(attempt for) Guide: Drones

[Cocer]

I didn't see a drone guide, so I decided to create one! This guide is primarily for those of you (if any?) who will use gallente ships. Other races will not really need drones until you get battlecruisers and larger, when u might wanna be able to fend off small ships easier or boost dps.

Stalwart if you don't like this feel free to edit or delete it ;)


<table cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td class="headerrow">Skill Name (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/skills.html?eveskillcat=2;sortby=name)</td> <td class="headerrow">Rank (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/skills.html?eveskillcat=2;sortby=rank)</td> <td class="headerrow">Attributes (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/skills.html?eveskillcat=2;sortby=attr)</td> <td class="headerrow">Description</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Advanced Drone Interfacing (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=24613)</td> <td class="dr">8</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Allows operation of drone control units. 1 extra drone control unit per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Amarr Drone Specialization (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12484)</td> <td class="lr">5</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Specialization in the operation of advanced Amarr drones. 2% bonus to advanced Amarr drone damage per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Caldari Drone Specialization (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12487)</td> <td class="dr">5</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Specialization in the operation of advanced Caldari drones. 2% bonus to advanced Caldari drone damage per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Combat Drone Operation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=24241)</td> <td class="lr">2</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Skill at controlling scout drones. 5% Bonus to drone damage of light and medium drones per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Drone Durability (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=23618)</td> <td class="dr">5</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Increases drone hit points. 5% bonus to drone shield, armor and hull hit points per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Drone Interfacing (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3442)</td> <td class="lr">5</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Allows a captain to better maintain its drones. 20% bonus to drone damage, drone mining yield per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Drone Navigation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12305)</td> <td class="dr">1</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Increases drone max velocity.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Drone Sharpshooting (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=23606)</td> <td class="lr">1</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Increases drone optimal range.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Drones (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3436)</td> <td class="dr">1</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Skill at remote controlling drones. Can operate 1 drone per skill level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Electronic Warfare Drone Interfacing (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=23566)</td> <td class="lr">5</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Allows operation of electronic warfare drones. 3000m drone control range bonus per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Fighters (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=23069)</td> <td class="dr">12</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Allows operation of fighter drones. 20% increase in fighter damage per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Gallente Drone Specialization (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12486)</td> <td class="lr">5</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Specialization in the operation of advanced Gallente drones. 2% bonus to advanced Gallente drone damage per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Heavy Drone Operation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3441)</td> <td class="dr">5</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Skill at controlling heavy combat drones. 5% Bonus to drone damage per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Mining Drone Operation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3438)</td> <td class="lr">2</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Skill at controlling mining drones. 5% Bonus to mining drone yield.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Minmatar Drone Specialization (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12485)</td> <td class="dr">5</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Specialization in the operation of advanced Minmatar drones. 2% bonus to advanced Minmatar drone damage per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Repair Drone Operation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3439)</td> <td class="lr">3</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Allows operation of logistic drones. 5% increased repair amount per level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="dr">Scout Drone Operation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3437)</td> <td class="dr">1</td> <td class="dr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="dr">Skill at controlling scout combat drones.

Bonus: drone range increased by 5000 meters per skill level.</td> </tr><tr> <td class="lr">Sentry Drone Interfacing (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=23594)</td> <td class="lr">5</td> <td class="lr">Memory - Perception</td> <td class="lr">Skill at controlling sentry drones. 5% bonus to Sentry Drone damage per level.</td></tr></tbody></table>
For gallente pvp, what you want is the light and medium T2 drones asap. They are awesome!

Primary skills:
Drones (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3436) - Number of drones you can control, 1 extra drone per lvl, up to a maximum of 5 drones at lv 5. Important skill for all races! Need at 5 for T2 drones.
Scout Drone Operation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3437) - Increases drone operation range. Need this at 5 for T2 drones, which you need if you want to use droneships in pvp.

When you have those two at lv 5 you can pretty much use t2 drones, get Gallente Drone Specialization (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12486) and Minmatar Drone Specialization (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12485), those are the two most commonly used dronetypes.

