Optimising the Damnation for Sleeper combat
30th November 2009 – 5.51 pmWe have people! The wormhole engineers are not a large group, so getting more than a few capsuleers on-line at the same time, and in the same place, is not terribly common. We seize the opportunity, particularly as our chief scanner has located a neighbouring C3 system that is uninhabited and has some sites of specific Sleeper interest to defile. But first, my Damnation needs a few changes.
I don't have access to the EVE Fitting Tool, so my method of researching ship fittings is based on the contentious advice given in various fora, combined with having to buy various modules to see if they fit and what effect they have. It is not ideal. I would rather not be left with various expensive modules lying in hangars around the galaxy after finding out they don't quite meet my needs. Considering that I pilot highly complex ships through space, using the amazing technology of stargates, and docking at massive space stations, I would imagine that there is enough processing power available to offer a virtual fitting service in at least some stations.
Luckily, I have others around me who are kind enough to help with fitting my ships more optimally. Instead of concentrating on the warfare links and armour buffer tank Bad Badtz Maru currently has, I can sacrifice a chunk of the hefty armour to boost my damage output. Whilst running three warfare links is a special feature of the command ship, it is perhaps not always necessary, particularly in our small fleets. Removing one of the warfare links and the drone link augmentor frees up enough grid to make use of all five launcher high slots. Taking out the armour hardeners from the low slots also lets me fit three ballistic control systems, increasing my rate-of-fire.
Even without the armour hardeners, the Damnation's resistance to damage is impressively high, and boosted further by the passive defence armoured warfare link. With the fleet booster and warfare link bonuses, Bad Badtz Maru still has over 140,000 effective hit points, which is plenty for surviving Sleeper fire, and now my DPS is significantly increased too. I should be much more effective as a fleet member.
With the firepower we have available, we blast through anomalies quickly and easily. So easily, in fact, that I get volunteered to start salvaging the previous sites whilst the fleet forges ahead to new anomalies. This is fine with me, even if it means leaving my Damnation back in the hangar, as I get a curious thrill out of salvaging, which I plan to explain at some point. In the end, we clear three-and-a-half anomalies before running out of time, the half of an anomaly apparently being the result of a failed attempt to clear it earlier by another party.
I finish swiping the loot from and salvaging the wrecks and return to the tower, dropping off a neat collection of profitable goods. It is good to be shooting Sleepers again.
2 Responses to “Optimising the Damnation for Sleeper combat”
Part of the issues maybe timezone sprawl. We tend to have some members on at atypical times for their timezones and coupled with people spread across 18 of these timezones makes for some very interesting connections [or lack thereof].
The Damnation seems so much more flexible than people give it credit for, but I don't think we're going to see it winning any races. :)
For fittings, you can still get EFT up and running fairly easily if you want. I promise. I tend to use it more to make a note of what fittings I have used on a ship before. Apparently my memory isn't quite as good as it used to be and I always remember my ships being faster, tankier and gankier than they have any right to be. Oh, and the cap is ALWAYS stable in my recollections of previous forays. Even while micro-warp-driving though McJita's munching on cap-booster charges and running 4 large energy transfers on my Apothesis. Well, at least that's how it was in my head.
Congrats on more Sleepers reduced to rubble.
Yes, time zones don't help, and it's good that we have enough keen engineers to be so deep in to w-space.
You're right, I can use EFT! I got myself mixed up, it's EVEMon that won't run under Crossover Games, but EFT is up and running. I will try to find time to play with it. And I'm pretty sure all ship fittings are made superior when Fin fits them personally.