Agatir’s Guide to Wormhole Hunting… err I mean Scouting
Greetings my fellow pod pilots & blog readers...
This is a re-posting and edit of a previous post I did over at theplanetriskshow.
***Disclaimer*** This guide represents the way I go about scouting out Wormholes. The loss of any ship while attempting what is discussed below will be your own damn fault. It also assumes you know the basic mechanics of exploration scanning. (Exploration Guide & Exploration Tutorial)
Ok so you want to put your exploration skills to the test? There will be few things that you will need before you decide to venture into wormhole (WH) space. The first will be the skills, second is the hardware, third situational awareness, and finally how to use all three to your advantage. Lacking in anyone of these can only lead to the loss of another ship, and end up with an immediate clone jump back to your chosen station. Depending on whether you are simply scanning (exploring) the wormhole or hunting (pvp) greatly affects how you need to go about the task. I will explain in each section as to the difference, but stressing more of the aspects of hunting.
First the skills:
Astrometrics – Allows one additional probe in space per level. At level one you will have the ability to use four scanner probes, at level five you will have the ability to field eight. There is a lot of debate on how many probes that are needed to efficiently probe a signature down. I have found that there is very little need to have more than 5 probes on field in either role of hunting or scanning. While scanning a lot of folks feel that a five probe setup (1 central probe with 4 probes forming a box around it) helps to quickly identify the type of signature. I have found that a simple 4 probe box setup to be the quickest way to get probes out AND scanning. After launching the first probe the Expanded Probe Launcher has a reload time of 2 seconds and the Sisters Expanded Probe Launcher is 1.5 seconds. This means that it will take you just over 4.5 to 6 seconds to attempt your first scan. During this time you are visible on grid, and possibly have your ship identified on the Directional Scanner. If you are only scanning a wormhole this is not a factor, but if you are hunting you would like to limit the amount of information the target has and limit the amount of time he has to react. In other words the more probes you put out, the more time you are visible on the Directional Scanner.
Astrometric Acquisition – 10% reduction in scan probe scan time per level. The faster your probes can finish the scan the better! The ultimate goal is to scan down a ship with one maybe two scans.
Astrometric Pinpointing – Reduces maximum scan deviation by 10% per level. The reduction of the scan’s deviation reduces the error in the signal’s position. This limits how far that small dot that represents your target’s position will move between scans, and allows for you to quickly shrink down your box of probes and their AU radius around the target. This can reduce the amount of attempts it takes to scan a target down, as you won’t have to back out to a larger AU radius because your dot just turned back into a large red ball.
Astrometric Rangefinding – 10% increase to scan probe strength per level.
If you want to hunt with probes all of these skills are vital (level 4+). Additionally when you get them high enough with the appropriate equipment you will find that you can scan down 99% all wormhole signatures without ever having to launch a single core probe, and if your target is hiding in one of those sites, you’ll probes will find the ship. ***Clarification*** This does not take into account if the ship is setup to avoid probes.
Cloaking III – Allows the use of the Improved Cloaking Device II.
Second the Hardware:
Covert Ops Cloaking Device II – For hunting this is the only cloak to have. If you can’t warp while cloaked, you will find it hard to get to your target before they are gone. For scanning any cloak will do. Want to scan with no cloak? Safe spots and aligning is all I got for you.
Expanded Probe Launcher I (Sisters Expanded Probe Launcher) – Required to use Combat Scanner Probes Rate of Fire 2.0secs (Sister Variant Rate of Fire 1.5secs & 5% Scan Strength Bonus)
Combat Scanner Probe I (Sisters Combat Scanner Probe) – Required to scan down ships Base Sensor Strength 20pts (Sisters Variant Base Sensor Strength 22pts)
Ships – The classifications of ships that can fit a Covert Ops Cloaking Device are: Covert Ops, Recon, and Strategic Cruisers fit with the Covert Reconfiguration Subsystem. IMHO the only choices for this role are the Covert Ops Frigate or the T3 Strategic Cruiser fit with the Covert Reconfiguration & Emergent Locus Analyzer Subsystems. (My links are Amarrian examples, as that is what I fly) The frigate is the best choice if you are scouting for a gang. If, you want to hunt solo, then the Strategic Cruiser is the only way to go. I like to think of my current setup as an Anathema with teeth… really large teeth!
