Providence Bloc Loses Another Skirmish Over the D-GTMI System

NC. took the system in May to facilitate rapid fleet deployment across it's rental holdings and the Delve region. Thsi was originalyl part of a plan to take Delve by force, but was largely abandoned due to the force projection changes of Phoebe.

ProviBloc used this chaotic time after the patch to launch and op against the system, deploying SBUs on Nov. 4th. reinforcing both the Infrastructure Hub and the Station, in order to reclaim the lost system. While sources within Northern Coalition(dot) claimed the system held no strategic importance anymore, they did say that the Alliance would form for convenient timers.

D-GTMI system, Providence region. On the 9th of November, 22:30 EVE Standard Time, Providence Bloc clashed with Northern Coalition(dot) to decide the fate of the system, which was lost to Providence earlier in May.

One such timer was on the 8th of November, 14:00 EVE Standard Time, when Providence Bloc’s Tengu Strategic Cruiser fleet, seventy pilot strong, engaged an Ishtar Heavy Assault Cruiser fleet belonging to Northern Coalition(dot), at sixty pilot large. The fight, mostly carried on the T-RPFU Gate, saw Providence Bloc lose decisively to Northern Coalition.

Battle Report for the 8th of November can be found here.

On the next night, the tables were turned. AS a 170 strong Ishtar fleet against 150 Tengu pilots of NC.. NC took position on the T-RPFU gate and waited for Provi. Provi however elected not to jump into the gate camp and tried to lure NC onto the opposite D-GTMI gate after deploying their fleet there.

NC. very quickly obliged the Provi forces. The resulting skirmish was very short lived. After a few opening kills against Tengus were scored while NC. organized, as soon as they anchored up, the tanks held firm and focused fire wiped considerable Provi forces from the field.

This was exacerbated by an 80 pilot PL Tengu fleet with bomber support that jumped in to join in the fun. This meant Provi very quickly retreated and conceded the system.

With Providence Bloc soundly defeated, Northern Coalition(dot) turned its attention to the Sovereignty Blockade Units  deployed in the D-GTMI system and removed them, extracting safely.

Battle Report for the 9th of November can be found here.

The T-RPFU system hosted at the height of the battle four hundred and sixty pilots, with Time Dilation peaking at 72% but playing no major role in the fighting. Providence Bloc lost a quarter of its fleet, forty ships, for five billion ISK in damages, compared to Northern Coalition(dot)’s thirteen and two point six billion respectively.

Though the Infrastructure Hub was destroyed the day after, the fight over the sovereignty of the system is far from over. With the reputation of Providence Bloc and their recent success in the Northern Catch war, it is not so much a question of whether or not the system will be re-claimed, but what the price will be for its eventual return.

Video of the fight:

HERO and PROVI WarLog Part 1 (August)

August 6: The War Begins

June Ting, executor of Of Sound Mind (SOUND) published City States: Casus Belli that contained within it a declaration of war. June Ting stated in the article that unless the HERO coalition gained content, it would soon become largely inactive, and thus a war was needed with Provibloc to prevent this from occurring. In her article, she states 3 Casus Bellis: Manifest Destiny, Provibloc breaking an agreement signed between the 2 entities, and revenge for SOUNDs eviction from Providence a year earlier. The 1st Casus Belli is certainly justifiable as Provibloc’s only claim to the northern Catch pipe is equally as vague and fictional. The 2nd Casus Belli was disproven when a copy of the agreement leaked, showing that it was HERO who broke the agreement and not Provibloc. The 3rd Casus Belli, while certainly justifiable and the reason for many wars in New Eden in the past, may have been unjust as SOUND were allowed to remove all assets before their eviction.

August 7–10: The First Battle for UL-7I8

Only a few hours after the declaration of war, HERO began SBU’ing the system of UL-7I8 in an attempt to get a large fight out of Provibloc. HERO brought 130 with Provibloc bringing 100 + 30 Russian allies. Provibloc and RUS did not work together in the fight and so, despite outgunning HERO, they lost the battle quite horrifically. Fast forward a few days and the final timer comes out for UL-7I8. HERO and Provibloc formed up for the timer however a Northern Coalition. (NCdot) Proteus fleet ultimately decided the outcome of the battle by first decimating the RUS fleet and then destroying the HERO fleet. Provibloc faced little opposition after NCdot’s interference and ground down the SBUs until they got bombed off field. HERO decided not to erect another set of SBUs and so Provibloc maintained control over the system.

August 14: The First Battle for 7MD-SI

Provibloc, who formed up a 80 man Harbinger fleet, called upon RUS for help in defending 7MD-SI against the HERO invaders who numbered around 140 Moas/Eagles. RUS/Provibloc were able to kill off an SBU before the HERO fleet had a chance to grind down the IHUB,  saving the system temporarily. HERO erected new SBUs forcing Provibloc to return to the system with drone battleships and battlecruisers. Provibloc set up a defensive position on the IHUB and cyno’d in Triage carriers in an attempt to save the system however the HERO fleet, combined with reinforcements from The Unthinkables (INK), managed to crush Provibloc’s forces thus winning the system for HERO.

August 20–21: The Second Battle for UL-7I8

For the initial fight, HERO managed to muster 300 pilots - 100 more than their opponents. Provibloc came in a largely kitchen-sink fleet with Goku-bomber and Ishtar support. HERO came in a Moa/Eagle doctrine while both sides called upon allies in the form of RUS and INK respectively. The fight was a crushing defeat for Provibloc. The next fight (the final timer) for the system saw Provibloc only manage to rally 50 pilots into a fleet. RUS came to the aid of Provibloc, dedicating 110 pilots to the battle including capital support. Pandemic Legion (PL) came to kill the Russian dreads however a DDoS attack hit just as the dreads began to die. Upon logging back in, HERO won the field and claimed the system for themselves shortly after.

August 26–28: The First Battle for S25C-K

Both Provibloc and HERO formed up their standard doctrines, however Provibloc did not receive support off of RUS, while HERO did receive support from their allies, INK. Provibloc did find unlikely allies in PL, who managed to hold the field up until they left due to a lack of surviving logistic ships. The fight was another overwhelming defeat for Provibloc, with the death toll weighing in at 30b ISK for Provibloc and PL. For the final timer, Provibloc only managed to form 85 pilots which, when combined with help from PL and RUS, still did not lead to them having the numerical advantage over HERO and INK. The fight was another disaster for team Provi/Rus/PL who lost 15b ISK worth and control of S25C-K shortly after the fight ended.