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| There are no NPC stations in wormhole space, except in [[Thera]]. | | There are no NPC stations in wormhole space, except in [[Thera]]. |
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| ==Where to fight?== | | == Lowsec FW complex combat == |
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| While fighting in Null-Sec, Wormhole, or even High Sec space is perfectly possible, the majority of small scale PvP is done in Low Security space. Specifically, those areas of Low Sec designated as “[[Faction Warfare]] Space”
| | Much small-scale PvP happens in Faction Warfare ("FW") lowsec. |
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| Faction Warfare mechanics includes many features which are specific to corporations and individuals who elect to align themselves to one faction, as described in more detail in the [[Faction Warfare]] Wiki page. For the purposes of this guide however, we will only be considering those aspects which relate to all players, regardless of affiliation.
| | FW space contains FW Complexes (commonly known as "plexes", not to be confused with [[PLEX]]), which are effectively PvP arenas. |
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| ===Faction Warfare Arenas: Plex===
| | These appear on your overview and probe scanner window as beacons which all players can warp to with names such as “Gallente Novice Outpost” or “Caldari Large Installation”. All available plexes appear in the probe scanner window, but a plex '''only''' appears on the overview '''once someone has entered it'''. |
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| Faction Warfare space contains Factional Warfare Complexes (commonly known as "Plexes", not to be confused with [[PLEX]]) which are effectively PvP arenas. These appear on your overview and probe scanner window as beacons which all players can warp to with names such as “Gallente Novice Outpost” or “Caldari Large Installation”
| | The key factor to note is the "size" of the plex, indicated by the middle word in its name. Size tells you which hulls can enter the plex. |
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| The key factor to note is the “size” of the plex, as denoted by the middle word in the description. This indicates the size of ships which are able to enter the arena for fights
| | * "Novice": T1 frigates only |
| | * "Small": T1/T2 frigates, T1/T2 destroyers (no T3 destroyers) |
| | * "Medium": all frigates and destroyers, T1/T2 cruisers (no T3 cruisers) |
| | * "Large": any ship |
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| *Novice: Frigates only
| | When you initially warp to any Novice, Small, or Medium plex, you will encounter an acceleration gate. The gate will only let appropriate ships warp into the plex itself. Large plexes have no gate and allow any ships in. |
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| *Small: Frigates & Destroyers
| | Plexes provide a fixed point for fights. The size limitations mean that you can, to ''some'' extent, control the fights you take: if you are in a Novice plex, you will not have to fight a T3 cruiser. |
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| *Medium: Frigates, Destroyers, Cruisers
| | The gate limits ship ''sizes'', but not ''numbers''. You can still be overpowered by a gang of ships if you don't stay alert. |
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| *Large: Any ship
| | ===The beacon=== |
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| When you initially warp to any plex other than the large sized variant, you will encounter an acceleration gate. Only the appropriate sized ship will be able to activate the gate and enter the plex itself. Large plex have no gate and allow any ship to enter. | | When you activate the acceleration gate and “slide” into a Novice, Small or Medium plex, you arrive within 2.5 km of a "beacon" in space. This beacon should be visible on your overview as you land. If not, adjust your overview settings to display all brackets (items in space): the beacon's placement is key. |
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| The reason these arenas are so important for PvP is that:
| | ''Any'' ship entering the plex will also next to this beacon; there is no way to warp in at range. |
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| *They provide a fixed point in deadspace for people to fight at
| | This mechanic means that once you are inside a plex, you know almost exactly where an enemy ship will enter. Likewise, when entering an occupied plex, the opponent(s) within will have positioned themselves knowing where you will appear. The occupant of the plex always has this tactical advantage in initial positioning. |
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| *The size limitations mean that you can, to a limited extent, control the fights you take, and ensure that when looking for a fight in, say, a frigate, you are not immediately jumped on by a T2 Cruiser for instance. This is a key reason why most Low Sec PvP is done in frigates which can fit into any plex.
| | === Deadspace === |
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| NOTE: The gate limits ship sizes, however it does NOT limit the number of ships entering the plex. You can still be overpowered by a gang or fleet of ships if you are not aware and careful.
