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=== What are Incursions? ===
=== What are Incursions? ===
Incursions are a random PvE event in EVE. The Sansha's Nation invades a Constellation for up to 7 days with mysterious goals. We as Capsuleers can slow or even stop an invasion by taking on the Sansha ships while they work. If we do enough damage to the Sansha one of their Motherships becomes vulnerable, and the invasion is stopped when we blow it up...
Incursions are a random PvE event in EVE. The Sansha's Nation invades a Constellation for up to 7 days with mysterious goals. We as Capsuleers can slow or even stop an invasion by taking on the Sansha ships while they work. If we do enough damage to the Sansha one of their Motherships becomes vulnerable, and the invasion can be stopped by blowing it up...


In game terms Incursions are high level, group PvE content. They are similar to raids in other MMOs. Within any Incursion there are many sites of different sizes ranging from 10 pilot sites to the 80 pilot Mothership. In terms of skill, Incursions are really end-game content requiring at least 2-3 months of skill training before a pilot is ready. In general pilots fly Battleships, Tech II Logistic Ships, and Strategic Cruisers for Incursions.
In game terms Incursions are high level, group PvE content. They are similar to raids in other MMOs. Within any Incursion there are many sites of different sizes ranging from 10 pilot sites to the 80 pilot Mothership. In terms of skill, Incursions are really end-game content requiring at least 2-3 months of skill training before a pilot is ready. In general pilots fly Battleships, Tech II Logistic Ships, and Strategic Cruisers for Incursions.
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=== Incursion Mechanics ===
=== Incursion Mechanics ===
Unless you happen to be in an Incursion Constellation, the best tool for learning about Incursions is the Journal. So open that now. Navigate to the Incursions>Global Report tab. Here we have a list of all the current Incursion constellations. There are at most 7 active Incursions at once, split between 3 high-sec, 1 low-sec, and 3 null-sec constellations. Note that high-sec incursions can be in constellations that are on "islands" that require you to go through low-sec, and these are usually not touched. A new Incursion of the same type spawns 36-48 hours after one ends. Incursions end when the Mothership site is cleared or after 7 days, whichever comes first.
Unless you happen to currently be in an Incursion Constellation the best tool for learning about Incursion is the Journal. Open that now and navigate to the Incursions > Global report tab. This tab lists all of the current incursions in New Eden. There can be up to 7 active incursions at any one time and they are divided into a max of 3 high-sec, 1 low-sec, and 3 null-sec constellations. It is possible for one or more of the high-sec incursions to spawn in a high-sec 'island' constellation that is not accessible without traveling through low-sec which usually results in the constellation being left to disappear naturally. Incursions end when either the mother ship is killed or after 7 days when it will naturally disappear.


When an Incursion spawns in a constellation it drastically changes the space. But it doesn't affect each system in the constellation identically. Nor do all the site behave in the same way. First I will talk about the general effects of an Incursion then get into the details of each site type. There are 5 types of Incursion sites. Each system in a Constellation will have only one of these site types. And there will be at least one system in each Constellation of each site type. The layouts can be found on EVE Survival. Also, there is a constellation wide chat channel for forming fleets. (It opens when you enter the constellation.  
Not all constellations are capable of supporting an incursion ''(Check min number of systems required, think 6)'' and some such as the ones containing major trade hubs are deliberately removed from the list of potential locations by CCP.


There are 4 different penalties in an Incursion Constellation that are either always in effect or vary depending on the Red/Blue Influence Bar shown either in your Journal or in the Incursion Profile section on the top-left of the HUD. The penalties affect cyno-field jamming (not used in high-sec, but always in effect), 50% reduction in bounties for killing NPC rats (Incursion site rats have no bounties), shield and armor resistances (at 100% influence it is a 10% reduction in Vanguard systems, 25% in Assaults, and 50% in Headquarters), and gun/drone damage reduction (same criteria as the resist penalty).
=== Effects of being in an incursion constellation ===
When an incursion spawns the constellation that it takes over is drastically altered by the imposition of four different penalties in all systems making up the constellation. All penalties are present in all systems, although some of them vary in strength depending on the type of incursion presence in the system. The four effects are:


Also, if you ever try to mine in Incursion constellations, the normal NPC rats are replaced by Sansha Incursion rats, which are much stronger. Mission and exploration rats remain the same but if you remain in a pocket too long more rats will spawn and these will be changed to Sansha rats too. If you go through a low or null-sec Incusrion Constellation, you will not only have to worry about player gatecamps, but Sansha ones as well.
* System-wide cynosural field jammers in effect
** Makes it impossible to light a cyno anywhere in the constellation
** Obviously irrelevant in high-sec, can potentially be a serious problem in low or null-sec
** ''(Unsure if covert cyno fields are affected, would expect them to not be)''
** This penalty is always in effect and does not vary in strength


