Difference between revisions of "Capacitor warfare"

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Revision as of 16:04, 13 November 2010

Cuesnosnneut.JPG
or Why These Pictures are Some of the Prettiest Things You Will See in EVE.


This is an ongoing project. Any changes or help will be appreciated and then mutilated, hacked, revised and generally forced into the authors grand vision (ha ha ha). Once an initial draft is completed (yes this will take months) a thread on the forums will be established for discussion and corrections. Thanks!


Capacitor Warfare Introduction

You have probably heard the phrase 'cap is life' during your time in EVE. There are many good reasons why this is true, and each one is also a reason why Capacitor Warfare can be extremely effective. Capacitor keeps many tanks working, directly feeds laser and hybrid turrets, and fullly powers the fighting midslot modules including all EWAR modules and propulsion systems. An enemy without capacitor is an enemy without options which means you get to dictate the flow of the battle - kill them your way or if something goes wrong you can always be confident that warp jamming requires cap.

Rarely will you see EWAR guides include anything but ECM, TP, RSD, or TD even though that is where cap warfare rightfully belongs, together with warp jamming. Cap warfare has had its ups and downs in the history of EVE, with its wild days of overpowered glory, and subsequent 'rebalancing' lows. It is still and will always be an extremely viable tactic in the sandbox of EVE, and the pendulum will continue to swing back and forth over the impossible 'balanced' ideal, but knowing what and how is extremely important even if you never plan to employ cap warfare yourself.

Capacitor Warfare, defined as direct action taken to reduce or eliminate the capacitor of a target, can be accomplished in a few ways:

  • Using two types of Engineering Equipment modules
    • Energy Destabilizers - neutralizers (neuts) of various sizes and meta levels
    • Energy Vampires - nosferatu (nos) of various sizes and meta levels
  • Using one of three Combat Utility Drones
    • Light, medium and heavy energy neutralizer drones based on Amarr drone models - the Acolyte EV-300, Infiltrator EV-600, and Praetor EV-900


(as an aside if you have ever been curious where the word nosferatu comes from check out this link.)

Although focussed on the same goal, each of the these systems has its own strengths and weaknesses and each is very different in implementation. Capacitor warfare drones operate like other EWAR drones and share strengths and weaknesses with the TD and RSD drones. In contrast, capacitor warfare modules are very different from other EWAR modules. They fit like weapons in high slots with three sizes corresponding to hull size, competing for fitting slots with DPS and high slot utility rather than mid slot utility or tank. Compared to other EWAR modules they have short ranges. They kill capacitors incrementally in the same way that DPS destroys shields. Similarly to TD, cap war has setups against which it is inherently limited. For example, a passive tanked drake will still be able to tank and DPS with 0 capacitor (it won't be able to run active hardeners, warp jamming, or propulsion modules though!). Cap Boosters are the natural counter to cap war as they inject capacitor charges which will nullify or mitigate damage or enhance recovery from cap warfare in the identical way a shield booster will counter DPS.

Capacitors are a common thread for every single ship in EVE. The same can't even be said for module slots. Every engagement, PvP or PvE, will involve cap. Cap to get there, cap to keep someone there, cap to tank, cap to kill; whether cap stable or capped out, cap is life. Therefore, when you are planning a shiny new ship, fitting one, or actually undocking, countering or using capacitor warfare is something which needs to be considered.

And that is the basis for any good discussion on cap warfare. Keep reading for how it works, what ships it works best on and how to make it work for you.


How Destabilizers, Vampires, and Neutralizer Drones Work

TL;DR skip this section if you don't care about the fine print

General Principles

Cap warfare can only be understood if you first understand capacitors. Capacitors are a self recharging resource with a Capacitor Recharge Rate that changes relative to the level of the capacitor. Accordingly, there is a 'peak' recharge at ~25% with the recharge rate decreasing from either side of this peak. Therefore, the rate of recharge is lowest when the capacitor is full (100%) or empty (0%). Shield tankers should inherrently understand this principle as it is the same as the recharge mechanism on shields. EVE university folks are lucky to have access to the Capacitor Management 101 class that Neville Smit teaches.

