This really is a good idea, because faction weapons should be a usable alternative to T2. They're not OP, I can't see how this would break anything, and it has several beneficial consequences.

Before I try and escalate this, is there anything problematic that anyone can see with this? I've tried and I can't.

This really is a good idea, because faction weapons should be a usable alternative to T2. They're not OP, I can't see how this would break anything, and it has several beneficial consequences.

Before I try and escalate this, is there anything problematic that anyone can see with this? I've tried and I can't.

This really is a good idea, because faction weapons should be a usable alternative to T2. They're not OP, I can't see how this would break anything, and it has several beneficial consequences.

Before I try and escalate this, is there anything problematic that anyone can see with this? I've tried and I can't.

This really is a good idea, because faction weapons should be a usable alternative to T2. They're not OP, I can't see how this would break anything, and it has several beneficial consequences.

Before I try and escalate this, is there anything problematic that anyone can see with this? I've tried and I can't.

The original BPO holders of T2 weapon systems will see their profits drop to only healthy levels.

The original BPO holders of T2 weapon systems will see their profits drop to only healthy levels.

Ok so months later I've given some more time for things to work themselves out.

http://s83.photobucket.com/user/MrBenis/media/Factionvsnon-factionfit_zpsdf5ec6eb.jpg.html

The above is two identically fit cerbs, with one being modified to use mostly faction modules. Salient points are as follows.

T2 fit cerb is 1% over PG.
T2 cerb is 0.4% over cpu.

DPS stats compare at 610 for the faction, 593 for the t2 cerb with CN kinetic HAM. A difference of 2.8%
EHP is 20.8 faction, 19.5 t2. A difference of 6.35%.
The faction cerb is 2.5% faster.

T2 fit is 21m in mods. To make it use no fitting mods requires only changing to a meta 3 scram and plugging in a 2% pg implant. I personally swapped to a 3% grid implant because they're more common. Total fitting in this case is circa 19mil + the 3% implant. Combined cost is 214mil.

Faction cerb is 436mil in mods. That is not a typo. For 20.7x the amount of money for a t2 fit you get 2.8% more dps, 6.35% more ehp and move less than 3% faster. You also don't need a grid implant. Lucky you.

Notice that I deliberately left out crazy over-priced things like CN BCS and CN invuls because pithum invuls are better and cost nearly the same, CN BCS would net you 35 dps more. The extra 35 dps increases the difference to 8.1% dps. The difference in cpu would allow you to remove the overclocker thus giving you access to a t2 EM rig if you wish. At this point your fit is 912 mil at a cost of 755million in mods.

Fits like that are ALOD specials but they shouldn't need to be. The combination of tags, LP and the effort required in farming them topped off with getting the right missions in the first place combine together to make some of the least cost efficient modules in the game. As stated earlier in the thread and throughout the forums in many places there are pirate faction drops with identical stats that are sometimes 1/4 the price of a FW store weapon.

I think that this problem is severe and it impacts the game for everyone wishing to kit out their ships. It affects the game negatively because much like the just-passed pirate implant rebalance which saw HGs increased to +4 in order to make them a more desirable alternative to +5 clones insofar as encouraging active use over passive training clones I really think dropping the price on FW weapons and mods could see a couple of major benefits to the economy. It would see people using LP items with much greater frequency and as we know they're an ISK sink which will help everyone in the long term. It will see an incentive to run more FW missions to collect tags thus reducing the appeal of afk farming by a margin. It will give people who like to do things themselves the chance to build their own ship in a very true sense. T3 production is out of the question for many solo players but a FW ship powered by FW modules is certainly achieveable.

I want people to remember that this is a game about risk vs reward and that in the case of FW items the risk of loss is far higher than the reward they bring. This is not some flash-in-pan theory, the market clearly supports it through the ludicrous pricing and FW item stores are sorely out of date by nearly 4 years.

Price of tags is dictated by players.
It is like moon goo.
Why r64 are so expensive, people should be selling it cheaper.