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Smartbomb Ratting
Overview
There are two main targets for smart bomb ratting in Esoteria. Rock havens are done with a team of smart bombers (typically Machariels) and a catching ship (typically Nightmare) whereas Sansha and Sansha's Rally Points can be done with a single account. Havens spawn 10/10 escalations and Rally points lead to 6/10 escalations. While the Rally Points don't have great ticks, the escalations sell for ~100m each and the rally points are completed very quickly.
Havens
Overview
Many folks want to work on training into carriers to rat, and then look into super ratting or maybe into multiple vni accounts. All of those use drones and fighters, but I'd like to give you another option, cost wise along the same lines as a Rorqual but way under the cost of a super, and using 4-5 accounts. Perhaps you have some cyno or trade alts that with a few injectors could be pulling in 100-130mil ticks, plus loot and possible split of salvage ?
You can see the 6mil tick on the image to the right where I stopped for a few. This is on one character so to get the real number, multiply times 5, so you can see each tick I was making around. (Low of 89mil to 138.4mil ticks before taxes).
You will need a minimum of 3 smartbombing ships, and one “catcher”. The catcher ship will sit 5K off your other ships, and will have guns and web, and shoot anything that gets out of the range of the smartbombs. Primarily, this happens right at the beginning when you are getting setup.
Skills Required
| Skill Name | Required Level | Recommended Level |
|---|---|---|
| Capacitor Management | 4 | 5 |
| Capacitor Systems Operation | 4 | 5 |
| CPU Management | 5 | 5 |
| Weapon Upgrades | 4 | 5 |
| Energy Pulse Weapons | 3 | 5 |
| Powergrid Management | 4 | 5 |
| Afterburner | 4 | 5 |
| Cybernetics | 4 | 4 |
| EM Armor Compensation | 4 | 4 |
| Thermal Armor Compensation | 4 | 4 |
| Repair Systems | 5 | 5 |
| Hull Upgrades | 4 | 5 |
| Mechanics | 4 | 5 |
| Resistance Phasing | 4 | 4 |
| Minmatar Battleship | 1 | 4 |
| Gallente Battleship | 1 | 4 |
If you want to avoid using an implant, go ahead and train Weapon Upgrades to 5 or you will need a Genolution CA-2 implant.
Ship setup
The ships to use down here for your smartbombers are machariels. You can also roll cheaper ships, such as Amarr Battleships, but the convenience of the machariel (which is being firesaled a bit now and should still work fine afterwords) is its warp speed.
[Machariel, Smartbomb Ratting] Corpus X-Type Large Armor Repairer Corpus X-Type EM Armor Hardener Reactive Armor Hardener Capacitor Power Relay II Capacitor Power Relay II Capacitor Power Relay II Imperial Navy Cap Recharger Imperial Navy Cap Recharger Imperial Navy Cap Recharger 100MN Y-S8 Compact Afterburner Large Micro Jump Drive Imperial Navy Cap Recharger Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Large Capacitor Control Circuit I Large Capacitor Control Circuit I Large Capacitor Control Circuit II
If you want to make a bit more, you can juice it up with some implants. My suggestion is the smartbomb one, then ones that help with repair, cap, and armor. EO-60X, EP-705 (smartbombs), EM-80X, RP-90X, and HG-100X. They also might save you, along with the MJD, you get a dread spawn.
For your catcher ship, you could use a Nightmare. We are already trained into them already as it is.
[Nightmare, Nightmare Catcher] Corpus X-Type Large Armor Repairer Heat Sink II Heat Sink II Corpus X-Type EM Armor Hardener Reactive Armor Hardener [Empty Low slot] Cap Recharger II Cap Recharger II Gist X-Type 100MN Afterburner Dread Guristas Stasis Webifier Sensor Booster II Tracking Computer II Large Micro Jump Drive Mega Pulse Laser II Mega Pulse Laser II Mega Pulse Laser II Mega Pulse Laser II Cynosural Field Generator I [Empty High slot] Large Capacitor Control Circuit I Large Capacitor Control Circuit I Large Capacitor Control Circuit II Conflagration L x4 Scorch L x4 Liquid Ozone x450 Sanshas Microwave L x4 Sanshas Multifrequency L x4 Imperial Navy Multifrequency L x8 Imperial Navy Radio L x4
And a few implants such as EO-60X, MR-70X, EM-80X, RF-90X and LE-1005 (damage) never hurt.
Bombing Havens
So once you have all this together, undock your fleet, turn on all your armor/repair/sebos/etc. Now find the nearest Sansa Haven that is a Rock Haven and warp your fleet to it. You will know these as when you warp in, they pop up with the message, while gas ones do not. Have all your smartbombers approach the Pirate Gate at 0 by activating their afterburner and fire up all the smartbombs. Tell your catcher to stay 5K off of the gate or one of your bombers, either works. Once the bombers are at the gate, you can turn off the afterburners. I add my smartbombers to fleet watch and sit on my catcher, web and shoot anything around 9-10K or more. In about 3-5 minutes you will be done. Then hit the next site.
If you want to drop an MTU, turn off all the smartbombs first! Keep in mind if a neutral comes in, you will have a weapons timer, so warping to a citadel and thinking you will be safe won't exactly work. So turn those bombs off and safe up early before you get caught.
If you can find a friend, either a newbie, bored person, spouse, etc.. offer to split loot/salvage with them if they will come and drop MTU's behind you and salvage. If they aren't doing anything its free money, and alot of it. In an evening you can loot/salvage half a bill or more and split that with a newbie who's willing to follow along dropping MTU's and salvaging, you will make them pretty rich in their eyes with just salvaging 3-4 and a hauler.
Guide by Emperor Pohjola
Sansha/Sansha's Rally Points
Overview
These sites can be completed solo. They spawn 6/10 escalations which can be farmed or sold for ~100m per site.
Ship Setup
[Machariel, SBing Rally Points] Prototype Compact EM Armor Hardener I Large 'Accommodation' Vestment Reconstructer I Capacitor Power Relay II Capacitor Power Relay II Capacitor Power Relay II Capacitor Power Relay II Gist B-Type 500MN Microwarpdrive Heavy Stasis Grappler II Stasis Webifier II Cap Recharger II Cap Recharger II Cap Recharger II Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Imperial Navy Large EMP Smartbomb Large Capacitor Control Circuit II Large Capacitor Control Circuit I Large Capacitor Control Circuit I Praetor II x4
Bombing Sansha's Rally Points
Sansha's Rally Points with the apostrophe are the preferred target. You warp into the site at smartbombing range, immediately start smartbombing. Grapple the final room battleships to ensure they don't get out of range. You do not need to kill the towers to complete the room.
Video guide:
Bombing Sansha Rally Points
These rally points require a two MWD pulse towards the centre of the blob of npcs. Start smartbombing. If ships get out of your range do not chase them, turn off your smartbombs and put your drones on them. Do not have your drones on auto-aggress because you don't want them coming back into range when the next wave spawns because you will initiate smart bombs again.
Video guide: