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| Skeptical Cat is skeptical. |
For the first time in perhaps ever, a slew of Tech 1 frigs are competitive with Tech 2 and faction frigates. Yes, there are advantages to the latter but its not so obviously overwhelming like it used to be. Furthermore, with the improved Ewar and Logistics frigates it is possible to run full fledged Tech 1 frigate fleets with impressive capabilities and able to punch above its weight against a less prepared enemy cruiser fleet.
There are a number of options in the Destroyer hulls, all of them competitive with Tech 2 and faction frigates and dangerous in small groups to cruisers and battlecruisers.
The cruisers of each race are powerful and fast and decent options to use instead of battlecruisers and Tech 2 cruisers. They are obviously more maneuverable than battlecruisers with nearly comparable damage profiles in some cases, and definitely threaten faction and tech 2 cruisers in many cases. The enhanced logistic cruisers give FCs with these Tech 1 cruiser fleets a logistics option that does not cost an arm and a leg and introduces a lot more complexity and variety to this level of combat.
And all of these Tech 1 ships are very affordable meaning there is no better time in the past when getting into PvP is affordable and not an exercise in futility. On top of that, faction warfare has been reinvigorated and the variety of fleets/gangs and combat styles in the low sec arenas are at an all time high. If you don't PvP but think you might want to, now is the time to start.
Go. Now. Start PvPing.
Sure, there are issues in null sec with the bloc level warfare, and solo PvP is still an extremely hard style in today's environment, but the complexity of combat is at an all time high and allows a lot more room in the meta to have a prepared and experience small group divide and overcome a larger less prepared group. This is dynamic skill based PvP at its best and its everywhere now.
I don't know how long this Golden Age of PvP will last, but ride the wave while you can.
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| Sounds like a plan! Where'd I park my rifter?! |
Posts
GO GO GO!! GOLDEN AGE! WoOt
ReplyDeleteI said it when Retribution came out, Eve is 1000% better now and people scoffed... they scoffed.
EvE isn't better unless these new ships translate into new behaviors and new opportunities.... we are still waiting to see if the golden age is arrived yet. Ships being in place are only a first step. I think CCP has to find a way to engineer players (especially bitter old players) into new attitudes.
ReplyDeleteThe responsibility for the bittervets pulling their head out of their ass is... the bittervets. Sometimes people get so used to doing things a certain way they can't see when it's time to change. Most of the movers and shakers in EvE, it seems to me, have been around since Christ was a private, and are slower than they should be to change or to listen to new ideas.
DeleteI think Retribution is awesome. Ships that weren't being flown before are now seeing the light of day. Ships that used to be scoffed at by The Powers That Be - tech 1 - are now good enough that players with enough sense, courage, or stupidity (or all three) to ignore the old guard are finding they can fight without the intense risk that the "tech-2-or-bust" crowd entails.
I definitely think the stage is set for a "Golden Age of PvP," but I don't know if I'd say we're there, yet. We are most certainly tip-toeing into it, though with the work CCP Fozzie has put in to balancing the ships.
ReplyDeleteI'm loving patrolling our null space in my little maulus when roamers start coming in. I can actually be effective in driving off small, short ranged fleets with all the annoying ewar I can throw out.
Anyway, yeah these new ships are awesome, but I may also be in agreement with DSJ up there in that the big changes haven't happened in such a way that we're seeing a fundamental change in null sec fleet composition. Who knows, maybe we never will, as I'm sure the objective of the big alliances is to field the best stuff. If we start to see more small scale objectives that are possible for smaller alliances to effect in big boy space, then I think you'll really get this Golden Age of PvP.
Agreed with Heretic. CCP is providing a nice updated set of props. It's still up to the actors [us] to DO something with them.
ReplyDeleteEVE is a Stage, not a Sandbox -- and no matter what sets, props, effects, you have ready to go, if the actors just stand there idly derping, it's still going to suck.
Golden Phallus PvP roam tomorrow maybe? :-D