So CCP Fozzie released the eagerly awaited Null Sec Sov blog yesterday. Its huge. I'll try and do a summary here. Note I've compressed nearly 8k words to 700. Obviously this is missing LOADS of information. Go read Fozzie's words if this is important shit to you!!!
Its A Brave New World....
All Alliances must set their 'Peak Time'. A four hour slot each day when they can be attacked. At this peak time ALL their territorial claim units (TCUs), iHubs and stations become vulnerable. Yes, all your Sov structures become vulnerable EVERY DAY for a period of four hours.
There are no sovereignty blockade units or structure grinding in the new system. What you use now to capture Sov is a "Entosis Link". This is a targeted hi-slot module that hacks the TCU, iHub, stations and services. It is made from Drifter technology so does not have the hacking mini-game. Its a long cycle, stops you from warping or receiving remote reps and does nothing on the first cycle. Then all hell breaks loose as the alliance members (depending on settings) get notifications that someone is hacking their Sov structure.
All Alliances must set their 'Peak Time'. A four hour slot each day when they can be attacked. At this peak time ALL their territorial claim units (TCUs), iHubs and stations become vulnerable. Yes, all your Sov structures become vulnerable EVERY DAY for a period of four hours.
There are no sovereignty blockade units or structure grinding in the new system. What you use now to capture Sov is a "Entosis Link". This is a targeted hi-slot module that hacks the TCU, iHub, stations and services. It is made from Drifter technology so does not have the hacking mini-game. Its a long cycle, stops you from warping or receiving remote reps and does nothing on the first cycle. Then all hell breaks loose as the alliance members (depending on settings) get notifications that someone is hacking their Sov structure.
If the invaders are not stopped the sov structure will enter reinforced with 10-40 minutes worth of "hacking" depending on the systems defense indices. The defenders can either destroy the aggressing Entosis Link equipped ship (which could be anything from a titan sat at 0 to a T1 frigate at 200km using a T2 Entosis Link and SeBos) or put their own Entosis Link on the same structure halting the capture. Multiple links do not speed it up nor do they 'overpower' the other side. If each side has more than one link it makes no difference, it isn't being hacked.
If the attackers do get it into reinforced mode by completing the hack then the server picks a random time within their four hour slot 48 hours later and spawns..... /engage deep gravelly voice.... THE CAPTURE EVENT!
The capture even spawns five 'command nodes' randomly through the same constellation. Each node is linked to that specific Sov structure. If you reinforce several structures there will be multiple command nodes in each system potentially. Each for a specific structure. You need to hack these with the Entosis Link in the same way. If you capture ten more than the other side (I think thats how it works and new ones spawn as you capture and close the current ones) you win! Its a tug of war between the attackers and defenders to capture the nodes. The defenders have a big advantage as the time to capture is based on the system indices. Therefore at max level the defenders can capture a command node four times faster than the attackers. The capture mechanic is all very faction war like! If the defenders win then the sov structure goes back to invulnerable until the next scheduled prime time vulnerable period. If the attackers win the capture event then it depends on what was being hacked....
TCUs and iHubs.
Simple. They explode. Kaboom. Feel free to drop your own in there.
Stations.
These then go into a 48 hour "Freeport" mode. Anyone can dock there and use the services. All charges and docking fee's are suspended. At the end of the 48 hours a further capture event occurs same as the first. Whatever alliance wins that by capturing the command nodes, takes the station even if they are a 3rd party.
This chart is from Fozzie's Dev Blog explains it fairly simply:-
Some interesting things there. Technically an alliance can capture a station and hold it even without owning the sov of the system it is in! A few issues:-
1. Russians (including the Middle East) and Australians are unlikely to see many fights. 90% or more of the 'prime time timers' will be set to US or Euro. Outside that time you cannot fight for Sov.
2. A single person can harass an entire alliance. That person could Entosis Link a TCU in a none station system every day just to grief and cause panic.
3. Its still about the numbers. OK 50 Titans and 200 Super carriers aren't as much help now. But if you have 2000 and they have 100 you are going to win.
