User:Uryence/sandbox

Every sovereign nullsec solar system has an Encounter Surveillance System. The ESS stockpiles a portion of the bounties awarded in that system, and then slowly pays them out to the pilots who earned them—if, that is, no one else steals the money first.

The ESS field

The ESS is available as a beacon which anyone can warp to. At the beacon there is a deadspace gate, which is restricted to hulls of cruiser, battlecruiser, and battleship size only. The gate leads to the physical ESS itself, which is surrounded by a 150km-diameter field that disables

• cloaks
• microwarpdrives
• micro jump drives
• warp drives
• cynos, and
• filaments.

As a result, the fastest method of leaving an ESS is the use of an afterburner to burn the 75km radius from the ESS to the field's edge, and afterburners do not propel ships to anything like the speed provided by MWDs. To enter an ESS usually therefore constitutes a significant commitment to holding the field, as all quick methods of leaving are disabled.

Much as in a faction warfare complex, anyone warping into the ESS from the deadspace gate will arrive at the same point in space, with none of the control over arrival distance available in a normal 'warp to' command. This can give an advantage in initial positioning to anyone who is already in the ESS space.

ESS bank mechanics

Each ESS is divided between a small and easily compromised 'Main Bank' and a much larger and much more secure 'Reserve Bank'. Note that, counterintuitively, it is the Main Bank which is the smaller of the two.

Main Bank

The Main Bank is accessed by sitting within 10km of the ESS and selecting the 'Link' button which appears over the ESS. This initiates a countdown of usually around five minutes, which is visible to all pilots in the solar system concerned. During the countdown the pilot accessing the Main Bank must remain within 10km of the ESS; travelling further away will end the countdown, which must then be restarted from the beginning.

If the countdown reaches zero and the pilot accessing the ESS has not either left or been removed by enemy action, the accessing pilot then receives tags in their cargohold which can be exchanged for the value of the Main Bank's contents at any CONCORD station. Since the ISK concerned was stored up to be disbursed to pilots who had been ratting in the system, the pilot has effectively stolen part of their income.

Sovereign nullsec corporations usually therefore respond quickly to attempts on the bank—if they know about them; since the notification is only solar-system-wide, it is possible to sneak into quiet territory and empty out a Main Bank, or indeed several Main Banks. Though it is risky, and though it is not especially profitable in ISK-per-hour compared to some more reliable moneymaking schemes, bank robbery can bring in money, has a low start-up cost (the price of a fast T1 cruiser plus filaments for mobility), and is a good way to learn about moving through hostile nullsec territory.

Reserve Bank

The much larger Reserve Bank can be accessed using special keys which are themselves expensive and difficult to acquire. When these are used the money in the Reserve Bank is paid out over time at a rate that spools up and then drops down. The time spent paying out is set by the looters, and by setting a higher time they can collect more of the money if they accept more risk.

Unlocking a Reserve Bank sends an alert to everyone in the region concerned, not just in the immediate solar system.