Implants
Of all the equipment needed for scanning these are the least critical, however if you are one of those people that want to have the absolute best… then start saving now. You will be looking at well over a billion to plug these things into your head. Additionally there may be other implants that may serve your play style a lot better and a lot cheaper. This is what I am working towards for my wormhole scanning/scouting clone. It won’t be used to go on the random Providence pvp roams. This implant setup represents the “officer faction fit” for scanners! Dare to be bold pilot!
Slot 1 Low-Grade Virtue Alpha
Slot 2 Low Grade Virtue Beta
Slot 3 Low-Grade Virtue Gamma
Slot 4 Low-Grade Virtue Delta
Slot 5 Low-Grade Virtue Epsilon
Slot 6 Low-Grade Virtue Omega or Poteque Pharmaceuticals ‘Prospector’ PPF-2 (to be honest there is no choice the Omega improves the entire Virtue set)
Slot 7 Poteque Pharmaceuticals ‘Prospector’ PPG-2
Slot 8 Poteque Pharmaceuticals ‘Prospector’ PPH-2
Situational Awareness
Let’s face it… you just didn’t enter wormhole space to look around at the pretty stars. You are out looking for a fight. Either you are looking to reap the lucrative loot of Sleeper sites or you are out hunting for other pod pilots. So it is safe to say if you encounter Sleepers or other pod pilots you are going to get shot. The Sleepers won’t give up their spoils without a fight, and the other pilots are there for the same reason you are. So you are either the hunter or you are the prey. Which of the two you are, will be determined upon your skills to choose the time and location of the fight. Sun Tzu said it best, “Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.” This is the essence of wormhole hunting. When you operate in wormhole space the more you know of your surroundings the more secure you will be. To this end you have many ways to get that information; the directional scanner, the overview, combat scanner probes, visual identification, and webpage applications.
Visual – Getting on grid with target is just the first step. Once there you’ll need to gauge the best approach and best time to launch your assault. Most attacks will be launched in wormhole sites. When you land on grid you’ll be able to see the terrain. Often you will land way outside of targeting and warp disruption/scrambling range. You will need to navigate in, avoiding Sleepers, wrecks, asteroids, and debris. (***Advisory*** How well you are able to see these things will be directly related to how you have your overview and overview brackets are setup.) It also is the way you’ll identify what classification of wormhole you are about to enter, and how much time you’ll have until the wormhole collapses. A wormhole at the end of life or critical on mass is less likely to be the entrance point for other pod pilots. A worm affected by mass, but not critical yet is a sign of traffic and possible targets.
Directional Scanner – The directional scanner is one of the primary ways to identify ships in wormhole space. The “absence” of local keeps characters from appearing in the chat box unless they type in local. To catch a ship may require the spamming of the scan button (every three seconds). This can often produce the appearance of a ship with a cloak as it launches probes, enters or exits wormhole space, or accidently gets too close to object in space. More importantly the directional scanner is a quick way to see what is in system. Everything within 14AU will appear on scan. This will be one of the primary ways of seeing probes in space. The greatest reason to use the directional scanner is that it is passive in nature. A cloaked ship can jump from celestial object to celestial object scanning, and be able to get a good idea of whether or not there are any available targets, player owned structures, etc. In essence you can know what is in system without ever making your own presence know. The appearance of sleepers wrecks usually means targets are in system.
Overview – The overview and its tabs are one of the most complex and frustrating things to learn to setup. Just as missions running and pvp require their specific setups so too does wormhole exploration. The most useful use of the overview is to assist you in your approach to a target. You will need to see ALL the objects in space. Getting to within 2,500km of any object will only result in you de-cloaking. This can make for a cluttered overview, so I suggest that you setup one overview tab as an approach tab, and another for the actual fighting. You should know that each tab has overview and a bracket profile setting associated with it. The overview profile sets what icons you will see in the overview window. The bracket profile determines what you see in space. I prefer to have those things which I can collide with in the brackets profile, and players’ ships and drones in both profiles. With the addition of Planetary Interaction you will now find custom offices on planets that are being harvested. Be sure to add them to an overview. Nothing better says… “Wormhole occupied!”
