Difference between revisions of "Ships"

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A ship or spaceship in EVE Online is an entity used to traverse the heavens, battle enemy forces, ferry materials and products, provide logistical services along with many other uses. A ship may be piloted by a capsuleer(players) or non-player characters such as [[CONCORD]], faction militaries, civilian industrialists, outlawed paramilitary and pirate forces.
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A '''ship''' or '''spaceship''' in EVE Online is a vehicle used to travel in space, battle enemy forces, ferry materials and products, provide logistical services, and for many other purposes.
  
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A ship may be piloted by a capsuleer (player) or non-player characters such as [[CONCORD]], faction militaries, civilian industrialists, or outlawed paramilitary and pirate forces.
  
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==Mechanics==
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== Mechanics ==
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Ships accelerate by using their engines, almost always located at the stern of the ship. They cannot travel at near-lightspeeds without the use of warp drives. Initiating warp requires an object with mass or feigned mass. The ship will acquire this object as a target and a use warp drive in conjunction with sub-lightspeed thrusters to accelerate through a warp tunnel.[[File:cyno.jpg|200px|thumb|right|"Military experts are calling this a cynosural field." -Journalist during the start of the Gallente-Caldari War in YC110]]
 
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Ships can be built and stored in stations except for super-capital classes. Gates and wormholes are methods of travel that propel ships over great distances inaccessible through conventional means of travel. Capital class ships can use their built in jump drives to travel these great distances. A [[cynosural field]] is used to provide a target for the jump capable ships to lock onto.
 
  
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The hitpoints of a ship come from its shield, armor and structure. Shields are absent from certain NPC vessels, however all capsuleer ships including capsules have all three defensive systems. These hitpoints are used for [[Tanking]] against incoming damage. Nearly all ships have module slots, allowing them to fit modules types such as(but not limited to) guns, repairers, plates, electronic warfare, cloaks, rigs and afterburners.
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A ship's defenses and durability are represented by its shield, armor and structure hitpoints. Certain NPC vessels lack shields, but all capsuleer ships have all three defensive systems, including capsules themselves. These hitpoints are used for [[tanking]] incoming damage. Nearly all ships have module slots, allowing them to fit modules such as (but not limited to) [[weapons]], armor repairers, shield boosters, armor plates, electronic warfare devices, [[Cloaking|cloaks]], [[rigs]] and [[propulsion equipment]].
  
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All ships have capacitor banks, similar to a gigantic battery. The engines charge these batteries and the accumulated energy is used to run modules and power the warp drive.
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All ships have [[capacitor]] banks, similar to a gigantic battery. The engines charge these batteries and the accumulated energy is used to run active modules and power warp drives.
  
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Certain ships have drone bays, specialized cargoholds, ship maintenance bays and fuel bays.
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Ships move in local space by using their engines, almost always located at the ship's stern. This local movement does not use capacitor energy, although using afterburner or microwarpdrive modules to speed the ship up does.
  
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==Spaceship Command==
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[[File:cyno.jpg|200px|thumb|"Military experts are calling this a 'cynosural field'."—Journalist during the start of the Gallente–Caldari War in YC110]]To move longer distances within solar systems, ships use [[warp]] drives. Starting warp requires a destination object with mass or feigned mass. The ship will acquire this object as a target and use its warp drive in conjunction with sub-lightspeed thrusters to accelerate through a warp tunnel.
  
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[[File:Sin.jpg|200px|thumb|right|The Sin, Black Ops Battleship which requires months of training to fly.]]In order to fly ships in EVE, your character must train the Spaceship Command skills required by that ship. This is not the actual Spaceship Command skill itself, but rather the many individual skills under the [[Skills:Spaceship Command|Spaceship Command]] category.
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To travel the great distances between solar systems, ships use [[stargates]], [[wormholes]], and certain types of [[filament]]. Capital class ships can also use built-in jump drives to travel these great distances, by locking onto the beacon of a [[cynosural field]] at their destination.
  
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The skills for larger hull types and higher tech levels usually require some skill training in smaller hull types or lower tech levels first. In order to fly a T1 cruiser, for instance, you are first required to have some training in a T1 destroyer command skill. Likewise, the command skills for T2 frigates require perfecting the T1 frigate command skills.
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All ships except supercapitals can be built in and docked in stations. Most ships have a cargo hold, many ships have [[drone]] bays, and some ships have specialized cargoholds, ship maintenance bays and fuel bays.
  
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In most cases, the prerequisites required to fly bigger ships (by hull type) are faster to train for than the prerequisites required for higher tech levels. As a result, newer pilots may find themselves in large T1 ships (battlecruisers or battleships) long before they can fly a T2 ship of any size. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, though. It's perfectly reasonable to train straight from T1 frigates into T2 frigates, for instance, without ever training the skills required to fly larger T1 ships, if that is your goal as a pilot.
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== Skills ==
  
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==Support Skills==
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=== Spaceship command skills ===
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[[File:Sin.jpg|200px|thumb|The [[Sin]], a [[Black Ops Battleship]] which requires months of training to fly.]] To fly ships in EVE, a character must train the relevant skills in the [[Skills:Spaceship Command|Spaceship Command skill category]]. This category is not to be confused with the general skill {{sk|Spaceship Command}}.
  
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Being able to fly a ship, and being able to fly a ship well, are two very different things. While the command skill may let you get into a ship and undock it from a station, this is only the first step in using a ship properly. In addition to the skills you will need to fit all of the guns and mods you want to use, there is an entire suite of [[Support Skills]] you should read about as well.
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The skills for larger hull types and higher [[Tech_and_meta_levels|tech levels]] usually require some skill training in smaller hull types or lower tech levels first. To fly a Tech 1 cruiser, for instance, you must first have some training in a Tech 1 destroyer command skill. Likewise, the skills for Tech 2 frigates require perfecting the Tech 1 frigate command skills.
  
