Thursday 3 July 2014

Sisi and scanning

Over the last couple of days, I gave the test server (otherwise known as Sisi or Singularity) a bit of a try.

Primarily, I was looking to test out a new boat setup.  I normally fly T1 battleships, and this was more expensive than that, so I wanted to see what I could do in PVE with this new setup.

The new setup had no issues with L3 highsec missions (as it should have).  It also walked over a L4 lowsec mission though I think the one I got was particularly easy.  One of the last times I tried a L4 security mission, it didn't go so well, but that was a few skillpoints ago.

So, off to find a wormhole.  I really want to try this new setup in a C4, so I go scanning.  And scanning, and even more scanning.  Without wormhole pilots constantly creating highsec K162's, it seems that it is actually difficult to find an outgoing wormhole from known space to J space.

Fortunately, there are precious few signatures in the majority of empire systems I pass by, each having only one or two quickly resolved gas / data sites.  After about 20 systems, I finally find an outgoing wormhole, an R943, to a C2.  C2 wormholes always have at least 2 outbound, and we have occasionally seen 3 outgoing wormholes, so are wonderful for my purpose of getting deeper into wormhole space.   This one happens to be a Null/C5 system.  Good enough.

I run a combat site, don't remember which one, with my new setup, and it is straight forward.  As expected.  Good, so log off for the night.

The following night I log back in, and scan.  After scanning 20+ systems last night with each system having 1 or 2 signatures,  facing an entire system full of signatures is a task.  I can well imagine that this system could be empty on tranquility; not enough PVP for a heavy PVP corp, not enough market access for a PVE corp.  Oh well, suck it up princess.

Gas sites, data, relic, the works.  Finally I scan down the C5 exit, but ... where is the nullsec exit?  If I am going to run a C5 site solo, it will be ambitious, and the better part of valour says more tank, less gank.  I like my ships big and slow.  I need to find a market.

I am down to 2 signatures, and finally partially scan down a one of them, but it disappears before I resolve it.  No new signature has taken it's place.  Ok.  Maybe it was the incoming highsec.  Maybe I scanned the nullsec entrance last night?  I think I did, but am not sure, it was late and I was not properly paying attention.

Ok lets resolve this last signature.  I have been scanning for 18 months now; I know how to scan.  I am in a well skilled scanner, nothing at 5 but mostly 4's.  I am in a T2 covops frigate (also at level 4 skill), with sister core launcher and sister core probes.  This last signature should not be this hard.

There is a small red bubble on the scanning screen (no screenshots unfortunately), and it just does not resolve.  I try matching the bubble exactly with probes.  I try one size larger.  I try 8AU.  Nothing registers.  Hmm.  I really did not expect a c5 wormhole to be this hard.  I check staticmapper.com again.  Yes, I definitely am in a C2, it definitely has 2 outbound wormholes.  I definitely can not resolve this last signature.   Mmm.

Thinking about options, Von Keigai thinks that new signatures don't pop up until you toggle show anomalies on the probe scanner window.  I try this, but no change to my signatures.

I have read that CCP are looking to change the way new signatures are found.  This is a big system.  I launch a 32AU flat scan to maximise coverage across the whole system.  I have not done this in a very long time, as normally this is only needed for hunting ships.  I don't do that enough.

I also remember some talk about scanning midslot items becoming active rather than passive.  I try to turn them on but get told off by Aura for trying to activate passive modules.  Good, that has not changed at least.

A new signature pops up.  This is very strange.  While a change to the way new signatures appear has been talked about on the forums due to CCP asking questions, I did not expect this.


So some questions for those who know a thing or 2 about scanning, especially if you have or are willing to install the test client.
  • Has the way new signatures are reported changed in game?  Will we be launching blanket probes once more?
  • Are there sometimes wormhole signatures that you are sure you should be able to scan, but that stubbornly refuse to be scanned?
Neither of these two are a problem for me.  If my suspicion is true, some hunters will be very happy (won't you Penny), but I really don't have a problem offering the occasional sacrifice to Bob in the form of a ship, (or even the occasional squad).  I might not take out my new shiny boat as much, and when I do, I will probe scan a little more.

Oh and that C5 site I optimistically decided to run?  I whelped on the first of 3 phases.  There is a reason I ran this site on test before trying it on live first.  Neuts are bad enough when split between 4 ships.  Any solo ship with only enough cap struggles with so many neuts.   Oh well.

3 comments:

  1. To answer your questions:
    1) We don't know, CCP hasn't made an official announcement yet.
    2) You fell for the dual/ghost sig. Some sigs appear as double red dots and when you scan it, it says "No signatures detected". Look around, there's another red dot you missed.

    As for your solo C5 endeavors, better check google before you try that again, on Sisi or otherwise. Just sayin'...

    ReplyDelete
  2. @anon.

    I fully expect that on a test server, things are subject to change, but my training wishlist is long enough that I try sometimes to gaze into crystal balls.

    But no it wasn't a standard dual / ghost site. I am very familiar with them. To track these I ensure that I have highlighted exactly one site from the probe list and look for alternatives. There were none. I am also used to getting to different 'dots' when the alternate locations appear. This was not a dot but a sphere as if only 1 probe had it in range.

    Of course this is all my claim and screenshots would have been a good idea. I have moved on from that c2 so cant even go back and get one.

    This means one of the following:
    * User error. Replace user and hit enter to continue.
    * Eve error. I should raise a bug report
    * New site requiring perfect skills. Profit?

    If others are testing in wormholes, we should be able to determine what of the above it is.

    In terms of the C5 combat site, I did check google and eve survival. It was the test server, my ship cost peanuts and time. I actually expected to lose the ship, but thought I should be able to survive the first wave. This definitely was a 'user error' (ship/fit selection, ship usage or site selection - not so sure.)

    ReplyDelete
  3. It could be that the anomaly is an artifact from being on the Sisi server rather than new code that is being tested for TQ.
    It sounds weak as an explanation, but maybe possible too.

    ReplyDelete

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