User:Paxte Eriker/Command Ships 101

Class Information

This is a syllabus for a class provided by EVE University. This section contains information about this class and its contents. General Information includes materials to create a proper class listing on the EVE University forum. Additional resources and teaching tips are listed under Notes for the Teacher.

General Information

Illustration link for class description on the Eve University forum:

This class provides a general overview of Command Ships - what they are, how to fly them, and how best to employ them in fleet.

This lecture is an ADVANCED COURSE STUDY for advanced EVE University pilots. Designed for future options as a combat command ship pilot, this course will introduce the basic premise behind skills, modules, and command ships, including general fitting guidelines and effective uses, as well as some discussion on equivalencies in other ships

• Duration: 90 minutes
• Location: Docked up safely in a station

Class contents:

• Command Ships Overview
• Required and Desired Skills
• Field Command Ships
• Fleet Command Ships
• Beyond the University
• Q&A

Student requirements:

• Mumble registration and access - make sure you have Mumble sorted out and operational well before the class begins. Use this guide for set-up: http://wiki.eveuniversity.org/Mumble
• Access to the Class.E-UNI in-game chat channel

Recommended experience and skills:

• Attended Introduction to Squadron Command or equivalent
• Battlecruisers IV
• Racial Frigate IV
• Leadership V
• Understanding of fleet boosting requirements
• Understanding of tanking principles

Additional information: This class is primarily lecture delivered in the Class.E-UNI or Lecture.E-UNI channel in Mumble, followed by Q&A.

Notes for the Teacher

Required materials:

• Class.E-UNI chat channel, to receive questions and post relevant links
• List any relevant links to teacher's references on the wiki or other resources, if needed
• The ability to fly command ships, or, at the very least, a solid understanding on applying them to fleet settings.
• A comprehension of fleet-boosting mathematics, though you may not cover them.

Teaching Guide

Introduction

Welcome to this class on Command Ships!

Over the 90 minutes or so, we shall cover the essential information you need to know about Command Ships - what they are, how to fly them, and how to use them in fleet effectively.

(Instructor should then introduce himself or herself - covering relevant experience level and background.)

We have a few ground rules for this class:

• Please put your Mumble settings on "Push to Talk" if you have not already done so.
• Feel free to type any questions in the Class.E-UNI chat channel as we proceed - I will try to answer your questions as they come during the class. [At the end of my lecture, we'll open Mumble for any further questions or general discussion.]
• You should be [docked up safely in a station

Everyone ready? OK, then - let's begin....

What is a Command Ship?

A command ship (CS) is a Tech 2 variant battlecruiser, upgraded and designed to fulfill certain roles within fleet operations. Each is a more advanced ship, boasting a larger CPU and power grid than its tech 1 counterpart. This advancement also affects defenses as well, giving them a distinct edge. For these additional aspects, you can expect to pay much more ISK for these ships, sometimes up to ten times that of a battlecruiser, before fittings.

For the cost, however, your ship is designed to change battlefield conditions. Some command ships change the action on-grid by adding additional firepower backed up by a stout defense. Others change the conditions of the battle for an entire solar system. Simply put, command ships make a difference in fleet combat. Because of this, command ships have a tendency to be primary targets in a fleet fight, before obvious first targets like tacklers, bubblers, logistics, and even strategic cruisers.

University Wartime Policy Notice

With recent changes to the Wartime SOP, Command Ships are now an allowed class of ship to fly during wartime, with the restriction that you know what you are doing when you fly one, and assume the responsibility if you should lose one. Make sure that when you choose to fly a Command Ship during wartime that the effect is worth the potential loss.

Now, discover why the University places such a restriction on these powerful, game-changing ships.

Command Ships and Skillsets

Flying command ships require a focused, intense skillset, combining the basic skills to fly the ship itself, skills to build an effective tank, mount tech 2 weapons, and, in the case of fleet command ships, the skills necessary and required to fit effective command links. Be aware that a properly-skilled pilot with these skills will take almost six months and over 100 million ISK just to train the minimum basic skills for this fit. This includes only the required skills to fly the ship and fit the modules. This does not include 'fitting' skills like Engineering, Electronics, and Energy Management, so even having the bare-minimum skills to fit the module will not guarantee actual fitting.

In addition to the physical skillbooks that you must train, there is the more important aspect of how to use them. Being a command pilot usually entails being in a position of authority, whether it be squadron commander for a small team to a fully-trained fleet commander of 255 other pilots. Knowing how each ship works, what they do, and how to beat them, enables you to be an effective command pilot.

