The Inferno expansion to EVE Online has been dated for the 22nd May, which will improve the war declaration and Factor warfare systems, rebalance ship types, and possibly improve player-owned starbases. Before the expansion is released, a precursor patch will arrive on the 24th April.
According to CCP, the loopholes in the current war declaration system will be closed. Battle reports will be introduced to allow players to quickly look for temporary hired help with a new mercenary marketplace while under attack.
In that vein, the rewards, loyalty points and cash earned from Faction warfare victories will be improved, while a new UI will make engaging in it easier. To that end, the entire ship roster will be rebalanced, along with an improved inventory management system, including filter options. Salvaging drones and other tools will be added as well. Stealth bombers in particular will be revamped to be a more attractive purchase.
Finally, CCP wants to make player-owned stations more affordable and worthwhile to all players, from individual stations to massive war machines. Mining will also be made easier as valuable minerals will be available in the safer areas of space, though requiring a group of miners to extract.
Finally, the expansion will be redesigning the Amarr ships so that they are able to incorporate the player decals that will be coming to the MMO.
From an artistic perspective Amarr ships will be next to receive a fresh coat of space-paint, paving the way for the often-requested player decal feature. Players will have more flexibility in character creation, including the ability to blend racial features.
CCP also released a video showing off the new turret and missile effects coming in the expansion.