Combat Scanner Probes and the System Scanner Tab – Having discovered a possible target in space, that cannot be found using the Directional Scanner, it is now time to move on to the System Scanner tab and possibly drop some combat probes. But before you go launching probes which can be seen by the target’s Directional Scanner, you may be able to find them in a Cosmic Anomaly. By clicking the same button that causes probes to conduct their scan, so too can you use the ship’s sensors to do the same. The scan will take 30 seconds, and will only find the Cosmic Anomalies within 4 AU of a planet (so you will not find any Cosmic Signatures or ships). So it is possible to identify all Cosmic Anomalies in a system without launching a single probe, by jumping from planet to planet. Used in conjunction with the Directional Scanner tab is nice way to totally surprise an unaware target. If the ship is not in an Anomaly then you will have to drop combat scanner probes to find the target. An additional advantage of combat scanner probes is that they can be used to scan down most signatures, and not just ships. With my current skill levels I have no need to use any other set of probes to hunt in a wormhole.
Webpage Applications – There are few different websites out there that can be used to collect intelligence regarding the activity in a wormhole. One in particular Wormhole Explorer works pretty well. By using such sites you can see how many jumps have occurred into the system, and approximately how long ago ships, sleepers, etc have been killed. So in one quick step you can tell how much activity has occurred in the current wormhole and what hours the inhabitants like to operate.
This is a re-posting and edit of a previous post I did over at theplanetriskshow.
***Disclaimer*** This guide represents the way I go about scouting out Wormholes. The loss of any ship while attempting what is discussed below will be your own damn fault. It also assumes you know the basic mechanics of exploration scanning. (Exploration Guide & Exploration Tutorial)
Ok so you want to put your exploration skills to the test? There will be few things that you will need before you decide to venture into wormhole (WH) space. The first will be the skills, second is the hardware, third situational awareness, and finally how to use all three to your advantage. Lacking in anyone of these can only lead to the loss of another ship, and end up with an immediate clone jump back to your chosen station. Depending on whether you are simply scanning (exploring) the wormhole or hunting (pvp) greatly affects how you need to go about the task. I will explain in each section as to the difference, but stressing more of the aspects of hunting.
First the skills:
Astrometrics – Allows one additional probe in space per level. At level one you will have the ability to use four scanner probes, at level five you will have the ability to field eight. There is a lot of debate on how many probes that are needed to efficiently probe a signature down. I have found that there is very little need to have more than 5 probes on field in either role of hunting or scanning. While scanning a lot of folks feel that a five probe setup (1 central probe with 4 probes forming a box around it) helps to quickly identify the type of signature. I have found that a simple 4 probe box setup to be the quickest way to get probes out AND scanning. After launching the first probe the Expanded Probe Launcher has a reload time of 2 seconds and the Sisters Expanded Probe Launcher is 1.5 seconds. This means that it will take you just over 4.5 to 6 seconds to attempt your first scan. During this time you are visible on grid, and possibly have your ship identified on the Directional Scanner. If you are only scanning a wormhole this is not a factor, but if you are hunting you would like to limit the amount of information the target has and limit the amount of time he has to react. In other words the more probes you put out, the more time you are visible on the Directional Scanner.
Astrometric Acquisition – 10% reduction in scan probe scan time per level. The faster your probes can finish the scan the better! The ultimate goal is to scan down a ship with one maybe two scans.
Astrometric Pinpointing – Reduces maximum scan deviation by 10% per level. The reduction of the scan’s deviation reduces the error in the signal’s position. This limits how far that small dot that represents your target’s position will move between scans, and allows for you to quickly shrink down your box of probes and their AU radius around the target. This can reduce the amount of attempts it takes to scan a target down, as you won’t have to back out to a larger AU radius because your dot just turned back into a large red ball.
Astrometric Rangefinding – 10% increase to scan probe strength per level.
If you want to hunt with probes all of these skills are vital (level 4+). Additionally when you get them high enough with the appropriate equipment you will find that you can scan down 99% all wormhole signatures without ever having to launch a single core probe, and if your target is hiding in one of those sites, you’ll probes will find the ship. ***Clarification*** This does not take into account if the ship is setup to avoid probes.
Cloaking III – Allows the use of the Improved Cloaking Device II.
Second the Hardware:
Covert Ops Cloaking Device II – For hunting this is the only cloak to have. If you can’t warp while cloaked, you will find it hard to get to your target before they are gone. For scanning any cloak will do. Want to scan with no cloak? Safe spots and aligning is all I got for you.