Incursion Sites appear as warpable beacons like DED sites, and all have an acceleration gate except for those in Scout systems. Each system in a Constellation will have only one of these site types. Unlike in missions where there is loot and bounties, all wrecks have no loot and there are no bounties. Payout is a fixed amount based on the number of players in a fleet and is divided equally (except for scout sites). CONCORD LP is also rewarded for each site completed, however this is not immediate. Instead it goes into a pool in the Journal>Incursions>Loyalty Point Log. (Also seen in the Journal>Incursions>Global Report.) These are not paid out until the mothership for the Incursion is killed. If the Incursion withdraws naturally no LP is payed out. CONCORD LP can be converted to other non-pirate NPC Corporation LP at 0.8:1 (0.4:1 for SoE). Open the LP store of the station you are in. There is a Convert LP button in the top right corner of that window. If you have CONCORD LP you can use that to convert it to that station's LP. Note that this is a one way conversion so don't do it until you know what you want to buy.Sometimes there is another objective which can be inferred from the information in your Journal>Incursions>Encounters tab. If there is more than one fleet in the same site, then whichever fleet does the most raw damage (so armor/hull damage) gets the entire payout, and the other fleet/player gets nothing. Most people D-Scan the gate to see if it is taken and note the other fleet(s) composition and to gain the info from the NPC wrecks to determine if they should contest.
* Financial systems compromised. 50% reduction in CONCORD bounties
** Makes it not worth running missions in the constellation
** This penalty is always in effect and does not vary in strength


The payout will be higher in low/null-sec sites, and only applies to the players in the fleet who are "on-grid". This means a scout or off-grid booster gets no direct payout. Communities who use these roles encourage the players who receive direct payouts to share a portion of their ISK rewards with these players to make it worth the time spent. Payouts and LP rewards also are reduced if there are more than the maximum number of players that a site is designed for (Vanguards is 10, Assaults is 20, Headquarters 40, and the Mothership Site is 50). However, having 1 extra player on-grid has been found to be faster and makes up for the less overall payout per site.
* Vessel integrity compromised. All shield and armor resistances reduced.
** Level of penalty depends on system type, 10% in Vanguard systems, 25% in Assault systems, 50% in HQ systems
** Penalty is applied as increase in vulnerability to damage in the same manner that resistance modules work
** Practical results of penalty are minimal in vanguard systems and significant enough to warrant fitting changes in Headquarters systems
** The strength of this penalty varies with the amount of control the Sansha forces have over the constellation and is entirely negated when they have no influence


Scout sites do not need logistics and none of the rats warp scramble so you can warp out at anytime. Testing has shown that these sites are usually not worth doing, although using them to test firs (especially T3s) may be feasible. Vanguard sites are the main sites we run in our E-UNI fleets, because we can usually get enough players and they are fairly straight-forward and easier for logistic pilots. They consist of 9 damage-dealers and 2 logistics, although can be run with 7-8 damage-dealers. They feature a lot of frigates and cruisers. Assault sites are not as popular as Vanguard or Headquarter sites because they take longer to complete, and one specific type of site requires Battlecruisers or Tech 3 Cruisers which are harder to find pilots for. Headquarter sites are the most popular but are contested more often and require greatly different fits than those used in Vanguards and even Assaults. Mothership sites only appear in the HQ system once the Influence is down to 0% and once these sites are cleared the Incursion is complete. All beacons will disappear but can be bookmarked beforehand and the sites can be run for ISK payout only. The mothership is the only rat that drops loot but it is very valuable (True Sansha modules and BPCs for faction ships).
* Capsule interference detected. Turret, launcher, drone and smartbomb damage reduced.
** Level of penalty again depends on system type, as do practical effects (no refitting required though)
** The strength of this penalty varies with the amount of control the Sansha forces have over the constellation and is entirely negated when they have no influence.
 
In an actively run high-sec incursion the Sansha influence will usually be ground down to zero in a matter hours after it spawns. There is also a special constellation-wide incursion chat that you will automatically join when in the constellation.
 
An active incursion also causes all naturally-spawning rats to be replaced by sansha rats which are significantly tougher and easily capable of destroying mining barges and other lightly tanked ships. Mission-spawned rats are not replaced however if you linger in a cleaned out mission pocket long enough it is possible for non-mission rats to spawn and these will be replaced by the Sansha incursion rats. In low and null-sec incursions the sansha will also setup gatecamps, similar to how groups of ordinary rats will sometimes spawn on gates there, but much more common. These incursion gatecamps will also include rats that can warp scramble you, making even ordinary travel very dangerous.
 
