KBP7-G system, Providence region. On the 28th of June, at 19:00 EVE Standard Time, Providence Bloc and Northern Coalition. [NC] clashed once more over the fate of the KBP7-G system.
The KBP7-G system had fallen to [NC] hands after a protracted struggle, but the final timer was uncontested due to Providence Bloc focusing on liberating the BK4-YC system, which was lost due to management error. It seems that after mainly reacting to [NC] provocations, Providence Bloc went on the offensive in a bid to reclaim its lost systems. BK4-YC, Y-MPWL and KBP7-G systems were put into reinforced mode by Providence Bloc, with the KBP7-G Infrastructure Hub coming out of reinforced on the 28th.
Providence Bloc organized a full scale attack in order to reclaim the system. It had assembled a full Ishtar Heavy Assault Cruiser fleet with a Stealth Bomber wing and E-War Frigates, all told around 300 pilots. The force made its way towards KBP7-G in order to force the Infrastructure Hub into its second timer.
[NC] wasn’t sitting idle either and organized a fleet of its own to defend the system, a Loki Strategic Cruiser fleet reaching nearly 100 pilots. The force bridged into the system before Providence Bloc’s arrival, settling on the XHQ-7V gate, Providence Bloc’s apparent point of entry, in anticipation of the incoming hostiles.
Providence Bloc jumped into the system and the awaiting [NC] fleet, its bomber wing landing a Void bomb run, which drained the capacitor of most of the Lokis, switching off their armor hardeners. The Providence Bloc Ishtars then de-cloaked, dropped sentry drones and anchored up, starting the fight. At first, the Ishtars managed to volley Lokis and Logistic ships, seemingly winning the battle. However as time went on, this changed. The [NC] Lokis started tanking better, their Logistics getting on the ball. Providence Bloc on the other hand, was doing poorly. With all their fleet anchors webbed, the Ishtars remained in close proximity to the Lokis, which proved fatal.
After a brief exchange with mounting losses the Ishtars finally managed to gain some distance from the [NC] fleet. Attempts to break the Lokis’ tank with fresh sets of drones proved futile, thus the Providence Bloc Fleet Commander made the call to disengage, leading the fleet to warp off to an asteroid belt then to the XHQ-7V gate.
[NC] attempted to give chase, managing to snag stragglers but the main Providence Bloc fleet managed to jump out of the system and dock up, conceding the field. With Providence Bloc defeated, [NC] brought their Super Carriers and quickly removed the Providence Bloc Sovereignty Blockade Units in the system, securing it for themselves once more.
With this, both fleet safely extracted, ending large scale hostilities in the region.
Footage of the Battle from the Providence Bloc PoV, Courtesy of Mangraa Dementia
Battle report for the KBP7-G system can be found here.
All told, the system saw 400 pilots in local, with Time Dilation reaching up to 40% during the fighting. From start to end, the battle lasted 30 minutes.
Providence Bloc lost 83 ships, including 31 Ishtars, for a total of 9.04 Bil ISK damage. [NC] lost 9 ships, including 3 Lokis, for a total of 5.24 Bil ISK damage.
After the battle it became apparent that the [NC] fleet was prepared for Providence Bloc’s Ishtar fleet, as the Loki fit was meant to counter the use of sentry drone damage, specifically Bouncer and Curator sentry drones. This allowed the [NC] fleet to tank the incoming damage from the Ishtar fleet and along with webbing their anchors, forced Providence Bloc to fight close range at first, where the Lokis had a clear advantage.
Reports from both fleets indicate that fire was split between targets, which allowed both Logistics teams to keep ships alive in their respective fleets far longer. This is another reason for the low damage output, especially on Providence Bloc’s side.
Though Providence Bloc lost both the field and the strategic objective, with talks of [NC] deploying to a different region of space, it may be able to regain its conquered systems as [NC]’s Super Capital umbrella is expected to vanish. Without it, Providence Bloc may be able to field its main doctrines, which were abandoned due to the pervasive use of Super Carriers by [NC] during their deployment, granting them an actual fighting chance. Only time will tell.
Salivan Harddin writes for The EVE Scribe, Providence Bloc’s News Portal. When he isn’t busy writing articles, he usually “enjoys” grinding structures in Wicked Creek.
