News: Providence Bloc and Phoebe Freeport Republic Clash Head On in D-GTMI

D-GTMI system, Providence region. On the 11th of July at 22:00 EVE Standard Time, forces belonging to Phoebe Freeport Republic [PFR] and Providence Bloc clashed in the system over a Sovereignty Blockade Unit.

The
fight began as an event for [PFR]’s academy, which was celebrating a
graduation cycle and wished to fight Providence Bloc, choosing an
Amarrian motif for its fleet. 57 pilots assembled in an array of Amrrian
ships, with 3 Triage Archon Carriers and a Fenrir Freighter filled with
spirits. The fleet made its way from the 4-CM8I system in Scalding Pass to the D-GTMI system in Providence without an incident.

The Original Post for the Event

The
Fleet Commander for [PFR] attempted to arrange a fight with Providence
Bloc, but was ignored and subsequently banned from the diplomacy channel
of Providence Bloc by moderators. Attempts by other fleets members
resulted in the same pattern. This caused the [PFR] fleet to attempt and
draw Providence Bloc’s attention in another way. Since D-GTMI had
defensive Sovereignty Blockade Units already present in the system, the
[PFR] fleet decided to shoot the station, hoping to alert Providence
Bloc and cause it to form.

After a while though, with no apparent
response, the [PFR] fleet moved to the Sovereignty Blockade Units on the
T-RPFU gate and started applying damage to it, hoping to at least have a
killmail out of it. However, by this time Providence Bloc had already
formed, a 60 pilot mixed Cerberus Heavy Assault Cruiser and Caracal
Cruiser fleet. The force quickly made its why towards the system,
swelling its ranks as it burned forwards.

Deciding not to jump
head long into the [PFR] force, the Providence Bloc fleet took a detour,
attempting to enter the system through FSW-3C.
And yet, the [PFR] force may have had a spy on the Providence Bloc
force, as their fleet relocated to the FSW-3C gate. Luckily, the [PFR]
force was quite a way from the gate, allowing the Providence Bloc fleet
to enter safely and start the fight.

The two sides fought for a
while, the [PFR] fleet completely outgunned and out ranged by the
kitting Cruisers, who ripped apart the Amarrian ships with their missile
salvos. Even with the prevalence of Triage Carriers on the field, the
damage proved too great. Another factor that went against the [PFR]
fleet was the Providence Bloc Stealth Bomber wing, which accompanied the
main fleet and carried bombing runs on the [PFR] fleet.

The Fighting over the FSW-3C Gate

With most
of their sub-capital support gone, the Providence Bloc fleet went to
work on the [PFR] Carriers, taking down the cynosural field mobile
inhibitor and bringing their own Capitals into the system. One after the
other, the [PFR] Carriers were destroyed, the entire [PFR] fleet
decimated.
With no more hostiles left to fight, the Providence
Bloc fleet returned to its staging system, having secured the system
once more.

Battle report for the D-GTMI system can be found here.

The
Battle lasted 40 minutes, with local seeing around 200 pilots at the
height of the battle and Time Dilation not reported as a major issue.

[PFR]
lost nearly the entirety of its fleet, 58 ships including 3 Triage
Carriers and a Freighter, for a total of 12.63Bil ISK damage. Providence
Bloc losses were only 12 ships, mostly Stealth Bombers and Interdictors
totaling at 600Mil ISK damage.

It seems both sides managed to
achieve their objectives, with Providence Bloc defending its sovereignty
while [PFR] getting the fight it wanted, though not in the format it
wished for.

With FozzieSov around the corner and the so-called
impending invasion of the Imperium to the region, this may have been the
last “fun” big fight in the region for the near future.

News: D-GTMI System Captured by Providence Bloc

D-GTMI system, Providence region. On the 12th of November, the system fell into Providence Bloc’s hands without any further fighting.

Providence Bloc formed a forty pilot Ishtar Heavy Assault Cruiser fleet in anticipation of another skirmish over the contested system. However, for an unknown reason, Northern Coalition(dot) [NC], did not form for the timer.

With no opposition, Providence Bloc quickly reinforced their Ishtar fleet with Stealth Bombers, swelling it up to a hundred pilots, and quickly ground the station, and then the Territorial Claim Unit.

With the station in Providence Bloc’s hands, they anchored their own Territorial Claim Units at a safe tower and took down their Sovereignty Blockade Units. On the 13th of November, 3:09 EVE Standard Time, the system was officially claimed under Curatores Veritatis Alliance banner, effectively returning it to the fold of the coalition.

This marks the last system to be returned to Providence Bloc’s control, with the Northern Catch pocket falling under Providence Bloc’s sway just two weeks before.

News: Providence Bloc Loses Another Skirmish Over the D-GTMI System

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.

Northern Coalition took the D-GTMI system on the 27th of May, in order to create a vast jump bridge network, a highway to allow rapid fleet movement between Northern Associates holdings and the Delve region, which they have planned to conquer. However, with the Phoebe patch introducing jump fatigue mechanics and reduced jump ranges for most Capital ships, the plan had to be abondened.

Providence Bloc used the patch to finally take the initiative and deployed Sovereignty Blockade Units on the night of the 4th of November, 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.

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.

However, on the night of the 9th, the roles were reversed, as Providence Bloc brought a hundred and seventy pilot Ishtar fleet. Northern Coalition(dot) for its part brought a hundred and fifty Tengu fleet. Northern Coalition(dot)’s fleet was the first to arrive to the system, and positioned itself on the T-RPFU gate, the expected entry point of Providence Bloc.

Providence Bloc for its part, did not oblige and chose not to jump to the awaiting Tengus, positioning itself on the D-GTMI gate in the T-RPFU system and deploying sentry drones. Northern Coalition(dot) decided instead of waiting, to jump into the system and engage Providence Bloc on the gate.

What followed was a short and brutal skirmish on the D-GTMI gate. Providence Bloc managed to score a few early kills as the Tengus and Scimitars uncloaked and were volleyed, but as the Northern Coalition(dot) fleet anchored up, it was able to tank the incoming damage, and started focusing fire. One after the other, Ishtars and Navy Issue Vexors were removed from the field.

Providence Bloc continued to fight for a few minutes, but once Pandemic Legion jumped into the system, in an eighty pilot Tengu fleet of their own, accompanied by a WAFFLES(dot) bomber wing, it was time to concede defeat. The fleet beat a hasty retreat, just as Pandemic Legion forces arrived on the grid. An attempt was made to chase the fleeing Providence Bloc forces, with little success.

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.