Confessions of a Closet Carebear

Dining In...

2012-01-30T09:27:00.001-05:00

For years I enjoyed reading (and occasionally trying) the recipes presented by Ret. Col. Roc Weiler. The Gallente people have an unbridled enthusiasm for many things in life, and food ranks high on that list.

As Roc has found himself far from any quality cooking or ingredient lists these last few months I have missed his recipies. Until he returns (and perhaps even after) I will endeavor to post one new recipe a week, something to inspire and fuel the capsuleer on the go, or the capsuleer looking to woo a woman.

This week is a simple, yet elegant meal. Designed to entice the senses and dance upon your tastebuds, this meal can be made quickly (in under 30 minutes). It's easy to make while waiting for the fleet to form up for the next strategic op.

Tortellini, Spinach and Proscuitto
9oz cheese tortellini
9oz fresh spinach (or baby spinach)
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan/Romano cheese
1/4 cup pine nuts
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp olive oil
4oz (4-5 slices) Proscuitto

Cook the tortellini until al-dente (just a tiny bit chewy), usually 7-8 minutes
While the tortellini is cooking, heat a large (10"/25cm) skillet over medium heat. Add the pine nuts and toast lightly, tossing to keep from burning (about 2 minutes). Place the pine nuts in a bowl.
Add 1 tsp oil to the skillet.
Add the garlic to the oil, and sauté for 2 minutes.
Add the spinach and cook until wilted (about 8-10 minutes).
Combine the pasta, spinach and cheese in the bowl with the pine nuts. Toss lightly to mix.
Slice the Proscuitto into small slices (1/2 x 2 in or 15mm x 50 mm).

Place pasta in a dish, and liberally toss Proscuitto slices over the pasta. Serve with slices of fresh melon (I recommend HoneyDew, but Cantaloupe works as well) and a glass of a light white wine, like a Sauvignon Blanc.

Cargo Run

2011-11-21T14:15:00.000-05:00

I hated cargo runs. The Occator class transport was an unwieldy beast of a ship, based on the Gallente Iteron III. But the nimble Viator didn't have enough cargo space to bring in the materials to build out the squad of Vagabond-class cruisers I had commissioned from Bruna. His materials list read like ancient earth latin. Nanotransitors. Hypersynaptic Fibers. Fernite whatsit. Hundreds of millions of ISK in the cargo hold wrapped up in those odd materials. The Occator was the best ship for the job. It had the tank and speed to crash a stargate if caught by an pirate fleet, and advanced electronics to prevent a warp scrambler from affecting the warp drive. But it flew like a fat pig in thick mud.

The only reason I was doing it myself was the cost. Many of the couriers I've used recently had suffered setbacks, or made stupid mistakes and lost goods. So I was going to move it myself, from Jita. Once passed Uedama, I relaxed for most of the flight. I had a scout waiting in Deninard, to check the losec passage through Onne and Vitrauze. Onne and Vitrauze are interesting systems. There's a great Losec pipeline that goes through most of empire without a single hisec stop. We called it the Silk Road, although I had no idea why. Onne and Vitrauze are part of that road. Because of that, there are fewer camps than the well-know Parts/Obalyu gate, but often larger fleets. This makes them ideal for my purposes, but not safe. Deninard was busy. Based on local chat the Goonswarm crew was maintaining their Ice Interdiction, not ganking transports on the gates, so I was jumping into Onne before my scout reported two signatures in Vitrauze.

Two ships aren't much of a threat to a calm transport pilot. It's the rare PvP ship with dual point/scram in losec, so it's usually easy to split two attackers on a gate with aggression tactics, and get out one side or the other. But this wasn't even a PvP pair. Twins, it appeared, one in a Bestower and one in a Rifter. My heart didn't skip a beat as I passed the Bestower in warp in Onne, and landed on the Vitrauze gate with the Rifter in range. I jumped through and aligned for Droselatory, a hisec island on my route. Imagine my surprise as the Rifter jumped through with me, accelerated towards me and tried to warp scramble my ship. I almost cancelled my warp just to watch him die to the gate guns, but I was so busy laughing I couldn't complete the command. I simply warped off as his ship fell to the gate guns.

A few jumps later I was laughing it up with Bruna, after he had begun construction of my Vagabonds. What fool in a Rifter tries to tackle a Transport ship on a gate in losec? My only regret was forgetting to activate my ECM before I warped, to get on the killmail.

CynoAlts and You

2011-11-21T12:52:00.000-05:00

So you need to set up cyno alts on that second (or third, or fourth) EVE account to jump your big ships around. Now is a great time to do that, with the Power of Two promotion going on with EVE Online. First, create a new character and transfer 12,000,000 ISK to them.

If your cyno alt is Gallente (or Caldari), you've got it one book easier, but you need to buy at least two skill books: Cynosural Field Theory (9,000,000 isk) and Infomorph Psychology (900,000 isk). If this alt will do anything els3 (or you've got ISK or implants to burn) get Cybernetics (67,500 isk) and the following implants: Cybernetic Subprocessor - Basic and Memory Augmentation - Basic.

The skills you need to train:

(Cybernetics III)
Electronics IV
Engineering V
Cynosural Field Theory IV
Infomorph Psychology III
Gallente (or Caldari) Frigate III

If you are plugging in implants to speed this up, train up your Cybernetics first, then plug in and do the rest. This whole skill tree takes about 3 weeks on a new character. The best news: you stay under the 900,000 free clone SP limit with this set of skills.

Once your skill training is done, join Estel Arrador's Corp Services corp with this character, and create 3 jump clones. Now, go buy 1 Navitas (or Kestrel) and 1 Cynosural Field Theory Generator (and 350 Liquid Ozone) for each Jump Clone, and move your clones to their respective Losec homes (make sure to set medical for at least one of them to one of your new home stations!).

The first time you jump your capital to any of those clones, bring along a spare ship, module and more fuel for them. Cynoships get popped frequently, so be prepared to replace them regularly.

Ok, this character is done. If you want to be completely self-sufficient, create two more on this account, giving yourself a total of 3 jump points. With 3 jump clones and 3 characters, you can basically go from one end of New Eden to the other, once every 24 hours.

NOTE: I suggest Gallente Frigate III and recommend the Navitas, because it has the CPU/PG and cargo space to be a very inexpensive cyno ship. Caldari Frigate (and the Kestrel) is a viable option, but there is no good, cheap option for Minmatar or Amarr.

Crucible: Measures of Austerity

2011-11-16T10:28:00.000-05:00

She was tired.

She knew it, because she recognized how others looked at her now. The dark bags forming under her eyes. The streaks of gray in her hair. She was known for her public speaking skills. They had been a major asset in her campaign. But lately, she was less persuasive. Less believable. She was tired.

Panaja walked back to her desk, grabbed her tablet and reviewed the figures again.

"Anzillaques, this can't be correct."

"I'm sorry madame. But we are straining the coffers to pay out bounties to those damn eggers every time Kuvakei's monsters strike."

"They seem to be getting very efficient, why not just scale back the payments?"

"You know that never goes well. Remember what happened in Jita a few months ago? We need to look at additional revenue streams. I've something in mind, of course..."

"Yes?"

"There is a decent volume of planetary production being run by the eggers. We could boost the taxes there, and stop replacing the customs offices when they are destroyed by pirates in losec and null. That should get us through at least for the next few months. In addition, we could let the eggers build the customs offices, and sell them the blueprints. Recoup some of what we are paying out for their work against Kuvakei."

Panaja considered the suggestion.

"It's pretty good. But there's one other thing."

"Yes madame?"

"We aren't underwriting Pend on insurance payouts for suicidal capsuleers anymore."

"I'm sorry?"

"For years, Pend has paid insurance on ships that WE have to destroy, to keep the peace. Now that they are being subsidized by CONCORD, we can stop that foolish practice."

"Interesting..." the CFO punched at her tablet for a few moments...

"Perfect!" We've managed to stretch the budget for the full fiscal year with that additional change, and we can even improve the payouts for assaulting pirate command sites. Of course, this also depends on additional egger recruits, but I'm sure that Obuchi can coordinate a campaign to encourage additional recruits to the capsuleer program."

"Thank you Anzillaques."

"Yes madame."

Panaja Paukonsuo sat, leaning back and closing her eyes. After the last year with the uprising of the capsuleers, and the internal audits and the economic breakdown, these new changes were promising. If she was lucky, she wouldn't be fighting for her job at the next board meeting. Anzillaques had done well. CONCORD would survive this economic downturn, and come out stronger. Of course, the eggers would have to take ownership of remote customs offices, and responsibility to maintain or replace them if they wanted them. Faced with the economic challenges, CONCORD needed to scale back, to focus on secure empire space. She knew it was necessary. CONCORD could barely afford to keep the stargates manned in nullsec, let alone maintenance and replacement of those customs offices.

Crucible: The President

2011-11-15T15:41:00.001-05:00

It seemed strange, to be here, in orbit around Caldari Prime, but Miliose was not uncomfortable. Only when looking through the viewport at the Leviathan and it's fleet, did she think of the cold vacuum beyond. A shiver ran through her as she watched.

"Are you sure?" She asked, knowing the answer already.

"Of course. Not only that, the others will be entering production within weeks. Are we ready?"

"Yes, father. The Talos has been ready to enter production for some time. It is an impressive ship. It's a shame that our combat systems do not compliment it..."

"And that brings us to you, Joroutte. What can you report?"

"Well, Mr. President, after completing the modifications to the Talos, we began work on your request to bring blaster cannons up to modern warfare standards. Avagher has the specifications here on the entire product line, as well as plans for retrofitting existing combat systems."

Joroutte looked at her companion, who pulled out a data crystal case and set it on the desk. "We are very, um, excited, by the upgrades we have proposed. The, er, changes we have ready to deploy will, ah, bring the Gallente name back inline as a fearsome combat ship."

"How long?" His piercing blue eyes burned into Avagher Xarasier, his expression unreadable.

"We, ah, believe it will be in conjunction with, ah, the, um, launch of the Talos."

"And do they know?" He asked, looking out the viewport at the Leviathan.

Miliose glanced at the table, then back to her father. "Yes. They have an extensive network of operatives, and they have reverse engineered our blaster upgrades for their railguns."

Jacus Roden smiled, as he turned to the table. "Of course they have. Our ships benefit from their railguns as well."

He smiled now, knowing that Tibus would hear every word. "You have done well. The Federation will grow strong because of your hard work. We will remind our neighbors of our scientific prowess. We will remind them why the blaster was once the most feared weapon in the cluster. They will flee before a fleet of Talos battlecruisers, or they will die."

Crucible: Blog Banter 30

2011-11-15T00:00:00.002-05:00

"With the Winter expansion possibly being named 'Crucible', it certainly is a melting pot of refinements and tweaks aimed at making the EVE experience smoother and more wholesome. If the developers suddenly found themselves some spare resources and approached you for an additional feature to include before release, what single concept would you pitch them and how would you implement it?

For bonus points, the one thing lacking from this "patchwork" of iterations is a cohesive storyline to package "The Crucible" together. How could this expansion be marketed to potential new customers?"

Much is being made of the winter expansion currently entitled "Crucible." After a long and dark winter, the spaceships and the universe that revolves around spaceship combat is being focused on in many small (and some larger) ways to restore the polish to a once-favored combat simulator. I have only a few minor concerns with the changes due this winter, but one thing I wish could have been introduced as part of Crucible would be a change to the impacts of Faction War.

Currently there is no real impact to anyone in occupied systems in the warzone. In war, taking possession of assets and controlling conquered territory are some of the least exciting and most necessary activities to stabilize the newly occupied territories. What if your faction stations turned over (from Minmatar to Amarr, and suddenly employed docking fees for the opposing faction? What if station services were disabled in systems that are contested? Some small change to the impacts of Faction War, perhaps even something based on existing mechanics (like something based on incursion effects), would round out the changes in Crucible to address at least something in each of the pain points from the last 3 years. The absence of even a small list of bugfixes for Faction War missions or complexes makes the Empyrian Age the largest expansion that isn't even glanced at in Crucible.

As for backstory, or storyline events to bring cohesiveness to Crucible?

Well, it takes a while to write a story. I'll be writing up separate blog entries for that, in the spirit of the Chronicles.

Crucible: The President
Crucible: Measures of Austerity
Crucible: Capital Competition (coming soon)

Feature Lock (code freeze)

2011-11-14T13:10:00.001-05:00

It's Monday, November 14th, and the features on Sisi are the features coming in the winter expansion. They aren't necessarily exactly the way the features will be, but there isn't "one more thing" coming in a dev blog that you can't see on Sisi today.

Those of you in software development know about code freeze – and so does CCP, and for once they seem to want us to have all the cards up front for testing and validating.

Now the trick is to try things out, and see what doesn't work. Because with the large number of little (and bigger) things CCP is trying to put into this release, the devs don't seem confident about any of their features being correct. There's been a lot of push-pull in the forums about the information in the various devblogs, and so many of these features will require actual field tests to determine their stability or balance, that each of us should take a few minutes (ok, a few hours) and download and set up Sisi to test your favorite things in EVE.

Because if CCP broke it, now is the time to get them to fix it – at least as long as it's in the current feature list.

So pull up the list of dev blogs in your favorite browser, get a cup of coffee, tea, or beverage of your choice, and make sure that your game isn't broken on Sisi. Because this expansion really is about the players - and the game - and CCP can make this expansion a good one if we help (by testing their game and finding out what they broke).

When you must state the obvious...

2011-11-02T17:18:00.001-04:00

Just a short note.

I mentioned today on twitter that a new theme is developing on the official EVE forums, and it's one that is both good and bad. Let's start the good, because it's really good - a lot of EVE developers (CCP employees) are posting on the forums, and interacting with the players. This is a win/win for the players and CCP (if CCP can handle the trolling, anyway). Communication makes people feel involved, it gives them positive reinforcement (even if the communication isn't always exactly what they want), and it helps tie them closer to the communicator(s). This is a great activity with the current atmosphere around EVE, because the dev involvement on the forums (and other online venues) implies a greater connectivity to the game and the universe of EVE. If any of you CCP devs read this blog, I appreciate you taking the effort to talk to the players. Some of them are smart people. Some of them know this game really well (I am not one of those, BTW).

What saddens me is that the devs posting feel they must tell the players that they play EVE. There was such an outcry about everything that was going wrong with EVE for so long, and so many people used the "play your own game CCP" tagline, that someone in CCP felt it was necessary to remind us that they, too, like to play internet spaceships. I love the fact that the devs play EVE. I hope they enjoy whatever aspect of EVE they have taken up, although I hear through the rumormill that they can't do big sovereign warfare (which is a shame if true, but that's another story for another time).

I hate the fact that the devs at CCP feel they must (or have been asked) to remind us of that.

Players of EVE, these people have been here, among you, all along. For all I know, that guy in corp who types the teamspeak password in our public channel is actually a CCP dev (I'd still be frazzled by that regardless). But it is us, the players, who have to be reminded of this.

If you were to look at the changes coming in the next expansion (and perhaps beyond) it should be painfully obvious that CCP developers play EVE. Guys, I know you feel you must (or have been told to) remind us of that fact. For that, I am sorry - because I knew it all along.

The cold harsh reality of space

2011-11-01T17:03:00.002-04:00

For a long time, I was the epitome of what is wrong with some EVE players.

I played alone (I even formed a one-man corp to put up a tower in hisec).

I ran missions.

I mined Scordite in hisec

I avoided losec like it was a pile of rancid meat.

Nullsec wasn't even in my vocabulary.

I was, as is hinted in the title of my blog, the penultimate carebear.

Things change, or they should, if you keep playing EVE. Because eventually, those tasks in EVE become so mind-numblingly boring, you will do almost anything to avoid them. I took the easy road out of Carebear hell - I joined a corp that was friendly to training folks for PvP. But this blog post isn't about me.

EVE has always been marketed as a sandbox. A game where anyone can impact any part of the game, independently or with friends. Some of the greatest marketing stories about EVE involve the actions of one person bringing about world-shaking events. And there is a growing movement to destroy the sandbox.

If you thought "Goonswarm" when you read that last line, you are actually part of the problem. If you thought "entitled whiners" then you are not. If you don't like what category I just put you in, you might want to stop reading this post now.

EVE is a game that, in every way but two, pits players against each other for everything. The obvious PvP I will only mention in passing - combat. If you buy or sell on the market, you are playing against others. If you build or invent ships or modules, you are playing against other players. If you mine (in some hisec systems) you play against others on an intermittent basis, since the belts can be mined dry. If you explore, you play against others. There are only two places in EVE you don't compete with others directly - mission running and ice mining.

However, these activities are not (and should not) be risk free. EVE is a sandbox. EVE is a multi-player game, and because it is these things, there should always be competition. Missions (and ice fields) are always there, with no competition. You can't go to an agent and be told "Sorry, I have no more missions today." You can't mine a hisec ice field dry. And therein lies the problem (and, perhaps, the answer). Below I line out proposals to change both of those activities. In my opinion (which is wrong at least 50% of the time) these proposals are better for EVE as a sandbox.

Ice Mining

Ice should not be a limitless commodity. The sliding scale of value -> security should apply to ice just as it does to minerals, missions, rats, and any other PvE activity in EVE.
There should be at least 3 tiers of ice in each type, with variable quantities of refined materials in each type.
Ice tiers should also change in block size. HiSec ice should have the largest blocks (in m3) with the fewest refined commodities, losec ice should be smaller, with more material per block, and nullsec blocks should be smaller still, with even more materials per block.
Ice fields should be smaller, and it should be possible to mine a field dry with a dedicated fleet, within a short amount of time. I don't know the exact numbers, but the amount of ice in a belt should be reduced so that a well managed squad (9 Mackinaws and an Orca) can clear a field of ice in about 4 hours. Of course, ice would respawn at downtime, just as it does today.
Ice fields should be added to gravimetric sites. This would allow people to find and exploit small quantities of ice anywhere, and provide a tiny amount of additional security when attempting to harvest ice in LoSec or Null. Personally, I'm a fan of all mining being done from gravimetric sites, or all minerals except Veldspar being limited to gravimetric sites (and a higher frequency of spawns than exist today).
A new rig should be introduced to further reduce cycle time: Ice Harvesting Optimization Rig I and II. A fully trained Mackinaw pilot with a fully T2 rigged and fitted ship, should be able to run a complete cycle in 3 minutes or less. This, in conjunction with the volume changes of ice blocks in losec and null, will help reduce the risk while mining. A full cycle would still be required to acquire a block of ice (per Harvesting module). Ideally, this ship (in nullsec) could pull as much (or more) ice as a Cargo-rigged Mack in Hisec in the same amount of time.

Ice Harvesting is the most mind-numbing activity I have seen or done in EVE, which means it is the easiest to script for botting 23.5/7. These changes, as a whole, reduce the raw income potential of risk-free botting in HiSec. Ice Fields would run dry, so the bots would run out of easily scripted targets. The massive reduction in cycle time (in conjunction with the reduction in hold size) would make LoSec and Nullsec ice harvesting slightly more viable (but still the riskiest PvE activity in ISK/hr for those areas). Moving ice to gravimetric sites would provide small opportunity to have low-risk higher-income ice mining.

Mission Running

Beyond the intervention of ninja-salvagers and mission-griefers, mission running in EVE is the other big lonely activity in EVE. You don't need friends to run missions through level 4, and you can (usually) do them completely unmolested for hours on end. Recent changes with the Orca has negatively impacted the small amount of PvP in mission running, so I'd like to look at this from a different perspective. Competition is at the heart of this proposal.

Each agent should have a limited number of missions/hr to distribute. The number of missions should be inverse to the quality of the agent, so L1 agents have 4x more missions than L4 agents.
A mission is "reserved" after a player accepts it. If a player declines a mission, it remains in the pool that agent has for that hour. If a player fails a mission within the first hour, it returns to the pool for that hour.
The missions/hr do not "rollover" - each hour the number of missions is reset whether all of them were used in the previous hour or not.
Agents without missions can "suggest" agents that still have missions available, within their own corporation and mission type. A player can "reserve" that mission if they so desire, then fly to the recommended system to run the mission. This reservation is good for 60 minutes only, after which the mission is released to the local mission running population.

A nerf to L4 mission running? Yeah, sort of. There are 661 L4 Security agents across EVE. If each one of these had only 20 missions per hour, that's still a pool of over 12,000 L4 missions per hour. Of course, a decent number of those are in LoSec or Null, so let's just drop 1/4 which leaves only 9,000 L4 missions per hour available. That's one L4 mission for every 4-5 players in EVE on an average hour. That means you may need to move about to get a mission, and there would be competition for the best agents. This is a nerf designed to add the smallest flavor of PvP to mission running - you are competing against the other mission runners for the limited number of resources (missions) every hour.

EVE is a sandbox. Competition against others is at the heart of this sandbox. These two humble proposals would bring the nature of PvP competition to two of the most risk-free activities in EVE, without actually increasing the risk to assets.

Tomfoolery, Election Fraud and the CSM

2011-10-27T16:00:00.000-04:00

There's a new groundswell in the EVE social media community lately, and I've touched on it a couple of times myself. Mostly it's about dissatisfaction with the CSM, and a comment Hilmar made in an interview that can be construed as his own frustration with the CSM.

And the general discussion is missing the forest for the trees.

The concept that seems to have favor (at the moment) is to have, essentially, districts. That's great, I'm glad that people are thinking about increasing participation (I've been a foolish voter for several years now). But the idea of district representation in EVE is inherently broken.

You can't elect someone in EVE to the CSM just to represent wormholes. Because for all you know, that person is going to get sick of living in a wormhole a month later, and go run incursions for less stressful ISK.

You can't elect someone in EVE to the CSM just to represent Faction War. Because the CEO for that person's corp could have plans on moving from Faction War to Nullsec Sovereignty that the CSM rep would know nothing about.

Basically, you can't create districts because one of the simplest things to do in EVE is to change the direction of your game.

White Tree was a member of TEST when elected. Now (if I remember correctly) he's in a wormhole corp. He's not in TEST anymore. So all those TESTies who elected him no longer have their "TEST" representative. This real-world example shows why the idea of representative division is a failure before it begins.

Each player (not character) who runs for CSM runs on a platform, like any politician, claiming to support (or oppose) particular issues. If you look back at the CSM platforms, each member of the CSM had their own platform and presented that to the community at large.

I'll have grounds
More relative than this—the play's the thing
Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the King.

Fun Hamlet quotes notwithstanding, the platform is what you vote for or against in a CSM election. Because that is the best estimate you can get on what a person will or won't support or oppose. And the simple math of 1 account = 1 vote means that if the candidate you support can get enough votes, they will get a seat on the CSM.

In addition, the CSM has changed a lot over the few years it's run. The terms are longer, and this group can run again (I believe they have recently removed term limits for the CSM). This allows for two things: continuity and complacency. If I were to humbly suggest anything to Hilmar for changing the CSM, I would do the following:
1. Stagger the terms, much like US Senators, so there is partial, regular turnover.
2. Limit the re-election to 2 consecutive terms.
3. Have the chairman selected by the CSM, from the CSM every election cycle.

Stagger the terms
This one seems the easiest. Make the term 18 months, with an election every six months. That's a lot of politicking, but 1/3 of the CSM would turn over every six months, leaving 2/3 to provide consistency. Of course, the problem here is the non-stop campaigning cycle that would barrage the EVE players. A second option would be two year terms, with half the council replaced every year. But can you really count on someone to be active and excited about EVE for two years straight with the pressure of the CSM?

Term Limits
A no brainer (sorry Trebor) but there should be term limits. Two consecutive terms, then you have to take at least one year off before running again. Gets the politicians back in the game as normal people for at least a little while.

Internally Selected Chair
This would be a requirement based on the staggered terms presented above. The chair would have a 1 year (or 6 month) term as chair. This should be merely a parliamentary position, and the "face" of the CSM for group issues presented to players or CCP. The CCP representative would have a vote on this as well in the event of a tie.

The Fine Art of Not Making ISK (How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the HiSec Missionrunner)

2011-10-25T20:53:00.002-04:00

Today in Twitter I was affronted by a post by @EVE_Rhavas. I'm easily affronted, but moving beyond that, here's the post:

@redrickstar Fantastic post. I strongly support a "senate" approach. +1 follower. Cc @HilmarVeigar #nerfnullsec #eveonline #tweetfleet

Now to be fair, I have no idea what Rhavas was supporting. Because all I saw was #nerfnullsec. My reply:

@EVE_Rhavas @redrickstar @HilmarVeigar in case you hadn't noticed, nullsec has been nerfed about 10 ways to Sunday. #nerfhisec

For those of you just joining this game, welcome. EVE Online is a harsh mistress, moreso than the Moon of Heinlein's imagining. The follow-up discussion (if one can have a discussion in 140 characters or less) was even more entertaining, from @redrickstar:

@swearte @EVE_Rhavas @HilmarVeigar Crying about your milk being spilled and your answer is to piss in everyone else's is a poor solution

Now I get it. I won't even go find a blog, or an original link, and even if there were an original idea with merit, it doesn't matter. Because @redrickstar is angry about Goonswarm. Maybe he's an ice miner, who likes to sit and watch torrented films while multiboxing a fleet of dangerous Mackinaws. Maybe he's an unlucky Gallente Cap pilot (like me) who can't undock the big girl because the fuel cost is too high. Maybe he's running a Gallente POS farm reacting Technetium, and he's not swimming in ISK anymore. It doesn't really matter, because whatever he's doing in EVE, he's angry.

The basic argument I'm finding from the cesspool we know and love called the EVE Online official forums, is that Mittani should not be encouraging Goonswarm to do dastardly things, and he should not participate himself in these alliance activities, because he is the chairman of the CSM. Of course it doesn't help when he posts things like this in his twitter stream:

Ssh. The Tornado is for ~fleet warfare~. Pay no attention to the hisec ganking possibilities! #tweetfleet

Of course, the problem isn't The Mittani. Or Goonswarm. Or their current game, Gallente Ice Interdiction. The problem is that too many people in EVE are risk averse and feel entitled.

People are angry, yes angry about the Goonswarm Ice Interdiction. After all, you can't mine Gallente ice and make mindless isk right now, and the price of oxygen isotopes makes that so tempting that even the wisest of carebears is probably considering the risk to reward ratio. But the simple thing is, EVE is a sandbox game, and in the nullsec section of the sandbox, CCP has a lot of work to do. Looking at the hints, allegations, and things said about the winter expansion (and beyond), CCP realizes that. But in the meantime, one of the largest groups of players in the game are bored. And bored players will do crazy things. Last time, shortly after the fall of BOB, Karttoon led them on a rampage against hisec towers. It's a lot harder to make that fun, but Goonswarm made it memorable, and (hopefully) had fun in doing so - even if most of that fun was bad forum posting.

