[18:09:03] Haste: I can literally pirate an 8-transport IMG convoy in a heavy fighter or something now.
[18:09:13] Haste: And they'll have to either pay or accept that whichever ones I can keep CDed will be PvP dead for 2 hours.
This is what the rule comes down to, and it's silly. It makes infinitely more sense that that 8-ship convoy can provide more than enough cover for one another to flee to a base, dock up and win the encounter. Instead, they have to accept that at least one or two of their ships will inevitably be locked down / PvP dead since I can indefinitely dodge their fire while lobbing a CD once in a blue moon.
I remember how good the change to "Docking equals winning" seemed when it was first introduced. It's just a big step back for the server to revert that change.
The "negotiation" argument is extremely flawed, by the way. The pirate has no obligation to behave in a certain way. They can be as kind or unkind to a transport as they desire. I know my (old) pirating characters generally wouldn't care whether a transport pilot quickly complied with demands or wrote an entire novel. At the end of the day, they either comply or get shot. Just because your pirating characters apparently are very nice people or don't actually behave like pirates, doesn't mean that everyone has to play that way.
Come on, Haste, the other six can flee, log their fighters/missile_solaris GBs and eff you up.
Or are you planning to make a 8 CD launcher available?