The objectively best scanning ships in the game are the Buzzard and Anathema due to the bonuses, faster scanning equals more sites, more sites equals more isk. The question then becomes what mid slot layout is more preferable. The Anathema has more low slots so can fit cargo expanders and / or a warp core stabaliser. The Buzzard can fit MWD, Relic, Data, Rangefinding Array and Pinpointing Array. If you want to do Relics and Data then the Buzzard has a better slot layout. If you just want to do Relics then the Anathema is the better choice since you don't need the extra mid slow and the extra low slots allow for more GTFO mods. The T2 explorers having 2 rigs slots is irrelevant as the best rig layout for exploration ship use the full 400 rig fitting with two rigs anyway. Astero is only really good for characters with low skills as it can get the full scan bonuses as a hull bonus that doesn't require skills. If you want to PVP in exploration sites then get a T3 cruiser. Ultimately with good skills the difference between them all is negligible but if we're talking OBJECTIVELY best for exploration with good skills then It's Buzzard (Hybrid) > Anathema (Relic Only) > Pacifier > Cheetah = Helios > Astero > All T1 and Navy variants If you have Covert Ops to 3 or less then it's Astero > Buzzard (Hybrid) > Anathema (Relic Only) > Pacifier > Cheetah = Helios > All T1 and Navy variants
If youre rolling in ISK that Anathema can fit a Zeugma and then run a Blackglass Implant and you can do BOTH relic/data sites. turns your fit into almost a 500mil fit though due to the Zeugma however again its there as an option. Personally its what I run.
I think having 4 low slots in an explorer is a waste, that puts me off the cheetah and the Anathema. Out of the other two, on paper the Buzzard has the best slot layout because of its pinpointing passive but the power grid is meagre. It does mean you can wangle in a cargo scanner though. That leaves the Helios, it might not win any prizes for best looks but it’s quicker than the buzzard and has the speed passive. This is what I usually take and I’ve flown all 4 at one time or another. Astero is good but you are right about the role, either fit it as a hunter or an explorer. Your drones can bully people the odd time you find pilots in your site.
It’s a fair comment. I think like you said, there are no bad choices. I might take the Cheerah out later for a roam, it’s been too long. What rigs do you usually slot ? I’m maxed like you but still prefer grav capacitor 2 & hyperspatial 2
Had farmed sisters LP for quite awhile before the Astro and Stratios came out and bought one of each first day of release, the Stratios was my go to ship for exploration from that point on, went into a WH the first day and went mapping out WH's for over a week, came back out with a few bil in loot which in those days meant 6 month+ in PLEX.
yeah nowdays CCP hate you so muych, specially... wh miners,... that u cant mine Gas/Ore enough in a month+ even to buy 500 plex , i get they need to earn money , probably too many people want to play free... so everything nerfed. this game has become even more hostile towards the player, you literally MUST multibox to get anywhere in the game..... c1,c2 combat sites are complete joke , 8-9isk blueloot ... also... their algorhitms how wh space is seeded with content is a joke... sites bottle up in c1 sites, wich noone cares to do.... there was one week, when i had literally ONE ORE SITE entire week , and c1 data sites loot is just a joke.... the income potential vs structures and upkeep you have to put in is not balanced at all... not to mention the constant threat of getting ganked by "sabre+ lokis" , most seen combo , i burn thru retrievers like they are ammo ffs.... think of this this way.. that if u mine 1bil ore, u reprocess it into around 500-550miil... u also have to haul them out of wh thru lowsec into empire... the time sink is insane... ur better off literally just BUYING PLEX and buying the ships and just PvP with real world money.... so yeah, in some sense this game has become literally pay2win , i returned like 1.5month ago, not very impressed wheere this game has ended up in... for context... last time i played, machariel hull pricec as 700bil, faction fitted mach was around 1.6bil.... now hull alone is 1.2bil... back then 30day GTC cost u ... 700-800mil... no 2.5bil.... also... the plex itself is expensive and gametime annual passes etc... MCT etc.... friend plays with mumlti acccounts and pays 800€ annually to have omega accounts.... so yeah... someone claminig this game isnt Pay2Win is lieing.... theey hav eovertime nerfed Alpha accouint skills what u cna use more and more... you cant even do Pi with alpha clone anymore rofl.... ffs.. even faction fit stratios costs like BIL+ atm... rificilous, its a fcking CRUISER.... the incomes are lower stuff cost more than ever.... even the real world inflation isnt as bad as inflation in EVE rofl.... :D
I too used to dislike the design, until I smoked some and saw it from a new perspective wherein boundaries of beauty are mere conventions waiting to be transcended. \o/
I have a smol problem: you highlight the survey probe duration but forget that that is for scanning moons. Survey probes take anywhere from 5-20 minutes to return what you can get from a moon, so that reduction is amazing
Especially for Alphas (or a T1 ship), it makes sense to either fit the ship for scanning or for hacking. 1. The rigs are different - there are dedicated rigs either for scanning or for hacking. So I fit two scan rigs for a scanning ship, and one data plus one relic rig for the hacking ship. 2. Also, for optimal scanning you need three mid slots for the three different scan support modules, and you need both a relic and a data analyzer for hacking - but there is no T1 explo frigate with 5 mid slots. 3. If you want the best possible ship for either relic or data sites, you might actually fit ships for that differently with two rigs each for either relic or data sites. 4. I like lots of low slots to make the ship as agile as possible. So I myself prefer the Magnate as my T1 explo ship. I have dedicated scanning Magnates, and I switch to a dedicated hacking Magnate, when I've scanned down data or relic sites. Should I need a combat explo ship (what rarely is the case), I usually use either a Stratios or a T3 cruiser. Since I have all relevant skills a V and all relevant implants, I rarely use CovOps frigs, I can do almost everything with the T1 ship already. I use CovOps ships for exploration only in situations, when there is an imminent thread and I feel the need to make use of the covops cloak. With T2 ships, only two of the CovOp Frigs have an additional scanning bonus (deviation), the Anathema and the Buzzard. So for scanning, it would be one of those two. For hacking, I would use the ship which I can fit the best for agility and speed, which usually is the Anathema. Regarding the Pacifier, with the present price tag, I rather sell the Pacifier and buy a Stratios for the ISK I get.
Good tips. I tend to use the Cheetah because it has the better Analyzer bonuses so you can rig scanning just fine. None of them are able to fit everything, and I don't think you ever need to. I tend to go scan speed over strength since the hull and my skills cover that as is.
Astero is hands down the best exploration ship. You can tank ghost site explosion without gimping your fit and if any other exploration frig seems too brave in your presence its most likely a bait.
So I stopped playing a few years ago but picked EVE back up like 6mos ago. I was ::shocked:: to see the Astero....quadruple in price! I used to gift my friends an Astero when they wanted to learn exploring.
@@ByronLowry Never actually bought one myself, always got free blueprints from drone sites or used LP. Not played much for the last 10 years though and hated it when they started selling SP.
I absolutely love the astero, but it's never going to match up to the T2 covops imo. Drones on explo ships are mostly not that useful. I'd put the astero into more of a pvp / ganking ship. I'd say its best quality is its low align time, but it's far too expensive to ever be worth it imo. EDIT: The astero is also useful for drone hunting as it can store them reliably. Some of the navy ships lose Drones too which again are meh for explo anyway. Its also worth mentioning that fitting expanded launchers on an astero is very difficult
@@thecomposerchanginggames5250 not Hisec ganking. You sit in exploration sites, wait for a hapless little explorer to come and grab them the second they start hacking.
@@captainbenzieyou did miss something, I used to have an anti-astero heron navy. I could tank the astero and wait until he gave up, his cap couldn't hold or until my buddy showed up
Ty so much for the explanation content!! This game has a lot going on and even more intricacies. For a newer player this long form information content helps alot!! o7
Pacifier is for sure my favourite, able to fit covops cloak and nullifier while maintaining 120 scan strength and sub 2 second align time, it's the ultimate sneak given the correct setup and implants.
Astero works the best for me. I use it for scanning WH's and data and relic sites. Also quite a few killmarks of t1/t2 frigates. ECM drones in drone bay appeared to be very useful as well :)
Great video! The Astero used to be the GOAT before the great cov ops nerf. I ran explo for a while, but I got mad after I got popped once in a WH and ran a hybrid where I would scan down sites, fit for combat with dual reps, a faction scram and one mid for the analyzer at a depot and loot. It was really funny when another Astero with almost the exact same fit warped in on me. Ofc I put on my best IRL Rorschach impression when I pointed them saying "I'm not sick in here with you, you're stuck in here with me!" to hype myself up. That was a loooonnngggg fight 😂. I barely lost too. I might've had it if I actually practiced dueling and knew how overheating worked 😅. I would love to see an explo tengu breakdown. I've been meaning to try one out for a while, but I can't seem to settle on a fit.
Great video! The T3C's seem to have a lot going for them: The Interdiction Nullifier gets double on its activation time (30 sec); the CovOps cloak gets a 5-second reactivation time. I'm doing ESRC refreshing at the moment, completely useless in combat, and those two attributes are really good. (The alignment time makes it feel like I'm flying a large warehouse, but I'm getting used to it!) The other thing with T3C's is, with the right defensive subsystem, you get the +10 to Relic analyzer strength; and with the right skills, you can pull a 50% bonus to Core probe strength. With T3C's, the big question for me is, "How much is it going to hurt when I die," and for that reason, the Covert Ops ships are pulling ahead slightly. I'd be curious about your thoughts on a non-combat-fitted T3C; for activities like ESRCs, does it make any sense at all?