Since capacitor warfare deals in the removal of capacitor it works in opposition to the recharge rate. And since the recharge rate is lowest at 100% and 0%, cap warfare will have the greatest effect (defined as amount of cap removed over the time of a cycle) at these levels. The cap will be removed in a 'chunk' each cycle and will start being refilled by the recharge rate until the next chunk is removed. Cap warfare will have the least effect at peak recharge as the amount of cap removed will be countered by the highest recharge the capacitor is capable of. Therefore, we know that it is more difficult to cap out an enemy than it is to keep them there - ie. you may have three neuts on them to drain their cap as quickly as possible but only need 1 to keep them capped out. (Incidentally it is also easy to see when selecting the cap booster charge that you obviously always want to try to select a charge at least 25% of the size of your capacitor to push you instantly to the 'good' side of your peak recharge rate.)

With this simple information tucked away we can discuss the particulars of how the individual cap warfare systems work.

Energy Destabilizers

Energy Destabilizers - ie the assortment of Neutralizers (Neuts) are the heavy hitters of cap warfare. They can remove huge amounts of cap and leave an enemy capped out faster than any other form of cap warfare.

  • Strengths
    • Neutralizes large portions of the enemies capacitor every cycle
  • Weaknesses
    • Requires large amounts of your capacitor
    • Long cycle time
    • Relatively short ranges (improves with module size)

Here is screenshot of the attributes of the meta 0 heavy neut:

Heavyneut.jpg

All neutralizers have a similar set of attributes. The different sizes of neutralizer differ significantly, but for each size tier they are fairly consistent across meta levels. Aside from fitting considerations, the only attributes that change from meta 0 all the way to commander modules is the range and the amount of energy neutralized. The energy 'cost' to neutralize is consistent (45 GJ for small, 150 GJ for medium, and 500 GJ for heavy). Therefore, at each size higher meta modules are more efficient: meta 0 modules destabilize as much as their activation cost (100% efficiency), and it trends up to meta 5 (tech II) and higher modules at 120% efficiency. Using the heavy neut example a Tech II neut would neutralize 600 GJ with its 500 GJ activation cost. The cycle time is also consistent (6 seconds for small neuts, 12 seconds for medium, and 24 seconds seconds for heavy) and the range for modules from meta 0 to the highest are: small from 5,250m - 7,350m; medium from 10,500m - 14,000m; and heavy from 21,000m - 39,200m.

Stats for Small Neuts 0 - 6 meta level and meta 8 (faction) example

Meta Level Name Cycle Time Range Energy Cost Energy Neuted Neut Efficiency Neuting per Sec
0 Small Energy Neutralizer I 6 sec 5,250m 45 GJ 45 GJ 100% 7.5 GJ/sec
1 Small Rudementary Energy Destabilizer I 6 sec 5,500m 45 GJ 47 GJ ~104% ~7.8 GJ/sec
2 Small 'Gremlin' Power Core Disruptor I 6 sec 5,750m 45 GJ 49 GJ ~109% ~8.2 GJ/sec
3 5W Infectious Power System Malfunction 6 sec 6,025m 45 GJ 51 GJ ~113% 8.5 GJ/sec
4 Small Unstable Power Fluctuator I 6 sec 6,300m 45 GJ 54 GJ 120% 9.0 GJ/sec
5 Small Energy Neutralizer II 6 sec 6,300m 45 GJ 54 GJ 120% 9.0 GJ/sec
6 'Caltrop' Small Energy Neutralizer I 6 sec 6,300m 45 GJ 54 GJ 120% 9.0 GJ/sec
eg 8 Imperial Navy Small Energy Neutralizer 6 sec 7,350m 45 GJ 54 GJ 120% 9.0 GJ/sec
  • note: the only difference between meta 4 to 6 is the fitting requirements
  • the only difference between meta 8 (faction) and from meta 4 to 6 is the range and fitting



Stats for Medium Neuts 0 - 6 meta level and meta 8 (faction) example

Meta Level Name Cycle Time Range Energy Cost Energy Neuted Neut Efficiency Neuting per Sec
0 Medium Energy Neutralizer I 12 sec 10,500m 150 GJ 150 GJ 100% 12.5 GJ/sec
1 Medium Rudementary Energy Destabilizer I 12 sec 11,025m 150 GJ 158 GJ ~105% ~13.2 GJ/sec
2 Medium 'Gremlin' Power Core Disruptor I 12 sec 11,550m 150 GJ 165 GJ 110% 13.75 GJ/sec
3 50W Infectious Power System Malfunction 12 sec 12,075m 150 GJ 173 GJ ~115% ~14.4 GJ/sec
4 Medium Unstable Power Fluctuator I 12 sec 12,600m 150 GJ 180 GJ 120% 15 GJ/sec
5 Medium Energy Neutralizer II 12 sec 12,600m 150 GJ 180 GJ 120% 15 GJ/sec
6 'Ditch' Medium Energy Neutralizer I 12 sec 12,600m 150 GJ 180 GJ 120% 15 GJ/sec
eg 8 Imperial Navy Medium Energy Neutralizer 12 sec 14,000m 150 GJ 180 GJ 120% 15 GJ/sec
  • note: the only difference between meta 4 to 6 is the fitting requirements
  • the only difference between meta 8 (faction) and from meta 4 to 6 is the range and fitting



