Exploration: Difference between revisions

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=== Probing Tips and Troubleshooting ===

== Relic Sites and Data Sites: Hacking ==

= Relic Sites and Data Sites: Hacking =

You've managed to locate a Relic or Data Site. Half the work is done: now you just need to find the loot inside!

[[File:Container_data.jpg|200px|thumb|left|A Data Site container]]

It's worth repeating here that, ''outside of wormhole space'', '''Relic and Data Sites do not have NPC defenders'''. That means you can wander into these areas and concern yourself mainly with the structures inside... oh, and other player-controlled ships, of course.

[[File:Container_relic.jpg|200px|thumb|right|A Relic Site container]]

Relic and Data Sites are set up very simply. They are pockets of space populated with a variety of cosmetic structures (i.e., wrecked stations, abandoned machines) and several containers that will always look the same, but be named differently. Data Site containers look a bit like an gyroscope, and typically have names like '''[Faction] Info Shard''' or '''[Faction] Com Tower'''. Relic Site containers look like ancient shipwrecks and have names like '''[Faction] Debris''' or '''[Faction] Rubble'''.

These containers hold all of the site's valuables, but you can't just fly up and take them: you'll have to hack into the containers first by playing the Hacking/Archaeology minigame. In order to attempt a hack, you'll need to fly within 5,000m of the container, lock on to it, and then use the correct module on it (your Relic Analyzer in a Relic Site, or your Data Analyzer in a Data Site). This will pop open a new window containing the hacking minigame.

== Hacking Minigame ==

Mercifully, the hacking minigame is identical in both Data and Relic Sites, aside from a few cosmetic changes to the game's playfield and sound effects.

The object of the hacking minigame is to '''find and disable the container's System Core'''. You do this by maneuvering a virus through the board of "nodes" that represent the container's electronics.

Moving around the board is easy enough. Unexplored nodes in the system are marked as green. Clicking on an unexplored node will reveal its contents: if the node is empty, it will turn orange and allow you to further explore nodes adjacent to it. Sometimes, however, a node will contain an obstacle or other item of interest. Among the various things a node may contain are...

* '''Defensive Subsystems'''

** These are represented by large circles with an icon inside, and they will be the bane of your hacking existence. '''Defensive Subsystems prevent you from exploring adjacent nodes until they are disabled.'''

** Each Defensive Subsystem has two ratings: a '''Coherence''', which is the equivalent of its health/HP, and '''Strength''', which is equivalent to its "attack power". '''Coherence is represented by an asterisk and is listed atop the Subsystem. Strength is represented by a "wifi/signal" icon and is listed at the bottom of the Subsystem.'''

** Thankfully, '''your virus has a Coherence and Strength, too, which you can use to disable the system's defenses!''' You can attack a Defensive Subsystem by clicking it after it has been explored.

*** Attacking a Subsystem is turn-based: your virus will attack the Subsystem, and then, ''if the Subsystem is still active'', it will attack your virus back.

*** Your virus' Coherence and Strength are listed in the bottom left of the hacking window. '''When you attack a Subsystem, you will lower its Coherence by your Virus Strength.''' If you reduce its Coherence to 0, it is disabled and removed from the board.

*** '''If your Virus Coherence reaches 0, you fail the hack and the window is closed.''' Failing a hack once will just make it less likely for you to get any valuable loot from the container (explained below), but attempting a second hack and failing again will destroy the container.

** Defensive Subsystems come in a few different types.

*** '''Firewalls''' have high coherence, but low strength.

*** '''Anti-Virus''' subsystems have low coherence, but high strength.

*** '''Restoration Nodes''' show up in more difficult hacks. Each turn they are active, they will give extra coherence to all other uncovered defensive subsystems. Incredibly nasty.

*** '''Virus Suppressor''' subsystems lower your Virus Strength while active.

[[File:Hacking_window_progress.jpg|400px|thumb|right|A hack in progress]]

* '''System Core'''

** The System Core operates a lot like a Defensive Subsystem, with the major difference that '''disabling it will successfully complete the hack'''.

** The System Core typically has a lot of Coherence.

** Its icon looks like a green "X" inside a Subsystem circle.

* '''Utility Subsystem'''

** Utility Subsystems are helpful, consumable "files" that have been left inside the system. '''You can click one once it has been exposed to add it to a utility slot at the bottom middle of your hacking window.''' They can then be used by clicking the appropriate utility slot. You can only store three Utility Subsystems at a time, so plan ahead!

