For anyone that’s dug into entity files you’ve likely noticed a stat on almost all NPCs called “Drone Tanking Modifier” and that for most, but critically not all, of the times it’s listed it is set to .7 . What this stat is actually doing is making drone boats do 30% less damage to all common rats. This was added during one of the rat AI passes to prevent what were at the time passive domis from running 4s AFK or atleast making them much slower.
As best I can tell this was depreciated at some point either intentionally or accidentally. I noticed this after noticing a tool I built to predict ratting fit effectiveness was vastly underestimating drone boats.
This removal has likely contributed to the surge in VNI orbit ratting - bots or otherwise - that has overtaken null ratting and missions. My proposal is to re-add it or modify values if it is just somehow all my tests showing false negatives.
Why every idea to fight with bots limits gameplay to everyone but not bots itself? Solution to bots is simple: change rats AI, use for example trigs AI that hate drones. boom, problem solved.
But CCP wont do it because this will piss of null people and they care about null blocks more than health of the game as whole.
Can’t wait how new null CSM will ruing game even more.
This idea isn’t to fight bots, nor would it. It’s a sweeping reduction on the isk generation of the most common anom ratting ships in the game (VNI, Ishtar. Gila, Rattlesnake) to the level they were set at before their limiter broke. They have more damage and application than their competitors, that’s why bots use them.
Anom rats do hate drones with a burning passion. That is why VNIs and Ishtars are so particular about what sites they do run. Gilas, Rattlesnakes, and carriers have enough damage to safely ignore the site’s incoming damage on their drones; this would give them much less breathing room.
Last time i tried null ratting in VNI ( no to so long ago and it was worst time in my eve career). I could go to work, sleep all night and my drones still don’t get arggo. So your information’s are outdated.
Again, depends on the rats.
The elite rats from eg forlorn sites will chew your drones without a rest, the moment they are out of your cargo.
Some combat sigs also have very specific “group” AI that makes the commander “command” the rats, and that may mean they are thus more eager to attacking your drones.
You can also have rats that will keep attacking your drones in eg havens. Usually they die before you realize what’s happening.
This right here is more relevant than ever. Since ECM can now be return targeted the fact that drones were one of its soft counters isn’t a reason to keep the old behavior.
Miners having to be paying enough attention to target and command their drones is fair play… and may save them some ships in the long run.
Ratters not being able to afk orbit in six different sites with six different VNI would massively cut down multi-box advantages in that field.