Stats for Medium Neuts 0 - 6 meta level, meta 8 (faction) and meta 14 (commander) example

Meta Level Name Cycle Time Range Energy Cost Energy Neuted Neut Efficiency Neuting per Sec
0 Heavy Energy Neutralizer I 24 sec 21,000m 500 GJ 500 GJ 100% ~20.8 GJ/sec
1 Heavy Rudementary Energy Destabilizer I 24 sec 22,050m 500 GJ 525 GJ 105% ~21.9 GJ/sec
2 Heavy 'Gremlin' Power Core Disruptor I 24 sec 23,100m 500 GJ 550 GJ 110% ~22.9 GJ/sec
3 500W Infectious Power System Malfunction 24 sec 24,150m 500 GJ 575 GJ 115% ~24.0 GJ/sec
4 Heavy Unstable Power Fluctuator I 24 sec 25,200m 500 GJ 600 GJ 120% 25 GJ/sec
5 Heavy Energy Neutralizer II 24 sec 25,200m 500 GJ 600 GJ 120% 25 GJ/sec
6 'Moat' Heavy Energy Neutralizer I 24 sec 25,200m 500 GJ 600 GJ 120% 25 GJ/sec
eg 8 Imperial Navy Heavy Energy Neutralizer 24 sec 29,400m 500 GJ 600 GJ 120% 25 GJ/sec
eg 14 Draclira's Modified Heavy Energy Neutralizer 24 sec 39,200m 500 GJ 600 GJ 120% 25 GJ/sec
  • note: the only difference between meta 4 to 6 is the fitting requirements
  • the only difference between meta 8 (faction), meta 11 to 14 (commander), and from meta 4 to 6 is the range and fitting
  • meta 11 to 14 (commander) have a huge increase in range - the meta 14 example is the longest range neut in EVE



With these capabilities in mind, a ship fitted, and a victi... er... target located, the neut can be put into action.

There is no falloff and unless you are within the max neut range you will not be able to activate the module. If you are within range of a target and activate the neut the activation cost will immediately be deducted from your capacitor and the destabilized amount will be instantly deducted from the target's capacitor. Each cycle time if still within range this will be repeated for as long as you have capacitor to run it. Pretty simple, right?

The important thing to remember is that your goal is to cap out your opponent and that you need to use enough neutralization to overcome the peak recharge rate of their capacitor. Yes, you will make it harder for them to run cap stable, but likely you would be a more efficient killing machine using that high slot for something else if that is all you are accomplishing. What this boils down to is that you don't use a small neut on an Apoc and expect to accomplish anything. The basic rule of thumb is that a good Cap Warfare setup has a neutralization rate MUCH higher than any conceivable recharge rate. You want to cap out your opponent quickly and then have an easy way to keep the other pilot running on empty.

Energy Vampires

Energy Vampires - ie the assortment of Nosferatus (Nos) remove small amounts of cap, but instead of costing your own cap to do this they will actually give you the cap your opponent lost. Because of the huge potential of being able to hurt a target while only aiding yourself there are several rather severe limitations on these modules.

  • Strengths
    • Amount of cap removed from the target is transferred to you
    • Quick cycle time
  • Weaknesses
    • Only transfers cap when your PERCENTAGE of capacitor is below the percentage of the targets capacitor
    • Relatively short ranges (improves with module size)
    • Removes much less cap than neutralizers and require more CPU to fit

Here is screenshot of the attributes of the meta 0 heavy nos:

File:Heavynos.jpg

All nosferatus have a similar set of attributes. The different sizes of nosteratus differ significantly, but for each size tier they are fairly consistent across meta levels. Aside from fitting consideration, the only attributes that change from meta 0 all the way to commander modules is the range and the amount of energy transferred to you. The cycle time is consistent (3 seconds for small nos, 6 seconds for medium, and 12 seconds for heavy). Small nos will transfer from 8 - 10 GJ across the meta levels, medium from 30 - 36 GJ, and heavy from 100 - 135 GJ. The ranges for all the modules from meta 0 to the highest are between: small from 5,500m - 10,214m; medium from 10,500m - 19,500m; and heavy from 21,000m - 43,000m.

