Commander Toland
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Posted - 2009.05.02 01:06:00 -
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In the Eve world of pvp, the lowly destroyer is almost worse then useless. Their lack of firepower and large ( for their size) sig radius has made them a mockery of what they could and maybe even should be. I know that real life military history doesn't fit the Eve universe however I feel this can apply to the destroyers in eve.
When the destroyer class was first developed it was designed with three things in mind. The first is speed, destroyers are small nimble ships that rely on speed for protection from larger threats, dashing in and out of a line of battle as opportunity arise. This need for speed was invaluable when they were pursued by heavier adversaries mainly cruiser and higher. The larger caliber guns of the cruiser class could not generally hit a target as quickly moving as a destroyer though even a glancing blow could destroy the craft.
The second is firepower, the guns on a destroyer are laughable, their real punch lies in their torpedo tubes. Each would have either forward or broadside mounted tubes. With their high speed they could dash among the heavy ships and fire their charges at close range. Destroyers in Eve could work much the same, they could be modified to carry only a limited number of torpedoes or perhaps cruise missiles. Maybe their missile lock range could be cut to force them to close to range, relying on their speed to save them from the worse of enemy fire. After emptying their magazines they could then retire behind their own battle line having served their purpose of softening up the enemy ahead of the main fleet.
The third is stealth detection, the Destroyer best known task is the location and destruction of enemy subs. Eve already has its own subs Stealth bomber and covert ops, what it lacks is a means to defend against them. I am not even talking about being able to destroy a cloaked player, merely make it a bit more difficult to remain hidden if an enemy wants to find you. Perhaps a probe which can broadcast a field which will de activate a cloaking mod. This doesn't even have to be on a system wide scale I personal would settle for a tactical model to be deployed ahead of advancing fleets or industrial convoys to detect any un welcome eyes.
I think we can all agree that the Destroyers in eve are in need of a boost, or at least a role they can perform which another ship can not do ten times better (beside salvaging). I have laid out my ideas before you, if you have any idea on the direction you would like to see this class go please feel free to post I would like to hear your opinions.
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