I made a comment in the EVE forums that perhaps what people should be doing since they can't mine ice, is anything else. EVE has so many avenues of experience, you don't have to simply mine or PvP. You can cut your hands off at your wrists doing missions. You can have some enjoyment doing Incursions. You can explore, and do it in LoSec where space is really a no-mans land. You could, oh, I don't know, learn to lose ships and not care.

What Mittani is doing (and by extension Goonswarm) is playing EVE. There is a vocal minority who believes that his version of EVE is wrong, and he shouldn't play it, because he's on the CSM. Others claim he should resign from the CSM, because his playstyle doesn't match their own. EVE is a game. A very involved, very time consuming, sometimes very frustrating, game. It has many facets, and one of the most important is that CCP does not interfere with the sandbox. We all share one universe, one game world, and if you don't like the way someone is playing in one section of the world, move.

Pack up your Orcas full of barges, and move to a different space. Or don't. But don't complain about someone playing the game. Find a way to enjoy the game on your own terms. Because the rage you spew, in the forums on Twitter, on your blogs, feeds their enjoyment of the game they are playing.

Now about the title of this blog. Nullsec is broken in many ways, and that's changing soon, from the looks of it. In the meantime, people who like to play this game against other players are finding other avenues to do so, and when the only way they can afford ships is the intermittent Incursion fleet or the mindless Level 4 mission, I'm not at all surprised that the unwashed masses of Goonswarm (and their finely manicured leadership) are turning against those players who think HiSec is risk-free riches. It's quite possible that even fixing Nullsec won't change this, because a side effect of the Gallente Interdiction is that every Nyx and Technetium-chewing tower costs a lot more to use right now. Which actually makes the game fun for more than just the Goons.

Back to Nullsec...

2011-10-24T16:58:00.000-04:00

Switched Corps.

New corp almost dissolved within a week of joining to merge with another corp in a nullsec alliance. Then the alliance took our small crew in as-is.

Now we are Unforgiven. And I've got 30-some-odd jumps from the losec system most of my ships are in to the losec staging system for the alliance. And then it's another teen/tween jumps to the corp HQ - only thing that would make it easier? Jump Drive Calibration V (40 days) and a non-Gallente carrier. Funny thing is, I have a Nidhoggur but I only have Minmatar Battleship III. And who flies the Minmatar caps anyway?

Guess I'll find my way to Stain somehow. Never managed to get negative sec status either. Maybe I'll suicide some hisec fools on the way back to nullsec.

In difficult times, come difficult decisions

2011-10-19T21:33:00.000-04:00

Today the hammer fell, on CCP Atlanta. In a public relations notice, CCP announced the layoff of 20% of their workforce - mostly in Atlanta (but some in Reykjavik). Atlanta was home to White Wolf, the property behind the now "back-burner" project World of Darkness, Content folks for DUST 514, and most of the Community Management team. With no official list released (which would be bizarre anyway), speculation abounds for who was released and who is staying. Before I go on, I must wish the best to everyone who lost their jobs today, and hope that they are quick to find new work. Even though I am thinking most of those I know, all of you are in my wishes for a quick rebound.

I have met a handful of people from CCP Atlanta, including Mike Reed, CCP Cupcake (Stacy), and CCP Big Dumb Object. I have interacted with the CM team for years as a player and sometime forum poster, and as a member of the #tweetfleet. I only know of three specific layoffs, in what must number close to 100 - Zymurgist, Fallout and Hammer - some of the most vocal of the CM team. What worries me most is whether the CM team (mostly based in Atlanta) was completely disbanded as part of this restructuring of CCP.

I've been in small and large businesses through a couple economic bubbles. In the dot-bomb at the end of the 90s, I had to be on the management side and was one of the last men standing in a company that didn't survive the downturn. So I know how hard it is to let good people go. With the challenges they set for themselves, and then the difficulties in meeting them alongside the drop in subscriptions, CCP was looking at the short end of the balance sheet, and had to make changes. I can only say this - 20% of CCP had better include a lot of Incarna and WoD folks, because it did include the employees of CCP who made the most effort to keep us, the vocal and annoying players of EVE, talking, and participating.

A smart business, intent on communicating with their customers, probably shouldn't lay off their entire Customer Management team. But it appears that may be what happened with CCP today. Businesses intent on surviving the tough times need to keep a finger on the pulse of their customers - but CCP decided that finger should be lopped off, perhaps to spite the hand that feeds it. I can only hope that the executive team, who actually made the poor decisions that led to this day, realize that those positions had greater merit for goodwill and community support (and helping convince fools like me to resubscribe rather than lapse) - and the positions - if not the people - had better be filled as part of the restructuring.

CCP needs goodwill from the vocal community, as does any company in today's overly social world. CCP Fallout and CCP Zymurgist were a big part of that goodwill to the few hundred in the tweetfleet, and to many who read the forums. They will be missed personally. But the company needs those roles filled with communicative, involved and excited employees.

EVE isn't a game you easily unplug from. EVE isn't a fly by night I'll try it and move on game. If you get involved, you get involved deeply. And having a quality Community Management team helps temper the speculation and frustration of those players who are involved beyond logging into a virtual world. CCP - you do what you must. But I hope you realize that you must have a Community team that actively participates.

Rumor has it that the CSM will become more involved in CM - I only have one problem with this. I love the CSM as an idea, and I think they do good things - but they aren't the right voice of community interaction. The Mittani, as the chair (and leader of Goonswarm), is very capable, but he doesn't display the soft skills needed for a good community relations employee. The CSM are very good at grating bluntness - a great skill, but not for community relations. Nothing personal guys, I like most of you from what I've read, seen, and heard. But you aren't touchy-feely – and that's what the community team needs to be. CCP - I hope you have quality people lined up to replace those we have come to call friends. Because it's hard to make new friends in EVE that you can trust...

Wayback Machine: 02 September 2009 (First Flight)

2011-10-01T09:00:00.001-04:00

This is the fourth in my series of "wayback" posts - posts recovered from archives of previous iterations of my blog. My first trip into nullsec...

So I was greeted at login last night with "check your EVEMail - we have a wardec coming."

Ok. Might as well learn it all, right? So we will be at war, publicly, by the time I write this. After discussion with my CEO and combat trainers, I decided it was time to take the plunge and find my way to our 0.0 home. Ironically, it is deemed safer there than in my normal HiSec mission location, now that we are at war, and our Empire base of operations will likely be difficult to get in and out of during the war. So I filled up one last GSC of supplies, dropped it in the transit hangar, and set my autopilot for my new home. I was also going to be learning my new ship, Pyrios, a Helios-class exploration and scout vessel. Pryios is fit for exploration (probe launcher, analyzer, codebreaker) and a covops cloak generator. After a series of HiSec jumps, I entered the losec zone approaching 0.0. Lots of red in system everywhere - but the covops cloak meant I was invisible beyond my id broadcast in local.

As I approached the last losec jump before the 0.0 road, I realized I had made one big mistake - I hadn't contacted Concord to relocate my medical clone to the new home in 0.0. If I made a mistake, or just had bad luck, I was going to find myself 15 systems back in HiSec in the middle of a war, and the only ship at my current medical facility is a Velator. Quickly conferring with corpmates, I turned around and flew back a couple of systems to a station with medical facilities, and requested a clone move to my new home. I'd still have to check in and move the clone once more, to a medical facility, to ensure I can keep up to date, but at least if I sucked vacuum on this flight I'd end up at my destination.

The first system into 0.0 had my hands a little shaky, especially as there was a red in system - in a Buzzard. My combat trainer piped in over voice comms -
"Pick a planet, or moon, and warp to 100. Make sure to keep your cloak on!"

I was nervous, after all, it was my first time in 0.0, and this guy was in a ship designed to hunt and kill me. Fortuantely my nerves held long enough to get to a planet, and start moving off at a random angle, all while cloaked. I watched as a second red appeared in local - and just as suddenly the first one warped in behind me at the planet, a mere 16km off my stern. I watched as he sat, then warped towards the outbound gate, then disappeared off local.

"Initial red and neut are both out of system, newer red in system. Should I continue on?"

"Negative - sit tight for at least 5 minutes, they may be setting up a bubble on the other side of the gate to catch you. Wait them out."

So I sat, for a few minutes, fiddling with my overview settings, talking about 0.0 travel tactics, safes and bookmarks. Finally, it's just me and one red in system. I warp to 100km off the gate, and there's no-one there. Look directly behind me, warp to a belt, turn around and warp 0 to the gate and jump through. There's no-one in system, no bubble, nothing. I'm all alone. This situation (couple of reds or neuts in system), random bubble on a gate repeated itself all through Cloud Ring and Syndicate, on my 24-jump trip through 0.0 to my new home. I set up intermediate warp locations (not good enough for safes, but good enough to make safes off of) through most of those systems, finally docked up in my new 0.0 home. Settled my clone into a Medical facility so I could maintain my knowledge, checked out what ships I already had in system, and warped to our POS before logging off, cloaked, in my new 0.0 home. All in all an uneventful trip to 0.0, but exciting enough for me that some of my fur fell out on the way...

Wayback Machine: 27 August 2009 (Shedding isn't easy...)

2011-09-30T09:00:00.002-04:00

This is the third in my series of "wayback" posts - posts recovered from archives of previous iterations of my blog.

About a month ago I finally decided to grow up. I've been playing EVE since December 2007, when the Mac client was released, and in that time I have racked up 0 kills and been podded 9 or 10 times. I did hisec missioning, not even trying out L4 missions forever. I was the poster child for Care Bearing. I think part of it was, I didn't really get into EVE. For me it was like a round of Civilization - play every once in a while when you have time. Well, I got a couple of co-workers into it, and they called me on the care bear lifestyle back in March of 2009. Just before Apocyrpha was released. So I started looking at what goes on in a PvP lifestyle, and started focusing my skill training more on ship/ship support skills, rather than the shotgun approach I'd been taking since the beginning. I started reading blogs written by PvP players, like Wensley, Flash, Mynxee, and the like, but I wasn't looking to be a pirate - just learn how to fight and defend. Then I started taking missions and occasional drops into LoSec, learning more about the directional scanner (I still need work on this one), and watching local, and flagging players and corps with status so I can keep careful eyes out. Finally, I dropped the non-existent shield of the NPC Corp (The Scope, FWIW) and applied to a full-on PvP corp.
After a bit of Q&A, I was accepted and have been a novice in the corp for about a month now. I haven't started my actual PvP training yet, since days after joining the corp left Empire and went back to 0.0, and I wasn't ready for that leap. I've been grinding up my status with an NPC corp in Empire to get a jump clone, so I can take shelter in my fuzzy empire blanket when the 0.0 lifestyle gets to be too much, or when I need easy ISK or items that are too hard to make or get out in 0.0. Let's face it, I'm really just hanging on to my fuzzy status just a little longer, because I'm afraid of the change. However, this weekend I will have trained up the skills to mostly fly a Helios, and I'm going off the deep end. It's a 30 jump trip from Empire to my corp base in 0.0, and I'm going to learn my way down in the Helios, fit with a CovOps Cloak, jump clone or not...

Wayback Machine: 25 August 2009 (The New Beginning)

2011-09-28T23:00:00.000-04:00

This is the second in my series of "wayback" posts - posts recovered from archives of previous iterations of my blog.

First, the definition from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sceadugenga

I can be found in New Eden. I wander the empires, in the shadows of the universe that man calls wormholes, and the lawless places outside the empires. I am not a vicious killer, nor am I a fuzzy bear. I am Gallente, and in that I believe in everyone's ability to grow, learn, and be more than they are. I am honest, or at least I think I am, but I have a long memory, and all those who have wronged me will eventually see justice in the cold dark of space. Like you, I am immortal, but not infallible. I know that my immortality is a construct of technology, my body dies but my mind can be preserved. I do not consult the priests on the perseverence of my soul - I suppose that one day I will face account for my actions, and on that day I do not wish to be found wanting. I suppose that means I try to be a good person, even though I am a capsuleer. I am not a fool - I will not jump to the aid of those who cannot be saved, but I will not turn on them either.

From the wayback machine...

2011-09-28T13:29:00.000-04:00

I blogged a long time ago on Gamescribe (some of you older EVE bloggers may remember that). I found one of my old articles archived on the wayback, and it was even a blog banter. It's painful to read, now with what I know in EVE...

EVE Blog Banter #8: Fighter-class ships and sqadrons

May 26, 2009, 12:54 pm

Welcome to the eighth installment of the EVE Blog Banter , the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux . The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed here . Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This month’s topic comes to us from Ga’len at The Wandering Druid of Tranquility. He asks: “What new game mechanic or mechanics would you like to see created and brought into the EVE Online universe and how would this be incorporated into the current game universe? Be specific and give details, this is not meant to be a ‘nerf this, boost my game play’ post like we see on the EVE forums.”

Nobody asked me, but I thought I’d chime in on this one. Game mechanics are a veritable rathole of scary stuff. I’d like to see a few things changed, but something all new?
I’m sure someone else has talked about piloted fighter squadrons, but that’s my choice. It’s kind of funny, as I play solo, but I would love to see the ability to set up a squadron of fighters that are either commanded by one pilot and the rest under AI, like solo play in some of the squad-based console games, or each pilot(ed) by capsuleers. Much like real fighter jets, they’d be small, with limited armor, but lots of speed and the ability to cause a bit of damage. Something like a micro-frigate concept, but specifically designed for group tactics, too fast for most standard ship weapons (requiring opposing fighters or frigs with tiny guns and lots of tracking bonuses) and dogfight-like UI that reminds one of a flight sim. Think X-wings or starfuries - tiny little things that are short-range (unable to warp on their own) but nasty in groups. Damage would be on par with Drones, maybe a bit more, but also modifiable with various ammo types. Short range (under 5k) shooters that can’t be targeted and hit by anything larger than a small gun (75mm anyone?), and too fast to hit with most missiles or rockets.
Let’s start with two classes for each race, a guns only fighter and a missiles fighter. Obviously R&D to maybe make a mixed-weapon fighter, or “stealth” fighters. Also brings about the possibility of atmospheric battles, as fighters would be designed for atmospheric flight.

CrazyKinux’s Musing, EVE Blog Banter #8: Care for a little game of SecWars?
The Wandering Druid of Tranquility, Wow, that new thing is so shiny!!!
I am Keith Nielson, EVE Blog Banter #8 - Return of the Top Gun
Once More from the Beginning, 8th EVE Blog Banter May 2009 Edition
A merry life and a short one, EVE Blog Banter #8: In the Year of Our Awesome
Inner Sanctum of the Ninveah, Planets
Helicity Boson, Bantering the blog
Achernar, Unique adventures
Ecliptic Rift, OOC: EVE Blog Banter 8: Standings and secondary factions
The New Edener, EVE Blog Banter #8
Journey to New Eden, Eve Blog Banter #8: What new mechanic should be added to Eve?
Life, The Universe and Everything, Blog banter 8: mentorship
EVE Guru, EBB 8: Yarr! Prepare to be boarded!
The Ralpha Dogs, Greed Is Good, Greed Works
Rifter Drifter, Blog Banter 8: Strategic Gunnery
A Mule in EVE, Expanding EVE
Letrange’s EvE Blog, 8th Blog Banter
Roc’s Ramblings, Blog Banter #8
The Nude Nerd, Blog Banter #8
More to come…

It's the end of the world as we know it...

2011-09-22T12:09:00.001-04:00

Welcome to EVE Online. In this universe, they players make the stories happen.

Sometimes, I love to make end of the world predictions. Perhaps I'm somehow related to Nostradamus, or Edgar Cayce. Regardless, today we will discuss the end of the world, in relation to EVE Online. Let's start with the firestarter, one of the most famous and polarizing figures currently in EVE Online, The Mittani.

CSM Chairman, Top Goon

Mittens, as many call him, utilized his formidable political skills to get elected Chairman of the CSM, and has, since his election, utilized those skills in an effort to steer CCP towards focusing on EVE Online, the spaceship game. In recent weeks, it seemed as if his skills were bearing fruit, as various tweets and forum posts and comments hinted towards an announcement or information from CCP that flying in space (what most people call EVE Online) would be the primary focus of development for the foreseeable future. Many rejoiced, including myself, that the Top Goon had leveraged his skills successfully.

This week, the other shoe dropped.

I fear that for all the placating comments, and pandering to the EVE community, The Mittani is lying to EVE, and this camel's nose is based on the current CFC/Goon propaganda machine. Looking at it from both inside and outside the CFC, there are some amazing things that are about to happen - some mildly interesting, others potentially terrifying. But enough dancing around the campfire. Goonswarm, and their allies, have announced a new campaign to "freeport Delve". At this level, there is a little to worry about - turning a sovereign 0.0 region into a free-for all with open access to all stations seems a bit odd, since regions like Syndicate, Curse, and Outer Ring (NPC Nullsec) already exist, but it isn't the strangest campaign Goonswarm has ever undertaken. This campaign, however, comes alongside what could be the biggest troll in EVE (ever) or the biggest concern in EVE (ever).

thanks to Riptard Teg of Jester's Trek

Let's start with the theoretical NIP between the CFC and the DRF. For those of you who don't particularly care about nullsec, these are the two largest coalitions in all of EVE. The DRF (Russian alliances based primarily out the drone regions and what I will call the northeast corner of New Eden) and the CFC (Goonswarm, Test Alliance Please Ignore, and others) already control, between the two coalitions, over 70% of nullsec, at least in name. There's a great poster here that shows the combined regional control and military might of these two powerhouses. Recently, discussions cropped up in various EVE-related forums about these two groups creating a non-invasion pact, and basically splitting up all of sovereign nullsec between them. An unlikely event, most people would think, and very controversial, at best.

Controversy, however, is what many members of Goonswarm thrive upon. So over the last week or so, TEST and Goonswarm forum posters and tweeters (including The Mittani himself) have been fueling the fire of speculation that this could come to pass, even going so far as to make plans for their entertainment following the completion of the DCF conquest. These plans are the only real concern, were this entire activity come to fruition.

As a parent, I am painfully aware of the potency of a full-blown temper tantrum. My girls (who already have me wrapped around their little fingers) can change a whole plan with a well-timed (and well-executed) tantrum. My fear is that The Mittani, thoroughly frustrated by the doublespeak and lack of action by CCP to "save" the spaceship game EVE Online, has escalated his frustration into a tantrum, at the root of which is the DCF concept. After all, if CCP won't work on the game he wants to play, why should he, as the "King of Space" let anyone else play the game they do make.

I can hear most of you about now saying "what the hell are you talking about?" So here's the tl:dr.

If the DCF were to take over 95% of nullsec (or all of it, which is the plan, supposedly), the discussion by goons on many forums is to then turn their sights on Empire, and grief the players who blindly continue to pay and play the game that isn't the EVE Online they want it to be. The goal, by wardeccing empire corps, and running regular operations into empire space to attack those players, is to drive players out of EVE - to make the game so frustrating that the poor "carebears" would stop logging in.

The conclusion, in this perhaps crazy plan, is to bring about the end of EVE. The funny (sad?) thing about this is, it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone, whether true or troll. After all, Goons have always played their game - which often translated into ruining your game. This is the same alliance that, when bored a few years ago, wardecced corps to take down their towers, in a jihad against moon-pillaging evildoers.

After a while though people will start leaving the game. Not the bittervet assholes like us who post on k.com or fhc either... the people who love the game despite its flaws and still play, and who played all through the bad expansions. The people who kept a positive attitude during the rough times because they had faith in the devs and fellow players as well that the game would get better. Maybe for them it never got bad at all. These people start leaving in droves because they can't play the game anymore. Griefed out by the fucking Mittani. Melvin the Mission runner and Kevin the Carebear. You never gave a shit about them before -- they were just ships passing by. Little people playing the game in a small way and enjoying it. When those people leave because of this it won't be CCP they blame. It won't be the expansions or monocles or engine trails or MT. They will look to you as the reason. And that is how Eve Online will finally die. It won't be because of CCP's unfortunate design choices - it will be because the biggest power bloc in the game got bored and decided to break it for everyone.

and the response from a prolific Goonswarm Poster, "endie":

This all sounds fucking brilliant.

So there it is, the end of the world. Let's hope that Rixx Javix was serious about playing EVE until the lights go out. Maybe he and The Mittani can do a frigate duel, in the spirit of Nash's Celebrity Deathmatches, for the last fight in EVE Online.

One can only wonder if, by actually iterating on FiS, and improving the actual spaceship game EVE Online, that CCP can stop Goonswarm, the DRF, and their allies, from bringing about the ultimate headshot, and bringing to an end, EVE Online. I will be watching, from inside and out, as the future unfolds.

EVE Online: Addiction

2011-09-08T12:33:00.000-04:00

Let's be clear here. I love EVE Online, the game you fight in spaceships. I have paid and played for years, and would like to pay and play for more years (my wife would prefer I not). I speak out about things I am passionate about - but in the end I have to vote with my dollars, because that is all CCP seems to listen to.

My subscription(s) should do three things (in this order):

maintain the existing infrastructure and environment for the game EVE Online
update and introduce new features to the game EVE Online
enable CCP to expand as a company into new products and ventures

If it doesn't then I'm paying for something I don't care about. I'm pretty sure the first (maintenance) is covered, since I logged in last night. Unfortunately, the priorities of the second and third items do not seem to match my expectations, at least over the last 6 months. That is my sole concern.

Blog Banter 28: "The Future of EVE Online, CCP and the CSM"

2011-09-08T11:34:00.000-04:00

Recent events with the CSM Emergency Summit minutes (or lack thereof) and the subsequent dissenting CSM voices on EVE Radio, assorted blogs and various other gaming media have brought the relationship between CCP and the CSM (and therefore the players) to the fore once again.

Tweetfleet conversations later discussing the situation led to calls for a Blog Banter to facilitate a broader dialogue across the blogging community. As a result, the following questions have been asked:

"In recent months, the relationship between CCP and it's customers has been the subject of some controversy. The player-elected Council of Stellar Management has played a key role in these events, but not for the first time they are finding CCP difficult to deal with. What effect will CCP's recent strategies have on the future of EVE Online and it's player-base? What part can and should the CSM play in shaping that future? How best can EVE Online's continued health and growth be assured?"

OMG! EVE IS DYING! (again?)

Well, we've all heard it. In the almost 4 years I've been playing EVE, I've heard it a lot. EVE is dying. Usually when CCP comes out with an expansion that doesn't meet the wishes of a specific group of players. But then, we all watched the logins increase, from 20k, to 30k, to 40k, and more. And then there was Incarna. I'll admit I log in less since Incarna. In fact, I have two accounts due for renewal in the next 2-3 weeks that I disabled auto-renew on when Incarna came out. And I'm not sure I'll renew them. I've rambled about the expansions before, but looking seriously at each of the semi-annual expansions, Incarna is the first one that is absolutely nothing about spaceships. CCP claims it needs to move towards 3D character interaction (walking in stations) to move forward, but that motion is slower than maple sap in mid-December. Incarna was "released" in June 2011, with one small room and no interaction. Today (September 2011) it's still just one small room and no interaction. This room is supposed to be your quarters, but really it's only accurate if you live in a Minmatar station. So there are 3 more small rooms that haven't come out of CCP yet before we even start talking about actual interaction. And this was considered an expansion of EVE Online. So where did it all go wrong? How about missing the point completely. Here's a quote from the EVE Online website:

What is EVE Online?

EVE is a Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMORPG) that takes place approximately 20.000 years after our times in a galaxy on the far end of the universe. When you join EVE you assume the role of a freshly graduated „Capsuleer“, a relatively small group of elite spaceship pilots capable of controlling powerful spaceships on their own from within their capsules. Capsuleers are often referred to as "The immortals" due to the fact that the highly advanced capsules they are connected to from the inside, are capable of instantly dowloading their consciousness to a clone of themselves in the case of physical destruction.

This sounds like a game about flying around in spaceships. In fact, that's the reason I started playing back in 2007. Unfortunately, 2 of the last 3 expansions haven't really been about flying around in spaceships. Tyrannis was about planets, and getting stuff out of planets, but no interaction with your actual spaceship (unless you call a mid-space rendezvous with a static box interaction). Incursion made us hope CCP realized the game was about spaceships, and it was pretty good. Incursions are a great way to get players to work together and make a good amount of money in game. It brought some freshness to EVE, although it took several months to trickle out completely. And then there was Incarna. Incarna brought the NEX (a RMT Cash shop for clothing for your new EVE Avatar) and a single room where you get out of your POD and sit on a couch alone. Incarna also brought most standard gaming rigs to their knees with it's intensive hardware requirements and 3D engine, so much so that many veteran players disabled it, only to discover the insult of CCP - when you disable Incarna, you stare at a door. No ship. No hangar. In fact, as far as spaceships go, Incarna reduced the number of functional tools are game playability when in station. Many people took this suggestion (see the door) and cancelled their subscriptions, including myself. As I mentioned, two accounts come due in the next couple weeks. So why would I renew them?

This is the same question many have asked since the release of Incarna. People at CCP used to play EVE. Many still do, I'm sure. But do they do more than log in, flip a skill, and watch the video screen in their Minmatar Captain's Quarters? There was a time that CCP paid attention to what was happening in EVE Online and made adjustments to the game, because they recognized what their players were doing, and came up with ideas to make it better. Then there was a time that CCP recognized that EVE needed something fresh, and exciting, and they added new ships and content to the universe. But that freshness is now stale, changes have been made but not iterated on (like the never-finished nullsec upgrade Dominion), and updates to some ships have made others virtually useless.

So much bad news. So what is the future of EVE Online?

I'm going to be positive, because even after 4 years I still spend hours reading and writing forum and blog posts about this game that I love, but the reality is, CCP has to recognize the issue and act on it sooner than later. I think (I hope) that the winter expansion will bring the focus back to spaceships. Even though team BFF seems to be a small piece of the hundreds of CCP employees, they are the team that seems to actually play this game we love, and they are trying to work on the spaceship side of the game (or at least that's what they say). But as the weeks (and months) pass, more and more subscriptions (like mine) are tailing off, and the number of folks logged in is dropping. Hopefully CCP sees this trend, and in the winter expansion (or before it) they will bring back one small piece that everyone took for granted – low-impact ship spinning. So many would log into EVE, and just sit in station while using corp/alliance/chat (or now Jabber) and undock when there was action. When CCP took away that view, many stopped logging in because the heavy load of the Incarna Engine on a computer, just to stare at your ship, made it hard to do other things while EVE waited. Now, when the ping comes across Jabber, fewer folks are actually logged in, so why bother at all? By showing us the door or 75% CPU/GPU utilization to stand alone in a room, CCP has asked us not to log in and wait, so it becomes effort to log in at all, and people just don't.

