Exploration: Difference between revisions

Much like Mining, Exploration doesn't require a high skill level to get started. The three basic Exploration related skills are...

* [[Skills:Science#Astrometrics|Astrometrics]] (+5% scan strength per level, -5% max scan deviation per level, -5% scan probe scan time per level)

** Astrometrics allows you to use a Probe Launcher to launch (crazily enough) Scan Probes which are used to locate hidden exploration sites filled with loot, enemies you can destroy, valuable gas clouds, or even wormholes to unknown parts of space!

** New characters start their career with Astrometrics 1, but existing characters can easily obtain the skillbook from the Exploration tutorial missions.  

** While Astrometrics is less required than it was pre-Odyssey, the array of bonuses it provides is very useful, and any true explorer should plan to raise it to at least level 4, which is required to learn the advanced skill [[Skills:Science#Astrometric_Pinpointing Astrometric|Pinpointing]].

** Archaeology is required to operate Relic Analyzers, which are a fairly cheap mid-slot module used to interact with structures found inside exploration-located Relic Sites. A good amount of your income as an explorer will come from accessing these structures, so this is an important skill!

** Higher skill levels make the minigame associated with opening Relic Site structures easier, with Archaeology 5 allowing you to use the more-powerful Relic Analyzer II module. This is a significant upgrade, so any serious explorer should plan to eventually max this skill out.

** Like Archaeology, Hacking is required to use Data Analyzers, which open structures found in Data Sites. Hacking 1 is slightly harder to train to than Archaeology 1, but make sure you get both skills: Data Sites tend to be a bit more lucrative than Relic Sites, and trust me, you won't want to miss out on any sites you find!

** Also like Archaeology, higher skill levels make the Hacking minigame easier, and Hacking 5 will give you access to a more powerful hacking module.

There are some additional skills you can train as you advance in your exploration career to make finding hidden exploration sites easier.

* [[Skills:Science#Astrometric Pinpointing|Astrometric Pinpointing]] (-5% maximum scan deviation)

** Both these skills make it easier to track down difficult-to-find sites. Rangefinding can be learned and trained at the start of your career, if you are so inclined, while Pinpointing requires Astrometrics 4 as a prerequisite.

* [[Skills:Science#Astrometric Acquisition|Astrometric Acquisition]] (-5% scan time)

** Not as important at the start of your career, Acquisition speeds up how long a single scanning cycle takes: the default is approximately 10 seconds. Later on, when you are scanning in hostile territory, or attempting to probe for the location of an enemy ship, Acquisition becomes an important supplemental skill, but as a new explorer, patience is a more than adequate substitute.

Any ship with a high slot can fit a Probe Launcher and start to explore. This is a useful fact to keep in mind as you advance in your career and start thinking about fitting ships to accomplish multiple tasks (i.e., explore in hostile territory, explore and complete any Combat Sites located).

However, a new explorer would be best served flying a ship specifically designed for exploration: a '''Tech 1 Exploration Frigate'''. Each race has one...

** The Imicus has the best drone capabilities of any Tech 1 Exploration Frigate, making it a good choice if you'd like to use your exploration ship for some very light PvE duty.

** The Probe is a solid middle-of-the-road choice. It has enough mid slots for all the exploration modules you will want, plus 3 low slots for a defensive [[Armour Tanking|armour tank]], or whatever other miscellaneous modules you think you may need.  

** The Heron's main advantage is that it has 5 mid slots. As we will learn below, the standard fitting for a beginner's exploration ship requires 4 mid slots, meaning that the Heron has an empty mid slot that can be used to further improve its exploration capabilities, or for defense.

At the end of the day, however, feel free to use whichever frigate is easiest for you to fly, as they all run pretty close in effectiveness. This is likely the frigate produced by your starting race.

The key module required for exploration is the Probe Launcher, which fits in a ship's high slot. Probes and Probe Launchers are available in several different varieties, but for the beginning explorer, you should only be concerned with one type of each.

** Easy to fit, and does the job. It can only fire the most basic of probes, however, but this isn't a problem for the majority of explorers.

** The basic ammunition for the Core Probe Launcher. They are reusable, and the Core Probe Launcher can hold eight at a time. You can technically locate an exploration site with as few as four, but for convenience, it's a good idea to carry at least one full reload (8), or even several reloads. This guide will assume you have at least 8 probes in your cargo hold at all times.

Both of these items are also available as a more expensive Sisters of Eve Faction version.

** Provides a 10% bonus to scan strength of probes, but is very expensive: as of 6/7/2013, it is selling for just over 55M ISK at Jita.

** Sisters probes have 10% greater scan strength than the garden variety Core Scanner Probes. They're a bit expensive, but vastly more affordable than the Sisters launcher: as of 6/7/2013, they are selling for just over 700K ISK apiece at Jita.  