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==Fitting==
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In most cases, the prerequisites for flying bigger ships (by hull type) are faster to train than the prerequisites for higher tech levels. As a result, newer pilots may find themselves in large T1 ships (battlecruisers or battleships) long before they can fly a T2 ship of any size. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, though: it's reasonable to train straight from Tech 1 frigates into Tech 2 frigates, for instance, without ever training the skills required to fly larger Tech 1 ships, if that is your goal as a pilot.
  
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Ships are merely empty hulls just waiting to be equipped with all of the guns and modules that enable them to do a job. The process of equipping a ship is known as "fitting" the ship, and it's an expansive topic. The [[Fitting Guidelines]] is an excellent place to start learning about fitting a ship.
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=== Support skills ===
  
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However, one basic concept is worth mentioning here as it ties into the ship sizes listed earlier. The ship sizes are grouped into small, medium, large, or xlarge. When browsing the market, you'll notice that modules and weapons are also grouped into these same sizes. When fitting a ship you normally want to use modules and weapons that are in the same size grouping as the ship size. This can sometimes be confusing, especially with weapon systems, as many items may will say "medium" in the name, but actually belong to the "small" size group in the market categories. What matters for ship fitting is that the market category size group matches the ship size, not any terms found in the item name itself.
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{{main|Support skills}}
  
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==Categorization==
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Being able to fly a ship ''at all'' and being able to fly a ship ''well'' can be two very different things. While the relevant spaceship command skill may let you enter a ship and undock it from a station, this is only the first step to using the ship properly. In addition to the skills you will need to fit all of the guns and modules you want to use ([[fitting skills]]), there is an entire suite of [[support skills]] that can cumulatively boost a hull's performance. Some of these benefit most or all ships that you can fly, making them valuable training choices.
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Ships can be categorized in many ways, this section will cover the most basic methods. The examples given are not a complete representation of ships in EVE. {{co|red||It should be noted however, that more expensive or bigger doesn't always mean better in EVE.}}
 
  
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====Size Class====
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As a rule of thumb, smaller and lower-tech ships demand less-polished support and fitting skills from your character. A Tech 1 frigate in the hands of a days-old character can handily complete Level 1 PvE missions or significantly affect veteran pilots in advanced ships by [[tackling]] or using [[electronic warfare]] in PvP. An expensive Tech 2 black ops battleship, meanwhile, will be a painful loss waiting to happen if piloted by a character without well-trained support skills.
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[[File:Avatar.jpg|200px|thumb|right|An Avatar, one of the largest ships in EVE. Almost 14 kilometers in length, it is over 200 times longer than the Punisher, an Amarrian frigate.]]As ships increase in size they gain more hitpoints, theoretical damage and module slots. They sacrifice mobility and damage application against smaller targets. Remember: Bigger isn't always better in EVE. The sizes are as follows;
 
  
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*'''Frigates''': [[Incursus]], [[Heron]], [[Crucifier]], [[Burst]]
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Small- and medium-sized Tech 1 hulls can take part in most activities in EVE, and even players with high-SP characters often return to these "basic" ships, so new players should bear support skills in mind but should not be daunted by the thought of training them. EVE University's [[Short Skill Plan]] and [[Pyramid Skill Plan]] might help players plan skill training in the short and long terms, respectively.
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*'''Destroyers''': [[Algos]], [[Corax]], [[Coercer]], [[Thrasher]]
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*'''Cruisers''': [[Thorax]], [[Caracal]], [[Maller]], [[Scythe]]
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== Fitting ==
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*'''Battlecruisers''': [[Myrmidon]], [[Blackbird]], [[Harbinger]], [[Hurricane]]
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*'''Battleships''': [[Megathron]], [[Rokh]], [[Abaddon]], [[Tempest]]
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{{main|Fitting ships}}
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*'''Capitals''': [[Rorqual]], [[Anshar]], [[Charon]]
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**'''Carriers''': [[Thanatos]], [[Chimera]], [[Archon]], [[Nidhoggur]]
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Ships are merely empty hulls waiting to be equipped with the guns and modules that let them do their job. The process of equipping a ship is known as "fitting" the ship and is an expansive topic.
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**'''Dreadnoughts''': [[Moros]], [[Phoenix]], [[Revelation]], [[Naglfar]]
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However, one basic concept is worth mentioning here as it ties into the ship sizes listed earlier. The ship sizes are grouped into small, medium, large, or X-large. When browsing the market, you will notice that modules and weapons are also grouped into these same sizes. When fitting a ship, you normally want to use modules and weapons that are in the same size grouping as the ship size. This can sometimes be confusing, especially with weapon systems, as many items may will say "medium" in the name, but belong to the "small" size group in the market categories. What matters for ship fitting is that the market category size group matches the ship size, not any terms found in the item name itself.
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== Categorization ==
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Ships can be categorized in many ways, and this section will cover the most basic methods. The examples given are not a complete representation of ships in EVE. {{co|#ff6251||It should be noted, however, that more expensive or bigger doesn't always mean better in EVE.}}
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==== Size Class ====
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[[File:Avatar.jpg|200px|thumb|An Avatar, one of the largest ships in EVE. Almost 14 kilometers in length, it is over 200 times longer than the [[Punisher]], a frigate.]]As ships increase in size they gain more hitpoints, potential damage output, and module slots. They lose agility, speed, and the ability to apply damage to smaller, faster targets. The sizes (with a few example ships) are as follows:
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*'''[[Frigates]]''': {{Sh|Incursus}}, {{Sh|Heron}}, {{Sh|Crucifier}}, {{Sh|Burst}}
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*'''[[Destroyers]]''': {{Sh|Algos}}, {{Sh|Corax}}, {{Sh|Coercer}}, {{Sh|Thrasher}}
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*'''[[Cruisers]]''': {{Sh|Thorax}}, {{Sh|Caracal}}, {{Sh|Maller}}, {{Sh|Scythe}}
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*'''[[Battlecruisers]]''': {{Sh|Myrmidon}}, {{Sh|Ferox}}, {{Sh|Harbinger}}, {{Sh|Hurricane}}
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*'''[[Battleships]]''': {{Sh|Megathron}}, {{Sh|Rokh}}, {{Sh|Abaddon}}, {{Sh|Tempest}}
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*'''[[Capital Ships]]''': {{Sh|Rorqual}}, {{Sh|Anshar}}, {{Sh|Charon}}
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**'''[[Carriers]]''': {{Sh|Thanatos}}, {{Sh|Chimera}}, {{Sh|Archon}}, {{Sh|Nidhoggur}}
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**'''[[Dreadnoughts]]''': {{Sh|Moros}}, {{Sh|Phoenix}}, {{Sh|Revelation}}, {{Sh|Naglfar}}
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**'''[[Force Auxiliaries]]''': {{Sh|Apostle}}, {{Sh|Minokawa}}, {{Sh|Ninazu}}, {{Sh|Lif}}
 
