Less longevity than a dying wormhole
29th January 2013 – 5.26 pmA dying wormhole behind me and a dead wormhole in front of me. Circumstances would be bleak, were it not for the dead wormhole being our static connection. Or, at least, our previous static connection. I imagine the Sleeper technology that connects w-space systems together has already produce a new wormhole for me. I board my cloaky Loki strategic cruiser, scan, and resolve the replacement connection, jumping through it to a neighbouring class 3 system that I hope leads to more opportunity than the last.
C3a is a system holding both a cataclysmic variable phenomenon and eleven core scanning probes, which is mildly intriguing. That many probes requires a couple of scouts, and as I've only just opened the K162 I'm sitting on I think it's safe to say one or other of the scouts has probably inferred my entrance. Loitering on the wormhole, however, has nothing come my way, and one set of probes vanishing from my directional scanner. I could sit here and watch the other probes disappear, or I could explore. Let me check the tower.
My notes place me in this system five months ago, but warping to where I have a tower listed lands me in empty space. Whatever was anchored in the system previously has been torn down cleanly, leaving a distinct lack of occupation. I think that's actually a positive sign, as those probe-wielding scouts must have come from somewhere, and I probably have a wormhole or two to uncover. Not caring to lurk for a scant chance to have a cloaky covert operations boat easily evade me, I launch probes to see what the others are already seeing.
Six anomalies and ten signatures hide gas mostly, and the static exit to low-sec is joined by the assumed extra wormholes of a K162 from high-sec and a K162 from null-sec. So much for w-space. At least the high-sec connection gives me a handy safety net for returning to w-space, should I need it, as long as I take a moment to poke through to bookmark the other side of it. And exiting to appear in a system in Heimatar has the unexpected sight of a Pilgrim sitting on the wormhole.
I have no idea what the recon ship is doing waiting on a wormhole in high-sec by himself. I shed my session change cloak and activate my module cloak, which may show my hull but will deny him any intelligence about whether I stay or go, and I wait and watch as the Pilgrim is joined by a Buzzard cov-ops and the pair of them jump to C3a. Well, I assume they are coupled, as I doubt the Pilgrim will stand a chance of catching the Buzzard. Either way, I wait a few minutes before heading back myself, to dissipate any polarisation effects, as well as not really wanting to telegraph my movements quite so obviously.
Returning to C3a has me returning to a clear d-scan. The Pilgrim and Buzzard are nowhere to be seen, which perhaps isn't a surprise for two cloaky ships, but as they aren't up to any obvious mischief, or waiting for me specifically, I'll ignore them and see where the system's static wormhole leads. Metropolis, a faction warfare system, with one pilot in the local comms channel. I would say I ignore him and scan, but it turns out I can't ignore him whilst also resolving the radar site his Hurricane battlecruiser is currently in.
The radar site is just one signature of the two extra ones in the system, and I move my probes across to resolve the other as a wormhole. The wormhole interests me more than the battlecruiser, but my curiosity about whether the Hurricane is watching d-scan or not is piqued, and I have to see what he's up to in that site. I warp in at range, hoping not to hit any structures, and see the Hurricane not doing much at all. Or, rather, he's not doing much at the moment, most likely because he has been watching d-scan and has seen my combat scanning probes.
The Hurricane is in the middle of the site and seemingly idling, but taking a closer look shows the ship to be aligned towards a planet, clearly ready to warp out at a moment's notice. Regardless of the pilot's caution, I am still wondering if I can engage him and win. Maybe, and despite his being aligned out of the site, his alignment is bringing the battlecruiser almost directly towards me. Sure, there is about forty kilometres still to cover, but if he gets close enough I could decloak and bump him out of alignment and be able to engage him. That is, until the pilot effects a course change and aligns to a different planet.
I can't get close to the Hurricane without a bit of effort, and I'd rather explore more w-space systems than play with a battlecruiser in low-sec. I warp out of the radar site to the wormhole I resolved, finding it to be a K162 from class 1 w-space, and jump through. And maybe this won't take much time, letting the Hurricane pilot relax and letting me sneak up on him when I head back through low-sec. Then again, a clear d-scan result in C1a and a passive scan bringing up forty anomalies makes me think I may be a while in returning.
Exploring the class 1 system finds no occupation, and launching probes and performing a blanket scan gives a cleaner result than I expected. With only six signatures, it seems this system is harvested for its resources more than Sleeper loot, as well as giving me little to do to look for more K162s. I find one too, leading back to class 4 w-space, in which a Broadsword heavy interdictor appears on d-scan without any trace of a tower. I would assume the HIC is on a wormhole, and its disappearing from d-scan lends some weight to that thought.
Exploring C4b finds a tower in one direction with five ships, but only a Cheetah cov-ops piloted, and a second tower in the other direction, with an empty stealth bomber floating in its force field. There's no sign of the Broadsword, nor any probes or wrecks, and time is getting late. I'll see if that Hurricane is still in the radar site, or if it maybe has been replaced by a hacking boat, before calling it a night. I return to C1a and exit to low-sec, where there is no sign of the Hurricane or its pilot, and the radar site has gone. I suppose I have been a little while in scanning and exploring. So it looks like I'm going home, where the dying wormhole remains. The K162 from class 4 w-space has lasted longer in w-space this evening than me.
3 Responses to “Less longevity than a dying wormhole”
Hiya Penny,
"My notes place me in this system five months ago, but warping to where I have a tower listed lands me in empty space."
I've read several other (many?) posts where you say a similar thing. That got me wondering about your super secret database. Does it have enough data in it for statistical analysis? Specifically, I'm curious to know how often you return to find no POS and the time frames involved. It might be an interesting insight into the volatility of WH space, or lack thereof. Anyway, just a thought - I'm certainly not volunteering.
Well volunt—oh, never mind.
Yeah, there's probably enough data, although it's hard to say. The volatility of w-space means that some systems will have good data, and some will be many months apart and not provide a decent analysis. I may not find a tower eight months later, but the corporation may have moved out within weeks. Indeed, another corporation may have come and gone in the meantime too.
Personally, It's actually more interesting to return to a system where the tower remains after a year or more than a system that has seen turnover within a few months.
Good point on the still there versus the not there!