EVE Online's Deepflow Rifts And Abyssal Artifact Recovery Site Overhaul

Today's patch notes for EVE Online were accompanied by a dev blog. CCP is introducing a new limited-time feature called Deepflow Rifts as well as a revamp to Abyssal Artifact Recovery sites found in high security space. 

Interestingly, the feature that appears an afterthought in the patch notes took pride of place in the dev blog. Deepflow Rifts are only described in the patch notes as follows.

• Deepflow Rift sites
  
  
• Mysterious rifts, seemingly connected to the depths of the Triglavian abyss, have begun appearing throughout the cluster and beyond. Though they are untraversable by capsuleers, a tractor beam may be able to dredge up items of interest from the other side.

I'm not sure who wrote the blurb describing the event, but at least the lore isn't dry.

Pilots across New Eden are witnessing a surge in hostile activity as mysterious rifts to Triglavian space have begun to appear. These time-limited Deepflow Rift sites have surfaced in both known space and wormhole systems, offering daring pilots the chance to face new challenges and claim valuable rewards. This comes amid a noted increase in Drifter and Triglavian Collective activity, the root cause of which remains unknown at this time.  

Breaking the fourth wall, the dev blog goes on to give useful information about the new sites.

Beginning on 27 August, intrepid capsuleers can seek out these new rifts and engage in new and exciting activities. The limited-time Deepflow Rift sites promise significant rewards, including coveted Triglavian Survey Data and lucrative “blue loot,” but have the potential to lead to clashes with hostile Rogue Drones. Not only that, these sites will only be accessible in a certain time window, so warp in today and avoid missing out. 

For those who take on the Deepflow Rift sites, it is important to keep the Opportunities info panel open. There, you will find the necessary guidance to help you tackle the rift, keep instability down to avoid Rogue Drone surges, and keep your expedition profitable.

Next come the changes to Abyssal Articfact Recovery Sites. Part of Homefront Operations. I'm guessing the game play isn't that enticing for two reasons. First, the changes seem to want to make the content more exciting. And quite frankly, the marketing hype isn't overshadowing the patch notes as happened with the Deepflow Rifts.

In high security space, the familiar Abyssal Artifact Recovery sites – part of Homefront Operations - have undergone significant updates, introducing fresh challenges and enhanced rewards. Capsuleers must now mine out the site before the timer ends. Those who find success will start the process all over again, facing off against increasingly difficult enemies, unpredictable weather effects, and shorter time limits. The further you go, the greater the reward. These updates ensure that capsuleers have ample opportunities to participate in the ongoing struggles and progress in New Eden, while also having access to valuable resources. 

The patch notes went into further detail.

Abyssal Artifact Recovery sites have been overhauled:

• After an initial set-up period, asteroids from beyond the rift will appear and a timer will begin.
  
  
• Payouts will now be received if all asteroids are depleted when the timer ends.
• If successful, there will be a short cooldown before another wave of asteroids appears.
• If unsuccessful, no additional waves will appear, and the site will end.
  
  
• Following the arrival of every wave are unpredictable effects and hostile NPCs determined to disrupt your progress.
• Hostile NPCs within the site will no longer target drones.
• The damage of Triglavian NPCs has been reduced.
  
  
• Faulty Triglavian Caches now have a chance to appear whenever an asteroid is depleted.
• These caches are now destructible with lootable wrecks, like in Abyssal Deadspace.
• The contents of the caches have been greatly increased.
• Be quick! Caches will be lost if an asteroid appears in their place, and their wrecks do not last long in the chaotic environment.
  
  
• As before, a warp disruption field will be active within the site whenever at least one asteroid is present.
  
  
• The longer the site progresses, the greater the rewards and challenges become!
  
  
• The repair amounts of logistics NPCs appearing in all sites have been decreased.
  
  
• Combat NPCs appearing in all sites will now have a maximum orbit range of 30km.

I've never run an Abyssal Artifact Recovery site, but I have the feeling the developers received a lot of "feedback" about how to improve the game play. Hopefully the feedback was polite and not given immediately after a player lost all their tech 2 drones.