that I'm due to move up to a Cruiser/Omen - but if I stick to 'Don't buy what you can't afford to replace' then I'm quite a ways away from this.

So a couple of questions:
1) Should I upgrade to continue level 2 missions?
2) If I do, am I stuck grinding tiny level 1 missions to earn the cash? This seems a little brutal.

Thanks for your time!

In general terms, especially for newer players who don't have strong skills yet, Destroyer for L1 missions, Cruiser for L2, Battlecruiser for L3, Battleship for L4.

You're looking at about 10 - 11 million isk just to buy a basic T1 cruiser, plus the modules to fit it on top of that.

Grinding cash. All four of the main races/factions (Amarr, Caldari, Gallente, Minmatar) have three starter/rookie systems, for a total of 12 rookie systems. There is nothing stopping you from travelling to any of the other rookie systems and running the career agent mission arcs in those systems. You'll earn cash as well as faction standings, plus you'll be given some free ships you can keep or sell for more cash. Since these career mission arcs are for brand new players, they're very easy.

There is also the "Sisters of Eve - Blood Stained Stars" mission arc which can be completed by players with limited skills. The arc has approx 50 missions. A couple of the missions near the end of the arc are tougher than average but you should be able to earn enough cash from the arc to buy and fit a cruiser before you get to those final missions, or make some friends in-game and ask them to help you with them. You can repeat this mission arc once every three months.

To start this mission arc, speak to the NPC "Sister Alitura" in the Arnon system. You might already have info about her in your "People and Places", search type Agent, partial term search - "Sister".

You can read up on the details of the different security missions here: http://eve-survival.org/wikka.php?wakka=HomePage to find out what you'll be facing, plus recommendations on what type of damage to do and what types of damage to resist.

The details of the Blood Stained Stars missions are also available on that site under the "Epic Arcs" link.

The original rule #1 - which I think you might have better luck with, is: Don't fly what you can't afford to lose

Although I realize this is very similar to "Don't fly what you can't afford to replace" - it is not the same thing.

You can buy/fit/fly a cruiser for your level 2 missions, or any other use you want to put it to - just be aware that you could lose it for one reason or another any time you undock it. As such - don't go selling your destroyer to get the money or anything - you need a backup ship you can hop into if it blows up. But you don't actually have to wait until you can buy/fit *2* cruisers just to buy/fit the first one - you'll earn the money faster if you start using it ASAP.

FYI, destroyers have the armor and shields of a frigate, but larger size. And actually their size (signature radius) is so balanced that they tend to take full damage from heavy (cruiser sized) missiles, whereas a frigate gets built-in damage reduction simply due to its small size. This is the concept of a "speed tank" - it's not just speed, it's also signature radius (vs. the signature resolution of the weapon aimed at you); keep this in mind, it applies a lot to frigates and destroyers.

Also keep in mind that Target Painter modules, although not as glamorous as the complete stun that ECM jamming accomplishes, can completely ruin an enemy's sig. radius and make them much more vulnerable to your big missiles (which have a tendency to one-shot small targets). So target painting is a possible counter to a speed / signature tank.

For level 2 missions, if you're switching to a cruiser, you're also switching basic tactics: frigates are all about speed and being mobile, cruisers are about actual tank, and the ability to sit there and take the punishment. So, shield or armor repairer, 2 resistance modules to match the weapons that the NPC's will shoot you with (you can read this before each mission if you use a spoiler website such as eve-survival.org), and utility modules such as target painters, webifiers, etc., because you won't have the speed to chase frigates around the space.

This is actually an excellent suggestion - though I'm guessing the OP already has the skills for the cruiser and will take a week or so to train into a confessor - still worth doing it, it'll be much more useful in the long run.

Thank you all so much for the suggestions! I snagged pyfa because fitting juggling was becoming a nightmare and I threw up my character sheet so if you can have a peek at my skills and queue, maybe offer some help there:

http://eveboard.com/pilot/Elsia_Hitami

I will def look into the spec resistances!

I'll check into the confessor thing, sounds fun.

I actually have a magnate and probes|analyzer so when I get tired of fighting I will get into scanning.

Again huge thank you!

Sent you a gift, have fun.

Whoa, very kind - thank you!

I agree with sonya, i actually use a confessor for blitzing low level agents to get standings.
Fantastic ship, realy strong in pvp too.

You've been given some great advice, however, one thing to add on is that you shouldn't be afraid of a cruiser either. They do take some skill on your part to outfit correctly but they can be outfitted fairly cheap just by ratting some of the lower HiSec systems (0.5 to 0.7). Taking on Refuge sites with a T1 destroyer is more than possible. Refuge sites when salavaged can drop some decent systems that are useful to a T1 Cruiser, costing you nothing but time and getting useful experience at the same time.

Advice for T1 Cruisers, armor or shield them for the foes you are taking on. Do not try to do any of the multi-adjustable defense systems. First, they are very expensive to purchase and operate (capacitor wise), and Second, if your target isn't doing that damage type, it's wasted points. Adjustables are more for PvP (when you have no idea what you'll be facing) and for T2 cruisers that can handle the greater power requirements.

Also, use a fitting system (I use O.smium.org) to help you outfit your ship. There are a bunch of versions of ships others have done and you might find one suited for mission running. Be careful of the very expensive looking ships, they also tend to require higher skills on your behalf to use fully.

I've found the cruisers are the most versatile ships I've yet flown. They can take on small targets like Frigates, and even larger targets like BattleCruisers (if you are fit correctly and know what you are doing). You can then run away from the big stuff like Battleships and larger.

I enjoy all the smaller ships, Cruisers and lower, but find that Cruisers can tackle almost any target in HiSec space.