*'''Supercapitals'''
 
*'''Supercapitals'''
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**'''Supercarriers''': [[Nyx]], [[Wyvern]], [[Aeon]], [[Hel]]
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**'''[[Supercarriers]]''': {{Sh|Nyx}}, {{Sh|Wyvern}}, {{Sh|Aeon}}, {{Sh|Hel}}
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**'''Titans''': [[Erebus]], [[Leviathan]], [[Avatar]], [[Ragnarok]]
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**'''[[Titans]]''': {{Sh|Erebus}}, {{Sh|Leviathan}}, {{Sh|Avatar}}, {{Sh|Ragnarok}}
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Some ships that don't fit or are hard to pin down in this classification are certain [[Haulers]] and [[Outer Ring Excavations|ORE]] Ships. As indicated above, [[carrier]]s, [[dreadnought]]s, [[Force Auxiliaries]], [[supercarrier]]s, [[titan]]s, and the [[Rorqual]] are commonly further grouped together as capitals. The other ships are therefore referred to as "sub-capitals".
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===== Tech 1 ship class comparison table =====
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This table is meant to provide a basic comparison of ship classes, showing how, for example, "bigger is slower, but has more fitting slots".  Characteristics that vary widely have been omitted. For example, bonuses can make drone capacity or scan resolution much higher or lower on one kind of cruiser than another. These often turn out to be the characteristics that define unique uses for ships within a class, making a given ship "a drone cruiser", "an [[EWAR]] cruiser", "an exploration cruiser", and so on.
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''Note that the following numbers are averages; drawn from a sample of four ships in each class.''
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{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left; font-size:80%; margin: 1em auto 1em auto;"
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|+ '''Quick T1 Class Comparison'''
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|- style="background-color: #222222;"
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! scope="col" width="100px" | Ship Class
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! scope="col" width="100px" | Speed (m/sec)
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! scope="col" width="100px" | Warp Speed (AU)
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! scope="col" width="100px" | Time to Warp (sec)
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! scope="col" width="100px" | Slots
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! scope="col" width="100px" | Capacitor (GJ)
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! scope="col" width="100px" | Signature Radius (m)
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|-
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| Shuttle|| 500 || 5 || 2 || 0 || 250 || 25
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|-
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| Frigate|| 300-400 || 5 || 5 || 10 || 250-350 || 35-40
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|-
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| Destroyer|| 235-365 || 4.5 || 6-7|| 13 || 500-700 || 62-70
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|-
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| Cruiser|| 190-240 || 3 || 8-9|| 14 || 1250-1950 || 120-150
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|-
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| Battlecruiser|| 145-180 || 2.7 || 12 || 17 || 2300-3500 || 250-300
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|-
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| Battleship|| 89-130 || 2 || 15-20 || 19 || 5500-6500 || 330-470
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|}
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====Tech levels and factions====
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[[File:Imperial Navy Slicer.jpg|200px|thumb|right|An [[Imperial Navy Slicer]], a navy ship which is a common sight an areas with small gang and solo PvP activity.]]"Tech levels" refer to the complexity and rarity of the materials required to build a ship. Tech 1 ships are cheap and simple, but reliable; Tech 2 ships are expensive, powerful, but specialized; Tech 3 ships are expensive and highly flexible.
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"[[Factions|Faction]]" origins indicate the NPC group within EVE responsible for the ship design. The standard ships of the four main NPC empires—Minmatar, Amarr, Gallente and Caldari—are the mainstay of the game and the most commonly-encountered. "Navy" ships are tuned-up, improved, and more expensive versions of existing hulls designed for the four empires' military forces. "Pirate" ships are hulls developed by outlaw groups such as the [[Guristas Pirates]] or paramilitaries such as [[Mordu's Legion]]. [[Servant Sisters of EVE|Sisters of EVE]] ships are considered "pirate" ships although the Sisters are not a criminal organization.
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Here are some examples:
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* Tech 1: {{Sh|Incursus}}, {{Sh|Corax}}, {{Sh|Omen}}, {{Sh|Hurricane}}
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* Navy Faction: {{Sh|Brutix Navy Issue}}, {{Sh|Raven Navy Issue}}, {{Sh|Imperial Navy Slicer}}, {{Sh|Republic Fleet Firetail}}
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* Pirate Faction: {{Sh|Vigilant}}, {{Sh|Gila}}, {{Sh|Bhaalgorn}}, {{Sh|Dramiel}}
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* Tech 2: {{Sh|Ishtar}}, {{Sh|Hawk}}, {{Sh|Paladin}}, {{Sh|Sleipnir}}
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* Tech 3: {{Sh|Hecate}}, {{Sh|Tengu}}, {{Sh|Confessor}}, {{Sh|Loki}}
  
