Drone mechanics: Difference between revisions

Line 155:

==PvE Tactics==

~~{{Deprecated}}~~

(Note - As of the Retribution patch changes were made to NPC drone aggro, this section is deprecated see http://wiki.eveuniversity.org/Drones_101#Using_Drones_for_PvE for more updated information on PvE Tactics.)

~~When piloting~~ drones ~~into missions~~ the ~~usual strategy is~~ for the drone ~~boat to have a powerful active tank with combat~~ drones ~~suited~~ to ~~your enemy faction in~~ the drone bay~~. The pilot gains and holds~~ the aggro (~~attention~~) ~~of the NPC enemies, releases the appropriate~~ drones ~~and orders them to attack, while supplementing~~ their ~~DPS with on-board weapons~~.

The general aim in PvE is to use drones as the main damage dealers while keeping them from harm. This can be achieved by either by drawing the enemy’s aggro away from the drones, for instance using on-board weapons to draw aggro to the drone carrier. Furthermore, recalling drones to the drone bay breaks the enemy’s target lock, forcing them to aggro something else (usually the drone carrier). Using sentry drones for sniping often keeps enemy ships outside their effective range.

~~There are however some variations on this idea:~~

===Drone brawling===

~~===Delegation===~~

Drone brawling is a broad category encompassing the use of light, medium and heavy drones. Usually, the drone carrier will be at close range to enemy ships.

~~This method~~ is a very ~~slight variation and is often adopted by players who have bigger~~ ships. ~~Aggro is gained and held in the same manner as before~~, ~~but~~ the ~~drones are simply set~~ to ~~Aggressive and told to Focus Fire~~, and ~~then left free~~ to ~~pick targets of their own choosing~~.

====Fitting advice====

Primarily, the drone carrier should have a regenerating tank appropriate for the mission. That means full [[T2_Tank]] for level 3 and 4 missions. While not strictly necessary, a Damage Control II may prove a lifesaver. Drone Damage Amplifiers are essential to increase drone DPS. Omnidirectional Tracking Links may be helpful though they are primarily used to help sentry drones. A propulsion module (Afterburner or MWD) is used to get into range faster, though ships with a very good tank could also slowboat towards the enemy. Cruiser sized ships (especially HACs or pirate faction cruisers) further benefit if they can run an afterburner indefinitely (i.e. being essentially cap stable), thereby decreasing the chance to be hit by or take damage from large, battleship-sized weaponry in level 4 missions (‘’speedtank’’). Gun or missile turrets are usually fit last making best use of the available CPU and power grid. The rig slots are often used to supplement the tank or balance its weaknesses.

This leaves the pilot free to salvage wrecks, only changing drones if a new wave enters the room (to avoid the drones taking aggro) or if different sized drones are required to handle larger/smaller ships.

====Tactics====

~~===AFK Combat===~~

When using light, medium or heavy drones, try to stay close to the drones to be able to recall them quickly once they start taking damage. This will break the enemy’s target lock and force them to target you instead. Thus, you will probably orbit enemy ships somewhat below your gun’s optimal range.

To get into brawling range, either use your propulsion module to get close to enemy ships or stop completely and deploy sentry drones to draw enemy ships towards you. Once the sentry drones start missing most of the time, recall them and start orbiting the enemy ship while attacking them with guns and drones.

Generally, it is advisable to eliminate small ships first, as they can scram and web you or your drones. Being webbed is very bad for drones, as they will take damage fast while taking much longer to return to the carrier.

Some battleships will try to orbit you at uncomfortable distances for brawling with heavy drones, which may be a problem for slow battleships without propulsion modules. In this case, stop your ship and deploy short-range sentry drones (Garde or Curator, depending on enemy vulnerability), which should be able to hit the enemy ship well.

~~An extreme version of the above approach is to arrange things so that you don't need to even be at your computer:~~

====Recommended ships====

~~# fit a very powerful cap-stable tank~~

The following ships make good choices as PvE drone brawlers in level 4 missions:

~~# pop all the triggers in a mission room so that all the~~ ships ~~which it's possible to spawn have spawned~~

# make ~~sure you have aggro from all of them (and can tank it)~~

~~# unleash the drones on Aggressive, Focus Fire settings~~

~~# leave the computer to spend quality time with the ones you love~~

~~# there is no six~~

~~# you may need to periodically return to your computer to switch to smaller drones and mop up frigates~~

~~# either move to the next room or hand the mission~~ in~~, if it's complete~~

~~This can be a slow way to run~~ missions~~, but its demands on your own time are much lower than running missions quickly in a traditional manner.~~