** Utility Subsystems are extremely useful and come in a few different types.

*** '''Self Repair''' utilities increase your Virus Coherence by a variable amount. A single Self Repair has three "charge": the first is consumed immediately after use, and the next two are automatically used after your next two actions in the system (i.e., exploring a node, attacking a subsystem).

*** '''Kernel Rot''' utilities reduces a target subsystem's Coherence by 50%. Great for use on the System Core.

*** '''Secondary Vector''' utilities reduces a target's Coherence by a variable amount. Much like the Self Repair utility, the Secondary Vector has three charges: one used immediately, and two more that fire off after taking actions.

*** '''Polymorphic Shield''' utilities prevent the next two instances of damage done to your virus. Good for taking down subsystems with high Strength.

Thankfully, exploring until you find the System Core and then annihilating it isn't too difficult in the vast majority of sites you will find in high-sec. With a little practice, you'll be hacking with the best of them!

=== Hacking Tips and Tricks ===

== Container Collection ==

Once you've successfully hacked the system, the loot is yours! Unfortunately, there's a catch: for whatever reason, everything kept inside the container is simply jettisoned into space at this point, and you'll have to act fast to tractor it into your cargo hold before it disappears.

[[File:Hacking_minicont.jpg|300px|thumb|left|"Mini" loot containers being ejected after a successful hack]]

After completing the hack, zoom out from your ship a bit and you should see a handful of green cross icons radiating out from the now-hacked container. These are small loot packages, and single-clicking any one of them will automatically zip it into your cargo hold over the course of a second or two. '''You can only grab one container of loot at a time, and only if they are within 3,500m''', so be sure to stay close to the cloud of packages as it travels outward from the container. You can maneuver around while tractoring loot in: double-clicking on one of the packages will automatically have your ship approach it.

These loot containers come in several types: '''Materials Containers, Parts Containers, Equipment Containers, Data Containers and Scraps Containers'''. Each contains a different assortment of loot, so how do you know which ones to grab? That's where the Cargo Scanner that you've fitted to your ship comes in! '''Before starting a hack on a container, use your Cargo Scanner on it.''' This will bring up a list of items that you can receive as loot from the container. Each type of loot will be ejected into space in a particular type of container, so once you know what is inside the soon-to-be hacked receptacle, you'll know what types of containers you should grab for once they are ejected into space!

'''EXAMPLE:''' You are in a Data Site and are approaching a Guristas Info Shard. You use your Cargo Scanner on it reports back that there is 1 Esoteric Symmetry inside, which is a valuable Decryptor. Exciting! Checking the guide below, you'll see that Decryptors are ejected in Parts Containers, so once you successfully hack this Info Shard, you'll know to grab as many Parts Containers as you can!

The cargo hold icon at the bottom middle of your ship HUD will display what was inside each container as you tractor it in, so you can watch on the fly which pieces of valuable loot you've managed to find.

=== Container Legend ===

Each type of "mini" loot container will contain a default loot item if it does not contain an item from your Cargo Scan in it. These are essentially "booby prizes". Note that failing a single hack attempt will cause more mini loot containers to show up ''without changing the amount of loot found inside the hackable container''. What this means is that failing a hack will make it harder to tractor in the valuable loot out of a container, and make it much more likely that you'll get the booby prizes listed below.

* Data Containers

** Data Sheets

* Equipment Containers

** Hydrogen Batteries

* Material Containers

** Carbon

* Parts Containers

** Electronic Parts

* Scraps Containers

** Metal Scraps

If a mini loot container does not contain a default loot item, however, it'll have an appropriate item from the hackable container's Cargo Scan, which is more often than not an item of value! [http://neural-boost.com/minicontainer-loot-distribution This website] has done a great job in the early post-Odyssey days of tracking which type of container contain what sorts of loot, and this article's writer can personally confirm a lot of its findings. For the purposes of keeping everything in one place, though, its site listing will be duplicated below.