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Some ships that don't fit or are hard to pin down in this classification are certain [[Industrials]] and [[ORE]] Ships. A common simplification of this classification is calling a [[Carrier]], [[Dreadnought]], [[Supercarrier]], [[Titan]] and [[Rorqual]] capitals, while calling all other ships sub-capitals.
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'''Tech 1 ships''' are the baseline for all other ships. Although they are the first ships every character uses, they remain useful even for advanced pilots. They are easily built with knowledge available to everyone in New Eden, using widely-available materials. They are cheap, and they [[Insurance|insure]] quite well.
  
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====Tech & Faction Level====
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'''Navy faction ships''' are generally amped-up versions of their Tech 1 counterparts, usually with more CPU and powergrid for fitting, and a few more slots for modules. They typically sit somewhere between base Tech 1 hulls and Tech 2 hulls in their capabilities. Sometimes the base hull's bonuses are traded for others so, for example, the [[Drake Navy Issue]] which trades the [[Drake]]'s damage resistance for better damage application. In some cases the hull's role changes: the [[Scythe]] is designed to boost other ships' shields, while the [[Scythe Fleet Issue]] is a damage-dealer. Navy ships are harder to acquire than their base hull equivalents, and accordingly are more expensive on the open market.  
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[[File:Imperial Navy Slicer.jpg|200px|thumb|right|An Imperial Navy Slicer. A common sight an areas with small gang and solo PvP activity.]]Tech levels refer to the complexity and rarity of the materials required to build a ship. Faction level indicates the origin of the design. Navy faction means the factions with legal navies by CONCORD standards(Gallente, Caldari, Amarr, Minmatar) built the ship. Pirate faction means outlawed entities(Sansha, Serpentis, Guristas etc) have built the ship. The only exception to this are the Sisters of EVE who build pirate faction grade ships but are not outlawed. Here are some examples;
 
  
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*Tech 1: [[Incursus]], [[Corax]], [[Omen]], [[Hurricane]]
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'''Pirate faction ships''' represent a greater advance on the abilities of base Tech 1 hulls. They require two separate spaceship command skills for different factions so, for example, the [[Angel Cartel]] [[Cynabal]] requires training in both {{sk|Minmatar Cruiser}} ''and'' {{sk|Gallente Cruiser}}. In return, though, each pirate hull has more powerful and unusual bonuses which often make them fly in surprising ways. The Gurista [[Gila]], for example, launches only two drones, but can use those two to deal damage equivalent to ''ten'' drones. Similarly, the [[Serpentis]] [[Vindicator]] offers a unique combination of a [[Tackling#Stasis Webifier|stasis webifier]] bonus and massive damage output. Pirate faction ships are roughly as powerful as Tech 2 ships, and require fewer skills. They are accordingly very expensive.
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*Navy Faction: [[Brutix Navy Issue]], [[Raven Navy Issue]], [[Imperial Navy Slicer]], [[Republic Fleet Firetail]]
 
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*Tech 2: [[Ishtar]], [[Hawk]], [[Paladin]], [[Sleipnir]]
 
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*Pirate Faction: [[Vigilant]], [[Gila]], [[Bhaalgorn]], [[Dramiel]]
 
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*Tech 3: [[Proteus]], [[Tengu]], [[Legion]], [[Loki]]
 
  
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Tech 1 ships are the baseline for all other ships. They are cheap and are built with knowledge available to the galaxy. Navy faction ships are essentially amped up versions of their Tech 1 counterparts, although sometimes their strong features are traded for other advantages. An example is the [[Drake Navy Issue]] which trades tanking ability for better damage projection.
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'''Tech 2 ships''' are built by retrofitting Tech 1 ships, and while they take some features from their Tech 1 forms, the ways they fly and take advantage of fitting may be very different. They have higher resistance to damage and are typically much more specialized in their roles. Many special modules can only be fit on Tech 2 ships. The [[heavy Interdictor]] is a prime example of a Tech 2 ship filling a specialized role: it can use a special module to stop ships within a wide area from warping away—a unique ability—but it has more limited abilities in other areas. Tech 2 ships are powerful within their niches but are not automatically better than Tech 1 ships, or immune to attack from Tech 1 ships. Tech 2 ships require extensive skill training to fly but can be less expensive than Pirate Faction ships due to their simpler production.
  