~~===Drone Tanking===~~

* [[Ishtar]]: Fast, agile, tough tank and excellent drone bonuses for brawling

* [[Dominix]]: Cheap, versatile, tough tank, good drone bonuses for brawling

* [[Armageddon]]: Cheap, tough tank, good drone bonuses for brawling

* [[Dominix Navy Issue]] Excellent tank, good drone bonuses for brawling, hybrid turret bonuses, high combined damage (drones + turrets)

* [[Gila]]: Cheap (but still subject to [[WSOP]]), fast, agile, excellent tank and good drone bonuses for brawling

* [[Rattlesnake]]: Best battleship-class tank, good drone bonuses for brawling, extremely high combined damage (drones + torpedoes)

This was a tactic used in the past where the pilot would seed disposable drones on the battlefield to draw fire. This has since been changed and no longer works. You may be able to draw aggro on an active small done and remote rep it to divert some fire from large weaponry.

===~~Notable PvE Droneboats~~===

===Drone sniping===

~~====Gallente====~~

* [[Vexor]]: should walk all over L2 missions

* [[Myrmidon]]: does L3s, might do easier L4s; active armor tank or passive shield tank both work well on this ship

* [[Dominix]]: good for L4s, can be part of w-space PvE BS gangs; faction version (Navy Dominix) also available

* [[Ishtar]]: BS-sized dronebay and bandwidth in a cruiser-sized hull; tanks very well with armor or with a passive shield tank; good for exploration in dangerous space

~~====Amarr====~~

Drone sniping encompasses the use of sentry drones to deliver damage at great range, often outside the effective range of enemy ships. Thus, tanking is less of an issue as with brawling, though T2 modules are still required in level 3 and 4 missions. Good skills to increase locking range, drone control range, drone optimal range and drone damage are required.

* [[Arbitrator]]: the ~~best PvE T1 Amarr cruiser~~, ~~if you have~~ drone ~~skills~~

====~~Gurista~~====

====Fitting advice====

The ~~Guristas~~ are ~~an NPC pirate faction whose~~ ships ~~combine Caldari traits~~ (~~missiles and shield tanks~~) with ~~Gallente-style drone bonuses~~ and ~~dronebays~~.

While the tank is often reduced for the sake of Drone Damage Amplifiers and Omnidirectional Tracking Links, some tank is still necessary for occasions when enemy ships come into range. Given that the overall tank is less than in brawling ships, a Damage Control II has an even bigger beneficial effect on effective HP. A Sensor Booster is required to increase locking range. A Micro Jump Drive (MJD) is used on battleships to quickly get into sniping range, while an Afterburner may be fitted additionally in order to manoeuvre faster during MJD cooldown. Cruiser-sized ships rely on an Afterburner or a MWD to get into proper range. Several Drone Link Augmentors are usually necessary to increase drone control range to sniping ranges. The remaining high slots can be fit either with long-range turrets to increase overall DPS at sniping ranges or with short-range turrets (even of smaller calibre) to deal with fast ships which come into range.

* [[~~Gila~~]]: ~~similar to the~~ Ishtar, ~~BS-style drone use in a cruiser hull; strong shield~~ tank

Equip a full flight of Wardens, which have the longest optimal range of all Sentry Drones, as well as a full flight of either Gardes or Curators, which have shorter ranges, but better tracking and higher overall DPS. Against Angel ships, Bouncers may be preferred as secondary drones since Angels are most vulnerable to explosive damage. Round off with a flight of medium, small, and armor repair drones.

* [[Rattlesnake]]: ~~a Dominix with cruise missiles and a shield tank~~; ~~only BS which can passive shield tank like a Drake; active shield tank also works~~; ~~L4s are~~ a ~~cakewalk~~, ~~can also be used to~~ tank ~~L5s~~

====Tactics====

Keep at a distance from enemy ships, using a micro jump drive (battleships), microwarpdrives or afterburners. Stop the ship, then deploy sentry drones. That way the drones can be recalled instantly when taking damage. Shoot the enemy ships with the sentry drones most appropriate for the range the enemy ships are currently away, usually starting with the smallest ships, as these are the fastest. When the incoming damage is too high, recall the drones and activate the propulsion module to gain distance from enemy ships.

====Recommended ships====

The following ships make good choices as PvE drone snipers in level 4 missions:

* [[Dominix]]: Excellent sniping bonuses, excellent range, solid tank; Fits a MJD

* [[Ishtar]]: Excellent sniping bonuses, excellent range, solid tank, fast

* [[Rattlesnake]]: Good sniping houses, but many module slots; Can be made an excellent sniper; Fits a MJD

* [[Vexor Navy Issue]]: Glass cannon sniper: Fast, excellent sniping bonuses, but only cruiser-sized tank. Can output nearly as much DPS as the Ishtar or Dominix.