Expanded Probe Launcher I (Sisters Expanded Probe Launcher) – Required to use Combat Scanner Probes Rate of Fire 2.0secs (Sister Variant Rate of Fire 1.5secs & 5% Scan Strength Bonus)
Combat Scanner Probe I (Sisters Combat Scanner Probe) – Required to scan down ships Base Sensor Strength 20pts (Sisters Variant Base Sensor Strength 22pts)
Ships – The classifications of ships that can fit a Covert Ops Cloaking Device are: Covert Ops, Recon, and Strategic Cruisers fit with the Covert Reconfiguration Subsystem. IMHO the only choices for this role are the Covert Ops Frigate or the T3 Strategic Cruiser fit with the Covert Reconfiguration & Emergent Locus Analyzer Subsystems. (My links are Amarrian examples, as that is what I fly) The frigate is the best choice if you are scouting for a gang. If, you want to hunt solo, then the Strategic Cruiser is the only way to go. I like to think of my current setup as an Anathema with teeth… really large teeth!
Implants
Of all the equipment needed for scanning these are the least critical, however if you are one of those people that want to have the absolute best… then start saving now. You will be looking at well over a billion to plug these things into your head. Additionally there may be other implants that may serve your play style a lot better and a lot cheaper. This is what I am working towards for my wormhole scanning/scouting clone. It won’t be used to go on the random Providence pvp roams. This implant setup represents the “officer faction fit” for scanners! Dare to be bold pilot!
Slot 1 Low-Grade Virtue Alpha
Slot 2 Low Grade Virtue Beta
Slot 3 Low-Grade Virtue Gamma
Slot 4 Low-Grade Virtue Delta
Slot 5 Low-Grade Virtue Epsilon
Slot 6 Low-Grade Virtue Omega or Poteque Pharmaceuticals ‘Prospector’ PPF-2 (to be honest there is no choice the Omega improves the entire Virtue set)
Slot 7 Poteque Pharmaceuticals ‘Prospector’ PPG-2
Slot 8 Poteque Pharmaceuticals ‘Prospector’ PPH-2
Situational Awareness
Let’s face it… you just didn’t enter wormhole space to look around at the pretty stars. You are out looking for a fight. Either you are looking to reap the lucrative loot of Sleeper sites or you are out hunting for other pod pilots. So it is safe to say if you encounter Sleepers or other pod pilots you are going to get shot. The Sleepers won’t give up their spoils without a fight, and the other pilots are there for the same reason you are. So you are either the hunter or you are the prey. Which of the two you are, will be determined upon your skills to choose the time and location of the fight. Sun Tzu said it best, “Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.” This is the essence of wormhole hunting. When you operate in wormhole space the more you know of your surroundings the more secure you will be. To this end you have many ways to get that information; the directional scanner, the overview, combat scanner probes, visual identification, and webpage applications.
Visual – Getting on grid with target is just the first step. Once there you’ll need to gauge the best approach and best time to launch your assault. Most attacks will be launched in wormhole sites. When you land on grid you’ll be able to see the terrain. Often you will land way outside of targeting and warp disruption/scrambling range. You will need to navigate in, avoiding Sleepers, wrecks, asteroids, and debris. (***Advisory*** How well you are able to see these things will be directly related to how you have your overview and overview brackets are setup.) It also is the way you’ll identify what classification of wormhole you are about to enter, and how much time you’ll have until the wormhole collapses. A wormhole at the end of life or critical on mass is less likely to be the entrance point for other pod pilots. A worm affected by mass, but not critical yet is a sign of traffic and possible targets.
Directional Scanner – The directional scanner is one of the primary ways to identify ships in wormhole space. The “absence” of local keeps characters from appearing in the chat box unless they type in local. To catch a ship may require the spamming of the scan button (every three seconds). This can often produce the appearance of a ship with a cloak as it launches probes, enters or exits wormhole space, or accidently gets too close to object in space. More importantly the directional scanner is a quick way to see what is in system. Everything within 14AU will appear on scan. This will be one of the primary ways of seeing probes in space. The greatest reason to use the directional scanner is that it is passive in nature. A cloaked ship can jump from celestial object to celestial object scanning, and be able to get a good idea of whether or not there are any available targets, player owned structures, etc. In essence you can know what is in system without ever making your own presence know. The appearance of sleepers wrecks usually means targets are in system.
