Wartime Operations in EVE University

This page is specific to EVE University. Other corporations or groups in the game may operate differently. For a summary of EVE University's rules and code of conduct, see EVE University Rules.

Wars are a valid game mechanic in EVE Online and a significant feature of the game, which we encourage our members to get used to.

EVE University carries on as normal during war time. You can still get involved in either Player versus Player (PVP) or Player versus Environment (PVE) gameplay. Even if you do not have much experience in the game you can still find content, so don't panic about EVE University being at war. You will just need to ensure you take additional precautions with some activities.

How war works

Wars in EVE Online work differently than in real life, or in most other games. EVE Online is at its most basic level a PVP game. Anyone can shoot anyone, and it is only the consequences that vary. Generally the consequences are as follows:

• In high security space, taking aggressive action against any pilot who is not a legal target (e.g. a suspect or a criminal) will result in either CONCORD or sentry guns destroying the aggressor's ship. The CONCORD response times vary but the consequence is always destruction, as well as a drop in the aggressor's 'security status'. This may still be a consequence worth taking in some circumstances, for example if the contents of the defender's ship are more valuable than the total cost of the aggressor's ship. Therefore even high security space is never completely 'safe'.

• In low security space CONCORD does not patrol. However, low security systems still have sentry guns which will shoot anyone who takes aggressive action against a pilot who is not a legal target within their range. If sentry guns are not present or out of range, anyone may take aggressive action in low security space with the only consequence being a loss of security status to the aggressor.

• In null security space and wormholes there is no CONCORD response and there are no sentry guns. There is also no drop in security status from taking aggressive action. Therefore there are minimal consequences to the aggressor of destroying a pilot's ship.

Being at war alters these consequences, in that it acts as a 'bribe' to CONCORD not to respond. This means that a pilot can take aggressive action against a pilot his corporation is at war with without the aggressing pilot's ship being destroyed by CONCORD, even if the defending pilot is in high security space.

If a corporation is part of an alliance, then all wars are declared either on or by the alliance. An individual corporation in an alliance cannot declare war separately from other corporations in the alliance, nor can it individually be the target of a war declaration. Because this article specifically addresses war as it applies to EVE University, it will refer to "corporations" being at war, but if that corporation is in an alliance it should be understood that the entire alliance must also be at war.

War is declared unilaterally and can be done without the target corporations's agreement. The aggressing corporation pays ISK to CONCORD to declare war. War declarations have a base duration of seven days, but can be renewed by the aggressing corporation making another payment, which can be done automatically. Aggressing corporations do not directly gain ISK from being at war, but they may take any loot that drops from any ships they destroy to mitigate the cost of declaring war. Thus, war declarations are rarely motivated by ISK or profit.

Other corporations can opt to join in the war on the side of the defending corporation. This enables them to fight the aggressing corporation under the same conditions as a war declaration. The war can be ended either when the seven day timer expires and the war is not renewed by the aggressing corporation, or by either corporation sending a formal "surrender offer" of ISK and the other corporation accepting.

Why EVE University is at war

EVE University is almost always at war, because we have a lot of members. Wars against EVE University generally fall into one of the following categories:

1. Corporations who declare war on various different large corporations, so that they have a lot of targets to shoot at in high security space. These wars are not declared for any personal or diplomatic reasons, and for this reason it is difficult for our diplomats to prevent or stop this type of war. This is the most common by far.
2. Corporations who declare a pre-arranged war on EVE University for fun and educational purposes for both sides. This does not happen often, but we have had pre-arranged wars with other corporations in the past, and may do so again. These are arranged through the diplomats, who will also set out the basic terms that have been agreed. This may be, for example "No podding", or "No attacking structures".
3. Corporations who feel they have been wronged in some way by EVE University, or who are employed by those who do (mercenaries). These are rare, because EVE University strives to be neutral and has rules which should normally prevent diplomatic issues. But it does happen sometimes, and when it does our diplomats will do their utmost to resolve the situation and prevent the war from continuing. Sometimes wars are declared for roleplaying purposes.

How can you tell if EVE University is at war?

Click to enlarge

To check whether EVE University is currently at war, search for Ivy League (the Alliance EVE University belongs to) under the People and Places tab in game. Then right click on Ivy League and select “Show info”. This will bring up a profile of information on Ivy League as below. Select the “War history” tab and look at the top of the list for any active or pending wars. An example is to the right.

Since the current war mechanics were introduced in April of 2012, EVE University has been almost constantly at war, so even if we do not have any current or pending wars when you check, please be aware that this may not last very long.

How to adapt to being at war

It can be quite intimidating to join a corporation which is at war, especially if you do not have much experience in game or with combat. It doesn't have to be a problem, there are some basic things you can do and some skills you can develop which can help you survive and travel in relative safety.

The golden rule in EVE Online is: "Don't fly anything you can't afford to lose". This also means never put all your possessions in one ship, and don't fit expensive modules unless you can easily afford to replace them.

Preparing for war

It is important firstly that you know how to identify war targets. We would recommend reading our short page on Identifying War Targets in Local which will help you set up your screen in a way that you can instantly see if there are any war targets in the system with you.

Systems which have a lot of pilots in will normally have a lot of war targets, both because there are a higher number of people in general and also because there are more targets for them to aggress. This means that trade hubs (especially Jita, Amarr, Dodixie and Rens) can be very dangerous and we recommend avoiding them at all times on your EVE University character. To enable you to have easy access to the market you may want to consider making another character on the same account to fly an industrial ship and haul things for you. If you leave that character in an NPC corp they will not be at war (though they will not be guaranteed to be safe, as mentioned above) so it will be safer to visit a trade hub. We have a page on Creating an Alt Hauler which will explain the process and the basic skills needed. Alternatively if you are based in the high sec, low sec, null sec or Solitude campuses you can make use of your campus' freighter service to move things from a trade hub for you for free. See the campus wiki pages for more information.