== Drones and Mining ==

@@ Line 155: / Line 155: @@
 ==PvE Tactics==
-{{Deprecated}}
-(Note - As of the Retribution patch changes were made to NPC drone aggro, this section is deprecated see http://wiki.eveuniversity.org/Drones_101#Using_Drones_for_PvE for more updated information on PvE Tactics.)
-When piloting drones into missions the usual strategy is for the drone boat to have a powerful active tank with combat drones suited to your enemy faction in the drone bay. The pilot gains and holds the aggro (attention) of the NPC enemies, releases the appropriate drones and orders them to attack, while supplementing their DPS with on-board weapons.
+The general aim in PvE is to use drones as the main damage dealers while keeping them from harm. This can be achieved by either by drawing the enemy’s aggro away from the drones, for instance using on-board weapons to draw aggro to the drone carrier. Furthermore, recalling drones to the drone bay breaks the enemy’s target lock, forcing them to aggro something else (usually the drone carrier). Using sentry drones for sniping often keeps enemy ships outside their effective range.
-There are however some variations on this idea:
+===Drone brawling===
-===Delegation===
+Drone brawling is a broad category encompassing the use of light, medium and heavy drones. Usually, the drone carrier will be at close range to enemy ships.
-This method is a very slight variation and is often adopted by players who have bigger ships. Aggro is gained and held in the same manner as before, but the drones are simply set to Aggressive and told to Focus Fire, and then left free to pick targets of their own choosing.
+====Fitting advice====
+Primarily, the drone carrier should have a regenerating tank appropriate for the mission. That means full [[T2_Tank]] for level 3 and 4 missions. While not strictly necessary, a Damage Control II may prove a lifesaver. Drone Damage Amplifiers are essential to increase drone DPS. Omnidirectional Tracking Links may be helpful though they are primarily used to help sentry drones. A propulsion module (Afterburner or MWD) is used to get into range faster, though ships with a very good tank could also slowboat towards the enemy. Cruiser sized ships (especially HACs or pirate faction cruisers) further benefit if they can run an afterburner indefinitely (i.e. being essentially cap stable), thereby decreasing the chance to be hit by or take damage from large, battleship-sized weaponry in level 4 missions (‘’speedtank’’). Gun or missile turrets are usually fit last making best use of the available CPU and power grid. The rig slots are often used to supplement the tank or balance its weaknesses.
-This leaves the pilot free to salvage wrecks, only changing drones if a new wave enters the room (to avoid the drones taking aggro) or if different sized drones are required to handle larger/smaller ships.
+====Tactics====
-===AFK Combat===
+When using light, medium or heavy drones, try to stay close to the drones to be able to recall them quickly once they start taking damage. This will break the enemy’s target lock and force them to target you instead. Thus, you will probably orbit enemy ships somewhat below your gun’s optimal range.
+To get into brawling range, either use your propulsion module to get close to enemy ships or stop completely and deploy sentry drones to draw enemy ships towards you. Once the sentry drones start missing most of the time, recall them and start orbiting the enemy ship while attacking them with guns and drones.
+Generally, it is advisable to eliminate small ships first, as they can scram and web you or your drones. Being webbed is very bad for drones, as they will take damage fast while taking much longer to return to the carrier.
+Some battleships will try to orbit you at uncomfortable distances for brawling with heavy drones, which may be a problem for slow battleships without propulsion modules. In this case, stop your ship and deploy short-range sentry drones (Garde or Curator, depending on enemy vulnerability), which should be able to hit the enemy ship well.
-An extreme version of the above approach is to arrange things so that you don't need to even be at your computer:
+====Recommended ships====
-# fit a very powerful cap-stable tank
+The following ships make good choices as PvE drone brawlers in level 4 missions:
-# pop all the triggers in a mission room so that all the ships which it's possible to spawn have spawned
-# make sure you have aggro from all of them (and can tank it)
-# unleash the drones on Aggressive, Focus Fire settings
-# leave the computer to spend quality time with the ones you love
-# there is no six
-# you may need to periodically return to your computer to switch to smaller drones and mop up frigates
-# either move to the next room or hand the mission in, if it's complete
