Combat in Eve is a very strange affair. Mechanically, it seems similar to other MMOs: you click an action button, then you click a target. The interface seems bare and confusing, and you can find yourself fighting blind if your overview is not set up properly. Today, however, we will look beyond the mechanics, and dig a little deeper into the intricacies and nuances of fighting in space. Let’s think of terrain as items in space that are not players or NPC ships, that we warp to; these objects lend themselves to strategic and tactical decisions. Where I live in lowsec, in faction warfare space, the majority of fights happen in plexes. Let’s take a look inside and see what it actually looks like. The picture above was taken immediately after I came out of warp. Notice my distance to the beacon – 4,105m. All ships that can enter this plex will land within 5,000m of that beacon. Our next set of choices will hinge on this certainty. So far, we have identified our battlefield and its spacing mechanics.

Let’s now use this information to build a ship. When I design fits I always begin with a concept. I first seek to understand the problem in front of me, before I start digging into my tool box. I have found doing it the other way around has had a negative effect on my kill board. As a solo pvper, I live by these words, “I only need to win by 1% hull.” Especially in the solo realm, you simply must favor gank over tank. Let’s be honest, you can’t always tank your way into a win when you go solo. Often your inability to quickly finish your opponent will give them an opportunity to call in friends nearby. With that in mind, let’s develop the concept for a high-damage brawler. Even though kiting ships are more often favored than brawlers, our ability to position and potentially catch targets near the plex beacon gives us an opportunity to fulfill our plans. So, this is my high-damage brawler Atron fit. It offers a few advantages: So, we know the field and we’ve chosen what to bring.

This fight started with me inside a novice offensive plex. I made sure I killed the NPC quickly, and maintained a 750m orbit around the beacon to make sure I have a good chance of catching opponents. I caught the enemy tristan on directional scan within 400,000km from my position. This is important, in that a short d-scan range can eliminate a lot of false positives, by focusing only on the distance from the acceleration gate to the plex itself. The Tristan entered the plex. Even before he completely came out of warp, I was already approaching him with an overheated middle rack, to ensure that I could reach him with my warp scrambler and web. As soon as he came out of warp invulnerability, he was tackled, and well within my optimal range. My blasters simply outpaced the damage of his drones, so it was a straightforward engagement. Let’s go over some things that could have happened. Although I won this time, let’s not waste this opportunity. Let’s use the data we gathered from the fight to have a better understanding of the types of opponents that we may face in the future.

For the purpose of this demonstration, I put together the same fit my opponent used. Let’s compare the two ships and their weapons more closely. That’s a lot of numbers, so let’s focus on some key points of comparison. This was a classic coin toss. grendel drone commander reviewThe fight really could have gone either way; parrot ar drone colombiaon paper, each ship had the ability to destroy the other. ar drone parrot unboxingIn the end, it came down to simply having more checks in the box – and from the moment my opponent first appeared on d-scan, it was all over in less than 20 seconds.parrot ar drone piece detachee

I had one very clear advantage over my opponent: I had the initiative. Although the Tristan started the fight by entering my plex, this allowed me to control how the fight started. The certainty that any opponent would come out of warp near the beacon allowed me to position myself where my web and scram would be well within range. parrot ar drone max loadI was able to impose the engagement range on my opponent and trap him within range of my blasters.parrot ar drone airsoft Numbers for damage, tank, and speed are just that – numbers. At the end of the day, it all comes down to how you use your understanding of how these numbers interact with each other. Ship statistics will give you a good idea of how your ship should perform, but when it comes to pulling the trigger, you need to be able to control the engagement and limit your enemy’s effectiveness.

The road to competence in EVE combat is long and challenging. It takes practice, and a good working knowledge of the subtleties that will give you the edge over your opponents. In EVE, nobody wins every fight – and as a new player, it will take a while before you’re able to smoothly and confidently apply your understanding of tactical choices to your advantage in the heat of battle. Try again, fail again; fail better – and keep chasing that first kill, that next kill, and the confidence and competence that will make combat not only an unparalleled thrill, but a joy. Posted in Factional Warfare, Featured, and tagged #Featured, New Players, PvP Basics, Roedyn, Solo PvPAlternatively you can  visit some of our Fansites from around the world including Starfleetcomms in the UK, EVE Germany, EVE Russia, EVE Hungary and EVE Denmark. Thank you for your patience and please come back later when the EVE website will be fully functional. Facebook and Twitter will have the most up to date information regarding the status of our website.