Choosing what to fly

EVE University has no restrictions on what ships members are allowed to fly while we are at war. But there are a few ships which are particularly vulnerable to attack. For example:

• Mining ships are often targeted as they are usually unable to defend themselves. It is advisable to fit any mining ships with some tank and if possible to mine where there are other people around to look out for you, such as in our Amarr Mining Campus.
• Hauling ships are also targeted often by war targets, and as hauling is normally a solo activity which often involved visiting trade hubs, it is advisable not to haul on any character which is a member of EVE University. As above, consider creating an alt to haul for you, or using our campus hauling service.

When deciding what ship to fly, consider what you will be doing. If you will be traveling it is sensible to fly a fast ship, like a fast frigate, or alternatively a cheap ship like a shuttle or corvette. This gives you the best chance to avoid being targeted, and reduces your ISK lost if you do lose your ship. It is advisable not to travel in a capsule, because they are too easy to kill and also would mean you lose any implants you are using.

Ensure that you fit your ship sensibly. EVE University has suggested fittings for most ships. Remember that fitting for PVP combat is very different from fitting for PVE combat such as missions. Even a good mission ship is unlikely to survive a fight with a determined player.

Skills to pick up

There are various real life skills which will assist you in surviving at war time. You do not need to be an expert by any means, but getting in some practice of the following will help:

• There is a useful tool called the Directional Scanner (often referred to as D-Scan) which will enable you to scan the system for other pilots and objects. Every ship you fly has access to D-scan, and learning how to make use of it will greatly assist. We have a Directional Scanner Guide which will explain the basics of using it. Once you have worked it out try and get into the habit of refreshing D-scan regularly to check what is going on in the system. This will give you some advanced warning - for example, if you see combat probes on D-scan while you are mining or exploring, someone may be trying to hunt you down and warp to you, so you know you should get out of there.
• Having good bookmarks will make it much easier for you to travel around, so practice doing this and make sure you have your own tactical bookmarks for any stations and systems you use often, as well as some "safe spots" in case of emergency. EVE University does have some corporation bookmarks which you can use if you need to, but these are often common knowledge and so will not be as safe as bookmarks you have made yourself. Again try to get into the habit of making and using bookmarks often.
• The EVE University overview has a Podsaver tab and its important that you know how to use it. The idea is that if your ship is about to be destroyed you can switch to this overview tab and use it to save your pod by warping to a planet and bouncing between celestials until it is safe for you to dock up. We have a guide on How to save your Pod which covers the Podsaver tab in detail. Practice using it so that you know how it works if you need it.
• Read up on how timers work so that you can use them to your advantage. For example, you have a 30 second window of invulnerability when you undock from a station. Therefore if you undock and find there is a war target outside the station, simply stop your ship immediately by pressing CTRL and Spacebar, then dock up again in the station. You also have 60 seconds of invisibility when you jump through a gate, provided you don't move (known as a gate cloak). You can use this time to check local and D-scan for any threats in the system before proceeding.
• Avoid using the Autopilot feature. This is fine for route-planning, but you should not rely on it to fly your ship. A ship flying with autopilot will land 15km away from the stargate and then slowly approach it. This means it takes longer to travel using autopilot and also it is obvious to other players watching the ship that you are not flying the ship and therefore that you may be away from your computer. This makes you a more inviting target, as it is less likely that you will fight back.

How to be useful in combat

War is not just about avoiding combat at all costs; it gives plenty of opportunity for combat. The type of combat will depend very much on the corporation we are at war with, but they are not invulnerable if the right tactics are used.

You can be useful in PVP combat even with minimal skills. If you are a new player then you can fill a role as a tackler or in electronic warfare (EWAR) with very little training. You can even obtain the hull and modules you need to fly a tackle or EWAR frigate from our hangars. If you do not have the Freshman title yet, ask someone in your campus chat channel to get something out of the hangars for you. Many campuses also have these frigates available on contract for ease of use.

You can find fittings for ships in various places, for example Fleet up and the EVE University wiki. Its worth reading up on EVE University's Ship Replacement Program while you are fitting your ship, so that if you lose it you can claim reimbursement for it.

Before you go on a fleet, make sure you read the Rookie's Guide to Fleet Ops to familiarise yourself with the basics. Remember EVE University is a corporation aimed at new players, and noone will expect you to have a good knowledge of the game in your first few fleets. There will normally be many other pilots on their first fleet also.

Communications while we are at war

Although EVE University's private channels are password protected, this password is readily available to all current and former members. So these channels should not be considered 'secure' even if you need a password to join. You may rarely even see war targets or their alts in the channels. If you notice someone behaving inappropriately in any of our channels, contact one of the channel moderators. Never give out the channel passwords to anyone. Refer them to either the Corp Bulletins or this forum post (if they cannot view either, they should not have the password).

We have a special chat channel for sharing intel on movements of war targets, called LiveIntel.ILN. The message of the day in that channel explains how to use the channel, so make sure you read it thoroughly before posting.

You should assume that any information sent to mailing lists or posted on our forum is in the hands of our war targets. For this reason you should be careful not to mention the current location of any EVE University fits in these, or anywhere aside from in the Fleet chat channel or the Fleet mumble. Pilots should also avoid joining mumble channels of active fleets unless they are on the fleet in question, to reduce the risk of information about the fleet leaking to our war targets.

Always remember, wherever the conversation is taking place, that it is part of our rules that EVE University members must treat all players with respect, and this includes war targets and their alts. Keep any conversation respectful, and do not attempt to engage in diplomacy - this is what we have diplomats for.