I’m a bit of geek when it comes to military history, and have always had a preference for land warfare. Army over Navy, and forget about the wing wipers, and all that. So as much fun as ripping through the heavens in massive spaceships in EVE is, my secret yearning is that CCP Games does something (anything really) to make planets, and the surface struggles for them, a relevant part of the game.
The new Chronicle gives a tiny taste of surface combat, with this awesome image of armor-clad infantry disembarking from dropships, but aside from decent play in the Empyrean Age fiction there’s not much room for it in the EVE universe. Certainly not in the game as it stands now.
You can dominate any planet with orbital bombardment, just like in reality you can (mostly) dominate any country via air and sea control, but it’s still an age old truth that to actually control ground you must hold it. And it takes troops, specifically some flavor of infantry, to do it. It would be fascinating to see the CCP team explore control of planetary surfaces more directly within the framework of the game – or perhaps as some sort of small FPS/strategy brand extension if it’s not workable within MMO mechanics.
Really though, I just want to see what that Caldari infantry could go in a fight.
Thanks for coming back for another visit!
Battlecruisers are my favorite class of ships (and command ships by extension), which explains why both my high-SP characters have BC skilled to level V. However outside of PVE/missions, I rarely fly the class into combat. Why? In part because small ships in Factional Warfare are so damn much fun. In part because in order to properly fit even a Tech 1 BC, the cost can be prohobitive and it’s tough to lose on a frequent basis.
However, looking at how often I’m seeing Harbinger’s show up on the Amarr Militia Killboard (on both sides of the killmails), I’m getting inspired to get back to specializing in the class and hope I can afford them. Command ships, due to cost, I’ll save for PVE, which leaves me with the Harbinger on my main and the Hurricane on my alt for small gang and some solo PVP in lowsec.
Let’s start with the Harbinger.
There seem to be really only two base loadouts for the ship: the Focused Medium Pulse (FMP) + 1600mm Plate (example), and the Heavy Pulse (HP) + 800mm Plate (example).
HIGH SLOTS:
In both cases you load out the highs with the laser of your choice, Tech 2 preferrably, and fit Scorch M and Amarr Navy Multifrequency M crystals to cover most ranges. If you have an extra high slot and room to fit anything, popular choices tend to be medium NOS’ or Neutralizers. Tight fit though depending on the lows and mids.
LOW SLOTS:
A bit more room for variation here, but not much. For small gang action, and keeping with the current trend in PVP thinking to focus on a heavy armor hit point buffer vs. any kind of self-repair capability, don’t fit a Medium Armor Repairer (MAR). Fit an armor plate (800mm for the HP variation, 1600mm for the FMP), a couple resist modules (EANM or plain old Adaptive Nano Plating II), a Damage Control, and 2-3 damage modules such as Tracking Enhancers (especially if you’re expecting small ship opposition) and Heat Sinks. 3x Heat Sinks gives you a hell of a gank boat, but the tracking mod could be nice for the small ships.
MID SLOTS:
This is where people get creative. You can toss on the “holy trinity” of PVP mid-slot modules: Scrambler/Disruptor, Stasis Webifier, and Cap Injector, with room for an afterburner or microwarpdrive, which is my preferred fit as something of a traditionalist. However, especially in Factional Warfare, you’re likely to see a heavy dose of fast small frigate-sized ships buzzing around. I plan to just rely on my Web and a drone bay full of Warrior II light and fast drones to take care of the gnats. However if I know I’ll be in a gang, I might drop the Disruptor and try out something else.
Here are some of the variations I’ve seen pop up on killboards of late:
Disrupt/Scrambler Combo Fit
Fit both a longer range 1-point Warp Disruptor (snag your prey) and a short range 2-point Scrambler (snag + kill MWD’s to slow down small ships). Swap out the Cap Injector to make it fit. In light of recent gameplay changes which enable the 2-pt Scrams to disable MWD’s, this can be a very nice setup to deal with small ships at close ranges. Leaves you running tight on cap though, which scares me in PVP.
Target Painter Fit
Drop the Web, propulsion mod, or Injector and add a Target Painter. Sometimes pair with the dual Disruptor/Scrambler fit on a FMP setup (better tracking) for the ultimate frigate-killing BC. I never thought of Painters outside of using them on missile boats, but the signature radius bonus does appear to help with any weapon, so why not try this I guess? Interesting idea, I may give it a whirl.
Tracking Disruptor Fit
Drop the mod of your choice to fit a TD. Best if you know you’re going up against BC’s and BS’s.
My personal choice to start with will likely be the Heavy Pulse/800mm Plate basic loadout to better deal with cruisers and larger ships, 2x Heat Sinks and 1x Tracking Enhancer (small ship counter), and a mid slot setup of AB or MWD (still playing with the fitting), Web, Cap Injector, and try out the Target Painter idea for a while. Again, a drone bay full of Warrior II’s or a split of Warriors and light ECM drones. With the TP fit, I’ll let other ships in gang do the tackling in exchange for being able to deal out more damage against a wider range of ship classes. I may get smoked a lot, but should be fun seeing what happens.
What do you think? Any better suggestions for good Harbinger fits, or philosophies on the mid slot loadout?
