Thargoid invasion - Next target systems?

[Aleks Zuno]

Silly question, do matrix sites still exist?
Have they all become spire sites?

Are matrix sites are early stage bases and they grow into spire as thargoid keep control of system

Many exist, and in effect they are one and the same. Officially:

• For quite a while, the systems themselves had no designation beyond being "Thargoid Controlled".
• They contain navigation markers named "Thargoid Barnacle Matrix".
• Only since update 17, they now have extra Galaxy map text with "Spire Site", containing a physical feature called a Spire.

For lack of a distinct war state, I started calling them Matrix systems. I have not changed that, although I do say "Spire activity" when referring to actions at a Spire site within a Matrix system. Hopefully that last part clarifies a lot; a special Control system contains a Matrix (viewed from Supercruise), itself containing a Spire (viewed after gliding).

In a sense, it is similar to the way I have been using Maelstrom and Titan! In some cases they are interchangeable, but generally I say Titan if it requires a Thargoid Pulse Neutraliser to access, and Maelstrom for everything outside of that nucleus, including all of its Control systems.

 

[Ned Flandalorian]

The non-long-winded answer is yes, update 17 changed all the matrix sites into spire sites. There are no more of the basic (pre update 17) matrix sites in the game.

(Which IMO is a good thing, they were pretty buggy with revenants spawning directly out of the ground anywhere around you and being able to shoot through terrain/other objects.)

 

[Shayan al Nasarwa]

• SNPX reached similar rates while collapsing M. Oya, perhaps around 20000?

At the moment we are not more than half a dozen pilots harvesting tissue samples. In those Oya-collapsing times we had not more than 10-12 pilots doing this plot.

I would like to recapture a lot of more systems, but doing this by harvesting samples doesn't work anymore. Tougeir was our last "big system" and even that would not have been done without the help of @deanom59 and some others.

We are really hoping, that FDev will give us some other (no so repetetive) method to fight back the Thargoids.

 

[Starsong]

At the moment we are not more than half a dozen pilots harvesting tissue samples. In those Oya-collapsing times we had not more than 10-12 pilots doing this plot.

I would like to recapture a lot of more systems, but doing this by harvesting samples doesn't work anymore. Tougeir was our last "big system" and even that would not have been done without the help of @deanom59 and some others.

We are really hoping, that FDev will give us some other (no so repetetive) method to fight back the Thargoids.

It looks like the Spires might have just provided one. Kill Orthrus at the Spire sites in number to provide absolute percentages of progress to the 10 outermost systems (including Alerts, so 5-6 Controls usually). We aren’t sure of the numbers you’ll need though, and the progress this gives to non-spires caps at 85% so you’ll still need to do some sampling.

 

[Shayan al Nasarwa]

It looks like the Spires might have just provided one. Kill Orthrus at the Spire sites in number to provide absolute percentages of progress to the 10 outermost systems (including Alerts, so 5-6 Controls usually). We aren’t sure of the numbers you’ll need though, and the progress this gives to non-spires caps at 85% so you’ll still need to do some sampling.

Yeah, we're already in that business ;-) Yesterday we found out that the banshees are not respawning (at least for the time we were fighting there). So doing some infatry work first will give you easy flying without those missiles.

 

[Aleks Zuno]

Exactly! My examples there were more about understanding some general weekly strengths which have occurred before and on which the 85% limit may be based, but by no means does it need everyone doing that. Those are also just some of the higher examples; I am keeping in mind also that the strengths of some of these surprise Thursday completions are around 5000, which is enough to finish a 33333-strength system if brought to 85%, so I think there is a lot of scope for succeeding together!

We will need Titan and Spire activity all over the bubble at various times, hopefully M. Leigong next week, but I like to think that we can be ready to give Eoto its 18000 to complete the final 15% if M. Oya gets as far as that!

 

[Kira Goto]

Just to be doubly sure, would Eoto even be treated as a perimeter system when it is technically closer to the Titan than the matrix/spire site?

I’m not quite in on how said perimeter is defined, if it isn’t just ‘further away from the Titan than the spire site’.

 

[Starsong]

Just to be doubly sure, would Eoto even be treated as a perimeter system when it is technically closer to the Titan than the matrix/spire site?

I’m not quite in on how said perimeter is defined, if it isn’t just ‘further away from the Titan than the spire site’.

It's the 10 systems (inc. Alerts) from the Maelstrom. So yes, it could indeed be a perimeter system if Oya was pushed back far enough.

 

[Arkadi]

I just stacked a couple of "Scout-Kill-Missions" but now it seems it's incredible hard to find any USS with them. Not in the alert-system where they have been issued, not in the counterstrike system nearby. Any tips how and where to find some easy scout combat most reliably?

 

[Starsong]

I just stacked a couple of "Scout-Kill-Missions" but now it seems it's incredible hard to find any USS with them. Not in the alert-system where they have been issued, not in the counterstrike system nearby. Any tips how and where to find some easy scout combat most reliably?

