Single Use MTU, the Noctis, and You

EVE Technology and Research Center Player Features & Ideas
1

This is a two-fold elegant approach to meaningful synergy between the Noctis and Mobile Tractor Unit. It also provides opportunity for ninja theft.

Step 1: Convert all Mobile Tractor Units (MTU) into single use (i.e. cannot pick the back up) deployables, except…

Step 2: Grant the Noctis the sole role to scoop any other player’s MTU for reuse. If the MTU does not belong to you or your fleet the player goes suspect upon scooping.

image
javier-hualde-mobiletractor1.jpg1920×1080 323 KB

The Alpha and Omega Argument:

This proposal essentially make MTU scooping an Omega perk. Alphas could still deploy and loot the contents of their MTU but they would need an Omega buddy to pick the structure back up. Resource collection limitations are already an alpha design philosophy. This proposal allows CCP to make MTU re-use an omega perk via Noctis piloting. :money_mouth_face::money_mouth_face::money_mouth_face:

What else changes? :

Beside what ship can scoop, nothing is changed about MTU (build costs, tractor range, general utility remain the same). The Noctis maintains its ‘slow-ass’ align time with no module slot changes as a window to apprehend ninja thieves.

"Don’t gimp MTU, but give Noctis a bonus." :

If we honestly boil it down, the only Noctis buffs that will radically encourage ship use are either enhancing drop quality of loot (not just current bonus of faster cycle time) or nuking salvager cycle times on anything other than the noctis. Both are flawed.

Enhancing drop salvage quality on Noctis would have a cascade effect in flooding market with more materials.

Nuking salvager cycles on any ship that’s not a Noctis would hurt alphas trying to salvage on dessies and any salvager trying to reclaim loot through a frigate wormhole.

Integrating MTU pick up to Noctis would most certainly curtail MTU use in high/low sec and multi-room dungeons. The supply of salvaged materials would also most certainly shrink however this in turn raises their value and the value to people pursing a niche in independent and group salvage/theft operations.

tl;dr

Any ship can deploy and retrieve its own MTU contents.
Only the Noctis can scoop the MTU itself…and it can scoop anybody’s MTU.

2

@Pix_Severus Ya gotta share ya thoughts on this one.

I’d say havin’ a suspect noctis goes nowhere, ‘cause it’s a crappy ship that ain’t gonna do jack ■■■■. It got a respectable tank, so runners ain’t gonna kill it before it’s leavin’ and they usually don’t fit a point or scram anyway. In the unlikely scanrio where the runner has a point, people will start fittin’ warp core stabs just to be sure.

This is worse than just shootin’ the mcu and it’ll generate Tons o’ Tears™ from mission runners who can’t do jack ■■■■ against the warp core stabbed noctis. They can’t actually do jack ■■■■ at all. The whole ■■■■■■■ point of going suspect shootin’ an mcu is to cause fights. That’s why people are doin’ it most of the time. YA idea would end that, ‘cause everyone’d just go stealin’ the mtus at no disadvantage for ‘em. It’d only give runners grief. Not that anythin’s wrong with that, but it’s headin’ towards “beyond reasonable” really fast.

1 Like
3

Before this can actually happen we would need the act of scooping other players objects to actually flag suspect.

4

Yes, for lower income solo HS missionbears, MTU use may be unsustainable but frankly MTUs are lazy mode anyways. If they’re not flying in a group that can defend its assets I have little sympathy for the loss of assets. If solo bears want salvage without an MTU, they can bring their own ship or contract another player salvager to come back through the site like in the old days of Eve.

A midsize group can deal with a MTU Noctis thief. After all, there’s a lot of limits to the tank if you fill the limited 3 lows with warp core stabs.

5

8 highs can drain targets of their capacitor which would eliminate their ability to fire. Rigs can produce the shields while mids are shield tanks which is what the Noctis is specially built to use. It’s not an armor tank but a shield tank.

1 Like
6

That all sounds like a recipe for a fight from a battle noctis. I’d like to see that.

The concern @z0rberg voiced was that the noctis would try to moonwalk out with wcs. Yes, they can to an extent, however three lows limits that ability.

Yes, going shield tank does give a strong buffer yet it’s not going to be sustainable under various, counterable, factors if caught. With full passive shield buffer the prop mod has been sacrificed to keep range with target. A single mark could easily kite and defang the very slow moving noctis beyond the neut range (small 6-7.5km or medium 13-15km) with a dual scram.

Also, lock time on the noctis is abysmal…before you add wcs.

7

They do that now after the July patch with unanchored upwell structures.

8

Do they do that with a depot object such as the MTU, a freight can, or even just a basic container? The answer is probably still no. It’s only for upwells.