For something like Rescue Caches, I'd probably prefer something like a Pacifier. Cheaper, faster, still scans well, and the Interdiction Nullifier timer is... Not really useful 😅
Bit late, but worth pointing out - the Probe Launchers dont use up a Launcher slot, thus Fleet variants have that little bit more oomph for taking on some of the lighter Combat sites, i think its why those ships also have a bonus for Launcher CPU usage, so that you can still slap on a couple of guns - good vid though! :) Edit: Also, you mention the Astero loses some of its exploration capability in return for being able to use drones, which i feel is not quite correct - the Astero gives you the 37.5% probe strength right off the bat, meaning you'll have better or equal probe strength to T1 and Fleet Issue Explo ships (depending on your frigate training level) and then the extra 5 for analyzer strength over them too. T2 variants 'win' in terms of pricing over the Astero but as you mentioned, they'll require you to have rank 4 of CovOps to beat the other ships in probe strength. which means more training.
Yeah, I was wrong about the launcher slot 😅 also, when I said about the drones, I meant that fitting for drone usage, PvP, you'll be sacrificing scanning fit stuff. Basically, don't 50:50 an Astero, make it a hunter or a hacker, not both.
For the Tengu, the scan bonuses come from the subsystems. With covert reconfiguration you get the same 50% bonus to core and combat probes. And you can bring a mobile depot to switch fit to combat or exploration or something else, making T3 the more versatile options for exploring. I personally find it too slow, but if I wanted to head out and explore for a long time without coming back to my base, a T3 would probably be my choice. But since I live in lowsec and normally just scan the systems around I use my fast Pacifier to scan down what I want and quickly return to base to switch ship.
@@Camcolito I wouldn't say they're broken, they're versatile, they're strong, but they have definite weaknesses and are very expensive compared to other ships that can do their roles.
@@captainbenzie You are in a much better position to judge to be fair, I am just coming back to EVE after many years, but I remember the last time I left Wormholes might as well have been Tenguland. Perhaps I am behind the times! Great videos btw.
@@Camcolito glad you're enjoying! They got hit with some fairly hefty nerfs a few years back that definitely brought them down a bit, but they also removed the "skill loss on destruction" thing too to counter it.
The two things with Navy explorers are the reduction in CPU requirement like you mentioned, and also the attributes. Using the Heron as an example, the regular Heron has a base max shield HP of 400... the Navy Heron has 700, nearly twice as much. So the Navy versions are much better if you want to run an Expanded launcher and fit them for combat, they have noticeably better base tankiness and bonuses for dealing damage.
True, I just don't really see a reason to ever do combat in an explorer. Most ships are going to massively out-tank and out-dps you, so I tend to just keep it cheap and run at the first sign of trouble. The only time I'd really consider doing any form of combat in an explorer is simply to bully out another explorer (T1 or T2) already in the site, but even then, I'd be wary of Herons which can be insanely dangerous!!
@@captainbenzie The primary reason would be if you're not using it for exploration. Essentially the Navy variants aren't very relevant to what you do because they aren't there for explorers... they can be used in a fleet with an Expanded Probe Launcher to find other players and quickly get the fleet to them, and are cheap enough to be expendable. Explorers will never have good DPS but they could tackle and survive long enough for the fleet to arrive. Particularly hard to catch targets are indeed better off hunted in a ship that gets scanning bonuses to pinpoint and jump before they notice. I find miner hunting boring but without a ship with scanning and warp speed bonuses, hunting down a decent player in an exploration frigate is hard even in a ship with scanning bonuses, they warp fast once they notice your scan probes. I should know, I've been that miner warping away from a gas site because I saw scan probes on DScan. So the Navy variants basically exist when you're scanning for PvP reasons, either in a fleet or looking for defenseless targets.
I have had great luck with the Astero.... while it is certainly expensive it offers early bonuses when your skills suck. As you gain skills (like I am now) I am just now starting to look for better (at about 15M skill points
Heron is best T1 imo, 2 free slots lets you have 2 scanning arrays. If you have too much scan strength, theres a scan speed array. You never have too much scan speed.
I agree... for pure exploration, Cheetah is the best option, ceteris paribus. However, I prefer Buzzard because I go for that little bit more scan quickness (2 or even 3 scan modules in mids), and for offensive exploration (with allied gang available), that extra scan slot can make a lot of difference against those escalation runners
Absolutely agree! I know from my time with the Cartel that a lot of folks like it, but since my videos are aimed mainly at newer players I can't really recommend it based on the pricetag. I do need to undock mine more though for sure!! It's an amazing little ship! Fly safe! o7
I agree about the Astero which is why I carry along a mobile depot with my analyzers. This way I can both hunt and do exploration in WH space at the same time. 50m3 isn’t too big of a deal considering most exploration loot is small. My fit is PVP focused so even if I come across another Astero, Pacifier, or other exploration ship I know I can take them. Anything else I just warp out. I used to do a lot of nullsec exploration in a cheap Imicus. NS is a lot easier than WH space but I find the payoff in WH space to be worth it.
The Pacifier is awesome for combat as all of my kills since I started playing the game have been with this ship. Even killed a whale that got really upset with me for wiping out his ship & for taking all the loot he had as the cargo bay. Now he seems to loves me as he follows me everywhere now & already taken out another one of his ships as he tried to jump me. I will say, if that happens don't worry to much about the one who jumps in on you & focus on his mates who will jump in once you start your attack run, so be ready to jump out of there.
Really good breakout of the exploration vessels! The only thing u missed is the warping speed bonuses of the Pacifier making it arguably the faster ship to do the rounds on your Territory or look out for those ghost, sleeper's sites or even the laboratories on top of being able to lose anyone chasing u around
The Heron is not only the better of the four basic exploration frigates, it is the coolest looking one as well 😎 (totally objective and unbiased in my statement of course 😅😋)
It is very cool looking, and it's definitely the best if you have lower skills (as you have midslots to fit spare arrays to make up for lower skills) but the others do all have their advantages too!
I prefer the Astero, you can still fit it for PvP while exploring...I always have a mobile depot with me and before I go to the relic site, I always adapt to my Neut Astero Expl/PvP fitting ;)
Just a correction about navy frigs. Probe launchers don't take up any hardpoints. I run the navy heron for shadow war and I can have 2 launchers, a probe launcher, and a utility slot for cloak or auto targeting module.
@@captainbenzie no worries lol, just pretend it was intentional to drive engagement in the comments. Love your videos btw, I really appreciate your takes
I know it was a long time ago and a lot of changes have been made since then but I believe it was wingspan delivery service did a video with a stratios that was jumped 7v1 and with a little bit of luck came out on top
I used to do it in a stiletto, until they took away the interdiction nullification. Since then I've been a pacifier guy. I think warp speed is one of the most important aspects as you spend so much of your time warping, often across huge systems.
@@captainbenzie yeah but since a covops can too, there's no real advantage to offset the bonuses to scanning/hacking that you sacrifice by using a ceptor. I wasn't sad for it to happen, I think the relic stiletto was pretty brainless and OP
I've lost 2 Herons in high sec data and relic sites due to I guess can explosions. I need an exploration/scanning ship with more tank, capable of withstanding data/relic site rats, and something with a decent cargo hold. I'm jumping into into a Stratios (maybe a little overkill) to see if it can withstand exploding cans.
I love my Astero. It was pain loosing my first one tho. But you learn as you go. I've had some incredible drops doing exploration in high sec tho. Roughly 300 mil in 2 days. But i was very lucky.
T2 explo frigs might be better at exploring than Astero, but once Astero appears on the grid, or simply on dscan it's time for them to go. Astero is great for chasing off other T2 explorers as they can't put any kind of resistance.
Hey captain. I'm looking for a ship that has the cloaking and hacking capabiltiies of the cheetah, but that can allow me to take on combat sites too. So I'm gonna need missiles and stuff. I spend most of my time in wormholes scanning down relic sites, and getting sad when everything I scan is a 'forgotten' or 'unsecured' site -with the Cheetah I have nothing to shoot npcs. Any recommendations?
Basically, one of the T3Cs, and you need to be quite heavily skilled. They're expensive but the only ones to reliably do that content solo. Else it's scan it, bookmark it, come back later in the other ship.
The Pacifier is my main ship for scanning down WHs and gas sites. It's overwhelming warp speed makes it perfect to scan down entire constellations quickly. Can reach almost 30 au/s with ascendancy implants, making it an awesome travel ship (can fit nullifier too). But I wouldn't use it for PVP nor data sites, way too expensive for that.
I always use a Probe. Cheap as hell so I can yeet it with a Noise-5 and do exploration on the way home with minimal ISK-investment. If I lose it no big deal, if I make it back with a cargo full of loot then I get some cash for my trouble. It's great.
Hi, Captain Benzie. I've been running a few simulations with exploration ships, trying to get a sub-2 seconds align time, and it seems like this is only possible with the Astero. To me, this is a big plus for survivability in wormhole space, as it allows you to warp almost instantly upon someone else's appearance at your site. This justifies the high price for it, right? Am I missing something?
I like to fly the pacifier Bling with polarized rockets and an abyssal scrambler squeezed in (Zeugma analyzer) and a cargo scanner, even managed to fit a expanded probe launcher and scooped a few abandoned drones. I just needlejack out and do my thing. You can catch other covert ops and are very slippery. I'm unsure about the metamorphisis. Checks boxes, I really like the stabilizers but it feels weird. I wish I could do stabilizers on the pacifier without the extreme drawback in targeting range
And no one is talking about the awsome Metamorphosis such an awsome looking ship and full of utility. It has a dedicated mobile depot hold so you don't ever have to stop at a station to swap fits. It's the perfect nomad. Also the +2 to warp core means unless someone uses 2 warp disrupted on their ship your home free!
This video was made.before the Metamorphosis was added to the game 😅 and yes, it's an awesome ship, I did cover it here: ruclips.net/video/skQ3fcbxBKg/видео.html
Great video! Always been a fan of the astero but now leaking towards the T2s. Didn't even realise about the cloak delay differences or the interdiction nullifier. What track have you used in the background please?
I use the tengu, I don't have to change my fittings, can dual data and relic and tank and DPS, obviously sleeper sites are a no, but you can't frig those either.
Why didnt you mention metamorphesis? In my opinion its best ship for relic/data site hunting. Sub 2s warp out, passive warp stabilizer, covert ops cloak. All the bonuses for scanning. You just zoom through systems/worholes hacking.
