Hauling 101

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Contents 1 Class Information 1.1 General information 1.2 Notes for the teacher 2 Class contents 2.1 Introduction 2.2 What is hauling? 2.3 Establishing a hauler character or alt 2.4 Essential hauling skills and equipment 2.5 Hauling capital requirements 2.6 How to conduct speculative hauling profitably 2.7 Hauling safely 2.8 Hauling in Low-Sec and 0.0 2.9 Advanced hauling topics 2.10 Class Wrap-up

Class Information

This chapter contains the standard information of this class pertaining to scheduling and class contents. The general information should be sufficient to create a proper class topic for scheduling on the Eve University forums. Additional information relevant to the teacher is listed under Notes for the teacher.

General information

Image for forum posting: http://i757.photobucket.com/albums/xx216/ScoopIrish/truck3.jpg

The EVE economy is dynamic and largely player-run. As a result, prices for goods vary significantly in different parts of New Eden, providing the enterprising capsuleer with the opportunity to make money by buying low in one location, transporting the goods to a different location with higher prices, and selling them there.

However, hauling goods around is fraught with dangers - from gankers, pirates, competitors and scammers, and from the most fearsome threat of all: the tax man.

In this class, you'll learn how to haul goods in EVE, safely and profitably.

• Duration: 01:00 [- 01:30, depending on whether you participate in the optional practical exercise]
• Location: Docked up safely in a station [in Aldrat]

Class contents:

• What is hauling?
• Establishing a hauler character or alt
• Essential hauling skills and equipment
• Capital requirements for hauling
• How to haul profitably
• How to haul safely
• Intro to advanced hauling
• Q&A

[* Practical exercise]

Student requirements:

• Mumble registration and access - make sure you have Mumble sorted out and operational well before the class begins. Use this guide for set-up: http://wiki.eveuniversity.org/Mumble
• Access to the Class.E-UNI in-game chat channel

[* A ship with a cargo bay of at least 200 m³, for the optional practical exercise]

Additional information: This class is primarily lecture, followed by Q&A. [An optional practical exercise follows.]

Notes for the teacher

Required materials:

• Class.E-UNI chat channel, to receive questions and post relevant links
• Optional: An industrial ship, to lead the practical exercise if you have one
• Useful links to have open during this class:
  • How to set up an alt hauler character: Creating an Alt Hauler
  • How to haul profitably: Using EVE-Central to haul profitably
  • Hauling ships guide: Hauling
  • Level 4 hauling missions: Making Money with Hauling - Level 4 Cargo Missions

While this syllabus is fairly detailed, teachers should not just recite this document. Make sure to read it thoroughly, use its structure as a guide for the structure of your class, but make it your own - feel free to insert your own insights and experiences as you cover the key points.

Class contents

Introduction

Welcome to this class on Hauling 101! Over the next hour or so, we shall review what it takes to establish a hauler character, and to use them to haul profitably and safely.

(Instructor should then introduce himself or herself - covering experience level and background.)

We have a few ground rules for this class:

• This class will begin with a lecture, running about forty minutes or so. [We will then conduct a practical exercise, which should last about half an hour.]
• Feel free to ask any questions in the Class.E-UNI chat channel as we proceed - I will try to answer your questions as they come during the class. At the end, we'll open Mumble for any further questions or general discussion.
• You should be docked up safely in a station [, preferably in Aldrat if you intend to participate in the practical exercise].
• Please put your Mumble settings on "Push to Talk" if you have not already done so.

Everyone ready? OK, then - let's begin....

What is hauling?

First, let's define what we mean by hauling.

Hauling comes in three types:

• Speculator haulers - These are haulers that make their own trade runs. They are entrepreneurs that profit from the differences in selling and buying prices in different locations. They use their ISK to buy low, transport purchased goods, and then sell high, and earn profits on the margins.
• Hired haulers - These are haulers that arrange trade runs with other players. For example, they can help to improve the effectiveness of mining operations by providing transport of ores to stations for refining, or who by moving refined minerals to other stations for sale. Alternatively, haulers can also accept courier contracts offered by players on the market. Hired haulers either get paid on a percentage of the operation haul, or on a flat fee basis for contracts.
• Courier Mission Runners - Not to be confused with courier contract runners, these are haulers that receive trade runs from non-player characters in the game. Many NPC agents specialize in courier missions - paying for the transport of items to a particular location. Courier missions can be quite lucrative, paying rewards in ISK and Loyalty Points, which can be used to acquire valuable faction items. Some courier missions also reward success with implants, ship modules, or other goods.

