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== Notes on Covops Operations and Scouting == | == Notes on Covops Operations and Scouting == | ||
This page gives some information for scouts and budding scouts. It is a distillation of lessons | This page gives some information for scouts and budding scouts. It is a distillation of lessons learned by a fleet scout while in the Uni, and comes from many wise scouts who took the time to help a newbie out. | ||
=== What does/doesn't this cover === | === What does/doesn't this cover === | ||
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The overview requirements for a scout are different than for normal fliers. Your job is to see as much as possible, rather than only the enemies. First of all, switch brackets on - that gives you a clearer view of things like gate guns that are otherwise tricky to see. Include neutrals and war targets - neutral may be out of corp repairers or alt scouts. Take your corp mates out, but everything else should show. | The overview requirements for a scout are different than for normal fliers. Your job is to see as much as possible, rather than only the enemies. First of all, switch brackets on - that gives you a clearer view of things like gate guns that are otherwise tricky to see. Include neutrals and war targets - neutral may be out of corp repairers or alt scouts. Take your corp mates out, but everything else should show. | ||
Create a second tab that just shows war targets also, so you can quickly and easily identify all war targets and get that information out to your FC, in case a fleet is | Create a second tab that just shows war targets also, so you can quickly and easily identify all war targets and get that information out to your FC, in case a fleet is traveling past you. | ||
[[Varius_Arcturus'_Overview_Guide]] has more information on general overview settings and how to set things up as per above. | [[Varius_Arcturus'_Overview_Guide]] has more information on general overview settings and how to set things up as per above. | ||
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DotLan is also a useful tool - http://evemaps.dotlan.net/ This will show you the same information as Ombey's (although I prefer Ombey's format). This will also show you lots more useful stats about the systems you're headed to, like kills per hour, etc. | DotLan is also a useful tool - http://evemaps.dotlan.net/ This will show you the same information as Ombey's (although I prefer Ombey's format). This will also show you lots more useful stats about the systems you're headed to, like kills per hour, etc. | ||
For practice, when | For practice, when traveling around unfleeted out of war, always check your route on those maps, and think about where you're headed and how you're getting there. I sometimes travel without autopilot set also, navigating by map to get more used to finding my way quickly. | ||
If you have access to an A3 printer, you can download PDF versions of the maps and print them. These can be extremely handy for pencilling routes and quickly identifying alternate paths or escape routes, especially if you only have a single monitor. | If you have access to an A3 printer, you can download PDF versions of the maps and print them. These can be extremely handy for pencilling routes and quickly identifying alternate paths or escape routes, especially if you only have a single monitor. | ||
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* Passing ships can decloak you if they're coming out of warp near you. It's not something that happens often, but for safety's sake (and for general sneakiness) any time you warp in you want to move either up or down off the plane of movement, to be well out of the way of traffic. | * Passing ships can decloak you if they're coming out of warp near you. It's not something that happens often, but for safety's sake (and for general sneakiness) any time you warp in you want to move either up or down off the plane of movement, to be well out of the way of traffic. | ||
* Your own probes - if you're launching probes, keep a close eye on your cloak, as your probes can decloak you while you're moving them around - very easy mistake to make, and very easy to be looking at the map view | * Your own probes - if you're launching probes, keep a close eye on your cloak, as your probes can decloak you while you're moving them around - very easy mistake to make, and very easy to be looking at the map view reorganizing your probes and not realize it. | ||
== Bookmarks == | == Bookmarks == | ||
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There's an excellent article on bookmarking on the Agony site (assuming it stays accessible) http://www.agony-unleashed.com/e107_plugins/content/content.php?content.17 | There's an excellent article on bookmarking on the Agony site (assuming it stays accessible) http://www.agony-unleashed.com/e107_plugins/content/content.php?content.17 | ||
== Bookmark | == Bookmark Organization == | ||
As you build up your bookmarks, | As you build up your bookmarks, organization of them will become important. You can leave them all in the main folder, but that folder will take longer and longer to load - and a delay on getting to your bookmarks may be an issue. | ||
