Public fleets
Bombers Bar
As at 2019, the Bombers Bar (BB) is in full swing. There are a number of people in specific corps that devote a lot of their game time to leading and supporting BB.
BB flies public Stealth Bomber fleets in which all are welcome. There is minimal/no politics and the fleet flies NPSI (Not Purple Shoot It aka anything outside of fleet can be shot). Some fleets include more than 100 attendees so it often creates some ethical issues if the fleet goes into allied space of one or more fleet members and the individual needs to decide whether they can engage allies/friendlies/blues.
BB runs some different fleets from roaming through space to using cover cynosural fields and black ops ships to drop into Null Sec and Wormhole space to blow up expensive ships and fleets.
Generally, the essential skill to join a BB fleet is to be able to use a Covert Ops Cloaking Device II which requires Cloaking IV. The ability to fly a bomber which can deliver bombs and torpedoes is also a mainstay of the fleet. However, fleets tend to require hunter/scouts, tacklers/bubblers, ECM, loot ships and more. More advanced pilots might fly Black Ops and other ships in support of fleets. Just make sure that you have the right doctrine/ship organised early for the fleet that you are attending.
Details on upcoming fleets, fittings, fleet instructions and joining comms can be found in the in-game channel (join 'Bombers Bar'). Usually each fleet will specify a form-up system and time. At the alloted time, the FC will update the channel Message of the Day (MOTD) with an extra channel in which to X-up to join the fleet. This involves entering the temporary channel and sending an X in the channel chat - someone will send you a fleet invite. Roams may start from the form-up point, other types of fleets might specify a staging system to start heading to as the FC starts to provide more instructions.
It is essential to be in comms to hear, sometimes at very short-notice, instructions from the Fleet Commander if a target has been found by hunters/scouts. Sometimes a blingy ship is found and the time to bridge/jump and engage the ship is very short. New pilots are always welcome but should expect to spend the first fleet getting used to the fleet mechanics to master landing effectively, delivering bombs, getting in on big kills and getting out safely. The environment is often very friendly though and worth attending.
BB is often an excellent opportunity to build killboard stats - to get involved in small or large-scale kills but also to build knowledge and skills which contribute to Eve Uni titles. It is also a chance to operate in a larger scale fleets and enthusiastic capsuleers.
Spectre Fleet
Spectre Fleet (SF) is a public NPSI fleet (politics does not matter and individuals can decide whether to engage their allies/blues).
Having spies (spais) is an unfortunate part of public fleets but it is generally kept to a minimum. If a fleet is spending time in an area blue to one or more fleet members, there is an unwritten rule that fleet members won't give the game away (whether or not they participate in battles/kills).
SF flies many different doctrines in regular fleets and can be a lot of fun and a supportive environment. As with other public fleets, some SF fleets move quite quickly and can be a little confronting on the first occasion for new attendees. Any experience in basic fleet mechanics, coupled with the essential SF (or BB) fleet instructional videos, are quite helpful.
Details on upcoming SF fleets, fittings, fleet instructions and joining comms can be found in the in-game channel (join 'SF Spectre Fleet'). As with BB, carefully check the doctrine/fittings and the staging system to ensure that you are there on time in the right ship (and not being 10-20 jumps away as the fleet starts moving).
