Disclaimer:
Im not posting this to “attack” gankers. I think the potential to lose my ships, even in high sec, provides an exciting possibility while mining. I welcome the potential threat. It adds to the mild dopamine rush we all get when playing any videogame. This is a purely hypothetical strategy to either deter gankers entirely (i.e. they see it and move on to easier prey), or to outlast the damage they can do for as long as possible until concord can come and save my butt.
Scenario:
Your gank squad encounters my mining team of 3 ships, all toons owned and actively controlled by me (I NEVER afk mine). One Orca and two Hulks, all mining at an asteroid or ice belt. On scouting me with your cloaked ship, you see that all three ships are pointing in the same direction (aligned to a warp target) but stationary. In addition, all three ships are fielding 5 tech II drones; the Orca is using Acolytes, one Hulk is using Hobgoblins, and the other Hulk is using Hammerheads. A veritable hornet’s nest.
The Orca is blasting out its command bursts at regular intervals. On closer inspection you might notice that it is also connected to each of the hulks by a beam of green energy.
Upon scanning my ships, you find that they are equipped thusly:
The Orca:
497,132 EHP
Rigs:
Large Transverse Bulkhead II x3
Lows:
Reinforced Bulkheads II
Damage Control II
Mediums:
Cap Recharger II x2
Multispectrum Shield Hardener II x3
Highs:
Mining Foreman Burst II x2
-Mining Laser Field Enhancement Charge
-Mining Laser Optimization Charge
Shield Command Burst II
-Shield Extension Charge
‘Love’ Medium Remote Armor Repairer x3
*This setup is cap stable and can run all modules continuously.
*Pilot is equipped with an ORE Mining Director Mindlink, but you have no way of knowing this.
Hulks (both are fitted the same):
13,301 EHP
Rigs:
Medium Ice Harvester Accelerator I
Medium EM Shield Reinforcer
Lows:
Ice Harvester Upgrade II x2
-OR-
‘Aoede’ Mining Laser Upgrade x3
Mediums:
Survey Scanner II
Compact Multispectrum Shield Hardener
Compact EM Shield Hardener
Thermal Shield Amplifier II
Highs:
Ice Harvester II x2
-OR-
ORE Strip Miner x2
*This setup is cap stable, and all modules can operate continuously.
*Assume that all three pilots have all skills with relevant effects trained to level 5
The Strategy:
All ships are aligned with a warp target, ready to go if a serious threat arrives. All ships are fielding their full complement of tech II drones, each using a different type.
The orca is providing boosts to mining and shields. At the same time, it is locked on to both hulks and actively using a single remote armor repairer on each. A THIRD remote armor repairer is on standby to be used on either hulk if necessary.
If an attack comes, and a ship gets locked up and cannot warp away, the three will hold position. First priority is to switch to the Orca pilot and activate the third armor repair module on the hulk facing the greatest threat. Next, the Orca pilot begins to lock on to enemies. While he is doing that, I switch one at a time to the hulk pilots, lock on to an enemy, and order the drones to attack. Switch back to the Orca, and when a lock is established, order the drones to attack.
*NOTE: There is a FOURTH element to my plan that I have opted to not reveal. It is my own little “trade secret”. But assume I have nothing else for your analysis.
The idea behind this setup is NOT to destroy the gankers. It’s to tank the damage they do for as long as possible, while causing damage with the drones, the hope being that Concord will arrive and save me, my drones hopefully helping to bring them down or chase them off that much quicker.
So, knowing all this, what would you do? Would you pass me up for easier prey? Would you exploit an obvious flaw in my plan or setup that I failed to see? How big a team of gankers would you need to bring down even one of my ships before Concord arrived to save the day? There is no such thing as “safe” in EVE. No matter what I do I can’t guarantee that I won’t be beaten. But this is my attempt to mitigate the risk as much as possible.