I have previously discussed there being different types of incursion presence and am now going to explain each of the different types. There are four types of incursion types of incursion presence that can be found in a constellation and all constellation will have at least one system containing each type. The types of presence are:
 
* Sansha Staging
** Only present in one system
** Generates scout sites which can be completed solo
** Possibly worth running if you want to test a fit
** Not worth running for the rewards, you're better off doing missions
** No rats that spawn in these sites will warp scramble you
 
* Sansha Vanguard
** Present in no less than three systems in the constellation
** Generates vanguard sites that require logistics supported fleets of up to 10-11 people to complete
** Very popular with many different communities running these types of sites
** The E-Uni incursion community will most often be running these type of sites
 
* Sansha assault
** Present in no less than one system in the constellation
** Generates assault sites that require logistics supported fleets of 15-21 people to complete
** Least popular of all site types due to one specific mechanic in one sites requiring the use of Strategic Cruisers or T1 battlecruisers to complete the site
 
* Sansha headquarters
** Present in only one system in the constellation
** Generated headquarters sites that require logistics supported fleets of 35-40 people to complete
** Very popular with several communities running 23/7 fleets that do these sites exclusively
** The mothership site will also spawn in this system once the Sahsha influence has been reduced to 0% and at least 1 Headquarters site has been completed.
 
The mothership site requires between 50-80 pilots to complete and successfully doing so ends the incursion, paying out all accumulated LP that people have been awarded for running sites. This site is also the only site in which any of the rats can drop loot, and the mothership is guaranteed to drop several true sansha modules and blueprints for sansha faction ships, and the low-sec specific version of the mothership site is the only place in the game where it is possible to obtain a [http://wiki.eveuniversity.org/Revenant Revenant] BPC.
 
The number and location of each type of presence in a constellation are fixed and will be identical each time an incursion spawns in the constellation. The layouts can be found on [[http://http://eve-survival.org/wikka.php?wakka=IncursionConstelationLayout Eve-Survival]]
 
=== How incursion sites work ===
Incursion sites appear as warpable beacons, like DED sites, and all except for scout sites have acceleration gates. All rats present in incursion sites have no bounties and drop no loot, however they will give security status increases for killing them. Salvaging the wrecks is also not profitable and will in fact slow down the rate at which sites respawn, since a completed site will not disappear until all ships have left it.
 
The rewards from running incursions are obtained by completing sites, each completed site rewards each person who is both in the fleet that does the most damage to the sansha and on grid in the site with a fixed amount of both isk and CONCORD LP. While the isk is payed straight into each fleet member's walle the LP is accumulated in a pool which is only paid out upon successful completion of the incursion's mothership site by some fleet, you still get the LP paid out even if you are not part of the fleet that completed the mothership site. If the incursion withdraws naturally without the mothership being killed your accumulated LP will be lost. The amount of LP you have been paid out can be seen in the Agents>Loyalty Points tab alongside all other LP and the amount of LP you have sitting in the pool can be seen in the Incursions>Global report tab next to the incursion you have earned it in. The Incursions>Loyalty Point Log tab will show you a complete record of every single time you were awarded LP for completing an incursion site.
 
The amount of isk and LP that you get paid depends on both the type of site you are running and the number of people on grid in your fleet. The payout mechanic is setup to give the maximum payout to only certain fleet sizes, with steep drop-offs in payout for having more or fewer than the intended number of people. There is also an additional multiplier that depends on the security status of the space you are running the incursion in, high-sec payouts are lower (0.7x multiplier) than low and null-sec payouts (1.0x multiplier). The specific amounts of isk and LP you will be paid can be seen in the Incursions>Encounters tab of the Journal and despite there being individual entries for every specific site listed there the payout amounts and thresholds are identical for each class of sites. It is also common for fleets (not just E-Uni ones) to run with 1 extra person on grid than is allowed for getting the maximum payout, this is because it is generally felt that the gain in speed from having the extra person allows for more than enough extra sites to be completed in a given amount of time to outweigh the reduced payouts caused by having the extra person.
 
While the mechanics of incursion sites ensure that everyone who is on grid will be payed not everyone in the fleet is on grid when sites are completed. Any size of incursion fleet will require two or three people who are not on grid in order to run efficiently. These people are the Off-Grid Boosters (OGBs) and Scouts. Scouts are most commonly found in Vanguard fleets due to the number of other fleets that are generally running and the short completion times for sites requiring someone to be looking for the fleet's next site while they are still completing their current one. Off-Grid boosters are required in all types of fleets, although the number will vary with Vanguard fleets only requiring one and Headquarters fleets requiring two.
 
As these roles exclude the people performing them from being paid by the site most communities encourage the people who are on grid and getting paid by completing the site to share a portion of their earnings with the scout and OGBs to thank them for performing the role.
 