Overview – The overview and its tabs are one of the most complex and frustrating things to learn to setup. Just as missions running and pvp require their specific setups so too does wormhole exploration. The most useful use of the overview is to assist you in your approach to a target. You will need to see ALL the objects in space. Getting to within 2,500km of any object will only result in you de-cloaking. This can make for a cluttered overview, so I suggest that you setup one overview tab as an approach tab, and another for the actual fighting. You should know that each tab has overview and a bracket profile setting associated with it. The overview profile sets what icons you will see in the overview window. The bracket profile determines what you see in space. I prefer to have those things which I can collide with in the brackets profile, and players’ ships and drones in both profiles. With the addition of Planetary Interaction you will now find custom offices on planets that are being harvested. Be sure to add them to an overview. Nothing better says… “Wormhole occupied!”
Combat Scanner Probes and the System Scanner Tab – Having discovered a possible target in space, that cannot be found using the Directional Scanner, it is now time to move on to the System Scanner tab and possibly drop some combat probes. But before you go launching probes which can be seen by the target’s Directional Scanner, you may be able to find them in a Cosmic Anomaly. By clicking the same button that causes probes to conduct their scan, so too can you use the ship’s sensors to do the same. The scan will take 30 seconds, and will only find the Cosmic Anomalies within 4 AU of a planet (so you will not find any Cosmic Signatures or ships). So it is possible to identify all Cosmic Anomalies in a system without launching a single probe, by jumping from planet to planet. Used in conjunction with the Directional Scanner tab is nice way to totally surprise an unaware target. If the ship is not in an Anomaly then you will have to drop combat scanner probes to find the target. An additional advantage of combat scanner probes is that they can be used to scan down most signatures, and not just ships. With my current skill levels I have no need to use any other set of probes to hunt in a wormhole.
Webpage Applications – There are few different websites out there that can be used to collect intelligence regarding the activity in a wormhole. One in particular Wormhole Explorer works pretty well. By using such sites you can see how many jumps have occurred into the system, and approximately how long ago ships, sleepers, etc have been killed. So in one quick step you can tell how much activity has occurred in the current wormhole and what hours the inhabitants like to operate.
So now that you have some of the basics of wormhole scouting… how do you put it all together?
Step One – Find a Wormhole
Warp to it cloaked, and bookmark it using the wormhole (right-click in overview, Bookmark Location) and not a spot in space, this insures a warp to 0m bookmark that lands inside the jump range of the wormhole. When you warp to the wormhole, land far enough away that you will not become uncloaked. It is not uncommon to land on a wormhole and find a ship sitting idle beside it. Just like a gate in Null or Low Sec you have to consider what is on the other side? You also must take into account what kind of space are you currently in? High sec allows the benefits of chasing someone in and offering an easy escape route if things go south. This easy escape route can also be used by a potential target. Pilots new to exploration often like to hug the wormhole like a safety blanket. Upon entry into a wormhole a ship will be generally within distance to immediately jump back out of the wormhole. (***Warning*** Jumping through a wormhole begins a 5 minute timer. During that timer you will only be able to jump through that wormhole once more, and will be unable to jump again until it expires.) There will sometimes be a small window of opportunity that may allow you to bump (MWD or AB) into a target to shove them off the wormhole. This usually occurs when they uncloak immediately having driven off the wormhole or they are too busy looking at the system map while scanning.
I used this exact tactic by following an Orca pilot into wormhole space. The bump did two things. It kept him from aligning out, and got him out of jump range. This allowed me time to get a target lock and point him. By making continues runs to the wormhole then back into him I kept him out of jump range of the wormhole, and I pounded away at his shields and armor (I told you my T3 “Anathema” has teeth). Lucky for the pilot I was in a generous mood and stopped at structure, and let him go (think of it as a form of catch and release). As he departed, I mentioned that I wouldn’t mind if he could tip me for being kind? The happy pilot, now safely back in High Sec, tipped me 100 million ISK. He was very relieved not to have to explain to his corp how he lost their Orca loaded with POS fuel. If you get the same chance, you could be looking at a 500 million ISK ransom or more. If the pirate ransom thing interests you, I’d suggest you check out some of the pirate blogs on EvE Blog Pack.
