James Lyrus
Lyrus Associates
The Star Fraction
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Posted - 2009.01.27 23:06:00 -
[1]
It's all about spheres of combat.
You get 3 key 'zones' of control:
0-10km - web/scram range (if you're hit by one, you'll almost certainly be got by the other)
10-24km Warp disruptor range.
24km upwards.
These zones are 'stretchy' thanks to faction and overheating - you aim to fight within 10km if you need to web, but you need to stay clear of 13km if you don't want to get webbed yourself.
Now, the question of 'afterburner' or 'microwarp drive' is intrinsically linked to these zones of fighting - every ship has a range it works well. Some ships are more range flexible than others. It's that that drives the choice, because you're looking to maintain your stronger sphere, and keep them in their weaker. And it's the propulsion module that lets you do this.
The question is a complicated one though - I mean, blaster ships _need_ to get close - typically to web/scram range. If they don't get there, then they lose the fight, pretty much regardless of what they're facing. So an AB blaster fit is a 'comedy failmail' because they're helpless against someone who's slightly faster on AB, or has a MWD.
Autocannons or pulses though, not so much - as long as you can engage something in the second sphere - that of 24km - the fact that you cannot close up matters less - you either kill them, or they lose tackle and you warp.
With 'long range' ships though, it becomes increasingly important that you are able to maintain that range - a Caracal, for example, is a terrible ship if you're not firing at extreme ranges. It's therefore quite important that you use a MWD, because range is your tank. Similarly so of anything 'sniperish'.
Also, your likelyhood/thread of bubbles, must also factor into your decision - 0.0 skews towards the MWD for precisely the reason that getting caught in a bubble probably means you die.
ABs have become more valuable than they were in QR. Especially in lowsec, there's some viable combat fits that use them, and take advantage of their strengths.
But they're not automatic replacements for the mandatory MWD, in every situation. Consider how you're fighting, what ranges you can fight in, and what ranges you cannot.
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249km locking? |