Getting into hauling is relatively simple. All you need is a character with a fairly low level of ship command and trade skills, and a suitable industrial ship.

Hauling may sound like an easy way to get rich in EVE - and in fact you can earn millions of ISK per hour of effort, if you do it correctly. This class will show you how you can haul effectively and profitably, and how to avoid many of the common mistakes that many new haulers can make.

Establishing a hauler character or alt

Many players set up a separate alternate character or "alt" to specialize in hauling. There are several advantages to this arrangement:

• You can keep the hauler character out of the UNI, allowing you to conduct hauling activities during wartime.
• You can focus your training on the alt on hauling-related skills, allowing them to develop a high degree of competence quickly.
• If operating in a separate account, you can pair your hauler alt with your main character for mining ops or for hauling away salvage after missions, freeing your main character to focus on productive activities, like mining or killing NPC targets.

To set up a hauler alt in your main account, restart your EVE client, and then click on one of the blank boxes below your main character portrait. You are allowed up to three characters in your main account.

To set up a hauler alt in a separate account, you can either register a whole new account with CCP on the main EVE website, or you can create an alternate character in your main account, and then pay a small fee (US$20) to split off your alt into a new account later, if you wish.

A useful guide to setting up a hauler alt: Creating an Alt Hauler

What is the best race for your hauler? In the long run, it does not really matter, as any character can be trained to pilot any ship, given enough time. Certainly, the Tech I industrial ship with the greatest capacity is the Gallente Iteron V, but it takes a long time to train the skills needed to fly it. The other races have industrials with more initial capacity, but are limited to the degree to which you can expand them. There are fans of each race that argue about the merits of their industrial designs, and each has certain strengths and weaknesses. In truth, you can be productive in just about any race's industrials, and eventually, you will probably develop your hauler to fly Tech II blockade runners, freighters and other large-capacity ships, which are very similar in capability across the various races.

The best determinant for selecting the race of your hauler is how long you intend to train that character. If your intention is to establish a character in a separate account with a long continuous training plan, then your best choice is probably Gallente or Caldari. If your intention is to train your hauler only for piloting a basic Tech I industrial, you should probably select Amarr, as the Bestower offers the biggest initial capacity and expandability.

View this helpful guide on the strengths and weaknesses of various hauling craft, so you can make an informed choice about your hauling character's race: Hauling

Essential hauling skills and equipment

To get started as a hauler, the absolutely required skills you need are:

• Racial Industrial I
• Spaceship Command III
• Racial Frigate III

For most races, you will want to train additional levels of Industrial skill to unlock access to more advanced vessels of that type.

Additional skills that are invaluable to a beginning hauler include:

• Cargo capacity expansion skills:
  • Hull Upgrades II - needed for Expanded Cargohold II modules, to maximize your industrial's capacity.
  • Mechanic III - needed for Expanded Cargohold II modules, and for Cargohold Optimization rigs.
  • Jury Rigging III, Astronautics Rigging I - to fit Cargohold Optimization rigs.

• Ship piloting skills:
  • Warp Drive Operation: Helps with long warps. Each skill level reduces the capacitor need of initiating warp by 10%.
  • Spaceship Command: Reduces align time. 2% improved ship agility for all ships per skill level.
  • Evasive Maneuvering: Increases ship agility and acceleration. 5% improved ship agility for all ships per skill level.

• Because you will most likely be filling your low slots with cargohold expansion modules, you will need to develop sufficient skills to enable you to shield tank your hauler's ship. Essential shield tanking skills include:
  • Shield Management IV: 5% extra shields per level
  • Shield Upgrades: 5% reduction in shield upgrade powergrid needs per level; level IV allows use of T2 shield extenders
  • Engineering II & Tactical Shield Manipulation IV: Allows use of Adaptive Invulnerability Field II.
  • Optional: Shield Operation III or IV: 5% reduction in shield recharge time per level; level IV allows use of T2 shield boosters, though their value to a hauler is limited at best.
  • A note about tanking your industrial: in truth, if someone decides to suicide gank you in high security space, there is probably very little you can do about it in your Tech I industrial ship. All that your tank will do is slow down or discourage a casual attacker. If a suicide ganker scans down your ship, and decides that your valuable cargo should be theirs, they will almost certainly kill you, and there is virtually nothing you can do about it. Don't expect CONCORD to save you!