Oh hey, you did mention the T3Cs, was wondering if you would touch on those :P very underrated explorers, albeit ones you should use extremely carefully and definitely not for full time exploration. Do wish you did touch on the stratios though.. mostly because its not actually an explorer worth flying 99% of the time and people seem pretty set on using it for that regardless... As to the Astero, pretty much spot on there, Its at its best exploring the cargo holds of other exploration frigates :P -- though if you're doing that there is very little cost to keeping an alternate fit for exploration in downtime. And yeah people who are on the defensive with an astero thinking "can I take this" are generally doing it wrong, the astero is fragile and benefits mostly from your ability to choose your targets and force an engagement via its cov ops cloak, if someone jumps in on your astero you should more often than not just assume they can kill you or that they're bait.
As a Signaleer actually I use an Anathema to explore and clear relic and data sites. An Astero exploring fit is wasted on that little expensive hull. But to map Thera Pacifier is awesome. 15 au speed with covop 5/5. You can go back in time with that speed!
28:00 yes both hacking+pvp is bad, unless you go against a helpless 100% hacking ship. Can use a mobile depot though and refit for pure pvp to fight another astero. Pacifier is has one extra "bonus" - warp speed. Go trough a few systems with no signatures and the saved time really adds up. It seems to miss 1 high slot if you want to go explore-pvp though.... 4 guns + cloak.... and where to put probe launcher? imo it's bonus needs to be reworked- 1 turret slot removed but with increased dmg bonus to cover the loss.
Could you do a series on how to get from newb to a place where we can do these things you talk about? I feel like I'm weeks or even months away to get all the skills to do things like playing in w-space. Thanks!
Check the main page of my channel ( RUclips.com/@CaptainBenzie ) for a playlist called the Catskull Academy. Hopefully that will help (I'm making more) but you can also join our Discord or even apply for our corp! We have a Hisec base too to help teach newer players!
Heron Navy Issue with 2 missile launchers might be able to kill rat spawn from failing a data site hack in dronelands (failing hack spawns some rats instead of destroying can)? A pretty specific scenario.
I really love a Cheetha, but i use a probe in Hi-sec as well. I lost a cheetha being an idiot and flying through a low-sec gate without using gatr checker. I decided it was better to fly a probe until i feel more trained and experienced in my skills! I really love minmatar ships wjicg devloped over watching Captian Benzies vides. Then again i love Amaar ships and l Energy turrets. So who knows whats going on in my mind 😊
Great video. I think all ships are great in skilled pilot. I love exploration and at the moment I’m the happy captain of an Astero… however i think you forget to mention another line of ships: Sunesis, Gnosis and Praxis. What are you think about them? o7
I wanted to focus mostly on the frigates for this one, and Sunesis is good but niche. Gnosis isn't really good for exploration, much better at other things. As for the Praxis? I'm working on a video now, but not for exploration 😉
I’m just getting back into the game after a 5 year hiatus. Made a fresh alpha character and I’m just scooting around in a Heron. Messing around in wormholes mostly. Got lucky last night and came out with about 150mil in loot from a bunch of relic sites. My only complaint is a I can’t clear rats in most data sites. Have to skip them.
Excellent! Yes, in Wormholes, stay clear of Forgotten/Unsecured sites and stick with the "Nullsec" style sites. Forgotten and Unsecured will require a T3C, a Stratios, or friends.
Imicus Navy Issue enjoyer here. You really missed out by glossing over the INI bonus since having access to 20mb of drone bandwidth and 50m of storage lets you genuinely start to defend yourself. A pair of Hammerhead II drones with max drone skills and the INI bonuse of 50% extra tracking means they do terrible terrible things to unsuspecting frigates and even destroyers. It's definitely far more relevant a skill bonus than something like bonus damage on a single rocket launcher.
I didn't want to focus too much on the NI Explorers in this video as the video is aimed more at starting explorers. I didn't want to look too deep into ships that are PVP Explorers.
fact checking the covert ops factional frigates get 15% cap reduction in warping the pacifier gets +10% warp speed which if you fit it right can be the fastest warp speed ship in eve
With max scan and hack skills, and top align and speed skills, pacifier is the absolute king of explo with its capability of travelling at 18au/s with T2 hyperspatial rigs, nullifier and its hacking bonus, it's a quick and slippery beast. Put on a blackglass and slap on a zeugma, and you'll pay for your ship in a single session of 4h of scanning.
This video is mainly focused on the frigates you can use. Stratios is expensive, fairly slow, and gets actively hunted the second they see you. Good for some types of sites (I released a video yesterday about Unsecured Frontier Server Banks)
Oops, I thought I'd read, it was a frigate? ;-) I did have an idea of adding long range sensors to detect a ship before it spots me and modify the drives to jump away before the other ship detects me (can't attack me if I'm not there). ;-)
RUclips is my day job 😉 as for how long they take - it depends on the video and what you count as "working on a video". Actual recording and editing is usually a couple of hours, but the research and prep can take days 😊🚀
@Captain Benzie GBP to ZWD conversion is nuts. Well, anything to ZWD. That the main reason or you got heritage there, too? Just curious as I'm from SA heritage-wise, too. Cheap but very dangerous.
@captainbenzie I'm currently in BRAVE; pretty sure some of the neuts coming through aren't that experienced.... I've seen individuals in alliance undock marauders and warp to havens with 35 man Horde bomber gangs reported in intel AND ACTUALLY IN SYSTEM!
I love the Imicus / Helios design 😂They are absolutely HIDEOUS both in terms of ship design and logic (there's no way these things could fly in a straight line) but i find them very cute because of that and I hope CCP never change them 😂I personally think that they are by far the most unique ship design in the game and I love that, even if it means some people literally cannot undock them and maintain healthy eyes at the same time
To be fair, it's space, so they'd be fine. Aerodynamics aren't important and the thrusters could easily be configured to be complementary. But yes, hideous ships 😂 but with a certain charm!
The new dailies got me to try exploration. With near zero skills, it is not fun. Was hoping to find a ship that could make up for my lack of skills. Guess that's not really a thing.
У Navy сканеров , благодаря комбат-зондам, есть преимущество, очень полезное и для сканеров, даже если вы не собираетесь кого-то убивать. В нулях часто бывает, что нужные ворота находятся в отдалении , так, что как луч пеленгатора не вытягивай, до нужных ворот не дотянуться, а по локальному чату, ты знаешь, что ты в системе не один. Просто сканишь нужные ворота combat-зондами и сразу ясно, чист путь или лучше туда не лететь. Мой фаворит-Имикус Navy, единственный из этой серии, кто может брать дронов (вмещает 8 лёгких и может выпустить 4). Если качественно зафитить, с прокаченными скилами, просто машина для убийства. И , кстати, мне говорили, что в игру их ввели давно, просто цена была безумной и никто их не использовал. Полностью согласен насчёт Pacifier-мне кажется, что это такая шутка от CCP, его боевые бонусы и hi-слоты лишь сбивают с толку, чтобы игрок пытался зафитить его для боя и , почти наверняка, проиграл кучу исок. Его плюсы-скорость и дизайн, один из самых красивых кораблей в игре, а ещё при полёте в варпе у него крылышки складываются!
@@captainbenzie You're certainly right about that. Currently in Jita, the costs for Covert Ops ships are: Cheetah 21,960,000 Anathema 22,490,000 Helios 24,120,000 Buzzard 26,400,000 Metamorphosis 50,250,000 Astero 72,960,000 Pacifier 399,800,000 You make a good point about the Meta, it's lower cost than the Astero, and only requires Spaceship Command I to fly, but relatively speaking the availability is somewhat lower (controlled by the SOCT) and to my knowledge there are no blueprints for it available. Prices for the Astero and Metamorphosis are amoung their lowest in the past year, but are trending up so if anyone were to want either one get them now while they're still cheap. Thanks for the reminder. My opinion of the Astero actually comes from a time before the Meta and Pacifier were introduced to EVE.
Thanks, sadly I can't find were to sell it. I'm a new eve online castaway from elite dangerous were you went to a station an sold exploration data. Lol
@@edgartonian-yy7ojMarket icon, type the name of the item you wanna sell, go look down on the "buyers" section and set course to whoever's paying more for it.
You bring up a lot of good points however I don't hear any love for the stratios... I wonder why that is considering it's just the bigger brother to the astero... Might make a bit more sense to be a viable hunter and explorer compared to a lot of the other options out there and I know that it is a good ship in general...
The amount of times i've afk killed manticores in the astero is astounding. It's a very good fighter in its class. And thats with a data/relic fit, not a fighter fit.
That's because Stealth Bombers absolutely struggle to do anything to frigates on account of them using Torpedoes (unless they've gone for the bait rocket fit) - this example is kind of the exception that proves the rule.
metamorphisis asdasdfadsadsadadsadsa cant believe no1 even mentioned it misssing in the comments x) no but srsly its my favorite ship cause +2 warp strength + warp core stabilizer means u can get away from pretty much any 1 man gank even if they manage to scram you and some gatecamps too at times. Also
@@captainbenzie Ah yes my bad! i returned to even not even 1 month ago after 2 years of letting it go. So i assumed the Meta wasnt that recent. Great video on the meta :D!