The CSM knows it, and they are gearing up to try and push CCP to recognize that bleeding your cow to death isn't the wisest course of action. Posts by The Mittani, Seleene and White Tree show that the CSM is gearing up to do what CCP seems unable to without them - try and save EVE Online. Because if the current trend continues, and there isn't growth for the spaceship side of the game, EVE will die before it can become real (the fantasy shown at FanFest).

Upper management in CCP needs to look at the logs, really and make sure that the spaceships get as much attention as the spaceshirts - because if they don't there won't be anyone to wear the fashionable artwork coming into the NEX.

Incarna 1.0: less than the sum of its parts

2011-06-24T16:51:00.001-04:00

Where CCP went wrong on 21-June-2011

It seemed normal - the summer expansion for EVE Online, this one was Incarna, the first iteration in the new direct character-to-character interaction in EVE. Even though there would be no new interaction (Incarna 1.0 was just the individual quarters), it was to lay the foundation for the next aspect of EVE, more than just a space combat simulator, a space opera with direct interaction. Oh, and they included the rudimentary Noble Exchange, which ostensibly would enable players to personalize their character (and someday ship) with a new currency in EVE Online, the aurum. There were the obligatory changes and fixes (although not many), and the random upgraded ship (although it seems this was done solely for the login screen). Just another patch day, until a perfect storm of errors led to the "pitchforks and torches" being raised in forums across the internet that discuss EVE Online. Let's hold of on the tangents until later (there are plenty of them), and focus on what is wrong with Incarna 1.0, the so-called summer expansion of EVE Online.

Captain's Quarter(s)

The solitary captain's quarter. Although there are stations built by each of the four major races (and frankly I wouldn't be surprised if there were stations built by the various lineages, but that would be even more challenging), Incarna 1.0 contains a single version of a single station - the Minmatar. Ok, it takes a long time to develop textures and variations of nurnies for variation in 3D environments. However, Incarna has been spoken of by CCP to the EVE playerbase for years. And in those years, we have one hangar (with odd DOF issues) and one hallway, and one room. If Incarna had included the 4 racial quarters, it would have at least been a resonable addition to the production environment.

The blatant ignorance of game lore and playability in the release of the Captain's Quarter. When I started playing EVE (December 18, 2007), I took the time and read every piece of lore in the Chronicles. It helps when answering trivia for Somer Lotteries, but little else, until now. Entering and exiting the pod is a non-trivial experience. But in order to force exposure to the single Captain's Quarter, CCP game designers decided to forgo 9 years of lore and have us appear, fully clothed and clean, inside a room, everytime we dock. It has been suggested many times that the proper immersing experience would be to have a "disembark" option directly above the undock button in the interface, and the hangar view of the active ship (the docked view prior to Incarna) a standard piece of the experience. Disembarking should lead to a choice of clothing, then entrance in the CQ. That seems quite logical, and immersive. Even the bittervets would probably explore the CQ at least once, perhaps dabble in it during "downtimes" if it were optional.

Having new players start in the CQ makes sense - it is an introduction to the game, and a way to find information and learn a process - but forcing everyone who docks to go into the CQ breaks immersion. EVE is not "real" with that one simple choice. Even a dialog when docking (do you wish to disembark) would be better than the current experience, and the choice of not loading CQ (staring at a door) is the biggest insult to the veteran player ever. The bitterest of vets have seen this approach as a ploy to encourage players to start spending money on Noble Exchange items, since the CQ is currently the only place to see your personal purchases in this release.

Reduced functionality. Seleene and others have discussed how the forced experience of CQ reduces the actual functionality of the gameplay, for those of you who for some foolish reason don't read or follow them, gameplay has basically been limited and functionality reduced in the following ways: right click on current ship in hangar, double click on current ship in hangar, drag and drop ship from list to hangar, and more (those three affect my gameplay personally).

Noble Exchange

I'm not sure where to start with this. This particular topic can easily digress into the tangents that occurred around the release of Incarna, but I will try to stay within the actual 1.0 release at first. The handful of items available in the Noble Exchange are outrageously priced. Want a fully fit carrier? Choose between that and a monocle - they cost about the same in ISK. A complete outfit costs more than a faction battleship hull. Oh, and these items are NPC generated only - there is no player created content or material in the Noble Exchange, and (since you are naked in your pod) they are never destroyed during combat (unless you are hauling them around in you hold). So prices. Prices are a bit off, in my opinion. Realize that the "new" player will have about 10 million ISK in their wallet after doing every tutorial mission and the introductory Epic Arc - and then realize to get a pair of custom boots they need more than that 10 million (assuming someone has reposted a pair of boots up on the market at purchase price – which is a bad assumption). Each unit of Aurum (right now) costs about 110,000 ISK, but you can't buy it that way. You can only get Aurum by redeeming PLEX, which cost at least 350,000,000-400,000,000 ISK each (and for that you get 3,500 Aurum). It's apparent that the Noble Exchange is designed to be a PLEX sink, and actually the price of PLEX ticked up during the lead into the release of Incarna - but most of the purchasers have apparently sat on their now bubbled PLEX as the price of the few items in the Noble Exchange are unrealistic. To gain widespread acceptance, users should have been able to buy a few things, perhaps a whole outfit, for less than one PLEX. That would have increased updake of these new, NPC generated items. But pricing isn't the only issue.

The community has brought up again and again how the items in the Noble Exchange are not truly part of the player-driven economy, and their indestructability more foolish than the indestructability of player deployed outposts in nullsec. Well, the indestructability is questionable. According to lore, pod pilots are naked in their goo, so clothing is irrelevant. But the monocle (which offers no ingame benefit and is outrageously priced) would be lost in the depths of space when a pilot is podded, much like the implants in their clone. That is a simple fact. By denying this simple, standardized rule of existing gameplay, CCP has broken their own set of rules for an overpriced vanity item, with no real justification or reason. Clothing in the hold of a ship is subject to the same rules as any other item, the monocle (or any other physical addition to the current clone) should be subject to the same rules as any other addition to that clone (i.e. implants). Secondary to destruction is creation. Items in the Noble Exchange should require some player-created component to make/purchase. Planetary Interaction provides us with a wealth of items that could easily be integrated into the Noble Exchange much as LP store items require Tags/Ships/Modules/ISK for purchase. This at least would integrate the Noble Exchange into the EVE economy in some small way - but for some reason a pre-existing game tool couldn't be replicated for a new game feature to maintain the player-driven experience that is EVE.

These are the two major components of Incarna - a fraction of the first avatar-driven space, and a fraction of the new Microtransational store. Fortunately, the semi-annual upgrade doesn't cost the EVE player any additional money - CCP hasn't started charging for these upgrades on top of the monthly subscription (yet). There is more to Incarna, but those things have been lost in the disappointment and frustration revolving around the two large components of the summer expansion.

Into the fire...

Following the release of Incarna, an internal CCP memo discussing microtransactions was leaked to the public. The timing was perfect for the "I hate EVE crowd" – This fueled an already burning anger after the recent missteps of the Third Party Licensing fees and the discussion of ships in the Noble Exchange. I will not comment on this just yet - I am going to give CCP the opportunity to finish their response to the community, but I, like many other EVE veterans, feel betrayed by the company that makes a game we are passionate about.

Thoughts on money...real money part I

2011-06-21T10:40:00.001-04:00

I've been digesting the issues CCP has put before the community recently, and trying to determine how bad some of it is. I've posted short twitter comments, but really, that medium doesn't allow wall-of-text exposition, and some of these topics need that.

First up: Microtransactions

This one is rife with trouble, most of it revolving around discussions for a special, skinned ship, the Ishukone Scorpion. This ship would (initially) only be available in the Noble Exchange, which has much of the community up in arms, as this appears to be the first step towards cash for real items, at least to the short sighted. Of course, CCP claimed that they would not introduce items that gave an in-game advantage to this new Microtransaction store, and at first glance this breaks that agreement. Unfortunately, it's a misconception on the player's part. Let's follow the path of money (real money) into EVE online. Right now, there is only one way to "spend" real money on EVE, and that is for subscription time. You can pay a standard monthly subscription, you can buy a Game Time Card (GTC) from a CCP partner, or you can buy PLEX (Pilot's License EXtension) from CCP. A GTC is converted in-game into two PLEX, an in-game item. Today, a PLEX (or a GTC, for that matter) can be traded for ISK, on the open EVE market. OK - that's how money gets into EVE today. Coming soon: Aurum. This is a new way to get money into EVE, I don't know the actual process, whether it's only a PLEX to Aurum conversion, or if you will be able to directly buy Aurum with money through CCP (or third party authorized sites). Either way, this is the microtransaction currency. I think this is dumb, by the way. They just ought to let you buy ISK, and add the new items to the regular market. After all, you can already do that.

As we followed above, when you buy a GTC you can convert it straight to ISK (by selling it to another player) or convert it into two PLEX (which can also be sold for ISK). So you already have a path to convert real money into ISK. That ISK can be used in game to buy whatever items are available on the market, from a single unit of Tritanium to a Titan. Depending on what you buy with your ISK (think +5 implants, or better ships/modules), you can gain an in-game advantage over someone with less real-world cash, because you spent money to get ISK quickly, while someone else has to grind it in game. So what exactly does the Aurum market add besides un-neccessary complexity?

Moving money around in EVE
With the introduction of Aurum, it seems to me CCP is just trying to assuage upset customers who don't realize you already have fairly direct ways of spending real money to "get ahead." After all, Aurum comes from PLEX (you sell a PLEX for Aurum), and CCP has said that you can buy a PLEX with Aurum, so you basically have a second currency for no good reason. After all, PLEX -> ISK -> PLEX is already a proven currency flow, so adding PLEX -> Aurum -> PLEX is actually just an extension of the chain: PLEX -> ISK -> PLEX -> Aurum -> PLEX -> ISK. I see PLEX now as a new "meta currency" between the two main currencies in EVE, Aurum and ISK. So why have two currencies with an exchange? I don't know. But I do know that no matter what is for sale in the Noble Exchange, you will be able to get it with ISK. After all, if you have about 350 million ISK (June 2011) you can buy a PLEX. Now, take that PLEX and convert it to Aurum. Now buy what you want in the Noble Exchange. Turn around and sell it for a profit, take the excess Aurum and convert it back into a PLEX. Sell that PLEX for ISK. Rinse and repeat.

So although I was initially upset about the Ishukone Watch Scorpion (a special skinned ship that would be available in the Noble Exchange), I'm not anymore. After all, if I have enough ISK to convert to PLEX to convert to Aurum I can buy one, basically with my ISK. In addition, once the item exists in game, I should be able to sell it on a contract on the EVE open ISK market, (or buy one the same way), without having to deal with the Aurum/Noble Exchange at all. CCP seems to have done this to create an false wall between ISK and microtransactions, when in reality it's just adding more steps between ISK and new items. Unless, of course, those items can never, ever be traded to another player. But wouldn't that be stupid?

As for the ship itself, it's not functionally special. CCP has said it was a standard Scorpion with a special paint job - but why does that matter? So what if you can only get it in the Noble Exchange? You can take your ISK, convert it to PLEX then to Aurum and buy it. You don't HAVE to spend real money on it. And that brings me (finally) to my question. What's the big deal then?

Enter the Carrier...

2011-05-13T13:21:00.001-04:00

Thanatos. In Greek mythology, Thanatos was the daemon personification of death.

Shortly, I will have finally given in and will be flying my first capital class ship. Even after almost 4 years, I know nothing about capitals, except that when they blow up, everyone makes fun of the fittings. Well, knowing that I will lose it sooner or later, I want to try and avoid some of those snarky comments. So I open up comments below for Thanatos fittings. I'd request that if the fitting comes in an EFIT format the name be the descriptor for the role the fitting is designed to fulfill.

Try not to pimp out too much – it is only a carrier, and hence likely to be lost sooner than later.

Here's a first cut:

[Thanatos, Standard Nullsec Carrier]
Damage Control II
Energized Adaptive Nano Membrane II
Armor Kinetic Hardener II
Armor Explosive Hardener II
Armor Thermic Hardener II
Capital Armor Repairer I

Sensor Booster II
Cap Recharger II
Cap Recharger II
Cap Recharger II
Cap Recharger II

True Sansha Heavy Energy Neutralizer
True Sansha Heavy Energy Neutralizer
True Sansha Large EMP Smartbomb
Capital Remote Armor Repair System I
Capital Remote Armor Repair System I

Large Capacitor Control Circuit I
Large Capacitor Control Circuit I
Large Capacitor Control Circuit I

Firbolg x10
Einherji x10

Ok folks - let 'er rip. Give me your Thanatos fits!

Burn out comes to all of us

2011-03-30T17:00:00.000-04:00

Title says it all. I'm approaching 4 years in EVE, and I am feeling a bit of burnout. It's not that I've done everything (I haven't even come close), but that my life has changed over the last 4 years, and less and less of my free time can go to EVE. This lack of time is probably a large factor in the burnout - after all when you have 30 minutes at the end of your day, you need a playstyle that will support that type of time. POS management? Not a good choice. Mining? Works, but really? Log in for 30 minutes of mining? Missions? Not likely. L4s take a bit more than that unless you are just blitzing. PvP? Sure. Just log in, fit up that ship you have in your hangar, you have all the mods too right? If not, spend this session getting the gear. Next session fitting the ship (trust me here - do a couple of them). Finally a few days later you can go PvP. Quick, hop in to Anamake or Old Man Star and hope you get a fun fight and not just a ride on the clone vat express.

I'm not complaining (OK, yes I am complaining). I'm looking at my time, and wondering what I can do that is just, simply, a bit of fun. EVE is a great game, a wide, expansive universe, but there isn't a lot of fun in small doses. Last night was a prime example. I've been running L4 missions for ISK, since my wallet finally dipped below 100m recently. But L4 missions take 1-2 hours to complete usually, including loot and salvage (and if you are in it for the ISK that's sort of required). That means (if I'm lucky) I get to run 1 mission during an EVE session. I've been working a 5-mission arc for more than a week (yes, really), and I still have one to go. Thank goodness each time you complete one stage the 7 day tick starts again for the next mission stage.

I started contemplating getting some cheap(ish) solo PvP ships into NPC nullsec and doing some solo PvP, but I've found (in recent experience) that I'm not very good at that, and I'd lose them fairly fast. My corp is fine (well, it's an industry corp, and even though the title is about being a closet carebear, I've been out of the closet now for about 5 months, and I don't think it's where I want to be), they are active enough, and there are things going on there, but not 30-minute heart-pounding PvP fun. Time to start looking for something fun to do (once I rebuild that wallet, anyway).

DED Complexities, or "Why the Anomaly nerf isn't the end of the world"

2011-03-29T16:41:00.000-04:00

I've been contemplating this more and more over the last couple days since the detailed devblog from CCP Greyscale, and I wonder if there isn't a different motive, regardless of what CCP Grayscale says. The introduction of the Haven/Sanctum upgrade to Dominion created a new, vast raw ISK faucet in the large bounties for the rats in these now-rapidly-spawning plexes. Unlike L4 missions, exploration, or WH ops, you can create/introduce a lot of ISK into the economy (rather than the NPC wreck -> salvage/loot -> ISK conversion). The folks who make similar money in L4 missions are not just shooting the ships for ISK, they are salvaging, looting, converting LP to items, and many other balanced ISK conversions.

Even if CCP won't admit that as a reason, they can't seriously just cripple the income stream for the largest number of nullsec pilots and alliances to repair a broken ISK faucet. And in fact, they really aren't.

OMFG I can't afford my system anymore

What does a fully upgraded system cost these days with iHub + Pirate Array installed? According to the EVE Wiki it costs 180 million ISK every 30 days to maintain sovereignty. There are no monthly fees for an iHub with Military or Industrial Upgrades installed - only the initial deployment costs. I'm not going to go over the Sovereignty Upgrades, as they all have additional cost, on the monthly scale, and should't be installed in every system anyway. That works out to 6 million ISK/day in sovereignty costs, which means (with a baseline 10% tax) pilots need to earn a cumulative 60 million ISK day per system to pay for basic Sovereignty.

The discussion as to how much you can earn in an anomaly ranges from a pittance to several hundred million isk (when using assigned fighters or titans). Let's get real though, and just pretend we don't have any Havens or Sanctums now. That means we get the Faction Hub as our cash cow. Reliable sources have the average ISK/HR for a Hub at about 15-20 million ISK/hr. According to the EVE Wiki, an iHub with Pirate Array 1 will spawn 4 simultaneous Anomalies (in any 0.00 system), and the Pirate Array 5 will spawn 20 simultaneously.

Based on 15-20m/hr raw income per Hub (the highest anomaly in those low truesec systems), with only 4 Hubs (not Havens or Sanctums) and one pilot ratting in each (for 10 hours a day total) you've covered your sovereignty costs. In addition those pilots are taking home (net divided by all of them) 540 million ISK, which seems to be about 15 million isk/pilot/hour (if my math hasn't completely failed).

((4x10)x15)= (600*.1) = 60
600-60 = 540/10 = 54/4 = 14.5

So you can still afford sovereignty if you have 40 total hours of ratting per day and a baseline 10% corp tax. OK, that's covered.

The individual pilot can't afford a T2 cruiser on that budget, but for a couple hours ratting they can have a T2 Frigate or a T2 Fit Standard Cruiser.

But what about my Faction/Deadspace Fit Tengu?

DED Complexes rediscovered

For some reason everyone is missing the other side of this argument. Any old roaming gang can fly into your space, pop open the directional scan, and get into your anomalies and farm your ratters. But it takes time, a little effort, and a specialized ship and skills to get at your Cosmic Signatures (also known as DED complexes). Everyone has ignored these (mostly) because the Havens and Sanctums were quick, easy money, but a smattering of DED complexes exist if you purchase and install the Entrapment Array. This hasn't been too awesome, because if you aren't in the cool faction space, you didn't get a full range of DED complexes. But wait - isn't this also being changed in Incursion 1.4? Why yes, yes it is.

New DED Complexes belonging to various pirate factions have been discovered, with returning capsuleers often proudly displaying never-before-seen modules obtainable exclusively from the most challenging foes in these complexes.

In a previous blog, CCP Big Dumb Object mentioned that they would be filling out all the higher end DED complexes (and adding a bunch of module drops). Remember this one? Out of the Shadows. Suddenly all the various faction DED sites exist in the most difficult (and most profitable) types, and they are going to drop more faction modules, some for the first time ever. With the Entrapment Array (still only a one-time purchase cost per level) now you have these DED complexes which have rats, possible faction spawns with a full suite of new faction module drops on top of the anomalies in the Pirate Detection Array.

Oh, wait a minute...

So CCP is reducing the value of the easily accessed Cosmic Anomalies, but really it isn't the end of the world, since you can still make a little bit of ISK there, and they are expanding the range of Cosmic Signatures and the loot drops from those signatures. Overall what I see is a move from a raw ISK-only stream (bounties) to a more balanced object-based ISK stream (loot drops). I also see safer space to work in, since every roaming gang isn't always going to have a combat/core prober in fleet (and even if they do it's a lot easier to look for probes now too).

Politics, Voting, and Coordination

2011-03-29T11:02:00.000-04:00

The results are in, and of nearly 50,000 votes the numbers are scary. 33,635 people voted for candidates that made the council (and alternates). That means nearly 20,000 votes (or over 1/3 of the total) did not go to one of the 14 (yes 14) names on the delegate/alternate list. That means that the top vote getter (The Mittani from Goonswarm) took home barely more than 10% of the votes cast.

In fact, if the only people who voted for The Mittani were Goons (and they weren't) he'd have had close to 6000 votes (if all those members were on different accounts) - which is still barely more than 20% of the total number of votes cast. What was most interesting to me in this election was the average age of the voting character was over 2 years, which means that most of the folks who took the time to click three times on a web page (after logging in) were older players, and likely nullsec players, based on the results.

55.44% of voters had accounts older than 2 years, 13.33% older than 5 years and 2.88% older than 7

Most of those 55.44% of voters probably bloc-voted for nullsec candidates, in light of the type of campaign run by most of the nullsec candidates. The entire CSM is made up of Nullsec alliance members, if I am reading this correctly (yes, even Trebor, who is in Initiative Mercenaries). What does this mean for those of you who are feeling un-represented? Well, not all is lost. First of all, many nullsec pilots have hisec alts who run missions, so that aspect of EVE is probably not going to be ignored or unknown to the CSM members. Second, even though The Mittani is Chairman, Goonswarm isn't out to destroy EVE - so his guidance (if he has any real authority) will not be to run EVE into the ground. The biggest worry is for the New Player Experience, with no solid representative to stand for the clueless in EVE. New players aren't leaping immediately into nullsec alliance politics and war, so hopefully a couple folks in the CSM will remember new players are the growth and future of EVE.

What may surprise you is that none of the Empire/HiSec candidates made a significant showing. This makes sense, since (unlike the nullsec alliances) these candidates don't coordinate (either for or against each other) with the same type of regularity as the nullsec alliances. Nullsec alliances are powerhouses compared to the rabble of hisec, groups who easily gang together 10-20, 50, 100 or more pilots at a time, alliances with thousands of members who communicate regularly in one way or another. This year they did so, and the results are striking. How do you overcome such organization? Fight fire with fire, as they say. EVE is a social game, a shared experience, and even though you, and your corp (of 15 buddies) and your alliance (of another 30-40 guys you loosely associate with) feel like you have an impact in your little pocket of EVE, those numbers need to expand exponentially to become a powerhouse, and you can't exactly run missions with battlefleets of 20-50 (I'm ignoring incursions and wormholes here on purpose) with any real profit in EVE.

To present a unified front for the Empire/HiSec players, coalitions need to be formed well in advance of CSM elections - coalitions that represent players with common goals, playstyles, and experiences. A coalition (or even 3) of Empire/HiSec players would have easily found a seat on the CSM, but fractured, independent candidates are actually representative of life in Empire. These players are fractured, independent, and rarely group-goal oriented. Only by creating a coalition around a similar playstyle/goal/method can the fractured Empire playerbase hope to compete in this event. Perhaps the new structure of Incursions, where groups must gather and play together with others more than before, will be the foundation for some sort of structured Empire coalitions, if not (assuming that forward progress with CSM as a stakeholder continues), when CSM 7 comes around next year we will see the same thing. If you were a candidate, and you didn't have a large playerbase to communicate with and to, now is the time to start campaigning again, get out and talk to the players you expect to represent, find out where they disagree with you, and find a common ground to move forward. Build your coalition. Or, be satisfied that others can do it better than you. Politics isn't for everyone, after all...

Post-Mortem: PAX East CCP Event

2011-03-14T11:47:00.004-04:00

Marketing campaigns are always tricky. CCP Daishi has been experimenting with various methods of marketing and communication, and the result of one of these experiments was the EVE player gathering during PAX East in Boston, MA. A scheduled 2-hour social with what seemed to be about 50 players from both PAX and the local area (including apparently some who traveled from Pittsburgh). Two CCP Marketing folks (CCP Cupcake and Daishi), CCP Big Dumb Object from the content team, and GM Syndemic rounded out the hosts. They all circulated well, and I was able to participate in a very interesting 20-30 minute discussion with CCP Big Dumb Object about our favorite space opera. I'm sure I could write up anything specific I remember, but rather than take the slim chance I can't, I'll simply say that I am hopeful that the content team in Atlanta is able to do some of the things that were mentioned - they would be good for EVE. The one thing I will talk about is the challenges they face with Faction Warfare. It was interesting to listen to him talk about how CCP has to walk a fine line with backstory and content in relation to actual gameplay features, and how Empyrean Age was a painful learning experience for them. Not afraid to admit the challenges his team has fallen short on, and discuss success as much as struggle, I was very impressed with CCP Big Dumb Object, and the things he was able to talk about, both past and present.

GM Syndemic and I had a few minutes to talk about life as a GM, and I learned that we, the players of EVE Online, are exceedingly vain. Although there is always an increase in petitions when a new patch comes out, the release of the Incarna character creator (and the subsequent click-happy acceptance of changes to the avatar) produced the most petitions of any single event ever - people couldn't take the time to do it right, and didn't read the dialogs that told them it was permanent, and the result was more petitions for a single issue ever in EVE. Wow people, I know we've been stuck with our faces (some of us for many, many years) but the sheer volume of petitions described because you A changed your face and B didn't read the dialogs warning you it was done shocked me.

Here's hoping that the tattoos and piercings don't generate a repeat performance.

CCP Daishi appears to have a lot of motivation for promoting EVE (he is also the voice behind the Butterfly Effect video), and a matching level of faith in the intelligence and skill of the EVE player. QR code hints, messages buried in websites and videos? These are ideas that come from his planning, and add a different kind of challenge to EVE. Also a fan of single-malt whiskey (the Scottish variety), as the mastermind behind the event I think he did a great job, even with the challenges he faced in pulling it off.

The players in person? This is always interesting to me. With a dual degree in literature and psychology, I tend to watch people, and their behaviors, from an intellectual point of view. There were the hard-core fans (the guy in an Agony T-Shirt, the guy in the Hulkageddon III shirt). The campaign stumper (one of the CSM candidates was there handing out flyers), and the group with the largest showing (about 10% of total attendees) was Test Alliance Please Ignore, and they were very fun-loving, energetic people, matching the impression one gets from the alliance as a whole. Most people had their RL name and at least one in-game character on their "Hi My Name Is..." badge, and the once who really made me laugh were the folks who started a conversation with "Hi, I'm insert name here have I ever ganked you? You don't seem familiar..." In a game with 300,000 accounts, and an average 35,000 people online any given hour, to run into someone who you know unintentionally is highly unlikely, and to run into someone you've ganked (unless you are a top-ten Battleclinic pilot) even less so. It shows something about how we perceive ourselves, in this universe, as significant in some way.