-This can be a slow way to run missions, but its demands on your own time are much lower than running missions quickly in a traditional manner.
-===Drone Tanking===
+* [[Ishtar]]: Fast, agile, tough tank and excellent drone bonuses for brawling
+* [[Dominix]]: Cheap, versatile, tough tank, good drone bonuses for brawling
+* [[Armageddon]]: Cheap, tough tank, good drone bonuses for brawling
+* [[Dominix Navy Issue]] Excellent tank, good drone bonuses for brawling, hybrid turret bonuses, high combined damage (drones + turrets)
+* [[Gila]]: Cheap (but still subject to [[WSOP]]), fast, agile, excellent tank and good drone bonuses for brawling
+* [[Rattlesnake]]: Best battleship-class tank, good drone bonuses for brawling, extremely high combined damage (drones + torpedoes)
-This was a tactic used in the past where the pilot would seed disposable drones on the battlefield to draw fire. This has since been changed and no longer works. You may be able to draw aggro on an active small done and remote rep it to divert some fire from large weaponry.
-===Notable PvE Droneboats===
+===Drone sniping===
-====Gallente====
-* [[Vexor]]: should walk all over L2 missions
-* [[Myrmidon]]: does L3s, might do easier L4s; active armor tank or passive shield tank both work well on this ship
-* [[Dominix]]: good for L4s, can be part of w-space PvE BS gangs; faction version (Navy Dominix) also available
-* [[Ishtar]]: BS-sized dronebay and bandwidth in a cruiser-sized hull; tanks very well with armor or with a passive shield tank; good for exploration in dangerous space
-====Amarr====
+Drone sniping encompasses the use of sentry drones to deliver damage at great range, often outside the effective range of enemy ships. Thus, tanking is less of an issue as with brawling, though T2 modules are still required in level 3 and 4 missions. Good skills to increase locking range, drone control range, drone optimal range and drone damage are required.
-* [[Arbitrator]]: the best PvE T1 Amarr cruiser, if you have drone skills
-====Gurista====
+====Fitting advice====
-The Guristas are an NPC pirate faction whose ships combine Caldari traits (missiles and shield tanks) with Gallente-style drone bonuses and dronebays.
+While the tank is often reduced for the sake of Drone Damage Amplifiers and Omnidirectional Tracking Links, some tank is still necessary for occasions when enemy ships come into range. Given that the overall tank is less than in brawling ships, a Damage Control II has an even bigger beneficial effect on effective HP. A Sensor Booster is required to increase locking range. A Micro Jump Drive (MJD) is used on battleships to quickly get into sniping range, while an Afterburner may be fitted additionally in order to manoeuvre faster during MJD cooldown. Cruiser-sized ships rely on an Afterburner or a MWD to get into proper range. Several Drone Link Augmentors are usually necessary to increase drone control range to sniping ranges. The remaining high slots can be fit either with long-range turrets to increase overall DPS at sniping ranges or with short-range turrets (even of smaller calibre) to deal with fast ships which come into range.
-* [[Gila]]: similar to the Ishtar, BS-style drone use in a cruiser hull; strong shield tank
+Equip a full flight of Wardens, which have the longest optimal range of all Sentry Drones, as well as a full flight of either Gardes or Curators, which have shorter ranges, but better tracking and higher overall DPS. Against Angel ships, Bouncers may be preferred as secondary drones since Angels are most vulnerable to explosive damage. Round off with a flight of medium, small, and armor repair drones.
-* [[Rattlesnake]]: a Dominix with cruise missiles and a shield tank; only BS which can passive shield tank like a Drake; active shield tank also works; L4s are a cakewalk, can also be used to tank L5s
+====Tactics====
+Keep at a distance from enemy ships, using a micro jump drive (battleships), microwarpdrives or afterburners. Stop the ship, then deploy sentry drones. That way the drones can be recalled instantly when taking damage. Shoot the enemy ships with the sentry drones most appropriate for the range the enemy ships are currently away, usually starting with the smallest ships, as these are the fastest. When the incoming damage is too high, recall the drones and activate the propulsion module to gain distance from enemy ships.
+====Recommended ships====
+The following ships make good choices as PvE drone snipers in level 4 missions:
+* [[Dominix]]: Excellent sniping bonuses, excellent range, solid tank; Fits a MJD
+* [[Ishtar]]: Excellent sniping bonuses, excellent range, solid tank, fast
+* [[Rattlesnake]]: Good sniping houses, but many module slots; Can be made an excellent sniper; Fits a MJD
+* [[Vexor Navy Issue]]: Glass cannon sniper: Fast, excellent sniping bonuses, but only cruiser-sized tank. Can output nearly as much DPS as the Ishtar or Dominix.
 == Drones and Mining ==