A better approach is to create the following folders: stargates, stations, celestial objects, POSes, safe spots, people - that's six folders. Then, as you bookmark, move the bookmark into the relevant folder (I use the "people" folder for bookmarks near other people's warp-in points or supposed safe spots). That way, your right-click drop-down of bookmarks has a nice | A better approach is to create the following folders: stargates, stations, celestial objects, POSes, safe spots, people - that's six folders. Then, as you bookmark, move the bookmark into the relevant folder (I use the "people" folder for bookmarks near other people's warp-in points or supposed safe spots). That way, your right-click drop-down of bookmarks has a nice organization and is easy to quickly get what you want - it will only ever present you bookmarks in your system anyway. This scheme also means that bookmarks you want to treat as temporary, you can just leave unfoldered and clean up later. | ||
Note, however, that while bookmarks are stored server-side, the folders are stored client-side. At some point during your career, you are very likely to lose your folders - at which point everything reverts to one big mess. So, in your naming scheme, include a marker for each type of bookmark - SS for safespot, SSD for safespots that are more then 15AU from celestials, SG for stargate, GO for gate observation, GOG for off-grid gate, STO and STOG for station observation, etc. That way, if/when you do lose your folders, you can re-create them. | Note, however, that while bookmarks are stored server-side, the folders are stored client-side. At some point during your career, you are very likely to lose your folders - at which point everything reverts to one big mess. So, in your naming scheme, include a marker for each type of bookmark - SS for safespot, SSD for safespots that are more then 15AU from celestials, SG for stargate, GO for gate observation, GOG for off-grid gate, STO and STOG for station observation, etc. That way, if/when you do lose your folders, you can re-create them. | ||
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Most Uni fleets will look for a forward scout and a rear scout, and any number of floating scouts. Forward and floating should be covops ships, rear can be a prototype cloak ship in a pinch, but covops preferred. You may also see or hear reference to "+1" and "+2" scouts, and sometimes "-1" - these are just another way to refer to forward scouts (staying 1 or 2 jumps ahead of the fleet), or rear scouts (one jump behind). | Most Uni fleets will look for a forward scout and a rear scout, and any number of floating scouts. Forward and floating should be covops ships, rear can be a prototype cloak ship in a pinch, but covops preferred. You may also see or hear reference to "+1" and "+2" scouts, and sometimes "-1" - these are just another way to refer to forward scouts (staying 1 or 2 jumps ahead of the fleet), or rear scouts (one jump behind). | ||
The forward scout's role is to check each gate before the fleet warps to it. As a forward scout, you want to be able to warp to a gate bookmark, check that the gate is clear and give the go-ahead, then warp to zero on the gate and jump through to check the other side. If you don't have bookmarks, this process gets tougher - you're reduced to either | The forward scout's role is to check each gate before the fleet warps to it. As a forward scout, you want to be able to warp to a gate bookmark, check that the gate is clear and give the go-ahead, then warp to zero on the gate and jump through to check the other side. If you don't have bookmarks, this process gets tougher - you're reduced to either traveling uncloaked (bad), traveling cloaked to the gate (slow), or bouncing off a remote celestial to do a warp to zero when you want to go through the gate. So bookmarks are valuable here. | ||
Rear scouts watch the back of the fleet, to make sure no-one's following. They'll typically stay one jump behind the fleet, and need to watch for neutrals or suspicious | Rear scouts watch the back of the fleet, to make sure no-one's following. They'll typically stay one jump behind the fleet, and need to watch for neutrals or suspicious behavior. This is arguably tougher than forward scout, as you'll need to be watching not only for obvious war targets, but also for neutrals who "happen" to be following or showing up often. | ||
Floating scouts have a slightly freer job - depending on your FC, they'll either be carefully positioned by FC instruction to watch different gates and/or | Floating scouts have a slightly freer job - depending on your FC, they'll either be carefully positioned by FC instruction to watch different gates and/or neighboring systems, or they'll be free to move around and look for WT's. Floating and forward is pretty much interchangeable depending on FC decisions. | ||
Reporting war target sightings - do this as calmly as possible, and as clearly as possible. Good reporting would be "command, darius, I have one cerberus on the korsiki gate in osmon, jumping through to you now". Bad reporting would be "hey guys, there's a war target coming at you!". TS discipline in the uni at least is always lead with the channel name (that's "command" in the above example) and your name so the FC knows who's talking where, then provide the ship type and location, optionally war target name and any other details you might have. | Reporting war target sightings - do this as calmly as possible, and as clearly as possible. Good reporting would be "command, darius, I have one cerberus on the korsiki gate in osmon, jumping through to you now". Bad reporting would be "hey guys, there's a war target coming at you!". TS discipline in the uni at least is always lead with the channel name (that's "command" in the above example) and your name so the FC knows who's talking where, then provide the ship type and location, optionally war target name and any other details you might have. | ||
