EVE Online’s latest expansion, Revenant, added two of the most interesting ships we’ve ever seen in the game: the Tholos and the Cenotaph. Between their cloaking systems and their unique damage-over-time weaponry, they stand out in a big way from more conventional ships. However, while such strange mechanics raise plenty of possibilities, they also require a major mindset shift. It’s tough to know how to make the most of these ships, or how to fit them for their various purposes.

Thankfully, the Just About community of expert EVE players is here to help, just as they did with their EVE Online Khizriel and the Alligator fits after the Havoc expansion. Once again, we asked our veteran pilots to come up with some top-notch ship fittings for the Tholos and Cenotaph, and this time, because these ships are so weird, we also asked for an in-depth breakdown of their capabilities, limitations, and a few tips on how to make the most of them. Let’s dive in.

Why are the Tholos and Cenotaph so different?

The Tholos and Cenotaph are both unlike any other ships that have come before them, and to kick us off, LukaZaharin has broken down exactly what sets them apart from everything else:

"The new ships have a good number of highslots and very good DPS boni on both autocannons and short-range missiles (rockets, HAMs). Without fitting any damage mods, they fly in the range of battle-fitted T2 destroyers. Of course, the breacher pod launcher, only one per ship, brings the new mechanic of damage over time [DoT] to New Eden. These ships are also the first destroyers and battlecruisers capable of fitting a CovOps Cloaking Device. They can warp while cloaked to launch sneak attacks and should be able to take BlackOps bridges, opening up an entirely new way of using them."

For more info on how breacher pods work, you can check out this video from community member Wadd Enderas:

Are the Tholos and Cenotaph deadlier than other ships?

Thanks to the damage-over-time mechanic, both of these ships have the ability to deal huge amounts of damage - at least, in theory. Sturmer explains what makes them both so deadly:

"Anything sub-capital with a standard buffer (especially armour) will suffer against this new weapon. There are only two ways to remove the effect: wait 75 seconds for it to expire, or dock in a station or use a system gate. The last two require the absence of an aggression timer, so even if you de-aggro instantly, you’re still going to take at least 60% HP damage. If you’re on a smartbombing armour Abaddon with less than 59% HP, you’re essentially dead no matter what - it's a death sentence."

A significant drawback of these weapons, however, is their short range, so to get the most out of them, you should try to mitigate this by maximising their speed and defences. Both Sturmer and Luka agree that the ships are designed to be short-range brawlers, with Luka explaining why the tools it has make this the perfect way to fly:

"The high number of med slots allow you to fit dual propulsion modules and quickly burn towards a target with the MWD, while making use of the web-resistance with an AB in case you get scrammed. Overall, the large number of medium slots gives the ships the range control needed to apply their high DPS at short range and space to make use of their incredible shield boost. They have a higher base HP in their shields compared to many other ships, so you can fly them actively tanked, without worrying too much about heavy alpha strikes."

Sturmer also considers using the ships to finish off weaker targets. "Another potential use is as an 'executioner.' If a target’s HP is already down by 25% and it’s passively fit, they’re doomed. Normal ships engage in regular combat, then this thing decloaks and debuffs the enemy, and then both can disengage as the target is walking dead.” 

But while the high DPS and ability to finish ships off with ease is a major upside, Sturmer points out that this will make you a prime target: "For medium and large fleets, the impact is hard to predict, but one thing’s certain - these ships will be high-priority targets, as no FC will want them plaguing the fleet every ten seconds."

Kane Carnifex echoes this sentiment, viewing each ship as a bit of a glass cannon, requiring you to quickly finish off enemy ships: "Take your drugs, heat your tank, and hope you have enough people to burn your prey fast enough before it smells your weakness."

You can check out the video below for some details from the developers themselves about what makes these ships tick:

So that’s your overview. Now that we know the general roles these ships seem designed to play, we've now got some fits for you to try out - one for the Cenotaph and one for the Tholos.

The heavy shield Cenotaph

Starting off with the Cenotaph, Shanna Alabel opted to amp up its defences with some heavy shields. But while the shields may have been the focus of the build, they were pleasantly surprised at just how capable the Cenotaph remains at dishing out huge amounts of damage:

"After getting to test out my Cenotaph earlier tonight I am amazed by its performance. Against four dreadnoughts we caught, I did over 600,000 raw damage - that was over three times more than the next-nearest Redeemer."