I was going to comment on the other vid, but it disappeared. I assume you're making adjustments, but you're absolutely right on every point made. Industry isn't getting better, because Netease sacrificed all other playstyles to make you depend on Netease. It's how they make money. If you're not in the blob as a ratting carebear/whale, you don't matter to Netease. 70% of the Eve Echoes playerbase are these players, and they've been being coddled by Netease for 3 years. The rest of us don't matter. To the point of this video, I wish Exploration was as good as this in Eve Echoes. CCP shows they care about all the careers in their game. Netease does not. The Eve Echoes community is exhausting. I expect even more nerfs to small ships and my playstyle soon. Got 80% of the playerbase all complaining about my playstyle, so we know which way Netease will go soon enough. I fully expect Interceptors and Bombers to be nerfed soon. I expect no changes or improvements to Exploration, even when they have perfectly good examples right in front of them. I have just lost hope for my playstyle, small ships, and balance. I had a veracious conversation with Vetemune on Reddit, where he wants to nerf Warpcore Optimization. He thought this was imbalanced, and when I pointed out that Nanocores were the actual issue, he resorted to claiming I wasn't addressing him nicely. I'm sorry, but when you come at my ships specifically, in the middle of a war, to nerf us, I'm going to give it to you straight. He's either unaware, or deliberately ignoring the obvious real issue. He's also admittedly not willing to change his builds to counter warpcore optimization, when the counters actually exist in-game! Netease will hear his arguments, and make those changes because all he has to do is get the majority to agree. Doesn't even have to be correct. When this is how the devs do balance, it's hard to care about the game. Fly aggressive o7
To be fair, most of what Vet is arguing for absolutely makes sense and I do support most of it. He wants buffs to subcaps, nerfs to caps, and the warpcore is simply that if you choose to engage (as in, fire back) you shouldn't be able to warp straight off if they suddenly have backup. I also agree that Nanocores are a huge issue and source of power creep! 😅
@@captainbenzie Disagree, the entire point of warpcore optimization is to stabilize the ship's ability to warp. Removing this means everything requires a fleet, and the largest fleet automatically wins. It takes away options, and means whatever has the meta wins. If you intend to tackle something, commit to it. One scrambler isn't committing at all, it's the base standard. Most ships using warpcore optimization can be scrammed/tackled with just 2 scrams. My entire PvP playstyle is tackling, and I have rarely ever needed more than 2. He wants to change an entire mechanic because he ran into a rare case of a Battleship getting away? 🤨 X for doubt. He wants to change it because of the Ceptor Fleet doctrine, I've seen his complaints about Master Joda's effectiveness on grid in fleet battles. The truth is, they are being outplayed, and don't want to make the adjustments necessary because the counter is hard to fly. It's a nerf suggestion to guerilla tactics, which means all battles will be determined by who brings more ships. That's not engaging content, Battleship battles are extremely boring, usually end in blackscreens for many of us, and are largely determined by who has more ships. The winner is practically pre-determined. With smaller ships, you can do a lot more, as seen with Ceptor Fleet, Bomber Squadrons, CovOps Fleets, BC sniper fleets, etc. The fix to his surface complaint is easy. Death Wish Nanocores go away. They're the largest offender of excessive amounts of warpcore stability. As well as Glaze and Voyage cores, which simply allow you to just run away blatantly. Remove these, and 3 scrams will work for any ship, doesn't matter how many Warpcore Optimizers they have. That's what he should be advocating for, not warpcore optimization nerfs. However he knows Netease won't do it, so he's throwing warpcores under the bus in hopes that Netease will nerf those instead. No way they're going to nerf their money makers, but F the other guys, maybe they'll nerf warpcores. It's not a suggestion for balance, because the counters that exists, they won't use. It's a suggestion for Netease to nerf their enemies, which is bullshit. Do we really honestly believe Ceptors pilots all have additional warpcore optimization via Nanocores? 😑 I have a Voyage core, several, and I can show you I've never once selected that broken attribute. If anything, the faction Frigate and Cruiser Chad's are the ones that run it. Ceptor fleet has -6 points(literally 2 scrams required), that's literally it. We die all the time, it's the overall concept that is successful! I've already developed a second and possibly third Ceptor Fleet doctrine concept, as well as the new Bomber Squadron doctrine concepts. Nerfing warpcores won't change the overall outcome, if they won't even attempt to counter it. Anyone ever just stop and take into consideration the players are actually good pilots, and know how to get away even when scrammed? 🤨 Guess that couldn't possibly be on the table, we're not killing the scrammers then warping, we're all using voyage cores... 😑 Battleships should not dominate the game in PvP, neither should just having more people. There's more at stake than Vet catching a Ratter for his vids. I protested those broken Nanocores when they were released, but as usual what the ratter whales want, they get. Fix the situation of Netease coddling carebears, and Vet will see more success catching ships. The devs are extremely biased, and have developed the game one way this entire time. Fly aggressive o7
How do you prepare for or react to ships using cloaks to hunt you? I love exploration, but the simple fact that there could always be someone warping in on you cloaked or waiting on site cloaked makes exploration too frustrating for me. Especially in wormhole space where you don't even know if there is someone else in the system. You could go for high/low/nullsec exploration only and only hack if you are alone in the system... But where is the fun in that? I think cloaks are way too overpowered and should get higher restrictions or penalties when used offensively. What is your opinion?
I think cloaks are fine, personally, and I'm usually the hunted, not the hunter. Use D-Scan. You can catch someone when they come off gate cloak and cloak up, otherwise you just have an escape plan when one shows up. I rat wormholes a LOT, so cloaked ships are constant. Most have delays between decloak and lock that you can use to escape.
yeah! it had a 10% bonus to thermal drone dps or something like that. so you had to use a "top of the line CreoDrone drone" on a CreoDrone hull. With a blaster fitted you could make enough dps to scare off torpedo bombers. @@captainbenzie
The objectively best scanning ships in the game are the Buzzard and Anathema due to the bonuses, faster scanning equals more sites, more sites equals more isk. The question then becomes what mid slot layout is more preferable. The Anathema has more low slots so can fit cargo expanders and / or a warp core stabaliser. The Buzzard can fit MWD, Relic, Data, Rangefinding Array and Pinpointing Array.
If you want to do Relics and Data then the Buzzard has a better slot layout. If you just want to do Relics then the Anathema is the better choice since you don't need the extra mid slow and the extra low slots allow for more GTFO mods.
The T2 explorers having 2 rigs slots is irrelevant as the best rig layout for exploration ship use the full 400 rig fitting with two rigs anyway.
Astero is only really good for characters with low skills as it can get the full scan bonuses as a hull bonus that doesn't require skills. If you want to PVP in exploration sites then get a T3 cruiser.
Ultimately with good skills the difference between them all is negligible but if we're talking OBJECTIVELY best for exploration with good skills then It's
Buzzard (Hybrid) > Anathema (Relic Only) > Pacifier > Cheetah = Helios > Astero > All T1 and Navy variants
If you have Covert Ops to 3 or less then it's Astero > Buzzard (Hybrid) > Anathema (Relic Only) > Pacifier > Cheetah = Helios > All T1 and Navy variants
Good points
i like Coercer as salvager :D
for me helios is number one, cos it has 5 mid
If youre rolling in ISK that Anathema can fit a Zeugma and then run a Blackglass Implant and you can do BOTH relic/data sites. turns your fit into almost a 500mil fit though due to the Zeugma however again its there as an option. Personally its what I run.
Not sure how things are going now, but we mainly used Asteros to scan WH space safely. Cheapest fit possible with probes, cloaking, and align speed.
Nowadays, the Metamorphosis wins that and you can do a quicker, faster, cloak T2 Explorer cheaper than an Astero too 😊
I think having 4 low slots in an explorer is a waste, that puts me off the cheetah and the Anathema. Out of the other two, on paper the Buzzard has the best slot layout because of its pinpointing passive but the power grid is meagre. It does mean you can wangle in a cargo scanner though.
That leaves the Helios, it might not win any prizes for best looks but it’s quicker than the buzzard and has the speed passive.
This is what I usually take and I’ve flown all 4 at one time or another.
Astero is good but you are right about the role, either fit it as a hunter or an explorer.
Your drones can bully people the odd time you find pilots in your site.
I like the Cheetahs lows for additional align speed. I do love the Buzzard, but once you have max skills, those arrays don't actually help anymore.
It’s a fair comment. I think like you said, there are no bad choices. I might take the Cheerah out later for a roam, it’s been too long.
What rigs do you usually slot ? I’m maxed like you but still prefer grav capacitor 2 & hyperspatial 2
Had farmed sisters LP for quite awhile before the Astro and Stratios came out and bought one of each first day of release, the Stratios was my go to ship for exploration from that point on, went into a WH the first day and went mapping out WH's for over a week, came back out with a few bil in loot which in those days meant 6 month+ in PLEX.
Nice!
yeah nowdays CCP hate you so muych, specially... wh miners,...
that u cant mine Gas/Ore enough in a month+ even to buy 500 plex , i get they need to earn money , probably too many people want to play free...
so everything nerfed.
this game has become even more hostile towards the player, you literally MUST multibox to get anywhere in the game.....
c1,c2 combat sites are complete joke , 8-9isk blueloot ... also... their algorhitms how wh space is seeded with content is a joke...
sites bottle up in c1 sites, wich noone cares to do.... there was one week, when i had literally ONE ORE SITE entire week ,
and c1 data sites loot is just a joke.... the income potential vs structures and upkeep you have to put in is not balanced at all... not to mention the constant threat of getting ganked by "sabre+ lokis" , most seen combo ,
i burn thru retrievers like they are ammo ffs.... think of this this way.. that if u mine 1bil ore, u reprocess it into around 500-550miil...
u also have to haul them out of wh thru lowsec into empire... the time sink is insane... ur better off literally just BUYING PLEX and buying the ships and just PvP with real world money.... so yeah, in some sense this game has become literally pay2win , i returned like 1.5month ago, not very impressed wheere this game has ended up in... for context... last time i played, machariel hull pricec as 700bil, faction fitted mach was around 1.6bil.... now hull alone is 1.2bil... back then 30day GTC cost u ... 700-800mil... no 2.5bil....
also... the plex itself is expensive and gametime annual passes etc... MCT etc.... friend plays with mumlti acccounts and pays 800€ annually to have omega accounts.... so yeah... someone claminig this game isnt Pay2Win is lieing.... theey hav eovertime nerfed Alpha accouint skills what u cna use more and more... you cant even do Pi with alpha clone anymore rofl....
ffs.. even faction fit stratios costs like BIL+ atm... rificilous, its a fcking CRUISER....
the incomes are lower
stuff cost more than ever....
even the real world inflation isnt as bad as inflation in EVE rofl.... :D
I like the look of the Imicus. it kinda reminds me of the type of ship design you'd encounter in the 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', lol!
Lmao that's fair 😂
What just because it looks like a mouldy hamburger patty with a bicycle kick stand?
@@C0gnitiveDissidentthat sounds like an approachable ship if ever I heard of one.
I too used to dislike the design, until I smoked some and saw it from a new perspective wherein boundaries of beauty are mere conventions waiting to be transcended. \o/
I have a smol problem: you highlight the survey probe duration but forget that that is for scanning moons. Survey probes take anywhere from 5-20 minutes to return what you can get from a moon, so that reduction is amazing
Especially for Alphas (or a T1 ship), it makes sense to either fit the ship for scanning or for hacking.
1. The rigs are different - there are dedicated rigs either for scanning or for hacking. So I fit two scan rigs for a scanning ship, and one data plus one relic rig for the hacking ship.
2. Also, for optimal scanning you need three mid slots for the three different scan support modules, and you need both a relic and a data analyzer for hacking - but there is no T1 explo frigate with 5 mid slots.
3. If you want the best possible ship for either relic or data sites, you might actually fit ships for that differently with two rigs each for either relic or data sites.
4. I like lots of low slots to make the ship as agile as possible.
So I myself prefer the Magnate as my T1 explo ship. I have dedicated scanning Magnates, and I switch to a dedicated hacking Magnate, when I've scanned down data or relic sites. Should I need a combat explo ship (what rarely is the case), I usually use either a Stratios or a T3 cruiser. Since I have all relevant skills a V and all relevant implants, I rarely use CovOps frigs, I can do almost everything with the T1 ship already. I use CovOps ships for exploration only in situations, when there is an imminent thread and I feel the need to make use of the covops cloak.
With T2 ships, only two of the CovOp Frigs have an additional scanning bonus (deviation), the Anathema and the Buzzard. So for scanning, it would be one of those two. For hacking, I would use the ship which I can fit the best for agility and speed, which usually is the Anathema.
Regarding the Pacifier, with the present price tag, I rather sell the Pacifier and buy a Stratios for the ISK I get.
Good tips. I tend to use the Cheetah because it has the better Analyzer bonuses so you can rig scanning just fine. None of them are able to fit everything, and I don't think you ever need to. I tend to go scan speed over strength since the hull and my skills cover that as is.
OMG I had no idea about the Interdictor Nullifiers. That is a GODSEND!
Did a whole video on them, check it out!
Astero is hands down the best exploration ship. You can tank ghost site explosion without gimping your fit and if any other exploration frig seems too brave in your presence its most likely a bait.
Lmao this is true!
With what fit
So I stopped playing a few years ago but picked EVE back up like 6mos ago. I was ::shocked:: to see the Astero....quadruple in price! I used to gift my friends an Astero when they wanted to learn exploring.
Stratios
@@ByronLowry Never actually bought one myself, always got free blueprints from drone sites or used LP. Not played much for the last 10 years though and hated it when they started selling SP.
I absolutely love the astero, but it's never going to match up to the T2 covops imo. Drones on explo ships are mostly not that useful. I'd put the astero into more of a pvp / ganking ship. I'd say its best quality is its low align time, but it's far too expensive to ever be worth it imo. EDIT: The astero is also useful for drone hunting as it can store them reliably. Some of the navy ships lose Drones too which again are meh for explo anyway. Its also worth mentioning that fitting expanded launchers on an astero is very difficult
Yeah, it's a tight ship with quite a few limitations - has it's uses and I love it to pieces, but it's certainly not a "clear winner"
I use my astero for expo/ganking :)
How? It is way too expensive to be a ganking ship
@@thecomposerchanginggames5250 not Hisec ganking. You sit in exploration sites, wait for a hapless little explorer to come and grab them the second they start hacking.
@@captainbenzieyou did miss something, I used to have an anti-astero heron navy. I could tank the astero and wait until he gave up, his cap couldn't hold or until my buddy showed up
Cheetah is such a nice ship for casual wormhole exploration. i usually just go in, find some sites and hack them and go home. its perfect for it!
Glad you're enjoying!
I just needed an EVE video.. went thru many befire finding yours. Great vid! Pleasant delivery. On point content. Techno backbeat!! 😀👌
Awesome, thank you!
3:16 Alpha Mastery 1 Magnate. Brought home 350m in 2 hours of wormhole exploration
Nice!!
Ty so much for the explanation content!! This game has a lot going on and even more intricacies. For a newer player this long form information content helps alot!! o7
Happy to help!! 😊
Pacifier is for sure my favourite, able to fit covops cloak and nullifier while maintaining 120 scan strength and sub 2 second align time, it's the ultimate sneak given the correct setup and implants.
Awesome ship for sure, I did an entire video on it!
Astero works the best for me. I use it for scanning WH's and data and relic sites. Also quite a few killmarks of t1/t2 frigates. ECM drones in drone bay appeared to be very useful as well :)
Nice!
I love my astero, I love it so much it's now 1 bil 😅
Great video! The Astero used to be the GOAT before the great cov ops nerf. I ran explo for a while, but I got mad after I got popped once in a WH and ran a hybrid where I would scan down sites, fit for combat with dual reps, a faction scram and one mid for the analyzer at a depot and loot. It was really funny when another Astero with almost the exact same fit warped in on me. Ofc I put on my best IRL Rorschach impression when I pointed them saying "I'm not sick in here with you, you're stuck in here with me!" to hype myself up. That was a loooonnngggg fight 😂. I barely lost too. I might've had it if I actually practiced dueling and knew how overheating worked 😅. I would love to see an explo tengu breakdown. I've been meaning to try one out for a while, but I can't seem to settle on a fit.
Hahaha! Awesome! I'll be covering more Exploration fits soon!
Didn't they take away a high slot in that nerf, I seem to remember there being 3 at one point.
Covert ops nerf? What'd they do?
Great video!
The T3C's seem to have a lot going for them: The Interdiction Nullifier gets double on its activation time (30 sec); the CovOps cloak gets a 5-second reactivation time. I'm doing ESRC refreshing at the moment, completely useless in combat, and those two attributes are really good. (The alignment time makes it feel like I'm flying a large warehouse, but I'm getting used to it!)
The other thing with T3C's is, with the right defensive subsystem, you get the +10 to Relic analyzer strength; and with the right skills, you can pull a 50% bonus to Core probe strength.
With T3C's, the big question for me is, "How much is it going to hurt when I die," and for that reason, the Covert Ops ships are pulling ahead slightly.
I'd be curious about your thoughts on a non-combat-fitted T3C; for activities like ESRCs, does it make any sense at all?
For something like Rescue Caches, I'd probably prefer something like a Pacifier. Cheaper, faster, still scans well, and the Interdiction Nullifier timer is... Not really useful 😅
Bit late, but worth pointing out - the Probe Launchers dont use up a Launcher slot, thus Fleet variants have that little bit more oomph for taking on some of the lighter Combat sites, i think its why those ships also have a bonus for Launcher CPU usage, so that you can still slap on a couple of guns - good vid though! :)
Edit: Also, you mention the Astero loses some of its exploration capability in return for being able to use drones, which i feel is not quite correct - the Astero gives you the 37.5% probe strength right off the bat, meaning you'll have better or equal probe strength to T1 and Fleet Issue Explo ships (depending on your frigate training level) and then the extra 5 for analyzer strength over them too.
T2 variants 'win' in terms of pricing over the Astero but as you mentioned, they'll require you to have rank 4 of CovOps to beat the other ships in probe strength. which means more training.
Yeah, I was wrong about the launcher slot 😅 also, when I said about the drones, I meant that fitting for drone usage, PvP, you'll be sacrificing scanning fit stuff. Basically, don't 50:50 an Astero, make it a hunter or a hacker, not both.
I have level 5 in most things and never saw a use for anything other than astero. But I'm kinda spectrum maybe.
For the Tengu, the scan bonuses come from the subsystems. With covert reconfiguration you get the same 50% bonus to core and combat probes. And you can bring a mobile depot to switch fit to combat or exploration or something else, making T3 the more versatile options for exploring. I personally find it too slow, but if I wanted to head out and explore for a long time without coming back to my base, a T3 would probably be my choice. But since I live in lowsec and normally just scan the systems around I use my fast Pacifier to scan down what I want and quickly return to base to switch ship.
Pacifier is such a cool ship!
Yeah T3s are hilariously broken, what else is news.
@@Camcolito I wouldn't say they're broken, they're versatile, they're strong, but they have definite weaknesses and are very expensive compared to other ships that can do their roles.
@@captainbenzie You are in a much better position to judge to be fair, I am just coming back to EVE after many years, but I remember the last time I left Wormholes might as well have been Tenguland. Perhaps I am behind the times!
Great videos btw.
@@Camcolito glad you're enjoying! They got hit with some fairly hefty nerfs a few years back that definitely brought them down a bit, but they also removed the "skill loss on destruction" thing too to counter it.
The two things with Navy explorers are the reduction in CPU requirement like you mentioned, and also the attributes. Using the Heron as an example, the regular Heron has a base max shield HP of 400... the Navy Heron has 700, nearly twice as much. So the Navy versions are much better if you want to run an Expanded launcher and fit them for combat, they have noticeably better base tankiness and bonuses for dealing damage.
True, I just don't really see a reason to ever do combat in an explorer. Most ships are going to massively out-tank and out-dps you, so I tend to just keep it cheap and run at the first sign of trouble.
The only time I'd really consider doing any form of combat in an explorer is simply to bully out another explorer (T1 or T2) already in the site, but even then, I'd be wary of Herons which can be insanely dangerous!!
