Timers
A brief overview about the basics of timers and their impact on capsuleers in empire space.
Timers
Session Change Timer (SCT)
The SCT is a 30 second timer the game starts after performing one of the following things ingame:
- jumping through a stargate
- docking/undocking
- joining a fleet or getting moved to a different position within that fleet
- upon booster/role changes applied to you in that fleet
- changing ships in a station and leaving your ship in a station
- ejecting from your ship
- performing a clone jump
- getting podded
- when your ship is destroyed in combat
While the SCT is active it prevents you from using stargates, docking or doing anything of the above.
To keep track of your SCT, hit "ESC", select "General Settings" and check the "Show Session-Change timer" in the upper left corner of the menu. The SCT will now be displayed in the top left corner of your screen. The exact time remaining will be displayed upon mouse-over.
File:Sctm.jpg >>>
Example: You are in a fleet and get moved to another Squad, the SCT triggered prevents you from docking up or using stargates for the next 30 seconds.
SCT and invulnerability
The game grants you a protection after undocking. If you do not activate any modules, or target anyone, or move your ship in any direction after undocking you cannot be locked/fired upon for 30 seconds. This can be used to wait out your SCT and redock.
Example: You undock and spot hostiles around the station, you hit "ctrl-space" to stop your ship and prevent it from drifting outsdide of docking range of the station. You wait out your SCT while being invulnerable. You dock up again.
Important note: There are certain stations that will eject you (kickout) outside of docking range and prevent you from using this tactic without reaproaching the stations docking radius. A prominent model would be the EVE-University HQ at Aldrat IX – Pator Tech School.
SCT and cloak
The other form of protection granted is the cloak after using a stargate. When jumping through you will stay cloaked for 60 seconds unless you move or activate any modules. Once again allowing to wait out your SCT and reapproach the gate to jump back through it. However, you will be several (up to 15) kilometers away from the gate when you enter the system, and since you instantly de-cloak the moment you begin moving, you need to have a VERY fast ship to be able to jump back through the gate before completely de-cloaking.
Example: You jump through a gate and spot hostiles upon system entry. You stay cloaked and let your SCT expire, and then reapproach the gate as fast as you can and try to jump back through before being fired on.
Aggression Timer (AT)
This 60 second timer is triggered on performing any acts that the game deems as aggressive:
- shooting a player/npc or a wreck/can belonging to someone
- attacking a target with your drones (can be initiated "passively" by drones set to aggressive)
- using any form of electronic warfare on the target
While the AT is active it prevents you from using a stargate or docking. This timer has no visual ingame.
Example: You are traveling low-sec and get agressed by a player at a gate. If you do not return fire you will be able to use the stargate, while the hostile has to wait out his 60 second AT.
Example: You undock and aggress a player outside of the station, you are now unable to dock for 60 seconds after deaggressing the target.
Countdowns
Aggression Countdown (AC)
This 15 minute countdown will enable the involved entities to shoot at you without repercussions. The timer starts/resets when the last aggressive act is commited. It is very common and triggered by:
- shooting npc ships (pretty much irrelevant but most common)
- stealing loot from a wreck or (jet)can of another player
You can mouseover the countdown (top left corner) to see who you are flagged to. This countdown will not prevent you from docking or using stargates.
Important note: This timer will also be applied to you after commencing aggressive acts near stargates or stations belonging to npc corporations. It will be reset everytime you are seen by these gates/stations sentry guns.
This ties into having a Global Criminal Countdown, docking up to wait it out, undocking without the GCC and getting shot by the stations sentry guns due to the following: Some stations let you dock so fast (instant) that the sentries have seen you and initiated a countdown upon you but the fast dock will make it invisible. This is an acknowledged bug.
Global Criminal Countdown (GCC)
This 15 minute timer is applied upon committing criminal acts that are against the concord law.
The timer starts/resets when the last aggressive act is committed. Anything that shows this window in 0.5-1.0 security space, and would get you killed by Concord there, will trigger the timer in 0.1-0.4 security space without Concord intervention.
While having the GCC active you go "flashy" on the overview, are free game for any other players and will be flagged in local chat by this 
icon.
You will also be shot at by all stargate/station sentry guns, or Concord if entering high security space again. The GCC will reset everytime you are spotted by a stations or stargates sentry guns.
If the opponent does not aggress back, he will acquire kill rights for 1 month against anyone who got a GCC to initiate aggression.
You can get an Aggression Countdown or Global Criminal Countdown applied to you by aiding a player that has one active. His specific countdown will get shared with you, with all rules that it involved/triggered.
Example: You aid an outlaw and thus get aggression flagged to everyone.
Example: You aid a player that is at war and thus get aggression flagged to anyone that is at war with that player.
Miscellaneous Timers/Countdowns
Logout Timer
When logging out in space, your ship (if not warp-disrupted/scrambled) will warp off to a random location and remain there for 1 minute until disappearing.
This timer will extend to 2 minutes if you were involved in combat with npc ships.
It will get extended to 15 minutes if you were involved in pvp, be it you being aggressive or being aggressed by someone. Should your ship be destroyed during this time, another 15 minute timer applying to your pod will start.
Wormhole Timer
You can make a maximum of 2 jumps through a wormhole in 4 minutes. If you try to jump a third time through the same wormhole inside those 4 minutes, you will receive a message informing you how long you have to wait before you can jump again.
Trade Modification Timer
When you place or modify a buy or sell order in the market, you will not be allowed to modify that order or delete that order until 5 minutes have elapsed.
Corporation Roles & Titles Timer
If you have roles or titles assigned to your character in a corporation, you cannot leave the corporation until a 24-hour timer has expired after you have dropped the roles and titles.
Character Termination Timer
If you choose to terminate one of the characters owned by your account, it will enter the recycling queue for a 10 hour waiting period. When the 10 hour timer expires, you can complete the termination of the character and re-use the slot for a new character.
