Missions & Complexes

Well, it would definitely be nice if complete escalations were able to be accessed without having to rely on RNG crap. Course if that was the case then the market would be flooded with Deadspace mods which would lower their price. Great for those who are buying those items while at the same time screwed for those who are selling those items.

http://web.archive.org/web/20151017121853/https://wiki.eveonline.com/en/wiki/True_Sansha_Fleet_Staging_Point

http://web.archive.org/web/20160226060005/https://wiki.eveonline.com/en/wiki/True_Sansha_Fleet_Staging_Point,_Site_2

http://web.archive.org/web/20160226211127/https://wiki.eveonline.com/en/wiki/True_Sansha_Fleet_Staging_Point,_Site_3

Seems like a few ships in fleet should be able to complete those sites rather quickly. Since I've never run that exploration site I don't know how often it escalates to the 2nd stage or to the 3rd and final stage of that expedition. Obviously the 3rd stage is where the main loot drop is gained but if the first stage rarely escalates to allow you the chance to get to 3rd stage, then I'd just ignore the site and go for other ones that have a better chance of dropping loot..



DMC

Let's talk DED sites more generally because they fall into two different categories and it seems people overlook that these days.

First, let's clarify that we're not talking about unrated sites. Those are different. They have no guaranteed drop; all DED sites drop at least one OPE and unrated sites don't.. This category includes things like annexes, vigils, bases, etc. They escalate and have a chance at deadspace loot if they escalate all the way. Each escalation gets a role and yes, the travel can be rather long.

We're also not talking about anomalies. Anoms can of course escalate TO a DED site but are not themselves relevant here. We're talking only about sites that require probes.

Second, let's talk about "normal" DED sites. This includes every rated site except 9/10s, Angel 6/10, and Serpentis 6/10. These get threat ratings on warp in and don't include an escalation. They also lack tackle, which can be a great boon if you don't know what you're doing. Oh, and they're deadspace so gates will protect you from anyone coming in.

Finally, we have the pseudo-DED sites. They're just a bit odd. First, they definitely drop OPEs: 22nd for Fleet Staging Points and 19th for the Serpentis and Angel 6/10 replacements. This is in line with categorizing them along with rated sites. They also drop the appropriate modules (battleship and cruiser A-types respectively). However, they include guaranteed escalations (which, yes, can sometimes take you a distance). The first site in each chain is gated but the rest aren't. Well, they do include gates, but you'll see combat before you can take one. They also, you might have guessed, include NPC tackle, making them significantly more risky than normal DED sites.

Oh, they're also harder than they really ought to be based on rating progression. Serpentis is the most out of whack, with difficulty going something like 6 > 9 > 8 > 7 > 10 > 5, but in general 9/10s are considered harder than 10/10s.

So there's quite a bit required to bring things totally in line. One option, probably the easiest, would be to shorten the escalation distance, but that doesn't really address many of the inconsistencies. Another route might be to revamp the pseudo-DEDs entirely, though honestly I can't think of a reason to remove the sites we have per se. I suppose new and old could coexist.

My preferred option? Glad you asked, straw man!

What I'd really like to see happen is the following.

1. Introduce replacements for existing pseudo-DED sites that are basically in line with the difficulty of other DED sites. Move current pseudo-DED loot tables to these sites.
2. Introduce pseudo-DED sites at least from 6/10 - 9/10, but preferably to include all ratings. Make them hard. Make them escalate. Use existing pseudo-DED sites as a difficulty guide. Keep OPEs to distinguish them as DED sites.
3. Introduce new deadspace modules for the loot table. Not everything has a blue version. Some of it would be useless (would anyone ever pay for a Pithum C-type shield recharger? No. Don't care.) Some of it would be glorious (armor tanked Widow with a full rack of X-type ECMs? Absolutely.)

Net effect? More sites for explorers. Supply on current modules doesn't change much (though maybe you'd get more Corelum A-types on market). New modules are somewhat harder to get, ensuring some modicum of scarcity in the short term.

Balance nightmare? Eh, sure. Worth it in my eyes? Yes.

Shrug. I like to keep prices up. For me, I'd rather see a high payout from my exploration site (which results from scarcity) rather than everyone and their brother able to afford A and X type everything.

I see both sides, but I know where I come down.