The fit:

[Cenotaph, NANOBSB copy]

Damage Control II

Republic Fleet Gyrostabilizer

Republic Fleet Gyrostabilizer

Corelum C-Type 50MN Microwarpdrive

Pithum C-Type Multispectrum Shield Hardener

Caldari Navy Large Shield Extender

Pithum B-Type Multispectrum Shield Hardener

Domination Warp Scrambler

Republic Fleet Large Shield Extender

Federation Navy Stasis Webifier

Heavy Assault Missile Launcher II, Inferno Rage Heavy Assault Missile

Heavy Assault Missile Launcher II, Inferno Rage Heavy Assault Missile

Heavy Assault Missile Launcher II, Inferno Rage Heavy Assault Missile

Covert Ops Cloaking Device II

Medium Breacher Pod Launcher, SCARAB Breacher Pod M

425mm AutoCannon II, Hail M

425mm AutoCannon II, Hail M

425mm AutoCannon II, Hail M

Medium Core Defense Field Extender II

Medium Core Defense Field Extender II

Medium Core Defense Field Extender II

Acolyte II x5

Valkyrie II x5

Hornet EC-300 x5

High-grade Nirvana Alpha

High-grade Nirvana Beta

High-grade Nirvana Gamma

High-grade Nirvana Delta

High-grade Nirvana Epsilon

High-grade Nirvana Omega

Zainou 'Gnome' Shield Management SM-705

Inherent Implants 'Squire' Capacitor Management EM-805

Eifyr and Co. 'Gunslinger' Surgical Strike SS-905

Starsi Blast! Classic

Synth Drop Booster

Synth Crash Booster

Agency 'Pyrolancea' DB5 Dose II

Tetrimon Anti-Drain Booster III

Tetrimon Capacitor Booster II

Harvest Webifier Booster III

Barrage M x1000

Hail M x2000

Inferno Rage Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Mjolnir Rage Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Nova Rage Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Scourge Rage Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Caldari Navy Inferno Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Caldari Navy Mjolnir Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Caldari Navy Nova Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Caldari Navy Scourge Heavy Assault Missile x1000

Nanite Repair Paste x500

Republic Fleet Depleted Uranium M x1000

Republic Fleet EMP M x1000

Republic Fleet Phased Plasma M x1000

Republic Fleet Titanium Sabot M x1000

SCARAB Breacher Pod M x200

Cladistic-15 'Krai Perun' Filament x1

Cladistic-15 'Krai Svarog' Filament x1

Cladistic-15 'Krai Veles' Filament x1

Proximity-15 'Extraction' Filament x1

Agency 'Pyrolancea' DB5 Dose II x2

Harvest Webifier Booster III x2

Starsi Blast! Classic x2

Synth Crash Booster x2

Synth Drop Booster x2

Tetrimon Anti-Drain Booster III x2

Tetrimon Capacitor Booster II x2

The high-end Tholos

Considering how pricey a Tholos is, one might consider cutting costs on the fit to save a few ISKs - not Nth Dimensional. They've gone all out, splashing the cash on some high-end parts because, in their words: "If you're gonna buy the ship, might as well make it good."

"The ship can do enough damage just on its own without any damage mods, so I focused the rest of the build on standard PvP gear, beefy ancil shield reps, and even more movement bonuses so that you can really be wherever you want to be on the battlefield."

The fit:

[Tholos, Tholololololos]

Damage Control II

Nanofiber Internal Structure II

Gistii B-Type 1MN Afterburner

Federation Navy Stasis Webifier

Medium Ancillary Shield Booster

Medium Ancillary Shield Booster

Caldari Navy Warp Scrambler

Dread Guristas Multispectrum Shield Hardener

200mm AutoCannon II

200mm AutoCannon II

Small Breacher Pod Launcher

'Smokescreen' Covert Ops Cloaking Device II

Rocket Launcher II

Rocket Launcher II

Small EM Shield Reinforcer II

Small Low Friction Nozzle Joints II

Small Low Friction Nozzle Joints II

Warrior II x10

SCARAB Breacher Pod S x40

Hail S x1

Republic Fleet Phased Plasma S x1

Mjolnir Rage Rocket x101

Republic Fleet EMP S x1

Barrage S x241

Navy Cap Booster 50 x18

Nova Rage Rocket x1

What do you think of these fits, and of our role breakdown of the Tholos and Cenotaph? Have you been using them, and have you found a different role or a different fit that’s working well for you? Would you change anything about the builds we have here? Let us know! 

Some text has been edited for brevity, clarity, or spelling, punctuation, and grammar. You can find the original wording here. Image credit: CCP Games and Razorien on Flickr.