Ships & Modules

Hmm let us think about this for an hour or so.


Astero. SOE exploration boat. +4% armor resistance per level +hacking, covert ops cloak, coherence and a huge drone bay.

Highslots 2x (- one for covert ops cloak)

Medslots: 4x (-3 for relic and data sites and a prop mod)

Lowslots: 4x (a shield tank won't fit here)


Now, let's see, what probe launcher could possibly fit on the last available highslot??

What could be beneficial in the only one left medslot?

Now for the four lowslots with +4% armor resistance per level, what would you fit in here? I give you a hint, mining laser upgrades do not belong there.

What's interesting about the Astero is its combat ability, so if you planning on doing only regular relic and data sites you can stick with a covert ops frigate. A Buzzard hull is less than 50% the price of an Astero's, and covert ops also have a better scanning bonus once you train their related skill to IV.
Furthermore, you will be able to fit an Expanded Probe Launcher on your Buzzard, which holds more probes once loaded. It's a very small QoL improvement but one nonetheless.

Astero will basically let you do small plexes (not the 0.0 ones then - from DED 1/10 to 3/10), and will deter covert ops and T1 exploration frigates from trying to ninja your plex, since you are able to fight back and they generally aren't. You can also try to contest other people's sites if they are running them in non-combat ships.

Here is an example fit with a bit of DPS, with both sites' modules



Don't forget to bring a mobile depot with you with scanning mods, spare drones and whatnot.
Be also careful since you will find in your adventures pure combat Asteros, which drop the scanning mids for more ewar and generally a cap booster for stronger, sustained reps.