So, here is my bold claim. Why? I’m a small-scale industrialist and researcher with 4 characters specialized in these tasks. I used to own a small POS, maybe one billion isk total and 100m/month fuel cost. For the same functionality I would now require 2 azbels (total cost: about 40 billion) or about 4 or 5 raitarus. Fuel cost for the azbels would be roughly 200m/month or about 400-500m for the raitarus. I’m rather wealthy so this alone wouldn’t be that big of an issue.
However, due to having a real life I sometimes need to take breaks from eve. It used to be simple: I could simply take down the POS and move it to a station. Now, this is simply impossible: of those 40b isk azbels 27b is in rigs. I would have to burn 27b isk or leave the things out in space to be shot by any one-man wardeccer corp. While the low power mode didn’t cause this issue, it certainly hasn’t made things easier. Raitarus would be somewhere about 10b total I think, and I would have to spend half a billion a month just to prevent them from becoming easy targets regardless of whether I’m producing with them or not!
POS had slightly worse bonuses and was UUUUUGLY, but it was also dirt cheap, used less fuel, was a lot more versatile and didn’t require getting married with EVE. This is why I wouldn’t mind going back to the age of the POS although I know it will never happen.
I am (genuinely!) curious: why do you need so many structures to do what you do and how could a single small POS do all that?
I thought POSs had a limited number of slots for jobs, whereas structures have infinite slots once you online the right module. Or is it because you need so many different sets of rigs to get bonuses to everything you do?
Also, since you are a solo player, wouldn’t it make sense to use public structures instead of trying to own everything yourself? Maybe you have to pay some taxes and maybe the owner will decide to remove your docking rights and then you’ll have to use asset safety to remove your stuff, but that way they take the burden of fueling and defending the place so you can take breaks whenever you want. It seems to me like you win more than you lose, this way.
POS had their problems but there was no restriction on the number of jobs. There were limitations in hangar space and you couldn’t use containers to sort stuff but, for a 1 man + ALTS indy corp they were ideal. If you took an Array or Lab offline it simply paused any jobs that were running so you could switch things on and off to meet the needs of the moment. If you wanted to move, or take a break from the game, tear down for a small POS took about half an hour and everything fit in an Orca or DST.
A Raitaru is a lot more convenient and the hull bonuses are good enough that rigs are optional. There is absolutely no need for a small industrialist to own more than one. Mine is rigged for advanced components, copying and invention since that is where I get the most benefit from the rig bonuses. Fuel cost is higher but it’s higher for everyone else as well - as long as the playing field is reasonably level I’m happy.
Public structures are an option, I tried that for a while but they tend to be in locations where the system cost index is high and, in my experience at least, they occasionally run out of fuel! I decided to build my own and have no regrets.
First, the structures are meant to be corp structures. CCP does not foster “solo corp” play, it’s not their vision of EvE. As a solo producer (like myself) use public structures or negotiate access to private ones.
with the new ECs we can have public services available (and many do) so you can easily use someone else’s station, and there are many with decent services available and low fees and you don’t need to pay for fuel and you can use containers and you can dock safely and you benefit from ‘asset safety’ feature however yes you get slightly less performance BUT so does everyone else so mostly it evens out
At least until CCP rolls out structures between mobile depots and the medium citadels. POS “lite”. I have a feeling that these new structures will replace existing POS.