Command Bursts

Related Information

Fleet Leadership

Skills:Leadership

Fleet Doctrine for the Ivy League Navy

Warfare Links: Introduction

Warfare Links are ship modules that provide specific bonuses to a fleet or wing that add to the combat or mining effectiveness of all fleet / wing members. The item description for all Warfare Links states, "Warfare links are dedicated fleet command systems designed for use on battlecruisers and advanced command class ships. While only one of these units can normally be operated at any given time, certain advanced units allow the use of multiple systems." As noted, Warfare Links can be fit only on certain ships, and operating a warfare link requires training of advanced leadership skills. Please refer to the Skills:Leadership and Fleet Leadership guides for more detailed information about those related topics.

Gang Assist Modules

In the Eve markets, Warfare Links are found under the name "Gang Assist Modules" in the Ship Equipment category. The individual modules are known as "Warfare Links."

Gang assist modules are high slot, active modules that emit a fleet-wide bonus to one or more attributes for as long as they are active. The pilot operating the warfare link(s) only provide Warfare Link bonuses to other fleet members when:

1. he has the Booster role;
2. the fleet chain of command is complete;
3. the pilot providing boosts and the required fleet command structure are in the same system; and
4. the pilot providing boosts is not in warp (Warfare Links do not operate while the ship is in warp).

Warfare Links are classified by the five leadership skill categories required to operate them. The actual Warfare Link module names all begin with "X Warfare Link," as shown below. A module's base bonus level is referred to as its Command Bonus. While the Command Bonus of any warfare link appears to be rather small, these are significantly multiplied by skills, select ships, and Slot 10 implants known as "Mindlinks.". See Warfare links#Command Bonus Multipliers for additional information on how Command Bonuses work in practice.

As of January 2012, Warfare Links became available in both Tech 1 and Tech 2 versions. The key skill prerequisite for the Tech 2 links is {Type of Link} Warfare Specialist V (e.g., Armored Warfare Specialist V) as opposed to lower levels of training for that skill. Tech 2 Warfare Links provide greater Command Bonuses but require additional power grid and CPU for fitting purposes.

Armored Warfare Links

Provide bonuses to support armor-based defense of the fleet, including remote armor repair. The base Command Bonuses for the T1 and T2 modules are -2% / -2.5%, respectively. For Armored Warfare Links, the command bonuses show as negative because they improve resists, increase repair speed, or lower capacitor need. The item descriptions for these modules state:

• Damage Control -- Reduces the capacitor need of the fleet's personal and targeted armor repair systems.
• Passive Defense -- Grants a bonus to the fleet's armor resistances.
• Rapid Repair -- Increases the speed of the fleet's personal and targeted armor repair systems.
  
  

Information Warfare Links

Provide bonuses to improve the effectiveness of e-war and sensor strength of the fleet. The item descriptions for the Information Warfare Link modules state:

• Electronic Superiority: Boosts the strength of the fleet's electronic warfare modules.
• Recon Operation: Boosts the range of the fleet's electronic warfare modules.
• Sensor Integrity: Boosts sensor strengths for all of the fleet's ships.

The base Command Bonuses for the Tech 1 and Tech 2 version of each module type are:

A. Electronic Superiority (to module strength):

• Target Painting 2% / 2.5%
  
• ECM 2% / 2.5%
  
• Tracking Disruption 1.2% / 1.5%
  
• Remote Sensor Dampening 1.2% / 1.5%
  

B. Recon Operation (to module range) 2% / 2.5%

C. Sensor Integrity (to sensor strength) 3% / 3.75%

Siege Warfare Links

Provide bonuses to improve shield-based defenses of the fleet, including remote shield repair. For Siege Warfare Links, the command bonuses show as negative because they improve resists, increase repair speed, or lower capacitor need. The item descriptions for the Siege Warfare Link modules state:

• Active Shielding: Increases the speed of the fleet's shield boosters and decreases the duration of shield transporters.
• Shield Efficiency: Reduces the capacitor need of the fleet's shield boosters and shield transporters.
• Shield Harmonizing: Boosts all shield resistances for the fleet's ships.

The base Command Bonuses for the Tech 1 and Tech 2 versions of each module type are -2% and -2.5%, respectively.

Skirmish Warfare Links

Provide bonuses to a fleet's speed, speed tanking, and tackling capabilities. The item descriptions for these modules state:

• Evasive Maneuvers: Lowers the signature radius of ships in the fleet.
• Interdiction Maneuvers: Boosts the range of the fleet's propulsion jamming modules, except for Warp Disruption Field Generators.
• Rapid Deployment: Increases the speed of the fleet's afterburner and microwarpdrive modules.

