I came back to the game fairly recently after 7 years out. Before I left I did a lot of exploration, but used to use the bludgeon method - get your hacking strength as high as possible then blitz through everything that pops up. I usually ran around the edges first. Sometimes I would fail and be forced to try again, then occasionally would fail the second attempt. Karma, I thought.
A couple of weeks ago, I heard mention the ‘Rule of Six’ and looked into it and started to implement it into my exploration. I also looked at the ‘Rule of 8’ and between the two I can’t remember the last time I failed an attempt.
As mentioned above, the Rule fo Six says that if a single node if completely surrounded by other nodes then it will either be:
a. Safe. ie clear.
b. The Core
c. A Defensive Node, and in this case the Core will then be in one of the other nodes adjacent to the centre.
The Rule of 8 is a general rule which seems to be specific to the larger maps that you get in nullsec. I don’t know whether it scales down in low or high sec sites as I haven’t done any hacking there since I discovered this system. The bottom line is that your starting point on the map is usually in one of the corners or edges very close to the corner. In this situation, the Core will always spawn at least 8 steps away from the starting point, as the crow flies. So, assuming you start in the bottom left corner, the Core could be along the top edge or within 3/4 steps from the right hand edge. This also means that if the starting point is one or two steps into the middle it will mean you are only aiming at the opposite side of the map and you can largely ignore the closer nodes and aim for any Rule of 6 areas, or make a beeline to the opposite corners.
However, very occasionally your starting point might be so far towards the centre of the map that the Core can’t spawn at least 8 jumps away. In this rare situation the Core will spawn randomly, anywhere on the map, which explains the ultra rare occurence of hitting the Core instantly on your first step. If you get a centre starting point then you have to start looking at the numbers straight away.
If you look up the Rule of 8 you will find other useful nuggets that can help if you need to find beneficial nodes, such as white nodes only spawn where there are 2 or 3 connections, never on nodes with more links. Also, the numbers point you to the closest beneficial node, white node or the Core itself.
What I find myself doing now is a quick assessment of the map and then counting out 8 steps, starting to take note of the numbers to zero in on the Core. First job is to open up any Rule of Six nodes on the offchance you hit the Core directly or get a defensive node (which indicates the Core is right near you). Using this new knowledge I find that I don’t fail any more, but it can take slightly longer to do a hack because I am now using logic to work it out. However, overall, I find I clear most sites faster because I now know where to aim for.