The most interesting thing I took away was something we probably don't often think about. I met a guy from R.A.G.E. (Northern Coalition member). I'm not a fan of how the NC works, what they possess in EVE, and the way they have grown. I have grudging respect for it, but I don't personally like it. But this guy (Phil) was a real person, not the NC Boogeyman that I (and others) see on the map. He was down to earth, a nice guy, and great to chat with. Sure, when we sit down in front of our machines and log into EVE, we take on the persona of the player we are in game (not RP here folks, but the type of game you choose to play), but when you walk away, the guy you just popped, podded, and probably smacked in local, is a lot like you. When you both walk away from the keyboard, you are both just as excited (or passionate) about this game and the universe of EVE, even if you are on different sides in an epic conflict. I am happy to say that the folks hosting this event are just as excited (or passionate) about EVE. Really. They are.

My hopes for CSM 6

2011-03-03T11:22:00.000-05:00

The official list is out. You can see the whole list of CSM Candidates here.

I have 3 accounts, and with them choices.

To me CSM is both a blessing and a curse. We are electing players we hope will speak to what is best for EVE, as a whole. Although I could be very, very wrong about my choices (although I obviously haven't voted yet), I can only hope CSM 6 will work as a whole to help CCP recognize that the work of Team BFF is critical to the long term stability and balance in EVE, and just posting in a devblog that "the feature will be modified as necessary" isn't the same as actually doing that.

Although CSM5 has been able to put pressure on CCP with the support of the playerbase and the power of the internet for communication, CSM isn't a game design board - it's a representative body to bring up player issues for EVE as a whole. Folks who recognize that first and foremost will be the least surprised when they get to Iceland and don't get to have the CCP devs work on their personal pet peeve for EVE. The candidates I am choosing to back have that perspective, and realize that EVE is larger than what they do in the game individually.

For those of you who fear the possibility of a 0.0 powerbloc in the CSM, realize that most of them have just as much experience in PvE as PvP (although for them PvE it's a means to an end, not an end unto itself), and that over the last 3 years 0.0 has had the least attention of CCP (see below). I'd be more worried that a divided CSM, with varied agendas and personal goals, would be less effective than CSM 5 (which was the first partially effective council ever).

Where do I want CCP and the CSM to focus? Here's a list of expansions since 2008 (I'm counting Trinity since 12/2007 is so close)

Trinity (12/2007): 5 New Ship Classes, mixed PvE/PvP use - these have never been "tweaked" since release that I am aware of. The common belief is that Black Ops, EWar Frigs are both broken (badly), and have been since their release.
Empyrean Age (06/2008): Faction War. Empire content only. Faction War with PvE and PvP options - this has never been iterated that I am aware of. Faction War has a laundry list of problems.
Quantum Rise (11/2008): Industrial Ship rebalancing (Orca introduced). Speed nerfs on Interceptors. Nothing to see here. I suppose you could call this an "Empire" content patch, since Orcas are not exactly roaming the nullsec roid fields...
Apocrypha (03/2009): T3 Cruisers, Wormholes. Mostly PvE content, although wormholes allow PvP experience. Some ship tweaking. Apocrypha was iterated at least once (introduction of Epic Arcs). This was the golden release for EVE in my opinion. Apocrypha introduced a lot of new things that actually worked. There really isn't a huge backlog that I'm aware of from this release, other than the T3 Frigates that never were.
Dominion (12/2009): Mostly Nullsec content. Overhaul of Sovereignty system. Introduction of Pirate Epic Arcs (occur in nullsec). Although major issues introduced with Dominion (lag) have been iterated on, the Sovereignty system was never fully deployed, and has never been iterated. Supercarriers were modified and (like other ship changes) need serious adjustment (again).
Tyrannis (05/2010): Hello PI. Other than making the Scorpion look new, there is no PvP content in this patch (unless working to fix lag counts). Tyrannis content has been iterated at least two times. Oh, and CCP totally screwed up T2 production and gave the sov holders in the North the biggest wallets in the history of EVE with the disastrous Technetium buff.
Incursion (01/2011): Primarily PvE content, some ship modifications and T2 ammo adjustments. Incursion was released in 3 pieces, one of which may have actually improved large fleet combat lag.

Looking through that backlog of just over 3 years of content, Nullsec/PvP has not been getting the attention that PvE/empire has, and the attention it got (Dominion) was then largely ignored (like Faction War) as far as iterative development and correctly. This should be the focus of the CSM. Fix issues introduced in major updates that were supposed to be iterated on. Hello, Team BFF. You have a big backlog, and we want it fixed. My votes for CSM are all about getting in front of CCP and reminding them that they should deliver on their promises.

Alliances and Sovereignty

2011-02-28T09:00:00.112-05:00

Welcome to the twenty-fifth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week or so to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check for other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This month's topic comes to us from @Tetraetc - "Tetra's EVE Blog" - who asks: "Have Alliances and the sovereignty system limited the amount of PVP and RP potential in Null sec? Imagine a Null Sec where anyone could build outposts wherever. Would the reduction of the alliance game mechanic, and the removal of the sovereignty game mechanics (or the modifcation of it from Alliance level to Corp level for that matter) force more PVP into Null sec, or would giant power blocs like the NC still form themselves?"

Before I even begin, I feel the most important part of this particular banter is whether or not the writer has any real experience with any of this. Like any argument, there are multiple side to the questions about the state of nullsec in EVE. So here is the position I write from. In the summer of 2009 I joined a corp that was in an alliance based out of NPC nullsec (Outer Ring). Vanguard[dot] had recently moved there as a stepping stone to bigger nullsec experiences. Living next to Fountain when held by Pandemic Legion, pre-Dominion, and Cloud Ring, when nobody really cared about it (except the station systems in the northwest). Vanguard[dot] was not as PvP focused as my corp leadership, and after a few months we left for a different alliance in Syndicate - Art of Defiance. This small alliance was strongly focused on PvP, with a small internal industry wing to occupy combat-free times, and was quickly absorbed into Dead Terrorists when they decided to experience nullsec and created a difficult environment for Vanguard[dot] in Outer Ring (Vanguard[dot] joined the NC and moved up into a back-end constellation in Pure Blind). As a part of Dead Terrorists I participated in Max 2 (the northern war of Spring 2010), and then held sovereignty in Cloud Ring before the ill-fated decision to assault the south, and the final occupancy (and fall) of Feythabolis. I have been in sovereign holding alliances. I have fought against sovereign holding alliances before and after Dominion. That's the background for where my discussion of this topic will come from.

So on to the show...Have Alliances and the Sovereignty System limited the amount of PvP and RP Potential in Null Sec?
Let's get the easy part out of the way. After the reduction in the lag beast over the last few weeks/months in 2010 and early 2011, PvP from small gang to large fleet is alive and well in 0.0. Sure, targets aren't sitting out belly up on the beach, but they are there. The biggest worry with PvP in nullsec is whether some trigger-happy cyno-dropping fool is the one you catch, and you find yourself facing a bored cap/super pilot, and this isn't even that common. More common is the target-less roams out and around the NPC cores in nullsec and the occasional defense fleet to fight with. Although I personally am not a fan of the current state of the west/north, as long as you are only a bug (small gang) and don't mind flying 10-20 systems for a target, you can roam in the western blue ocean. Alliances and the Sov System have not limited the amount of PvP in Null Sec. There could be objectives and targets within sovereign systems to generate more PVP (which is a whole other topic), but it does exist.

RP is a whole other beast. A recent post by GoonSwarm leader The Mittani on Kugutsumen is a valid perspective. Role Playing in nullsec is a slippery slope, since the expansionist and combative nature of most groups in nullsec will usually not be limited by the character constraints of an RP player. In that selfsame thread, there is an underlying theme that the e-honour of the CVA alliance would have been their undoing had other factors not brought their fall about sooner. In fact, corporations from their RP opponents, Ushra'khan, seem to have mostly lost their RP perspective after breathing too much of the reprocessed air in nullsec stations. In an environment where any system can have value with a fully upgraded iHub, and powerblocs form for mutual defense and cooperation, there is no backwater region that would be left alone for the role-players in EVE to play the game as they choose. In post-dominion EVE, RP seems to be relegated to NPC nullsec and Empire if it is to thrive.

Would the reduction of the alliance game mechanic, and the removal of the sovereignty game mechanics (or the modifcation of it from Alliance level to Corp level for that matter) force more PVP into Null sec, or would giant power blocs like the NC still form themselves?

This sounds like a question from someone who hasn't taken a lot of social courses like world history or politics/government courses. Lets ignore the mechanics at first (yes, they are broken, that's a whole other story). People form communities for shared resources and security. This is actually something that all primates appear to do, and part of what makes us able to live in a modern society. Giant power blocs like the NC, DC, DRF exist because people inherently form groups when overcoming larger challenges. Making this hard to do in EVE is counter to human nature, and not good for the game. The bloc will still form, just in a less obvious way (unless CCP were to do away with standings all together, and that would be a total disaster). Take away the ability of an alliance to do anything, and corps will just form an unofficial one with standings.

And now the beast that is sovereignty. It is a fairly well known fact amongst the nullsec bittervets that the concept of Dominion Sovereignty and the implementation of Dominion Sovereignty are as similar as a blue car and a red car. Like many features in EVE, CCP deployed sovereignty and promised to "tweak it" as they went. Unfortunately they didn't and the current implementation is a mess. Let's revisit what Dominion Sovereignty was supposed to be like. Reading that, and then seeing what came in Dominion, you wonder why they hint at these things at all. The new Sov system was supposed to:

improve the pain of structure shooting (failure)
enable upgraded systems to support up to 100+ pilots (failure)
increase the cost of a sprawling empire (failure)
move sovereign battles away from tower shooting festivals (success)
enable official treaties and rental agreements with other entities (MIA)
enable small "roaming gangs" to impact your day-to-day activities (failure)
force players to develop strategies for conquest beyond warp-target-shoot (failure)
improvement of the industrial base of a nullsec empire (failure)
Return the mothership to the battlefield as a combat ship (success)
Limit the use of the supercarrier (aka mothership) as an anti-capital weapon (failure).

In fact, now's a great time to revisit CCP Abathur's blog series, which sounded pretty good, and does not seem to be anything like what we have today, which actually makes sense since Abathur appears to be gone from the CCP roster. If you took the time to read the Dominion blogs, you know that much of what was planned never happened, including, of course, the ever-mentioned and never-followed iterative development updates.

Now that I've got background in place, here's the thing. Nullsec Sovereignty should never be possible at the corp level. Nullsec Sovereignty should require alliances, but the individual alliances should not be required to sprawl across entire regions just to support a thousand pilots. In addition, the scaled cost of sovereignty should have been implemented in a way to encourage alliances to consolidate in smaller spaces. Small roaming gangs should be able to incite fights or affect your sovereign activities (but not actual ownership) by reducing indices on the iHub modules. Supercapitals shouldn't be able to do significant damage to smaller ships, and shouldn't be nearly invulnerable with a quick CTRL-Q when things don't look good. If you want to "force" more PvP into nullsec, you need to have variable targets that generate combat opportunities or have consequences for choosing not to engage. A quote I love from kugutsumen is "the barbarians should be able to burn the crops if you choose to sit safe in castle, and right now there are no crops to burn."

Learning how to fly (again)

2011-02-17T12:07:00.000-05:00

Last night (like many nights) started out sitting in station. Some of our neighbors were in local, ratting (or mining), when a (now frequent) visitor appeared in local: Conall anDuntrune from the Tuskers. He's been flying around in an Amarr Navy Slicer, and came close to taking out one of our associates the last few times he popped his head in local. Night before I chased him him in a Proteus, but he could easily outdistance me, so tonight I boarded a Taranis. My 'ranis is pretty standard:
[Taranis, Standard]
Magnetic Field Stabilizer II
Damage Control II
Small Inefficient Armor Repair Unit

J5 Prototype Warp Disruptor I
X5 Prototype I Engine Enervator
Catalyzed Cold-Gas I Arcjet Thrusters

Light Ion Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Ion Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Ion Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Small Nosferatu I

Small Hybrid Collision Accelerator I
Small Ancillary Current Router I

Warrior II x2

She does about 3500m/s and about 230DPS (according to EFIT). I've used a fit like this for a couple years now, mostly in nullsec, as light tackle. I felt like it was pretty successful, so I hopped in and went out after Conall. Meeting at long range (about 80k apart) in a belt, I started to approach, MWD and DCU active. Launched my drones and targeted when I hit range. Then I overshot (with Faction Antimatter it's about 1k optimal+2.4 falloff). Of course, my orbit is set too wide, so I'm orbiting (or trying to) outside of my own damage range as his lasers eat through my shields and into armor quickly. I still haven't hit him with my blasters as I realize my orbit is too wide. Two shots from him and I'm almost out of armor - I didn't prepare well for this at all, so I cross my fingers, activate the armor repper, and try to warp out. He didn't have me pointed or scrammed, so...

80% hull and I'm in warp. My repper gets armor back to about 95% before I'm capped out. I reset my orbit to 500m. That plus the MWD should have me orbiting around 1500-1800m, outside of optimal but well within falloff. We chat in local - after all it's a game - and he's just getting used to the Slicer. We talk about fittings, rigs, ships in general while his GCC wears off (and I honestly try to scan down if he is at a celestial to engage again). We chat for a while but don't get on grid again - and he leaves system once his GCC is clear (which was wise because there were 4 of us looking for him now).

I have no real experience in solo PvP, all of it being small gang or large fleet, mostly in 0.0. A good chat - I probably have higher trained "skills" but he is a better pilot - and I would have lost the ship (and deserved to) if he'd had a point on me. Guess the moral of the story is: learn to fly solo PvP in a frigate. I'm going to have to do some practicing, it seems, if I am going to "defend" our losec home.

Solo PvP isn't dead in losec (I already knew that) - but how many folks do it, and in what ships? I'm sure there is a large crowd of Rifter pilots running the solo game (I'll probably use it for my training since they are a bit cheaper than an Interceptor), but if you solo in frigates, what do you fly?

The Gentrification of the Western Hemisphere

2011-02-08T16:09:00.000-05:00

As I write this, the other "writing on the wall" is the fall of Fortress Delve and the IT Alliance. Let me be clear on the first point: I am not a part of any of the alliances involved in this, the end of the "Forever War" in EVE. I have never been in IT. I have never been in an IT renter or pet, and I have never been a member of any of the alliances that make up the so-called "Northern Coalition." However, I have been aligned with forces against IT pets, when a resident of Syndicate and Outer Ring, and I have been aligned against the NC during "Max 2" - the northern invasion of Winter/Spring 2010.

The Verite Rendition map is a brilliant map of the various alliances holding sovereignty in EVE. Unfortunately, it does not have the ability to take into account the meta-blocs of the game, like the DRF, ASWagon or the Northern Coalition.

From Vale of the Silent in the Northeast,across the entire northern hemisphere to Cloud Ring, all of those alliances can be treated as one group. This is the current "Northern Coalition" founded to stand against the threat of the now two-years dead Band of Brothers (BOB), and any iteration of alliance formed from the corporations that comprised BOB, including the now-mortally wounded IT Alliance. If you assume that IT Alliance, and it's pet/renters Black Star Alliance, HUN Reloaded and BLADE are merely dead men walking in Fountain and Delve, you see that over half of Nullsec will soon be held by the (now perhaps incorrectly named) Northern Coalition. I will not make broad future assumptions about changes to the NC - instead I assume that inertia will hold the NC alliances together with blue status for the foreseeable future. Examining the map with that in mind, it becomes quite clear that the Northern Coalition of alliances (which contains upwards of 50 thousand pilots) has created a vast safe haven for the individual members to earn ISK. This, in my humble opinion, is the straw that may break the proverbial camel's back in EVE.

Nullsec has long been held up as "high-risk high-reward" and for some time, this was true in many places, but in this gentrified western hemisphere, that will no longer be true. As far as the Carrier can jump, vast ISK fields stretch before the average NC pilot, with little true threat within striking distance.

The western hemisphere of EVE has the potential to completely destroy any hope of balance in game, far beyond the damage already done by the T20, PI reprocessing, or the moon-goo fiascos of the past. Where Technetium lined the pockets of corporation and alliance leaders within the NC (and for some, trickled down to the average pilot), the vast resources of risk-free nullsec have the potential to change the wallet balance of the average NC pilot from the hundreds of millions to hundreds of billions in a short time. Safe from Black Ops hotdrops (4.5 LY max distance) and with the vast resources of the supercapital rich NC a deterrent to any smaller alliance with delusions of invasion, pilots will be free to farm Sanctums, Havens, and of course to chain multi-million ISK Battleship rats in the true nullsec systems far from any real threat. This means that rather than earning a few hundred million ISK in income per month, these pilots can make billions. By turning the entire western hemisphere of EVE into a giant ISK faucet, the average NC pilot will be able to shrug off losing carriers or faction battleships the way empire carebears shug off Drake losses in missions.

Add to that the lack of available sovereign space for a new entity to grow large enough or rich enough to even consider threatening the NC bloc, then the solidification of the NC as the sole superpower in EVE is practically a foregone conclusion. The "problem" if it is to be considered one, is that the risk-to-isk ratio in nullsec is negated in this brave new world. Even today, with the ISK or even the stockpiles of ships that the NC has at it's disposal, no entity could sustain an assault upon this group long enough to break it. The average NC alliance can replace supercapitals without hesitation, while other alliances hesitate to replace any ships that do not exactly match fitting standards.

Is there a solution? Maybe, but not one that would actually change the game for years. CCP would have to change the costs of sovereignty modules and upgrades, they would have to dynamically change the value/quality of rats in systems based on the sovereignty levels or upgrades, re-adjust the T2 moon mineral balance for ship construction (again), all of which are artificial ways of constricting this vast meta-alliance. Even with changes to those items, it would literally take years (if not longer) to cause any significant dent in the wallets of these alliances. In addition, it's likely that with CCP's track record, any changes to costs would be even more detrimental to small alliances hoping to get a start in nullsec, making that activity even more of a non-starter.

The reality is, it's time to get a character into an NC alliance, and start farming. Although it's unlikely that your wallet will reach the pinnacles of ISK that the existing farmers have (after all, they are farming ISK as you read this from your empire mission hub), the imbalance at least moves up on a sliding scale, enabling you to maintain your position in this new, vastly unbalanced world. Those who aren't able to keep their position on the sliding scale (I'm looking at you, L4 mission runners) won't be affected until they join an alliance with delusions of grandeur and nullsec sovereignty.

Roaming for Destruction...

2011-02-07T10:32:00.001-05:00

So this week on chat, a couple of us decided we really needed to see some pretty explosions. So the plan was formed to go roaming in 0.0 in ~~Vagas/Rapiers~~ Destroyers. We put the word out across the loose alliance of pilots we party with, and after much haggling for cooperative time, scheduled a 20:00 start on Saturday night. Our EU friends would be just settling down for a quiet evening, US would be somewhere in the middle of a Saturday. We would start out in losec, go visit the so-called "Pure Blind/Fade Short Bus Crew" and see the newly formed "Eye of Terror" in Cloud Ring. With 3-4 ships each, medical cloning moved to the staging system, and a handful of unfit backup ships, we should get a couple hours of fun.

The unofficial count had us at 6-7 folks, which is kind of small for a destroyer roam, but at formup we finally ended with 10 in fleet, which is just about enough to take on any single ship, BS or smaller, with luck and good planning. Form-up was a bit haphazard, since most of the pilots coming aren't part of a combat crew by nature, so we were far from ready at the 20:00 start time. EVE was busy that evening, with good sized gate camps and fleets moving through losec, rumors of a hot-drop carrier roam in Syndicate, and over 55k pilots logged in overall. Although we didn't lose any ships that night, earlier in the week a couple had been lost moving to the staging system (I personally lost a Thrasher and Pod to a super-sensor-boosted Phobos/Hurricane/Sleipnir gate camp that insta-locked pods two nights earlier). Anyway, so we are forming up around 20:00, and our initial staging system has become a bit active, with a known losec PvP alliance setting up gatecamps on the local travel routes, staging out of the same system. We adjust accordingly, and move a couple jumps to a less-active staging point while the last 4 stragglers travel to the staging system.

Finally, we have 6 of 10 pilots in the main system, and start our roam. First jump into 0.0 Cloud Ring - 3 neuts in local. Nothing on scan, so our scout checks a couple of belts, and we move off to the next gate. Jump into system 2, set up on gate for a minute. As we set up, local starts to climb and we start seeing ships on directional. Vagabond, Vagabond, Rapier, Buzzard, Purifier, Hurricane, Rupture. Any one of them, maybe even two, would be a possible target if our whole fleet were there, but this is an obvious response fleet to our arrival. We scramble into a rolling safe as the Buzzard pops combat probes and starts looking for us. Fortunately the pilot in the Buzzard is not very skilled, and we are able to avoid any warpins as we roll through the system. We decide to stand down back in losec while the defense fleet is up, and work our way back out of Cloud Ring. Jumping simultaneously with both hostile Vagabonds into W-4, we warp to a safe then bounce to the gate into Okagaiken. We scatter or dock in Okagaiken, while the response fleet enters local, starts looking around for us (total group was about 6 hostiles, so 1:1 ratio, except they were all in T2 Recons or BCs at this point, and we are in Destroyers). We hang tight, while the last 4 of our fleet are still working their way to us from Empire, and wait out the hostile fleet. Finally we have all 10 of us within a couple jumps, and the FC decides to try and back-door into Cloud Ring from Placid, through F7C. We work our way to Kehjari and meet up with the rest of the fleet (now 10 destroyers strong) but we are cut off by the hostiles, who are surprisingly effective on hampering our undisputed entry into 0.0.

As they cut us off on the way to Placid, we backtrack to Okagaiken and enter again through W-4. As we jump into 6-4, RL intrudes on my ability to continue the roam, as my 7 month old daughter (in my lap at the time) suddenly goes ballistic, and I have to logoffski while the roam continues. Note to self: trying to PvP with small children on your lap is not a good idea.

...

I was given an update by one of my corpmates later, that they made it into Fade, and were trying to take down a ratting Hyperion when a defense gang (I assume) from Sev3rance spoiled the party and destroyed the whole fleet. Although all ships were lost, it was deemed a successful op as we introduced 4 folks to nullsec in that roam, everyone was in implant-free clones, and ships that cost less than some of our medical clones. Everyone had fun, and (perhaps) next time we will try to organize a more balanced DPS/tackle/scout fleet and have a bit more success on the kill side.

Killboard link here.

The roam ended at that point, apparently the FC and at least 3 other pilots had RL interventions which could not be ignored. I got my ship and pod out unscathed the next night, during the SuperBowl, without seeing another active pilot in local in any of the systems.

Incursions Day One: Obray Bloodbath

2011-01-27T14:12:00.000-05:00

After clearing up some static on my neocom, I was able to get a global report from CONCORD about the state of Sansha Incursions in EVE. Two incursions were near to my current location, so I hopped in my trusty Taranis and headed over to Obray Constellation in Verge Vendor. As I approached the gate into Eletta, there was the usual crowd of ships on gate. I was not sure what to expect, so I jumped into the system.

First thing I noticed was that CONCORD has set up a new Constellation wide-channel for each incursion, to enable communication between pilots. Second thing I noticed was that there were no Sansha on the inbound side of the Eletta/Cistuvaert gate. I double-checked my combat overview, strangely the Sansha ships were not actively displayed in my overview. Correcting that error, I checked again. Still nothing on gate. Guess that would make it easier for pilots to continue basic travel through the empire systems that are under incursion. Not sure if that's good or bad. Once my overview was functioning, I checked the system status, and ran a quick hop into the various systems that were under Incursion to determine the scope of the attack. It appeared that most systems were Vanguard-class attacks, there was one Assault system, and one Headquarters.

Idling far from any celestial bodies in Eletta, I saw reports of Sansha in various asteriod belts. I decided that the Taranis was fast enough to at least get a quick look, maybe take a shot or two at the Sansha if I could separate them. I landed 100km from the beacon in the first asteroid belt near planet VIII. I saw 3 Sansha Frigates, 3 Cruisers, and a Battleship, all sitting within 10 clicks of the beacon. This was far more firepower than normally seen in such a high-traffic system. I immediately aligned out, towards the University of Caille School station, as the Sansha targeted me at 80km. Activating my MWD, I thought I'd see what these frigates could do for damage, and tried to lure them away from their larger support vessels. My ploy seemed to work successfully, as the frigates quickly outdistanced their support. Unfortunately, they were also obviously much faster than my Taranis, as they closed the distance between our ships quickly.

Deciding to take on 3:1 odds, knowing the outcome was far from certain, I returned target lock, and realigned to a tight combat orbit. At 16km, before I could even consider activating my blasters, I realized I had made a mistake, as the first Sansha torpedo hit my signature-bloomed Taranis, shattering my shields, armor, and half my hull in a single volley. Realizing I was far from prepared for this, I decided to retreat, but failed to disengage my MicroWarp Drive. This resulted in a second massive torpedo hit, and my ship exploded, leaving me floating in my pod. A friendly Thorax landed back on the beacon moments before my destruction, and rather than finish me off, the Sansha regrouped. Before I had even warped my pod away, the Thorax was just another wreck floating in the asteroid field.

Docking in station, I had my pod quickly transferred to a Velator, as I wanted to see if I could recover the data recorder from the wreck, for further analysis of the Sansha ships and the damage they inflicted. I warped back to the belt. Fortunately the enemy had no interest in wrecks, and I was able to recover the logs and a few damaged modules before they could return and destroy the fragile Velator. Warping to a spot deep in space, I reviewed the logs from the fight, then reviewed the incursion data scrolling through my neocom. It appeared that I was not alone in the near-instantaneous loss of my ship. Nearly everyone was unprepared for the sheer brutal force the Sansha brought to bear, as pilots reported losses of massive Marauder class ships, Strategic Cruisers, and more. This was no backwater Serpentis Initiate squad looking to prey on unsuspecting young capsuleers. The Sansha had brought a full battle fleet to the area, more like the fleets deep in Fade and Pure Blind last spring than anything staged in a secure empire system. The residents of the systems near Obray were unprepared, and the Sansha forces (and capsuleers aligned with them) were wiping their ships off the map as if they were mosquitos.

Unsurprisingly, many capsuleers were secretly working with the Sansha, and using tactics known to provoke a response from CONCORD to destroy the remote repair chains being set up in the defense fleets. All in all, the threatened retaliation from Sansha Kuvakei was more than an empty threat - it was an all out assault that took the "gods" of New Eden by surprise, and rendered their common tactics useless. I can only hope that my fellow capsuleers will realize that they need to work together, with trusted pilots, to overcome the Sansha Incursions, before they surrender to the hivemind of the Sansha, or worse, leave the poor citizens of New Eden to become slaves of the Sansha Nation.