| | FW plexes are [[deadspace]]. You cannot warp to a fleetmate who is over 150 km from you inside a FW plex. Nor can you warp to a wreck or to a tactical bookmark that is over 150 km away from you. A fleet mate who warps to you when you are inside a plex will land from warp ''outside'' the plex, at the acceleration gate. |
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| ====The Beacon====
| | As a result, it is sometimes possible to string out and separate a group within a plex. |
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| When you initially activate an acceleration gate and “slide” into the plex, you will arrive within around 2.5km of a “beacon” in space. This beacon should be visible on your overview as you land. If not, adjust your overview settings to display all brackets (items in space), as the location of the beacon is a key factor in plex combat.
| | === D-Scanning for fights === |
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| Any ship entering the plex will also next to this beacon – there is no way to warp in at range. The exception is large-sized plex, which have no acceleration gate, and therefore can be warped to at range as with any normal cosmic object
| | A lot of PvP happens before you land on grid, and revolves around picking fights and having tactics in place before you start. For this, you need intel. |
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| The beacon is key to fighting in a plex, as it means that when inside a plex, you know almost exactly where an enemy ship will enter. Likewise, when entering a plex where an opponent is already within, they will have positioned themselves knowing where you will appear. This always gives a slight advantage when fighting to the ship which is already inside the plex, and a large part of the various strategies for frighting in a plex is based around this mechanic. | | The most basic form of intel you need is whether a plex contains a ship already, and if so, what kind. Or, if you are already inside, what ships are coming your way. The tool for this will be your Directional Scanner, or D-Scan. |
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| ====Warp Blocking====
| | The Wiki [[Directional Scanner Guide]] is already an excellent and detailed resource on using this tool and should be read in detail. For scanning use in and around plexes in particular: |
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| The other thing to note is that you cannot warp within a plex. While normally if an object is 150km away from you, but still on grid you can warp to it, within a plex you will get an error message. If your scout, or fast tackler chases a fast ship 150km away from you within the plex, there is no way to catch up to him without following him with sub-warp engines.
| | # When scanning plexes from outside, keep your D-Scan set at a 5 degree angle, and max range, and hold down your D-Scan hotkey (by default “V”) then click on the plex within your overview to quickly and efficiently scan each one |
| | | # D-Scan will not tell you if a ship is actually inside a plex, or outside, next to the gate. If you see a ship on D-Scan which is too large for the plex, they are sat outside the gate, and may be trying to catch ships entering |
| This makes sniping, and kiting ships very effective at defending plex, although they are also much less effective when attacking a plex.
| | # When inside a plex, set your D-Scan to 360 degrees, and 1AU range, and ensure you are scanning regularly to detect anyone landing on the acceleration gate who may be about to enter. Switch to a longer range now and then to check what is happening elsewhere. |
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| ==D-Scanning for fights==
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| Much of PvP is about picking your fights, and having a clear strategy in place before you engage. For this, you need intel.
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| The most basic form of intel you will need is to determine if a plex contains a ship already, and if so, what kind of ship. Or if you are already inside a plex, what ships are coming your way, and might try to enter your plex to attack you. The tool for this will be your Directional Scanner, or D-Scan.
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| The Wiki [[Directional Scanner Guide]] is already an excellent and detailed resource on using this tool and should be read in detail, however the following is a brief overview of the important aspects for plex scanning:
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| *When scanning plex, keep your D-Scan set at a 5 degree angle, and max range, and hold down your D-Scan hotkey (by default “V”) then click on the plex within your overview to quickly and efficiently scan each plex
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| *Note that the D-Scan will not tell you if a ship is actually inside a plex, or outside, next to the acceleration gate. If you see a ship on D-Scan which is too large for the plex you are scanning, they are likely sat on the acceleration gate outside, and may be trying to catch ships entering
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| *When inside a plex, set your D-Scan to 360 degrees, and 1AU range, and ensure you are scanning regularly to detect anyone landing on the acceleration gate who may be about to enter. You may want to occasionally switch to a longer range as well just to check what is happening elsewhere in the system.
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| =Solo/Gang PvP Ships= | | =Solo/Gang PvP Ships= |
