Earlier this year EVE Online introduced Lancer Dreadnoughts, a brand new class of Tech II ship, with the Viridian expansion. Their primary function was to shake up the combat meta, but players quickly found a different preferred use: targeting Jump Freighters. No doubt there is still some tweaking to be done on CCP's side, but we wanted your thoughts.

All the submissions we received for this were well-reasoned and thought out, ranging from "they're fantastic!" to "they fill a niche". Let’s take a look at the community’s expert opinion.

Unique tactics, but not overpowered

The common thread throughout most of your responses is either Lancers aren’t overpowered, or it's too early to tell. Swagger Olacar summarises all of this nicely, explaining that because of how niche they are, they don't deserve to be nerfed just yet:

"There are not enough people making use of them to tell for sure where they sit in the current capital ship meta. However I have seen some interesting tactics taking advantage of the only interesting feature of this hull: the disruptive lance. For instance: Disrupting the logistics in a sub-capital fleet by forcing multiple people to broadcast for reps for no reason while reducing the effectiveness of the reps that the poor logistics pilots managed to land. Preventing capital ships from docking in stations or upwell structures as they land, allowing enough wind down for friendlies to deploy a bomb dread on them or preventing freighters to take a gate to highsec from lowsec as they land. Both tactics make great use of the lance but in all honesty, it represents too much of a niche to be considered overpowered…"

Salartarium had a similarly measured response:

"Lancers work well in a few areas. A big problem with dreads is that many focused on EHP and DPS and therefore they just served as the proverbial “Dreadbomb” in which they were only used to outform and outspend opponents. Lancers allow a new form of gameplay and require more player skill to be utilized effectively. World War Bee 2 also showed us that with current Citadel Sov it is impossible to effectively siege current Sov null. Throughout the campaign Imperium haulers were still moving freight in effortlessly. While many complained that Lancers would be the end of Jump Freighters, capsuleers have adapted. New routes have formed and new third-party hauling corps haven outcompeted some of the old."

However, Salartarium went on to say that Lancers have failed at reviving Super Cap warfare, as they're still not cost-effective, and n+1 with dreads runs less risk while being a more worthwhile financial investment.

A new favourite?

A couple of you are clearly fans of the Lancer Dreadnought. Here’s Brother Grimoire's verdict:

"Lancers are still very new, so their usages on the battlefield are still being tried and tested. On paper, I approve of their existence because it adds another level to an already dynamic battlefield. From my experiences with lancers, they are fantastic! Too often you see pilots with their mechanics down to a science safely delivering billions of ISK to a destination because they have safe bookmarks and such. The existence of lancers throws this all on its head by providing a method of catching them. The ‘baby doomsday’ as I call it is the perfect nemesis for those people with cynos at an insta-dock. One quick shot disallows docking, leaving those juicy haulers as sitting ducks!"

orik Kado agrees, explaining the risk to courier services now is much greater, meaning more talented couriers have more ways to distinguish themselves, incentivising more ambitious players to do exactly that. This is healthy for the game as a whole. Orik Kado does reckon we need to wait longer to see the effect of lancers when it comes to large-scale battles, however:

"In conclusion, it’s a ship that I love. I know it may be annoying for those who are victims of this new type of warfare, but they must remember what, for me, is the premise in EVE Online: nothing stays the same for long. So, all that’s left is to adapt and make the most of it. A problem never arises without an incredible opportunity to do new and better things."

Schadsquatch, despite not having much experience with Lancer Dreadnoughts due to being a wormholer, likes them for the same reasons. He understands the complaints haulers will have, but reiterates the essence of oriK Kado's message above: "adapt or die". His personal anecdote of encountering lancers is also worth a read:

"The one night I joined the Tama Border Patrol in their weekly patrol and they showcased the power of lancers on capsuleers moving through Tama, much to the laughter of my stream viewers. The ability to shut down jumping seems so ridiculously strong for dedicated gate-camping groups who are able to protect their lancers. With a relatively short timer, we were able to grab T2 haulers and expensive ships with ease.

I like the fact that not just ‘any’ group can have access to such powerful tech as it can only be placed on very specific, very expensive ships. It adds another toy for groups to play around with, which I think is great! More toys = more fun for EVE."

Finally, a word from someone who’s wound up on many lancer pilots’ menus. As a jump freighter, Kane Carnifex's thoughts essentially boil down to Lancer Dreadnoughts being the next hurdle in a long line when it comes to operating his preferred ships. Before lancers, he had to deal with "cloaky camping on gates", and bumping before that, so it's all about learning to adapt, despite still being niche. And he does pose the very good, if tongue-in-cheek, question of Titans and whether they're a problem or not.

Some text has been edited for grammar and brevity. You can find the submissions in full at the original bounty post.

Images courtesy of CCP Games.