Trinkets friend wrote:Thanks, CCP Terminus.
As Alexis nightwish said above, these modules have limited (rechargers) to no practicable use (flux coils).
It is clear CCP has the will and ability to put module types in the game and try things out, c.f. Target Spectrum Breaker, the new missile guidance computers. Likewise, you should be capable and willing to admit that the idea of flux coils is good, but the practical use is next to nil because it is one of the few modules which basically works against itself.
I mean, there's no armour module which increases resistance but reduces hitpoints. Granted it's not a direct comparison, due to shield recharge being what it is, and there's no passive recharge of armour, but regardless there's almost no modules in the game which have self-defeating negatives.
So, if you're willing to at least discuss changing the module's mechanism, if you remove the hitpoint penalty it becomes a better version of the SPR due to having no cap penalty.
if you reduce the hitpoint penalty it would need to be balanced against the SPR and Recharger.
The Flux Coil has to have a clear benefit versus either of these modules and versus other options for tanking.
eg, a recharger competes with the SPR (which is more efficient at % recharge but has an unrelated drawback) and with resist modules, which are more effective for tanking because they increase EHP not just recharge. It also competes with extenders if you have the spare PG. its only real use is in PG constrained battleship fits, because every other ship either needs buffer (eg, frigates) or has the spare CPU to fit resists.
Assume you have 10,000 raw hitpoints and 600s recharge, with 0% across the board resists, and are deciding on an invul field (eg; 30% resist bonus for simplicity's sakes) or a recharger with 15% resist bonus. The passive tank raw is 16 hp/s. With 30% resists the effective hitpoint tank goes to 20.8. 15% recharge bonus goes to 19.6.
Therefore you will choose better resists to give a better EHP tank with a lower raw tank, and not choose shield rechargers. Ergo, to passive tank, you fill your lows with SPR's and deal with the capacitor problems (unneeded with Drakes, Rattlers, etc, and as we know no one ever passive shield tanks any laser boats).
So, comparing the T2 modules;
Recharger II = 15%
Shield Power Relay = 25%
Flux Coil II = 30%
If you remove the shield hitpoint penalty for the flux coil, it invalidates the SPR. If you remove the cap penalty of the SPR, likewise, it becomes even moreso the module of choice.
So the only real option with the flux coil is to either reduce the shield hitpoint penalty so that the nett effect is equal with the SPR so that thereby the tradeoff is, i guess, do you lose capacitor with the SPR or buffer with the flux coil?
But if you consider the effect of midslots, you'd never, ever choose the flux coil anyway because as shown above, you can add resists to make any given pool of hitpoints more effective. In other words, why trade off capacitor for buffer when you can keep the buffer and use midslots to add even MORE buffer and MORE resists?
So, yeah, to my mind the choices with the flux coil are to redesign the mechanism of its operation entirely, or remove it entirely because it is demonstrated that it cannot be modified to become useful and not a redundant variation of the SPR anyway. The whole idea of passive shield tanking is to add buffer, then resists, then recharge, capacitor be damned i'm using capless weapons or drones.