Mercenaries History
Mercenaries (Mercs) were always part of Eve, more so when they had access to t2 products, were highly skilled so had huge advantages over normal alliances and their players. One of prime examples was Mercenary Coalition(MC), that steamrolled the whole old North and killed multiple alliances, jsut because noone could match their capital fleet and highly active pvpers.
After the skill gap was closed, invention lowered T2 prices, which distribution couldnґt be longer monopolized, and the overall growth in wealth and numbers, mercs were a endangered species. Blobs ran the game, and groups like MC were rolled like piece of cake by BoB. No mercs group could compete with industry backing of big groups, that could form hundreds of people in battleships or capital ships (dreads+carriers) and just blob them to hell. There was no more skill gap and any activity or experience advantage died in lag and outnumbered environment.
They survived as smaller groups, helping typically empire groups and corporations. Large scale battles were off limits for now for them.
Ruling models in Eve Online
We have seen 2 distinctive developments in social and ruling models.
1. One we can call Northern model, that is formed around few core competent alliances and many feeder alliances, that exist to train members and boost numbers. You donґt pay, but have to participate or you get kicked.
2. The other is the Russian model, where top selected pure pvp alliances have vast carebear, industry and renter groups, that fund the pvp ones. You have to pay, but you are protected.
Game changes brough them back
Now the recent titan nerfs and introduction of fighter bombers, with buff to supercarriers (former motherships) changed the game again. Add to it that logistics came back in form, new tactics like sig tanking, afterburner hacs, etc. made smaller but determined group relevant in a huge fashion again. Groups of 60-70 players can cause huge havoc, demolish morale and make its target very soft to be taken over. If the same group has supercarriers, they can tank hundreds of players and cause devastating losses to them.
PL hired By Russians
In the recent Atlas conflict, Russians, which are very good pvpers on their own, couldnґt make progress against Atlas, because of TZ differences and game mechanics that favours the defender due to multiple reinforcement timers, where you have to only show once to save the system. One choice would be try it again and again and exhaust your enemy, risk of burning huge ammount of isk for no gain and boring yourself to death existed possibly as well. Other option sought to destroy opponents TZ advantage and make them unable to have a TZ, where they can form up, defend, repair stuff or go on counter attack.
Pandemic Legion(PL) was hired, for a rather high price, but not for someone who is very wealthy, due to having the biggest renting empire in Eve. A supercapital for gained station, plus other incetives were in comparison to the effect it had, very low and very good investition.
They gained 4 new regions, where you can place renters. One system rent is 1-2 billions of isk per month, stations and moons extra. The speed and no supercapitals losses at all will see that it has been one of the best return of investment (ROI) ever seen in this magnitude and i await it repaid in 1 month or less from the rent alone.
Add to it that groups like Intrepid Crossing (IRC) , living in Cobalt Edge region, or The Spire Collective (SPIRE), living in The Spire region, pay their rent in supercarriers, the Russians just moved their monthly supercarrier rent to PL and didnґt really lose anything.
Third model of organization comes alive
Now we see development of a third model, that can prevail in the future. People specialize on what they like/excell most at and mercenaries are not only a choice for non pvp groups looking for security. Established alliances, usually bloated by spies, afkers (people who donґt play the game actively), non xґers (players that join pvp fleets from whatever reason), bad fleets, no or horrible fleet commanders that till now used numbers as ”IWIN” button, can instead use mercs to have a spearhead inside enemy territory or to block enemies advance and than use superior numbers to put a final blow on them.
The cost wonґt a even canґt be small, there is lot of risk involved, when you deploy 1 trillion worht of capital ships, hacs and logistics are expensive, lot of t3 is being used, your pilots live from the isk so they can only pew. But in the time you would spend doing the same, on the same level, risking failcascades, failures, bad morale, few mining ops, letting people focus on industry and carebearing, will bring you easily tens of billions without the stress.
The numbers you bring cause lot of problems too for normal type alliance, and cannot be used all the time. And even a medium sized alliance doesnґt have to rely on their big brother and plead for help all the time, if they have emergency isk stockpile to save themselves on their own. this will enable much more independent diplomacy and possibility to build stuff on your own.
Russians were first evolution step
These new mercenaries have something in common:
a) they donґt need space, so canґt be hit by a normal model alliance
are being supplied by industry alliances and open market, so they can focus on pvp 100%
c) recruit only highly active/skilled players
d) have the best FCґs in game
e) work hard and develop pvp strategies and tactics, which others will adapt in few months if at all
f) use the isk back for pvp, thus making them stronger by every contract
g) very little spies
h) fleet discipline
i) every pilot knowing what they should do on their own, no babysitting.
Some evolutionary stages of the new mercs can be found in drone regions, where Legion of xXDEATHX and SOLAR Fleet arent typical mercs, but have many things similar, elite core, small numbers, focus on capitals, tactics, fleet discipline, income from renters (not contracts but very similar) and are very flexible and determined.
New groups emerge
With the recent revival of MC, others seem to understand it and want a slice of the huge isk pie. As the number of quality pvpers in eve is always limited, i foresee a bright future for multiple groups, that will fight each other as sort of leet guardians of renter and mixed type alliances.
The small groups are getting more numbers and will soon be able to take their so far empire operations into 0.0 as well.
Specialization of labor
As Adam Smith already found out, specialization of labor and professions, giving a specific task so they can concentrate and produce it more accurately, means much higher efficiency and output.
People build stations for 25 billions each, and so i see no big problem for any group in 0.0 business pay tens of billions for keeping them and humiliating their enemies and possibly expanding their money making ventures, so that the ROI is very high.
Once though as severe weakness, renter empires and pure carebear alliance migh flourish much more in Eve Online today, than typical we do all groups, that were the game and content forming groups till now. Their spirit, identity, we take everyone and choices for their people make them still the most used type now, but with already region after egion being rented out systematically, their time seems coming down.
Can they survive? Yes, but only in one form, a form Northern Coalition is shaping and polishing for several years. Its a rough diamond, not very pretty, but very hard to crack. The only choice is to form in such huge block, than even the best mercenaries groups can not really put a dent into them, which on the other hand is very hard to achieve, as the casual player will always suffer from the hands of the highly active and focused ones. But as long as there are 10 more players filling the unskilled but huge fleets, standing behind the player that just got fed up being killed by some elite outfit, they wonґt be really evicted or seriously damaged.
Conclusion
Till know people laughed about renters and carebears, dissing their pvp potentional and joking about their attitude. Now these farmers, carebears, industry guys can let even a huge so called pvp alliances demolished, failcascaded and demoralized. Like the russians due to the thousands of their peons income did in August 2010 to Atlas alliance.
Are there any dangers? Well history of Carthage shows, if you donґt pay them or they simply want more, and you relied on them 100%, you are in deep trouble. So be carefull when you sign next contract. Read the small print and terms, thats an advice from me as a lawyer.
Czech Lion
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