Heavy Interdiction Cruisers
Heavy Interdiction Cruisers ("HICs" or "hictors") are Tech 2 cruisers which provide the heaviest tackle possible. They have better tanks than any other cruiser-sized hull—with the exception of some niche strategic cruiser fits—and can match the tanks of most battleships. Their DPS is relatively limited, but damage-dealing is rarely a key part of their role.
Capabilities
Bubbles
In null security space, heavy interdiction cruisers can create a warp disruption field similar to the bubble created by light interdictors. The field has a radius of 12–20 km, depending on the pilot's level in the Heavy Interdictor ship command skill.
However, while the light interdictor creates bubbles centered on the probes it launches, and so can can launch its bubble, leave it, and even get off grid, the heavy interdiction cruiser's bubble is generated by and centered on the HIC itself.
This ship-centered bubble capability comes from the Warp Disruption Field Generator, a high-slot module with a cycle time of 30 seconds. While the bubble is active, the HIC can still move at its normal speed, but it cannot receive any type of remote support, and has an increased signature radius.
Activating a HIC bubble thus makes the HIC itself a more easily-damaged target, and commits its pilot to purely local tanking for at least the next 30 seconds. In return, the HIC has a mobile bubble, which opens up more tactical possibilities, such as moving the bubble in concert with an opposing gang to keep them tackled, or keeping the bubble out in front of a mobile friendly gang to screen their mid- and back-lines from hostile warp-ins.
The bubble can not be used in lowsec or highsec. If you see a HIC in empire that seems to have its bubble up, it is a graphical bug caused by loading the grid after the point was activated. (This bug has reportedly been fixed, but pilots may still see it in some old videos).
Infinity Pointing
The Warp Disruption Field Generator can be loaded with a Focused Warp Disruption script, or a Focused Warp Scrambling script, which turns the module into a kind of super single-target warp disruptor (or warp scrambler) with long range and infinite strength. When scripted to create this "infinipoint", the module still prevents remote support while active.
HICs are the only ships that can, using this infinite point, tackle super-capital ships in low sec (in part because the use of this script also blocks capital ships from jumping through stargates). They are also sometimes used in high- and low-sec gatecamps to negate the effect of Warp Core Stabilizers, catching otherwise-slippery transport ships. Furthermore, these scripts can be used to shut down hostile Micro Jump Drives and Micro Jump Field Generators, and thus prevent enemies from either micro jumping to safety or offensively micro jumping part of a friendly fleet out of position.
Rolling Wormholes
Heavy interdictors are also the only ships which can fit the Zero Point Mass Entangler high slot module. When activated, this dramatically reduces the HIC's mass (by 80%, to a fifth of its normal value) but even more dramatically reduces its speed (by 95%). It disables the warp drive and any microwarp drive fitted, and reduces the thrust bonus from afterburners by 90%.
These effects are unhelpful in most situations, but they make the ship a convenient tool for "rolling" wormholes, that is, moving mass through an unwanted wormhole in order to close it. In particular, the Entangler's mass reduction effects allow a HIC to jump through a critically destabilized wormhole, with minimal chance of that wormhole collapsing until the HIC jumps through it again (with its Entanglers off this time). To this end, most rolling HIC fits feature 3 Entanglers, which are activated together, to maximize the mass reduction effects.
| A long, long time ago... |
|---|
| Prior to September, 2018, it was the Warp Disruption Field Generator itself which provided the HIC with reduced mass and speed. However, there was an unintended interaction between the Generator and 500MN Microwarpdrives, allowing 500MN HICs to slingshot themselves around stargates at high speeds and thus tackle any ship no matter where it was coming from. When CCP moved to address this by removing the mass and speed effects from the Generator, it caused a severe outcry from the wormhole space community over the loss of "rolling HICs", and so the Zero Point Mass Entangler was hastily created to re-introduce the desired non-combat mass reduction behavior. |
Tactics
HICs represent an opposite trade-off to the cheap cost and vulnerability of the lighter interdictors: HICs are extremely tough, but more expensive and less expendable. In some circumstances, such as a fast, agile gang, light interdictors might be a better choice.
When used in fleets for their bubbles, HICs shine when deployed in pairs or larger groups with logistics ships as backup. With good coordination, the HICs can pass the task of bubbling around, so that the logistics ships can repair those HICs which are not currently bubbling. Many of the same considerations around bubble tactics relevant to interdictor pilots remain relevant in HICs; in particular, pilots should remember that an unwanted friendly bubble at the wrong time or in the wrong place can wreak havoc on a fleet commander's plans.
When used for low-sec or high-sec gatecamps, HICs benefit from local or remote sensor boosting, to pump up their already-good scan resolution for fast target lock times.
List of Heavy Interdiction Cruisers
Devoter: Armor tank, and a better one than the Phobos, but 1 less midslot, which is significant in Empire where HICs usually fit sensor boosters to help them catch fast targets.
Onyx: Shield tank. Lower tank and speed than the Broadsword, but a lot more CPU, letting it fit a probe launcher. Additionally, in empire where HICs usually fit sensor boosters, it has a very hard time properly plugging its EM resist hole.
Phobos: Armor tank. The Devoter tanks better, but the Phobos has an extra midslot, making it better at catching fast targets in Empire with an extra sensor booster.
Broadsword: Shield tank. Better speed and resists than the Onyx, at the price of CPU for utility mods.