These two are good to boost damage:
Drone Interfacing (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=3442) - Increases drone damage by 20% per lvl, get this to lvl 3 or 4 if you want to use drones in pvp.
Combat Drone Operation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=24241) - 5% damage bonus per lvl. Get this to at least 3 or 4.

Supplementary skills
Drone Navigation (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=12305) - Increases drone velocity by 5% per lvl. Good if you want to chase frigates with drones and for recalling your drones when they start taking damage. Get this to at least 3 if you in any way want to rely on drones.
Drone Durability (http://eve.allakhazam.com/db/getskill.html?eveskill=23618) - Increases drone hitpoints by 5% per lvl. Important for droneships! Get to 3 or 4.

[stalwart]

get it in this order:

drone 4, scout drone 4, drone interfacing 4 combat drone operation 3

then get drone 5, scout drone 5, then do your specialization, then drone navigation 3, durability 3

[Atnas]

What I'd really like to see from these guides is how they are to be used, not only how to train.

[stalwart]

What I'd really like to see from these guides is how they are to be used, not only how to train.

are you even playing eve? you should be, if you're not.



also, how to use drones:

send them out and let them attack.

other useful stuff about drones:



Amarr drones do EM damage, and have the second highest speed and tracking but have the lowest damage modifier. There are also energy neutralizer and tracking disruptor models. Integrated, augmented and fighter drones also do thermal damage.

Caldari drones do kinetic damage; they have the second lowest speed and tracking, but the second highest damage modifier. They have ECM and shield maintenance variants. Integrated, augmented and fighter drones also do thermal damage.

Gallente drones do the most damage but have the slowest speed and tracking; they do thermal damage. There are Armor repair and sensor dampening versions. Integrated, augmented and fighter drones also do kinetic damage.

Minmatar Drones have the highest speed and tracking, but do the second lowest damage; they do explosive damage. There is a webifier drone and target painting drones based off of Minmatar designs. Integrated, augmented and fighter drones also do kinetic damage.

[stalwart]

Combat

Combat drones are designed to do damage to enemy ships and are the most common type of drone, being the most useful in most situations and having the least skills to use. Each drone does one type of damage based on the race that made them. There are tech II variants of all combat drones except fighters.
Integrated and Augmented drones are improved variants of Tech I and Tech II Light Scout, Medium Scout and Heavy Attack drones that are built from base versions using rogue drone parts, they are better than their base versions in most areas and do two damage types. Their extravagant cost and limited availability coupled with the rate of drone loss makes them rare, however.

Combat drones are broken into the following classes:

Light scout

Light scout drones are the smallest class of drone available, taking up 5m³ and 5Mbit/sec per drone. They are the swiftest drone available having the highest tracking, but are also the least durable and least damaging drones. Due to their high speed and tracking, light drones are best for taking out frigates, destroyers and their tech II versions.

Medium scout

Medium scout Drones are middle of the road drones taking up 10m³ and 10Mbit/sec each. They have mid-range speed and mid-range tracking as well as mid-range durability and damage. They are best suited destroying cruisers, battlecruiser and medium tech II ships, but their mid-range stats make them moderately useful against larger and smaller ships.

Heavy attack

Heavy Attack Drones are the largest of the standard drones and take up 25m³ and use 25Mbit/sec. They are the slowest, and have the least tracking, but do the most damage and have the most durability of the basic drones. Due to their low tracking and speed they are best used to attack Battlecruisers and larger.

Sentry

Sentry Drones are more specialized drones designed for sniping, taking up the same space as heavy drones and requiring the same bandwidth. While the other drones orbit their target at high speed, sentries sit where they are deployed from and fire at enemies from long range. They have a long optimal and falloff as well as more damage and durability, but they have very low tracking and are unable to move under their own power. Due to their low tracking and long range, Sentry drones are best used against large targets from long ranges.