Go to any Anti-Xeno Combat Zone in the counterstrike. There'll be loads of Scouts there.

 

[Arkadi]

Go to any Anti-Xeno Combat Zone in the counterstrike. There'll be loads of Scouts there.

Seems I have missed those. Got to look better. Thanks!

edit: after hours of dropping into signal sources only to see the last scouts wake out or to hang around with AX NPCs forever, without anything happenig- now it suddelny works. Thargs drop into the instance as expected. The only thing I did, was to move further to the rim of the system. Strange.

 

[Ned Flandalorian]

If you want scouts you could go to one of the spires in open where people are taking out the Orthrus. Large batches of scouts (10+) often spawn in together.

 

[Phill P]

For Nibelaako, definitely continue progressing it!

Coriolis near the main star and rescue ship only 96LY away makes it one of the easier ones to clear with rescues. It'll get done.

 

[CMDR Aldebaran]

If you want scouts you could go to one of the spires in open where people are taking out the Orthrus. Large batches of scouts (10+) often spawn in together.

Yes, but getting there might be challenging for someone new to AX, due to the potential for Glaive hyper/interdictions... I'm not sure there are any other options though without invasions..

 

[Aleks Zuno]

Victories in HIPs 21091, 20485 and 25679, Hyades Sectors JH-U b3-4, PI-S b4-0, WK-L a9-2, ON-S b4-7 and AR-J a10-1 (eventually!), Arietis Sectors NS-R a5-1, JM-T a4-0 and NX-U c2-19, Col 285 Sectors SS-H b11-3, RM-B b14-6, KW-M c7-16 and WY-F b12-5, Pegasi Sector JH-U b3-9 and Cephei Sector DQ-Y b1!

M. Indra joins M. Taranis in all of its Peripheral systems being complete; there is nothing more to be done this week at either, excepting individual completions such as 70 Tauri. M. Thor has taken a stronger lead, where notably HIP 18075 is also receiving individual attention, marked below. M. Raijin is now slightly behind, although a bit more Titan or Spire activity there would be quite fine in setting up the remainder of the week with a rich selection of targets.

At M. Leigong, any extra Peripheral progress is really only going towards giving INIV a most welcome discount for a strong inhabited system, for which I am most thankful. To be clear, we are going to recapture one of those this week; it is just a case of pacing it a bit to make best use of any Peripheral progress which does occur. Next week will then be its moment, where four Matrix systems will be in the M. Leigong periphery!

Peripheries at 06:40 23rd October 3309:
Five systems with 52% — Thor 21–23 Ly, 1 matrix + 1 inhabited, 364–1581 strength
Five systems with 30% — Leigong 17–31 Ly, 3 matrix + 2 inhabited, 6883–7305 strength
Nine systems with 28% — Raijin 23–26 Ly, 1 inhabited, 288–1106 strength

Alerts:
Nibelaako Alert 64% *64.6% — Raijin 22 Ly, 519 Ls starport
70 Tauri Alert 44% — Indra 21 Ly, 3010 Ls outpost
Trailing, intentionally:
HIP 7338 Alert 22% *23.4% — Oya 19 Ly, 2426 Ls outpost, 1660 Ls planet, Invasion requested

Evictions:
HIP 18075 Control 58% — Thor 21 Ly, 1581 strength, Peripheral system
Pegasi Sector GW-W d1-115 Control 24% — Raijin 23 Ly, 2243 strength

Clean-up:
Hyades Sector GB-N b7-5 Alert 90% — Taranis 17 Ly, empty
Cephei Sector BV-Y b2 Alert 78% *78.9% — Oya 16 Ly, empty
77 Theta-1 Tauri Alert 50% — Indra 21 Ly, empty

 

[Danieros]

Taranis was so quick at having its periphery cleared. If it keeps happening it could very well end up in a competition with Leigong for the first thargoid control-free maelstrom...

It's refreshing to see that sampling can take more of a support role clearing the up-to-85% discounted systems. If the rescues/spire actions remain consistent, they will outweigh sampling as the peripheries move inwards.

 

[Aleks Zuno]

Taranis was so quick at having its periphery cleared. If it keeps happening it could very well end up in a competition with Leigong for the first thargoid control-free maelstrom...
It's refreshing to see that sampling can take more of a support role clearing the up-to-85% discounted systems. If the rescues/spire actions remain consistent, they will outweigh sampling as the peripheries move inwards.

It was swift indeed, and I noticed the possibility! I know there were many Commanders enjoying an Orthrus party at Trianguli Sector EQ-Y b0, but being an inner system it is still 0% and has presumably no message notification that the M. Taranis periphery is complete—meanwhile, its three peripheral Matrix systems are reporting over 220%, definitely which would have been more opportune elsewhere.

