EVE Echoes Projectile Ammo Guide: Choosing Autocannon and Strike Shells

To get the highest damage from projectile turrets in EVE Echoes, load high-damage shells—EMP, Fusion, or Phased Plasma—that exploit your target's lowest defensive resistance, and switch to tracking or long-range rounds only when target speed or distance forces the compromise.

Projectile weapons consume zero capacitor energy and can deal Electromagnetic (EM), Thermal, Kinetic, or Explosive damage depending entirely on the loaded ammunition.

Projectile Ammunition Comparison

Every shell type modifies your turret's base damage, optimal range, weapon falloff, and tracking speed. Use the following baseline profiles to select your loadout:

Matching Ammunition to Target Defenses

Because projectile turrets allow you to alter your damage type on the fly, match your ammunition to the weakest resistance layer of your target:

• Shield-focused defenses: Standard shield layers are naturally weak against EM damage and highly resistant to Explosive damage. Load EMP to strip shield buffers quickly. This applies to Caldari and Minmatar player ships, as well as Blood Raider and Sansha PvE hulls.
• Armor-focused defenses: Armor plating has high EM and Thermal resistance, but low Explosive and Kinetic resistance. Load Fusion or Titanium Sabot to pierce armor and finish structural hit points. This applies to Amarr and Gallente player ships, as well as Angel Cartel and Serpentis PvE rats.
• Resistance-hardened defenses: If a target uses specialized modules to harden explosive and kinetic resistance, switch to Phased Plasma to bypass those specific buffers using thermal damage.

Choosing Shells for Autocannons vs. Strike Cannons

Your turret mount determines whether you need to optimize for falloff brawling or long-range alpha strikes:

Autocannons (Brawling and Skirmishing)

Autocannons rely primarily on high cycle rates and wide falloff envelopes. Maintain your orbit within your weapon's optimal-plus-falloff range using short-range, maximum-damage shells:

• Use EMP, Fusion, or Phased Plasma against cruiser-sized or larger targets matching their respective resistance holes.
• Switch to Depleted Uranium or Titanium Sabot if small, fast hulls orbit inside your falloff where turret tracking speed prevents clean hits.

Strike Cannons (Artillery Alpha)

Strike cannons fire slowly but project massive single-volley damage across long distances. They depend heavily on optimal range:

• Keep standard Fusion or EMP loaded if your fleet operates within natural strike cannon optimal range. Standard shells preserve full alpha strike power to destroy targets before logistics cruisers can stabilize them.
• Load dedicated long-range shells like Carbonized Lead or Nuclear only when hostile fleets sit beyond your base optimal range, as these rounds carry damage and tracking penalties.

Cargo Management for Angel Cartel and Minmatar Ships

Fast projectile platforms like the Dramiel, Cynabal, and Machariel must carry physical ammunition in their cargo holds. Because projectile ammo expends cargo capacity, organize your hold with the following operational distribution before leaving the station:

1. Primary Damage Ammo (60% of ammunition cargo): Pack Fusion and EMP shells as your standard loads for stripping armor and shields.
2. Tracking Ammo (20% of ammunition cargo): Keep Titanium Sabot or Depleted Uranium ready to counter fast interceptors and tackle ships that build high angular velocity.
3. Long-Range Ammo (20% of ammunition cargo): Carry extended-range munitions like Carbonized Lead to hit hostile snipers or fleet anchors outside standard weapon envelopes.