Short-range salvaging
3rd September 2010 – 7.38 pmWe have explored local w-space and found no signs of life. But we still have Sleepers to shoot. A colleague and I in strategic cruisers jump through to our neighbouring system to start clearing some anomalies of Sleeper infestation. This class 4 w-space system holds a magnetar phenomenon which increase damage significantly, speeding up our Sleeper slaughter. The phenomenon applies to all ships, though, so we need to take care not to get overwhelmed by the incoming damage, although combat doesn't seem more dangerous than normal.
All phenomena also have drawbacks, the main one for a magnetar being a reduction of a ship's targeting range. My Tengu cruiser's targeting range normally greatly exceeds the physical range of the heavy assault missiles I use, so the magnetar phenomenon's negative effects are not really felt in combat. But I find it makes salvaging a little more pernickety.
When salvaging, I like to plan an optimal path between wrecks, one that minimises travel and maximises the use of the tractor beams. Once I have a rough idea of the path I'll take between the wrecks I target them in the order I plan to salvage each one, reducing the need to double-back or recalculate my current path. The reduced targeting range in the magnetar system makes my normal method more awkward, as I can barely target beyond the range of the tractor beams. I need to remain more aware of my route and which wreck is my next target instead of relying on targeting order.
Targeting range quibbles aside, salvaging is made more interesting by the two of us having a race. We each pick one of the anomalies and see who can loot and salvage all the wrecks first. I think I have an advantage with my Tech II salvager modules but my colleague's Catalyst is perhaps a quicker destroyer than the Cormorant I am flying.
I manage to clear my site of wrecks first, but it is close and my colleague is confident he can do better. 'We shall repeat this', he promises. That's fine by me, I'll train my salvaging up to six in preparation. We head home with our hauls of loot. There may not have been any other capsuleers around but it led to a peaceful evening of making a profit, both of us now around a hundred and twenty million ISK better off.
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