The base Command Bonuses for the Tech 1 and Tech 2 versions of each module type are:

• Evasive Maneuvers -2% / -2.5%
• Interdiction Maneuvers 3% / 3.75%
• Rapid Deployment 2% / 2.5%
  
  

Mining Foreman Links

Provide bonuses to mining activity. The item descriptions for these modules state:

• Harvester Capacitor Efficiency - Decreases the capacitor need of mining lasers, gas harvesters and ice harvesters.
• Laser Optimization - Decreases mining laser, gas harvester and ice harvester duration.
• Mining Laser Field Enhancement - Increases the range of the fleet's mining lasers, gas harvesters and ice harvesters.

The base Command Bonuses for the Tech 1 and Tech 2 versions of each module type are:

• Harvestor Capacitor Efficiency -2% / -2.5%
• Laser Optimization -2% / -2.5%
• Mining Laser Field Enhancement 4.5% / 5.625%
  
  

Ships and Fitting

Warfare Link modules can only be fit on Battlecruisers (Tiers 1 and 2 only), Command Ships, Industrial Command Ships, Capital Industrial Ships, Carriers, Motherships, and Titans. This is enforced by all gang modules requiring 5000 CPU to fit; however, those ships listed previously have the role bonus "99% reduction in Warfare Link module CPU need." Therefore, a Warfare Link only requires 50 CPU (55 CPU for T2 mods) on one of these ships. Any of these ships can fit as many as they are able, but there are restrictions on how many a pilot can activate at once.

• Strategic Cruisers - 1 active Warfare Link
• Battlecruisers - 1 active Warfare Link
• Field Command Ships - 1 active Warfare Link
• Fleet Command Ships - 3 active Warfare Links
• Industrial Command Ship - 3 active Warfare Links
• Capital Industrial - 3 active Warfare Links
• Carriers - 1 active Warfare Link
• Motherships - 1 active Warfare Link plus 1 per level of the Carrier skill.
• Titans - 1 active Warfare Link plus 1 per level of the Titan skill.

Note: Strategic Cruisers can only operate a Warfare Link when configured with the Defensive Subsystem - Warfare Processor subsystem.

Any of these ships may fit a Command Processor I (mid slot module) which, when fit, allows the ship to activate one additional Warfare Link. In fact, as long as the ship has sufficient CPU, a pilot can fit as many Command Processors as he wishes and activate that many additional gang modules at once. Typically, one or more co-processor modules will be required to fit multiple Command Processors on a ship. Using a Command Processor also requires the skill Warfare Link Specialist V.

Select ships among this eligible ship group provide additional bonuses to Warfare Links. These are discussed in the next section.

Command Bonus Multipliers

As noted previously, the base Command Bonus of any Warfare Link appears to be insignificant. By itself, it is. Typically, Command Bonuses are multipled by the boosting pilot's skills, his ship bonuses, and one of his implants. This section demonstrates the potentially powerful effects of Warfare Links when bonuses are compounded in this manner.

The Math of Warfare Link Bonuses

Four different bonuses are incorporated into the total bonus provided by a Warfare Link (or group of Warfare Links). These are the Specialist skill Bonus, the Warfare Link Specialist skill bonus, the Ship bonus for certain ships, and the Mindlink implant bonus.

These bonuses are multiplicative, not additive, so the formula for the total fleet boost is:

Bonus = Specialist Skill bonus * Warfare Link Specialist bonus * Ship bonus * Mindlink bonus

An example of the bonus calculation is woven into the bonus descriptions below.

Specialist Skill Bonus

Two advanced leadership skills (known as "specialist" skills) significantly impact the bonuses provided by any Warfare Link. The first is the level of training for the related link itself (e.g., Siege Warfare Specialist). The other related skill is Warfare Link Specialist. Throughout this section, the Siege (shield) bonuses using a T2 Warfare Link and all Level V skills are calculated for illustrative purposes. To determine the actual bonuses of any one pilot, substitute the appropriate bonuses for themodule used and his skills into the formulas provided here.

The Siege Warfare Specialist states that it gives a "100% bonus to effectiveness of siege warfare link modules per level". The module requires level 1 of this specialist skill to fit it at all, and with that level 1 the module only provides the -2.0% Command Bonus (T2 module not available to this pilot). At level 2 the skill would give 200% of that base 2% effect, making for and actual -4% Command Bonus. The actual formula becomes obvious:

Actual Command Bonus = Base Command Bonus * Level of Specialist skill.