There are two specified classes of command ships. The first is that of the field command ship. Field command ships are the definition of in-your-face style action. These ships boast bonuses to offense and defense, becoming powerful pieces on the board. The second is the series of fleet command ships. Fleet command ships effectively utilize command links, modules that in trained hands can have drastic effects on every ship in the fleet, at the usual expense of offensive capabilities. These ships are sometimes referred to as 'combat multipliers'.

Both classes of command ships have slightly different requisite skills in order to fly. These skills are representative of the natures of each ship. As a command ship pilot, you must have a firm understanding of the ships included in the skill tree for either class. Field command ships are descended from heavy assault ships, and are therefor combat ships at heart. Fleet command ships descend from logistic ships, so they are support vessels.

The basic skill trees, from the ship information windows, are as follows:

Field Command Skills

Command Ships I

• Battlecruisers V
  • Spaceship Command IV
• Warfare Link Specialist IV
  • Leadership V
• Spaceship Command V

(Racial) Cruiser V

• Spaceship Command III
• (Racial) Frigate IV
  • Spaceship Command I

Heavy Assault Ships IV

• Assault Ships IV
  • Spaceship Command III
  • Engineering V
  • Mechanic V
• Weapon Upgrades V
  • Gunnery II
• Spaceship Command V

Fleet Command Skills

Command Ships I

• Battlecruisers V
  • Spaceship Command IV
• Warfare Link Specialist IV
  • Leadership V
• Spaceship Command V

(Racial) Cruiser V

• Spaceship III
• (Racial) Frigate IV
  • Spaceship Command I

Logistics IV

• Spaceship Command III
• Signature Analysis V
  • Electronics I
• Long-Range Targeting V
  • Electronics II

Understand, the above skills are the absolute, bare minimums to simply sit in a command ship. These skills do not represent the amount of training required to properly fit these ships.

Noting the obvious, the two skills that make training for command ships so long are battlecruisers V and racial cruiser V. These skills, rank 6 and 5 accordingly, will take roughly 6 weeks alone, though the advancement of those skills will make life easier for you as you progress towards affording a command ship. Also, if you took the time to train and properly fly the prerequisite ships for this, when the time comes you may have a HAC or Logi ship you could trade in for a command ship. The rest of the skills are critical skills for other ships as well, which will make you a better pilot all around.

Command Ship Fitting

Fitting a command ship is something you should consider long before you sit in one. Each ship, for effective operation, should be fitted with tech 2 items in every high, medium, and low slot. The exceptions to this are:

• Issues with mechanical fitting issues (Powergrid, CPU, capacitor use), which should be compensated only with meta 4 items.
• Fleet command ship weapon systems
• Meta 4 fittings that are superior to tech 2 fittings (Target painters, ECM, etc)

Now, I’d love to go into specific fittings for you, but there are more fittings for these ships than I can count. Let’s be frank: if you haven’t learned how to properly fit a T2-fitted battlecruiser, you should consider that before you start into this path of study. Take the time and fit the ship properly.

Other Skills

Use your fitting program (EFT, etc) in order to get the best out of it. Use it to create a skill plan, one that is realistic and achievable. Do not set up an ‘All Level V’ fit just to find out that it would take you four years to make happen.

Skills that make these ships easier to fly are as follows:

• Energy Management V
• Weapon Upgrades V
• Advanced Weapon Upgrades IV (V preferred)
• Command Ships IV
• Wing Command III (Fleet command ships)
• Electronics V

As we have explored, these ships are very skill-intense. Most pilots won’t ever take the time necessary to operate this class of ships, considering the amount of time it will take away from whatever they are choosing to do. A few of us, however, will answer the call to command. If you hear the call, and wish to answer, strap in for a long, intense, and potentially rewarding experience.

Field Command Ships

Now, on to business. Let us first discuss the ship type that many core pilots will find easier to achieve. Field command ships are designed, by nature, to be battlefield powerhouses. Think about it for a second: Take a battlecruiser hull, increase the resistances, increase the range, increase the fitting slots, and then add a second skill-related bonus to the ship. You get a ship that naturally benefits from Battlecruisers V (since you have to have it anyhow), and then Command Ships. In the case of field command ships, your battlecruiser V ‘gimme’ bonuses are to both defense and offense, while your command ship bonuses are purely weapon-based, and these bonuses are not small.