Hulk-ing Geddons... and the January Skill Update

2011-01-21T11:27:00.000-05:00

So in advance of Hulkageddon, my industry alt bought and fit out his first Hulk. I'm hoping to take it out for at least 1-2 sessions before Helicity's fun begins. There was a small (3 hour) interruption on the road to Jump Freighter to fit the fancy T2 Deep Core mining lasers on the Hulk, but I think the bonuses (especially on some of the heavier minerals) will be worth it. This boy (who still doesn't have a new portrait) is now clear sailing to Anshar, and once completed moving the short stretch to Orca (and Rorqual). Funny enough, taking the time to train the jump skills for the Anshar make the Rorqual a shorter haul. I've decided that this toon will be a bit overweight (or as much as you can with the new character creator) - can't wait to experiment with that.

My combat main finished Battlecruisers V, and when in the implanted close (3% DPS implants in all the slots) is quite nasty in a Blaster Brutix. Think it's time to explore the Minmatar BCs now, since the skills for both types of turrets are equally trained now. Started the road towards missile effectiveness - working on the support missile skills first. It amazes so many folks that this character can't fly a standard mission drake (T2 HAMs) with almost 45 million SP. I did a portrait for S.W. but not so happy with the posing and facial structure, so I will be redoing this with the bonus redo from CCP (thanks CCP!).

Super Secret Alt is a blue-haired beauty, who needs to look a little meaner. I'll be tweaking her expressions and send her to the gym for some free weights, but this was the best portrait I did (I did 3 of 6, and it was the third). Not sharing it yet, because I want to tweak her some more. She's about to complete Battleship V on the road to Dreads and Carriers. This one is not going to be an easy to pass as a solo account for any sort of serious espionage, since she is so clearly a well-focused combat character. She's also a great place for me to experiment with Minmatar fittings, since she is a pure minnie pilot.

I'm getting some destroyers together for my 54th Mass alt to fly in Hulkageddon. Funny enough he's on the same account as my miner/industrialist. Thrasher armies descending on Hulks. Makes me both happy and sad - it will be fun for some (but not all), but EVE is a game...

Now on to something else. There's a thread in the EVE-O forums about losec mining. I think the risk/reward ratio for Losec mining is pretty poor. You should only be using T1 barges to offset the eventual ship loss, and if you don't you can end up losing a lot (Had a corpie lose an orca, 2 hulks, and pods with +5 implants mining in losec - but of course he made a cardinal mistake and went AFK). I would think (and the thread backs this up) that you have better risk/reward and return rates mining in a Wormhole than in LoSec, even if you get a LoSec grav site. Anyone care to share a Hulk or Covetor fit for WH mining, or experiences on WH mining? I hear the sleepers don't spawn right away, so you might even be able to get a couple cycles in before having to deal with that. Is it true?

What about you? Do you know anyone who mines, and if so, do they ever do WH or LoSec? How do they deal with the risk/reward ratio?

Why I don't like empire wars

2011-01-17T09:00:00.001-05:00

Before you pull out the "HTFU" or "carebear" or whatever, let me be clear. I don't mind losing the ships. I don't mind even losing the fights. If (and that's a big if) If we learn to play the game better, then it was all worth it. But this is my ranting post. Let the rant begin!

Station Games suck
I'm not complaining about the mechanic. I get it. You sit at the undock in a ship with a big enough buffer and good sensor boosting, and you can lock your opponent at the station, or just dock up if they actually start to damage your ship, making your ISK war look better. Here's what I don't get. How is that fun? I mean, if your idea of fun is already station spinning, or risk-free PvP (although let's face it – most people prefer risk-free), it's a valid game choice. But I hate station games. Worst part about them is trying to help a new player understand the tricks of surviving (or escaping) station games. Show session timer on? Wide undock or kicker? Instaundock created for that station? Understanding of the 30 second session change? Ok, now with all that if you undock into a hostile, you might survive. I hate them. I don't like to play them. And although in our current war the opponent loves to, I'll just make insta-undocks and go play somewhere else.

Neutral RR is fraidy-cat warfare
Oh, I get it. Neutral RR is a legitimate game tactic. After all, once the neutral party provides remote rep, you have aggro for 15 minutes. But this is what I hate about it:

[wartarget] Why won't you engage 3:1 odds?
[corpie] More like 3:2 with your friend here
[wartarget] What do you mean? He's not in this war
[corpie] Whatever...

Don't play stupid games with us with Neutral RR. If your best friend in EVE is in local flying an Oneiros, and you are in a armor tanking ship, they are going to remote rep you during your crappy station games. Just be honest with yourself and us - mostly because your assumption of our stupidity is annoying.

Smacktalk takes skill
I smack in local (sometimes). Usually I'm a bit self-deprecating. It's my style, and it helps me deal with losing ships. But your smacktalk needs to improve.

[neutral rr] I don't need expensive ships to win this war
[wartarget] You guys suck
[sw] Um, my bomber cost about 20 million rigged and loaded. Your Brutix is 60+. Fail math?
[neutral rr] I'm not in a Brutix. Fail scan much?
[sw] Sorry, yeah. Oneiros is 80 million plus just for the hull. Try again...

Experienced players need to educate new players
Usually we are pretty good at this. But this was painful. After our team has GCC (in losec, so safe from CONCORD), the newbie we are defending (in his Drake) gets caught trying to fly back to home base - on a hisec/losec gate. He gets back into hisec, and the wartarget is there to engage him. He's screaming in fleet for help, and we are unable to help him. GCC in hisec = CONCORDed. Three combat ships in losec might help you get home. Three pods in hisec do nothing for you. And, in times of war, everyone needs to be on comms if anywhere near the warzone. We don't keep a teamspeak server up and running 24/7/365 (well, 90% uptime) for show.

War Decs are for Empire Grief
Let's face facts. War Decs are for empire. They exist to grief nullsec alliance logistics, and to cripple empire-based corps, because in nullsec it doesn't really matter. In nullsec you don't need some fancy star on red background to know who you can shoot - you can shoot anyone anywhere. On the bright side, being involved in an empire war is educational. I'm learning a lot about empire war tactics, and the more I learn, the more I wish I were still in nullsec. The other thing about this is, it makes our carebears sad. I mean this guy is in it for the grief. He follows our carebears to their 2nd or 3rd tier agent systems, usually in a covops frig to probe out their missions. He hasn't (yet) got a combat ship in those systems to actually engage them in missions, and they are (so far) smart enough to dock up when he enters local.

EVE and Real Life (EVE Blog Banter #24)

2011-01-13T09:00:00.056-05:00

Welcome to the twenty-fourth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week or so to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check for other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This month's Banter topic comes to us from the ever helpful Eelis Kiy, capsuleer behind the "Where the frack is my ship" blog. She asks: How does your real life personality compare to who you are as a character in EVE? Does a good leader of people in the real world make a good leader of pilots in game? Or vice-versa? Do your real-life skills help you with the roles you fulfill in your corporation or alliance? Or do you behave completely differently? Does the anonymity of the Internet allow you to thrive on the tears of others in New Eden whilst you work as a good Samaritan away from your keyboard? Or are you as mean outside of your pod as you are inside it? Have experiences in EVE Online affected your behavior, skills or attitudes outside of the game?

EVE is and always shall be a game. I have multiple "characters" in EVE, and each one represents a different style of play, but none of them represent me. The closest that comes is when my combat toon has a choice between mercy and murder, I don't take the time to think about what the RP/wizardhat solution is - I act. Hence the closest any character in EVE comes to the real me would be my combat toon when in a leadership role (after all, that's the only time a combat toon makes independent choices). As a really old-school gamer (I played the original Dungeons and Dragons (yes, the little brown pamphlets), when I play a game I am able to quickly transition into the game and separate that from reality. Regardless of that, I do not subscribe to the EVE = me arguement. A player may play a Pirate, or a Griefer, or a Can-Flipper, or a deep spy/mole in an opposing alliance, but that has nothing inherently to do with who they are. The challenge for some is that in their personal playstyle, they are the same as the character they play in EVE, so they cannot comprehend a different playstyle. This is the ultimate in role-playing in EVE - subsuming your personality into your spaceship-flying character, and making all decisions as if the pixels on the screen represent you, and choices you would make in real life. When I started playing EVE, this was the original path I followed, my character made choices that I would make, and did things the way I thought I would do them. Over time, I separated those two things, realizing that

I am not an immortal spaceman
The tight integration of me and my character pushed EVE too deeply into my regular life.

So now that we understand my characters in EVE are not a "representation" of me, do my RL skills or abilities apply at all in EVE? Well, yes. Skills and behavior are two different things. I am a decent negotiator, and have some small skill at politics. I also research and study the various aspects of EVE politics for entertainment, so one of my characters is the diplomatic representative for his corp. That character uses my RL skills and knowledge to negotiate with others - but he does not represent me, as the character is an industrialist (and I am not). This isn't even my main (although he's logged in at least as much as my main). In my (perhaps not so humble) opinion, the challenges of leadership in EVE all tie to the fact that a large number of the folks in leadership positions aren't in those positions in real life, because they aren't qualified to be. They may be too young, too inexperienced, or just simply not good at the variety of skills required to be a truly good leader (I certainly don't have enough of those skills, but I know it).

In EVE, you can be whatever or whomever you want. But in reality, you can't be more than you know. You can be different - but not more. Being the chief diplomat or FC for does not make you a real-world diplomat or military commander. Nor does your desire to be an FC or diplomat or CEO or alliance dictator make you good at that job. You may be in that role in EVE, but that doesn't mean you are good at it, in EVE or in real life. It's not a two-way street - what you know (or are) in the real world can affect what you do (and who you play) in EVE, but it doesn't go the other way. Sorry, Leadership V does not make you effective as a real-world squad leader. But ROTC and/or bootcamp might make you a better soldier in EVE.

List of participants:

When stuck in between a rock and a hard place...

2011-01-05T08:26:00.002-05:00

Life can get interesting quite quickly in this world. This weekend, corp chatter was full of concern with the arrival of some new neighbors (again) - and they were sporting a Leviathan-class Titan. A little research into their history makes it even more interesting, as we live deep in Gallente LoSec (not borderlands or warzones), and they are a Caldari Faction War corp. With something like 4-5 times our numbers (ignoring the whole Titan thing) they could easily make our life difficult, so our diplomatic team set immediately to negotiate non-aggression standings. This was actually quite simple, as it appears they just want to run a Titan bridge into nullsec and nearby losec systems to hot-drop their enemies. Simple, until the next morning...

We have a couple folks in local who actively participate in Faction War for the Gallente. Putting it nicely, we don't get along too well with them. Shots have been fired, and ships lost on both sides. So when some of the leadership of the large Gallente Faction War corps appear in local and start scouting the system, only a fool doesn't see what's coming soon. Our little pocket of losec is a few jumps out of the warzone, so really it's no surprise that with the ongoing battles and the escalation in hostilities to include capital and super-capital ships that anywhere within jump range of the warzone becomes a staging system. So here we are, a smaller industrial focused corp trapped in our home system between two of the biggest faction war corporations out there. Life is about to get interesting - very interesting...

edited 01.05.2011 0845
... and within minutes of posting it seems our hot-dropping friends from the Caldari militia have moved on. Oh well. I guess it won't get interesting after all.

December 2010: Three year recap

2010-12-31T21:00:00.001-05:00

Three years ago CCP Games released Trinity, the first EVE Online Expansion to include support to the Intel-based Macintosh computers. 7 hours after Trinity was released (damn workday schedules) I had downloaded, installed and paid for a year of EVE. I hadn't even logged in before I put up the first year. I had visions of ruling a space empire from the office in my newly remodeled basement, but I didn't really know how I would get there. For the first 4 months I did lots of missions. I didn't read the forums, I didn't talk to other players, I didn't get the multiplayer aspect of EVE at all. Then in RL my first daughter was born. I still played EVE, usually when she slept, or when my wife was nursing, but a lot less than the first 4 months. I also started putting my two cents out in corp chat - yes, the rookie NPC corp. Looking back I wonder how corp chat could be better for the new player - that corp chat filled with bitter vets who never want to MMO, alts training up for Capitals, and neutral RR/Cyno alts.

Not having a plan, or even a real grasp of what EVE was, I didn't even know to train skills for the first month or two. Then, when I did learn about skills, I started with the learning skills, and bought every skillbook I could afford (which was a lot of unrelated crap). Today, 44 million SP later (I didn't even realize you could use implants for months), you can see the mish-mash of skills slowly focusing into a decent combat-focused character. Just recently my leadership skills passed my industry skills - and I haven't trained an industry skill in over a year.

Eventually I figured out that the EVE forums were much better than the old Diablo forums were, even with all the trolling there was the occasional gem of useful information. I found out about EVEMon, and EFit, and Battleclinic. I learned that fitting a ship for missions (PvE) was very different than fitting a ship for combat (PvP). I was that player who kept thinking "I'm not ready for PvP, I just need a little more (skill/ship/module)."

After getting into a player corp (I had created my own, but who wants to be in a one-man corp in a multiplayer game?) I started to learn how much more there was to EVE, and started to plan for the game more effectively. That was, simply, the smartest thing I've ever done - to join a corp with other players (in my timezone). I've been in losec, nullsec, small alliances, big alliances, sovereign warfare, and NPC 0.0 (still my favorite space, TBH). Three years in and I have a plan for the future...

My 2011 Resolution is to complete my sub-battleship skillset. I want to have the skills trained to effectively fly any ship from any race smaller than a battleship. I've been working on that plan for a few months now (with the occasional distraction), and I have completed most of Gallente and Minmatar ships. I can fly all T1 and T2 Frigate- and Cruiser-class ships from both races (although I'm still working on support skills for some of the specialized ships like Logistics). By the end of the year I'm hoping to have T2 and T3 for all races, through Command Ships. Of course, this plan is subject to change, but it reveals something about how I like to play EVE - I like small ships, which means (usually) smaller battles and more deliberate planning for engagements. Battlecruisers V is first up - to be followed by the suite of skills required to effectively fly a missile boat. Once I can fit all the T2 missiles and shields, I'll pick up Caldari Cruiser V. That will make 3 races of full T2 ships completed. Next up will be T3 Minmatar and Caldari. Anyway, you get the idea. January is Battlecruisers V (two weeks of it, anyway) and then lots of missile skills. I'm pretty sure those missile skills will take me into March. Look for the next skill update then...

As for the industry alt, he is moving nicely into jump freighters now, with the occasional new science skill for a different T2 module invention path. This year will be about Jump Freighters for this toon, followed (eventually) by the Rorqual or Orca.

Finally, the super-sekret alt is still moving slowly towards Carriers, and self-sufficiency. I'd love to get one account paid by plex this year, rather than actually spending money on all of them...

NBSI: Not just for nullsec

2010-12-28T09:55:00.001-05:00

The acronyms flying around EVE are as rampant as they are in the U.S. military. Fortunately for us, there is a wonderful compendium of definitions available at the EVE Wiki. On of my favorites, and one that creates much consternation, is the NBSI/NRDS balance. For those of you not in the know, NBSI (Not Blue Shoot It) and NRDS (Not Red Don't Shoot) are the two polar positions of most corporations and alliances in nullsec. Our corp was a nullsec corp for a while, and although we currently inhabit losec, we maintain NBSI in the losec pocket we call home. This makes it easy to watch local, which has become more of an issue since our steady presence has led others to the pocket, both looking for kills and a quiet place to explore losec. Making it perfectly clear - we are an NBSI corp in our pocket, and NRDS outside (unless in nullsec). This upsets some folks who are new to either EVE or the whole concept of losec/nullsec. We don't own the space we live in - but since right now we are calling it home, we consider the assets in that space to be ours, and we defend that space and those assets to keep others away.

I think the one difference in losec is that NBSI isn't an automatic target lock. In nullsec, there are no chances for second-guessing - if they are neutral to you they are an enemy - clear and simple. However, in losec, there is occasionally an opportunity for discussion, a choice to be made - do we allow you to continue to access assets in our home, or deny them? A lot of that choice comes down to the attitude, and (frankly) the mood of our combat pilots. But it never hurts to ask - and don't call it piracy or ransom. If we ask for ISK to use our space, consider that you are killing rats (and earning isk that we might earn) or mining rocks that our industry folks might want, thus you are taking isk from us - so a small (and believe me, we don't ask for lots of money) payment for rent seems reasonable to me. We aren't a pirate corp. Frankly we are a bit lost in our direction, but even as an industry corp we need to have free access to the assets in our space, whenever we want or need them, and your presense (as a neutral) is an impediment to our progress. Of course, if you like our area of space, and would like to utilize the assets, we might be recruiting - just hop into our public channel and see.

What about you? If you are a losec (not pirate) corp, do you deny assets (missions/rats/rocks/plexes) to neutrals in the area of space you call home? Better question is, does anyone read this thing?

Our CEO for a while considered having us announce in local, when a neut appeared, that it was NBSI and they should evacuate with their assets intact. I think that's certainly a nice way to play, but shouldn't most people in losec already be worried when jumping into a dead-end system with 15 in local?

Blog Banter #23: Who enters the new incarna(tion) of EVE...

2010-12-16T09:00:00.024-05:00

Welcome to the twenty-third installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week or so to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check for other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

With Incursion giving us glimpses of what Incarna will have to offer (the the Character Creator), this month's topic, by @Minerpewpew, comes just at the right time. He asks "What are your thoughts on how Incarna will effect the current EVE Online social dynamic?" I'd like to see this questioning go a bit further. How will this affect EVE's player base? Who will Incarna attract? New players to the genre? Seduce old players back into the game? Will we see new players come in that will never leave their station? Please explore to the best of your abilities!

EVE has seen a lot of changes this year, which may make it more appealing to the more mainstream MMO players. Incarna, due (last I recall) this coming summer, is the crown jewel of these changes. The ability to interact in some fashion with others in stations makes a level of EVE accessible to those familiar with the 1st person MMOs, where face to face interaction isn't a static picture next to text. Many people feel that Incarna will actually attract more real women to EVE (not G.I.R.L.s). I think that may be true at first, but unless they are able to find a path and place to deal with the inevitable darkness that exists just under the shiny face of EVE, they will be quick to arrive and quicker to leave. The roots of EVE are a social game - so many players actually just log in to chat it's like a glorified MSN sometimes. That aspect, in conjunction with interaction brought about with Incarna, will open up a new world of EVE with a different class of players. The ability to remotely manage Planetary Interaction, manipulate markets, and other activities that can (hopefully) be run whilst meandering the halls of a station seem to be activities targeted for this class of player.

Incarna may seduce some old players to return, but I don't expect a larger return than any other major expansion, and I don't expect that Incarna itself will be an incentive for those players to stay. Those players weren't EVE players who missed the interaction of others - they are players for whom the game lost it's luster, or just got busy in RL. What Incarna may do for some small number of older players, is open up EVE to their spouses, and by extension open up play time for them again. I have one friend who is married, and his wife is becoming interested in EVE with the new character creator, which has given him the leeway in their busy life to re-subscribe and start playing again.

I don't believe Incarna alone will attract a large new playerbase. Like any expansion, it will attract some old, and some new subscriptions. The difference may be that the new subscriptions to EVE will be less interested in blowing up spaceship pixels, and more interested in building relationships and products in the virtual world we call New Eden.

The Easterly Wind...

2010-12-14T11:36:00.002-05:00

Much as the mythical nanny Mary Poppins, I drift where I must, with the winds of change. This entry will be as disjointed as a mountain breeze, moving from one direction to the next based on the ease of movement. The winter is an unsettled time for me, often a time where I look back on unfinished business or activities that have fallen by the wayside, and this unsettled nature seems to be stronger this year than in some of the more recent years. Perhaps it is the vast number of changes in my game and personal lives this year, perhaps it is merely the lack of standing snow in my yard. Either way, I think that many changes will be coming over the next few months, both in EVE and without.

I have started looking, again, for a new home (or an old one). I am not quite ready to move on, but I will have consolidated my most valuable assets in Empire NPC stations again in the next few weeks, and restocked on my favorite hulls and fittings, and should be ready to set off again where the wind blows, by early January. It doesn't hurt that my industry alt should be close to flying an Anshar by then either - making some of my logistics a bit easier early in the new year.

With the windfall of skill points coming, I find the dilemma of what to do with them all continues to gnaw at the back of my mind. By my calculations I could train up any skill that is Tier 8 or lower to V instantly, maybe even two of them if my math is correct. The running joke on the EVE online forums is that everyone and their mother will have Battleship V - but that's not on my short list, since I am focusing on Battlecruiser or below skills exclusively. This week, regardless of those points, I will have all small and medium turret specialization skills to IV, and I finish of Medium Autocannon Specialization IV. It may (finally) be time to train up the missile and shield skills I've managed to avoid for so long, and finally give in to the mob and fly the Drake, fit correctly with a full T2 configuration.

I find in my hangar a veritable fleet of Assault Frigates - mostly Enyos. I'd love to know if anyone has a "favorite" fitting for this ship, my current favorite (which may be even more useful now) is below:

[Enyo, Goddess Fury]
Damage Control II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
Magnetic Field Stabilizer II

Catalyzed Cold-Gas I Arcjet Thrusters
Initiated Harmonic Warp Scrambler I

Light Neutron Blaster II, Void S
Light Neutron Blaster II, Void S
Light Neutron Blaster II, Void S
Light Neutron Blaster II, Void S
Rocket Launcher II, Foxfire Rage Rocket

Small Hybrid Collision Accelerator I
Small Anti-Explosive Pump I

Hornet EC-300 x1

Which drone in an Enyo is always a question in my mind, but the added DPS of a Warrior II vs. the intermittent jam from an ECM drone seems to be a toss-up. I switched up the rockets to T2, along with using Void after the improvements to the ammunition recently. On paper it's much meaner than my previous fit, below:

[Enyo, Standard Blasters]
Damage Control II
Small Armor Repairer II
Magnetic Field Stabilizer II
Adaptive Nano Plating II

Catalyzed Cold-Gas I Arcjet Thrusters
Warp Scrambler II

Light Ion Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Ion Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Ion Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Light Ion Blaster II, Caldari Navy Antimatter Charge S
Small Nosferatu II

Small Hybrid Collision Accelerator I
Small Anti-Explosive Pump I

Warrior II x1

With about 3-4 different fits for this ship in my list, I will fit up a few different ones and see how they do, wherever the wind takes me this winter...

The more things change...

2010-11-19T16:18:00.001-05:00

... the more they are the same.

I was a Dead Terrorist for about a year. The recent shake-up and collapse in Feythabolis shook my personal commitment to the alliance, and I have left. It was not an easy decision, since the corp I was in is a great group of guys, and I had flown with them (albeit in another corp) in another alliance prior to DT. DT and RENT are both great groups, and I wish the best for them, but I'm not sure I'm ready for the life of a full-time losec pirate, which appears to be the recovery plan (at least in the short term) for DT. So what now? I went home, although it's not the same home I left, exactly. The first player corp I joined has changed from a mixed-purpose PvP/PvE/Indy corp to primarily an industry corp. In fact, my indy alt is in that corp, and happily popping out T2 frigates a couple times a week like a pregnant rabbit.

I'm here because it's comfortable, and I don't really like being in The Scope - the crap in corp chat there often annoyed me. I don't exactly fit in here either, my fleet of ships tends towards combat ships: AHACs, BCs, Tacklers, and HICtors rather than Barges and Haulers but I know everyone here (they have been here a long time). I've had a couple offers for PvP corps, but not sure I want Faction War, or LoSec piracy. Who knows, but for now, I'm back in a comfortable place, with a group of guys I like a lot. Another thought, maybe I can be the catalyst to revive the PvP arm of the corp. There are a couple others like me who would enjoy more combat already, so let's see what happens...

Feythabolis Evacuation: Day Three

2010-11-11T00:36:00.001-05:00

Sleeping in a pod is second nature to a capsuleer. It's actually more comfortable than many beds I've been in over the years. Feyth is just as empty when I log in - two other pilots tonight, but nobody's talking. First scan reveals no wormholes, so I take out the Battleship and unload a few rounds into the local Angels. It makes me feel better, but a neutral pilot appeared in system, so I docked back up, switched out to my Helios, and started the search again. First two systems are a bust. For all the time I spent scanning wormholes in empire, I could find one in practically every system. Here, when I really could use one, I go system after system without finding one.

Rumor has it there's an alternative way out coming - but it's 18 jumps through questionable territory, before waiting and trusting our former enemies to not shoot us. Not once but 5 times - after all each ship needs to move. I don't trust that, and corp leadership agrees - don't trust them. I keep scanning, now I have a new neut. Two systems left in this constellation to scan. Lots of great anomalies and signatures, but not one wormhole. Finally - a hit. First wormhole and it's only 5 systems out from the station. As I get set to warp in, local bump. +1. +2. I scan. Cheetah, Malediction. Red.Overlord. Hmmm. I recall my probes and watch directional. Minutes pass. Finally, local is empty. Now, to see if there is a road home...

I enter the wormhole, which has bizarre effects on my systems. Capacitor is drained below 50% just entering system. There's a shining silver quasar at the heart of the system. I bookmark the "entrance" and drop my probes. I've dropped over 30 probes tonight, according to the scanner. Lots of signals. I immediately filter out the Anomalies, focusing on the signatures. First one is a grav site. Second is a wormhole. Third is radar site. Fourth and fifth - two more wormholes. As I'm working through these signatures a corpmate reports that SWBV is no longer showing Dead Terrorist claim on the system or the station. Looks like we are trying to buy our way out. I'd rather they have to grind through this just like we did. Teach them the pain we experienced, day after day, station after station, system after system, structure after structure...

I know I may lose docking rights to the station where my ships are, so the race is on. I start checking the wormholes. First goes to nullsec - Scalding Pass. No love there in xXDeathXx space. Second goes to Cloud Ring... Promising and close to an empire exit, 5 jumps to an NPC station. Third goes to another WH. Back in the original WH. Launch the probes again, hoping for more luck. My wife is interested in EVE for the first time ever, as I explain what I'm doing she has only one question: How long is a wormhole there? Less than a day and she knows I won't be in bed anytime soon. Dangit. Should have scanned all the signatures the first time, gotta filter out the successes by memory now. More radar sites. One more WH - leads to Kavlevala Expanse. That's not helpful. Clock is ticking, but at least we still have docking rights. Well, here goes nothing. I head back to the station to board my recon. Get it out first, if I can. I load it up with as much as I can, filling it with modules, ammo and loot.

