This guide is intended to be an introduction to the Punisher for both beginning and advanced PVPers. It is by no means exhaustive or perfect, but it will aid you in learning how to use one.
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The Amarr Imperial Navy has been upgrading many of its ships in recent years and adding new ones. The Punisher is one of the most recent ones and considered by many to be the best Amarr frigate in existence. As witnessed by its heavy armaments, the Punisher is mainly intended for large-scale military operations, acting in coordination with larger military vessels, but it is more than powerful enough for solo operations.
Special Ability: 10% bonus to Small Energy Turret capacitor use and 5% bonus to armor resistances per level.
(Eve Online description of the Punisher)
Fitting
The main strengths of the PVP Punisher are its endurance and large capacitor. Its endurance stems from its 4-2-4 slot configuration (compared to the Rifter and Tristan’s 4-3-3 and the Merlin’s 4-4-2) and its armor resistance bonus. Knowing this, it is easiest to start a fitting from the low slots.
Theoretically, the low slots can be fitted with armor modules, speed modules, or weapons upgrades modules. However, speed modules are fairly useless, as the Punisher still never attains the speed and agility of other frigates like the Rifter, Tristan, and Merlin and thus cannot speed tank effectively. And weapons upgrades modules require far too much CPU to fit onto the Punisher without crippling its tank and thus disregarding its bonus (some other frigates with speed + DPS sacrifice tank for gank). This leaves one obvious choice: armor modules, which capitalize on the Punisher’s bonus of 5% armor resistance per level.
For armor tanking, the Punisher can sport either an active tank or a buffer tank. Active tanks use an armor repairer (hence the term ‘active’), armor resistance modules (Damage Control II, Energized Adaptive Nano Membrane II, Adaptive Nano Plating II), and armor plates (200mm/400mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten). Buffer tanks use thick plates and armor resistance modules.
For both types of tanks, a Damage Control II is almost always used, as it improves all-around armor, shield, and hull resistances (a gain of around 2,000 EHP in some fits). Using a T2 armor repairer for active tanks is essential, as the extra HP repaired proves decisive in a close battle. T2 EANMs and ANPs help you more than their lower-meta equivalents, but due to their cost, you may want to use a cheaper module when starting off. Armor plates add different amounts of HP, but using a meta 4 (Rolled Tungsten) plate instead of a meta 5 (Steel II) plate is preferred as it adds less mass to your ship (and thus improves maneuverability).
Active tanks are useful in prolonged battles. Buffer tanks are useful in short, DPS-heavy encounters (e.g. a couple frigates against a drone boat). While buffer tanks can be fatal for you in extended engagements (your opponent can repair; you cannot), they also allow you a great deal more freedom in choosing your mid and high slot items, are cap independent (armor repairers use far more capacitor than weapons and tackling modules), and are easier to use in combat because there is nothing to manage.
Choice of modules for the two mid slots is fairly restricted. For PVP, you must fit a warp disruptor/scrambler in one of the slots. A disruptor has longer range, but a scrambler is preferred because it turns off a target’s MWD (vital since the Punisher is so slow) and uses less capacitor.
That leaves one mid slot. You can either fit an afterburner/MWD to increase your speed or a stasis webifier to decrease your target’s speed. A webifier requires less capacitor and leaves more CPU and powergrid available for other modules on the ship, while a propulsion module can help you kite enemy drones (make them chase you and thus decrease transversal), speed tank (to a degree), and quickly close in for tackles.
Finally, there are the high slots, where you can fit either energy turrets (lasers), hybrid turrets (blasters/railguns), or projectile turrets (autocannons/artillery). Most ships fit weapons of their own race (Minmatar – Projectile, Gallente – Hybrid, Amarr – Energy, Caldari – Missile), but the Punisher is a rare exception. While the Tristan and Rifter have 5% bonus to damage and 7.5% bonus to tracking per level, the Punisher simply has a 10% bonus to Small Energy Turret capacitor use per level. There are no damage bonuses. The capacitor bonus to energy turrets rules out hybrid turrets, which use more capacitor and have inferior range (and the Punisher is a ship that cannot easily dictate range). This leaves energy turrets and projectile turrets. Both do similar amounts of damage. However, projectile turrets do not use any cap (even with Amarr Frigate V, energy turrets still use a sizable amount of cap), and they can vary their damage type a bit (lasers deal out only EM and thermal, while projectile turrets can inflict EM, kinetic, and explosive damage).
For projectile turrets, use either Republic Fleet EMP S or Republic Fleet Fusion S. The faction ammo deals more damage than standard ammo, and T2 ammo is only useful in ranged combat (T2 ammo has a tracking drawback, which means you cannot hit your opponent unless transversal is quite low). The different ammo is useful against different ships/tanks: EMP ammo is good against shield tanks, while Fusion ammo is good against armor tanks (T1 frigates have poor explosive resists on armor). In addition, Fusion ammo also has a slightly longer optimal range. For laser turrets, use Amarr Navy Multifrequency S. Like T2 projectile ammo, T2 crystals decrease your tracking and should only be used for longer ranges (over 5 km).