Stats for Small Nos 0 - 6 meta level, meta 8 (faction) example, and meta

Meta Level Name Cycle Time Range Energy Transfered Nosing per Sec
0 Small Nosferatu I 3 sec 5,500m 8 GJ ~2.7 GJ/sec
1 Small 'Ghoul' Energy Siphon I 3 sec 5,775m 8.4 GJ 2.8 GJ/sec
2 Small 'Knave' I Energy Drain 3 sec 6,050m 8.8 GJ ~2.9 GJ/sec
3 E5 Prototype Energy Vampire 3 sec 6,325m 9.2 GJ ~3.1 GJ/sec
4 Small Diminishing Power System Drain I 3 sec 6,600m 9.6 GJ 3.2 GJ/sec
5 Small Nosferatu II 3 sec 6,600m 9.6 GJ 3.2 GJ/sec
6 'Upir' Small Nosferatu I 3 sec 6,500m 10 GJ ~3.3 GJ/sec
eg 8 Imperial Navy Small Nosferatu 3 sec 7,500m 9.6 GJ 3.2 GJ/sec
eg 13 Corpii A-Type Small Nosferatu 3 sec 10,214m 10 GJ ~3.3 GJ/sec
  • note: the only difference between meta 4 and 5 is the fitting requirements
  • the only difference between meta 8 (faction) and from meta 4 and 5 is the range and fitting
  • the only difference between meta 11 to 13 (complex) and from meta 6 is the range and fitting



Stats for Med Nos 0 - 6 meta level, meta 8 (faction) example, and meta 12 (complex) example

Meta Level Name Cycle Time Range Energy Transfered Nosing per Sec
0 Medium Nosferatu I 6 sec 10,500m 30 GJ 5.0 GJ/sec
1 Medium 'Ghoul' Energy Siphon I 6 sec 11,025m 32 GJ ~5.3 GJ/sec
2 Medium 'Knave' I Energy Drain 6 sec 11,550m 33 GJ 5.5 GJ/sec
3 E50 Prototype Energy Vampire 6 sec 12,075m 35 GJ ~5.8 GJ/sec
4 Medium Diminishing Power System Drain I 6 sec 12,600m 36 GJ 6.0 GJ/sec
5 Medium Nosferatu II 6 sec 12,600m 36 GJ 6.0 GJ/sec
6 'Strigoi' Medium Nosferatu I 6 sec 12,500m 36 GJ 6.0 GJ/sec
eg 8 Imperial Navy Medium Nosferatu 6 sec 15,000m 36 GJ 6.0 GJ/sec
eg 12 Corpum B-Type Medium Nosferatu 6 sec 18,000m 33 GJ 5.5 GJ/sec
  • note: the only difference between meta 4 and 5 is the fitting requirements
  • the only difference between meta 8 (faction) and from meta 4 and 5 is the range and fitting
  • the only difference between meta 11 to 13 (complex) is the range and fitting



Stats for Heavy Nos 0 - 6 meta level, meta 8 (faction) example, meta 11 (complex) example, and meta (commander) example

Meta Level Name Cycle Time Range Energy Transfered Nosing per Sec
0 Heavy Nosferatu I 12 sec 21,000m 100 GJ ~8.3 GJ/sec
1 Heavy 'Ghoul' Energy Siphon I 12 sec 22,050m 105 GJ 8.75 GJ/sec
2 Heavy 'Knave' I Energy Drain 12 sec 23,100m 110 GJ ~9.2 GJ/sec
3 Heavy Prototype Energy Vampire 12 sec 24,150m 115 GJ ~9.6 GJ/sec
4 Heavy Diminishing Power System Drain I 12 sec 25,200m 120 GJ 10.0 GJ/sec
5 Heavy Nosferatu II 12 sec 25,200m 120 GJ 10.0 GJ/sec
6 'Vrykolakas' Heavy Nosferatu I 12 sec 25,500m 120 GJ 10.0 GJ/sec
eg 8 Imperial Navy Heavy Nosferatu 12 sec 30,000m 120 GJ 10.0 GJ/sec
eg 11 Corpum C-Type Heavy Nosferatu 12 sec 33,000m 120 GJ 10.0 GJ/sec
eg 14 Shaqil's Modified Heavy Nosferatu 12 sec 43,000m 120 GJ 10.0 GJ/sec
  • note: the only difference between meta 4 and 5 is the fitting requirements
  • the only difference between meta 8 (faction) and from meta 4 to 6 is the range and fitting
  • the only difference between meta 11 to 14 (complex and commander) is the range and fitting