If there are no targets sitting on the entrance to the wormhole, check the wormhole’s status and signature (you may want to do this prior to chasing a target into a wormhole). Things to consider; what kind of space does it enter into, are there any signs of traffic (i.e. has its mass has been effected), what are the mass limitations of the wormhole? You don’t want to have your battleship gang show up, if the wormhole will only allows BCs and smaller. You can determine all of this information by reading the information from the wormhole (right-click Show Info). Using a wormhole web application you can check enter in the wormholes signature number. This will tell you the mass limitations that can enter at one time (size of ship) and the maximum allowable mass that may pass through the wormhole. (***Warning & Advisory*** You will never know the exact amount of mass that has passed through a wormhole, unless you are certain you are the first person to pass through it, and keep eyes on it. A wormhole will collapse when the total mass that has passed through it has reached or has surpassed its limit. Having armored plates increases your ships mass. Taking such modules offline prior to passing through them will reduce the impact of your ships mass on the wormhole. An activated MWD increases your ships mass, and may prevent your ship from going through a smaller wormhole. For T2 varieties the increase in mass would be: 1mn = 500.000kg, 10mn = 5.000.000, 100mn = 50.000.000)
If you are hunting mass isn’t as much of a concern, but if you are scouting it is vital information. The key word in all the descriptions is “critical.” If you see this word it either means that the wormhole’s life span or total mass has fallen below 10% of its starting limits. The wormhole is relatively fresh if you see in the wormhole’s description, “This wormhole is beginning to decay, and probably won’t last another day. This wormhole has not yet had its stability significantly disrupted by ships passing through it.”
If you are hunting mass isn’t as much of a concern, but if you are scouting it is vital information. The key word in all the descriptions is “critical.” If you see this word it either means that the wormhole’s life span or total mass has fallen below 10% of its starting limits. The wormhole is relatively fresh if you see in the wormhole’s description, “This wormhole is beginning to decay, and probably won’t last another day. This wormhole has not yet had its stability significantly disrupted by ships passing through it.”
If you are in a ship that is a scout, you need to insure your gang has the bookmark to the wormhole. One of the most frustrating things that can happen… You finally find some targets, but because you didn’t pass on your bookmarks to your gang you have to de-cloak and jump out to get them. Only to return to find that your targets spotted you on their Directional Scanner while you made one of those jumps, and now they are safely sitting in a POS force field. I recommend that your gang always have the bookmarks up to the wormhole you are working in. For you fleet types… operate as a +1 scout in wormhole space. This +1 recommendation only applies if you are actively scanning wormholes. If the routes have already been scanned down, bookmarks should already be available to the fleet, and you can scout farther ahead. Having a corporation storage can for wormhole bookmarks is a MUST for wormhole operations. (***Reminder*** Be sure your corp mates know how to take & make copies of bookmarks from a can. BTW you can only copy or move 5 at a time!)
Step Two – Jump In
There are a few things you need to do immediately after jumping in. They need not be done in a specific order, but all should be done before your initial jump in cloak is gone. Bookmark your entry wormhole (your People/Places tab should have already been open noob!) Don’t worry about the name you can change that later, when you’re safe. Look to see what is on or around your wormhole? Scan the system using the Directional Scanner (it should have been open too… gawd you noob!) Insure you don’t have “Use Current Overview Settings” checked. Yes this will show everything in system such as moons and planets. You want to know if all the planets in the system are within range of your location. If they are, you will know immediately if there are any player owned structures or uncloaked ships in space (Assume there may be some cloaked). If there are planets missing from the scan then you know you must make additional warps to get them scanned. This is what I like to call, “passive eyes on” the entire system. I do this prior to launching probes. Finally, begin to burn away (MWD/AB) from the wormhole, and activate your cloak.
Step Three – Get Passive Eyes on the Wormhole
Check to see if any custom offices are present. If, on your initial directional scan, you have not observed all the planets in system, then warp around the system cloaked until you have. Be sure your directional scanner is set to maximum distance of 2,147,483,647km (or simply fill the Directional Scanner Range box with all 9s and it will default to the farthest range). All signatures spawn within 4 AU of a planet. Any potential targets should be within Directional Scanner distance of a planet. The Directional Scanner should be used on the entire system, before you attempt to determine the location of any targets currently in system. Why? Because situational awareness is critical! In known space (k-space), a pilot has local to determine how many other pilots are in system. In wormhole space (w-space) you do not. The last thing you want to do is engage a target only to have 5 of his buddies land on top of you. It is not unusual for a group of ships doing multiple sites at once, particularly in class 1&2 wormholes.