Were that not the case, and then if M. Leigong also were to receive the attention I had in mind, I had the idea of a thematic operation to follow the success of Operation Redacted. It is no matter, though! M. Taranis is closer to home for us, it performs the same experiment equally in the end, it is well that the disproportionately-affected BLOP gets their space back, and it is well that Commanders in general have a solid action-based means to point at the Maelstroms they would see cleared first.

Speaking of clearance, INIV is moving to tidy up at M. Thor this evening. It has still a Matrix system around and thus a bit more discount available in theory, but in these cases the remaining strength makes little difference at this point! The M. Leigong stockpile will await another day or so of steady peripheral progress.

 

[Ian Doncaster]

Taranis was so quick at having its periphery cleared. If it keeps happening it could very well end up in a competition with Leigong for the first thargoid control-free maelstrom...

It's certainly got potential and in theory could be done in four more weeks - but there's a nasty catch coming up at the end: Taranis' innermost spire is at index #6. So one of two things will happen to make that final week extremely difficult depending on exactly how things line up:
- a need to take Swahku (and possibly some of the other inhabited interior systems) without using a spire to push global progress (and Titan rescues appear a lot less efficient)
- a need to take all three sub-10 LY inhabited systems (with the 85% discount, sure) in the same week

That'd probably end up with a need to let the inner controls re-establish a Spire specifically so it could be attacked, which means a six-week delay; if Hupang survives the first try as well, it can start reactivating other systems which would potentially set up the same "can't get Swahku and the Spire in the same pass" problem again. If Hupang survives but the others don't it gets even worse than that.


Leigong, by comparison, solely needs the periphery clearance to take out the actual Spires because cleaning up the rest in INIV's plan isn't relying on the discount being available.

 

[Aleks Zuno]

• a need to take Swahku (and possibly some of the other inhabited interior systems) without using a spire to push global progress (and Titan rescues appear a lot less efficient)
• a need to take all three sub-10 LY inhabited systems (with the 85% discount, sure) in the same week

To add some more possibilities:

• Paradoxically both the easiest by definition (and by far!) but also the least likely to occur (also by far!)—Commanders manage to bring the Matrix system to 85% then stop there. It reinforces down to 52%, but presumably actions are still possible at a completed Spire site and can still be used to get 85% the following week.
• As you say, use Titan rescues! I recall the measurement at around ~65000 in a week to reach 100%, so 55250 to reach 85%. I think enough Commanders could achieve that feasibly; some rescue-runs we did would escape generally with a good amount over 100 each, and the fewest was exactly 100.
• Spire sites in cleared Matrix systems turn out to be still viable for progress, or something else happens to those systems which avoids the problem.

Planning for the Titan rescue outcome seems wise, and coincidentally I am also coaching a newer Commander for entering Maelstroms at the moment!

 

[Aleks Zuno]

Victories in Col 285 Sectors JW-M c7-10, UH-C b13-1, KB-O c6-3 and JA-G b11-0, HIPs 20577 (well done!), 20712 and 18075, Hyadum II and Hyades Sector GB-N b7-5!

Now M. Thor has only that Peripheral Matrix system Col 285 Sector OG-E b12-1; the completion rate is enough for it to finish, which would bring one more system into its vulnerable outer shell in future. M. Raijin is stepping up nicely, noting that the previous activity at Pegasi Sector GW-W d1-115 occurred separately, and I imagine we will invoke the M. Leigong discount this evening.

Peripheries at 07:00 24th October 3309:
One matrix system with 76% — Thor 23 Ly
Nine systems with 36% — Raijin 23–26 Ly, 1 inhabited, 256–984 strength
Five systems with 32% — Leigong 17–31 Ly, 3 matrix + 2 inhabited, 6686–7096 strength

Alerts:
Nibelaako Alert 88% *89.2% — Raijin 22 Ly, 519 Ls starport, 519 Ls planet
Narrowly:
70 Tauri Alert 58% *60.6% — Indra 21 Ly, 3010 Ls outpost
Trailing, intentionally:
HIP 7338 Alert 32% *32.3% — Oya 19 Ly, 2426 Ls outpost, 1660 Ls planet, Invasion requested

Eviction, unlikely:
Pegasi Sector GW-W d1-115 Control 24% *25.1% — Raijin 23 Ly, 2208 strength

Clean-up:
Cephei Sector WO-A b4 Alert 98% *99.6% — Oya 15 Ly, empty
Cephei Sector BV-Y b2 Alert 98% *99.5% — Oya 16 Ly, empty
Trianguli Sector CA-A c22 Alert 96% *97.1% — Taranis 15 Ly, empty
Col 285 Sector OG-E b12-1 Matrix 76% *76.5% — Thor 23 Ly, empty
77 Theta-1 Tauri Alert 64% *65.2% — Indra 21 Ly, empty