Fitting three turrets still leaves one free high slot. As you do not have any other hardpoint, the only practical module to fit here (aside from a Salvager, which is non-offensive) is an energy neutralizer or nosferatu. A neutralizer takes away both your cap and your target’s cap at a fairly even rate (you lose a bit less cap), while a nosferatu only drains your target’s cap if it is LOWER in percentage than yours (so if you have more cap than they do, it does absolutely nothing). A nosferatu also drains far less cap from the target (a Small Nosferatu II takes away 9.6 cap; a Small Energy Neutralizer II takes away 54 cap) and requires slightly more CPU (15 vs 10) and powergrid (10 vs 9).
For the Punisher, neutralizers are a better choice. You have a larger capacitor, thus making nosferatus fairly ineffective against other frigates. And a small nosferatu is not even going to dent a cruiser’s cap. Plus you should never be at 0% cap unless you’re deep in structure and dying. However, be aware that neutralizers are difficult to manage properly, as will be explained later on in the guide.
Example Fittings
Here are some sample fittings for the Punisher.
PVP – Autocannon
[Punisher, PVP – Autocannon]
Damage Control II
Small Armor Repairer II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
400mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten Plates I
Fleeting Propulsion Inhibitor I
J5b Phased Prototype Warp Scrambler I
150mm Light AutoCannon II, Republic Fleet EMP S
150mm Light AutoCannon II, Republic Fleet EMP S
150mm Light AutoCannon II, Republic Fleet EMP S
5W Infectious Power System Malfunction
[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]
This is a typical autocannon fit for the Punisher. The 70 DPS it produces is not remarkable at all, yet the EHP of 7,453 (for an ACTIVE tank) lasts long enough for you to slowly grind your enemies down. The neutralizer can cripple active tanks (but rarely their guns – don’t waste cap trying to drain hybrid/energy turrets), and the combination of web, scram, and neut wrecks many speed tanks (the scrambler disables MWDs, the neut stops afterburners, and the web keeps them in range). You can also use a 200mm armor plate and 200mm autocannons instead if you want more firepower at the expense of tank.
PVP – Pulse
[Punisher, PVP – Pulse]
Damage Control II
Small Armor Repairer II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
200mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten Plates I
Fleeting Propulsion Inhibitor I
J5b Phased Prototype Warp Scrambler I
Dual Light Pulse Laser II, Amarr Navy Multifrequency S
Dual Light Pulse Laser II, Amarr Navy Multifrequency S
Dual Light Pulse Laser II, Amarr Navy Multifrequency S
5W Infectious Power System Malfunction
[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]
This is a typical energy turret setup. The low and mid slots are nearly identical to that of the autocannon fit, as was covered earlier in the ‘Fitting’ section of this guide. On paper, the lasers have more DPS than the autocannons (81 vs 70), but due to the autocannons’ better tracking, actual damage inflicted is about the same. EHP for this fit is 5,566, quite sizable for an active tanking frigate. A drawback of using lasers instead of autocannons becomes apparent when you compare tanking ability: according to Eve Fitting Tool, you can effectively repair 19 HP per second with the energy turret fit and 28 HP per second with the projectile turret fit.
PVP – Buffer
[Punisher, PVP – Buffer]
Damage Control II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
400mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten Plates I
Fleeting Propulsion Inhibitor I
J5b Phased Prototype Warp Scrambler I
Light Electron Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Electron Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Electron Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
5W Infectious Power System Malfunction
[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]
This is a very unusual design for a buffer fit. Since cap is plentiful without an armor repairer, you want as much damage output as possible. Unfortunately, weapons upgrades modules do not fit in the lower slots without sharply reducing HP. So blasters are used, producing 92 DPS. Of course, compared to some other frigates, this still is not very much firepower. This is where the neutralizer comes into play: all frigate capacitors drain completely in less than 30 seconds (unless they turn off ALL their modules, in which case they aren’t repairing/speed tanking anyways). From that point on, it is your 8,547 EHP against their [smaller] amount.
Targets
When flown correctly, the Punisher can kill all T1 frigates and some cruisers (the ones that are not drone boats). Destroyers are also easy to fight, particularly if they are not fitted for close-ranged combat.
Avoid the Thrasher, Thorax, Rupture, Vexor, and Arbitrator. They are deadly to Punishers (and all frigates in general). These are almost always fitted with webs and close-range guns, as well as swarms of drones (except for the Thrasher). A full flight of Warrior IIs will chew through your frigate faster than you can kill them all (and drone boats usually have plenty of extras).
