Ships & Modules

I would love to see Black Ops ships used more, perhaps a change in mechanics is needed instead of a straight forward buff, there needs to be a reason to use Black Ops instead of the usual bait drake with cyno and a titan-bridge =P

I'm also of the opinion a simple jump range buff would do the trick, maybe coupled with a reduction in fuel use. Further problems I think are limited to the Sin, who just feels awkward.

I agree with you entirely, it just happened to me a few times too many that the one jump I couldn't make happened to be at that one gate that was scouted.

But yeah any sort of buff to their combat capabilities would be a huge mistake. With the exception of the Sin I do think that Black Ops are in good position right now and fixes to them would mostly be aimed at making their use a little more convenient.

That said if they do decide to go over the top and give my Panther another hardpoint, more damage, more tank and a covertops cloak I'm not going to be one to complain, heh.

On the Widow, I dislike that I have to choose only 2 of portal, cloak, and cyno, or sacrifice a launcher. Certainly not at the top of my list of changes to blops. But t'would be nice to get that 8th high slot.

I also have to say that when I first starting using it, I was shocked at how much fuel it cost to portal ships around. Bombers and such aren't too bad. But recons... good Lord! Do they really have to cost 10x the fuel of a frigate? I know it's tied to mass. But lord almighty. That's steep.

A fuel usage reduction coupled with better range would be a welcome change. I find it difficult to justify training JDC 5 when moving a few bombers and recons just a couple AU burns all my fuel.

I don't think a massive amount needs to be changed about BO but there are some fairly simple changes that would not rock the boat too much...

General Problems....

- Need to haul around a blockade runner in almost all cases
- Tank very weak even in comparison to T1 version
- Fuel use compared to storage is very high
- Range is somewhat limiting and makes tactical manoeuvres somewhat laborious.

Ideas....

- Give BO T2 resists profile
- Increase jump range a little. Perhaps 10% per BO level. (This = 3.75ly @ Level V with Jump Dr Calib V also)
- Reduce fuel costs a little. Perhaps 5-10% per BO level.
- Increase cargo hold to that of the fuel bay+. Although this ties in a little with the above.

I do not like or support the idea of a cov-ops cloak for BO.

In addition it would be interesting to see Titans nerfed such that you could only bridge outside of a POS shield. Not my idea but I have to admit I do like it for the Titan-BBQ factor.

Correction - Base range is currently 2ly (4ly @JDC4, 4.5 ly @JDC5). Increasing the base range to 2.5ly (5ly @JDC4, 5.625 @JDC5) would more than suffice for the black ops.

However as previously stated, the fuel useage then becomes a huge problem. My corp/alliance make EXTENSIVE use of black ops on a REGULAR basis. To run a hotdrop campaign for more than one evening we need upwards of 25 GSCs anchored in space to supply us with enough fuel to drop approx 10-15 bombers and support recons (and return them to the base system). A covert hauler just isn't big enough!!! So, the only really viable option is to REDUCE THE FUEL USEAGE, increasing the fuel bay really is a moot point. As for the cold, hard figures of the matter, that would require some input from CCP and players to get it right.

As for using the black ops beyond a glorifed mobile jump bridge, namely in combat, they need some serious looking at. It's an approx 500mil (not sure of Jita price atm) hull that has a worse tank than I can get out of the T1 equivelant!!! There are ways to make combat black ops, but they revolve around expensive fits and ONLY the Panther and Redeemer, the Widow and Sin are a total waste of space...

In summary, black ops are workable at the moment, however they could be much better with some relatively basic changes. I would however advocate the fact that any changes would need to be extensively tested in co-operation with player groups who use them regularly.

i couldn't find the dislike button so I'm posting to tell you you're dumb hth

I don't understand the fuel problem. You can bridge a blockade runner around with you, and that should give you plenty of fuel. Those things can go through the bridges for a reason.

I don't understand the need for more tank. If your target manages to put out enough damage to hurt you before you kill it, you really need to fire your covert cyno scout.

I don't understand the need for EWarin the black ops boat itself. You're bringing a couple force recon boats with you, right?

Increased jump range seems reasonable, so long as it's not over done. If you find yourself needing to travel farther than 20ly just to reach your target, you probably need to leave your current alliance in favor of one with more enemies. Not that there are many out there to chose from, sadly. However, isn't getting around regional chokepoints a huge part of what the ship is supposed to do? Surely it should be able to bridge from one system to the next one over at the very least?

Summary: the ship does what it's supposed to do well enough, but could possibly benefit from a reasonably increased bridge range.

cuz a BLOP that launched stealth fighter bombers would be coolest :p

I failed posted my reply....I shall fix with a proper reply later...