A pilot with Siege Warfare Specialist V using a Tech 2 Siege Warfare Link would therefore provide an actual Command Bonus of:

Bonus = -2.5% * 5 = -12.5%

Remember that siege bonuses are negative. Other specialist skill bonuses will be positive.

Warfare Link Specialist Skill Bonus

The Warfare Link Specialist skill "boosts effectiveness of all warfare link and mining foreman modules by 10% per level." This is added as a percentage of the initial Command Bonus, as calculated above. A pilot with Warfare Link Specialist V receives a 50% increase. The updated bonus result is:

Bonus = Actual Specialist Skill Bonus * (1+Percent of Warfare Link Specialist Bonus), which in this example is:

Bonus = -12.5% * 1.5 or -18.75%

Special Ship Bonuses

Field Command Ships give a 3% bonus per level of Command Ship to increase gang modules appropriate to its race. The Rorqual gives a 5% bonus per level of Capital Industrial Ships to increase Mining Foreman Links. Strategic Cruisers give a 5% bonus per level of Defensive Subsystem skill to increase gang modules appropriate to its race, but only when fitting the Warfare Processor Subsystem.

Amarr

• Damnation: 3% bonus to effectiveness of Armored Warfare Links per level
• Legion: 5% bonus to effectiveness of Armored Warfare Links per subsystem skill level
  
  

Caldari

• Vulture: 3% bonus to effectiveness of Siege Warfare Links per level
• Tengu: 5% bonus to effectiveness of Siege Warfare Links per subsystem skill level
  
  

Gallente

• Eos: 3% bonus to effectiveness of Information Warfare Links per level
• Proteus: 5% bonus to effectiveness of Information Warfare Links per subsystem skill level
  
  

Minmatar

• Claymore: 3% bonus to effectiveness of Skirmish Warfare Links per level
• Loki: 5% bonus to effectiveness of Skirmish Warfare Links per subsystem skill level
  
  

ORE

• Orca: 3% bonus to effectiveness of Mining Foreman Links per level
• Rorqual: 5% bonus to effectiveness of Mining Foreman Links per level when in deployed mode
  
  

Ship Bonus Example

We can see from the example above that the Actual Command bonus from Siege Warfare Links due to max pilot skills is -18.75%. Adding the ship bonus, which is multiplicative, is straightforward. The fleet command ship that provides bonuses to Siege Warfare Links is a Vulture, which boosts by 3% per level. The updated bonus formula now becomes:

Actual Bonus = Total Bonus Due to Skills * (1+Ship Bonus), which in this example equals:

Bonus = -18.75% * 1.15 or -21.5625%

Please note that this bonus would be higher if a Tech 3 ship, the Tengu, is used instead of a Vulture in the example. The key boosting benefit of a Vulture is it allows for all three Siege Warfare Links to be fit, activated, and bonused without the need for fitting Command Processors. The actual "ideal" ship choice used for fleet boosting therefore depends on the circumstances of the expected battle and on fleet composition.

Mindlink Bonus

The last increase that can be applied to this bonus is achieved by the boosting pilot plugging in a Mindlink, a slot 10 implant that requires Cybernetics V to use. There are five possible Mindlinks, one for each category of Gang Modules (Armor, Information, Siege, Skirmish, and Mining). Only one Mindlink can be applied per clone, as they all use the same slot.

A Mindlink provides two significant bonuses. The first is unrelated to calculating the Warfare Link bonus formula, but it is still extremely powerful. The first Mndlink bonus increases the effect of the related tier 1 skill by 50%. In other words, a Siege Warfare Mindlink replaces the 10% bonus to the fleet's shield capacity normally provided by the booster having Siege Warfare V and increases this bonus to 15%.

Mindlinks also increase their related gang modules Command Bonuses by 50%. In the example used throughout this section, the Total Siege Warfare Bonus to all modules becomes:

Total Siege Bonus = (Bonus from Skills and Ships) * (1 + Mindlink Bonus), which is
Total Siege Bonus = -21.5625% * 1.5 or -32.34% (rounded)

Total Command Bonus

Note that this Total Command Bonus from the Siege Warfare Links bonus is very significant. When applying the -32.34% bonus from the Tech 2 Shield Harmonizing module, for example, the benefit is greater than adding an extra Invulnerability Field II to every member of the fleet! Since this resistance bonus is applied as if it were another module fit on each ship, normal stacking penalties apply -- so a savvy fleet commander may choose to ask his fleet to each eliminate one Invulnerability Field II and fit another module in its place.