I’ve used this ship a few times and overall I like the ‘concept’ but overall it feels ‘bad’ for either you (when your drones don’t jam) or your enemies (when your drones do jam). Though I am firmly in favor of seeing more ships that utilize E-war drones in different ways (would like to see webber drones… etc).
New Griffin Navy Issue
10% bonus to ECM Drone Jam Duration (and associated range bonuses) → Removed
Drone Bay: Removed
Discretionary: Remove highslot and give additional med or low. Capacitor and fittings modified per CCP discretion.
New Bonuses:
4% Shield Resistance bonus.
20% Small Hybrid Turret Damage
Role Bonus: 100% Jam Bonus Strength to Multi-Spectrum Jammers / -50% Capacitor Use
-50% Optimal Range of Multi-Spectrum Jammers and Falloff
-20% CPU fitting requirement for Multi Spectrum Jammers
-85% Capacitor Reduction for ECM Burst Modules
-30% Reduction to ECM Burst Range (or changed from AOE to Targeted)
So, what is the purpose of this ship? It continues to be a brawling E-War ship with a decent tank (as will its Black Bird Counterpart). It also makes use of the underutilized ECM Burst Modules. The Griffin will close in with its target, ‘Taunt’ it off allies - it has spare slots as it can fit a multispectral as opposed to a rainbow - but it is forced into scram range (risK) to do so and would likely only have one or two ECM modules. It can then pop an ECM burst to try to escape or as a disruption technique - if paired with a Maulus it can work to disrupt larger ships.
A group of Griffins could close in on an enemy and ‘taunt circle’ it or periodically disrupt its targets requiring retargeting. I feel this gives the Griffin (and future Black Bird Navy Issue) a unique tanking roll and allows for utilization of underused ECM bursts within gangs. The receiving player also always has a way to react. Outside of the burst it might be weaker for Solo PvP - but stronger in gangs.