Relying on one Guardian
16th December 2009 – 5.46 pmI take the Guardian out to face Sleepers again, this time without its twin. Although two Guardians combine the ship's synergies to become significantly more effective to the point of being overpowered—and this extra power really ought to be illustrated by the ships physically connecting to become a giant flying robot—a single Guardian should still be an effective support ship. I will need to mutually transfer capacitor energy between a second ship, as I rely on an external source of energy to run all the repair systems, and a fleet member's Dominix re-fits to accommodate my lone Guardian. He also fits a remote armour repair system in case I get targeted by the Sleepers, as I have no means to repair my own ship.
We jump through a wormhole to a neighbouring class three w-space system, where there are anomalies and more to plunder. A single Drake appears on the directional scanner, but with our small fleet we feel suitably unthreatened. An anomaly is chosen first, as the lone Guardian as sole repairer is still an unknown factor and anomalies are the simplest of Sleeper sites to encounter. Warping in, I lock on to the other fleet members, get the mutual energy transfer running between myself and the Dominix, and start monitoring for incoming fleet damage. It turns out that it's not difficult to trace the Sleeper fire when I am the primary target.
My poor Guardian becomes the primary target of the Sleepers a few times, being battered by barrages of blows. I think if I could intercept the Sleeper communication channels it may be possible to decode their language by using as a key the phrase 'in this galaxy, we obey the laws of thermodynamics'. Either that, or my complement of reppers really agitates the Sleepers. Thankfully, the Dominix is capable of repairing my armour, letting itself or the Harbinger attract the attention of the Sleepers once more. I am not sure my Caldari heritage will ever let me get used to one of my ship's shields turning completely red so quickly, though.
The anomaly is cleared fairly easily, and we move on to a radar site, with more aggressive Sleeper defences. In-between getting buffetted by Sleeper fire, I need to keep the fleet running. Repping the Dominix isn't too difficult, but the damage-optimised Harbinger requires the full output of staggered remote repair modules occasionally, as well a regular injection of energy to keep the micro-warp drive from draining its capacitor. I have an awful lot to manage, but it's curious that I don't have to worry about my own status, relinquishing an uncomfortable amount of control to my fleet in ensuring my systems and armour integrities are maintained. I suppose the situation is equivalent for the DPS ship pilots, relying entirely on my reppers to keep them from being exposed to vacuum.
When the final two Sleeper battleships pick on the Harbinger they hit for an awful lot of damage, and between my switching of targets and the delay of the repair module cycle times finishing and restarting, a tiny amount of damage is inflicted on the Harbinger's hull. The capsuleer complains that he 'almost died', which I think is a little dramatic, but it highlights how much we are relying on each other. No one in the fleet has a ship fitted to be self-sufficient. That we co-ordinate our effort to defeat Sleeper encounters shows how effective we have become as a group. Personally, I am pleased that the flimsy-looking Guardian can withstand simultaneous Sleeper attacks, with a good wingman.
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