Ive already spent about 5 hours playing around with these little probes, trying to get reasonably neat cardinal points for bookmarking. Im not using the default formations, since they dont fit what Im after. A simple N,E,S,W, up and down according to the tactical view, at dist 250km, 1000km and 2500km.
Ive watched a few videos and they use the default formations. Ive gotten all so very close to what Im after a few times, but moving the probes back out, adjusting their position slightly and bringing them back in⌠Always way off. There just has to be a way to position probes with accuracy⌠Just look at the default formations! Nearly perfect.
I think I have wasted my time, although I now know how to use my probes and Dscan a lot better
edit: Are probe formations stored locally? Maybe I can edit one there like fittings etc. Just tried bringing defaults in close, and theyâre all over the place, so NM
My exploration alt has them maxed and thereâs only one site in the game I have any difficulty probing down with default formation. I have to move the cluster just a little, increasing the overlap, to get the last 1.5% of the Superior Sleeper Caches, but absolutely everything else probes down fine with the default.
The default formations look ânearly perfectâ when youâre looking very much zoomed in all the way to 1 AU in your solar system, or 150000000 km across.
The âperfectâ you need to have to have for your use case however is a lot more precise: for a probe to land on your grid (and thus warpable) it needs to be within 8000km.
Thatâs a whole different level of precision.
I know itâs possible to have one of the probes land close enough (in your tiny 8000km âon gridâ sphere) with consistency instead of luck using the presets and the smallest probe range, but I seriously doubt youâre going to have the additional precision to put that probe in a specific direction and at a specific range.
Itâs nevertheless a neat trick to use probes that way to make a ping bookmark where you can warp off from a fight or a gate. Just keep in mind that everyone on grid can bookmark your probe and warp to it.
I think I know what it is you are trying to do here. You want to make a bookmark location only âyouâ can get to and avoid the 14.3 Dscan limit for a safe point. I wonât tell you it is impossible to do with scan probes, just highly unlikely.
Better methods I have used are this;
Find either a cosmic or anomaly in the system that falls just outside the last orbit. Bookmark it, even if you never plan to go there. Once it gets completed or recycled in a day or two, you can use the bookmark as a safe point. Since this falls outside the system there is no direct path to get there. It doesnât happen often, but it does happen.
Fly from a planet or moon in one orbit to another, as you are 50% there drop your first bookmark. Return to the location and pick another object to fly towards. When you are almost there drop another bookmark. With nothing lined up this is your new safe spot.
In the end, they can always find you with combat probes. Even without you showing up on any Dscan, they still know you are out there somewhere using the local chat. If they are hunting for you, they can find you. Once again I assume this is what you are asking about.
Thanks for the reply!
I did manage to get them all within 200m dist at 2500k, but a little low. Ended up just using the spread form and realised how hard it is to be accurate at lower ranges.
Sure it is heaps quicker, but when I have several to do? I managed to get a spread form working. Now its a matter of undock, launch probes, save marks. Done!
Lucky we can save formations.
Thanks for the detailed answer
But yeah, using probes to make insta-undocks and make âsafeâ spots to be able to check if a gates camped, while being out of targeting range and still able to warp to gate.
To make a good insta-undock bookmark you cannot rely on a semi-randomly placed probe that âseemsâ okay.
Warping is a lot more precise than that: you have to be aligned to your target within a few degrees to instantly warp. Say your insta-undock bookmark is 20 degrees away from your shipâs current alignment, you now have to spend a little time turning your ship before you get into warp.
âlittle timeâ means not zero time, means your ship is vulnerable and can get killed by the pilots camping the undock.
Usually you donât get caught with such a flawed bookmark. Not always do people camp the undock of your station. In fact, it rarely happens, you rarely need that insta-undock bookmark. But for the one time people do camp your station, or when you are undocking from a notorious station that always is camped, then you wish you had a good insta-undock bookmark.
So I would try to make a perfect insta-undock bookmark even if it takes time rather than a half-baked one that was âeasy to makeâ. Insta-undock bookmarks arenât necessary, but theyâre only useful when they function properly.
You want to know the cone from which you undock from that station, which has some variation of 0-15 degrees in either direction, figure out which is the middle and then make a bookmark exactly on that line, so your ship has the highest chance of being within 5 degrees of that line when it undocks and can immediately warp off.
Something like a Stabber with an 500MN MWD is a good candidate to make such a bookmark if the situation is safe.
If youâre trying to make the bookmark while the undock is camped by hostiles, try something like a Cheetah with overdrives. Itâs a lot slower than the Stabber, but your fastest cloaky option.
I didnt realise warp that precise
There we go I didnt realise getting to warp was quite that precise, but yes since Im putting the time in I want my undocks to be good Depending on the station (From all 3 Ive done so far), none by probe are perfect straight. Oneâs off by ~40deg.
Although rare, especially in hi-sec its that one-off time and the odd suicide gank I want to be ready as I can for. Learning, trying to get into good habits before doing more in low/null.
Im starting to use them for small-scale hauls, again more for getting into good habits/routines.
Thanks for the patch notes: Ive noticed but didnt quite realise the odd angle on undock. Ill have a play around where I am atm⌠Id imagine 0deg would be dead centre the stations âentranceâ in line with the little moving lights (Distant ships?)
Alright Ill redo the ones I have and keep probes for non align-time-sensitive matters. Good suggestion with the stabber, Ill give it a try.
Iâm not sure if 0 degrees is dead center with the stationâs entrance.
Itâs likely, but what I would do is see it for myself: undock a few times and drop bookmarks. If you drop a bookmark once each time you exit at 0 and once each time your ship passes 50km youâll see that there is a spread at 50km. The line through the middle of that spread is which you should follow for the undock bookmark.
I havenât bothered to make many undock bookmarks, usually itâs overkill and the rest of the time Iâm in structures with tether. A couple for Jita, one for Amarr and once to get a battleship out of the camped undock of the notorious asset safety Misaba. That last one was fun.
If you mean warping in under 2 seconds, yes. It helps prevent campers and gankers from getting a lock on you or other interference. Depending on the circumstance, it might not save you from a smartbomb camp, an instalocker, or a bubble, but it can help in many situations.
Depending on the station (From all 3 Ive done so far), none by probe are perfect straight. Oneâs off by ~40deg.