• You will also need your hauler alt to exchange ISK and goods with your main character, and also to buy and sell items on the market. Therefore, you will need a modicum of trade and social skills:
  • Social I and Contracting I - at a minimum, so you can execute contracts and speak to NPC agents
  • Trade I - so you can set buy and sell orders

As you develop your hauler alt, you may want to invest in additional social and trade skills, so that you can speak to more agents and increase the number of orders, at lower costs. But these are all you need to get started and to be a functional hauler.

Your starting industrial ship should be optimized for hauling in high security space, with the following equipment and fitting:

• Low slots: Cargohold Expansion II modules - as many as you can fit. You may be tempted to also include a Damage Control module, so that you increase your resists and give you more time to escape an attack. In general, the trade-off of more tank for less cargo capacity is probably not worth it if you are trading in high-security space, to which most haulers will operate. To maximize your ISK, you need to be able to carry as much cargo as you can.
• Mid slots: Shield tank modules - at a minimum, a passive tank consisting of as many shield extenders as you can fit. You may also want to increase your resists with an Adaptive Invulnerability Field module - fit one of these for every two or three extender modules.
• High slots: Weapons are useless on an industrial - don't even try it. You may want to fit a tractor beam and salvager to help clean up wrecks or collect jetcans on mining operations, though that means training Survey III and Salvaging I skills.
• Rigs: Cargohold Optimization rigs - buy only the Tech I variety, as Tech II versions are ridiculously expensive.

Fittings for hauling in low-sec and 0.0 space are different, which we'll cover briefly later.

Hauling capital requirements

Starting a new hauler alt character is relatively easy, but being able to do useful ISK-producing activities also requires a sufficient amount of starting capital.

• Required: About 600K-1.5 million ISK to purchase a suitable industrial ship. Note: you will get a free starter industrial ship if you complete the Industry introductory career track - press F12, select "Career Agents", then "Industry".
• Required: About 5-15 million ISK for good Tech II ship fittings (cargohold expanders, shield extenders, etc.) - you can start with less expensive Tech I fittings to start, cutting this initial cost by more than half, and then upgrade as you can afford. Definitely use Tech I rigs - the Tech II rigs are hideously expensive and not worth the extra cost.
• Required but not urgent: About 1.5 million ISK for essential skillbooks - though these can be purchased as you need them over time. If your hauler character is in the UNI, you can acquire these at no cost from the Alpha hangar. Important: do not take stuff from the UNI hangar for characters outside of the UNI.
• Required: about 2 million or more ISK for buying goods for trade, if you want to become a speculative hauler, assuming that your initial hauls will be for common consumer or industry goods.
• Optional: about 10 million ISK for courier contract collateral - almost all player-created courier contracts on the market require a collateral amount, which is refunded when you've delivered the package and completed the contract. The most lucrative courier contracts are also the most risky, and therefore require commensurate amounts of collateral, but 10 million ISK should be enough to start with fairly safe hi-sec courier runs.

In short, you can start a successful hauler alt character with about 8-20 million ISK in capital. It is possible to start with less than this if you only intend to use your alt as a mining operation hauler or for NPC courier missions initially. But to maximize your ISK-earning potential, you should begin suitably funded to pursue the hauling activities that interest you most.

How to conduct speculative hauling profitably

• Intro to EVE-Central - EVE-Central is a database of buying and selling prices in New Eden, submitted by players in the game. The hauler's most valuable resource for finding profitable trade routes is the EVE-Central Market Aggregator site: http://eve-central.com/home/. Register your hauler character there and download the free market data uploader. The current version (2.0) automatically uploads market data from your memory buffer, though you may have to do some tweaking to make sure that it is looking at the right file on your computer. See this link for the FAQ on how to configure the downloader properly: http://dev.eve-central.com/contribtastic/start
• Selecting and executing profitable hauls - This link describes a 12-step process that will enable any hauler to identify and execute the most profitable trades: Discover the Value of EVE-Central With a properly fitted industrial ship and a sufficient amount of capital, haulers can use this process to routinely generate as much as 3-5 million ISK per hour.
• Avoiding the tax trap - the biggest danger with this method is the tax trap. Every sale incurs a 1% sales tax. As a result, haulers must be sure that their profits exceed 1% on every trade run, or they will lose money.