After the last few weeks, 4 jumps through familiar (but hostile) nullsec doesn't bother me at all. Neutrals in system - check. Gate camps on the empire exit - check. Hop safes, scan gates, no bubbles. What kind of nullsec gate camp doesn't anchor bubbles? I jump through F7C-H0 into Alsavoinon. Losec. Safer but scarier here - everyone is neutral and I know as a former losec resident that gate camps can tank the guns. I fly careful, checking my gates before arrival, and finally I'm free. One recon, docked safely in empire HiSec. I verify my medical clone is in SWBV, undock in my pod, and start the self destruct timer. I did the math. Even paying to upgrade my clone, I come out way ahead getting that recon out. If I'm lucky twice, and get the HAC out, anything else is icing on the cake. I hear the final countdown, the pod cracks open, cold space surrounds me...

... and I wake up in SWBV. Make sure I pay to keep my clone updated. That's always painful. I board the AHAC fit Deimos, verify the guns and scripts are loaded, fill the hold with ammo, and set destination back to the WH system. It's still quiet out here, but it looks like R.O.L. will have the station and system in the next few hours. Not sure I'll be back for any other ships, so I bid farewell to my trusty interceptor. She's survived way too long, and it hurts to just leave her deep in 0.0 but I have to focus on the valuable (and most likely to succeed) ships on this evacuation. Back I head. Both WH are stable (still) - maybe I'll try for a third run and get the inty out after I dock up the Deimos. I jump into Cloud Ring, and the system is empty. It's empty until the inbound gate to F7C-H0. Fatal Ascension. I don't know them. There's a single Vagabond on the gate here. I'm guessing that means the camp in F7C-H0 has grown, since they have an out-of-system scout now. I weigh my options. The Vaga is a mean ship. However, I'm fit with rails and a buffer tank - if it comes to a fight I might have a chance. I warp to the gate, land at 0 (he's 2500 off me) and jump through. Strangely, there is no-one on the other side. I look for the nearest celestial to my directional - a moon. Less than ideal, knowing my luck I'll land on a tower, but I align and activate my warp drive. The Vagabond has decloaked, and is targeting me. It's a race between my align and his target - I'm sure he's called his friends and he's got a point. I watch my acceleration gauge as I reach top speed to activate warp - and I'm out.

I hop from the moon (landed just out of range of a POS) to a safe not far from the out gate. I scan the gate. Hmm. Two Sleipnirs, a Malediction, Stabber, two Vagabonds (including my friend from the other gate) - and four anchored bubbles. Well, the AHAC is an afterburner fit. Top speed is maybe 500k/sec. Not exactly a bubble evasion ship, and the buffer tank won't survive the damage that camp can do. So, I call it a night, shut down all systems, and log. I'm taking a couple days off to rest. I'll be back late this weekend, and will decide what to do then. But it looks like (fingers crossed) I might have most of the valuable stuff out.

Good Night, EVE. Keep the nightlight on - The Dead Terrorists are coming back from the deep south, and we want explosions...

I am a Dead Terrorist

2010-11-09T21:20:00.005-05:00

I am a Dead Terrorist. I have been part of this alliance now for almost a full year. Right now, I'm deep in Feythabolis, and it is a ghost town. I'm wandering systems looking for a short wormhole route to empire. Hisec, Losec, I don't really care. I just want to try and get out with what ships I have left. You see, I took a weekend off and did some family time. Admittedly, in the midst of an ongoing battle to claim the region, but family always comes first. That was Friday. I got back Sunday, way to late to check mail and find out how the weekend went. You always know things aren't good when the first mail you read has "Reset" in the subject line.

I'm not sure which story is true, there are a few of them, but this is what I know. Shortly before the reset, there was a brief email (at the corp level) to get online, get you crap together, and evac. And when I say shortly - I mean maybe an hour or two. I, of course, was a few hundred miles from my computer, so totally clueless until long after the fire, and now there is nothing but a few wandering pilots and the occasional enemy fleet. I log in, load up my only local ship (a Helios) with what it can carry (a few hundred rounds of Caldari Navy Antimatter, M), and set destination for the former carebear home system in Feythabolis. 18 jumps across enemy territory (since all territory is the enemies now...). It was quiet. Not one neutral, red (or blue) the whole way. Then in SWBV, there are three of us. I dock, unload my ship, undock and make some in system safes, and start scanning.

You see, in deep 0.0 wormholes, sometimes there is an empire link. Hop in a WH, scan down another, see where it goes. Wormhole operations depend on these empire links to get loot out and fuel in. I start scanning...

Four systems. Easily 20 signatures (I'm ignoring the Sanctums and Havens instantly, they aren't in that count). Not one wormhole. Time's up for the night. I sleep in my recon now, cloaked about 1000k off the station I used to call home. It's safer out here, right now, than inside. And there are fewer ghosts, outside...

Quick Skill Update

2010-10-30T21:00:00.001-04:00

Minmatar Cruiser V completed today. That's two classes of Tech 2 ships (fully T2 fitted).

I suppose the skill roundup is due...

Combat Main:
As mentioned above, Minmatar Cruiser V completed today, after having worked through the appropriate gunnery skills for Medium T2 Projectiles (Arties and Autocannons). This toon is on the road to flesh out all "BC and below" combat ships (not including T3) for all races. I dread the road to Amarr - I have none of the skills for energy weapons really trained at all. Hence Caldari roundup is next, getting those T2 missiles and all missile support skills trained to at least IV before the Caaldari Cruiser V grind. Once that's done I'm taking a lightweight break and training (and learning to fly) EWar Frigates for all races. Although paper thin and usually early in the targeting list, an inexpensive ewar frigate seems like an interesting way to disrupt the flow of battle.

Anyway, once that's done, I get to the Amarr grindstone - and since I have no energy weapon/laser skills trained at all yet it will be a long one. However, when completing Amarr Cruiser V I get to move to the next round - Command Ships, beginning with the appropriate leadership skills and ending with BattleCruiser V and then Command Ships to IV.

Industry Alt:
Finally getting the actual production skills up to V, to save that last 2% of minerals and materials in my T2 production. Frigate V done, Cruiser V is up after Production Efficiency V completes. Someday this toon will fly a ship larger than a Cruiser (well, maybe) that isn't a hauler. Right now the goal is multi-racial ship invention and construction through the command ships, and the skills to build all the components.

Super Secret Alt:
Can you say the long haul? This toon is working a focused plan on Carrier/Dreadnaught (which makes a short hop to SuperCarrier), after recently getting into Recons and HACs. I'll get back to you in about 332 days...

EVE Blog Banter #22: Corporation Loyalty - Brothers and Sisters till the end?

2010-10-26T21:00:00.005-04:00

Welcome to the twenty-second installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week or so to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check for other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This month topic is brought to us by L'Dene Bean of Nitpickin's who asks: Why, and how did you pick your corporation? Is your loyalty solid or just until a better placed organization "recruits" you. The shorter version: Who holds your Unshakable Fealty and why?

So this is an interesting question, since I run multiple accounts and multiple characters (yeah, how do I manage that, exactly...) Without giving away details, my personal (not character-specific) loyalty is to the first corp I joined. They are a good group of guys (although many are currently away from EVE) that I still chat with out of game, even though they may not be playing right now. The only reason my main left that corp was to maintain my 0.0 PvP lifestyle - the corp was too small for the alliance we were in (as far as active PvP toons) so we did a pseduo-merge with another corp that was in alliance, basically mothballing the original corporation until better times (a.k.a. more game time for the veterans to be able to effectively recruit and train new members). If that corp became an active PvP force again I would (with due consideration and notice to my current corp) head back at my earliest convenience - to fly with guys I like personally.

This is not to reduce the value of my current corp. I have flown with this group in multiple alliances, other members from my old corp are also here, and the group is just as solid, reliable, and entertaining as my old corp (which makes sense, since we were in multiple alliances together and we all got along already). The trend here? It isn't the corp - it's the pilots. That should make sense to anyone who has played a multiplayer game - the appeal is the players you fly with - where they go, you likely will go as well if they are a group you are close to. I even experienced this recently with an RL friend who played EVE with a different group originally. His core group of players had a corp collapse, they all went different ways, and he joined up with my corp for a while. Now that his old group is re-forming, he has left (best of luck!) to fly with his in-game friends - and I understand and respect that completely.

If you are playing EVE, and you don't play with (not just against) others, you are missing the biggest part of the game, and the main attraction to the game - the social aspect.

Time and Alternate Income Streams

2010-08-27T09:05:00.004-04:00

Just like in our real world, money makes EVE go 'round. It takes ISK to buy whatever it is you want - that shiny new faction frigate, the Tech 2 Ice Mining Barge, or a fully decked out SuperCapital. For many of us, PvP is the life and breadth of EVE - so ISK is gained by looting the wrecks of our victims and selling that loot on the market. But sometimes, lady luck shines elsewhere, and your coffers run dry and your ships get blown up faster than you can afford to replace them. Even with the recent "buff" to T2 insurance, you can't replace a Taranis hull (let alone the mods) with the insurance payout, so what's a poor PvP player to do for ISK generation?
The obvious thing is to run missions, right? Yawn. Sitting around for hours on end doing "target, orbit, shoot, loot, salvage, repeat" makes a dull EVE session. Well, there's market manipulation, right? Frankly, too much for me, shuttling around large quantities of item X from point A to point B - not the way I want to spend hours in EVE. Planetary Interaction (if you have the skills, time and no issues with repetitive stress injuries) will provide a thin income stream, especially if your Corp or Alliance is buying POS fuels at market rates. Not too hard to set up an Enriched Uranium chain, or Oxygen and Coolant. Ice mining earns decent money - if you have something else to do while your toon sits and cycles the lasers every 5 minutes.

The inventive (and amoral) character can scam their way into millions - just look at that Caldari Navy Raven sale via station trade...

But there is actually a fairly painless path to passive isk generation: Datacore farming. On your main toon, you might already have the basic skills in place - Science V? Now you just need to pick a Scientific field to study - I'd suggest looking at Datacore prices and picking the most profitable. I'm going to use Gallente Starship Engineering as my example, even though it isn't the most profitable. So you train up the specific skill to at least IV (assuming you have the prerequisites in place - usually one of these: Mechanic V, Electronics V, or Engineering V). Then you find who researches the field you want to farm - and go to the best agent you can in that field. Open a conversation, start research, and get on with your life. Once a month or so, go visit your agent, collect your datacores, and move them to a trade hub to sell for profit. Now this gets interesting with three character slots on your account - you can take the time to train up the basic skills for all of them and get at a Level 1 agent without any work - in about two weeks you will get about 10 RP a day, which isn't much (only about 1 datacore a week) - but that's an additional 200-300,000 isk a week that you don't need to do anything to earn – just leave that alt character alone, collecting RP for datacores while you fly your main. If you have the time, and energy, you really want to get to L3 or L4 research agents (I have a corpmate who gets over 200 million a week with 2 accounts/6 toons just doing datacores).

And yes, I profit from sharing this, since I have an R&D alt who does ship invention, and the more datacores out there the better the price on them for me to buy.

EVE Blog Banter #20: Griefing, Ninja Salvaging, Suicide Ganking, Trolling, and Scamming

2010-08-23T21:00:00.004-04:00

Welcome to the twentieth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

With the recent completion of the 3rd installment of the Hulkageddon last month, @CyberinEVE, author of Hands Off, My Loots!, asks: "Griefing is a very big part of EVE. Ninja Salvaging, Suicide Ganking, Trolling, and Scamming are all a very large part of the game. What do you think about all these things? You can talk about one, or all...but just let us know your overall opinion on Griefing, and any recommendations you may have to change it if you think it's needed."

I've been playing EVE for a fairly long time. I've heard lots of calls for "HTFU", or "Griefing is against the TOS" and my personal favorite "I hope you die of cancer." Right or wrong, good or bad, EVE is a virtual place we can be someone other than our day-to-day selves. I know some really nice guys who play EVE - guys with families, who would pull over on the highway in the rain if you were there with your flashers on - and in EVE they wouldn't bat an eye at scamming your entire corp's assets out from under you. These are genuinely good people, who play EVE to escape real life. So lets start with the inevitable fact that EVE is a game, and like any other game, is an escape from your personal reality. If you take EVE too far, and blur the lines between players in a game and the characters they play, you won't like what I have to say (hint: HTFU).

Griefing
Personally, I don't like griefing. The idea that you play to make other miserable intentionally isn't my cup of tea. But I know (or like to think I know) enough to (a) not be a good target for a griefer and (b) to give as good as I get. Mind you, I have no issue with smacktalk, or laughing at someone in local. My issue with griefing (that I don't like it) revolves around the fact that you aren't playing an MMO if you grief one particular player all the time - if you get your jollies in game from being a general ass, that's cool - but I won't be one to play "with" you since that's not my style. ASCII genetalia - fine. Hassling another player so much they emo log or even ragequit - just not cool.

Ninja Salvaging
Totally within the scope of the game. Those who take this to the next level and get the mission runner to attack them and blow up their ships? Experts at harrassment. And no, this is not griefing - unless you are doing this to the same poor sod day in and day out without looking for other targets. I have even been a rookie ninja salvager, without the part where you try to get aggro and blow up the mission runner. I love this piece of the game though. Scan down a mission runner, warp in and salvage his wrecks. Back in the day, salvage could be as valuable as the loot in the cans. Today, maybe not so much, but still valuable. In addition, performing an important service keeping New Eden green by cleaning up other people's trash.

Suicide Ganking
I am of two minds about suicide ganking. First of all, I think it's a perfectly legitimate tactic - my only concern is that even with the recent insurance changes, suicide ganking doesn't have a lot of drawbacks for the ganker. Choosing your ship wisely, you can still break even (or even make a bit of profit) when CONCORD responds to your actions, which I think is an issue since you can also collect the loot from your victim. When I mine in HiSec, I watch my overview, and if someone enters the belt in a vessel that doesn't do mining duty, I am aligned and ready to warp out. Will I survive? Not bloody likely. But I'm going to try. And if they succeed, more power to them. Confession: I have not participated in alliance suicide ganks/freighter ganks. Timing just doesn't work out. But I'd do it in a heartbeat if it worked with my schedule.

Trolling
No brainer. This one brings a smile to my face, or a smack to the forehead when I'm a victim. Total HTFU.

Scamming
Scamming takes two faces, that of the corporate mole/thief and that of the Darwinian opportunist. I think the Darwinian opportunist is brilliant, after all, you should pay attention to what you are giving your ISK for. CCP makes it easy to do this safely - and victims of these scams are frankly, stupid enough to fall for them and should learn from their mistakes. The corporate mole is a different beast, but one that has some grudging respect. Taking days/months/years to develop a character who is designed just to infiltrate (and steal) is a commitment to the game I can't make - although I do have such an alt in the works.

All of these are legitimate courses of play in EVE Online - whether you (or I) like it. So, in the immortal words of every scammer, griefer, troll, and ninja salvager: "HTFU" EVE is a dark, dangerous world, no prettier than the one we live in every day, except that we don't end up face down in an alley bleeding when we get mugged in EVE. It's a game, one that supports many paths to escape the grind of reality.

And if you want more sage advice, you can send 1,000,000 ISK to Swearte Widfarend, and I'll tell you which PI materials to produce between now and October 1st for the highest profit margins, and 1,000,000 more gets you which T2 items to focus your R&D efforts on.

Skills Queue Update

2010-07-26T21:00:00.003-04:00

By the time this is posted, S.W. will be fielding T2 Heavy Drones, and on the road to Strategic Cruisers. Following the Strategic Cruiser skills comes T2 Projectiles and T2 Minmitar Cruisers. Then T2 missiles and shield support skills. Finally, T2 Sentry Drones and it will be fall, with the leaves starting to turn. I'm a bit excited for the Strategic Cruiser - I've got some fits for the Proteus that seem to be really friendly to losec solo gate camping, and nasty. My full plan runs just under 180 days, and puts me in fully T2 fit racial T2 Cruisers except Logistics. I should be focusing on the T2 PvE Drake fit - but I can't admit that PvE is going to consume that much of my near future. The alt here needs to get PI skills up to snuff - in fact S.W. doesn't have P.I. skill up to snuff yet so that simple passive income stream needs some love too.

B. has finished Mining Barge V, and is currently on Gallente Industrial V, he will be rounding out the Hulk and Viator/Occator skills after that. R&D skills will move back to the fore with him, including Frigate and Cruiser Construction V. That should push about 60 days total, so he'll get an update in early October, either to start into the 2nd Tier refining skills or BC/BS Construction skills.

Of course, the super-secret alt account rages on, as planned. Sorry, no skill plan update here. Suffice it to say this toon would make any combat alliance happy once it leaves the noobcorp.

Yes - I have 3 paid accounts, and 5 characters, but in reality 3 of those 5 characters are idle or just skill training, one is my indy/income toon, and S.W. is my combat toon.

Oh, and happy birthday to me, I'm 41 today.

First Blood: Nullsec Newbie

2010-07-26T08:41:00.013-04:00

This is my entry to the Inspired By Images Of Eve Competition 2. More details and links to all entrants can be found at Starfleet Comms.

"Buy you another?"

I looked at the man standing next to my stool. Well dressed. Too well dressed for a backwater station like this one.

"Depends. What do you want?"

He thrust his hand towards me. "Jambya Munitionary, ISD Correspondent. I'm doing a profile on capsuleers who are new to the area. Your name floated to the top of my list, since you have only been here a few weeks."

Nonchanlantly withdrawing his hand, he took the stool next to me.

"Did you fly a lot of combat up in Empire before coming here?" he asked, as he pulled out a data recorder and activated it.

"Not really. I've awakened in a clone vat bay a few times, but I'm in training out here as a combat pilot." I took a sip of the bitter beer in front of me. "Is this an interview then?"

"Well, sort of. I'm profiling combat pilots to discuss the ships they fly and why. I've spoken to a lot of the big-ship capsuleers, but I wanted to get the angle from a frigate pilot. I looked up your records and found you've got 25 kills to 1 loss flying interceptors."

"Interceptor," I corrected him. "Thunores has been my girl since I arrived. She still has structure damage from the first fight that I haven't had repaired yet - as a reminder."

"Thunores - that's what you call your ship?"

"Yes. It comes from an ancient, long dead language. It means Thunder God. You ever sit in an interceptor?"

"Well, no. I'm not a licensed pilot, but -"

"An interceptor is pretty much all guns and engine. Even inside the pod the rumble of the guns and engines resonate in your ears like a pounding surf. That's why I call her Thunder God."

I sat back, nodding as the bartender left another bitter by my hand.

"I didn't always call her that. She started out with a nice name, Queen MAB. I thought at first she was a small, spritely ship, agile and elegant. That was before I'd actually flown her in battle..."

"It was only a few months ago that I arrived out here. I was so green they thought I got spacesick. I was certified as an interceptor pilot, but I didn't know how to fly in combat. I'd become fed up with the cost-cutting measures at The Scope for months, and the announcement that soon they would begin taxing all Capsuleers who worked with them had pushed me over the limit. I had flown missions for various agents while working with The Scope, and often I had conversations with Capsuleers who worked in the private sector - for themselves or for corporations that were not merely shallow fronts for the various empires. The transparent tax was the last straw. I was going to join one of these independent corporations, and I knew which one. I had spoken to their CEO, a fine pilot named Pierre. He and his crew were fighting in the Caldari-Gallente war, on the side of Gallente, but finding that the sheer numbers of Caldari pilots online were overwhelming his strike team. There would be changes, but they welcomed my long experience as a capsuleer to provide additional depth to the organization. I submitted my resignation from The Scope and joined Aurora Security.

Shortly after joining, I was informed that Aurora Security had been invited to join an alliance that flew in the far reaches of Outer Ring, based out of the Outer Ring Excavation stations in 4C-B7X. I had heard the stories of lawless space - where huge fleets sat on stargates destroying everything in their path. I had never destroyed another Capsuleer in combat, although I had fallen victim to pirates and others a few times in my years as a pilot. With the corporate logistics team moving my ships out to the Outer Ring station, I found myself suddenly deep in lawless space, with no experience whatsoever. Pierre was a skilled instructor, better than anyone at the Center for Advanced Studies (at least in combat). He and his fleet commanders worked tirelessly to train myself and the other new members of our alliance in the survival and combat skills needed in the deep reaches of space. Training flights were thinly veiled roams into neighboring regions, looking for neutral targets."

I paused, thinking back to that moment. Even now, weeks later, my pulse quickened as I relived the experience.

"We were formed up on the gate, my Taranis orbiting around 500m from the gate as we scouted the system. I reviewed my ships systems, verifying that the Warp and Sublight Disruption systems were online and awaiting a target. I was primary tackle, my job was to respond to targets called by the fleet commander and prevent them from warping away or getting to the stargate. My sensors flickered briefly, registering a stargate activation. My camera drones all blacked out moments later, and the visual flash from the gate activation overloaded their sensors. I was primed, my overview systems awaiting the appearance of the enemy ships. As I listened to fleet comms, local registration announced there was only one hostile in system. Moments later a ship appeared on my overview - a Raven-class Battleship.

The ship blocked out the sun as I activated my Microwarp drive and targeting systems, accelerating towards the Raven. I settled into a tight orbit around him. Even with the Microwarp drive pulling me from my requested distance, I was far too close and fast to take any serious damage from his advanced missile systems. 'Point - Web' I announced on comms, as my modules registered locks on the Raven. I activated my blasters, even though they would barely reduce the recharge of his shield systems. The fleet began unloading all damage on the Raven, eating into his shields. As I watched the battle unfold, I received an alert that my own shields were taking significant damage, and that damage was starting to break through to my armor. I asked Pierre if I should continue to hold the Raven, as it appeared we were close to destroying his ship, and my armor began to leak into structure. Pierre ordered me to warp off and repair, rather than lose my ship.

I started to activate my warp drive, but I had forgotten we were fighting in a warp interdiction bubble. These devices disrupt all warp drives within them, and automatic warp activation is useless. I was panicking now, about to lose my first real combat ship in it's first encounter, when I remembered I could align to a celestial object, activate my Microwarp drive and get out of the interdiction range quickly. As I aligned, the Raven exploded, but somehow I was still taking damage. My inefficient armor repair system was just keeping even with the damage, and I was confused, so I continued my acceleration and warped to a nearby planet. I sat idle while my ships repair systems worked on the armor plates, patching and fusing the damage that was caused (as I was informed by my fleetmates) by a flight of deadly Tech 2 Warrior drones the Raven had unleashed on me."

My hand shook slightly as I recalled the adrenaline surge from surviving my first aggressive encounter. The reporter sat, quietly, the data recording blinking intermittently.

"It was after that battle I realized that she wasn't Queen MAB. She was a roaring surge of blasters and thrust nozzles. It felt like sitting outside in the middle of a thunderstorm back home. That's when I knew she needed a new name. Thunores - god of thunder"

I finished the bitter beer, took a deep breath, and stood.

"I gotta go. We have a defense patrol in 5 minutes. Good luck with your story - and make sure you take an alliance carrier back to empire. I'd hate to have to blow up your ship..."

The AFK nature of Planetary Interaction

2010-07-23T21:00:00.004-04:00

First, I think I mentioned there's a new podling in my house. Yes, about a month ago my beautiful wife gave birth to our 2nd daughter. Unsurprisingly (to anyone who spends time around children or has them), they are two very different little girls. My eldest was sleeping through the night by the 2nd week, but even when she didn't, she slept in her bassinet. My youngest is a veritable cling-on. She only falls asleep when being held (or after 30+ minutes of ear-shattering wails), and wakes easily when put down. Why do you care? Well, this explains why my posts are very Carebear in nature. When you are juggling an exhausted spouse, a 2 year old and an infant, grand combat (such as defending a sov station) really isn't realistic. And sadly, I missed out on what is being described (by both sides) as a brilliant multi-hour campaign to save (or take, depending on your position) Sovereignty and a station. But I can, instead of describing an epic battle, talk about how Planetary Interaction is a great AFK low-maintenance way to earn ISK while you can't undock.

Planetary Interaction (PI) is the latest mini-game within EVE, and although rough around the edges provides a low-maintenance path to slow ISK growth when RL prevents logging in for longer (1 hr+) sessions. The hardest part is finding and setting up a production chain that requires little maintenance, but once that chain is setup you can touch EVE for 15 minutes, say hi, update your extraction cycles and/or processors, and go back to RL.

Get skills for 3/4 planets, find a system to product tier 3 or tier 4 goods from scratch. It will take a while to break even, since you don't have time to go buy tier 1 or tier 2 goods and just process them, but it lets you log into chat-with-spaceship-backgrounds for a bit every day.

And, that's all the time I have to post.

CSM: Lame Duck from the beginning?

2010-07-20T21:00:00.009-04:00

Welcome to the nineteenth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This months topic comes to us from @evepress, and he asks: The CSM: CCP's Meta Game? - The CSM, an eve players voice to CCP. Right? In the grand scheme of things yes, the players bring up issues and the CSM presents them to CCP. But in its current iteration the CSM was supposed to be given small authority to assign CCP assets to projects that the CSM thought needed work on. As it has not come out this was not the case. So fellow bloggers, is the CSM worth it, has the CSM improved the game in any way, or is it just a well thought out scam by CCP to give us players a false sense of input in the game? What's your take?

Ah, the CSM. As this was the third CSM I voted in, I was actually interested in the candidates, platforms, and the spin from CCP that CSM would be "stakeholders" in the development of EVE. I used my votes (yes, multiple accounts) to cover both of my interests, LoSec and Nullsec. But was it worth the effort? Does the CSM do anything to improve the game? TL;DR: yes and sort of.

Of the people, by the people
I have always had high hopes for the CSM since I learned of this player-elected body. I am one of those who believe that CCP should listen to a filtered version of the player requests, since the sheer volume of "I wants" in this game would overwhelm anyone, and most of them don't balance the game effectively. In my fantasy, CSM is that filter, presenting the most focused, widely supported concerns of the playerbase in a way that enhances the game. And to the extent they can present those issues, CSM is a success. The minutes from the summit in Iceland show that the CSM (overall) presented widely supported issues or ideas to CCP.