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Tech 2 ships are built using rarer materials and while their hulls are taken from Tech 1 ships, the way they fly and take advantage of fitting may be very different. They have higher [[resistance]] to icnoming damage and are more specialized in their roles as a general rule of thumb. A lot of special modules can only be fit on Tech 2 ships. The [[Heavy Interdictor]] is a prime example of a Tech 2 ship filling a specialized role.
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'''Tech 3 ships''' were developed by the four empire factions by reverse-engineering [[Sleeper]] technology. They are known for their powerful defenses and great versatility, which come from a very wide variety of innate hull bonuses, generous fitting layouts, and unique ways to completely transform themselves on-the-fly. All materials required for Tech 3 ships come from [[wormhole space]]. As an example, a [[Legion]] can be fitted to be a heavily armored [[Capacitor Warfare#Energy Neutralizers|neuting]] ship, a heavy assault missile boat, or a more traditional laser boat; and may be active tanked, buffer tanked, or even able to cloak itself. Similarly, a [[Hecate]] can switch between different modes which can harden its defenses, increase its mobility, or let it deal damage at longer ranges.
  
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Pirate Faction ships are Tech 1 ships that were modified by, unsurprisingly, pirate factions(note: Sisters of EVE is an exception). Over time capsuleers adopted these ships for their superiority over Tech 1 ships. They generally have a bigger tank and better damage application. They may also sport specialized bonuses to certain modules. The [[Vindicator]] is praised for it's [[stasis webifier]] bonus and massive damage output. Their downside is the price tag because blueprints are scarce.
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==== Other factions ====
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[[CONCORD]], [[EDENCOM]], the [[Society of Conscious Thought]], and the [[Triglavian Collective]] all also have ships of their own. These ships follow completely different mechanics and skill sets than other ships and do not fit into the traditional tech and faction levels.
  
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Tech 3 ships were developed by the four empire factions after reverse engineering [[Sleeper]] technology. They are known for their often superior tank and versatility which comes from a special set of modules called [[subsystems]]. All materials required for Tech 3 ships come from [[Wormhole Space]]. As an example a [[Legion]] can be fitted to be a well tanked [[neuting]] ship, heavy assault missile boat or the more traditional laser boat. There are many other fits for it depending on what the pilot wants to do.
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* [[Image:logo_faction_concord_assembly.png|22px|link=]]CONCORD offers a trio of extremely flexible, extremely skill-intensive, highly-militarized covert ops ships.
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* [[Image:Logo_faction_edencom.png|22px|link=]]EDENCOM offers a curious, but very difficult to utilize, set of ships with "chain lightning" damage-dealing abilities.
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* [[Image:Logo_faction_triglavian_collective.png|22px|link=]]The Triglavian Collective offers a wide selection of ships that utilize unique ramping-over-time weapons that can burn down targets well above their weight class.
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* [[Image:logo_faction_the_society.png|22px|link=]]The SoCT offers a set of three ships with nearly limitless versatility and ''no'' skill requirements, offering new and veteran players alike a set of flexible hulls.
  
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====Industrials====
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==== Non-combat ships ====
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[[File:Charon.jpg|200px|thumb|right|A Charon. Prided for having the largest cargo bay across the spectrum.]]Not all ships are used for aggressive action. Industrialists, logistics officers and miners use a special subset of ships to increase their efficiency for their respective professions. Here is a loose listing of these ships.
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[[File:Charon.jpg|200px|thumb|A [[Charon]], prized for its gigantic cargo hold.]]Not all ships are designed for aggressive action. A subset of ships with increased efficiency in resource-gathering and cargo hauling are in wide use across the EVE universe. Here is a loose listing of these ships.
  
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*Haulers
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===== Haulers =====
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**Industrials
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{{Main|Haulers}}
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***Tech 1: [[Iteron Mark V]], [[Badger]], [[Mammoth]], [[Orca]] The Orca can also provide fitting services and fleet boost.
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Haulers have large cargo capacities and are used to haul goods from place to place. Some are even more specialized, having an extra capacity for items such as ore, minerals or weapons. The smallest class of cargo ships, Tech 1 Haulers, are lightly defended and fly mostly among high security systems.
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***Tech 2: [[Crane]], [[Anshar]], [[Impel]], [[Nomad]]
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* Tech 1: {{Sh|Iteron Mark V}}, {{Sh|Badger}}, {{Sh|Mammoth}}
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**Freighters
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Tech 2 haulers are divided between [[Blockade Runners]], which are fast and can cloak for stealth in dangerous space, and [[Deep Space Transports]], which have stronger defenses. Each empire faction has one of each kind of Tech 2 hauler.
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***Tech 1: [[Charon]], [[Fenrir]], [[Obelisk]], [[Providence]]
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* Tech 2 Blockade Runner: {{Sh|Crane}}, {{Sh|Viator}}
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***Tech 2 (Jump Freighters): [[Anshar]], [[Ark]], [[Rhea]], [[Nomad]]
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* Tech 2 Deep Space Transport: {{Sh|Mastodon}}, {{Sh|Impel}}
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**Capital: [[Rorqual]] The Rorqual has other primary functions such as ore compression and fleet boosting.
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*Miners
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===== Freighters =====
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**Tech 1: [[Retriever]], [[Covetor]], [[Procurer]], [[Venture]]
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{{Main|Freighters}}
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**Tech 2: [[Hulk]], [[Skiff]], [[Mackinaw]]
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Freighters are the largest cargo ships in EVE. These slow-moving hulks have no high or medium equipment slots and depend entirely on their massive hulls for defense. In general, if you can package an item, you can fit it into the cargo hold of a Tech 1 freighter.
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*Salvager: [[Noctis]]
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* Tech 1: {{Sh|Charon}}, {{Sh|Fenrir}}, {{Sh|Obelisk}}, {{Sh|Providence}}
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Tech 2 freighters are called [[Jump Freighter]]s. They have smaller cargo bays than Tech 1 freighters but can use both jump gates and [[cynosural field]]s. The latter makes them especially useful in null sec.
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* Tech 2 ([[Jump Freighters]]): {{Sh|Anshar}}, {{Sh|Ark}}, {{Sh|Rhea}}, {{Sh|Nomad}}
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===== Miners =====
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While not intended for combat, ships bonused for mining can mount light weapons or carry drones suitable for defense against belt pirates.
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* Tech 1: {{Sh|Venture}}
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The [[Mining Barge]]s are usually the next step in the mining profession. Each of the three is bonused for a specific use in asteroid mining.
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* Tech 1: {{Sh|Retriever}}, {{Sh|Covetor}}, {{Sh|Procurer}}
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The [[Exhumer]]s are the top of the line in specialized ore extractors. As with the Mining Barges, each is bonused for a specific use.
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* Tech 2: {{Sh|Hulk}}, {{Sh|Skiff}}, {{Sh|Mackinaw}}
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The [[Expedition Frigate]]s specialize in ice and gas harvesting.
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* Tech 2: {{Sh|Prospect}}, {{Sh|Endurance}}
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===== Specialty Ships =====
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* {{Sh|Porpoise}}: The Porpoise is a mining command ship, bringing a larger cargo bay than other mining ships and the ability to improve the mining speeds of nearby allies.
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* {{Sh|Orca}}: The big brother of the Porpoise, a much larger, more capable, and more resilient mining command platform, which also features an enormous cargo bay that lets it also act as a hauling ship.
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* {{Sh|Noctis}}: The final word in [[salvaging]], able to fit up to 8 high-power salvagers or long-range tractor beams.
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* {{Sh|Rorqual}}: The Capital Industrial Ship, the dreadnought and carrier of mining, and the final word in mining command. Extremely capable at mining, mining fleet support, defensive combat, and cargo hauling. Cannot be used in high-security space, very powerful in low- and null-security space.
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* [[Image:logo_faction_sisters_of_eve.png|22px|link=]][[Sisters of EVE]]: the three SOE ships ([[Astero]], [[Stratios]], [[Nestor]]) are optimized for [[exploration]]. Each is bonused for scanning and hacking, and each has sufficient combat strength to either run PvE combat sites or hunt ''other'' exploration ships. They require both Amarr and Gallente spaceship skills, and to be used effectively they require solid scanning, drone skills, and armor skills. [[Nestor]] has also a very distinct niche in game as a logistics battleship, that is used in a small fleet activities.
  
