Go closer.

It amazes me how many people cannot do those calcs on a napkin anymore.



/when-I-was-young

hahah- well, ill take that as a joke, since the build is defined by how far away you can get :)

The way modules affect drones has been the bane of sentry boat pilots since the little beggars were first launched.

There has never been a drone Info panel reflecting anything other than "stock" stats for a drone in space. That continues to this day.

Briefly, for the last several months we've had the ability to see how passive modules affect drone stats as long as the drones were still in the drone bay. That's been useful, if not ideal.

Now, though, with the advent of the active ODL even that has been b*ggered up. To make matters worse, CCP have seen fit not just to script it, but to completely nerf the base stats of the module.

How the true power of the Garde II on a full-skilled Domi pilot has been nerfed into oblivion can be summed up like this:

Pre-1.1 Rubicon
T2 ODL - 25% optimal range and 25% tracking speed.

Triple T2 ODL fit:
Tracking 0.086
Optimal 71.7km
Falloff 12km

Post=-1.1 Rubicon:
T2 ODL - 7.5(15)% optimal range, 15(30)% falloff, 15(30)% tracking speed (script stats in parentheses)

Triple T2 ODL fit *no scripts*
Tracking 0.069
Optimal 49.2km
Falloff 16.9km

Triple T2 ODL fit *range scripts*
Tracking 0.049
Optimal 58.2km
Falloff 23km

Triple T2 ODL fit *tracking scripts*
Tracking 0.095
Optimal 41.2km
Falloff 12km

So while triple tracking scripts do give marginally better tracking performance than pre-1.1, it's at the cost of an optimal range reduced by over 30km. And that, by any standard, is a sh*t ton of nerf.

Even triple Fed Navy ODL's with range scripts will only give a Garde II 59.5km optimal. Granted the falloff's almost doubled, but the tracking is back at a poxy 0.049.

In short - the dumbing down of the ODL module's base stats (splitting off optimal & falloff and giving the Optimal Range bonus the short end of the stick) means we're left with a bunch of ships whose primary weapons platform has been royally screwed.

And the fact that we have to resort to a (albeit superb) Third Party app to get even the most basic stats for our drones, when the game itself should be providing them wholesale, strikes me as ridiculous.

One very peeved Domi pilot

Ok I knew they were good and would be nerfed because everyone was abusing them before. I had no idea they were that good. 71k optimal Gardes? heh.

The nerf makes it almost impossible to hit smaller targets with slightest traversal using Gardes. If they are closer than say 50km, you won't hit them because of tracking. If targets are any further away, the are absurdly deep into falloff and apply hardly any damage. Cruiser size targets have a small window where Gardes can apply half of their usual damage.

As its impossible to dictate range using sentry and droneboats with competitive damage output are poor when it comes to tanking: the are useless now.

Don't underestimate falloff and tracking scripts.

Damage application against a MWD spiraling Crow target in lowsec.
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/Dante80/bellycancer/29-Jan-1402-09-54_zpsbb673d33.jpg

Many will not notice it, but Rubicon 1.1 indirectly fixed Curators for PvP. C:

PvE. Damage application against elite cruiser (Dire Pithum Eraser).
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f9/Dante80/bellycancer/1_zps8ceaaaac.jpg

Garde - Bouncer still seems optimal.

Yea I just got into my Dominix... The range looks ugly. No more 30% bonus to tracking and range... You can't even get that bonus just to range with zero tracking bonus.


On the bright side this should cause the price of the Dominix and other sentry drone ships to fall. Maybe buy low now, wait for CCP to realize and fix what they've done then sell high

Apologies to everyone, undocking, loading script activating link does not update the drone attributes of the drones in your drone bay. I thought it would work as usual and that CCP would not make such a huge mistake but apparently they did.

It used to be a misconception and people checked drone stats after they had launched it with the old links it would work exactly as described before.

This is a major derp on CCPs part and I am mind boggled how something like this made it through testing.
Either the links do not work at all or just the info is bugged either way this is a HUGE failure!!!

I'm very sorry to say this to a new player, but the the sad fact is that there is no in-game system that will properly tell you your final, calculated, actual, honest-to-goodnes for-real drone stats. Fitting window, show info, all that stuff will be inaccurate.

Get a third party fitting tool such as EFT.

If your ship is in space, and you show info on a not-deployed drone in your drone bay, I thought the game showed you correct stats for that drone.

You use a napkin for your calculations???? I carve mine in slate.

..
On a fully skilled pilot for a range bonused boat. Much like scorch on a Paladin, if you use that as your only frame of reference you get a distorted view of how it performs in general.

In fact, as many people have pointed out, the nerf hits everything *but* the Ishtar and Domi even harder.

Drone upgrades were simply overpowered compared to other weapon system upgrades, and this balance nerfed them back into place.

[quote=Gizznitt Malikite]

The only exception I can think of being the TFI as it could eek an omni and DLA on. The point being 'range' scripted sentries cant track for jack schitt, so you're better off not bothering.

Not really. I've dual-box(ed) a pair of triple-ODL'd rr Domis ever since the new hull bonuses came into play. It's a very common setup, used extensively in PvE in null as well as Empire. Granted, both pilots have Gal BS 5 but even at 4 it's a powerful and easily skilled-for platform. So the example I've cited isn't a distortion.

In fact, as many people have pointed out, the nerf hits everything *but* the Ishtar and Domi even harder.

Not really. I've dual-box(ed) a pair of triple-ODL'd rr Domis ever since the new hull bonuses came into play. It's a very common setup, used extensively in PvE in null as well as Empire. Granted, both pilots have Gal BS 5 but even at 4 it's a powerful and easily skilled-for platform. So the example I've cited isn't a distortion.

In fact, as many people have pointed out, the nerf hits everything *but* the Ishtar and Domi even harder.

except that a rattlesnake that flips over to 3 tracking scripts for close range has better tracking than it used to, and thats probably more important in rattlesnake applied dps, than the same thing is to a dominix or an ishtar. Realistically tracking at 50km with NPCs that fly straight at you, is not very important.

Mission rats start at 30 a LOT.