Proposed change to PI in hi-sec

Over the weekend I hopped on an alt, checked out the planetary interaction alternative to customs office material transfers.

The usual way I setup the PI, I use a spaceport as a central store, the command centre is never connected and in some cases is half a planet away from the main buildings.

So I tested and connected up the command centre to the spaceport on all the planets, thankfully this didn't raise the power-grid or cpu beyond the max level.

With the Connection made there are two steps to getting the materials off the planet in this way.

1.      Do an "emergency" transfer from the spaceport/store to the Command Centre.

2.      Launch the materials from the Command Centre into orbit.

Doing the move of materials into the CC looks like this:

However transferring from the spaceport to the CC for an orbital launch  is a joke, only 500m3 and a 24 minute wait to move more! 

That’s not an alternative! Not a very good one at all! 

That means at least an hour and 20 minutes just to move the processed goods on this planet for one day. That's a lot of wasted time. 

Multiply that by 2 mains and a few alts and your suddenly busy hopping accounts and character's, trying to keep track of multiple timers, that's not fun at all!

Granted its a worst case scenario but this costs isk and time. and is really not an alternative. 

But for the sake of knowing… say that transfer was expedited from the port to the CC, the next step, it then needs to be blasted into orbit. 

That looks like this:

 

I wasn't bothered to actually do it as I didnt' want to waste my time. 

You can see in the image, there is another timer for the launcher, I'm sure that's going to be another few minutes after the other timer to wait on. And there is another isk cost. 
Anyway at 500m3 is a small payload. Really not worth as an operational basis.

There is no return journey, getting anything onto a planet takes a customs office. No other way around that at all!

I can only hope that if the customs offices are destroyed/taken over/changed by alliances/corps, that the cost is about the same as the current npc tax. 
If it is and if the sale of the goods gives better returns than before... I might stay with it. 
But people are unpredictable so I doubt it will stay like that for long.

I've already taken steps to finalise and stockpile the goods (for a stockpile payday... I can hope) and fuel (as I can already see its price increasing). These steps at the moment will see my POS operational until about 4 weeks into the expansion. 

But my current plans should be done in the next few weeks anyway.
I've already sold off a lot of POS modules. I think I'll be wrapping up my POS then.  


On the flip side I am really looking forward to the new deployable structures.

New Eve expansion.... Rubicon

I watched the official launch on the ccp twitch channel.
I made some notes as it went along and the only problem that I saw for me was the change to planetary interaction.

Both my mains use PI for their Hi-sec POS. And it's been chugging along nicely for a long time.
I guess I've been lazy when doing my PI. Using the customs office instead of the launch to space option.

If this all leads to players starting to run the stations in hi-sec... that will annoy me.
In wow terms imagine a guild running the bank in your nearest major city. Not good. But that's another expansion, with luck far far away, if at all.

I compiled some info to help me prep for the PI change mainly from, Eve Uni, Youtube etc.

Maybe I'm overreacting but until I am confident in scraping my current process of PI management and replacing my ways, giving the same results with little or no extra cost, then I'll be "happy". 
6 weeks till the expansion and change. 

I usually do a collection of processed PI and sell stuff on a weekly basis, will test and see what way this works without a customs office......

Another player did up a similar list that is more complete with some great links and posted it all up on redit, here it is (PI notes follow it):

  ______________________________

 

Rubicon Running Feature List (self.Eve)
submitted 12 hours ago* by derekivCaldari
 

Editing this post as things annouced: 

November 17th Release
High Res Album Courtesy of /u/nuadi: http://imgur.com/a/o31kL#0

High Sec POCOs now owned by players

Personal Deploy-able Structure:
All destroy-able without concord intervening 4 different types (For this expansion)
Nothing set in stone, names likely to change.
Different code-base than the old POS system, so no need to worry about legacy bugs.

• Siphon Unit* http://i.imgur.com/zovYeVC.jpg Steals resources from moon mining and reactions. Anyone can take from it.
• Depot: http://i.imgur.com/XzeDx2U.jpg Personal Mobile Home. Allows the refitting and storage of modules on the fly.
• Auto-Tractor Looting Device: Set up anywhere to let you collect loot. Will not loot stuff that isn't your own, but may tractor it together.
• Disposable Cyno Jammer: One time Use 70-100km. Does not block covert ops cynos.