A check of the entire system, with the Directional Scanner, will also help you determine if there are any POS’s in system, and if it is online (the Directional Scanner will show a force field present if it is). By locating all POS’s you can do several things. First, by clicking on the POS you can see which corporation is present, and by checking their information tab you can see its member strength. Second you can determine the most likely location your targets will run to when you engage them, or in that rare case that they are able to determine you are in their wormhole. If they don’t run back to the POS, odds are that they ran back to the wormhole that they entered from. With miners, the POS will be the location where their hauler, Orca, or Rorqal will most likely be. Solo miners will have to jump back to swap into a hauling ship, otherwise the hauler pilot will be sitting idle inside the force field. The POS is also the likely location for any AFK pilots as well. By putting eyes on the POS and bookmarking it, you will be able determine this type of information. In the case of miners, I will often watch to see how they are collecting their ore. If you are working in a gang with access to your own hauling ship, you can time this pick up run, then walk away with a killmail and a full can of Arkonor or Bistot as well.
If no ships are observed on the passive scan of the wormhole, then it is time to probe out all the Cosmic Signatures for another wormhole to hunt in. You should also be using the Directional Scanner. You can get one to two directional scans while you wait for your probes’ results. Be vigilant of your surroundings at all times! (Unable to scan down wormholes with combat scanner probes? Skill up noob!)
Combat ships with wrecks or mining ships with cans are what you are hoping to see on the Directional Scanner. It is now time to go find your prey. To this end the directional scanner is still your friend. By reducing the angle of the scan and the scan range we can determine which planet our target is closest to. (***Tip*** You can use the F-11 Key to Open the Map Browser. Four displays will appear. The solar system display will show your location in the system and the angle your Directional Scanner will be scanning.) Be sure to use a pvp tab in your overview and check the “Use Current Overview Settings” box in the Directional Scanner window. (***Reminder*** All signatures will be within 4 AU of a celestial object.)
The following is general guide for AU distances:
1 AU = 149,597,870km (150,000,000)
2 AU = 299,195,740km (300,000,000)
3 AU = 448,793,610km (450,000,000)
4 AU = 598,391,481km (600,000,000)
5 AU = 747,989,351km (750,000,000)
6 AU = 897,587,221km (900,000,000)
7 AU = 1,047,185,092km (1,050,000,000)
8 AU = 1,346,380,832km (1,350,000,000)
14 AU = 2,147,483,647km (2,150,000,000) *Max Directional Scanner Range
If the target is a combat ship with wrecks we can still passively attempt to locate the ship using the System Scanner by conducting a sensor scan without probes (this will take 30 seconds per attempt). All Cosmic Anomalies within 4 AU of your ship will appear. We can then warp to each anomaly to see if our target is present. If the target is not in an Anomaly or if it is a mining ship then we can be relatively certain our target is in a Cosmic Signature and we will need to use combat scanner probes to locate our target. (***Advisory*** Do not attempt to use core probes for this function. Using Scanner Core Probes may result in multiple Cosmic Signature hits, and does not look for ships. We want to find the ship not the signatures!)
Step Four – Probe Out Your Target
Before you drop probes attempt to use your Directional Scanner to determine what direction and range from the planet the target is. Having a direction will tell you where to move your group of probes to scan. When it is time to uncloak and drop your probes, the best location would be off of a planet outside of Directional Scan range from your target. This will help you remain hidden. For smaller systems a location closets your target will make for short warp times to the target. From there you can move your probes to the general location of your target. Because you have a general idea of your target’s location you can start your scan at .5 to 4 AU range. With luck you can have a 100% signal strength hit on your target with one maybe two scans. Once you have 100% signal, bookmark the location and warp to the target at range. Remember there could be a lot of debris you will have to negotiate to get to the target. Additionally, once you have a 100% hit either recall your probes or move them to conduct a scan outside of your target’s Directional Scanner range. If you are lucky, the target might have been lazy on his Directional Scans, and has not seen your probes during your probing attempts. Once you have eyes on your target, I have three things that should dictate your actions:
Be bold… Be Brief… Be Gone!!!
One last tip before I go. It is not uncommon to land 150km or more from your target. It may not be possible to slowly move across the site cloaked in time to engage your target. (The target may be finishing up salvaging the site’s wrecks, and only have one or two more remaining.) You can right-click in the overview, and bookmark the wreck. This will allow you to warp out, and then return to an optimal range of that last wreck your target is about to salvage. (***Disclaimer*** Not that I condone you wait until the last wreck is salvaged, to increase the possible loot drop from your target’s wreck.)
Fly Safe… Stay Profitable…
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