==== Relic Sites ====

* Data Containers

** Blueprint Copies

** Skill Books

* Equipment Containers

** Spatial Attunement Units

* Material Containers

** T1/T2 Salvage

* Parts Containers

** T1/T2 Salvage

* Scraps Containers

** ''nothing special''

==== Data Sites ====

* Data Containers

** Blueprint Copies

** Skill Books

* Equipment Containers

** ''nothing special''

* Material Containers

** Faction Alloys

* Parts Containers

** Decryptors

** Datacores

* Scraps Containers

** ''nothing special''

@@ Line 150: / Line 150: @@
 === Probing Tips and Troubleshooting ===
-== Relic Sites and Data Sites: Hacking ==
+= Relic Sites and Data Sites: Hacking =
+You've managed to locate a Relic or Data Site. Half the work is done: now you just need to find the loot inside!
+[[File:Container_data.jpg|200px|thumb|left|A Data Site container]]
+It's worth repeating here that, ''outside of wormhole space'', '''Relic and Data Sites do not have NPC defenders'''. That means you can wander into these areas and concern yourself mainly with the structures inside... oh, and other player-controlled ships, of course.
+[[File:Container_relic.jpg|200px|thumb|right|A Relic Site container]]
+Relic and Data Sites are set up very simply. They are pockets of space populated with a variety of cosmetic structures (i.e., wrecked stations, abandoned machines) and several containers that will always look the same, but be named differently. Data Site containers look a bit like an gyroscope, and typically have names like '''[Faction] Info Shard''' or '''[Faction] Com Tower'''. Relic Site containers look like ancient shipwrecks and have names like '''[Faction] Debris''' or '''[Faction] Rubble'''.
+These containers hold all of the site's valuables, but you can't just fly up and take them: you'll have to hack into the containers first by playing the Hacking/Archaeology minigame. In order to attempt a hack, you'll need to fly within 5,000m of the container, lock on to it, and then use the correct module on it (your Relic Analyzer in a Relic Site, or your Data Analyzer in a Data Site). This will pop open a new window containing the hacking minigame.
+== Hacking Minigame ==
+Mercifully, the hacking minigame is identical in both Data and Relic Sites, aside from a few cosmetic changes to the game's playfield and sound effects.
+The object of the hacking minigame is to '''find and disable the container's System Core'''. You do this by maneuvering a virus through the board of "nodes" that represent the container's electronics.
+Moving around the board is easy enough. Unexplored nodes in the system are marked as green. Clicking on an unexplored node will reveal its contents: if the node is empty, it will turn orange and allow you to further explore nodes adjacent to it. Sometimes, however, a node will contain an obstacle or other item of interest. Among the various things a node may contain are...
+* '''Defensive Subsystems'''
+** These are represented by large circles with an icon inside, and they will be the bane of your hacking existence. '''Defensive Subsystems prevent you from exploring adjacent nodes until they are disabled.'''
+** Each Defensive Subsystem has two ratings: a '''Coherence''', which is the equivalent of its health/HP, and '''Strength''', which is equivalent to its "attack power". '''Coherence is represented by an asterisk and is listed atop the Subsystem. Strength is represented by a "wifi/signal" icon and is listed at the bottom of the Subsystem.'''
+** Thankfully, '''your virus has a Coherence and Strength, too, which you can use to disable the system's defenses!''' You can attack a Defensive Subsystem by clicking it after it has been explored.
+*** Attacking a Subsystem is turn-based: your virus will attack the Subsystem, and then, ''if the Subsystem is still active'', it will attack your virus back.
+*** Your virus' Coherence and Strength are listed in the bottom left of the hacking window. '''When you attack a Subsystem, you will lower its Coherence by your Virus Strength.''' If you reduce its Coherence to 0, it is disabled and removed from the board.
+*** '''If your Virus Coherence reaches 0, you fail the hack and the window is closed.''' Failing a hack once will just make it less likely for you to get any valuable loot from the container (explained below), but attempting a second hack and failing again will destroy the container.
+** Defensive Subsystems come in a few different types.
+*** '''Firewalls''' have high coherence, but low strength.
+*** '''Anti-Virus''' subsystems have low coherence, but high strength.
+*** '''Restoration Nodes''' show up in more difficult hacks. Each turn they are active, they will give extra coherence to all other uncovered defensive subsystems. Incredibly nasty.
+*** '''Virus Suppressor''' subsystems lower your Virus Strength while active.
+[[File:Hacking_window_progress.jpg|400px|thumb|right|A hack in progress]]
+* '''System Core'''
+** The System Core operates a lot like a Defensive Subsystem, with the major difference that '''disabling it will successfully complete the hack'''.
+** The System Core typically has a lot of Coherence.
+** Its icon looks like a green "X" inside a Subsystem circle.
+* '''Utility Subsystem'''
+** Utility Subsystems are helpful, consumable "files" that have been left inside the system. '''You can click one once it has been exposed to add it to a utility slot at the bottom middle of your hacking window.''' They can then be used by clicking the appropriate utility slot. You can only store three Utility Subsystems at a time, so plan ahead!
