So, this is an idea about how to allow better utilization of NPC mission agents, particularly in Nullsec:
a) Make a series of mission agents from all the NPC and pirate corps across New Eden, who specialize in traveling to various Nullsec blocs and setting up shop in that Sov space for a limited time as a ‘guest’, say 7-21 days, at which time, they vacate the station they’re in and go somewhere else, while some other NPC corp sends the vacated station one of their reps as a ‘guest’. During their stay, nullsec peeps can obtain missions (L1-L5, or L3-L5, etc.) to run missions in their space, regardless of standing with that faction or corp elsewhere in the game (they could leverage getting missions in null, but still not have them available in low and high until standings are repaired sufficiently through the normal grind). Such a mechanism would do away with the monopolies on certain mission agents, such as Blood Raiders or ORE. Such a mechanic also gives a larger cross section of players the opportunity to repair reputation/standings, especially with pirate corps that a player is required to purchase components from if they wish to build faction hulls.
With the need to now purchase components from Pirate NPC faction stores, this was a real smack in the mouth to players who spent years trashing pirate standings due to ratting, with no reasonably realistic way to repair those now needed faction standings. This could be a way to ease that state of affairs, as well as reduce the effect of arguably unintended monopolies as well as providing temporary access to agents not normally accessible to a player based in some other region. This has long been a somewhat unbalanced part of the game. Additionally, more L5’s would provide yet another reason for players to field their Capital/BS/Marauder toys.
b) Make the mechanics work in such way that:
A nullsec bloc has to install some new module to a station of their preference (Astra, Fort, Keep) to allow an ‘office’ for the NPC guest agent and/or LP store to set up in during their stay.
Installation of said module forces the facility hosting an NPC guest to become a ‘freeport’ during the NPC guest’s stay. Obviously, not using a module prevents both a freeport facility as well as an NPC guest agent, but I’m sure I don’t have to go into how this opens up new avenues for ‘content’. When the NPC leaves/module is uninstalled, ACL’s once again apply, which will discourage/prevent an enemy from stacking usable hulls in close proximity to another nullsec bloc’s staging.
So, access to agents a player normally never sees or has available to them becomes available, and new avenues for pvp & pve content are open for brief periods, while NPC agents coming to stay as a guest can rotate around the map for fixed but temporary periods. Any nullsec bloc/corp not wanting to participate can simply not install the necessary module to provide guest space. This idea certainly beats YET another nerf to something.
You have the ability to make hundreds of millions of isk per hour in nullsec as it currently stands. Buy what you need off the market like everyone else.
This would crater the value of pirate LP. Being able to safely farm it in sov null, especially with no standings requirements, would probably reduce it to the value of empire LPs. L5s for pirates don’t even exist, so adding them would nuke prices down even more. I’m not convinced that freeporting your staging keepstar is enough of a penalty given that anyone foolish enough to untether is going to get shredded.
Even if you’re -10 with a pirate faction, if you have enough empire standings to do their epic arc, you can repair your standings to the point where you’re not locked to level 1s. The Guristas epic arc will award you 30% faction standings, multiplied by 1.25 with social V. That would take someone at -10 to -2.5, at which point you can train some levels in Diplomacy to get up above -2. I know that Blood Raiders and Serpentis don’t have epic arcs, but it’s a more reasonable suggestion to add epic arcs for the pirates who are missing them than it is to completely rework LP farming.
Or just use an alt. Most people who farm pirate LP have a bunch of alts to pull missions for them anyway.
The only reason to do L1-L3 missions is to grind to L4. The only reason to do L4s is to grind LP for the factions that don’t participate in FW or Insurgencies, or because you’re too scared to do those for the factions that do.
What do you do with that LP once you earn it? Oh, right, you buy things with it, and in many cases those things end up on the market where they can be purchased for ISK.
LP = ISK, whenever I sell something on the market I’ve gotten with LP, the amount of LP it cost factors in at set conversion rates.
Currently, you live in the safest place in Eve, behind the walls of your nullbloc and your intel channels. You’re afraid to step outside this safety bubble into NPC null to engage with the content there, so you literally want it brought to you so you can get the rewards. Now, I can only think of two reasons why you’d want this content brought to you. First is that you don’t want to pay the market prices the people who are brave enough to run that content demand for those rewards, even though you live in an ISK printing factory. The second reason is that you want to sell those rewards on the market yourself, even though you already live in an ISK printing factory.