Fixing acceleration gates.
 
Warp Speed Changes: Warp speed now affects acceleration and deceleration.

• Tech One cruisers unchanged
• Fancy changes to freighters: Less warp accel, more warp top speed. Faster in large systems, shorter in small systems.
• Faster ships will be more noticeably different than larger ships

Ship Balancing:

• Intecetors: BUBBLE IMMUNITY! Loosing a little hp, small cargo bay (to minimize cyno capabilities)
• Marauders: Graphics http://i.imgur.com/lPqYBCe.jpg
• EAF: 35km neut sentinals. Closer to cruiser ewar stats.
• Light and Heavy Interdictors: Faster warp speed. Pretty bubbles

New Weapon Launcher:
Battleship Rapid Heavy Missile Launcher
Better DPS against small targets than current BS missile launchers, but less dps against large targets.

New Game Launcher

NEW SHIPS: Sisters of Eve (Gallente/Amarr): Armor, Drones, Exploration, Data Bonuses, Cov Ops Cloaks
Capable of running hacking sites, then running a 6/10 without refitting.
Speculation: Requires PI products, based on what Guard said near reveal of High-sec Pocos
Frigate: http://i.imgur.com/XV9tAeh.jpg
Cruiser: http://i.imgur.com/4bFBe25.jpg
 
Usability Features:
Certificates Gone: http://i.imgur.com/e1QCjFf.png
Now called mastery. http://imgur.com/OxXY2kX
Automatically claimed. Will tell you when you are "SUPER ELITE". 

Interbus Space ship view:
Mastery of ships visible in this view.
http://i.imgur.com/me2QGG8.png
 
Character Selection Screen Changes: Easier to use.
Easier to redeem stuff.
More knowledged presented about your character. 

Twitch Integration

HD Valkyrie at Eve Vegas

Stream Over

http://www.reddit.com/r/Eve/comments/1n786y/rubicon_running_feature_list/
 

 ______________________________

 

You have two options for getting goods off your planet, either launching a simple (and small) rocket from your CC or placing a Launchpad on your colony (rather expensive) and using it to interact with an orbiting Customs Office. 


The Launchpad has the greater cost up front, but is far superior to the CC and exports for 2/3rds of the fee of a CC. It can also launch far larger amounts, and is the only way to import stuff on to the planet. However, keep in mind that you are charged 50% of the export fee to import items to your launchpad. Consider the costs carefully before setting up a multi-planet production chain. 

A launch prepared from your CC, accessed via the Rocket-looking icon. 
Simply click the items in your storage to add them to the pending launch and when you're happy click the nice "Go for launch" button and the contents of the launch will end up in a jet can orbiting the planet at a random spot. You get an entry in your journal for its location, and a timer - don't worry too much, it can last several days before pickup! 

Taxes are paid on all items imported and exported. The percentages will be set at the planets customs office. High sec customs offices are always 10% tax. NPC low/null sec is 17% and player owned customs offices can be set to anything, and can be set to different levels for depending on your status with the owner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-kQlRQ_0SQ

A great Ship... even after the last changes... still looking good!

 

from

http://www.eve-outtakes.de

Sisters of Eve Epic Arc ....tidy and alt wrap-up.

With the epic arc finished there were only a few bits to clear up and I could then park up the alt.

There was a lot less loot dropped from missions since I had done it last.

Of these bits I sold anything worth over 50K (not much). Anything else I wasn't keeping got refined and sold the materials.

I tend to hold onto the odd stuff that drops in missions, like the scientists, so the sum total of the arc loot was this:

Not a lot to show - isk made probably came in at just over 11 million.

I got the opportunity to do the story line mission.
Docked up and accepted the mission, purchased the ore in the same station at 156% above regional average, or something less than 40k isk.

Than sold the reward implant.

I just wanted it done and dusted there and then.


It boosted the alt's standings.

 

And is still in the good books with everyone.

I ended up using some of the isk to buy skills books and update the skill q.
I can easily see this being trained over some weekend to get the new small skills done.

Once that was done I got the alt back in station with the rest of the ships/gear. Parked up safe and sound.
Just need to see whats next on the agenda.... alts.... mains.... time will tell :)

Out of interest these are the ships and fits the alt has, not perfect but everyone is different, even this 1.5 mill SP alt:

Ye olde salvager

Scanning Ship

Level 1, 2/Epic arc Mission running Navy Slicer of goodness.