+** Utility Subsystems are extremely useful and come in a few different types.
+*** '''Self Repair''' utilities increase your Virus Coherence by a variable amount. A single Self Repair has three "charge": the first is consumed immediately after use, and the next two are automatically used after your next two actions in the system (i.e., exploring a node, attacking a subsystem).
+*** '''Kernel Rot''' utilities reduces a target subsystem's Coherence by 50%. Great for use on the System Core.
+*** '''Secondary Vector''' utilities reduces a target's Coherence by a variable amount. Much like the Self Repair utility, the Secondary Vector has three charges: one used immediately, and two more that fire off after taking actions.
+*** '''Polymorphic Shield''' utilities prevent the next two instances of damage done to your virus. Good for taking down subsystems with high Strength.
+Thankfully, exploring until you find the System Core and then annihilating it isn't too difficult in the vast majority of sites you will find in high-sec. With a little practice, you'll be hacking with the best of them!
+=== Hacking Tips and Tricks ===
+== Container Collection ==
+Once you've successfully hacked the system, the loot is yours! Unfortunately, there's a catch: for whatever reason, everything kept inside the container is simply jettisoned into space at this point, and you'll have to act fast to tractor it into your cargo hold before it disappears.
+[[File:Hacking_minicont.jpg|300px|thumb|left|"Mini" loot containers being ejected after a successful hack]]
+After completing the hack, zoom out from your ship a bit and you should see a handful of green cross icons radiating out from the now-hacked container. These are small loot packages, and single-clicking any one of them will automatically zip it into your cargo hold over the course of a second or two. '''You can only grab one container of loot at a time, and only if they are within 3,500m''', so be sure to stay close to the cloud of packages as it travels outward from the container. You can maneuver around while tractoring loot in: double-clicking on one of the packages will automatically have your ship approach it.
+These loot containers come in several types: '''Materials Containers, Parts Containers, Equipment Containers, Data Containers and Scraps Containers'''. Each contains a different assortment of loot, so how do you know which ones to grab? That's where the Cargo Scanner that you've fitted to your ship comes in! '''Before starting a hack on a container, use your Cargo Scanner on it.''' This will bring up a list of items that you can receive as loot from the container. Each type of loot will be ejected into space in a particular type of container, so once you know what is inside the soon-to-be hacked receptacle, you'll know what types of containers you should grab for once they are ejected into space!
+'''EXAMPLE:''' You are in a Data Site and are approaching a Guristas Info Shard. You use your Cargo Scanner on it reports back that there is 1 Esoteric Symmetry inside, which is a valuable Decryptor. Exciting! Checking the guide below, you'll see that Decryptors are ejected in Parts Containers, so once you successfully hack this Info Shard, you'll know to grab as many Parts Containers as you can!
+The cargo hold icon at the bottom middle of your ship HUD will display what was inside each container as you tractor it in, so you can watch on the fly which pieces of valuable loot you've managed to find.
+=== Container Legend ===
+Each type of "mini" loot container will contain a default loot item if it does not contain an item from your Cargo Scan in it. These are essentially "booby prizes". Note that failing a single hack attempt will cause more mini loot containers to show up ''without changing the amount of loot found inside the hackable container''. What this means is that failing a hack will make it harder to tractor in the valuable loot out of a container, and make it much more likely that you'll get the booby prizes listed below.
+* Data Containers
+** Data Sheets
+* Equipment Containers
+** Hydrogen Batteries
+* Material Containers
+** Carbon
+* Parts Containers
+** Electronic Parts
+* Scraps Containers
+** Metal Scraps
+If a mini loot container does not contain a default loot item, however, it'll have an appropriate item from the hackable container's Cargo Scan, which is more often than not an item of value! [http://neural-boost.com/minicontainer-loot-distribution This website] has done a great job in the early post-Odyssey days of tracking which type of container contain what sorts of loot, and this article's writer can personally confirm a lot of its findings. For the purposes of keeping everything in one place, though, its site listing will be duplicated below.
+==== Relic Sites ====
+* Data Containers
+** Blueprint Copies
+** Skill Books
+* Equipment Containers
+** Spatial Attunement Units
+* Material Containers
+** T1/T2 Salvage
+* Parts Containers
+** T1/T2 Salvage
+* Scraps Containers
+** ''nothing special''
+==== Data Sites ====
+* Data Containers
+** Blueprint Copies
+** Skill Books
+* Equipment Containers
+** ''nothing special''
+* Material Containers
+** Faction Alloys
+* Parts Containers
+** Decryptors
+** Datacores
+* Scraps Containers
+** ''nothing special''