9

Okay, let’s say CCP can code depot object pickup for structures players did not deploy and make it a flagable offense, what are your thoughts on the remainder of the OP?

Single use MTU, unless scooped by Noctis.
MTU owner can still loot their structure.

10

“NO MINE” - Noctis Pilot zipping about Jita 4-4

There would be fewer tractor tug-o-war games around Jita if you could just scoop MTUS. Popping Noctis Ninjas would be the new pastime.

11

If you mean that MTUs will be destroyed after being scooped, then I would have an issue with that. I believe it would reduce the number of pilots using them, as they would no longer be economically efficient to use, especially if build costs remained the same. As MTUs are key content generators in highsec, the more pilots that use them, the more fun for everyone involved.

I have nothing against the Noctis being able to ninja-scoop them, however, more things to shoot at is always good, and it may go some way to solving the MTU spam crisis in Jita. The usual Weapon Timer should be used in conjunction with the Suspect Timer, to avoid quick BM docking, etc.

I can get behind that.

They would have to bring a Noctis to the field in order to scoop the MTU, and most mission runners aren’t going to be sat there popping rats with a Noctis on grid, when they can bring a second BS instead. Mission runners panic when you start shooting their MTU, which causes them to do silly things like attack you. I don’t believe this will make much difference. If they have to dock-up to fetch their Noctis, then just pop the MTU because they weren’t going to bite anyway.

Whether it would create roving bands of Noctis pilots who travel around scooping MTUs en masse remains an uncertainty. It would be a concern though, I agree.

2 Likes
12

I see your edit. Just to confirm my proposal, any ship can drop an MTU. Only the Noctis would have the capability to scoop for reuse.

If you deploy an MTU you still have the ability to loot its contents however a noctis would need to stop by and pick up the MTU for reuse.

Thinking of other ways this impacts gameplay. A reliance on Noctis to scoop MTU would most certainly become a pain point with frigate sized wormholes. Entities chain rating would need to weigh the cost to time saved of pulling in blue loot wrecks with sunk cost of abandoned MTU if they don’t have a way to squeeze a Noctis inside.

As a wormholer, there’s no doubt i’d find myself annoyed to abandon my MTU for an eventual killmail (tribute for Bob); I would continue using them nonetheless. On the other hand, I’d also be more active cleaning up other players MTUs. Overall seems to be a net positive.

Fully agreed

1 Like
13

The way I read this does your idea fail at step 2, because MTUs are single use, which excludes reuse.

MTUs are a QoL feature, and now you want it removed. MTUs are meant to give players the ability to collect loot more easily and more frequently without needing a specialised ship for it. I don’t believe you thought this through for even a second nor do you seem to understand how it currently works. It reads like you want to take revenge on somebody else’s MTU and for all the wrong reasons.

When you want the content of another player’s MTU then you need to shoot it down. Shooting MTUs of other players will give you a suspect flag (no CONCORD) and allows you to retrieve some of its content. It will also produce a killmail. This is how it currently works and already allows for all sorts of play and counter-play.

1 Like
14

then read it again. that post is pretty darn clear as ‘step 1’ includes the modifier ‘except…’ in reference to only the noctis being able to pick mtus back up

Pleasure Hub isn’t asking to remove peoples ability to deploy MTU or collect loot, only requiring a noctis on standby if players want to grab mtus off the field to reuse them later otherwise they sit in space waiting for someone to blow them up

1 Like
15

I don’t need to. The description of “single use” is very clear and it’s either not single use or the idea is just broken. Either way, it’s not thought out.

16

a freight can…sure,
especially the enormous freight can, see one in space, or several…get a warp in alt, a freighter, and scoop…
No suspect either last time i checked…and its hilarious if its some miners using them…the reactions when you take their cans and all inside them and they cant do anything to you.

17

They wouldn’t be doin’ anythin’ even if they could, but keep dreamin’ mate. Keep dreamin’. One day you’ll rise above the asteroid belt and ya’ll be a shinin’ star way beyond the reach of the forums.

18

They can still shoot you. And the consequences are alt least fun. The saltyness of the local sometimes too.

19

Your logic does not really check out. In this proposal, MTU scooping for reuse is contingent upon access to a Noctis. If the player deploying an MTU does not have access or ability to field a Noctis then the MTU would be ‘Single Use’ to the perspective of the player deploying the MTU.

Example:
The Noctis has a mass of 14,640,000 kg. Frigate wormholes allow 5,000,000 kg and under to traverse. If a player deploys an MTU on the other side of a frigate hole they cannot fit a noctis through to reclaim it for themselves; that would make the MTU single use.

20

MTUs are not being removed under this proposal, however I wouldn’t mind adding a few more MTU lossmails to your killboard.