 
{{ShipsMatrix}}
 
{{ShipsMatrix}}
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[[Category:Getting Started]]
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[[Category:Ships]]

Latest revision as of 12:37, 7 September 2022

A ship or spaceship in EVE Online is a vehicle used to travel in space, battle enemy forces, ferry materials and products, provide logistical services, and for many other purposes.

A ship may be piloted by a capsuleer (player) or non-player characters such as CONCORD, faction militaries, civilian industrialists, or outlawed paramilitary and pirate forces.

Mechanics

A ship's defenses and durability are represented by its shield, armor and structure hitpoints. Certain NPC vessels lack shields, but all capsuleer ships have all three defensive systems, including capsules themselves. These hitpoints are used for tanking incoming damage. Nearly all ships have module slots, allowing them to fit modules such as (but not limited to) weapons, armor repairers, shield boosters, armor plates, electronic warfare devices, cloaks, rigs and propulsion equipment.

All ships have capacitor banks, similar to a gigantic battery. The engines charge these batteries and the accumulated energy is used to run active modules and power warp drives.

Ships move in local space by using their engines, almost always located at the ship's stern. This local movement does not use capacitor energy, although using afterburner or microwarpdrive modules to speed the ship up does.

"Military experts are calling this a 'cynosural field'."—Journalist during the start of the Gallente–Caldari War in YC110

To move longer distances within solar systems, ships use warp drives. Starting warp requires a destination object with mass or feigned mass. The ship will acquire this object as a target and use its warp drive in conjunction with sub-lightspeed thrusters to accelerate through a warp tunnel.

To travel the great distances between solar systems, ships use stargates, wormholes, and certain types of filament. Capital class ships can also use built-in jump drives to travel these great distances, by locking onto the beacon of a cynosural field at their destination.

All ships except supercapitals can be built in and docked in stations. Most ships have a cargo hold, many ships have drone bays, and some ships have specialized cargoholds, ship maintenance bays and fuel bays.

Skills

Spaceship command skills

The Sin, a Black Ops Battleship which requires months of training to fly.

To fly ships in EVE, a character must train the relevant skills in the Spaceship Command skill category. This category is not to be confused with the general skill Spaceship Command.

The skills for larger hull types and higher tech levels usually require some skill training in smaller hull types or lower tech levels first. To fly a Tech 1 cruiser, for instance, you must first have some training in a Tech 1 destroyer command skill. Likewise, the skills for Tech 2 frigates require perfecting the Tech 1 frigate command skills.

In most cases, the prerequisites for flying bigger ships (by hull type) are faster to train than the prerequisites for higher tech levels. As a result, newer pilots may find themselves in large T1 ships (battlecruisers or battleships) long before they can fly a T2 ship of any size. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, though: it's reasonable to train straight from Tech 1 frigates into Tech 2 frigates, for instance, without ever training the skills required to fly larger Tech 1 ships, if that is your goal as a pilot.

Support skills

Main article: Support skills

Being able to fly a ship at all and being able to fly a ship well can be two very different things. While the relevant spaceship command skill may let you enter a ship and undock it from a station, this is only the first step to using the ship properly. In addition to the skills you will need to fit all of the guns and modules you want to use (fitting skills), there is an entire suite of support skills that can cumulatively boost a hull's performance. Some of these benefit most or all ships that you can fly, making them valuable training choices.