What does all this mean? Field command ships are brutal, weapon-dealing platforms of death. In concert with a fleet, they take advantage of high resists and weapon damage, bringing a fight to the competition.
The upside to field command ships is the directness of the path. It’s combat, straight forward. Point, click, boom! Train T2 everything and this ship will take you far.

Field Command Ship Layouts

Amarr - Absolution

• Fitting: 7/3/7/2, 6 turret 1 missile
• Heavy Pulse Laser x6, buffer tanked
• Great with logi support
• Laser, Armor, Active
• Slots make for versatile fitting options

Caldari - Nighthawk

• Fitting: 7/5/5/2, 6 missile 1 turret
• Fits T2 Heavy Missile/Heavy Assault Missile
• Missile, Shield, Passive
• vs Drake, better defended at equivalent DPS
• 6 launchers to a Drake’s 7
• Regarded as an expensive Drake by many

Gallente - Astarte

• Fitting: 7/4/6/2, 7 turret
• PG effective for Heavy Blaster II's
• Hybrid, Shield, Buffer/Active
• 840 DPS, very close range w/MWD,
• Smaller, more expensive Megathron
• Requires logistical support for high-end DPS

Minmatar - Sleipnir

• Fitting: 8/5/5/2, 7 turret 3 missile
• 425mm Autocannons x 7, Neut
• Projectile, Shield, Active
• Good DPS with tackle, cap-free weapons
• Considered to be the strongest field command ship

Fleet Command Ships

If field command ships are akin to the sword, fleet command ships are without a doubt the shield. Fleet command ships, unlike the field command counterparts, are not meant to be deployed at 0 meters. They are, instead, something that maintains the absolute farthest range they can. That doesn’t necessarily mean they shy from combat, but that their role is not that of a front-line combatant. Due to the command link modules that these vessels can fit, fleets benefit from additional support, possibly from a ship that’s somewhere else in the solar system.

Compared to their battlecruiser bases, these ships are offensively inferior, though they do support some of the strongest defenses of any sub-capital ship. Instead, command links, sometimes referred to as warfare links, are the purpose of these command ships. Your command ships skill level directly affects boosting, so this should be at level IV.

Because of the nature of fleet command ships, you will be required to train one or more of the leadership warfare specialization skills. As you develop into a command ship pilot, understand that you initially will need to choose a race of ship to fly. This will dictate, for the most part, the specialization you would gain the most benefit from. If you already fly ships of one race, it may be best to follow the path you already have and train the specialization. If you are still yet undecided, then you may want to train the ship and fitting skills in accordance to the boost you want. The choice is yours to make:

• Amarr - Armored Warfare
• Caldari - Siege (shield) Warfare
• Gallente - Information Warfare
• Minmatar - Skirmish Warfare

On top of your specialization, you must determine the largest size of fleet you can boost, by training Wing or Fleet Command. This aspect of your training may take the longest if you wish to be capable of a full-sized fleet. While in the University, you may be called upon to boost such a fleet. Outside of the university, having the skills to command large fleets make you a very hirable pilot for any large corporation.

Even more so is the crowning achievement of a boosting pilot: the mindlink. This slot 10 implant improves boosting effectiveness by an additional 50%. It requires the affiliated specialization be trained to level 5, giving you the maximum base level of boosting, as well as Cybernetics V to install.

This specialization continues in the training of Warfare Link Specialist to V. This skill serves two purposes. The first, as described, is to increase the effective boosting of warfare links by 10% per level. I know at first this seems to be a very minor change, but when all other skills are at level V, this will add a full percent to effective boosting, 1.5% if mindlinked. Training this skill to level five is more important to fleet command pilots than training command ships to level five, as the time to train is less and the benefit greater. The second bonus is the ability to fit Command Processor modules, enabling your ship to have more than the normally-allowed active link count. More on this later.

I could go into arcane mathematics, but, in short, a properly skilled, properly fit, properly implanted command ship pilot can effectively make a fleet 50% stronger in the aspect it is being boosted in, whether defense, electronic warfare, or tackling.