Hauler 1

Hauler 2

Mining Venture

Sisters of Eve Epic Arc ....Finalé

 

Last weekend saw me finish off the last part of the Sisters of Eve Epic arc.


This long post was written up twice but blogger seemed to not like it and kept deleting it! Very frustrating.
I'm sure I've missed some details. Third time lucky!



While I may have thought things were getting too easy, the missions that followed on were a lot harder. And even the "easy" one was fiddly.

I started back into things with this mission. The easy one.

It seemed like it would be ok, kill npc's grab loot and hand-in.


But no, to get the loot you needed to use an analyser on it.
As I said before I hadn't been able to upgrade the ship as I had wanted. A low skill character means compromises. So to fit and online the mission module, I needed to offline something else. The only thing I could really do was to offline the afterburner.





But on second guessing myself and wanting to keep my speed tank together I turned off the module I needed for the lot.






So with all the NPC's dead I offlined the AB and tried to online the module...

Ouch that was a no go... so had to see about getting the other modules offline!

yes, it then went online and I spent the next 10 cycles of the module getting this fail message.

Until finally it worked...

...and I got the mission loot.

Thank crunchy that was over!


After the recovery of the artifact I got a quick npc kill mission.
 

 Moving from one agent to the next can be a minor reward for little effort.

But at 23 jumps it takes the biscuit!

It did pass me through an area that had an incursion in progress. That was a change of scenery for a few jumps. Not a cause for concern, even if on autopilot.

About 8 jumps into the journey I got a mail for a story line mission. You get these every 15 to 20 missions... at level 4 I recall getting them every 10. On hand-in they give a gain to the faction they are for. I convo'd the agent and got this mission.

I'll deal with that after the arc is done.


The Next mission was a tough one.

The "boss" of the npc's had both a high repair rate and an energy drain. And was quiet a smack in the face.

I needed to be around the 5KM mark to effectively fire on him. That had a good point of being under his effective range so he would fire and miss me often, but a bad point in that it was within his energy neutralising range. All in all I had a very limited time to keep my modules online, repair damage and also fire on him.
This caused me to warp out of the mission several times.

Despite me trying to brute force attack and maintain range outside the neut to try to kill the boss, it wasnt' happening.

So I took out the "boss's" wing men, and the reinforcement wave.
Docked the ship and logged on another account.

This is the worst case scenario.
There is no way I could have done it alone. This was the very worse enemy I could have faced. he targeted my primary weakness as an Amarrian. My capacitor powers everything. Weapons, afterburner, repper, damage control. With no power I may as well be sitting in a pod or shuttle.

Logging the second alt defeats the purpose of this lil project. Maybe its a combination of bad luck and circumstance.
But it is what it is. Had the Alt been in an active corp I could have asked for help there.

I logged another alt that was Caldari, flying a Hookbill with t2 light missiles. 

Fleeting them up I took both into the mission.
What a joy the Hookbill was to fly on the other alt. This new alt helped to kill while staying at a 40 KM range. With the feeling of almost being detached from the mission.

With the target dead I dropped the Hookbill alt from fleet and set autopilot to get him home.
While the alt whose arc this is went to the hand-in.

The 4 way split was the next mission. Choose the faction you need rep with I suppose is the best way to describe it.

Choosing the alts home faction was my choice.
This lead me to see the agent for that choice. Not in a station but in her ship.

She gave the last combat mission of the Arc.

And it was only then that I remembered the problem I had always had with the last "boss".
If this alt had problems getting thought the tank of the last fight, this one would also need a helping hand to take down. I alt tabbed to the other alt, re-fleeted and headed to the mission.

The arc alt had no problem with killing the other npc's in mission. and was able to kite the "boss" with a close in speed tanking orbit.

This "boss" only had a target painter as a bonus effect, and it did little to increase his dps.

The second alt by this time had joined the fray and started to apply dps.

It still took a while to kill the "boss" but he finally exploded. the alts parted ways again.
Mission completed and with a warp back to the agents ship I completed the mission hand-in.

Last part is to get the "prisoner" and dump him in a cargo ship.

Once the cargo is swapped, its all done and dusted.

Now just to clean up some loot, complete the story line mission and dock up the alt.....