Jalabaster
Mechanical Eagles Inc.
The Ancients.
2
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Posted - 2012.04.22 23:29:00 -
[1] - Quote
If anyone thinks that wormhole revenue is too high, I would invite you to give wormhole life a try. You will find that the classic 'risk versus reward' system is firmly in play, and working pretty much as intended. Yes, you can make more money. No, it isn't as easy, and you will need to buy backup ships, because you're going to lose some.
Wormholes are basically the endgame for a great many small groups. These small groups move in, they invest. They take the deliberate risk that all the belongings they have in the hole could be destroyed. Most of them are not risking just a ship or two. They are risking a fully functional POS full of ships, gear, production and research lines, and what all else they would see fit to risk. Some of them invest nearly all of their assets into their wormhole endeavors. Not only are performing more risky endeavors, but they are putting far, far more on the line than an incursion runner.
Beyond that, everything you do relies on scanning down cosmic signatures. Logistics is not always easy, and you have constant supplies that need to be run in. Even the most self- sufficient of WH groups need ice for fuel blocks, faction ammo, and constantly topping off inventories of modds and ends. And then there's the issue of tritanium. If you think groups are doing any kind of large scale production by mining their own trit, you're dead wrong.
Recent POCO changes are in my opinion well balanced, wormhole groups are forced to either invest in POCO's (which of course can be destroyed), or face the interbus wallet neutralizer.
All that said, I think you over-estimate the site value of any one particular hole. Realize that once a wormhole is inhabited and farmed, it is quite frequently cleared, with nothing more to do. Venturing beyond one's borders can provide more isk, but at a cost of a significant amount of time spent exploring and scanning in unfamiliar systems. It would be fair to say that someone who raids wormhole space spends more time actively scanning than an incursion runner spends on autopilot when flying to his incursion. Even an experienced scout who scans very quickly will have to canvas out a large area in order to find the richest of WH systems his small group can raid. A wormhole inhabitant can expect to spend the vast majority of his time doing maintenance, logistics, and exploratory activities. I would venture to say that about 10% of your time is actually spent making money. The other 90% or so is spent doing necessary tasks, most of which cost isk in some way.
Do the blue bits contribute significantly to inflation? Yes.
Should the blue bits be tinkered with? Yes
Should WH inhabitants make more money than incursion runners? Yes
Jalabaster
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