TL;DR = spider tank worky good but not so useful if you have the skills to solo-speed-pwn missions already, and maybe not so useful for incursions but no data on that yet. Details below.
For those interested in variable setups focused on versatility, I've been using a spider-tank fleet lately in my L4 missions. I have been able to easily complete even the harder missions without having to warp out or repair or even move my ships. I haven't gotten Angel Extravaganza again but I expect it to be about the same as the others I've done.
For those unfamiliar with spider-tank setups, basically what you have is multiple DPS which are configured to carry one or more remote armor/shield repair modules. Everyone warps in and targets the rest of the fleet, then remote repairs whoever gets aggro. So with 4 DPS, you don't need a logistics ship as everyone can rep everyone else.
PVE Benefits:
- With 4 ships carrying 2 reppers each, you have the same repair output as a logistics cruiser (Basilisk, etc.). With 5+, you have more output.
- With your repair output distributed through the fleet, enemies cannot jam/alpha your only repairer.
- The entire fleet can move into harm's way as everyone has tank and repair.
- You can bring your salvage boat with you as he is no longer stuck driving a repair boat. (salvage while fighting, saving lots of time and enabling full mission tractor/salvage out to 90km)
- Everyone carries medium-skill (or high skill depending on your dedication) repair modules so you don't have a noob in a gimped logistics fit just asking to get blown up by random aggro.
- Not having to fill up medium slots with shield boosters and boost amps means you can fill in with shield hardeners, making 70%+ omni tanks easily attainable while losing none of your tank ability.
- Shield reppers are not penalized by cap power relays, offering a ~45% increase in cap-regen per module by swapping cap flux coils for CPRs.
- If you want to use a pure tank ship, you can configure one with max resists easily without much regard for buffer size or regen or any of that, allowing the use of more versatile or niche fits depending on your play style and objectives.
- Having multiple cap-efficient repair ships means being able to run harder missions at much lower skill levels. Training a bunch of skills to 5 helps but is not required.
- Being able to move the whole fleet through a mission means carrying high DPS AND repair AND salvage AND various EW options AND 25+ drones AND a bunch of other things that make missions easier.
- Not having to warp ships in and out for various tasks saves lots of time, especially if your mission pocket is 2+ jumps from your mission hub.
- Works extremely well with 4-5 similarly-fit DPS ships as you can then mouse-broadcast overview changes, targeting, drones, warping/docking and most in-mission movement.
- Having omni-tank setups means you only have to swap damage types between missions, saving time spent in-station.
- Certain ships do extremely well in these setups, such as the Scorpion Navy Issue. 85% resists (77% fully passive) across the board is very nice in missions that throw high omni damage at you.
- Having the extra mid/low slots regained from omitting shield/armor boosters not only allows for good omni-tank setups, it also means it is that much easier to fit for better DPS or versatility if you choose.
Downsides (again, PVE-only; PVP is a whole different meta-game):
- You lose a target slot for each ship in the fleet you need to target for remote repairs, which can hurt if your ship has a low max-targets capability.
- Takes more micromanagement than having individual ships that are solo-capable. (This is a wash if you have identical DPS as the only micromanagement required is for heals.)
- Logistics range is cut to about 6km instead of the 50km+ of true logistics ships. I haven't flown a mission where this mattered but I'm sure there is one somewhere where this might be a pain. Getting one ship webbed slows down the whole fleet if you want to stay in range, for example.
- If your DPS ships have different targeting ranges or capabilities, it can be a bit tricky using mouse-broadcasting to focus-fire things.
- Depending on which ship type you fly, this setup may be less viable due to lack of choice slots or limited CPU or power grid. A good example of this is ships that use high-power weapons (which leaves less for reppers).
- Using ships that speed tank may be problematic as the fleet can get out of range of each other's reppers quickly.
- Using multiple T2/faction/officer high-DPS ships tends to be overkill in L4's, making this less useful for those pilots.
- For larger fleet support in something like incursions, dual logistics setups are probably a better fit, though I only have experience in L4's so far, so your mileage may vary.
I suspect this setup works best for pilots with low skill points (I'm still under 8 million SP on 4 of my DPS guys, under 3 mil on the 5th), though harder PVE content might work just as well for high-SP pilots. I don't have the SP to fly T2/T3 ships yet, so I can't say how well things would work for those.
Comments/ideas welcome.
As an example, here is the Raven fit that has been working great so far for me (cap stable running everything; 77% EM/therm/kin, 74% explosive, 340ish DPS with my low SP):
Quote:
[Raven, Raven Spider 2]
Capacitor Power Relay II
Capacitor Power Relay II
Capacitor Power Relay II
Ballistic Control System II
Ballistic Control System II
Photon Scattering Field II
Heat Dissipation Field II
Kinetic Deflection Amplifier II
Invulnerability Field II
Invulnerability Field II
Magnetic Scattering Amplifier II
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Paradise Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Paradise Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Paradise Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Paradise Cruise Missile
'Arbalest' Cruise Launcher I, Paradise Cruise Missile
Auto Targeting System II
Medium Shield Transporter II
Medium Shield Transporter II
Large Capacitor Control Circuit I
Large Capacitor Control Circuit I
Large Capacitor Control Circuit I
Hobgoblin II x5
Hammerhead II x5
Hopefully, this gives some folks an idea or two. :)
A final note: this setup really isn't designed for super-OMG-max efficiency -- it's designed for reliability and overall versatility, with a large part of it being my desire to spend less time in stations changing fits around every half hour and more time out blowing up ships.
