The Equinox expansion launched on the 11th of June and brought with it sweeping changes to sovereignty gameplay in the entirety of player-owned null security space. The changes mean that all previous sovereignty upgrades that affected the Infrastructure Hub will eventually be superseded, new resources must be secured to get the most out of the new systems, and new depoyables need to be made and launched to enable any of the new upgrades.
introducing a new set of resources alongside new deployables while making changes to sovereignty is not insignificant. Due to this, a transition period from the legacy system to the Equinox system is being implemented during which sovereignty hubs will be able to operate in either a legacy “IHub mode”, or in the new “SovHub mode.”
On Equinox release day, all existing infrastructure hubs will automatically convert to sovereignty hubs in legacy IHub mode. Note that if a system has asynchronous TCU and IHub ownership, it will be the IHub that converts to the sovereignty hub, moves to a new location in orbit of the star and will be represented by the new sovereignty hub visual model.
The location is chosen so that it is not near any existing Upwell structures, nor will new Upwell structures be allowed to be anchored near sovereignty hubs.
While in legacy IHub mode, the sovereignty hub will continue to provide all the benefits from its old IHub upgrades and will continue to generate ISK bills for maintenance. All outstanding ISK bills for maintenance must be paid before the transition is possible, and when the sovereignty hub is transitioned to the new SovHub mode it will enable the new upgrades and begin consuming power, workforce, and reagents.
As the role of the TCU becomes redundant post-conversion, no new TCUs can be deployed after 11 June. Any sovereignty campaigns for TCUs that are in progress during the Equinox patch downtime will be canceled, and it will no longer be possible to start new entosis campaigns for TCUs. The new way to remove TCUs from space will be to either convert the sovereignty hub in the system to SovHub mode or deploy and claim a new sovereignty hub in the system.
Thursday the 27th of June will mark the beginning of the transition period from legacy IHub mode to the new SovHub mode, where your logistics and planning will come to fruition. During this transition period, directors in corporations that own sovereignty hubs can choose when to convert these hubs to the new SovHub mode via a menu option.
This is a one-way transfer; once a sovereignty hub moves to SovHub mode, it cannot revert to legacy IHub mode. Upon conversion, old infrastructure hub upgrades contained in the hub will be automatically transferred to the owning corporation HQ station, and any TCU in the system will be removed and similarly relocated. The transfer period will end with the next expansion, when any sovereignty hub operating in legacy IHub mode will be automatically transitioned into SovHub mode.