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Fleet ------- Target -- You | Fleet ------- Target -- You | ||
Where the fleet is some distance away, out of sight, and you're about 50-100Km away on the other side of the target. Distance from enemy is at your discretion, you ideally want it to match up with the warp-in distances so the fleet can drop directly on top of the enemy (or at appropriate range - that bit's up to the FC to | Where the fleet is some distance away, out of sight, and you're about 50-100Km away on the other side of the target. Distance from enemy is at your discretion, you ideally want it to match up with the warp-in distances so the fleet can drop directly on top of the enemy (or at appropriate range - that bit's up to the FC to organize ). You don't want the fleet to have to warp through the target, is the only note here, as that gives the target time to see them and run. | ||
This is one of the trickier things to do, mainly because the target will often keep moving. One tip, if the target's warping in and out: Note the distance to the target, note your move speed, and double-click right near them to move toward them. If they warp out, keep moving - time yourself to try and position roughly where you want to be (remembering it's better to be too far away, than right on top of their warp-in point, otherwise they may decloak you). Drop lots of bookmarks while doing this, you can always go clean them up later, and they mean you can warp out and back and resume where you left off. | This is one of the trickier things to do, mainly because the target will often keep moving. One tip, if the target's warping in and out: Note the distance to the target, note your move speed, and double-click right near them to move toward them. If they warp out, keep moving - time yourself to try and position roughly where you want to be (remembering it's better to be too far away, than right on top of their warp-in point, otherwise they may decloak you). Drop lots of bookmarks while doing this, you can always go clean them up later, and they mean you can warp out and back and resume where you left off. | ||
If you do find an enemies' safe spot, or a warp-in point for a popular location for an enemy, make sure you've bookmarked it - they're valuable so long as the enemy doesn't | If you do find an enemies' safe spot, or a warp-in point for a popular location for an enemy, make sure you've bookmarked it - they're valuable so long as the enemy doesn't realize you've got it. | ||
One other small note on this: If you're scouting for a sniper-heavy fleet, you may actually sit between the target and the fleet - the idea is if you're 30Km from the target toward the fleet, the fleet can then warp to you at 50Km and they're perfect sniping distance away. Depends a lot on the situation though, and not likely to be done in a Uni fleet. | One other small note on this: If you're scouting for a sniper-heavy fleet, you may actually sit between the target and the fleet - the idea is if you're 30Km from the target toward the fleet, the fleet can then warp to you at 50Km and they're perfect sniping distance away. Depends a lot on the situation though, and not likely to be done in a Uni fleet. | ||
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* '''Warp and don't move.''' Always, '''always''' move when you hit the end of your warp. Otherwise, someone else will warp in on top of you. | * '''Warp and don't move.''' Always, '''always''' move when you hit the end of your warp. Otherwise, someone else will warp in on top of you. | ||
* '''Probing yourself.''' When you decloak, launch probes, recloak, if you're near enough to your probes they'll decloak you as they warp off to their intended destinations. When positioning your probes, make sure you're far enough away from them, and watch your cloak carefully - if it breaks, put it back. It's real easy to be concentrating on positioning the probes in the starmap and not | * '''Probing yourself.''' When you decloak, launch probes, recloak, if you're near enough to your probes they'll decloak you as they warp off to their intended destinations. When positioning your probes, make sure you're far enough away from them, and watch your cloak carefully - if it breaks, put it back. It's real easy to be concentrating on positioning the probes in the starmap and not realize you've been decloaked until it's too late. | ||
* '''Location, location, location.''' While leading a fleet, if you have no bookmarks and the fleet is hot on your heels, do not warp to 100 on the next gate. Sure, it gives you a decent view of the gate, but you've then got to either slowboat the 100Km (approximately 3 and a half minutes), or bounce out and back (much faster, but still not fast enough to beat the fleet). | * '''Location, location, location.''' While leading a fleet, if you have no bookmarks and the fleet is hot on your heels, do not warp to 100 on the next gate. Sure, it gives you a decent view of the gate, but you've then got to either slowboat the 100Km (approximately 3 and a half minutes), or bounce out and back (much faster, but still not fast enough to beat the fleet). | ||