So if you are within range of a target, and your cap is lower as a percentage than the cap of that target then an activated nos acts exactly like a neut. The difference is that the 'activation cost' is a negative amount subtracted from your capacitor (so the cap is added on) equivalent to the amount removed from the opponent. A nos will stay activated as long as you are in range and pull cap when the condition are met, so keep it running every time a target is in range as there is no downside.

The caveat on only actively nosing when your own cap is lower as a percentage means that the key offensive element of capping out your opponent specifically requires you to be capped out as well. Even if this was not the case the low amounts of energy actually removed from a target while using a nosferatu makes it too slow to practically cap out an opponent using these modules. These severe limitations mean nos require a different methodology than neuts and should be considered as a more defensive form of cap warfare.

Employment as a highslot cap recharger can be very useful for high cap usage fits (often multiple shield booster / armour repping fits will include a nos). They can also be employed in combination with neuts which are obviously cap intensive to run. If you are using a meta 0 medium neut on a cruiser against a BS, and 150 GJ is 25% percent of your capacitor but only 10% of your targets capacitor, a nos will run since your neut is hurting your cap as a percentage more than it is the targets for as long as that situation lasts. So it has the double effect of helping to directly cap out this target with a much larger capacitor by removing those additional small amounts of cap while also helping to keep your neut running. Alternatively, a highly bonused ship like a max skilled Curse will remove a much greater amount of cap then it will cost, so that percentage wise it can be equal or even such that a nos will not be able to run.

A Nos is even easier to effectively employ in a gang situation with multiple targets. While neuting your main target you nos an alternative target and they spend the fight donating cap which is helping to destroy their fleet mate! Properly employed this synergy between neuts and nos is extremely important.

Nos are extremely useful modules in certain circumstances but they require a little more planning and their tactical employment is a little trickier than that of neuts.

Energy Neutralizing Drones

Light, medium and heavy neutralizing drones employ the same general principles as other drones. Generic information on Drones will not be discussed in this guide.

  • Strengths
    • normal Drone range mechanics
    • neutralizer drones have no impact on your cap
    • quick 6 sec cycle time for all sizes
  • Weaknesses
    • normal Drone weaknesses of vulnerability, flight times etc.
    • relatively small portions of cap neutralized

Here is a screenshot of the attributes with the information on neutralization for each of the drones:

Lightneutdrone.jpg240px250px

As you can see cycle times are identical for all 3 sizes of drones at 6 seconds. The amount neutralized is easy to remember as well as it is identical to the drone bandwidth: 5 GJ for light, 10 GJ for medium, and 25 GJ for Heavy drones. Like all other drone based EWAR, pilot EWAR skills have no effect on the drones and there is no stacking or usage concerns between drones.

Accordingly:

  • A full flight (5) light drones will neutralize 25 GJ every 6 seconds. This is roughly 1/2 as effective as 1 small neut.
  • A full flight (5) medium drones will neutralize 50 GJ every 6 seconds. This is roughly 2/3 as effective as 1 medium neut.
  • A full flight (5) heavy drones will neutralize 125 GJ every 6 seconds. This is exactly as effective as 1 meta 0 heavy neut.

So knowing this approximate effectiveness together with the strengths, such as great range, and weaknesses, such as vulnerability, neuting drones are comparable to TD or RSD drones.


Support to Cap Warfare

Skills

Prequisite skills:


Energy Emission Systems is the only skill that directly impacts the effectiveness of your Capacitor Warfare modules; however, it only effects neuts. It will reduce the activation cost of all neuts by 5% per level which has excellent results on efficiency. At level 5 a Tech II heavy neut will only require 375 GJ per cycle to neutralize 600 GJ. This is 160% efficiency. Unfortunately this has no positive effect on nos or drones as they do not have a capacitor activation cost.

The better your capacitor the more effectively you can conduct effective cap warfare. Therefore both Energy Management and Energy Systems Operation are extremely important skills and should be trained to 5 for serious cap warfare users.