As a rule of thumb, smaller and lower-tech ships demand less-polished support and fitting skills from your character. A Tech 1 frigate in the hands of a days-old character can handily complete Level 1 PvE missions or significantly affect veteran pilots in advanced ships by tackling or using electronic warfare in PvP. An expensive Tech 2 black ops battleship, meanwhile, will be a painful loss waiting to happen if piloted by a character without well-trained support skills.

Small- and medium-sized Tech 1 hulls can take part in most activities in EVE, and even players with high-SP characters often return to these "basic" ships, so new players should bear support skills in mind but should not be daunted by the thought of training them. EVE University's Short Skill Plan and Pyramid Skill Plan might help players plan skill training in the short and long terms, respectively.

Fitting

Main article: Fitting ships

Ships are merely empty hulls waiting to be equipped with the guns and modules that let them do their job. The process of equipping a ship is known as "fitting" the ship and is an expansive topic.

However, one basic concept is worth mentioning here as it ties into the ship sizes listed earlier. The ship sizes are grouped into small, medium, large, or X-large. When browsing the market, you will notice that modules and weapons are also grouped into these same sizes. When fitting a ship, you normally want to use modules and weapons that are in the same size grouping as the ship size. This can sometimes be confusing, especially with weapon systems, as many items may will say "medium" in the name, but belong to the "small" size group in the market categories. What matters for ship fitting is that the market category size group matches the ship size, not any terms found in the item name itself.

Categorization

Ships can be categorized in many ways, and this section will cover the most basic methods. The examples given are not a complete representation of ships in EVE. It should be noted, however, that more expensive or bigger doesn't always mean better in EVE.

Size Class

An Avatar, one of the largest ships in EVE. Almost 14 kilometers in length, it is over 200 times longer than the Punisher, a frigate.

As ships increase in size they gain more hitpoints, potential damage output, and module slots. They lose agility, speed, and the ability to apply damage to smaller, faster targets. The sizes (with a few example ships) are as follows:

Some ships that don't fit or are hard to pin down in this classification are certain Haulers and ORE Ships. As indicated above, carriers, dreadnoughts, Force Auxiliaries, supercarriers, titans, and the Rorqual are commonly further grouped together as capitals. The other ships are therefore referred to as "sub-capitals".

Tech 1 ship class comparison table

This table is meant to provide a basic comparison of ship classes, showing how, for example, "bigger is slower, but has more fitting slots". Characteristics that vary widely have been omitted. For example, bonuses can make drone capacity or scan resolution much higher or lower on one kind of cruiser than another. These often turn out to be the characteristics that define unique uses for ships within a class, making a given ship "a drone cruiser", "an EWAR cruiser", "an exploration cruiser", and so on.

Note that the following numbers are averages; drawn from a sample of four ships in each class.

Quick T1 Class Comparison
Ship Class Speed (m/sec) Warp Speed (AU) Time to Warp (sec) Slots Capacitor (GJ) Signature Radius (m)
Shuttle 500 5 2 0 250 25
Frigate 300-400 5 5 10 250-350 35-40
Destroyer 235-365 4.5 6-7 13 500-700 62-70
Cruiser 190-240 3 8-9 14 1250-1950 120-150
Battlecruiser 145-180 2.7 12 17 2300-3500 250-300
Battleship 89-130 2 15-20 19 5500-6500 330-470

Tech levels and factions

An Imperial Navy Slicer, a navy ship which is a common sight an areas with small gang and solo PvP activity.

"Tech levels" refer to the complexity and rarity of the materials required to build a ship. Tech 1 ships are cheap and simple, but reliable; Tech 2 ships are expensive, powerful, but specialized; Tech 3 ships are expensive and highly flexible.

"Faction" origins indicate the NPC group within EVE responsible for the ship design. The standard ships of the four main NPC empires—Minmatar, Amarr, Gallente and Caldari—are the mainstay of the game and the most commonly-encountered. "Navy" ships are tuned-up, improved, and more expensive versions of existing hulls designed for the four empires' military forces. "Pirate" ships are hulls developed by outlaw groups such as the Guristas Pirates or paramilitaries such as Mordu's Legion. Sisters of EVE ships are considered "pirate" ships although the Sisters are not a criminal organization.

Here are some examples:

Tech 1 ships are the baseline for all other ships. Although they are the first ships every character uses, they remain useful even for advanced pilots. They are easily built with knowledge available to everyone in New Eden, using widely-available materials. They are cheap, and they insure quite well.

Navy faction ships are generally amped-up versions of their Tech 1 counterparts, usually with more CPU and powergrid for fitting, and a few more slots for modules. They typically sit somewhere between base Tech 1 hulls and Tech 2 hulls in their capabilities. Sometimes the base hull's bonuses are traded for others so, for example, the Drake Navy Issue which trades the Drake's damage resistance for better damage application. In some cases the hull's role changes: the Scythe is designed to boost other ships' shields, while the Scythe Fleet Issue is a damage-dealer. Navy ships are harder to acquire than their base hull equivalents, and accordingly are more expensive on the open market.

Pirate faction ships represent a greater advance on the abilities of base Tech 1 hulls. They require two separate spaceship command skills for different factions so, for example, the Angel Cartel Cynabal requires training in both Minmatar Cruiser and Gallente Cruiser. In return, though, each pirate hull has more powerful and unusual bonuses which often make them fly in surprising ways. The Gurista Gila, for example, launches only two drones, but can use those two to deal damage equivalent to ten drones. Similarly, the Serpentis Vindicator offers a unique combination of a stasis webifier bonus and massive damage output. Pirate faction ships are roughly as powerful as Tech 2 ships, and require fewer skills. They are accordingly very expensive.

