Tech II invention doesn't greet you with open arms
6th July 2009 – 5.05 pmWith some time available in high-sec space to run my industrial operations I think it is perhaps time to try inventing some Tech II modules, if only to convince myself that I am not simply flitting from one short-term goal to another and am making overall progress in my desired aims in New Eden. Checking my journal I see that I have accumulated enough research points with my three R&D agents to provide datacores of both types for a small number of invention jobs, it's now a matter of getting everything together.
Collecting the datacores involves a bit of flying around to meet with each agent, which is simple enough. I have a small number of suitable BPCs lying around that I made a while back for convenience. All that's left, checking the invention tab of the BPC, is the data interface. From what I've read, I understand the data interface is not consumed with the invention job, so I only buy one for each of the two designs I intend to put through the invention process for now. Despite all the much appreciated advice from some wonderfully helpful capsuleers I am still a little unsure about some aspects of inventing, partly because it has been a while since I started towards invention, but there is no better way to learn than doing it myself.
With everything in place my first discovery is that I need a specific installation for invention, separate to manufacturing. The science and industry interface makes locating one straightforwards, though. When prompted to select an installation I simply expand the desired location to include the current solar system, which then shows me all suitable installations in that range. If none had been found I could have expanded it to the constellation or region, but an invention laboratory is available in my current system, with available slots, which is splendid.
I throw all my datacores, BPCs and the two data interfaces in my ship to make the short trip to the new station and open the science and industry interface again. I can now select an appropriate installation and available slot and can move on to the other options. I could choose an item to base the invention on but choose not to for now. I think that the higher meta-level the base item is the better the Tech II BPC will turn out, but as the modules with a good meta-level can cost millions individually I'll skip this for now. I also do not have a decyptor, which Karox Lominax's guide shows can affect different aspects of the resultant BPC, but that too is optional. I'll keep with the basics for now.
It looks like I can install my job. I am given a quote from the installation and an estimated completion time, both of which are satisfactory, so I agree to the quote and my job gets installed. Now I see better how the process works. A single invention job consumes a single BPC and the necessary datacores, but the data interface is only required to start the job and remains in my hangar even as the invention job runs. This allows me to install further invention jobs that need the same data interface, up to my skill-based limit of simultaneously allowed research jobs. With a good number of cores and BPCs I do just that, filling up my quota of research slots with invention jobs.
The invention jobs I am running are fairly quick to run too, which is also helped by the immediate availability of invention installation slots. Even though I hit my research job cap I only have a couple of hours to wait before I can deliver the inventions, both seeing whether I produce any Tech II BPCs and freeing up the slots for more invention jobs, until I run out of datacores. Or, judging by my initial luck, until I get depressed at throwing expensive datacores down the drain. My entire first batch of invention jobs produces no results, but I know that there is a random element in inventing so I remain undeterred and install a second batch hoping for better luck.
And I get better luck when I deliver my second batch. Although it is still a poor return on investment I manage to produce two Tech II BPCs, one for Tech II drones and one for a Tech II module! Both BPCs are delivered with a maximum run of ten units and negative ME/PE values of four. It's not a great success, but it is still a success. All I have to do now is put the BPCs in for manufacture. Everything is coming together nicely.
4 Responses to “Tech II invention doesn't greet you with open arms”
The tech 1 optional item increases your chance of success (the higher the meta value, the better the increase) but does not affect the quality of the resulting tech II BPC should you succeed. Only decryptors do that.
I only use decryptors on ship invention.
Thanks for the information. I'll retain it all eventually, I'm sure.
Yeah, the resulting BPCs are limited to -4/-4 stats unless you use decryptors, you wont get anything better than that... and to be honest, once you do the maths, its very likely that decryptors wont offer any cash-benefits to module runs (in other words, the cost of the decryptor outweighs the benefits it gives you)
Anyway... well done on getting on the first rung of the ladder, now for the fun part... spending your life in search of datacores to give the dice one more roll to see if you get lucky... and they say Vegas is bad.
(and yeah, as its been said, adding a meta level item to the invention improves the success chance, it doesnt affect the blueprint output)
Thanks, Karox. I have your handy guide to Tech II invention from Eon and its table on decryptors but I was too keen to see some results to concern myself with them on the first pass. I'm sure with time I'll get more involved in the details.