Battlecruisers

Battlecruisers are larger, slower and have more slots than cruisers, but they're smaller than battleships and fit the same medium-sized weapons that cruisers use. They occupy a position between cruisers and battleships analogous to destroyers' position between frigates and cruisers, although battlecruisers are much more versatile and widely-used than destroyers. Most battlecruisers can mount Command Bursts, modules capable of giving significant bonuses to nearby allied ships. Tech 1 battlecruisers are the least character-skill-intensive and most accessible hull with this ability.

One group of Tech 2 ships, Command Ships, are based on battlecruiser hulls. Command Ships are more durable and dangerous versions of their Tech 1 base hulls, with space for more Command Bursts and bonuses to either the strength or the range of their bursts.

Tech 1 Battlecruisers

Each of the four main factions has two "combat battlecruisers", which mount medium weapons and one Command Burst, and one "attack battlecruiser", which mounts the large weapons otherwise found only on battleships, but has a relatively fragile tank.

Combat Battlecruisers

In PvP combat battlecruisers represent a good balance between DPS, tanking, agility, speed and cost (they cost much less to lose than a battleship). Battlecruisers can be fitted for long or short range PvP combat. Combat Battlecruisers use the same medium-size weapons as Cruisers, but they gain 25% increased range to these weapons.

In PvE battlecruisers are the standard tool for completing Level 3 combat missions. Several battlecruisers can mount passive shield tanks ideal for PvE combat; the Caldari Drake can mount an absolutely exceptional passive shield tank.

Combat battlecruisers also have the ability to fit a single Command Burst, which can give extra bonuses to your fleet.

• Harbinger: High DPS, solid armor. Can be fast when it isn't loaded down with armor plates. Very cap-dependant, since it uses lasers.
• Prophecy: Can tank better than some battleships. Usually bait. Low DPS.
• Ferox: Hybrid turret gunboat. Very long range with railguns, but somewhat limited damage. Popular for larger fleets because it is very durable for its price, can switch between targets quickly, and can out-range most other ships.
• Drake: Amazing passive shield tank for PvE combat, however Kinetic-locked and low DPS with Heavy missiles. Alternatively, good close-range DPS and still solid tank when fitted with Heavy Assault Missiles. Often bait.
• Brutix: Blaster gunboat, high point-blank DPS, very commonly Hull tanked and used as bait. Sometimes alternatively fit with a shield buffer tank, railguns, and Nanofibers, for speed and skirmishing.
• Myrmidon: Versatile drone boat. Usually mounts an active armor tank. Can also mount a passive shield tank.
• Cyclone: Respectable missile DPS, bonuses for active shield tanking, but somewhat fragile.
• Hurricane: High projectile DPS and high speed. Viable with autocannons, popular with artillery. Can mount an active armor tank, buffer armor or shield tanks, or even a passive shield tank.
• Drekavac: Heavily armored, and if given time can ramp up to exceed battleships in DPS. Three utility high slots for neutralizers, nosferatus, Smartbombs, or even remote armor repairers.
•  Gnosis: A "Limited Edition" Jovian / SOCT ship, given for free to pilots on every year's anniversary of the game's launch. Requires no skills to fly, has bonuses to all forms of weapons, aligns quickly, fields a very large cargo bay, and can be equally well Shielded or Armored. Very much a jack of all trades. However, it has fewer turrets and shorter range than other battlecruisers, and does not benefit from any ship skill training, meaning that while it is an excellent ship for newer pilots, it will be out-performed by other ships with better training.

Attack Battlecruisers

Each empire has one battlecruiser designed for mounting battleship-sized (i.e. large) weapons (as opposed to the medium-sized weapons normally mounted by battlecruisers). With damage bonuses and full racks of 8 guns, these ships can potentially deal even more damage than some battleships, at the cost of having weaker defenses than most cruisers. As a result of an old naming convention, these ships are sometimes referred to as "tier 3 battlecruisers" (not to be confused with Tech 3 Destroyers and Cruisers).