Consider looking into these as an upgrade once you're starting to get the hang of exploration, but remember EVE Rule #1: don't use them if you can't afford to lose them!

In addition to your Probe Launcher for finding exploration sites, you'll need a few core pieces of equipment in order to effectively plunder what you find for loot! These are all modules that fit in mid slots on your frigate.

** As mentioned previously, these are required to access the loot structures in any Relic or Data Sites you find while exploring. You will definitely want both, and the vanilla level I version is perfectly fine to start out with.

** Successfully accessing an exploration structure starts a short "twitch-based" encounter that involves tractor beaming loot containers into your ship's cargo hold. A Cargo Scanner makes this game easier by giving you advance notice of exactly which loot containers you should go after during the encounter. It will also tell you which structures in an exploration site are the most valuable, which becomes extraordinarily important if you get into a situation in which you're competing with another explorer for the loot!

While the above three are what I'd consider "core" modules for running exploration sites, I'd also strongly recommend fitting your ship with a 1MN Microwarpdrive module to make travel to and around scanned areas much easier. This makes a total of four mid slot modules, which is one more than the Amarr Magnate can slot. If you're piloting one of those, you'll have to make occasional decisions about which of these four modules to leave back at the station. In most situations, this should probably be the Microwarpdrive, but if you know for a fact that you will only be ransacking exploration sites of a single type (Relic or Data), you can always temporarily forgo the Analyzer of the type that you will not be using.

After fitting your Probe Launcher and exploration modules, you'll have some space leftover for other equipment. What you choose here depends on your playstyle, but here are some general recommendations. It's also recommended that you take a peek at the [[Fitting Modules and Rigs Guide]] for more information on the sorts of options available to you here.

Most explorers will use a high slot to fit a cloaking device on their frigate: in this case, a Prototype Cloaking Device I. The topic of [[Cloaking]] is beyond the scope of this article, and generally unnecessary for any high-sec exploration that you undertake, but it's something to keep in mind for your future development as an explorer.

A reasonable option for a new explorer is adding a few modules to make your ship capable of handling some of the easier combat encounters that you'll encounter while probing high-sec space. Specific fits will vary depending on your choice of frigate, but some options include...

** You'll likely have one or two high slots available for weapon turrets or missile launchers. None of the Tier 1 Exploration Frigates get bonuses to weapons, so whatever racial weapon you've likely been cross-training would be appropriate here. Something longer range would likely be better: the Exploration Frigates are not built for slugging things out.

** Tanking is beyond the scope of this article, but thankfully the University has good lessons in place already for both [[Shield Tanking]] and [[Armour Tanking]]. Equipping your ship with a few appropriate tanking modules will increase its survival rate if you decide to tangle with easier NPC targets. Note that you should never try to build both a shield tank AND armour tank on the same ship, and that shield tanking generally requires mid slots, of which your exploration kit is already eating three. Beyond those caveats, a Shield Extender or some Armor Plates might make the difference between successful retreat and successful ejection from your freshly destroyed ship.

** Salvaging the wrecks left by destroyed NPC ships is a great supplementary form of income for a new player, so consider strapping a Salvager I module to your frigate if you are going to tangle with Combat Sites. Note that if you are only taking your ship through non-Combat Sites (Data Sites and Relic Sites), a Salvager is not required. This wasn't the case previous to Odyssey! More info on salvaging can be found by reading [[Salvaging 101]].

** Exploration Frigates aren't exactly built to destroy, but all of them can carry a payload of drones with them that will make quick work of NPC frigates. It's advisable to carry a full Drone Bay of appropriate light scout drones any time you are planning to run high-sec Combat Sites. Indeed, since they're very cheap and there is no downside to having them at hand, it's advisable to carry them anytime! Drones are useful in a wide variety of situations in Eve, so definitely give [[Drones 101]] a read and learn more about these incredible little guys.

** Since you're going to be using drones offensively, a Drone Damage Amplifier is a good choice for a free low slot.

* Several new mid slot modules exist that increase your scanning abilities: the Scan Acquisition Array, the Scan Pinpointing Array and the Scan Rangefinding Array. While these may eventually be worth looking into as an upgrade, they are very new and thus very expensive, and more likely than not, you won't have the mid slots open for them anyway!

* Some low slot modules than increase ship agility and speed exist, namely Inertial Stabilizers, Nanofiber Structures and Overdrive Injectors. Speed is always useful, as it makes maneuvering between exploration site structures easier, and makes it more likely for you to escape if something goes wrong. Of the three modules listed, Nanofiber Structures are probably your best bet, as they raise several speed/agility related stats in exchange for a none-too-painful drawback.

The most likely rig that you'll want to toss onto an Exploration Frigate is the Gravity Capacitor Upgrade I, which increases probe scan strength by 10%. Oddly, it's mathematically better to fit two of the level I versions of this rig rather than try to slot the larger II version, which works out great if you're a low-skill explorer.