Ships & Modules

This is a really insightful post.

-Liang

I have to disagree. A T3 can only have one link operational without gimping itself by using command processors to fit a full set - something which would greatly mess with its tank - whereas a CS can fit a full set without gimping itself. Additionally, T3's with the warfare sub, even without fitting CP's, have considerably less tank than resist-bonused fleet command ships, and are obtained for roughly twice the price.

While there might still be some people who prefer to bring a T3 on grid over a CS because they want a higher bonus and don't necessarily need all three links, I expect that number would drop noticeably as people realize how squishy and expensive they are in comparison to the command ships.

Edit: If anyone doubts this, just look at the Alliance Tournament. Strategic Cruisers are the same points value as Command Ships, yet we see a lot of people fielding Claymores, Damnations, and (I believe) a few Vultures.

Think as a roamer facing locals with a POS, or hi-sec pilots at war: your enemies haven't sacrificed anything, it's an alt anyway, no risk of being killed, no risk of SP loss, no need to fit it for anything else than boosts. 8 linked Claymore or two 4 linked T3s, doesn't matter.


Is it normal, balanced, whatever? Definitely not.


As for the 255-men fleet against the 5-men gang, Doesn't matter who get the best boost in my opinion, what matter is the drawback:

-with 255 pilots, you can have someone in a T3/CS/Capital on the field giving bonuses, the drawback in dps/whatever is fairly small compared to the advantages of the ganglinks, that's how it should work.

-with 3 pilots, if you want this kind of extremely powerful bonus, it's normal you have to tweak your setup to include a T3 or a CS, which means less dps/tank/whatever. Not normal you can have it just with an alt at a POS with noone piloting it.

Looking a this from CCP's point of view, I'm fairly certain they'll not opt for on-grid boosting because it will affect too many players' game style. Let's not forget that fleet boosters are used everywhere, from null & w space up to highsec missioning.

On-grid boosting would, paradoxically, nerf T3 production. POS-based & safed T3 boosters are used everywhere in w-space, and make a huge difference to Sleeper farming efficiency.

CCP have stated a commitment to continued *balancing* through Crucible and beyond. What I read from that is exactly what they've been doing - namely fine-tuning stuff that needed it. Game mechanics are more difficult and contentious items to fiddle with.

I certainly agree that something should be done - but the simplest options are usually the best. So I would expect that, if CCP choose anything at all, it will be a simple percentage tweak.

10 Naga's/Rokh's in your 200 man fleet swap to optimal range scripts and iron to start popping CS/T3's sitting 200k+ out. The main point in grid-wide boosting, or any range limitation, is to make the player actually field the ship in order to make it useful.

I'd like to see ganglinks fitted similar to subsystems; you can slot them in and out without effecting your fitting. Rebalance CS stats if need be.

The current ganglink implementation is just silly, they are best used by a ship fitted for nothing but it while sitting at a POS. Does this honestly make sense to anybody?

What? Huh?

You seem to be proving my point. As it is, they're offgrid, so nothing can touch them. If they're ongrid, they can be hit by inties/LR ships, or close range ones if they warp on an inty/covops.

Make more sense.

Well, I'm pretty sure I was not into the whole command ships in POS thing boosting losers in systems they decide is theirs and camp 23/7. That sh!t has been annoying for awhile.

Ofc i have used alts for whatever i need them for. its not hard for me to go and drop 10- 15 bill on a boosting character. Stil, i dont want to have to pay for 2 accounts to deal with these no-skilled, loss averse losers who scout, ecm, boost there way to victory.

Anyway, fock t3 boosting alts and command-ships. Remove them and logistics from game. Also, if you're rolling with a alt. Then you're not solo period. Getting rid of that will not in anyway hurt small gang or solo pvpers. Only r3tard3d terrible f@g boyz. Since I still explode those losers anyway. Whole thing is not that big of a deal, but annoying non the less.

I can't wait for the T2 gang link mods.

In the past I've been an advocate of bringing all boosting on-grid, but I'm starting to change my mind.

T3's in pure ganglink configuration require premades safes or time to set up anywhere other than their home system, and even then they can be probed out - especially if they're in a hurry and have set up in a hasty safe. I've run with them in gangs and we've been jumped before the links could be set up on multiple occasions.

As for links in POSes, I really don't see the issue with a home-field advantage for corps that have them. You can burn down the post to remove the home field advantage, fight somewhere else, or modify your combat plan with the knowledge that they'll have boosters.

On the other hand, I've advocated for on-grid boosting in order to make Field CS's and BC's utilized more in the leadership role, especially because with the T2 ganglinks coming off-grid links could become almost mandatory with their significant bonuses.

But with experience it's become pretty easy to spot this t3 ganglink alts, and you have plenty of time to react when they're getting set up - they're much like Falcons, when you notice their presence you're less likely to engage unless you are confident in your ability to counter them. That's the ultimate balance of EVE - you can roll with your ganglink alts and miss out on fights, or go in a more vulnerable seeming BC with slightly less effective links and get some fights that you wouldn't have otherwise.

EDIT: And I have scanned down t3 alts during a fight - the entire fight was actually a diversion we staged to get the alt decloaked and not paying attention to scan, and we very nearly got the t3 kill out of it - our diversionary force got a bit overzealous and forced them off the field which meant they cloaked up the alt just when we had it busted. I've still got that safe if they ever come back though :(

It was 4v4 - 5v5 if you count their alt and our scanning alt. Pretty even too - BS and three BC's versus their two tengus and two drakes, they had sentries. Phoon nueted down one of the tengus and it decided to deaggro and dock, the rest ran - which was about when I finally got the t3 probed down, sadly.

Saying mechanics are unbalanced doesn't make it so, sorry.