Fighters

Fighters are a specialized class of drones. Though they are controlled in the same way, they are actually manned and are able to warp to follow targets. In addition the launching pilot can place them under the control of another pilot that has the necessary bandwidth and drone control spots available. Fighters are 5000m³ and require 25Mbit/sec to deploy and control. Due to their large size, fighters can only be deployed from a carrier or mothership, their large size and high damage make them suited for attacking battleships and larger. They also do a secondary type of damage in addition to the standard racial damage.

Electronic warfare

Like combat utility drones, Electronic Warfare (EWar) Drones don't actively damage their targets, however they can be indispensable if used correctly. EWar drones reduce the effectiveness of enemy weapons while improving that of you and your allies.

Tracking disruptor

Tracking disruptor drones, based on Amarr combat models, reduce the tracking speed of their targets. This has the effect of lowering damage and chance to hit of the target's turrets, and in extreme cases may prevent them from hitting smaller targets entirely. They come in three sizes:

ECM

ECM drones have the ability to jam their targets. This has the effect of breaking that ship's target locks and preventing it from re-locking for a short time. This silences all offensive weapons requiring locks such as drones and FOF missiles, but those weapons cannot be directed in that state. The ECM drones, based on Caldari combat models are:

Sensor dampener

Sensor dampeners are slightly less devastating than ECM drones, but are nonetheless, very useful. These drones of Gallente make, reduce the range and speed of enemy targeting systems. If a ships can be disrupted before it achieves target locks, it can add precious seconds of time before their guns begin to fire. In addition the range penalty can be devastating to sniper ships and will break any locks that are at longer range than the sensors are reduced to. The disruptor drones are:

Target painter

As opposed to the rest of the EWar drones that harm the enemy, painter drones help allies. They increase the signature radius of the target ship. This has a few effects, the first is that it decreases the time required to lock the painted vessel allowing weapons to be brought to bear sooner. Additionally the larger sig radius improves the chance to hit and damage of turret weapons and increases the damage of missiles. These drones which are based on Minmatar drones are:

Combat utility drones

Utility drones don't do any damage themselves but they do assist othervise taking down enemies.
Energy neutralizer drones, of similar make to Amarr combat drones, drain the capacitor of the target vessel and come in three sizes, as with combat drones the size of the drone should be tailored to the size of the target. Energy neutralizers are effective against most targets since most modules require capacitor to use, the exceptions are passive tankers and projectile and missile users.
Stasis webifier drones, based on the Berserker heavy drone, slow their targets down, preventing them from escaping as well as allowing that ship to be hit more easily by lowering its transversal velocity; they should be used against anything breaking the speed limit.

Logistics

Logistics Drones are the direct opposite of combat drones. They do no damage, and don't harm the enemy or assist friendly weapons, instead they repair damage taken by your allies. This can be used to fix damaged ships after a battle or keep a ship in the fight longer by performing combat repairs. Logistics drones come in Caldari designed shield booster models and Gallente made armor repair units. They come in three sizes with the larger drones repairing more damage and Tech II versions repairing more damage than the tech I versions. The standard tech I variants are:summary:

essentially, the first few months of your eve career, you'll be using straight light scout drones, then tech 2 drones, and finally start moving up to the specialized drones.

the light/medium scout drones are easy. when you are PvEing, pull them in when enemies spawn instead of letting the rats blow up your drones. when you are PvPing, don't worry so much about it, just have them out as soon as you see the enemy.

light drones attack frigates and destroyers. medium drones are good against cruisers. heavy attack drones you don't want to use on anything lower than a battlecruiser.

when you have these large ships, typically you have large guns, and drones are used in such a way to hit things you can't. aka, my battleship's large guns are useless against frigates within 9 km of me... so those are the ones i send me drones after.

once you get to the electronic warfare drones, you'll know what to do. (it'll be 3-6 months). fighters go on motherships/cap ships... you won't be using those for quite some time.

[Atnas]

I'm not playing but I think it's fun to read about how shit works!

[Cocer]

we will make atnas an elite eve player without him even playing the game! he'll be the behind the curtains tactical commander