• Oracle: Battleship-sized laser platform. Commonly used as either a sniper, or a structure bashing ship. Slower than other attack BCs, but ironically also the best in nanogang combat.
• Naga: Ultra-long-range railgun platform. Generally sacrifices all conventional defenses to potentially reach 300km range. Easiest battlecruiser to fit for sniper combat.
• Talos: Battleship-grade blasters on cruiser-grade armor. Risky to use in close range, but extremely high damage.
• Tornado: Despite its bonuses promoting the use of autocannons, almost exclusively used with 1400mm artillery. Extremely popular suicide ganking ship due to extremely high alpha damage at a relatively low price.

Empire Faction Battlecruisers

Each empire has one faction battlecruiser based on a combat battlecruiser. Empire faction battlecruisers can be obtained through LP stores. Their base HP is 50% more than their corresponding T1 hull. Many other values (like speed and fitting space) are usually also increase. All of these variants sacrifice one of the original hull's bonuses, to gain a new bonus to damage application.

• Harbinger Navy Issue - Even more cap-dependent than the regular Harbinger, but with improved tracking and an extra Mid slot to compensate.
• Drake Navy Issue - Much more offensive variant to the Drake. Sacrifices shield resistance for greatly improved damage, application, and no Kinetic lock. Weaker in PVE but popular in wormhole brawling.
• Brutix Navy Issue - Loses the bonus to local armor repairers but becomes much more capable of fitting a solid buffer. Very commonly hull tanked, and used as extremely durable and high-DPS bait.
• Hurricane Fleet Issue - The original Hurricane, before being reclassified after CONCORD declared it to be far too effective. Improved fitting, tracking, and alpha damage cement its place as a fast-moving heavy artillery platform.

Tech 2 Battlecruisers: Command Ships

Command ships are battlecruisers with exceptional tank, stronger DPS, and a significant bonus to the effectiveness of Command Burst modules. They are very SP-intensive ships, requiring Fleet Support skills, but unlike some Tech 2 ship lines which are radically different to their base hulls, Command Ships mostly function as more powerful versions of their Tech 1 predecessors. Their combination of high durability and damage potential in relatively agile hulls, and their capacity to deliver significant bonuses, make them popular for small, well-resourced fleets.

Command Ships can operate 2 Command Burst modules simultaneously, can be rigged to operate up to 4 bursts, and provide the most powerful command bursts of any ships (outside of mining). Each command ship's strength bonus applies to two, racially determined, burst types.

Attack Command Ships

Attack command ships are specialized towards high damage and strong command bursts. They lose the innate 50% command burst range bonus from T1 Battlecruisers, but in exchange feature a 4%/level strength bonus. They also have two ship bonuses that improve DPS.

• Absolution: Very high DPS, and omni-resistant armor. Armor and Information Command.
• Nighthawk: Ridiculously rapid fire kinetic heavy and heavy assault missiles, and also very durable thanks to a shield resistance bonus. Shield and Information.
• Astarte: A Brutix but with actual armor. Superior blaster damage, and can survive on the front lines. Armor and Skirmish.
• Sleipnir: The final word in medium artillery platforms, or a nigh-invulnerable local tanked autocannon gunship. High speed, omni-resistant shields, and high alpha. Shield and Skirmish.

Fleet Command Ships

Fleet command ships are specialized towards survivability and powerful long range bursts. They feature a 100% command burst range bonus, and a 3%/level strength bonus. They all have a resistance bonus that improves survivability, and the Damnnation and Vulture further have bonuses that increase their armor and shield HP, respectively.

• Damnation: Extremely durable due to its resist and armor HP bonus, though it suffers from low damage. Armor and Information.
• Vulture: Ideal command ship for railgun-based battles due to range and natural resistance, and very thick shields. Shield and Information.
• Eos: Drone carrier. Commonly used as a fleet command ship in PvE fleets. Armor and Skirmish.
• Claymore: Less durable than the Vulture, but useful in missile fleets or when Skirmish links are needed. High rate of fire, but less respected than the Nighthawk. Shield and Skirmish.