P.S. This is all subject to change during feedback and play-testing. It is not set in stone.
If the attackers do get it into reinforced mode by completing the hack then the server picks a random time within their four hour slot 48 hours later and spawns..... /engage deep gravelly voice.... THE CAPTURE EVENT!
TCUs and iHubs.
Simple. They explode. Kaboom. Feel free to drop your own in there.
Stations.
These then go into a 48 hour "Freeport" mode. Anyone can dock there and use the services. All charges and docking fee's are suspended. At the end of the 48 hours a further capture event occurs same as the first. Whatever alliance wins that by capturing the command nodes, takes the station even if they are a 3rd party.
1. Russians (including the Middle East) and Australians are unlikely to see many fights. 90% or more of the 'prime time timers' will be set to US or Euro. Outside that time you cannot fight for Sov.
2. A single person can harass an entire alliance. That person could Entosis Link a TCU in a none station system every day just to grief and cause panic.
3. Its still about the numbers. OK 50 Titans and 200 Super carriers aren't as much help now. But if you have 2000 and they have 100 you are going to win.
P.S. This is all subject to change during feedback and play-testing. It is not set in stone.
P.P.S. OK let the correction comments commence :o)
Russians have traditionally spent a lot of time fighting other Russians. There's also major war in the Russian areas at the moment which will not, I think, cool when attacking becomes easier.
ReplyDeleteYes a single person can harass an alliance. However if you allow one guy in a frigate to sit on your hub for 40 minutes in the 4 hour vulnerability time you chose you deserve the consequences. In other words if you live in contested space you have to defend it, seems reasonable.
3) Numbers may help less than they currently do. At the moment because attacking a system is a major effort the defender gets a lot of time to prepare. When NC. attacked Y-2 and LGBI in Fountain just after the jump changes the CFC was able to muster 1000 man fleets to go down and see them off. One such fleet I was on took battleships 40 jumps without using jump bridges, a round trip of several hours.
In the new system an entity like the CFC will be attacked in multiple places at once, pretty much daily, and we're unlikely to see the same concentration of force.
That's a pretty good summary. o7
ReplyDeleteI agree, a rather good summary. As I've remarked elsewhere though, it doesn't really shake up the current super powers.
ReplyDeleteCopy/paste in word: 741 words. (670 without introduction and (p)ps.
ReplyDeleteImagine an alliance forming 40 fleets of 40 ships, each getting assigned their own constellation to harass. Reinforce half a dozen constellations and choose which timer you want to fight round 2 for.
Join an alliance outside of your TZ if you don't want to defend your own space.
A couple things: One you may still have to work during your non prime time. from what I can tell the capture nodes don't despawn outside of prime time, so if it is a highly contested event you could be trying for days to take a single station flying all over the constellation.
ReplyDeleteThis could be a problem and I hope CCP puts some kind of cap on the numbers that can be spawned. IE: if after the 400th node neither side has a 10 point advantage X happens, What X is? Don't know, maybe for a Freeport station it stays a Freeport for another 48 hours then more nodes. if its the initial reinforce? I am split on if it should "win" for either side, but there does seem to need to be a limit.
One last thing, I get the feeling that there will be several locked stations (the ones that various alliances have taken and allowed no access to keep enemy assets locked) that become contested highly for quite some time.
The numbers above aren't really what I am focused on, just that there has to be a limit (the 400 number would mean for instance that at a minimum you have 13 hours of capturing command nodes@ 10 min a node 5 nodes at once no one stopping any capture) fully reinforced? well over a day continuous.
Some might say that it is impossible for an attacker to keep up with a fully reinforced system where they have to take 4 times as long to capture a node, but if they are big enough to control 4 of those nodes at any one time and take them relatively unmolested then they could keep up with a defender taking nodes 4 times as fast, but only able to flip a single one at a time.
In all, I think this is going to be an interesting system. especially since this means that no matter how big your blue list they cant directly help you defend. they can only help you by harassing other ships directly.