Worth the Cost?

Catching up on the blog, I've had some thoughts. As usual, my thoughts were prompted by Mynxee's questions .. though she claims she didn't ask any, I know better ...

Boosters .. are they worth the cost? This isn't gonna be some number filled min/max analysis. Frankly there's too many variables to really answer this question. Rather, I'd just like to look at the question in the context of Eve. Eve, our one true addiction, is simply amazing .. the min/max analysis fails because of play choice and almost limitless options.

Mynxee's musing (that better than question?) was that given the cost of standard boosters (5-8 million per unit ... if you are paying more per unit of standard, give me a call! You're getting ripped off!), boosters seemed to expensive an option for anything but your nice, shiny T2 ships. While that cost analysis holds for frigates, destroyers, and cruisers, there are lots more pricey ships that might warrant the cost of boosters. But I promised, no numbers. She figured that if insurance can actually cover the measley cost of your T1 ship, why invest in boosters. But are boosters worth it only to keep your ship from going pop?! I can hear the chorus of isk-strapped pilots saying, "hell yeah!" But really, Eve is so open-ended that I can't account for every tactical situation.

Here's just one tale .. once upon a time, I was a lousy lousy tackler in a roving gang. Now, I didn't suck just cos I would constantly get popped (though I did) .. I sucked cos I didn't get the job done, I couldn't keep the target scrambled long enough to allow the dps-ers to come in and pound the poor sap. Now, even with boosters, I probably still would've gotten popped. But I might have lasted just a minute or two longer ... a minute or two that could make all the difference in the outcome of a battle.

Whether that booster gives you a bit more range, a bit more tank, a bit more/less damage .. that little bit can defy even the best number-crunchers. Now is that little bit worth the cost of standard boosters? Maybe ..

... if not, there's always synth ;-p

Can I Overdose?!

Mynxee raised a great question .. just how many boosters can I take? With the bonuses offered, I can already see some pod pilots drooling to dose up and hit the stars.

But there are limits. Boosters work just like implants in many ways. There are 3 booster slots in your little pod brain. You can only use one booster at a time per slot. So while you can take more than one booster at a time, they have to be of different slots. This prevents people from doubling up on one set of bonsues. You cannot take another booster of that slot until the previous one has worn off.

The slot layout is as follows:

Slot 1: Blue Pill, Exile, Mindflood, and X-Instinct
Slot 2: Drop, Frentix, and Sooth Sayer
Slot 3: Crash

So you got to be choosy.
Slot 1 boosters give bonues to various tanks: shields, armor, cap, and speed.
Slot 2 gives bonuses to gunnery stats: optimal range, tracking, and falloff.
Slot 3 is for those missile freaks: explosion radius.

Taking multiple boosters does not increase the chances of side-effects over all. A side-effect check is made individually for each booster. So if you take 1 standard exile and 1 standard crash. You have 20% of the exile causing one of its side-effects and the same chance of the crash causing one. So there is a risk but it is not increased over the risk you normally take when using boosters.

Coming soon, boosters versus modules. Also coming soon, the great speed nerf and x-instinct. Yes, x-instinct got the nerf too but the changes are very interesting. I'll lay it all out for you ...

Paradise Found!

... psst, wanna boost? ...


Hey Now, I'm the Doodah Man, dipping his toe in to the already deep waters of Eve blogging.
Eve blogs and podcasts are the paraphernalia of our digital spaceship addiction. So here's my meager offering to the growing chorus of pod-pilots.

Paradise Engineering will bring you news and articles from the shady side of Eve Online. Many pilots may not even be aware of the vibrant black market in contraband in Eve. I'm a proud member of the Es & Whizz corporation and the Hedonistic Imperative alliance. We're a cartel of illict combat booster producers and smugglers.

Combat Boosters get a hard rap from the larger Eve community, either scorned or just unknown to many pilots, I thought I'd try to correct the record through a series of posts and guides on boosters and smuggling. Stay tuned for the good word ...

keep on keepin on!