@@captainbenzie The primary reason would be if you're not using it for exploration. Essentially the Navy variants aren't very relevant to what you do because they aren't there for explorers... they can be used in a fleet with an Expanded Probe Launcher to find other players and quickly get the fleet to them, and are cheap enough to be expendable. Explorers will never have good DPS but they could tackle and survive long enough for the fleet to arrive. Particularly hard to catch targets are indeed better off hunted in a ship that gets scanning bonuses to pinpoint and jump before they notice.
I find miner hunting boring but without a ship with scanning and warp speed bonuses, hunting down a decent player in an exploration frigate is hard even in a ship with scanning bonuses, they warp fast once they notice your scan probes. I should know, I've been that miner warping away from a gas site because I saw scan probes on DScan. So the Navy variants basically exist when you're scanning for PvP reasons, either in a fleet or looking for defenseless targets.
You make good guides, captain Benzie. 👌🏻
Thank you!
I have had great luck with the Astero.... while it is certainly expensive it offers early bonuses when your skills suck.
As you gain skills (like I am now) I am just now starting to look for better (at about 15M skill points
Fair point!
The best is the cheapest so you aren't as pissed when it goes pop.
Heron is best T1 imo, 2 free slots lets you have 2 scanning arrays. If you have too much scan strength, theres a scan speed array. You never have too much scan speed.
It's good to make up for poor skills, but it's also slow and more easily caught than the other explorers
I agree... for pure exploration, Cheetah is the best option, ceteris paribus. However, I prefer Buzzard because I go for that little bit more scan quickness (2 or even 3 scan modules in mids), and for offensive exploration (with allied gang available), that extra scan slot can make a lot of difference against those escalation runners
Nice! And I love the Buzzard too!
Pacifier...also a Signal Cartel member...Pacifier can be fit easily to
Absolutely agree! I know from my time with the Cartel that a lot of folks like it, but since my videos are aimed mainly at newer players I can't really recommend it based on the pricetag. I do need to undock mine more though for sure!! It's an amazing little ship! Fly safe! o7
I agree about the Astero which is why I carry along a mobile depot with my analyzers. This way I can both hunt and do exploration in WH space at the same time. 50m3 isn’t too big of a deal considering most exploration loot is small. My fit is PVP focused so even if I come across another Astero, Pacifier, or other exploration ship I know I can take them. Anything else I just warp out.
I used to do a lot of nullsec exploration in a cheap Imicus. NS is a lot easier than WH space but I find the payoff in WH space to be worth it.
I just can't get past how the Imicus looks 😅
The Pacifier is awesome for combat as all of my kills since I started playing the game have been with this ship.
Even killed a whale that got really upset with me for wiping out his ship & for taking all the loot he had as the cargo bay.
Now he seems to loves me as he follows me everywhere now & already taken out another one of his ships as he tried to jump me.
I will say, if that happens don't worry to much about the one who jumps in on you & focus on his mates who will jump in once you start your attack run, so be ready to jump out of there.
Awesome!!
Really good breakout of the exploration vessels! The only thing u missed is the warping speed bonuses of the Pacifier making it arguably the faster ship to do the rounds on your Territory or look out for those ghost, sleeper's sites or even the laboratories on top of being able to lose anyone chasing u around
True, but for a newer player starting exploration, that cost is still prohibitive.
the ORE prospect are good for exploration? to search the gas sites and why not if there is a easy relic site?
It can be, yes - it can also cloak
The Heron is not only the better of the four basic exploration frigates, it is the coolest looking one as well 😎
(totally objective and unbiased in my statement of course 😅😋)
It is very cool looking, and it's definitely the best if you have lower skills (as you have midslots to fit spare arrays to make up for lower skills) but the others do all have their advantages too!
I prefer the Astero, you can still fit it for PvP while exploring...I always have a mobile depot with me and before I go to the relic site, I always adapt to my Neut Astero Expl/PvP fitting ;)
It is more versatile, for sure! But for pure Exploration, the T2s are cheaper/better 😊
exelent vid as always, you have not just been a lifeline for me getting back but made me understand so mutch more:p dont stop the good work Captain o7
Thank you! Glad I've been able to help!
Just a correction about navy frigs. Probe launchers don't take up any hardpoints. I run the navy heron for shadow war and I can have 2 launchers, a probe launcher, and a utility slot for cloak or auto targeting module.
Yeah, damn good point and no idea why I said that...
@@captainbenzie no worries lol, just pretend it was intentional to drive engagement in the comments. Love your videos btw, I really appreciate your takes
I know it was a long time ago and a lot of changes have been made since then but I believe it was wingspan delivery service did a video with a stratios that was jumped 7v1 and with a little bit of luck came out on top
Yup, just focused on frigates for this video
I used to do it in a stiletto, until they took away the interdiction nullification. Since then I've been a pacifier guy. I think warp speed is one of the most important aspects as you spend so much of your time warping, often across huge systems.
Solid point. You can still fit an interdiction nullifier to a Stiletto, mind 😊
@@captainbenzie yeah but since a covops can too, there's no real advantage to offset the bonuses to scanning/hacking that you sacrifice by using a ceptor. I wasn't sad for it to happen, I think the relic stiletto was pretty brainless and OP
@@JimmyFisher ah yeah, fair point and I do agree 😂
I've lost 2 Herons in high sec data and relic sites due to I guess can explosions. I need an exploration/scanning ship with more tank, capable of withstanding data/relic site rats, and something with a decent cargo hold. I'm jumping into into a Stratios (maybe a little overkill) to see if it can withstand exploding cans.
Those don't sound like normal exploration sites, rather Sleeper Caches or Ghost Sites?
I love my Astero. It was pain loosing my first one tho. But you learn as you go. I've had some incredible drops doing exploration in high sec tho. Roughly 300 mil in 2 days. But i was very lucky.
Nice! That's a good haul!
T2 explo frigs might be better at exploring than Astero, but once Astero appears on the grid, or simply on dscan it's time for them to go. Astero is great for chasing off other T2 explorers as they can't put any kind of resistance.
Oh, absolutely!
Hi Benzie! Beginner question here: How do you deal with defended Relic Sites using exploration ships? Is there a way I could fight back?
Not with frigates, no. That requires much more specialist ships like a Tech 3 Cruiser or a Stratios, I've done videos on both those topics 😊
@@captainbenzie Could you link or tell me the name of the videos? Thank you so much for the attention man, you got a new subscriber ❤
Hey captain. I'm looking for a ship that has the cloaking and hacking capabiltiies of the cheetah, but that can allow me to take on combat sites too. So I'm gonna need missiles and stuff. I spend most of my time in wormholes scanning down relic sites, and getting sad when everything I scan is a 'forgotten' or 'unsecured' site -with the Cheetah I have nothing to shoot npcs. Any recommendations?
Basically, one of the T3Cs, and you need to be quite heavily skilled. They're expensive but the only ones to reliably do that content solo. Else it's scan it, bookmark it, come back later in the other ship.
@@captainbenzie great. Thanks mate. Time to start saving
The Pacifier is my main ship for scanning down WHs and gas sites. It's overwhelming warp speed makes it perfect to scan down entire constellations quickly. Can reach almost 30 au/s with ascendancy implants, making it an awesome travel ship (can fit nullifier too). But I wouldn't use it for PVP nor data sites, way too expensive for that.
Yeah, I love the Pacifier but it's cost definitely makes it prohibitive for new folks!
I always use a Probe. Cheap as hell so I can yeet it with a Noise-5 and do exploration on the way home with minimal ISK-investment. If I lose it no big deal, if I make it back with a cargo full of loot then I get some cash for my trouble. It's great.
Glad you're enjoying! Cheap yeet ships and intense content like that sounds a fun mix!
and you can name it core scanner probe and itll look like "Core Scanner Probe" Type: Probe
Great video! Only issue is that while I liked the music, it was very distracting and made it hard for me to focus on your voice at times.
Sorry about that 😂
Hi, Captain Benzie. I've been running a few simulations with exploration ships, trying to get a sub-2 seconds align time, and it seems like this is only possible with the Astero. To me, this is a big plus for survivability in wormhole space, as it allows you to warp almost instantly upon someone else's appearance at your site. This justifies the high price for it, right? Am I missing something?
Sub 2s isn't necessary. Sub 3 should be absolutely fine for the most part. You can also do Sub 2 with the T1 frigates, just not the T2 COs.
I was trying to find the fastest align due to poor internet service where I live. Gotta be quick to the draw. Ty, Cap!
Remember as well if you’re using inertial stabs in your lows, your sig will be a lot bigger, if you’re worried about being locked while on a can.
podcast style is how i generally do it. while driving or as background as i just never use any games sound. finding combat sites, steal loot?
I like to fly the pacifier Bling with polarized rockets and an abyssal scrambler squeezed in (Zeugma analyzer) and a cargo scanner, even managed to fit a expanded probe launcher and scooped a few abandoned drones. I just needlejack out and do my thing. You can catch other covert ops and are very slippery. I'm unsure about the metamorphisis. Checks boxes, I really like the stabilizers but it feels weird. I wish I could do stabilizers on the pacifier without the extreme drawback in targeting range
Sounds a fun way to fly it!
And no one is talking about the awsome Metamorphosis such an awsome looking ship and full of utility. It has a dedicated mobile depot hold so you don't ever have to stop at a station to swap fits. It's the perfect nomad. Also the +2 to warp core means unless someone uses 2 warp disrupted on their ship your home free!
This video was made.before the Metamorphosis was added to the game 😅 and yes, it's an awesome ship, I did cover it here: ruclips.net/video/skQ3fcbxBKg/видео.html
Lol I didn't realize the date this vid was posted facepalm thx
@@generalrexgresh haha no worries!!
For the probe F.I. I believe that probe launchers don't take up launcher slots... ?
Correct. Not sure why I said that
Great video! Always been a fan of the astero but now leaking towards the T2s. Didn't even realise about the cloak delay differences or the interdiction nullifier.
What track have you used in the background please?
The probe fleet issue has 4 high slots.... and the core probe doesnt use a missile hardpoint
The T3 bonuses are on the systems themselves, they don't list the bonus there on the ship, mouse over your T3 they are equally good if not better.