All the supporting capacitor management skills as listed in Capacitor Management 101 will assist in getting you to and through a fight with more cap. More cap available for cap warfare that is. Depending on preference, ship types and fits, the relative importance of each skill will change, but each can be considered a good investment of SP.

Implants

Talisman implants, the Bloodraider pirate faction set, directly enhance Cap Warfare by reducing the duration of modules requiring the Energy Emission Skill. The complete high-grade set (slots 1-6) will have an overall effect of -38.12%. This is of course a huge increase in the amount of Cap removed per sec. A max skill Curse with a full Talisman set will destablize 40.4 GJ per sec with a single meta 4+ medium neut. This is more than a 160% increase from the amount neutralized by a meta 4+ large neut on an unbonused ship.

Low-Grade - total effect -26.94%

Name Effect Set Effect Attribute
Alpha 1% reduction of duration 10% effect on bonus of the set +2 Perception
Bravo 2% reduction of duration 10% effect on bonus of the set +2 Memory
Gamma 3% reduction of duration 10% effect on bonus of the set +2 Willpower
Delta 4% reduction of duration 10% effect on bonus of the set +2 Intelligence
Epsilon 5% reduction of duration 10% effect on bonus of the set +2 Charisma
Omega 25% effect on bonus of the set


High-Grade - total effect -38.12%

Name Effect Set Effect Attribute
Alpha 1% reduction of duration 15% effect on bonus of the set +3 Perception
Bravo 2% reduction of duration 15% effect on bonus of the set +3 Memory
Gamma 3% reduction of duration 15% effect on bonus of the set +3 Willpower
Delta 4% reduction of duration 15% effect on bonus of the set +3 Intelligence
Epsilon 5% reduction of duration 15% effect on bonus of the set +3 Charisma
Omega 50% effect on bonus of the set


In addition the following hardwirings are worth considering in addition to or in place of the Talisman set.

  • Slot 6
    • Engineering - ['Squire' CR#] Reduce Capacitor Recharge Time (-1%/-3%-5%)
  • Slot7
    • Engineering - Reduce Capacitor Need for Energy Emmisions (-1%/-3%/-5%)
  • Slot8
    • Engineering - Increase Capacitor (+1%/+3%/+5%)
  • Slot9
    • Engineering hardwirings to reduce cap usage for each of the forms of racial primary EWAR


The cost versus effectiveness will have to be evaluated on a pilot by pilot basis but do to the huge increase in performance it is something worth considering.

Boosters

When approaching boosters from a Cap Warfare perspective Mindflood is the drug of choice. This booster increases capacitor by a percentage that stacks on top of all other modifiers without stacking penalty.

Type Increases Cap by Side Effect Chance Side Effect Strength
Synth 3% 0% 0%
Standard 10% 20% 20%
Improved 15% 30% 25%
Strong 20% 40% 30%


The potential side effects are:

  • Shield Boost Amount
  • Armor Repair Amount
  • Turret Optimal Range Penalty
  • Missile Explosion Cloud Penalty

On drone boats like the Sentinel, Curse, and Pilgrim these possible effects are usually minimal as DPS is from drones and many popular fits are buffer tanked only. The worst is armour repair amount for a solo fit Sentinel or Pilgrim, and there are Curse fits that use missle launchers to up DPS. Bloodraider ships using lasers and cap warfare mods may have more of a trade-off to consider. Individual pilots will have a different risk assesment but there is a lot of potential for a relatively small chance of major sideffects after applicable skills are trained.


Capacitor Warfare and PvE

NPCs 'cheat' in EVE. One of the ways they do this is with infinite capacitors. It is impossible to 'cap out' a rat as there cap will never decrease below 100%.

Under the player to NPC behaviour for EWAR, is the caveat that use of neutralizers, neutralizing drones, or nos on NPCs will result in a chance of disrupting both shield or armour repairing by the NPC. I don't know the numbers but the chance of disrupting repairs increases with the size of the modules and decreases with the size of the NPC ship. So using a heavy neut on a frigate NPC should have a very high chance of stopping any repairs. Likewise using a small nos on a BS NPC will have little to no effect on stopping repairs.

Additionally because they have infinite cap a nos can be counted on to provide infinite power to the user. As soon as you are below 100% capacitor you can always steadily draw cap from an NPC with a nos. This can be used in mission running quite effectively with certain setups, range likely being the primary limitation. This behaviour also means that if you are ever in the situation of sitting on a low sec gate active tanking gate guns (not in the Uni of course) you can sit beside the billboard and nos it as much as you like to keep your repairers running smoothly.