Hauling safely

Suicide gankers in high-sec and pirates in low-sec love to attack and destroy haulers, if they believe that they can make quick riches by acquiring your cargo. Here is an example of a killboard entru that illustrates this:

• A high-sec gank of a Bestower, losing 500M in cargo - check the insanely stupid fit (multiple warp core stabs and nanofiber on a tech I industrial are not a good idea): http://eve.battleclinic.com/killboard/killmail.php?id=11462984

There are some practical things that you can do as a hauler, however, to minimize these dangers.

• Never go AFK - Being "away from keyboard" is death. Don't be lazy. Even in high-sec. Watch your overview like a hawk.
• Warp to 0, always - Never use autopilot to fly your ship, even in high-sec. Warp to 0, and when navigating to stargates, use the jump command instead, so your ship jumps as soon as you arrive. Be paranoid. There are gankers everywhere.
• Never use autopilot to fly your ship - Using the autopilot feature in the in-game map (the F10 key) is good practice for planning your routes - especially if you have the "Prefer Safer" option selected (F10, then Autopilot tab, then Settings tab). BUT never use autopilot to fly your ship.
• Understand your enemy - Most pilots that conduct suicide ganks are not doing it to be mean. They are doing it to make ISK. Understand the mind of your adversary, and you go a long way to defeat them. An excellent recording of how the mind of a suicide ganker works can be found here: class recording of "The Dark Side of EVE"
  • For example, how much ISK worth of cargo must a freighter be carrying before suicide ganking becomes a serious risk?
    • Obelisk buffer: ~ 200,000 EHP
    • CONCORD response time in an 0.5 sec system: ~ 10 sec
    • Damage required to destroy freighter = 200,000 / 10 = 20,000 DPS
    • Damage output of one suicide gank battleship = ~ 1000 DPS
    • Number of suicide gank battleships required = 20,000 / 1000 = 20 ships
    • Cost of one suicide gank battleship = ~ 120 million ISK
    • Total cost of suicide gank investment = 120M * 20 = 2.4 billion ISK
    • Freighter cargo loot drop ratio (game mechanic) = 50%
    • Freighter cargo loot required = 2.4B * (1/0.5) = 4.8 billion ISK
  • So, start getting nervous at around 5 billion ISK worth of loot in your hold.
    • Note, CCP has changed the game mechanics so that insurance is no longer valid on CONCORDed ships. This raises the bar considerably, up to around 4 billion ISK. And, keep in mind that this is only the break-even point. With 20 ships involved, that's probably at least 10 people. Given the preparation required, chances are the ganking break-even figure will be more like 5 billion ISK worth of cargo.
• Fit your indy - yes, you are vulnerable to ganking at all times in an industrial, but why make it any easier for casual gankers, too?
• Use scouts - If you are carrying high-value cargo, consider using a fast frigate, shuttle, or covert ops scout to reconnoiter at least one system ahead. If you find high DPS battlecruisers or battleships lurking around a gate or in a system, consider taking a different route, or docking up to complete your hauling run on another day.
• Be aligned - If you are hauling for other players, such as on a mining op, always align your ship with a celestial. Keep that celestial on your overview control panel, and be ready to hit the warp button.
• Insure your ship - Insurance is your friend. It softens the blow after an "accident". Keep your insurance policy up to date, always. It's worth the investment.
• Here are some additional tips for how to survive as a hauler: http://k162space.wordpress.com/2010/02/28/hauling-how-not-to-die/

