Starting to move w-space systems
29th October 2010 – 5.44 pmThe move to a class 5 w-space system is on. We are leaving our class 4 home behind us to progress towards owning capital ships and fighting the Sleeper escalations they create, deeper w-space connections, and more dangerous neighbours. The first stage is effectively complete, a suitable C5 found with a scanning alt parked there. With director Fin giving us the nod the second stage of preparation begins, moving as much of our current configuration out to empire space as feasible. Within a couple of days a suitable exit to high-sec empire space has presented itself at the same time as I am available and I start moving some of my ships out of w-space.
I'm not one to blindly warp in to an ambush if I can help it, and I don't simply choose an arbitrary ship for my first trip. I board my Crane transport ship, stealthy, agile, and fast, and use the copied bookmarks to check the route. Our neighbouring class 4 system is occupied but appears inactive, just as the adjoining class 1 system does. There are no pilots and no warp bubbles to be seen, making the route clear. The only cause for concern is that the exit wormhole is reaching the end of its natural lifetime, and the amount of time it has left before collapsing is unknown. I jump out to high-sec, dock, and exit the Crane, taking my naked pod back to w-space and our tower.
Although the route was clear on the way back for me, a colleague returning moments later tells of a Legion strategic cruiser loitering on the K162 of our static wormhole. I imagine the Legion pilot has noticed our ship movements, taking ships out and coming back in pods, and is opportunistically looking to catch an easy kill. I can understand his motives, and I maintain that predictable behaviour such as we have displayed is fundamentally dangerous, but the Legion pilot cannot have been paying full attention, as my two colleagues have not been taking out benign haulers but mostly capable combat ships. And now we have spotted the Legion and have all three of us at the tower we conspire to turn the tables on this potential ambush.
My colleagues ready a Curse recon ship and a Vagabond cruiser, and I join them on our side of the static wormhole in my Sacrilege heavy assault ship. We're not quite sure what to expect, but we know what we can do. We jump in to the C4 and hold our session change cloak whilst we survey the grid. The Legion has dropped a warp bubble between the K162 and the next connection along the route, some twenty kilometres from the wormhole, with the strategic cruiser itself sitting beyond the bubble. It certainly looks like he is hoping to catch someone heading towards our system, but I don't think he expects what happens next.
Our ships decloak and burn towards the Legion, the Curse getting a point on the ship preventing it from warping away. We head straight towards the cruiser, burning directly through the warp bubble, and engage all our systems, neutralising the Legion's energy, disrupting its weapon tracking systems, and firing weapons. The Legion simply cannot stand the onslaught, the pilot saying a meek 'stop' in the local channel. Sadly, it looks like the bloodlust has overcome my colleagues as they don't even register his request, the Legion exploding in a gratifying fireball. The ejected pod warps away, and we collect his drones, loot and destroy the wreck, and pop the anchored warp bubble. Our path is clear again.
I take the Sacrilege back to our tower and swap it for my Falcon, choosing to take the stealthy recon ship out to high-sec next. The route is indeed clear, and I dock and disembark from the Falcon. I take my pod once more back to, um, empty space. That's odd, I am sure I left a wormhole here. But it was a static wormhole, so its disappearance only creates a new one in the C1. A colleague still in w-space takes a scanning boat to the class 1 system, finds the new wormhole, and exits to contract a copy of the new bookmarks to me, eighteen jumps away. I'd better get started. All the systems along the route may be high-sec space but I still won't use my auto-pilot, I'm no stinkin' empire jockey.
The journey is uneventful and I am soon docking. The insurance company's normally useless Ibis frigate left for me, for docking in a pod with no other ships in the station, is actually useful, as it lets me copy the bookmarks in to my nav-comp system. The bookmark system is sufficiently arcane that any bookmarks must be copied first to a cargo hold before the nav-comp, and a pod doesn't have a functional cargo hold. The Ibis's purpose complete, I trash it, taking my naked pod to the new entrance to the class 1 w-space system and returning to our tower. The route remains clear and I return to moving ships.
My Damnation command ship is next to be taken out to empire space, docked in the exit system, now giving me ships eighteen jumps apart that I will soon have to get back in to another system. It will only be an incovenience the once, though, and I will cope. I go back to w-space for my Retriever mining barge, which soon joins the Damnation docked in the station. I'm led to understand that many cheap ships will be destroyed in w-space and bought anew rather than troubling us with moving their bulky hulls around, but I want to keep my barge as it has sentimental value to me. One last trip for now gets my Curse in to empire space and my pod back to our tower.
I still have a handful of ships at our tower. The smaller ships, like my Vengeance assault ship and Malediction interceptor, will be carried out along with others in an Orca industrial command ship. My Tengu strategic cruiser can still be used for any impromptu Sleeper operations, and the Onyx heavy interdictor and Sacrilege may be useful to have around for PvP encounters. They can be taken out last. I board my Buzzard covert operations scanning boat to sleep in, a habit I've picked up in w-space just in case something goes horribly wrong that leaves me stranded, and get some rest.
3 Responses to “Starting to move w-space systems”
Seems like the Legion pilot got taught a very good lesson. Only thing better i guess would of been able to capture the pod.
Having organised the packing up of a WH pos and related assets you have my sympathy. At least you seem to be getting some fun at the same time :)
I think the Legion's strategy was sound, just unluckily timed. He noticed our repeated movements and acted on them. He planted the bubble away from the wormhole rather than on top of it, stopping any returning pilots from burning through it quickly to jump.
It was simply unfortunate for him that one of out pilots noticed his presence, and we were all in our home system at the time, so we could get the right ships to could counter the trap efficiently.
And, yes, getting a T3 kill certainly livens up packing up the tower.