Capacitor Warfare and Ships in PvP

Cap warfare is considered a 'secondary' racial EWAR and like warp jamming (web and point) there are no racial T1 ships bonused for cap warfare. The primary EWAR (ECM, TD, TP, RSD) all have their specific bonused T1 platforms, while warp jamming and cap warfare do not. (How EWAR distribution works is Amarr have TD with Cap Warfare secondary, Gallente has RSD with warp jamming as secondary, Minmatar has TP with webbing as secondary, and Caldari doesn't have a secondary racial since ECM is overpowered anyways :-P). Accordingly, in order to get hulls with cap warfare or warp jamming bonuses you have to look at T2 or pirate faction vessels.

The bonused ships are easy to identify. More difficult to categorize are the things you look for in unbonused ships for cap warfare. Empty high slots or drone capacity are first. You need a place to fit the module or some drone capacity to even consider cap warfare. And high slots and drone capacity are the realm of DPS so if you are considering leaving off killing power for cap warfare you have to be careful. Of course, pure utility high slots beg to be filled with a neut or nos in hulls that have them.

The next consideration is your capacitor. If neuts are planned you need a strong capacitor or you can cap yourself out while you have little to no effect on your target. A nos will actually help bolster a weak capacitor and drones will have no effect either way. So you need to understand and work with your own capacitor's limitations. This may mean rigging or fitting cap mods, employing cargo cap (a cap booster with the very large charges they take packed into your cargo bay), knowning your ship and skills will handle all the pressure placed on it, or perhaps identifying that a nos is the best way to supplement a weak capacitor.

Range is another major consideration when planning for cap warfare. A setup already dependent on close range lends itself to the use of neuts or nos, or alternatively a long range ship looking for options against close range aggressors. A sniper or EWAR fit dependant on using range to stay alive and planning to always warp out if someone even thinks about getting close will have no use for cap warfare modules. A face melting blaster setup could conceivably be demolishing cap as well as HP.

There is a lot of function in casual and unbonused cap warfare, and bonused cap warfare ships are, of course, amazing. So now we will discuss this function and some considerations for each of these categories:

Casual Capacitor Warfare

Any empty utility high slot or spare drone capacity is a reason to consider employing capacitor warfare even on ships that wouldn't normally be considered.

The 'defensive neut' is one fairly common usage of cap warfare on ships that are otherwise unsuited to it. To illustrate, a long range cruiser like a fleet ECM Blackbird is extremely useful and yet susceptable to small fast tackle. MWD tackle frigs can ruin a Blackbirds day but the inclusion of a medium neut can cap them out in a few cycles. The same is true for any other long range DPS or EWAR looking to combat this threat. It doesn't just work on long range fits of course. For example, solo/small gang fits for several Minmatar ships (commonly the Rupture, Hurricane, Typhoon and Tempest) often include at least one medium or large neut in their utility highs as part of their defence against smaller targets, especially since the Minmatar disadvantage of generally small capacitors is rendered irrelevant by using neuts against ships a class size smaller. So a neut is always a workable defensive option when concerned about smaller size close range threats.

The 'offensive battery nos' is another common employment for nos in a utility high. This provides cap stability with an offensive edge for certain close range high capacitor usage setups. Typically a fit like this will burn through cap very quickly without the nos being activated. This could be a blaster boat, like a Megathron, with a Nos in a utility high. A Rifter or another solo frig setup with a small nos to keep propulsion, tackle and a small armour repairer running. A double rep Vengence or even a tripple rep Myrmidon setup both benefit from the cap a nos provides. It makes an excellent option to counter the defensive neut setup and allow a point to keep running even with a large or medium neut cycling it dry, as the nos will cycle inside the cycle time of the neut so this can be exploited to keep enough cap available for a critical module. The flexibility and functionality of using a nos to live off the an opponents cap can not be overstated.

Cumulative neuting is also effective for unbonused setups. In small gangs or large fleets if everyone fits a neut (even an undersized one) and concentrates that cap warfare on one target it can be just as effective as having a dedicated, bonused neuting ship supporting you.

T1 Usage

The lack of bonuses means that it is ill advised to fit a T1 ship solely for cap warfare. This makes me a little sad; however, it does not mean that cap warfare can not be used in T1 ships to devastating effect. Rather T1 hulls should be selected that alow the usage of Cap Warfare without sacrificing their bonused roles.