Fleet Command Ship Layouts

Amarr - Damnation

• Fitting: 7/4/6/2, 5 missile 4 turret
• Focus: Armor Defense
• Missile, Armor, Active

Caldari - Vulture

• Fitting: 7/6/4/2, 5 missile 5 turret
• Focus: Shield Defense
• Hybrid, Shield, Passive

Gallente - Eos

• Fitting: 7/4/6/2, 5 turret
• Focus: Electronic Warfare
• Hybrid/Drone, Armor, Active

Minmatar - Claymore

• Fitting: 8/6/4/2, 5 turret 3 missile
• Focus: Tackle/Intercept
• Projectile, Shield, Active

Beyond the University

Here’s where the class takes a right turn and goes into subject not commonly found within the University, due to wartime policies regarding ships.

Warning: Using the following fittings, rigs, implants, and ships during wartime can get you in some serious trouble, even expelled, from the University. You have been warned.

POS Boosting

With the ability to fit warfare processors comes the ability to be a very powerful, yet very frail, boosting machine. Almost all of the fleet command ships, given enough mechanical fitting assistance, can field up to seven command links at once. These seven links would obviously include the racial-based links you are mindlinked for. In addition, you can pack on links for other effects that would be dictated by the need of the site. In 0.0, this could be armor or shield links for a crew running The Maze, or mining links for a small mining contingent, or interdiction links to fortify your three simultaneous gatecamps. Application is based on need, but the ability to do this should not go unnoticed.

Strategic Cruisers

Strategic cruisers, referred to as tech 3 ships, are the most adaptable ships in EVE. When they were originally released, I thought to myself, “How unspectacular. No command links?” Shortly after, they released a fourth module for each subsystem, and my requests were answered. The warfare processor defensive subsystem, available for all four races, made me reconsider using my command ships altogether. I probably played on EFT for hours before I realized that they are inferior to fleet command ships in that they can only field one command link without Command Processors, mentioned briefly before.

What I did find, however, is that they get an overall better skill-based bonus to boosting than command ships to. Where Command Ships gives 3% per level, Defensive Subsystems gives 5% per level, making the strategic cruiser, mathematically, the more superior booster. Add to that the smaller target size, functional offensive capabilities, and adaptive nature, this ship makes for a very good tactical booster for smaller units, or even for a very-focused POS boosting ship.

I will argue, however, that in most situations, the fleet command ship is a better choice in larger fleet engagements. The fact that it can fit three links, over the 1 a strategic cruiser can fit, allows it to more fully boost a large fleet’s diverse needs over that of a small, tactical unit.

Faction Fitting

Here’s where we really go outside the UNI box. As mentioned before, command ships of all types get primaried. It’s a fact of life. Competent FC’s don’t ignore the obvious Vulture that’s boosting the nano-fitted Drake fleet that’s pounding on your door. They send the fleet at it. They know what it’s doing and how much easier it will be to kill the annoying Drakes.

So, what should you, the command ship pilot, do? Simple. Spend more ISK on your already-expensive ship and make it tougher. Remember earlier how I said that a lot of fitting a command ship is mechanical fitting? Well, faction fits help alleviate some of the fitting nightmare while making your ship that much tougher. Sure, it costs a bit to faction-fit a ship in the first place, but if you are in it to win, and you can’t find an edge anywhere else, spend the ISK.

Now, before you go and drop a billion on officer modules, stop! I specifically mentioned faction because you are going to lose a ship from time to time. You undocked it, remember? So, don’t go super crazy unless you know, for certain, that you can afford to lose that module.

Tech 2 Rigging

Medium tech 2 rigs are expensive, usually more so than most faction fittings. Command ships, however, are a bit cheaper because they give you a discount in the rigging department, in that they have only two rig slots. Despite this discount, they will still make your ship tougher. EFT your rigging before you buy them in order to make sure the fitting still works. Now would also be a great time to train the appropriate rigging skill to level 4, since you will need it to fit the rigs.

Faction Implants

Mentioning faction fits brings me to my next ridiculous notion: faction implants. We all know that these are expensive. I know people who fly a ship that could be replaced ten times with a single implant out of their head. These ‘implant zombies’ are the most dedicated of all pilots, fielding the faction-fit, T2-rigged, max-skilled, psychotic strategic cruiser out there. And when they lose one, they shrug and go buy another one.

Choosing your implants is a matter of getting the absolute best out of what you want your ship to do. Choose a set of implants that are going to make your ship do exactly that, and understand that this is a lot like getting a super cap, in that leaving your ship means you are no longer fitted according to your grand plan. Just keep a jump clone around to save your implants.

Class Wrap-up

• Thanks for attending this class!
  • I would appreciate any feedback from people on how to improve the class
• Questions ?