Tech 2 ships are built by retrofitting Tech 1 ships, and while they take some features from their Tech 1 forms, the ways they fly and take advantage of fitting may be very different. They have higher resistance to damage and are typically much more specialized in their roles. Many special modules can only be fit on Tech 2 ships. The heavy Interdictor is a prime example of a Tech 2 ship filling a specialized role: it can use a special module to stop ships within a wide area from warping away—a unique ability—but it has more limited abilities in other areas. Tech 2 ships are powerful within their niches but are not automatically better than Tech 1 ships, or immune to attack from Tech 1 ships. Tech 2 ships require extensive skill training to fly but can be less expensive than Pirate Faction ships due to their simpler production.

Tech 3 ships were developed by the four empire factions by reverse-engineering Sleeper technology. They are known for their powerful defenses and great versatility, which come from a very wide variety of innate hull bonuses, generous fitting layouts, and unique ways to completely transform themselves on-the-fly. All materials required for Tech 3 ships come from wormhole space. As an example, a Legion can be fitted to be a heavily armored neuting ship, a heavy assault missile boat, or a more traditional laser boat; and may be active tanked, buffer tanked, or even able to cloak itself. Similarly, a Hecate can switch between different modes which can harden its defenses, increase its mobility, or let it deal damage at longer ranges.

Other factions

CONCORD, EDENCOM, the Society of Conscious Thought, and the Triglavian Collective all also have ships of their own. These ships follow completely different mechanics and skill sets than other ships and do not fit into the traditional tech and faction levels.

  • Logo faction concord assembly.pngCONCORD offers a trio of extremely flexible, extremely skill-intensive, highly-militarized covert ops ships.
  • Logo faction edencom.pngEDENCOM offers a curious, but very difficult to utilize, set of ships with "chain lightning" damage-dealing abilities.
  • Logo faction triglavian collective.pngThe Triglavian Collective offers a wide selection of ships that utilize unique ramping-over-time weapons that can burn down targets well above their weight class.
  • Logo faction the society.pngThe SoCT offers a set of three ships with nearly limitless versatility and no skill requirements, offering new and veteran players alike a set of flexible hulls.

Non-combat ships

A Charon, prized for its gigantic cargo hold.

Not all ships are designed for aggressive action. A subset of ships with increased efficiency in resource-gathering and cargo hauling are in wide use across the EVE universe. Here is a loose listing of these ships.

Haulers
Main article: Haulers

Haulers have large cargo capacities and are used to haul goods from place to place. Some are even more specialized, having an extra capacity for items such as ore, minerals or weapons. The smallest class of cargo ships, Tech 1 Haulers, are lightly defended and fly mostly among high security systems.

Tech 2 haulers are divided between Blockade Runners, which are fast and can cloak for stealth in dangerous space, and Deep Space Transports, which have stronger defenses. Each empire faction has one of each kind of Tech 2 hauler.

Freighters
Main article: Freighters

Freighters are the largest cargo ships in EVE. These slow-moving hulks have no high or medium equipment slots and depend entirely on their massive hulls for defense. In general, if you can package an item, you can fit it into the cargo hold of a Tech 1 freighter.

Tech 2 freighters are called Jump Freighters. They have smaller cargo bays than Tech 1 freighters but can use both jump gates and cynosural fields. The latter makes them especially useful in null sec.

Miners

While not intended for combat, ships bonused for mining can mount light weapons or carry drones suitable for defense against belt pirates.

The Mining Barges are usually the next step in the mining profession. Each of the three is bonused for a specific use in asteroid mining.

The Exhumers are the top of the line in specialized ore extractors. As with the Mining Barges, each is bonused for a specific use.

The Expedition Frigates specialize in ice and gas harvesting.

Specialty Ships
  • ORE Porpoise: The Porpoise is a mining command ship, bringing a larger cargo bay than other mining ships and the ability to improve the mining speeds of nearby allies.
  • ORE Orca: The big brother of the Porpoise, a much larger, more capable, and more resilient mining command platform, which also features an enormous cargo bay that lets it also act as a hauling ship.
  • ORE Noctis: The final word in salvaging, able to fit up to 8 high-power salvagers or long-range tractor beams.
  • ORE Rorqual: The Capital Industrial Ship, the dreadnought and carrier of mining, and the final word in mining command. Extremely capable at mining, mining fleet support, defensive combat, and cargo hauling. Cannot be used in high-security space, very powerful in low- and null-security space.
  • Logo faction sisters of eve.pngSisters of EVE: the three SOE ships (Astero, Stratios, Nestor) are optimized for exploration. Each is bonused for scanning and hacking, and each has sufficient combat strength to either run PvE combat sites or hunt other exploration ships. They require both Amarr and Gallente spaceship skills, and to be used effectively they require solid scanning, drone skills, and armor skills. Nestor has also a very distinct niche in game as a logistics battleship, that is used in a small fleet activities.


show advanced ships
Isis amarr.png
Amarr
Isis caldari.png
Caldari
Isis gallente.png
Gallente
Isis minmatar.png
Minmatar
Corvettes Impairor Ibis Velator Reaper
Force Auxiliaries Apostle Minokawa Ninazu Lif
Titans Avatar Leviathan Erebus Ragnarok
Shuttles Amarr Shuttle Caldari Shuttle Gallente Shuttle Minmatar Shuttle
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