SARO Black Sites are temporary PvE, mining and exploration sites that spawn in highsec and lowsec during EVE Online‘s Fractured Skies Military Campaigns, and they exist because people playing EVE Vanguard, the studio’s first-person shooter, complete contracts and expeditions. The Fractured Skies expansion notes say they drop more campaign items than regular sites but are short-lived; you find them with the map filter in the Activity category, and the Theaters of War section shows how many there are.
Below: where the sites come from, how to find them, what to do with the loot, which War HQ to deliver it to, and how long the campaigns that host them last. Our Fractured Skies release date story covers the rest of the expansion.
Where SARO Black Sites Come From
Fractured Skies, which went live on November 10, 2026, made the link between EVE Online and EVE Vanguard permanent. Fenris Creations, the studio formerly called CCP Games, calls it “the first evergreen, 24/7 connection” between the two games. Every contract and expedition a Vanguard player (a warclone) completes increases the number of special campaign sites that appear in EVE Online’s highsec and lowsec, and the expansion notes name those sites SARO Black Sites.
The name comes from EVE’s lore. SARO, the Special Affairs for Regulations and Order unit, is the special forces arm of CONCORD’s Directive Enforcement Department, as the studio’s EVE Universe site describes it.
You do not need to play Vanguard to run the sites. They appear in EVE Online for any capsuleer; Vanguard players only make more of them. The studio’s own suggestion is to coordinate with friends who play Vanguard so your empire gets more sites. Vanguard itself is in a paid alpha played through the EVE launcher: Founder packs start at $15, according to the EVE Vanguard website, and that access is separate from Omega status in EVE Online.
How to Find SARO Black Sites
- Open the map and use its Activity filters. The expansion notes say the locations of SARO Black Sites show up through the map filter in the Activity category.
- Check the Theaters of War section to see how many sites are up right now.
- Fly to a system with a site and warp to it. The studio says these sites appear as anomalies, so they show in your ship’s probe scanner window without launching probes.
- Move quickly. The studio describes the sites as short-lived and says they “vanish quickly,” without publishing a timer, so do not plan a long trip to one.
What You Do Inside a SARO Black Site
The sites come in three kinds: PvE sites, where you fight NPCs; mining sites; and exploration sites. Each holds more campaign items than a regular site of its kind, and you can use the loot two ways: run the sites for their own rewards, or turn the campaign items in to push your empire’s campaign forward.
The expansion notes give no ship or fitting guidance for SARO Black Sites. For the campaign’s ambushed expedition PvE sites, a different site type, they suggest a well-fit Assault Frigate or Navy Destroyer, which gives a rough idea of the scale the campaign’s combat sites are built around.
Where to Turn In Campaign Items
Deliver campaign items to the item traders in your chosen empire’s War HQ system:
| Empire | War HQ system |
|---|---|
| Amarr | Mehatoor |
| Caldari | Onnamon |
| Gallente | Intaki |
| Minmatar | Amo |
Each delivery pays ISK and Loyalty Points from the objective rewards, plus a faction loyalty token. Tokens can be traded for Glamourex Boosters, SKINR components, Agency Boosters, the new Navy Salvager faction module and Conquest Salvager officer module, returning modules from earlier campaigns, rare faction apparel and returning Resource Wars Navy SKINs.
Campaign activities also progress achievements. Each campaign has 6 regular and 6 hidden achievements: finishing the regular set grants 5 exclusive Penumbral Shadows SKINs, 6 titles and 600,000 SP, and the hidden set adds 6 hidden titles and another 600,000 SP, for 1.2 million SP per campaign. Any capsuleer can contribute, whether enlisted in Factional Warfare or not, and there is no cap on how much one character can deliver toward an objective until it is complete.
Why Your Deliveries Matter: The Race
The campaigns are races between rivals: Amarr against Minmatar, and Caldari against Gallente. Each has four objectives, all open from the start, and no new objectives are added later.
- Bonuses for your empire. Every completed objective unlocks a system-wide bonus, such as faster warp speed, stronger defenses or more damage, in the faction’s sovereign systems and in the Factional Warfare territory it holds. The studio says earned bonuses activate on January 5 and last until the first Conquest begins in February.
- The mid-January battle. The first empire to finish all four objectives decides where the four empires clash over the Drifter artifact in lowsec in mid-January. It brings its bonuses to that battlefield, along with command carrier reinforcements led by a faction general, and the faction that wins the battle gets a limited-time, exclusive Drifter module in its LP store.
- New modules either way. Completing a faction’s campaign, however fast, adds new modules from the campaign item traders to the Factional Warfare LP stores.
Highsec or Lowsec?
SARO Black Sites spawn in both. Highsec sites are the safer run, since CONCORD answers attacks there. Lowsec sites sit where other capsuleers can engage you, so fly something you can afford to lose, or bring friends.
How Long SARO Black Sites Will Be Around
Each site is short-lived. The sites as a feature spawn during the new Military Campaigns, which the studio launched on November 10 as two-month campaigns, so expect them into January. After the mid-January battle, Conquest Engines are expected to deploy, and the first Conquest begins in February, when Vanguard players can enlist in Factional Warfare themselves. The studio has not said whether SARO Black Sites keep spawning after the campaigns end.
If you are weighing EVE against other online worlds, it has a place on our list of the best MMORPGs to play in 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are SARO Black Sites in EVE Online? Temporary PvE, mining and exploration sites in highsec and lowsec that spawn when EVE Vanguard players complete contracts and expeditions during the Fractured Skies Military Campaigns. They hold more campaign items than regular sites but disappear quickly.
Do I need to play EVE Vanguard to run SARO Black Sites? No. The sites appear in EVE Online for any capsuleer. Vanguard players only increase how many spawn.
Do I have to be in Factional Warfare to contribute? No. Any capsuleer can contribute to the Military Campaigns, whether enlisted in Factional Warfare or not.
How do I find SARO Black Sites? Use the map filter in the Activity category to see their locations, and check the Theaters of War section for how many are up. They appear as anomalies.
Where do I turn in campaign items? At the item traders in your empire’s War HQ: Mehatoor for Amarr, Onnamon for Caldari, Intaki for Gallente and Amo for Minmatar.
How long will SARO Black Sites be around? Each site is short-lived. The sites spawn during the Military Campaigns that began on November 10, 2026, which the studio set as two-month campaigns, and it has not said whether they continue after that.