In wartime the E-Uni fleet has one extra role that does not get paid by the site mechanics, the picket. Their job is to provide continuous observation of all routes that war targets could use to try and get to the incursion fleet and provide advance warning to enable the fleet to safely leave their current site and dock up before the war targets can get to them. Public communities generally get around this problem by requiring you to not be at war in order to run with them although their are some communities that will still permit you to run on the condition that you will not receive reps from the fleet's logistics if any of your war targets show up.
 
CONCORD LP can be used in two different ways firstly, as with all other types of LP, in CONCORD LP stores and secondly by converting it into the LP of a different NPC corporation in order to use it at their LP store. This conversion is however done at a reduced rate of 0.8 NPC LP for every 1 CONCORD LP for most empire corporations, 0.4 NPC LP for every 1 CONCORD LP for Outer Ring Excavations (ORE) and the Sisters of EVE, and is completely unavailable for all pirate corporations. This conversion is one way only so be sure you want to buy something from another corporation's LP store before you convert your CONCORD LP.
 
As I previously mentioned only one fleet can get paid for completing an incursion site and if more than one fleet is in the site and killing the Sansha (this is called a contest) the payout will be given to the fleet that does the most raw damage (armor/hull damage). This means that the best tactics in a contest situation are significantly different from those used in a normal site, and there are some communities that will assemble fleets for the purpose of going in and contesting other fleets in order to maximize their isk and LP earning.
 
--
 
=== Required Ships & Skills ===
Getting started with incursions requires a significant investment in both training skills and purchasing and fitting a suitable ship. All 4 races have ship that can be flown successfully in Incursions however not all ships are suitable and each race has only a few ships (not necessarily T1 battleships) that can be suitably fitted for incursions without spending exorbitant amounts of isk on them. Not all races have suitable


=== Ships & Skills ===
All 4 races have ships that can be flown successfully in Incursions. However, there are only a small number of ships in each race, and not all have a Tech 1 Battleship that is suitable. Minmatar, Caldari, and Gallente have the Maelstrom, Rokh, and Hyperion, but Amarr needs either an Apocalypse or Armageddon Navy Issue. Minmatar & Gallente also have Faction Battlships options in the Tempest Fleet Issue and Megathron Navy Issue. For Logistics, the Minmatar Scimitar and Caldari Basilisk are the 2 used in E-UNI and other Shield Incursion communities. The Scimitar can provide Remote Tracking Links for the damage dealers to increase either tracking or range, while the Basilisks have more slots for Shield Repair modules but also require Capacitor Transfer modules so usually need another Basilisk in the fleet to "chain" with. For Vanguards, a ship with Hacking modules is needed for a specific site and a Heron is considered the best option. Note that hacking uses the old system and not the new mini-game system. Finally, the Claymore is the most common off-grid boosting ship.
All 4 races have ships that can be flown successfully in Incursions. However, there are only a small number of ships in each race, and not all have a Tech 1 Battleship that is suitable. Minmatar, Caldari, and Gallente have the Maelstrom, Rokh, and Hyperion, but Amarr needs either an Apocalypse or Armageddon Navy Issue. Minmatar & Gallente also have Faction Battlships options in the Tempest Fleet Issue and Megathron Navy Issue. For Logistics, the Minmatar Scimitar and Caldari Basilisk are the 2 used in E-UNI and other Shield Incursion communities. The Scimitar can provide Remote Tracking Links for the damage dealers to increase either tracking or range, while the Basilisks have more slots for Shield Repair modules but also require Capacitor Transfer modules so usually need another Basilisk in the fleet to "chain" with. For Vanguards, a ship with Hacking modules is needed for a specific site and a Heron is considered the best option. Note that hacking uses the old system and not the new mini-game system. Finally, the Claymore is the most common off-grid boosting ship.


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There are faction and deadspace modules that can improve the efficiency of your ship and even allow you to change the module layout, but these are usually expensive and can make your ship a target for gankers, although it is not common for one ganker to attack an entire Incursion fleet. Also, there are Hardwiring Implants that go in slots 6-10 that can also improve certain attributes. 3% implants are inexpensive, but 6% implants can be purchased from the CONCORD LP stores and are required for certain elite fits in shiny communities. Finally, there are at least 2 drug boosters you can consume depending on what ship you are flyinh, and the Synth versions are enough and will not cause any side-effects.
There are faction and deadspace modules that can improve the efficiency of your ship and even allow you to change the module layout, but these are usually expensive and can make your ship a target for gankers, although it is not common for one ganker to attack an entire Incursion fleet. Also, there are Hardwiring Implants that go in slots 6-10 that can also improve certain attributes. 3% implants are inexpensive, but 6% implants can be purchased from the CONCORD LP stores and are required for certain elite fits in shiny communities. Finally, there are at least 2 drug boosters you can consume depending on what ship you are flyinh, and the Synth versions are enough and will not cause any side-effects.
=== Life as an Incursion Runner ===
* Constantly moving
** Orca alt
* Main char versus new alt
** Pros and Cons