I use the tengu, I don't have to change my fittings, can dual data and relic and tank and DPS, obviously sleeper sites are a no, but you can't frig those either.
I wanted to focus on frigates in this one 😉
Amarr... it happens to some people LOL... that was funny
😉
Why didnt you mention metamorphesis? In my opinion its best ship for relic/data site hunting. Sub 2s warp out, passive warp stabilizer, covert ops cloak. All the bonuses for scanning. You just zoom through systems/worholes hacking.
This video was made before the Metamorphosis was added to the game. Great ship and I thoroughly agree!
Oh hey, you did mention the T3Cs, was wondering if you would touch on those :P very underrated explorers, albeit ones you should use extremely carefully and definitely not for full time exploration. Do wish you did touch on the stratios though.. mostly because its not actually an explorer worth flying 99% of the time and people seem pretty set on using it for that regardless...
As to the Astero, pretty much spot on there, Its at its best exploring the cargo holds of other exploration frigates :P -- though if you're doing that there is very little cost to keeping an alternate fit for exploration in downtime. And yeah people who are on the defensive with an astero thinking "can I take this" are generally doing it wrong, the astero is fragile and benefits mostly from your ability to choose your targets and force an engagement via its cov ops cloak, if someone jumps in on your astero you should more often than not just assume they can kill you or that they're bait.
Exactly that. Didn't mention the Stratios as I was focused mainly on frigates but there will be a part 2 to this video 😊
As a Signaleer actually I use an Anathema to explore and clear relic and data sites. An Astero exploring fit is wasted on that little expensive hull. But to map Thera Pacifier is awesome. 15 au speed with covop 5/5. You can go back in time with that speed!
That's a damned good point about the Pacifier! Nice to see a Signaleer here too, I had a lot of fun and learned a lot with SC!
28:00 yes both hacking+pvp is bad, unless you go against a helpless 100% hacking ship. Can use a mobile depot though and refit for pure pvp to fight another astero.
Pacifier is has one extra "bonus" - warp speed. Go trough a few systems with no signatures and the saved time really adds up.
It seems to miss 1 high slot if you want to go explore-pvp though.... 4 guns + cloak.... and where to put probe launcher? imo it's bonus needs to be reworked- 1 turret slot removed but with increased dmg bonus to cover the loss.
Perhaps yes. I like the Pacifier a lot but it's too expensive to recommend to new folks!
I was hoping you'd say something about the Sunesis, that shipline all have scanning bonuses. It's just dumb to use them as explorers?
Nah, it's a decent enough ship if you have one free, but it doesn't really stand out compared to the alternatives.
Could you do a series on how to get from newb to a place where we can do these things you talk about? I feel like I'm weeks or even months away to get all the skills to do things like playing in w-space. Thanks!
Check the main page of my channel ( RUclips.com/@CaptainBenzie ) for a playlist called the Catskull Academy. Hopefully that will help (I'm making more) but you can also join our Discord or even apply for our corp! We have a Hisec base too to help teach newer players!
Heron Navy Issue with 2 missile launchers might be able to kill rat spawn from failing a data site hack in dronelands (failing hack spawns some rats instead of destroying can)? A pretty specific scenario.
I really love a Cheetha, but i use a probe in Hi-sec as well. I lost a cheetha being an idiot and flying through a low-sec gate without using gatr checker. I decided it was better to fly a probe until i feel more trained and experienced in my skills! I really love minmatar ships wjicg devloped over watching Captian Benzies vides. Then again i love Amaar ships and l
Energy turrets. So who knows whats going on in my mind 😊
Great video. I think all ships are great in skilled pilot. I love exploration and at the moment I’m the happy captain of an Astero… however i think you forget to mention another line of ships: Sunesis, Gnosis and Praxis.
What are you think about them?
o7
I wanted to focus mostly on the frigates for this one, and Sunesis is good but niche. Gnosis isn't really good for exploration, much better at other things. As for the Praxis? I'm working on a video now, but not for exploration 😉
I’m just getting back into the game after a 5 year hiatus. Made a fresh alpha character and I’m just scooting around in a Heron. Messing around in wormholes mostly. Got lucky last night and came out with about 150mil in loot from a bunch of relic sites. My only complaint is a I can’t clear rats in most data sites. Have to skip them.
Excellent! Yes, in Wormholes, stay clear of Forgotten/Unsecured sites and stick with the "Nullsec" style sites.
Forgotten and Unsecured will require a T3C, a Stratios, or friends.
Astero the big difference is you don't need the skills it is automatic 37.5% as soon as you can fly rather than having to get to level 5
True, but paid for by the cost of the hull 😁
Imicus Navy Issue enjoyer here. You really missed out by glossing over the INI bonus since having access to 20mb of drone bandwidth and 50m of storage lets you genuinely start to defend yourself. A pair of Hammerhead II drones with max drone skills and the INI bonuse of 50% extra tracking means they do terrible terrible things to unsuspecting frigates and even destroyers. It's definitely far more relevant a skill bonus than something like bonus damage on a single rocket launcher.
I didn't want to focus too much on the NI Explorers in this video as the video is aimed more at starting explorers. I didn't want to look too deep into ships that are PVP Explorers.
fact checking
the covert ops factional frigates get 15% cap reduction in warping the pacifier gets +10% warp speed which if you fit it right can be the fastest warp speed ship in eve
Yup, I love the Pacifier!
I like the Nestor 😜 because it has a frigate bay inside. 😁
Frigate bays are awesome
With max scan and hack skills, and top align and speed skills, pacifier is the absolute king of explo with its capability of travelling at 18au/s with T2 hyperspatial rigs, nullifier and its hacking bonus, it's a quick and slippery beast. Put on a blackglass and slap on a zeugma, and you'll pay for your ship in a single session of 4h of scanning.
I like the Stratos looks and I thought it was an Exploration ship, but you didn't list it, though you do talk about the Astero? ;-)
This video is mainly focused on the frigates you can use. Stratios is expensive, fairly slow, and gets actively hunted the second they see you. Good for some types of sites (I released a video yesterday about Unsecured Frontier Server Banks)
Oops, I thought I'd read, it was a frigate? ;-)
I did have an idea of adding long range sensors to detect a ship before it spots me and modify the drives to jump away before the other ship detects me (can't attack me if I'm not there). ;-)
You really are cranking out videos alot.
I'm impressed like how long does or how many hours are you working for a usual average video?
RUclips is my day job 😉 as for how long they take - it depends on the video and what you count as "working on a video". Actual recording and editing is usually a couple of hours, but the research and prep can take days 😊🚀
@Captain Benzie GBP to ZWD conversion is nuts. Well, anything to ZWD. That the main reason or you got heritage there, too? Just curious as I'm from SA heritage-wise, too. Cheap but very dangerous.
I'm running an Astero in null, so that the guy warping in maybe stops to think "Can I take that?", whilst I run....
If it's a PVPer, he's likely already seen you on D-Scan. If he warps in, in a PvP ship, he's already decided that he can.
@captainbenzie I'm currently in BRAVE; pretty sure some of the neuts coming through aren't that experienced.... I've seen individuals in alliance undock marauders and warp to havens with 35 man Horde bomber gangs reported in intel AND ACTUALLY IN SYSTEM!
whats with the digs against amarr?
I'm a Minmatar fanboy
I love the Imicus / Helios design 😂They are absolutely HIDEOUS both in terms of ship design and logic (there's no way these things could fly in a straight line) but i find them very cute because of that and I hope CCP never change them 😂I personally think that they are by far the most unique ship design in the game and I love that, even if it means some people literally cannot undock them and maintain healthy eyes at the same time
To be fair, it's space, so they'd be fine. Aerodynamics aren't important and the thrusters could easily be configured to be complementary. But yes, hideous ships 😂 but with a certain charm!
Oi! No Amarr hate :) You'll be reported to the Emperor? Emperoress? What DO they have?
Howdy from a neighbour in South Africa!
Empress Jamyl Sarum I
Despite having broken the laws of the Amarr Empire by Cloning herself as an heir and "being resurrected". 😅
Howdy!!
The new dailies got me to try exploration. With near zero skills, it is not fun.
Was hoping to find a ship that could make up for my lack of skills. Guess that's not really a thing.
Without skills, you're better in Hisec. In JSpace or Nullsec, the hacks can be very difficult.
У Navy сканеров , благодаря комбат-зондам, есть преимущество, очень полезное и для сканеров, даже если вы не собираетесь кого-то убивать. В нулях часто бывает, что нужные ворота находятся в отдалении , так, что как луч пеленгатора не вытягивай, до нужных ворот не дотянуться, а по локальному чату, ты знаешь, что ты в системе не один. Просто сканишь нужные ворота combat-зондами и сразу ясно, чист путь или лучше туда не лететь. Мой фаворит-Имикус Navy, единственный из этой серии, кто может брать дронов (вмещает 8 лёгких и может выпустить 4). Если качественно зафитить, с прокаченными скилами, просто машина для убийства. И , кстати, мне говорили, что в игру их ввели давно, просто цена была безумной и никто их не использовал. Полностью согласен насчёт Pacifier-мне кажется, что это такая шутка от CCP, его боевые бонусы и hi-слоты лишь сбивают с толку, чтобы игрок пытался зафитить его для боя и , почти наверняка, проиграл кучу исок. Его плюсы-скорость и дизайн, один из самых красивых кораблей в игре, а ещё при полёте в варпе у него крылышки складываются!
does the free skill points only work for new players or can you enter your current log in and still get the 1 mill points?
You can enter your current log in!
#ImicusLife
Thanks for the overview and exploration playlist!
Someone has to like it 😂
Always glad to help!
By the stats, the Astero is good for players characters that haven't skilled into a Tech 2 explorer.
True, as I say in my "Which Explorer Is Best For You" video, but it's VERY expensive. I'd more recommend the Metamorphosis for that.
