Covert Ops
See Stealth Bombers for the other stealthy frigate class.
Covert Ops ships are small, fast-warping, lightly armed and armored frigates with bonuses to scanning, stealth, and relic and data sites. They can fit Covert Ops Cloaks and covert cynosural field generators. Covert Ops ships are used in both pvp and pve.
Covert Ops Frigates
Each of the four major factions has a covert ops ship, differing in mid/low slot layout and Racial Frigate bonuses:
Buzzard - 5M-3L slot layout. Scan deviation bonus. Strongest pure scanner/hacker thanks to slot layout and deviation bonus.
Anathema - 4M-4L slot layout. Scan deviation bonus.
Helios - 5M-3L slot layout. Speed bonus when cloaked. Compromise between speed and scanning.
Cheetah - 4M-4L slot layout. Speed bonus when cloaked. Fastest base speed and agile.
The CONCORD 
Pacifier has similar bonuses to scanning and hacking, with large damage bonuses to all weapon types, a bonus to reputation gain, and 5 high slots instead of 3. It is not commonly used due to a high price.
While not technically a Covert Ops ship, the 
Astero is used in the same way as the true Covert Ops ships listed above. The Astero is a great choice for low SP pilots, although it is more expensive than the racial frigates.
Two limited-edition Covert Ops ships have been given out as tournament rewards:
Fitting
A Capsuleer's options for fitting Covert Ops frigates are highly dependent on their Covert Ops skill level, as each level of the skill provide a 20% reduction in CPU for Covert Ops cloaking device. Covert Ops IV or V are recommended, depending on how tight the desired fit is. The following heuristic[Note 1] may be useful as a basis for fitting Covert Ops frigates with a primary role of probe scanning and a secondary role as hero tackle. In the fitting window, simulate the hull of the relevant Covert Ops frigate and add the modules of your choice in the following order:
- Expanded (or Core) Probe Launcher (T1, T2, or Sisters)
- Covops cloak
- Interdiction Nullifier - Allows you to bypass interdiction spheres
- 5MN MWD (restrained on first attempt, may later be changed to compact)
- T2 point
- Fill mid slots with scan arrays: one acquisition, one pinpointing, and the rest rangefinding
- Fill lows with inertial stabilizers
- Rigs, depends on what kind of Probe Launcher and Rangefinding Array you are using: 2x T1 Gravity Capacitor Upgrades (better at cheaper levels) or 1x T2 Gravity Capacitor Upgrade with Sisters Probe Launcher and/or T2 Rangefinding Array.
- Now, start shaving off lows for MAPC (for Power Grid) and Co-processors (for CPU)
- Finish off by switching inertial stabilizers to Nano until you're barely before a tick in your align (with prop OFF)
History
Covert Ops Frigates (but not stealth bombers) gained the ability to fit interdiction nullifiers when those were introduced on 2021-05-18.[1]
See also
Notes
- ^ Conci Furiram, personal communication, April 2020
References
- ^ Patch notes and news post for the changes to nullification and Warp Core Stabilizers. This is not a bonused version, so covert ops have a long cool down between uses.
