The Directional Scanner in PVP

Things have been pretty busy offline recently, so unfortunately writing about internet spaceships has fallen by the wayside over the last month or so. However, I think I remember promising somebody I'd write an article about directional scanning, so here it is!

I don't think I can really overstate how useful the directional scanner is in PVP. Other than the mysteriously omniscient local chat, it is by far the most powerful intelligence tool in your arsenal. At a very basic level, it tells you everything in space around you up to its maximum range of 14.3au. Used well, it can also tell you where they are, and even give you an idea what they might be doing!

Skirmish Interceptors Part 2 - Creating Kills

In any PVP situation, you'll find two kinds of people: kill participants and kill creators. If you want to know which you are, think of the last few kills you've been on and ask yourself whether those kills would still have happened if you hadn't been there. If the answer if no, then contratulations - you're a kill creator.

Skirmishing is absolutely a kill-creating position. There are very few other roles in the fleet where you're so directly responsible for the gang's success (the obvious one being the FC). What's more you're usually acting alone, so when you get the gang a kill, it's you and you alone who created that kill. That's a pretty great thing to be able to say, don't you think?

We talked last time about the kind of ship you'll want for a skirmishing role. If you haven't read that post already, I recommend you do so before reading on. What I'd like to talk about now, is how you actually go about getting those kills.

Skirmish Interceptors Part 1 - One Man and his Inty

With the first run of Agony's long awaited Skirmishing class coming up, I think it's probably worth a post on the topic. When I joined Agony I spent my first year or so flying this role almost exclusively, and I can absolutely recommend it to anyone who doesn't want to be just another gun.

First of all, I should probably explain what a Skirmisher is. In Agony, a Skirmisher is a pilot who operates independently from the main fleet whose main role is to locate and tackle targets. This may be in a +1 or -1 position (that is, one system ahead of or behind the main fleet) or it may be further afield. Skirmishers also double as scouts, providing early warning of hostile gangs in the area.