Newbro nullsec exploration guide
Making ISK as a new pilot by running the safe data and relic sites in NPC nullsec.
There’s a YouTube video going around showing how newbros can make decent ISK doing exploration in nullsec. It’s filmed in Great Wildlands near Hek, but the same thing works in any NPC nullsec region. Here’s how it goes.
Ship and skills
- Alpha: Newbro Industries hands out free exploration ships using the corp’s Beginner Explorer fit.
- Omega: use the Explorer v2 fit, or any upgrade of the v1 Heron.
Before you start, train these as high as you can:
- Hacking
- Archaeology
- Astrometrics
- Astrometric Acquisition
- Astrometric Rangefinding
- Astrometric Pinpointing
Where to go
These regions are NPC nullsec, so no player alliance can hold sovereignty there.
| Region | NPC faction | Jumps to Hek |
|---|---|---|
| Great Wildlands | Thukker Tribe | 10 |
| Syndicate | Intaki Syndicate | 13 |
| Curse | Angel Cartel | 19 |
| Outer Ring | ORE | 20 |
| Venal | Guristas Pirates | 36 |
| Stain | Sansha’s Nation | 45 |
Scanning a system
- On arrival, check whether there are any signals to scan. If there are none, or no data or relic sites, move on to the next system.
- Warp to a planet or moon at a random distance (30–70 km) and cloak if you can. Without a cloak, scan as fast as possible before anyone notices you or enters local.
- If local shows nobody else in system, you’re safe to take your time.
- With a cloak and some experience, you can skip the celestial: align to a random point at the gate, launch probes, cloak and scan from there.
Which sites to run
Only warp to data or relic sites whose names start with Ruined or Central.
- They have no rats and no combat.
- If you fail the hacking minigame and a container explodes, it won’t kill your ship.
That’s the only kind of site you’re looking for in nullsec. For lowsec and other special sites, see the Signal Cartel Exploration Site Safety Guide.
Data and relic sites use the same hacking minigame. Short YouTube videos on minigame tricks are worth watching before you go.
What it pays
Expect at least 5–8 million ISK of loot per site, with no upper limit; a single site can pay 50–100 million.
Once you have 50–100 million ISK in your hold, don’t get greedy. Go back and drop it at an NPC station in lowsec or highsec as soon as you can. Hauling it to Jita from there is much easier.
Staying alive
- Someone in local is probably hunting you. If a player stays in local for more than about 30 seconds, start aligning out and leave the system if you can.
- Don’t warp gate to gate in lowsec or nullsec. Smartbombers camp gates. Warp to a random planet or moon first, then to the next gate, so you land from an unexpected angle outside their short range.
That’s really all there is to it. Fly safe o7
Originally written by Vulpecula Volans for Newbro Industries.