Hauling in Low-Sec and 0.0

• Beware of hauling in 0.0 and low-sec - Unless you are in a Tech II blockade runner, and have the high level of skills to go to warp instantly under the safety of an advanced covert operations cloak, going to 0.0 or even low-sec space (0.1-0.4 security status) is very risky. If you want to minimize potential losses, then stay in high security space for your trade runs in Tech I industrial ships, even if this means taking the long way around. Set your autopilot settings to safer routes. Know where the common piracy havens are located: Known pirate systems
• If, however, you find hauling jobs in nullsec and low-sec too alluring to resist, then follow some simple guidelines to minimize your risk:
  • If you don't yet have the skills for a cloaked blockade runner, consider using a high-capacity cruiser, such as the Gallente Exequror, fitted for defense, for small hauling runs in low-sec. Capacity will be more limited, but your ability to survive an attack will be improved.
  • When operating in low-sec and 0.0, fit to avoid getting caught and destroyed:
    • Put at least three Warp Core Stabilizers in your low slots to protect against being scrammed or warp disrupted. Note, however, that WCS modules will not protect you against Heavy Interdictors in null sec, as they can tackle anything if fit properly.
    • Always required in any hauler, a strong shield tank: fit an Invulnerability Field or two to increase shield resistances, and Shield Extenders to maximize shield hit points.
    • A Prototype Cloaking Device in a high slot, as it can give you the option of hiding in space if you escape an attack and then need to lay low for a while: http://www.eve-wiki.net/index.php?title=Cloaking_device
    • If you are hauling in null sec, fit a Microwarpdrive (MWD), so you can "burn out" of bubbles. (More on this later.)
  • Rigs to consider when modifying your industrial for hauling in low-sec or 0.0:
    • Low Friction Nozzle Joints I reduce align time by 11.7%: http://www.eve-wiki.net/index.php?title=Low_Friction_Nozzle_Joints. Agility is everything when trying to warp away from danger.
    • You might also consider fitting a Core Defense Field Extender to improve the strength of shields by 15%. However, you do so at the expense of increasing your signature radius 10%, which makes you easier to target lock.
• Low and null sec hauling tactics
  • Defeating gate camps: If you jump through a gate into low sec or null sec, and you find a camp of enemies surrounding you, do not panic: you have 30 seconds of cloaked protection. Use this time to examine the fleet size and composition. Then engage "warp to zero" to your target station, then quickly activate your defensive mods. If you have fit for fast alignment, you will nearly always warp away before anyone can target lock you. Even if they do manage to lock you, your Warp Core Stabilizers will give you some protection from being scrammed or disrupted. And if they fire on you, you should have enough of a shield tank to take at least one volley of damage.
  • Burning out of bubbles: If you are hauling in 0.0, you can get caught in warp disruption bubbles. If you are caught in a bubble, double click in a direction that is the shortest distance out of the bubble, and which is not on the line between you and any enemy tackler, then immediately start your MWD and then your cloak. Once out of the bubble, warp to a celestial @ 50-100km (ideally a non-standard distance) or to a safe spot. Enemies wont be able to target you before you cloak, but they may have time to de-cloak you before you are out of the bubble. Therefore, you need as much speed as possible from that one MWD cycle, before the cloak turns it off.
  • Docking up quickly: As you arrive at your station, engage your propulsion module, your defensive mods, and then spam the dock command until you safely in station. Check the guests tab in station to see who is in there with you. Use Show Info on anyone there, to see if they have negative security status. These people are your biggest threat when you undock.
  • Undocking in low-sec and 0.0: Leaving stations is the riskiest part of low-sec hauling. When you undock, you have 30 secs of invulnerability to targeting and attack so long as you do not align, or activate any modules. Use that time to make a quick assessment. If you don't like what you are seeing, then press Ctrl-Space to stop your ship, and then dock up. If you decide to continue, warp to zero to your gate or safe spot, and engage defensive mods. Your only real vulnerability is if a bad guy bumps you far enough away from station that you cannot dock.
  • Use bookmarks - if you can use a cloaky ship, use it to create bookmarks at warp range (over 150km) in front of station exits, providing you with an instant undock. It's also good to create safe spots in systems that you intend to revisit, so you have a comfortable places to hide if necessary.
  • Beware of pipes - successive low-sec or null-sec systems with only two gates are known as "pipes", and they can be very dangerous, as they are often camped. Study the star map before you make your hauling runs, so you are aware of these danger spots. And if you can scout them in advance with a cloaky covert ops ship, and make some bookmarks in safe spots there, that will give you some additional options when traveling through them.
  • Pick a good time to haul - to minimize your risk, haul when the pirates are asleep, typically between 06:00 and 11:00 EVE time. You can see the times of the lowest numbers of players logged in here: http://www.eve-offline.net/?server=tranquility

