4-EP12 system, Fountain region. On the 17th of May, at 19:00 EVE Standard Time, A Black Legion. [MEN.] Capital squadron was decimated by Pandemic Legion.
[MEN.] has mounted a campaign to capture the Fountain region along with its many lucrative moons after the CFC {Re-branded as the Imperium) announced its plans to abandon the region in preparations for the upcoming sovereignty mechanic changes in what has been termed FozzieSov. Fatal Ascension [-FA-] which controlled the region for the CFC was closing down as well, and was handing the systems to HERO Coalition, which had been ejected from its former home of Catch by Pandemic Legion and was given the space by the CFC.
[MEN.] struck as the systems were being transferred, thus at their most vulnerable, and quickly captured 51 systems to date, representing 44% control of the region, including 15 stations. For the last two weeks [MEN.] have fought HERO Coalition over control of moons and systems, usually coming on top and forcing HERO Coalition to retreat. The CFC itself was hurt by this invasion, as a move fleet was intercepted by [MEN.] moving through the Fountain region, intending to reach CFC staging in the deep north west.
However, it seems that the streak of victories may have caused [MEN.] to be over confident. Though the Phoebe patch may have introduced many restrictions to the power projection of Capitals and Super Capitals, it did not bring any restrictions to the power of sub-capitals. With jump fatigue mechanics and reduced bridging distances for Titans making it hard to move a large force a long distance, nomadic alliances sought a different way to reach deep into enemy territory in order to strike hard. Pandemic Legion found a solution using Wormholes. As evidenced by the last 2 weeks, Pandemic Legion forces have used these rips in space to roam to the most distant regions of EVE, often appearing half way across the Cluster, to the detriment of their foes.
This was the case with 4-EP12 as well, as Pandemic Legion was aware of the timer in the system, an armor reinforcement for the Infrastructure Hub, with a final reinforcement timer for the station a mere hour and a half later, which would allow [MEN.] to take ownership of the system. [MEN.] has been sighted before using unsupported Capitals, perhaps a sign of its confidence in its complete control of the region. This turned to be its downfall, as the Capitals; 2 Archon Carriers, 2 Naglfars, 1 Moros and 1 Revelation Dreadnoughts were lying siege to the Infrastructure Hub, Pandemic Legion forces used the Wormhole network to quickly reach Fountain, and burned towards their system with a 90 pilot Ishtar Heavy Assault Cruiser fleet, Interdictors leading the charge.
The Capitals were quickly bubbled, with more Interdictors brought in by a Wormhole corporation that had a link close by and was informed by Pandemic Legion. This kept the Capitals in place, allowing the rest of the fleet to catch up and warp on top of them. Drones were deployed and quickly used to burn through the enemy ships, who could offer no resistance. A Cynosural Inhibitor was also placed in case of an attempt to bridge in reinforcements, but it seems that none of the Capitals tried to fit a Cynosural Field Generator.
Once the last [MEN.] Capital was destroyed, Pandemic Legion decided to destroy the Infrastructure Hub, as it was in hull, before extracting back to their staging in Curse.
The Results of the Battle
Battle report for the 4-EP12 system can be found here.
All told, [MEN.] suffered 17 Bil ISK in damages, losing 9 ships, 6 of which were Capitals. Pandemic Legion and its allies suffered no losses at all.
HERO Coalition saw the Pandemic Legion fleet pass through its staging, but decided not to engage it as it was already preoccupied in a skirmish of its own in the F-88PJ system, fighting against forces belonging to the Confederation of xXPIZZAXx Alliance and its allies. 2 more Dreadnoughts apparently were in the system in a safe tower, but decided not to commit to the grind, saving them from the fate of their brethren.
As FozzieSov looms over the horizon, things in Fountain seem to be heating up. Will HERO Coalition prevail long enough for the sovereignty changes to take effect and give it an edge, or will it see itself ejected once more from Null Security space, this time by [MEN.]?