As per the previously discussed indications of suitability , we can start narrowing down the field of potential T1 hulls.

  • Minmatar ships and Gallente / Amarr droneboats are often particularly well supplied with utility highs.
  • Capacitor strength for races is generally Amarr > Gallente ~ Caldari > Minmatar.
  • Any ship which doesn't use capacitor to run its weapons (droneboats and ships using projectile turrets or missiles) has more capacitor available for cap warfare.
  • Similarly capacitor free tanks (buffer armour tanks and passive shield tanks without active hardeners) provide more spare capacitor.
  • Range is fairly neutral as every race has its close and long range setups.

Taken together these indicate that Amarr and Gallente are the best suited races for less casual T1 cap warfare. Not to say the other races can't or wouldn't field cap warfare effectively, but the strengths of some Amarr and Gallente ships lend themselves to it.

Here are some of the ships which do very well in a T1 cap warfare roll:

Punisher

The Punisher has an inordinately large capacitor for a T1 frigate. In fact, at 425 GJ without skills, it is larger than its runners up by 75 GJ (the Caldari Merlin and Gallente Tristan at 350 GJ - the Minmatar Rifter only has a 250 GJ capacitor), it is also has more cap than all T2 frigates other than the Retribution (an Amarr Assault Ship), and most of the faction frigates. It has a utility high slot unuseable for DPS due to the number of turret and lack of missile slots. It lacks a laser damage bonus and accordingly there is no downside to using autocannons. It is particularly well suited to a negligable (DCU) capacitor armour tank due to its inherrent armour resist bonuses, four low slots, and very nice amount of shield and armour HP. Taken together the Punisher is the king of T1 frigate cap warfare platforms.

The classic punisher 'bleeder' solo fit exemplifies how this adds up to excellent casual capacitor warfare use:


But for more serious cap warfare the Punisher can run a small neut for a ridiculously long time with good skills. Removing the cap draw of a repairer and replacing the nos with a neut you can control the cap of any other frigate in the game and accordingly control the fight for a huge duration of 5+ mins depending on skills. Put these together and you get this fit which has the ability to annihilate any other T1 frigate it can catch (rifters beware!):


Arbitrator

The Arbitrator is a very balanced ship and is a great solo, small gang, or fleet option for Amarr cruiser pilots. It has the complete package of acceptable damage (with good drone skills) and EWAR wrapped up in a decent tank. A flexible slot layout completes the package.

None of these nice capabilities require any of the 4 high slots. Therefore the perfect situation arises for unbonused cap warfare. Generally this is the only applicable mid point ship for someone interested in training up for the Amarr Recons which specialize in cap warfare. It is a good platform for some cheap practice for a pilgrim as the tactics are almost identical. Get close, get point, neut and unleash drone fury. Typically a slight variation of this fit will be used:


Dominix

The neutdomi has a fiercesome reputation in EVE based on the following:

  • Decent capless/ammoless/slotless drone DPS
  • Excellent durability, even before rigs
  • Lots of neuting power
  • Lots of RR power
  • Room for MWD, cap booster, point, web, and ECCM

This leaves you with great capabilities on a T1 platform and a fit along the lines of:




Capacitor Warfare Bonused Ships

And finally we get to the ships truly designed to specialize in and rule the world of cap warfare.

Amarr T2 Ships

Template:Cap Warfare Ship Neuts:

Meta Name Range Energy Cost Energy Neuted Neut Efficiency Neuting per Sec
5 Small Energy Neutralizer II 18,900m 33.75 GJ 108 GJ 320% 18.0 GJ/sec
8 Imperial Navy Small Energy Neutralizer 22,050m 33.75 GJ 108 GJ 320% 18.0 GJ/sec

Nos:

Meta Name Range Energy Transfered Nosing per Sec
5 Small Nosferatu II 19,800m 19.2 GJ 6.4 GJ/sec
8 Imperial Navy Small Nosferatu 22,500m 19.2 GJ 6.4 GJ/sec
13 Corpii A-Type Small Nosferatu 30,642m 20 GJ ~6.6 GJ/sec


Template:Amarr Fit

Template:Cap Warfare Ship

Template:Cap Warfare Ship

Amarr T3 Ships

Legion - with Electronic Parasytic Complex (Electronics Subsystem) TBI


Blood Raider Ships

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