Dust 514: Fitting

Fitting your Dropsuit and Vehicles

Fitting Screen

Like Eve, the fitting screen is where you prepare your Dropsuit or Vehicles for combat. In the way that ships in Eve have CPU and Powergrid (PG) capacities so do Mercenary Dropsuits and the attack Vehicles they use. There is no capacitor to worry about

Each one has High and Low Slots for modules which effect the abilities of the Dropsuit. There are also slots for weapons and equipment such as Repair Tools or Nano-hives.

In the above picture the suit being shown has two High Slots on the upper left and one Low Slot on the upper right.

Beneath the two High Slots there are two Weapon Slots, one Light and one Sidearm.

Underneath the knees are, on the left, a grenade slot and on the right knee an equipment slot.

Different suits offer other combo's of slot layout which allows for very precise customisation for the role on the battlefield you want to play. The higher tier Assault Dropsuits, for example, have four Highslots, three Low and two Equipment slots. With the right support skills, Merc's wearing this gear can be devastating on the battlefield.

But of course If you die in Dust you lose the gear you're wearing and you need another set of it for your next clone. A poor performance can get very expensive.

Weapons, Modules and Equipment

In contrast to Eve Online, it's important to note that Dropsuits in Dust 514 - other than ships in Eve Online - have standard modules built into them by default. It is not possible to use an empty Dropsuit, but it is possible to customize the different slots by replacing existing modules (marked by yellow brackets) with custom items bought on the market. Doing so is completely optional, but doing so usually improves the overall effectiveness of a suite for some added Isk costs.

Every piece of gear, be it for Dropsuits or Vehicles, in Dust has a CPU or Power Grid (PG) requirement to be fitted. These values represent the computational demand as well as energy needs and act as a built-in limit to keep players from massing specific modules. All Dropsuits provide a specific and basic amount of these, usually based on the suit's role as well as it's meta level. In a similar way, more complex and higher level equipment has higher requirements.

There are several Skill Books further influencing the available amounts of CPU and PG as well as reducing the costs on specific module groups. With the correct understanding of these support skills it is possible to create cheaper fittings, that can be as powerful (or even better) as other similar and more expensive approaches.

Fitting Skills

In Eve there are Base Skills, that while seemingly unimportant, can provide a fantastic foundation that allow cheaper fits be more effective in PvP and PvE.

In Dust 514 it's ALL PvP. Any edge you can give yourself at the outset of your Merc career is important and will save you Isk in the long term. The following are Skills that are considered essential to get to at least Level IV. Level V would still be considered a wise investment of Skill Points.

Circuitry

Basic understanding of circuitry.

Unlocks ability to use drop uplinks and electronics modules.

+5% bonus to dropsuit and vehicle CPU output per level.

Learned to level V this will give ANY Dropsuit or Vehicle you use a 25% increase of its CPU output. Also needed if you want to increase the sensor performance of your Dropsuit or Vehicle. If you want to Shield Tank, take it all the way to V.

A x1 Training Cost Multiplier Skill

Combat Engineering

Basic understanding of combat engineering.

+5% to dropsuit and vehicle maximum powergrid output per level.

Unlocks Shield Boost Systems at Level II which is a prerequisite for progression into Shield Tanking. At Level V gives 25% extra PG to all Dropsuits and Vehicles. Who doesn't need more power?

A 1x Training Cost Multiplier Skill.

Field Mechanics

Basic understanding of field mechanics.

Unlocks ability to use armour modules.

+5% to dropsuit and vehicle maximum armour.

Learned to Level V this will give ANY Dropsuit or Vehicle you use a 25% increase in its base armour not including enhancements from Modules. Unlocks Armour Modules for use. Take it to Level 5 if you want to Armour Tank. Even if you are Shield Tanking considered an essential skill. You get up to 25% extra armour hit points with no hit on the speed of your suit or vehicle. That little bit of extra armour can mean you making it to cover so your shield can replenish.

A 1x Training Cost Multiplier Skill.

Weaponry

Skill at using handheld weapons.

+2% to handheld weapon damage per level.

Learned to Level 5 gives ANY handheld weapon, including sidearms, a 10% increase in its base damage output or DPS. Also unlocks Damage Amplifiers, basic at Level I, Enhanced at Level III and Complex at Level V. With Weaponry Level V and a Complex Light Damage Modifier module fitted to your suit, your Duvolle Assault Rifle is chucking out 20% more damage than the Merc who hasn't considered it a priority. He's dead and you're not in a one on one.

Even if you're considering a career as a Vehicle user, still consider getting Weaponry up to Level V. You're not in a tank all the time after all.

A 1x Training Cost Multiplier Skill.

Dropsuit Command

Base skill for operating dropsuits.

Unlocks Assault suits at lvl.1, Scout and Logistics at lvl.2, Heavy at lvl.3 and access to specific suit specialisation's at lvl.5.

-5% to scan profile per level.

If you want to use the Scout, Logistics and Heavy Dropsuits you need to get this Skill to at least level III. It also has the rather nice benefit of reducing the scan profile of your suit by 5% per level. Very handy if you want to become a sniper.

There are no specific suit specialisations currently in the beta. There are rumours of Command and Pilot dropsuits however...

A 1x Training Cost Multiplier Skill.

Support Skills

The Fitting Skills above provide a strong foundation for a Merc's career and for using the Militia Gear, lower tier modules and equipment will serve well enough.

But for when you want to specialise or start using the higher tier weaponry, modules and equipment Support skills are needed. These skill serve a variety purposes but can be generalised as making it possible to use higher tier product and using it more effectively. These generally are the 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x and 6x Training Cost Multiplier Skills. The higher the multiplier, the more specialised the skill is a good rule of thumb.

This is where you will also find the skills for Shield and Armour Tanking as well as the skills for Logistics.