Advanced hauling topics

• Carrying sensitive or high-value cargo
  • A courier contract box alone will not protect your goods from being cargo scanned!
  • If you put your goods in a secure container, and then make a courier contract with that container, then the items in the container will be "double wrapped", and protected from cargo scans
  • Orcas provide better protection against cargo scans
    • Goods in the Corporation Hold of an Orca are invisible to cargo scans by other players, but NOT by NPC customs agents.
    • Further, if your Orca is ganked and destroyed, any goods in the Corporation Hold will also be destroyed -- savvy gankers know this, and are therefore deterred from attacking most Orcas
  • In Empire space, carrying illegal goods (indicated with a skull-and-crossbones on the item icon) can get you in trouble with customs agents
    • Customs agents (not CONCORD, by the way) randomly scan ships going through gates, or sometimes at stations - the higher the security rating of the system, the higher the chance of being scanned
    • If a customs agent suspects that you are carrying illegal items, they will send you a pop-up message, asking if you are carrying illegal goods
      • If you say "yes", they will confiscate your illegal items, fine you heavily, and you will take a substantial faction-standing loss
      • If you say "no", then you should attempt to quickly jump through and escape, as they may attack your ship
    • Cloaks and fast-fitted ships reduce the chance of being scanned, as does traveling in systems with lower security ratings, but it never eliminates it completely, unless you are in 0.0 nul-sec space

• Courier contracts - Don't forget that there are courier contracts available.
  • You can access these by selecting the Contracts button on your Neocom, clicking the "Available Contracts" tab, then select "Entire Region" in the View field, and "Courier" in the Contract Type field, then click on the "Get Contracts" button.
  • Some general rules for the wise courier contractor:
    • Beware of 0.0 and low-sec - have a map, and avoid contracts that start, end or go through dangerous areas. Note that UNI members are prohibited from entering claimable null-sec space.
    • Beware of pirates - avoid courier contracts that start, end or go through known piracy areas: Known pirate systems
    • If the contract is too good to be true, it's too good to be true - beware of contracts that pay an absurd reward for very little or no collateral, as they may be an attempt to lure you into a gank

• Courier missions - Level 4 courier contracts are a safe and secure way to generate ISK quickly. This link describes how to make money effectively as a Level 4 courier mission runner: Making Money with Hauling - Level 4 Cargo Missions

• Advanced hauling ships: Hauling
  • Covert Ops Frigates: don't forget the usefulness of these small, fast, cloaked ships for transporting tiny but high-value cargo, such as blueprint originals
  • Blockade Runners: fast aligning ships that can fit covert ops cloaks, and therefore can warp while cloaked. Great for hauling valuable loads of under 10K cubic meters in low-sec and 0.0.
  • Deep Space Transport: extra-tanked industrials, with good capacity - nice for hauling moderately valuable cargo - built-in +2 warp core stability
  • Orcas: very handy for mining operations, and a darned good large-scale hauler; the Corporate Hold is particularly useful in that it cannot be scanned, making it nice for hauling sensitive or high-value goods. See this guide for more details on the Orca: Orca Guide
  • Freighters: protected by their sheer bulk, very handy for carrying ships or other large-volume goods in high security space
  • Jump Freighters: can use cynosural fields to jump into 0.0 and low sec space; the only way to go for shipping large quantities of goods into low security areas

• Hauling corporations - There are a number of player corporations that specialize in hauling. The most well known of these is Red Frog Freight - for more info, see this link: https://forums.eveonline.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=6491 - or check out their fee calculator, here: http://red-frog.org/jumps.php - it's a great service if you need things to be moved in game, or if you are looking for a good corp for your hauler alt to join and make some ISK! (Or, to use as a model for your own hauling corp!)

Class Wrap-up

• Thanks for attending this class!
  • I would appreciate any feedback from people on how to improve the class.
  • If you liked the class, send me 1 ISK, and include any suggestions for improvement.
  • If you have any constructive criticisms, those are welcome also - please send me an EVE mail with your suggestions.
• Good luck, and fly safe!