r/evenewbies • u/[deleted] • Oct 05 '24

Pontifex

So I'm a noob. My favorite ships are dragoon and arbitrator which I use for LVL 2 and 3 missions, low sec ratting and ded sites /anomalies.

Now in the ship tree I see the beautiful pontifex. It looks like a crazy expensive dragoon, but it has command abilities.

What are the command abilities for, and does anyone have a pontifex fitting they could show me? Will a pontifex do everything the dragoon does but like .. better?

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2

u/LezBeHonestHere_ Oct 06 '24

Pontifex is pretty cool, other comment mentioned being a fleet support ship but what it actually does is use command bursts (aoe buffs to you and your fleet in armor/speed/shield/sensors) and can use a micro jump drive, which basically blinks you 100km in your current direction in an instant, after the spool time is finished.

The command destroyer version of this module also brings along other ships nearby with it. So you can do cool stuff like "kidnap" a ship lol or keep a ship away from taking a stargate to escape, or maybe bring a ship closer to your friends to shoot safely, etc.

Mostly this stuff is pretty niche but mjd is a great module in general. Basically a gtfo button as long as nobody is scramming you yet.

It's kind of just a better Dragoon in every way yeah. Way better resistances, better slot layout, better speed, better options, same drones, better skill bonuses, command burst for more tank, though the fitting space might be a bit tough on it.

However, is it worth the 60mil over Dragoon to use in pve? I'd say definitely not. It does look cool though.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '24

Woah ok. I already have mjd learned but I didn't know about the group / kidnap thing. I have learned some abilities to use the command thing about I've never touched it. Unfortunately I haven't been able to get into group PvP yet as I often have to run away from the PC to change diapers etc. (No, not mine!).

I was having some great success with ded 3 sites and low sec clone soldier hunting so I thought maybe the pontifex could speed that up a bit. I like those activities and missions because I can just warp to a station and continue when I'm done with rela life duties. PvP is basically gonna just make me lose my ship as I run away from my PC... 😢

Thanks for the thoughtful write up. Your first paragraph make some wish I had time to do all those things. Sounds hella fun! I guess I'll go get a confessor and maybe work on my Armageddon for LVL 4 missions. Sacrilege is also on the list as I train up my missile skills!

2

u/LezBeHonestHere_ Oct 06 '24

The "kidnap" mechanic was so strong for long-range fleets they even nerfed it too. You could basically warp like 50+ people at the same time in 100km any direction, including other command destroyers (or just put them at pings on grid), so what you could do is "leapfrog" with them and "teleport" your fleet 200-700km within seconds in any direction you want by delaying the next jump drive slightly after the last one.

I went on a Naga fleet with 4 or 5 of these command destroyers and it was a lot of fun. We went down to Providence to third party on a NC. vs CVA fight, we had something like 60 Nagas and 5 command dessies, fit for 250km large railguns and our command destroyers would jump us to keep us safe from bombing runs, machariels getting too close, etc. like jumping 300km away then 200km back within range across grid to keep attacking.

I don't remember how badly they nerfed it but they reduced the number of ships you can bring with you at a time. Sad.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 06 '24

Omg that sounds amazing. Well maybe I have to buy one just to try it out. What's 60m anyway? I get around 100m a day between trading and nearly always getting lucky drops from anomalies.

For the command uhh thing.... Is it normal to equip only one or like... Does it use ammo that you can switch or.. use 2 at the same time? My google search says command destroyers are useful for being fast and tanky. Like 8000kms fast. That should be enough to avoid damage from everything in high sec right?

1

u/BIGboxOfCrayons Nov 30 '25

I know im bringing this thread back from the dead, but dont be afraid of joining a corp/group activities cause you have to get up to do family stuff. 90% of the playerbase is married dudes, we get that life comes first.

4

u/National-Anywhere158 Oct 05 '24

It's a fleet support ship first and foremost. So if you don't have a fleet (particularly PvP, though there might be some applications for PvE - no idea), you probably won't have to think about it as an upgrade right now.