Telephone Game, anyone?
As is always the case when the marketing department gets to filter the announcement, CSM is not actually a stakeholder, or at least not directly. They get a CCP employee to play the telephone game between the CSM and the actual development team. The breakdown goes like this: Players present issues to CSM members (usually in the EVE Forums). Other players support or troll those issues, until someone from CSM sees it, evaluates it, brings it back to the group, and they hash it out even more. Once they have a clear issue, position (and maybe even idea for solution), they bring it to their appointed CCP representative. That person then takes those issues and brings them to the stakeholder meeting and presents them, in whatever secret back-room meetings discuss the future of EVE development. I'm sure that even though the ideas are filtered more and more (Players -> CSM -> Representative -> Developers) they maintain their original weight and intent, right? Telephone always worked well for me as a child. Oh, wait...

Steady as she goes...
As repeated ad infinium in the CSM Summit minutes, CCP doesn't have resources to devote to CSM-raised issues for the next 18 months. On the positive spin side, if CCP has an 18-month plan in place and it is so rock-solid that they know exactly what is going to be in each expansion and point release, then they should already be aware of the existing major gameplay issues and have plans to address them in some way during that cycle. Unfortunately, the minutes tell a different tale, a tale of "oh, yeah, that's a problem, but we aren't going to fix it in the next year and a half. Now I'm a realist - software development cycles are not short, and plans have to be made far in advance to really develop quality products. But if CCP is serious about the CSM as a player represented stakeholder, they need to make some room. The "Winter Expansion" should include resolution to some issues brought up by the CSM. That gives CCP almost 6 months to cherry pick the ideas presented and incorporate solutions to some of those issues into that expansion. If that were to happen (and I'm just not so positive it will) then CCP could back up their (currently) hollow promise of CSM as stakeholders, and that they listen to and respond to the established, playing (paying) players.

If that doesn't happen then we all will know truly that CSM is merely a marketing ploy, a lame duck from it's inception.

Late Update
Of course, after I took the time to write this, CCP Zulu comes out with a defensive Dev Blog, a number of the Dev team is pulled in from vacation for damage control on the resulting threadnaught, and everyone is still up in arms about the future. One fine post summarizes this banter easily though, from the aforementioned threadnaught:

The important thing to note here is that there's an incredible number of new features presented by the CSM. Even if they're all "old features" that went derelict, they're still basically changes to the way Eve works now. Honestly, I'd say that the CSM outlined at least 3 possible expansions - and maybe a lot more.

I don't think its reasonable for the CSM to expect all of their issues to be addressed - or even a majority of them. They might be able to convince CCP to change an upcoming expansion if they get enough detailed and solid ideas in place - but they aren't in place fast enough to take part in the planning of the current expansion.

Meh. What I'm really left with here is the perception that CCP and the CSM are both doing a not horrible job with the cards they've been given. I agree very very strongly with the CSM that it feels a lot of features are being left behind and eventually we end up with not just code bloat, but also feature bloat. I agree strongly with CCP that they need to work on Incarna and Dust. I think Dust is a really big gamble, but Incarna is probably going to be a good thing once its fully out.

Furthermore, the CSM has no right at all to request that CCP stop work on these titles to focus on Eve. Their best line of attack is to request more development resources for Eve proper - which might include hiring a new team or two. Which they appear to be doing.

I dunno. I feel like a lot of the rage over this is unjustified and caused because the CSM is coming into things at the beginning of a release instead of when planning started (but can they ever be there when planning potentially starts months and years before?).

CSM5: Mismanaged Expectations on everyone's part.

-Liang

(original quote here)

See other participants:

1. Growing Pains | CrazyKinux's Musing
2. CSM: Hoax or Serious Business? « Lost in New Eden
3. CSM-Power to the people or puppets of CCP « A whole lot of Yarrrr!!!
4. Gaming the CSM | A Mule in EvE
5. A Taste Of Democracy | StarFleet Comms
6. CSM: Player Power or Paper Tiger? | I Am Keith Neilson
7. Governance Thrash Redux? « The Ralpha Dogs
8. CCP Doesn’t Care: Blog Banter 19 « OMG! You're a Chick?!
9. The Cataclysmic Variable: It's Crunch Time!
10. The 19th EVE Blog Banter is upon us… and about the CSM and CCP | Victoria Aut Mors
11. More to come...

Juggling RL and EVE (literally)

2010-07-14T21:00:00.000-04:00

[NOTE: RL Commentary]
With a new baby at home, EVE has become a fleeting moment caught one night or another, in between putting a two year old to bed and having a two-week old dropped on my lap. I've come to appreciate the simple, one-handed clicking nature of established PI chains during this stretch, but it leaves my PvP addiction aching with the cramps of withdrawal.
[END RL Commentary]

The excitement (and it appears, great success) of Hulkageddon III adds to my frustration, as I didn't have time to prep a ganking alt, so my mining alt is doing PI only during this time (the baby makes him even more of an AFK miner, which is an ideal target during the summer of gank). I've been following this event with much jealousy, as I really wanted to get in on the third iteration (I was a bystander for I and II, other than a few announcements in the public channel when T2 barges were spotted in hisec local). But, enough with the whining. Last night I was on my IM client that has pretty spaceship backgrounds (aka EVE) typing one-handed while holding the baby (who wasn't sleeping and was definitely crying). I saw intel reports of a small hostile gang approaching our station.

Timing was perfect for us, as there was a decent crowd in station, in between a just-finished POS bash and an about-to-start frigate/cruiser roam. For me, the baby had started to settle, and I was trying to figure out how to hold her on my lap so both hands could fly a combat ship. Logging on to TS, I jumped back to station (my 0.0 clone is implant free at the moment due to an unfortunate bubble incident), hopped in my Enyo Assault Frigate Goddess Fury, figured out how to balance the baby on my lap and hold her in place with a loose elbow so both hands could drive, and undocked, warping to the gate. The enemy gang (8 ships, mostly Cruisers/BCs, a couple Drakes and a Loki) were aggressed against our bait Domi on a gate. Fleet jumps in, lands on gate (I'm still getting on ship in station, 30 second session change timer sucks) and starts targeting and tackling the reds. I get in ship, undock, warp to gate, jump in, join fleet and warp to fleet, but the KB doesn't show me on the Curse kill (I had him targeted and my drones were out...). We lost a Scimi (one of our new pilots had auto targeting active and neuted OUR Scimi - FAIL), and took out a Loki, Curse and Cyclone. The enemy had successfully deaggressed and warped out (lost points - FAIL), but they then warped back to fly home - we had a couple pilots able to jump through with them, we pointed a Drake and took him down. I got my first kill in probably a month (the withdrawal was killing me), and the remains of the gang fled back to their station systems. At that point the baby started to stir, making the lap-hold less stable and safe, so I docked back up and logged, as the rest of the fleet reshipped for the roam.

If only EVE could present quick bouts of PvP like that for me each of my momentary logins...

Serpentis Watch and the EVE Player Blogroll

2010-07-06T09:00:00.000-04:00

Got a note from the reputed "Blogfather" Crazy Kinux today, the third iteration of my EVE blog has made the basic EVE Players Blogroll. Crazy Kinux has been blogging about EVE for quite sometime, and if you don't know about his blog (or the rest of the blogroll) you should check them out.

Yesterday I took out my all-purpose complex Myrmidon to wander around the edges of hisec empire and probe out any interesting complexes in the less trafficked systems. Got lucky in my destination system with a hit on the unknown Complex "Serpentis Watch." A quick check of the Neocom database did not reveal anything about this complex beyond an error where it appears on the scanner but is vacant. Warping to the signal, I encountered a single acceleration gate, unguarded but for a beacon warning that the Serpentis do not take kindly to visitors. Ignoring the warning, I activated the gate, warping deeper into the complex.

Arrving in the second area, I was almost immediately targeted by a group of Serpentis pilots - mostly flying Destroyer-class ship, some in Cruisers. Examining all data on my overview, I realized there were 5 such groups, two included more advanced cruisers, likely the squadron leaders. As I returned fire and deployed drones, I intercepted communications revealing that the two command cruisers had requested backup - and that included a commander in a Bruitx-class Battlecruiser. My overview was literally full of hostile ships, pounding on my armor and wearing down my defenses - it must have been almost 20 cruisers, 20+ destroyers, the commander and his 5 lieutenants. They pounded on my ship, taxing my armor repair systems to their utmost, as my railguns and drones slowly worked through the enemy ships. At one point, they had managed to get through my armor, damaging my probe launcher and other core components directly, before they were all destroyed. As I destroyed the commander's ship, Aura informed me that an acceleration gate had just activated. Preparing for more reinforcements, I reloaded my guns and continued cycling my armor repair systems. When none arrived, I cautiously approached the gate, then, once my armor was fully repaired and my shields had partially recharged, I activated the second gate.

Coming out of warp, my overview was filled with structures, but only a handful of Catalyst-class destroyers - perhaps 4 or 5. I made short work of them as I examined the other items on my overview. Far above the main structure, there was a Smuggler's Gate, much like the ones I'd seen in Cloud Ring. Although similar, this gate looked less sturdy than it's fellows in the reaches of nullsec, so I targeted it with my heavy drones and rails, deciding to end the Serpentis secret entry to this system. As the gate began to take damage, my combat alerts went wild. Almost a duplicate squadron of vessels to the previous area were arriving through the Smuggler's Gate, hoping to defend it before I could destroy it. Knowing how close the previous battle had been, I immediately aligned to a nearby planet, activated my afterburner, and began targeting the nearest ships. Molten charges from my guns (and theirs) tore across the reaches of space, but I was better prepared for this group of pirates, and destroyed them one by one, when suddenly the gate activated again. Cursing that I had forgotten to destroy it completely, I saw another dozen ships arrive on scene, mixed cruisers and advanced frigates. Assigning my drones to finish off the gate, I continued to burn away from my enemies, peppering them with railgun charges. It was then that my chief gunner informed me that I was out of antimatter ammunition, and had only one full rack of Uranium charges I had looted from a ship in the previous area. I would have to depend on my drones to finish off this threat.
Slowly my drones worked through the ships, I would occasionally have to recall and recharge their shields as my opponents targeted them, but eventually nothing remained but the 30-40 odd wrecks. Knowing I was extrememly low on ammunition, I immediately examined the cruiser and battlecruiser wrecks looking for unused rounds to refill my empty guns, as I let my armor repair and capacitor recharge, knowing that this pirate den was closed...for now.

Serpentis Watch (Unknown Combat Site)
Room 1: Acceleration Gate, no NPCs
Room 2: 4 groups of 3 Destroyers/3 Cruisers. Destroying each Corelium Scout spawns another wave of Cruisers and Destroyers. The final wave includes a Corelium Militant Commander (gate trigger). Destroy this ship to activate the Acceleration Gate.
Room 3: 4/5 Destroyers. Multiple Structures. Attack the Smuggler's Gate to activate the final combat spawn - there are at least two of these including the Overseer.

EVE utility websites

2010-07-02T21:00:00.001-04:00

EVE is a complex universe, but with API access for external tools try to make it easier to find and get information. Here's a shortlist of websites you should have bookmarked, and use regularly:

DOTLAN - a beautiful reference of the EVE universe, including printable combat maps. One of the newest features is the ability to see, at a glance, where various planet types exist in any given region. I use DOTLAN daily - with combat/kill updates, jump planning, and more. If you haven't spent time with DOTLAN - you haven't really seen EVE.

EVE-Survival is great for the PvE crowd - with details on missions, structure drops, triggers, blitz plans, and more. Back in the olden carebear days of my youth I had EVE-Survival up non-stop while missioning.

EVE Agents is another carebear/isk farming tool. Need to know where to find the nearest R&D agent for Hydromagnetic Physics datacores, or just a good L4 agent for Republic Security Services? EVE Agents has them all - even agents in space.

EVE Central is another tool site. Want to know the best price for anything that is on the EVE Market? It's listed on EVE Central - even with most recent transactions (within an hour or so). Don't spend too much on that ship when you can jump regions quickly and save tens of millions. Shop first at EVE Central.

EVE Ships is less exciting than the others, but for pilots trying to learn all the various shipnames, types, and such, a great resource. There's even a quiz - how many ships can you name in 60 seconds?

BattleClinic is the granddaddy of EVE sites for ship loadouts. Need to see some options on that new Claw? Battleclinic users can rate loadouts. Want to know who just blew up your ship? Check the killboard for their statistics and history.

Scrapheap Challenge and The EVE Online Uncensored forum at Kugutsmen are better news than in the EVE Online CAOD forum (usually) - but still should be taken with a grain of salt for factual information.

EVElopedia is the home of the official EVE item database - for statistics on every item under the sun.

Chruker's EVE site is the last one for this list, and it's a doozy. Tons of information on a variety of topics. I use it most for ship invention calculations to choose my decryptors (or not).

On a RL note, my wife recently gave birth to our 2nd daughter. Things may be more quiet here since I won't be ingame so much for a while.

Planetary Interaction short term review

2010-07-01T21:00:00.001-04:00

So I've had PI processes up and running from day 1. I'm trying to keep it simple, so I'm only doing POS fuel bits, and only in one system where there are POS towers, so I can be in space safely when needed. Here's the short list of things I wish I'd known when I laid down my first centers:

Plan first: I knew what I wanted to produce, and thought I had it all worked out, but I didn't. I've torn down my setup on 4 of 5 planets at least twice now. Part of that was poor planning. I am still tweaking the setups, and at the cost of a few million ISK each time it does get annoying. I could have planned even more and maybe had some of those stable from the first setup.

Watch your processor loads.This one came to me just yesterday, and resulted in some of my rebuilding. Depending on the extraction cycle, you can overload your processor, which (I'm assuming) will lead to lost/wasted resources. Keeping track of the % of incoming materials to the processor and making sure it doesn't go over 100% (by much) will ensure you get maximum return on extraction. On the flip side, the extraction cycle you choose can affect the percentage of incoming resources, it seems, so it may be worth considering storage silos for large extraction sites - with a two way link between the processor and the silo to get the materials processed and safely stored. I'm still working through this, but I'm seeing a logical reason for silos more often than my initial setups anticipated...

Profitability levels: I don't know if anyone is getting rich on raw PI production. I know (from experience) that the activity/profit level seems pretty high for me, since I am doing 24 or 96 hour cycles, so I don't babysit much. However, my setup is not providing the volume of materials I wanted, so the activity/profit level may be lower for useful production. As a byproduct it's not so bad just hauling stuff to trade hubs every week or two.

Command Center or Spaceport... So I initially installed Spaceports on all my planets, to take advantage of the customs offices. I'm rethinking this on planets where I don't need Import and the volume is small. The PG freed up from a Spaceport for an additional extractor (or longer links) is tempting on T2 production. Don't automatically assume you need a Spaceport, and make sure your Command Center is close to the processing area - just in case you need to use it for a launchpad

begin ramble...
Start with one planet, and one process, whether it's a T1 or T2 product. Start simple. Cluster your extractors close to the first T1 processor to keep the link PG low. If you are trying to get a lot of material, add a silo between the extractors and the processor, with a two way link. If you aren't importing goods to the planet, consider using the command center as your launchpad - and apply the PG/CPU to more extraction or processing. Once you get one planet all setup, move to the next. If you are doing similar processes on similar planets, set up all those first. I did my Gas/Storm setups first to get the easy Coolant and Oxygen processes running, and since they are end products (in my chain) and there is no planetary import, I use the Command Center as my final storage and launchpad.
My robotics chain is more complicated, since I didn't have a convenient planet to run the whole chain in one place, so on my Barren planet I'm using a Spaceport for Import and Export, and (conveniently) it's a silo for the process materials as well. Two-way links FTW.
If you are just getting into PI for profit, you need to do the prerequisite research. Check the various product prices on the markets, and figure out where your top profitability lies, based on the planets available to you. Build the biggest Command Center you can. Seriously - train that skill to L4 if you didn't already. 17k PG goes so quickly you'll start rearranging your extractors and processors to minimize link distances and create shortest path links. I often use EVE Central for price checking - it's a great resource in or out of game so you don't need to log in that Jita alt.

HTFU: Or, it's just a game get over it...

2010-06-23T21:00:00.002-04:00

I'm apparently a bitter old vet, after only 2.5 years of playing EVE.

Funny thing is, I don't think of myself as a bitter old vet. I try to be helpful when people ask questions, when driving my alts in NPC corps (especially noob corps) I try to help them learn to play better (at least when I can) and I try to answer questions that I feel I can contribute to effectively. Interestingly enough, this doesn't apply to people who whine about some game mechanics. I think there are a lot of odd mechanics in EVE, and there are some broken ones, but broken to me may be playstyle to you - so I don't whine about it... until now.

Here are my top "broken or odd" mechanics in EVE, and whether I think they need to be fixed:

Sovereignty Mechanics: I hate current sovereignty mechanics. The days on end of shooting structures with tens of millions of hitpoints hold little appeal to me. I am, however, a combat pilot in a 0.0 alliance, so it's part of the game I play. I will, when the time comes, ship up to my sniper Battleship (or close range Battleship) and shoot at the structures with my alliance mates. I don't like it, but it is the current iteration of this piece of the game, and although painful it's not really broken

Lag/Disconnect: This is broken. I have personally been lucky enough to always load grid and at least have a chance to shoot. But the stories of blackscreened doom and the rage they bring are an obvious sign of a broken mechanic. Whatever the cause, the black screen disconnect is the top of the "broken - fix please" list for me.

Faction War: So this is a touchy subject. I played FW for a while. I wasn't ready for non-consensual PvP (or consensual PvP for that matter), but that has nothing to do with what is actually broken. This seems new to me, but apparently in minor FW plexes, pirate faction frigates can enter where T2 frigates cannot, and CCP posted that these frigates were designed to be "more" than T2, so that seems broken to me, even if they aren't officially T2 or better. That's broken, IMHO and should be fixed. But the rest of FW? It's not broken as much as it needs help, much like sovereign warfare.

Learning Skills: This one always gets my goat. Learning skills are not required. There is no rule that a new player needs to spend a month training Learning skills before they can undock and fly. Learning skills are an option to accelerate your training if you are in the game for the long haul. Don't want to spend a month training learning skills? Then don't. Nothing in this game requires you to train learning skills. Sure, they make it quicker to train other skills. But you don't need to. Just like you don't need to train Propulsion Jamming, or Hydromagnetic Physics. Learning skills: not broken.

Ship balancing: This is a touchy subject for everyone. Here's my take. Each race has a ship for every role, right? In theory then, each ship should be able to perform that role completely. I'm going to pick on the Gallente Covert Ops Frigate (aka Helios). The covert ops frigate has 3 primary roles: Scout, Covert Cyno, Prober. Of the 4 racial Covert Ops frigates, only the Helios cannot perform all 3 roles simultaneously. Why? Because CCP gave it a 5m3 drone bay instead of 3 high slots. Unfortunately, they did not provide an accompanying drone to fulfill one of the missing roles - so there is no "Covert Cyno Drone" or "Scan Probe Drone". Now I'm all for keeping things within the "reality of the EVE universe" and Gallente are known for their drones, but not their stupidity. There are other Gallente ships without drone bays (Nemesis, anyone?) that match the other races capabilities in basic configuration - but the Helios drone-bay-for-high-slot makes no sense.

Insurance: This is another great hot-button topic. Let me reference the real world though, for this argument. In the real world, you pay for insurance, and if you crash your car (or someone crashes into it) your insurance will pay to fix/replace it. As far as I've been able to tell, even when you commit an illegal act with said vehicle. You are paying for a service (insurance) and they don't care why your car is wrecked, only that you need it fixed/replaced. Insurance isn't broken. If you take your insured battleship to hisec and gank a miner (and get CONCORDed) your insurance should still pay out. Sorry, not broken

Those are the items that come to mind immediately - I'm sure there are a couple more and I reserve the right to add them as I think of them.

The Nature of Humankind

2010-06-22T12:09:00.004-04:00

New Eden is an interesting place. With several hundred thousand capsuleers covering the known cluster and adjoining wormhole space, you will encounter all kinds of people, with all kinds of morals, attitudes, and habits. One of the hardest things about existing alone, in a pod, is that you never experience the nuances of communication that can reveal someone who is (or may be) out to get you or your assets. Even so, the fickle nature of humanity and the transient nature of possessions in New Eden mean that someone you have known and trusted for weeks, months or even years could turn sour and bring down your entire empire. The fall of Goonswarm can be attributed to an emotional outburst that then turned out to be perhaps very "in character" for karttoon, and perhaps even in character for the player behind him. There is an interesting analysis of the fall of Goonswarm at Massively, if you want to read more on this.

The history of Band Of Brothers and Goonswarm both attest to the difficulties of trusting someone too much in a world where there are no repercussions. Today I'm thinking about trust and the implications of trusting someone in our universe, since last night I was in on an operation to steal assets from a rival corporation courtesy of a spy. I look back on the operation now, and it goes against my personal real-world morals. However, in game, when your corpmates request help, you help - unless your morals preclude your participation. In this case, mine did not, but since I had to log off before the heist, I don't know if it was ever successful. And I wonder if that's the way I want it to be, so my personal moral position remains protected or ambiguous until challenged again. But last nights adventure, and a question of another corpmate earlier in the day, led me to think about the nature of trust in New Eden.

For those who like the short version: You can't trust anyone completely, but you need to trust others to some extent to truly experience New Eden in all it's glory.

The long version...
At some point in life and in game, you need to trust others. In EVE, we need to trust our CEO and directors to keep assets of the corporation safe, by being careful with who has access to what, and to have a strong enough personal moral fortitude to allow the corp as a whole to grow, rather than sneak off with all the assets and isk that everyone contributed to. We need to trust fleet FCs to make good tactical decisions. We need to trust our alliance leadership to do what is best for the alliance as a whole, not one corporation or another. Trust is a complicated issue though. Some players, or characters, are explicitly not trustworthy, others can be trusted for specific things. It's really not that simple. Helicity Bosun is a pirate, and a member of the Python Cartel, but she has been seen to be trustworthy (when running the Hulkageddon competitions) to distribute the prizes to the actual winners. In game, if I encountered Helicity in combat, I would not trust a ransom request based on experience with the Pythons, but Helicity has proven trustworthy with this specific action and experience. Situational trustworthiness. That's complicated...

I make a personal rule of trust in EVE. I trust few, and those I trust because I "know" them out of game, and I have an understanding of how they play the game. I don't automatically trust people I know out of game, because some of them play for the espionage and theft and piracy. I respect that, I like them as real people, but I wouldn't trust them with a Tech 1 frigate on courier contract without full-price collateral. After months (or years) of playing a game like EVE with people, you should know something about those people. If you don't, then either you aren't communicating, or they aren't - and that means there is an issue with either trust or truth - both of which should be a red flag. Recently a corpmate left to go back to an alliance we abandoned almost a year ago. He did it very openly (which I respect, and upholds my initial trust in him). His wife, however, did it quietly, one day she was in corp, the next she was elsewhere. I don't know her personally, and I want to believe that her actions were honestly executed, but the way you do something is almost as important as what you do.

Trust involves communication - if you communicate well and accurately, you will be trusted more than someone who is quiet. A couple months ago I was trusted to move the corp BPO collection from an office we were closing to our current headquarters. The 300+ original blueprints for ships, modules, rigs and components are an important part of our corporate infrastructure. Those BPOs sat in the hold of my Covert Ops Frigate for almost a month while we tried to coordinate a safe move across the universe. I worked daily to find a safe way to move them, and communicated with my CEO and the other directors the whole time. Granted, if you are a pessimist you know that I could have been lying, but because I communicate I was initially trusted with this job (which, BTW, was completed successfully - eventually). I trust our logistics pilots because they communicate with us, and they keep their regular schedules, so I know that if I have a ship to move from empire to 0.0 it will arrive on a regular logistics run.

Trust can't be unlimited though. I (personally) keep the vast majority of my in-game assets in neutral locations (NPC space) - and not always in stations where my corporation has offices. In sovereign nullsec, assets in a station are there at the whim (or defensive capabilities) of the sovereign alliance. I am so far removed from alliance politics that I know someday I will log in and everything in a sovereign station is locked, inaccessible to me, and I'll never get it back. That doesn't mean I keep everything out though - because if I didn't have combat ships at the ready I'm asking to be kicked out. I have a standard fleet of ships (and some replacements) for most standard alliance operations. I keep enough ships there to do my job, knowing that I will lose them (one way or another) eventually. Same goes for POS hangars. There are about 70 pilots in my corp - and although I've flown with most of them, I don't know them all well enough to trust all of them. If I were to keep ships in a POS, I would keep the bare minimum for the situation - for me that's a Battlecruiser (with fits to switch between ratting and combat), a CovOps Frigate, a Stealth Bomber, and an Interceptor. All told, about 100 million in ships, maybe 125 with fittings, if I were to be a victim of corporate theft. Not great, but with a good couple days carebearing in 0.0 you can recover most of that. Which brings me full circle to last nights activity. The corp we were going to acquire assets from was living out of a POS. Sometimes you have to, whether it be in deep nullsec or in wormhole space. But a corporation in those positions needs to be a tight knit group - and people with access to assets need to be known and trusted. In this case the person in question had limited access, but the corp was lax with security - they trusted too many people with too much access, and that was going to cost them assets.

You need to trust people in EVE to some extent - but you should never trust them with too much. The larger your circle grows, the more likely that someone isn't what they claim to be. In New Eden, there is no face to face communication, no subtle nonverbal cues to catch, that you have a spy in your midst, or a thief. You need to trust yourself - your instincts - first, but you will also need to trust others to experience everything this world has to offer. Hope for the best but expect the worst - you will never be disappointed and sometimes you will be surprised with something amazing.

EVE Blog Banter 18: It's the yellow box, stupid...

2010-06-18T15:19:00.004-04:00

Welcome to the eighteenth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by none other than me, CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

On May 6th 2010, EVE Online celebrated its 7th Anniversary. Quite a milestone in MMO history, especially considering that it is one of the few virtual worlds out there to see its population continually grow year after year. For some of you who've been here since the very beginning, EVE has evolved quite a lot since its creation. With the expansion rolling out roughly twice a year, New Eden gets renewed and improved regularly. But, how about you the player? How has your gaming style evolved through the years or months since you've started playing? Have you always been a carebear, or roleplayer? Have you only focused on PvP or have you given other aspects of the game a chance - say manufacturing. Let's hear your story!