Tactics
The Punisher is one of the most potent frigates in PVP. Despite its strengths, however, the Punisher suffers from poor agility and slow speed. It cannot keep a speed tanked frigate tackled due to its shortage of mid slots. In addition, it cannot easily disengage from a fight – once you commit, you either win or lose (or they get away). These factors make it unsuited for solo PVP, although it is definitely a great asset in group PVP.
The Punisher is also one of the hardest frigates to fly – there are countless things that you must micromanage. Here are some of the most important concepts.
Tackling
When you first acquire a frigate-sized target, overheat your web and scrambler and fly straight toward them to get a tackle. The Punisher, especially with a web instead of afterburner/MWD, is too slow to try to increase transversal and save a little HP. It is better to turn the battle into a slugfest instead of dancing around.
For larger targets, spiraling in instead of simply approaching is usually a better tactic. This increases transversal and prevents them from instapopping you. If you have an afterburner/MWD, use it. During the battle, you may need to pulse it to kite enemy drones or keep enemy guns from hitting you. Webs often are not needed against larger ships; these, however, can be used against enemy drones.
Turrets
Once you have a target tackled, lower transversal. Faster ships like the Rifter usually orbit tightly to increase transversal because they have a 7.5% bonus for tracking speeds. The Punisher does not have such a bonus. If you attempt to fight like a Rifter, you will not be able to hit your target. Simply approaching a target often lowers transversal. In addition, randomly double clicking in space will make your Punisher turn unexpectedly, temporarily lowering transversal as your opponent’s orbit computer tries to reestablish a distance. Just make sure not to lose a point and stay within your turrets’ optimal range. And switch ammo/frequency crystals depending on what range your opponent is fighting at.
Armor Repair
Many new PVPers make the mistake of draining their capacitor fully and pulsing their armor repairer when they get enough cap for a full cycle. This fails to take into account the fact that peak capacitor recharge is at 34% cap. By draining your capacitor to 0%, you eventually end up gaining less cap/sec. On the other hand, “saving” cap by waiting till your armor is halfway gone is also a bad idea. You gain no cap while at 100%. As soon as you get enough armor damage for one cycle of the armor repairer to repair, turn on your rep. Pulse the repairer when you reach 34% to keep at top cap recharge. The only time you should go below 34% is when you are in structure and dying – the extra cap can keep you flying for a few more seconds.
Energy Neutralizing
If managing your transversal and keeping your capacitor at 34% is not enough work (not to mention scanning directional, etc.), you also have that energy neutralizer. For larger ships, do not use the neutralizer, as it will hurt you more than them (ironically, since you don’t use the neut, it is actually EASIER to fight larger opponents). However, the neutralizer can be devastating to other frigates. Two facts to keep in mind: the Punisher has a larger capacitor than any other frigate, and the neutralizer takes away slightly more from the target than from you. These two factors means that you should never neutralize until you are at 0% cap. That’s overkill, and while you’re waiting for your cap to recharge enough for another cycle of the neut, your target can do other things.
During a fight against a frigate, first determine whether cap is more important to you or to your opponent. And continue to reevaluate its use periodically throughout the fight. If the opponent is buffer tanking or not using energy-intensive modules (e.g. afterburner/MWD), don’t waste your cap on them. However, if using the neutralizer is a good idea, estimate your opponent’s capacitor status and pulse the neutralizer accordingly (watching their weapons/propulsion/repair can help indicate their capacitor status).
Needless to say, the neutralizer also uses a lot of your capacitor. And if you have an active tank or energy turrets, you need cap. This is why you must constantly determine whether you need cap for another cycle of your armor rep, or if the cap would be better expended in sacrificing some HP to inhibit your target’s repair/propulsion. This strategic neutralizing is one of the reasons why flying the Punisher is so difficult – but when used correctly, it can become one of the most lethal weapons you have.
Thermodynamics
Thermodynamics gives your ship an extra edge in combat. But like the other tactics, it isn’t something that you simply turn on.
As mentioned before, you can overheat tackle and propulsion modules to tackle a target. You get a 20% bonus to web/scram range and a 50% bonus to your afterburner/MWD’s speed boost. Turn off overheat as soon as the tackle has been made.
You can also overheat your turrets, increasing DPS a bit (for energy turrets, this will also use more capacitor). Do not do this right at the beginning; wait until you have started hitting your opponent consistently. Obviously, make sure not to burn out your guns. However, if your guns do burn out, ungroup your guns. Some will not have taken as much heat damage and will still be functional.
Overheating your armor repairer will make it cycle 20% faster. Use it when you have cap but not enough repair for the amount of DPS being inflicted. For example, when in structure, you can overheat and use up the 34% capacitor you have due to your good cap management.
Skills
For PVP-related skills to train, refer to the ‘Advanced Skills’ section of Wensley’s Rifter Guide.
The Punisher is a difficult ship to master. But once you do, you’ll find it to be one of the most potent frigates in Eve. Use the tactics, and your opponents will slowly melt.
Yarrbear Tales 