@@captainbenzie You're certainly right about that. Currently in Jita, the costs for Covert Ops ships are:
Cheetah 21,960,000
Anathema 22,490,000
Helios 24,120,000
Buzzard 26,400,000
Metamorphosis 50,250,000
Astero 72,960,000
Pacifier 399,800,000
You make a good point about the Meta, it's lower cost than the Astero, and only requires Spaceship Command I to fly, but relatively speaking the availability is somewhat lower (controlled by the SOCT) and to my knowledge there are no blueprints for it available.
Prices for the Astero and Metamorphosis are amoung their lowest in the past year, but are trending up so if anyone were to want either one get them now while they're still cheap.
Thanks for the reminder. My opinion of the Astero actually comes from a time before the Meta and Pacifier were introduced to EVE.
what do you do with the data?
Sell it
Thanks, sadly I can't find were to sell it. I'm a new eve online castaway from elite dangerous were you went to a station an sold exploration data. Lol
@@edgartonian-yy7ojMarket icon, type the name of the item you wanna sell, go look down on the "buyers" section and set course to whoever's paying more for it.
Do you mean selling the location of site?
That's not a thing anymore someone told me the other day. Cause you can't sell bookmarks.
training into buzzard rn, idk I dont care much, just used to heron so seems like a logical upgrade.
Buzzard is awesome
I always wanted to do something new other than nonstop T0 abyssal ratting. Exploration seems more fun than mining
Exploration can be great 😬
The probe fleet issue is definately one of my favorites.
Nice! Why that one in particular?
You bring up a lot of good points however I don't hear any love for the stratios... I wonder why that is considering it's just the bigger brother to the astero... Might make a bit more sense to be a viable hunter and explorer compared to a lot of the other options out there and I know that it is a good ship in general...
Mainly focusing on frigate sized explorers for this one 😊
@@captainbenzie point made however I don't believe there is many cruiser sized explorers
why do you not like amarr ship cpt
It's mainly a lore/roleplay thing, since I'm a Minmatar player at heart... But I generally don't like lasers much, or the bone/good colour scheme.
Aw I see well back to scanning for me if I don’t get 1 shot by a turret again
i didnt think you needed a launcher spot for a probe launcher i thought i had one on my atron and i know it only uses turrets just like the astero
Correct. Not sure why I said that
Fleet Probe has two missile hardpoints plus combat launcher😊
Yup, but then no cloak 😉 I need to play with it more tbh
Amarr is my favorite faction. Gold is good!
To each their own - glad you enjoy them!
The amount of times i've afk killed manticores in the astero is astounding. It's a very good fighter in its class. And thats with a data/relic fit, not a fighter fit.
That's because Stealth Bombers absolutely struggle to do anything to frigates on account of them using Torpedoes (unless they've gone for the bait rocket fit) - this example is kind of the exception that proves the rule.
@@captainbenzie yes and they still decide to gank me.
Astero is the most versatile , but T2s have advantages . But You can forget t3 Cruisers and the Stratios .
I still don't see the Astero as a good choice. It's a PvP ship, not an explorer imho
Comment for the YT logarithm
Thanks! ❤️🚀
@@captainbenzie still think it's bonkers, but hey, if I am helping you with making money on good content, sure!
metamorphisis asdasdfadsadsadadsadsa cant believe no1 even mentioned it misssing in the comments x) no but srsly its my favorite ship cause +2 warp strength + warp core stabilizer means u can get away from pretty much any 1 man gank even if they manage to scram you and some gatecamps too at times. Also
Check the date the video was launched and the day the Metamorphosis was added to the game ;)
I've done a whole video on the Meta elsewhere :P
@@captainbenzie Ah yes my bad! i returned to even not even 1 month ago after 2 years of letting it go. So i assumed the Meta wasnt that recent. Great video on the meta :D!
I don't have the ship tree in my game. Why?
It's there, it just isn't on the default neocom to start. Check the menus 😊
My favorite is the zephyr, doesn't trigger those pesky sleepers!
I was going to comment on the other vid, but it disappeared. I assume you're making adjustments, but you're absolutely right on every point made. Industry isn't getting better, because Netease sacrificed all other playstyles to make you depend on Netease. It's how they make money. If you're not in the blob as a ratting carebear/whale, you don't matter to Netease. 70% of the Eve Echoes playerbase are these players, and they've been being coddled by Netease for 3 years. The rest of us don't matter.
To the point of this video, I wish Exploration was as good as this in Eve Echoes. CCP shows they care about all the careers in their game. Netease does not.
The Eve Echoes community is exhausting. I expect even more nerfs to small ships and my playstyle soon. Got 80% of the playerbase all complaining about my playstyle, so we know which way Netease will go soon enough. I fully expect Interceptors and Bombers to be nerfed soon. I expect no changes or improvements to Exploration, even when they have perfectly good examples right in front of them.
I have just lost hope for my playstyle, small ships, and balance. I had a veracious conversation with Vetemune on Reddit, where he wants to nerf Warpcore Optimization. He thought this was imbalanced, and when I pointed out that Nanocores were the actual issue, he resorted to claiming I wasn't addressing him nicely. I'm sorry, but when you come at my ships specifically, in the middle of a war, to nerf us, I'm going to give it to you straight. He's either unaware, or deliberately ignoring the obvious real issue. He's also admittedly not willing to change his builds to counter warpcore optimization, when the counters actually exist in-game!
Netease will hear his arguments, and make those changes because all he has to do is get the majority to agree. Doesn't even have to be correct. When this is how the devs do balance, it's hard to care about the game.
Fly aggressive o7
To be fair, most of what Vet is arguing for absolutely makes sense and I do support most of it. He wants buffs to subcaps, nerfs to caps, and the warpcore is simply that if you choose to engage (as in, fire back) you shouldn't be able to warp straight off if they suddenly have backup.
I also agree that Nanocores are a huge issue and source of power creep! 😅
@@captainbenzie Disagree, the entire point of warpcore optimization is to stabilize the ship's ability to warp. Removing this means everything requires a fleet, and the largest fleet automatically wins. It takes away options, and means whatever has the meta wins.
If you intend to tackle something, commit to it. One scrambler isn't committing at all, it's the base standard. Most ships using warpcore optimization can be scrammed/tackled with just 2 scrams. My entire PvP playstyle is tackling, and I have rarely ever needed more than 2. He wants to change an entire mechanic because he ran into a rare case of a Battleship getting away? 🤨 X for doubt.
He wants to change it because of the Ceptor Fleet doctrine, I've seen his complaints about Master Joda's effectiveness on grid in fleet battles. The truth is, they are being outplayed, and don't want to make the adjustments necessary because the counter is hard to fly.
It's a nerf suggestion to guerilla tactics, which means all battles will be determined by who brings more ships. That's not engaging content, Battleship battles are extremely boring, usually end in blackscreens for many of us, and are largely determined by who has more ships. The winner is practically pre-determined.
With smaller ships, you can do a lot more, as seen with Ceptor Fleet, Bomber Squadrons, CovOps Fleets, BC sniper fleets, etc.
The fix to his surface complaint is easy. Death Wish Nanocores go away. They're the largest offender of excessive amounts of warpcore stability. As well as Glaze and Voyage cores, which simply allow you to just run away blatantly. Remove these, and 3 scrams will work for any ship, doesn't matter how many Warpcore Optimizers they have. That's what he should be advocating for, not warpcore optimization nerfs. However he knows Netease won't do it, so he's throwing warpcores under the bus in hopes that Netease will nerf those instead. No way they're going to nerf their money makers, but F the other guys, maybe they'll nerf warpcores.
It's not a suggestion for balance, because the counters that exists, they won't use. It's a suggestion for Netease to nerf their enemies, which is bullshit. Do we really honestly believe Ceptors pilots all have additional warpcore optimization via Nanocores? 😑
I have a Voyage core, several, and I can show you I've never once selected that broken attribute. If anything, the faction Frigate and Cruiser Chad's are the ones that run it. Ceptor fleet has -6 points(literally 2 scrams required), that's literally it. We die all the time, it's the overall concept that is successful! I've already developed a second and possibly third Ceptor Fleet doctrine concept, as well as the new Bomber Squadron doctrine concepts. Nerfing warpcores won't change the overall outcome, if they won't even attempt to counter it. Anyone ever just stop and take into consideration the players are actually good pilots, and know how to get away even when scrammed? 🤨 Guess that couldn't possibly be on the table, we're not killing the scrammers then warping, we're all using voyage cores... 😑
Battleships should not dominate the game in PvP, neither should just having more people. There's more at stake than Vet catching a Ratter for his vids. I protested those broken Nanocores when they were released, but as usual what the ratter whales want, they get. Fix the situation of Netease coddling carebears, and Vet will see more success catching ships. The devs are extremely biased, and have developed the game one way this entire time.
Fly aggressive o7
Why is Amarr a Problem?
I'm a Minmatar fanboy and I don't like the god-bothering laser monkeys ;)
good vidoe thanks for making it
Glad you enjoyed!
How do you prepare for or react to ships using cloaks to hunt you?
I love exploration, but the simple fact that there could always be someone warping in on you cloaked or waiting on site cloaked makes exploration too frustrating for me. Especially in wormhole space where you don't even know if there is someone else in the system. You could go for high/low/nullsec exploration only and only hack if you are alone in the system... But where is the fun in that?
I think cloaks are way too overpowered and should get higher restrictions or penalties when used offensively.
What is your opinion?
I think cloaks are fine, personally, and I'm usually the hunted, not the hunter.
Use D-Scan. You can catch someone when they come off gate cloak and cloak up, otherwise you just have an escape plan when one shows up.
I rat wormholes a LOT, so cloaked ships are constant. Most have delays between decloak and lock that you can use to escape.
I miss the Helios' drone attack trait. It was fun.
Lmao never knew it once had one
yeah! it had a 10% bonus to thermal drone dps or something like that. so you had to use a "top of the line CreoDrone drone" on a CreoDrone hull. With a blaster fitted you could make enough dps to scare off torpedo bombers. @@captainbenzie