Let's say this - I don't roleplay in EVE. I did the roleplaying thing - I still have a set of the original paperback Dungeons & Dragons manuals in a box in my office. I play a harder, more aggressive version of myself in EVE, so RP isn't hard and isn't part of what I want to do. I respect those that do, and occasionally I'll dabble with it for enterainment, but it's not my style anymore.
I started playing EVE with the release of Trinity, in December 2007. I hadn't played games seriously in about 7 years, since I retired my old Windows 98 machine in 2008. I have had computers and consoles from Pong to XBox 360, but I have been a Mac guy for over 14 years. I was in the original beta test for Everquest on the Mac, and that really soured the flavor of modern MMOs for me. When Trinity came out, and I could play it on my beefy Mac Pro workstation, I thought I could finally get into EVE, a game I had read about for years. I was a part time dabbler in MegaWars back in the day, and space combat/MMO had a soft spot in my heart. EVE allowed me to re-enter that world in 2007. I am still driving my first character, and the distribution of skillpoints shows that fact. As I have about 35 million SP at the time, it would seem like I could be a PvP king, or an Industrial Baron, or a Trade Tycoon. Because of the winding road that is EVE, I am more a jack of all trades, master of none.
I flew my trusty Velator through the (then rudimentary) training sessions, and took it mining in the 1.0 system I started in. There were no rats in the belts up there, but back then the world was less crowded, and I often had little company mining Veldspar with the Civilian Mining Laser I got for free. Life was simple, I'd run Level 1 missions (and get lost every few missions, not mapping my way through the region I spawned in) or mine Veldspar, dreaming of ruling an empire in EVE, but having no idea how to start. After meeting the CCP promotions group at MacWorld 2008 (and coming home with an EVE: Concord T-Shirt) I realized I didn't really pay attention to the game I was paying to play. It was then I learned there was a skill-based system, and I needed to buy and train skills to fly other ships and items. Yes - I played EVE for almost two full months and never trained a skill. I flew a Velator through Level 1 missions (that was hard, by the way) and mined Veldspar and sold the raw stone on the local market. Then I started training skills, and got into a Navitas and Tristan. I flew nothing but those ships (and Level 1 missions) for another 3 months until my daughter was born in RL.
As with everyone in that position, my game time became a stolen moment here and there, so I trained up to a Retriever and strip miners, and became a full-time miner. Funny enough, after having run (literally) hundreds of L1 missions for Astral Mining, I had great refine rates with them, and made enough money to buy and fly a cruiser. I still ran missions, but had discovered that there were more levels of missions, and L2 missions were awfully hard to fly solo in a Rocket/Blaster Tristan, so I fit up my first Thorax with Dual 150mm Railguns and succeeded in completing L2 missions with ease, when I had more than a baby's nap to play (nap time = mining time). I took all of May 2008 to train both tiers of Learning skills to V, but never used more than +1 implants (since that's all you get in L1 missions). Funny enough, I tried out almost every module dropped in my missions, and learned how to use things that were useless in missions. I looted, I salvaged, but I never sold modules with names on them - they just didn't seem to have good price offers on the market compared to the Meta 0 items.
I introduced two co-workers to EVE that spring, one of them (Crescendar) turned into a PvP whore - and was the first person to call me a carebear to my face. It was insulting, no matter how true. At that point I'd lost two destroyers to pirates in Losec - and a mining cruiser to a corp with (what I know now) was an NBSI policy in their losec home. I hemmed and hawed, but didn't join a player corp for another year. With the Emyprian Age, I joined Faction War and ran the FW missions until I realized it was consensual PvP, and I didn't know how to fit or fight for PvP. I dropped Faction War quickly at that point, knowing it would cost me ships and isk to learn the hard way. With the release of Apocrypha, and wormholes, I became quite skilled at scanning, and hopped in and out of wormholes and anomalies in my quiet corner of the universe. I was even nice enough (early in Apocrypha days) to fleet up with folks who lost their way in wormholes and get them out into empire. That led to several invites for player corporations that I mulled over, but RL was coming up again, and a move across the country meant I wasn't going to commit to anything new in EVE for a while. I started working up through missions until I was about to do Level 4 missions for 3 different corporations, when I finally joined a PvP corp that was in Faction War.
Aurora Security has a long history in EVE, and the directors in that corp had experience in everything EVE had to offer. I saw a post from the CEO, Pierre Dumonte, in the recruiting forums, and it sounded like a good match. I evemailed him, and eventually got a convo from the industrial director at the time. They were happy to welcome me into their industrial wing, and I would work with them on POS maintenance, mining, missioning, more of the activities I'd done for the past 1.5 years in EVE. I explained I wanted to learn to PvP, and was passed to a combat director named Mr. Teu. Teu was a hardassed pilot from the U.S. southern states, and a great person to learn from. My 1.5 years in EVE had prepared me to be in fully T2 fitted T2 frigates, sometimes with better fitting skills than the experienced combat pilots in the corp. I learned how to fly a Covert Ops frigate first, then an Interceptor, then an Assault Frigate, and finally a Stealth Bomber while in A.SEC. I was in high damage and often top damage in frigate roams due to luck and my high skillpoint base.
A.SEC was filled with mostly mature pilots - people who were usually over 30 in RL, had families and other responsibilities, and knew EVE was a game, not a lifestyle. The common sense of humor and level of maturity in the group spoiled me - my first player corp was an adult experience, no kid gloves but no kid emorages either. Like many 0.0 corps, we bounced around a couple alliances where I met, flew with and learned from other great pilots. I will always be a member of A.SEC at heart, but when RL for a lot of pilots caused a significant change in the direction of the corp, I went where I was enjoying EVE the most - 0.0 PvP.
My current corp (and alliance) has a solid base in 0.0 PvP, and I continue to learn with them, now more about the medium sized ships (HACs, HICs and BCs). I can (like any decent 0.0 pilot) fit all the way up to a Sniper BS, but I don't like the battleship - too damn slow to align, target, and warp compared to a frigate, or even a HAC.
My history in EVE: Miner, Mission Runner, small-time Trader and now PvP pilot sounds like a lot of others who have wandered the spacelanes, and have found that combat against other people is truly the heart of this game.

Participants:

CrazyKinux's Musing: The Heroes with a Thousand Faces

StarFleet Comms: Life. Evolved.

A Carebear's Journeu: This Carebear Thinks He Is Developing Teeth

The Elitist: Our ventures in EVE

A Mule in EVE: From a guppy predator

Travels of the Ronin: Evolution and Adaptation

The Ralpha Dogs: The Past Through Tomorrow

Where the frack is my ship: A journey, not a destination

I am Keith Neilson: 7 Year Itch?

Inner Sanctum of the Ninveah: Evolution Me

EVE Opportunist: A long history of a short time

Roc's Ramblings: Things Change

Guns Ablaze: Onwards and Upwards

EVE On Real Life: Haven't you grown up yet?

The Fang: The path of the ninja

EVEOGANDA: Whoops Apocalypse!

EVE SOB: Learning to swim

The Life of a Dead Jester: My Time with EVE

Personal Files, Ciarente Roth: Personal Diary 18.6.112

Learning to Fly: Change is Good

Depths Unknown: Falling With Style

Morphisat’s Blog: Jack of all trades

Sarnelbinora's Blog: Thoughts of EVE

More as they get published...

Entertainment in Nullsec

2010-06-08T22:42:00.003-04:00

Summary: TonyCandthejets comes to 0.0 in a Velator. He flies to a POS and loses his ship. He joins our ratting fleet and I pop his pod (poorly) after warping to him at range.

[01:53:09] TonyCandthejets > Hai thar
[01:53:22] TonyCandthejets > Is this where I get free isk?
[01:53:28] TonyCandthejets > lolol
[01:53:29] Jacques Batoche > possibly
[01:54:02] TonyCandthejets > I have come a very long way from the secret world of space horses
[01:54:30] J B > in a velator?
[01:54:36] TonyCandthejets > Yes...
[01:54:43] TonyCandthejets > To my people it is a sacred ship
[01:54:43] J B > lol
[01:55:07] TonyCandthejets > The god of space horses once sat on a metal rock and the result was the very first velator
[01:55:22] J B > i see...
[01:56:04] TonyCandthejets > I represent the Church of the Space Horse, and I would be happy to collect donations
[01:56:41] J B > Well I sent you one.
[01:57:03] TonyCandthejets > thanks
[01:57:10] J B > I hope that will help your sacred church in its mission.
[01:57:44] TonyCandthejets > It will
[02:01:41] TonyCandthejets > Soo.. where you guys at?
[02:01:55] J B > Oh you know, we're around
[02:04:02] TonyCandthejets > Where specifically
[02:04:18] J B > Oh nowhere specifically
[02:04:32] TonyCandthejets > I want to mine with you.
[02:04:35] TonyCandthejets > invite me to your fleet
[02:04:37] SW > that's not true - I am specifically right next to you Jaques!
[02:04:50] J B > Aha I must concede you are correct.
[02:05:09] SW > I could tickle your ships thrusters if I weren't a married man!
[02:05:15] TonyCandthejets > It's not like I have a huge fleet of velators comming to suicide gank you or anything
[02:05:27] TonyCandthejets > Just tell me I wanna be a cool space cow guy
[02:05:31] TonyCandthejets > who isnt a cow
[02:05:45] J B > Alright come to planet 0 moon 00
[02:06:55] TonyCandthejets > ?
[02:07:07] J B > That's where we are

(Tony warps his Velator to a POS)

[02:08:04] TonyCandthejets > Those guns will kill me wont they?
[02:08:20] TonyCandthejets > YIKES
[02:08:22] J B > They shouldn't
[02:08:23] TonyCandthejets > they did
[02:08:28] TonyCandthejets > Mean guns..
[02:08:35] TonyCandthejets > RELIGIOUS INTOILERENCE!
[02:08:37] J B > lol
[02:09:12] TonyCandthejets > why dose it shoost me?
[02:09:24] SW > because you are on the wrong side
[02:09:33] J B > and because you're a retard
[02:10:13] TonyCandthejets > wrong side?
[02:10:22] TonyCandthejets > Heresy
[02:10:30] TonyCandthejets > The space cow is the true path.
[02:11:04] J B > Oh I thought the one true path was that of the space whore.
[02:11:14] TonyCandthejets > same thing
[02:11:25] TonyCandthejets > the cow vagina... very spacious
[02:11:29] TonyCandthejets > like null sec
[02:11:37] TonyCandthejets > concord dont go there
[02:12:30] J B > sometimes i wish they did
[02:12:32] J B > ......
[02:12:51] TonyCandthejets > So are you guys going yo grant me entry to your super special blue treehouse?
[02:13:10] SW > sure. come to belt 1-1
[02:13:29] SW > show the handshake and you can be in
[02:13:40] TonyCandthejets > I have no hands only tendrils
[02:13:50] SW > even better. gooey....
[02:13:53] J B > Well then the special tendril shake
[02:14:47] TonyCandthejets > Sorry I don't touch other peoples tendrils
[02:14:55] SW > it's unclean
[02:16:37] J B > you can come ratting with us dood, we're at belt 7-1 killing battleships
[02:19:21] TonyCandthejets > I want to go inside the blue
[02:19:28] TonyCandthejets > so I can dock
[02:19:54] SW > Flotilla admirmal in 1-2!
[02:19:57] J B > cant dock at a pos
[02:20:31] TonyCandthejets > Why cant you dock at a pos?
[02:20:44] J B > nowhere to do
[02:20:48] TonyCandthejets > can I at least come inside it so I can hide from yoyo
[02:20:49] J B > dock*
[02:22:14] TonyCandthejets > I am hiding from skinnyeric1 and yoyo
[02:22:31] TonyCandthejets > If they cant get to me inside the blue sploog field then thats where I must hide
[02:24:18] TonyCandthejets > What is the password
[02:24:20] TonyCandthejets > LEt me in
[02:24:39] TonyCandthejets > I promise I will do it in the grass

(Tony accepts a fleet invite from J B - and I warp to him, landing inside the POS shields - then I scoot out as quick as I can)

[02:26:22] J B > warp to me at 30km

(sensor booster, web/scram, one shot medium railgun)

[02:28:33] SW > bye!
[02:28:44] TonyCandthejets > friendly fir
[02:28:54] TonyCandthejets > esemper fie
[02:29:44] SW > oops. I think I shot his pod
[02:29:51] J B > dam you!
[02:30:24] SW > I landed in the shields and couldn't target him at first
[02:30:35] J B > haha

Monthly Skills Review (2010.06)

2010-06-04T21:00:00.002-04:00

So it is with great joy that I have determined what skill path to wander down again. Although game time is limited, and going to be even more limited soon with the impending arrival of the next offspring, I am organizing my 3 main characters each with a focus.
Alt #1: Industrial Tycoon (ISK Generator)
With multiple research agents collecting high-value datacores, and the skill tree for PI well established (all PI skills at III or IV right now, and growing), this toon is fast becoming the industrial backbone for me. He will continue to build PI and Science skills (and Mechanic for construction).
Alt #2: Mindless Entertainment (PvE)
This alt gets her own account now. As she's been barely trained, she will focus on core skills to V before going any particular route. After the obvious cyno alt training, she will probably become my mission runner for mindless entertainment. This means she'll be a Caldari pilot fairly quickly, since the Drake and Raven are the PvE victors.
Main: Combat Pilot (PvP)
This was my first EVE character, and he has been all over the map in skills. The last year has seen a pretty good focus on combat skills, with almost every Gallente-oriented ship/support skill for BC and below at IV or V. He's going to focus on cross-training for all races up to Battlecruisers, beginning with Minmitar, since those ships have strong PvP fits. Although Amarr would be a logical third, the alliance is big on shield-oriented ships (passive recharge FTW), so Caldari will follow Minmitar. Starts training Minmitar Cruisers this weekend (already finished Minmitar Frigate V). The nice thing about racial frigates to V is the opening of the full gamut of frigate class ships that I can try out right away, as I am an Assault Frigate/Interceptor/Interdictor pilot primarily.

On a side note, gotta hate the $20 USD to move a character between accounts. I understand the "logic" for CCP to be able to track it, and the $20 keeps it from being abused, but perhaps the first move should be free?

MEME: Typing Speed Test

2010-06-03T11:52:00.003-04:00

Well, I'm slow now. Used to be faster - up in the 80s once.

Typing Speed Test

You type 364 characters per minute
You have 65 correct words and
you have 3 wrong words

I type 65 words per minute

Cyno Fields 101 (Part 2)

2010-05-21T21:00:00.002-04:00

In Part 1 we covered the basics about ships and fitting of ships for cyno work. In this part we will cover location choices for lighting cynos, and combat concepts for covert ops cyno fleets. Let's start with the basics - when you light a cynosural field, and someone jumps to it, they will appear anywhere from 2500 - 5000m from the field center - in a sphere. Your ship (the cyno destination) is at the exact center of a sphere with a perimeter at 5000m. The traveller(s) will appear anywhere within that sphere, from 2500m away to 5000m away. (NOTE - this can change with a destroyed cyno, which can throw you all sorts of crazy places in system). This can be interesting if you are able to pop a cyno ship before the traveller arrives - they may not land on target, creating an opportunity for combat. Understanding this 10km diameter sphere is critical, and the use of the tactical overlay is very important when setting up cyno bookmarks. So we have a ship, and we know that our friends will appear anywhere within 5000m of it. Where should we park?

Where the heck is that cyno - at the POS:
There are two situations for bringing a ship in to a POS - when the incoming pilot needs to enter a starbase field password or not. We'll go over the easiest one first - no password needed. In this situation, the objective is to get the cyno as close to the POS shields as possible. It is technically possible then for the traveller to appear inside the shields (although I have not seen it happen). From the cluster of POS Modules (silos, hangars, etc.) head towards the closest shield edge. You will want to have a side-view of your ship approaching the shield so you can see as you approach - when you get close, shut down the engines. You will slow down gradually, and should drift just outside the shield if you did it right. If you are just outside the shields, make a bookmark, labeled appropriately, for this beautiful pos cyno spot. This is your spot for ships that can fly into the shields directly.
If the incoming pilot needs to enter a password, you will want to provide some defense for them. You will want to keep in mind the 5000m radius, and light the cyno close to a gun or neut array. That way, if hostiles do approach and attempt to assault the incoming ship they will have to deal with the tower defenses. You must make sure that you are outside 5000m from the POS shield in any direction - if the incoming pilot bounces off the shields you will likely be looking for a new job very soon...

Where the heck is that cyno - at the station:
Station designers have created a myriad of beautiful and functional platforms in space - but we are only concerned with two things when lighting a cyno at a station - range and the undocking ring. When lighting a cyno at a station, the last thing you want is the incoming pilot to bounce off the station, so you want to make sure you are outside that 5000m sphere again. Referencing the image below, you will want to make sure that you are 5000m in all directions from the physical station:

The second part of the station puzzle is the size of the undock. You only want to light cynos for carriers at stations with really big undocking rings. To determine if the station you wish to use has a large undock ring, go ahead and undock. Watch your session change timer (you have that turned on in your options, right?) and the range to station in your overview. If at the end of your 30 second session change timer you are still at 0m to the station, open up your tactical overlay and see how far you are physically from the station. If you are at 5000m or further, then you have a station with a large undocking ring, an ideal place for a cyno. A side benefit of this, by the way, is that during your 30 second session change timer, you are invulnerable - and if you undock into a bubble or a hostile fleet, you can usually dock back up before taking any (significant) damage at the end of your timer - just don't try to activate any modules or change direction - and start spamming the dock button as your timer ends.

Covert Cyno Concepts
The covert cyno is a mainstay of hit and run/terror warfare. This requires some preplanning, to ensure that the system(s) you want to jump into are within range of your Black Ops battleship. The maximum range of a Black Ops battleship portal is 4.5 lightyears(base range is 2 light years), so you will need to either plan on bridging across multiple systems for greater range or set up within your skilled range. A Black Ops bridge can be used by any ship with Jump Harmonics 2, including Stealth Bombers, Covert Ops Frigates, Force Recons, Black Ops Battleships, and Blockade Runners. Tech 3 cruisers with a component to allow Jump Harmonics 2 can also use a black ops bridge. Utilizing multiple Blockade Runners to move fuel and Black Ops Battleships to run additional bridges, you can extend the range of your operation beyond the 4.5 light year maximum.

When we've done black ops, we set up at a staging POS, with bomber squad(s) sitting around 2500m from the BOps Battleship (much like a Titan bridge). The scout, or destination pilot will usually be in a well tanked Force Recon (unless we are going after a mining op), and will uncloak, tackle the target, and light the covert cyno. Always wait to light your cyno until you have your target locked down in this situation - save the isotopes and the element of surprise if the target gets away. The Black Ops Battleship will open the portal, and the fleet will right-click on the BS and bridge to the destination. Light up the target, destroy, loot, and bridge back out, leaving the scout alone again. Rinse and repeat as long as you remain within range of your Black Ops Battleship.

Cyno Fields 101 (Part 1)

2010-05-19T08:10:00.008-04:00

As documented in the EVE Wiki, nearly any pilot can generate a cynosural field. If you don't know what a cyno field is, take a few minutes to go and read the wiki article.

Ok, now that you are back, and you think you understand the basics of cyno generation, let's cover it with a little more detail. First, cyno travel requires a destination ship (the cyno ship) and a traveller. These ships include Carriers, Supercarriers, and Titans, while the black ops group includes Covert Cyno Frigates, Stealth Bombers, Black Ops Battleships, and Force Recons. These ships must be in fleet together for the traveller to jump to the destination. Since you cannot light a cynosural field in hisec space, there is always risk since the ships jumping to a cyno are popular to destroy, as told many places, including this earlier post. There are 5 basic types of cynosural bridges:

Deep Safe Cyno: These will not exist after Tyrannis, but the concept here is a cyno so deep out that it takes more than 30 seconds to warp to it from any celestial in the system.

POS Cyno: Common in 0.0 systems without stations, the POS cyno is necessary to get materials in and out of your POS farms.

Station Cyno: By far the most common cyno (besides the hot drop), bringing carriers in to stations where your corporate offices exist, to move goods between systems.

Hot Drop Cyno: Very different from the transit cyno fields, hot drop cynos are combat oriented - to bring carriers onto the field and overwhelm your enemy.

Covert Cyno: The last of the cynosural fields, and the most dangerous, a covert cyno does not appear on the overview, and is not visible to anyone unless you are on the combat grid when it is lit. In addition, it is only used to bridge in combat ships like Recons, Stealth Bombers, and Covert Ops Battleships.

Cyno Ships
Let's start with the options for cyno ships. I'm going to group 3 different kinds of ships: Traditional Cyno Ships, Combat Cyno Ships and Covert Cyno Ships.

Traditional Cyno Ships
Traditional Cyno Ships get blown up a lot. Because of this they are usually the cheapest frigate you can afford, with nothing but a Cynosural Field Generator fitted, and only enough fuel in the cargo hold for a single cycle. Personally this is a Navitas, since I own a highly researched BPO:

[Navitas, CynoFish]
[empty low slot]
[empty low slot]

[empty med slot]
[empty med slot]

[empty high slot]
Cynosural Field Generator I

[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]

Combat Cyno Ships
This is a more difficult ship to justify. A combat cyno ship is an effective combat vessel, but has a cyno generator fitted as well. That means it needs a gang for remote repair and (or) a killer tank, as it will be a sitting duck for 10 minutes. Battlecruisers are usually a good option here, with a solid mixture of cost, tank and overall flexibility.

[Myrmidon, CynoMrym]
1600mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten Plates I
1600mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten Plates I
Reactor Control Unit II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
Damage Control II

Y-T8 Overcharged Hydrocarbon I Microwarpdrive
Faint Warp Disruptor I
X5 Prototype I Engine Enervator
Monopulse Tracking Mechanism I, Optimal Range
F-90 Positional Sensor Subroutines, Scan Resolution

Cynosural Field Generator I
200mm Prototype I Gauss Gun, Antimatter Charge M
200mm Prototype I Gauss Gun, Antimatter Charge M
200mm Prototype I Gauss Gun, Antimatter Charge M
[empty high slot]
[empty high slot]

Medium Trimark Armor Pump I
Medium Trimark Armor Pump I
Medium Trimark Armor Pump I

Ogre II x3
Hammerhead II x5
Warrior II x5

Covert Cyno Ships
These ships are truly silent terrors, since they represent a double threat - they can warp cloaked, and the ability to bridge in a covert ops fleet. The scout ship (Covert Ops Frigate) is the less expensive of the two, while the Combat Recon is the battlefield version.
[Helios, CovertCyno]
Nanofiber Internal Structure II
Micro Auxiliary Power Core I
Damage Control II

1MN MicroWarpdrive II
Low Frequency Sensor Suppressor I, Scan Resolution Dampening
Low Frequency Sensor Suppressor I, Scan Resolution Dampening
Balmer Series Tracking Disruptor I, Tracking Speed Disruption
Balmer Series Tracking Disruptor I, Tracking Speed Disruption

Covert Cynosural Field Generator I
Covert Ops Cloaking Device II

[empty rig slot]
[empty rig slot]

The Covert Cyno Recon has a complex job - get in place, hold tackle, and light the covert cyno. This is the heart of a black ops fleet.

[Arazu, CynoRecon]
Damage Control II
Adaptive Nano Plating II
Medium Armor Repairer II
800mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten Plates I

Warp Scrambler II
Warp Disruptor II
10MN MicroWarpdrive II
Large Shield Extender I
Phased Muon Sensor Disruptor I, Scan Resolution Dampening
Phased Muon Sensor Disruptor I, Scan Resolution Dampening

Covert Ops Cloaking Device II
Covert Cynosural Field Generator I
Dual 150mm Railgun II, Spike M
Dual 150mm Railgun II, Spike M

Medium Trimark Armor Pump I
Medium Trimark Armor Pump I

Hammerhead II x4

Although traditionally the backbone (and sitting safe at a POS) in a covert hot-drop fleet, the Sin is also a battlefield menace, although often primaried in combat.

[Sin, Black Ops Leader]
Large Armor Repairer II
1600mm Reinforced Rolled Tungsten Plates I
Reactor Control Unit II
Armor Explosive Hardener II
Energized Adaptive Nano Membrane II
Energized Adaptive Nano Membrane II

Heavy Electrochemical Capacitor Booster I, Cap Booster 800
Sensor Booster II, Scan Resolution
Warp Scrambler II
ECM - Multispectral Jammer II
ECM Burst II
ECCM - Magnetometric II

Covert Jump Portal Generator I
Covert Cynosural Field Generator I
Improved Cloaking Device II
Neutron Blaster Cannon II, Void L
Neutron Blaster Cannon II, Void L
Neutron Blaster Cannon II, Void L
Neutron Blaster Cannon II, Void L

Large Ancillary Current Router I
Large Ancillary Current Router I

Bouncer II x5
Ogre II x5

This covers the introduction to Cynsural Fields, specifically the ships involved. In part 2 I will talk about actual use of the fields, in both transit and combat concepts.

Commitment is a four letter word...

2010-05-14T10:08:00.003-04:00

As an individual pilot, I'm not new to 0.0 overall, although I will admit my life in 0.0 (now approaching a year straight) has been mostly in NPC 0.0. Our alliance has recently sided with the SC in the current "great war" in hopes of gaining some decent sov systems and the benefits that come with it. We successfully have sovereignty in 4 systems, but no station systems. That was on the agenda to change last night, but sadly, did not work out in our favor.

Shortly before 00:00 EST in RL, I heard crickets. That's my "quiet" alarm on my iPhone, the one I use for alarm-clock ops so I don't wake the wife. I get up, bio and settle in to my desk, EVE has been logged in all day in anticipation of an ugly fight for sovereignty in FIO. When I went to bed (two hours earlier) there were only a dozen or so people in local, and half of them were alliance. After an unopposed takedown on a Tech moon the night before, I wondered if MH and the NC would just roll over for this backwater system with station. I didn't expect them to, but I wondered...

I'd been idle in FIO all day, sitting cloaked at a fairly deep (but within Tyrannis bounds) safe in my light dictor. It was the best ship I'd had available when we started this fight, although when I get back to station I can put together some LR battleships and HICs finally since my gear has arrived in 0.0. I watched local hover in the teens, mostly neuts and reds when I checked, so when I went to prep for the final battle I was mildly surprised to find local over 250 with only 20 blues in that count. What I wasn't surprised with was the crappy local spam that is part of current lag-based warfare. Note to CCP - an option to ignore a pilot in local (and have their local broadcasts blocked) would be a godsend in the current game. Anyway, I fire up vent and look for the fleet, join up and am immediately dismayed. Our fleet numbers 62 pilots, and the station we are attempting to take comes out or RF in 30 minutes. That means the current odds are a little under 6:1 against us. Well, I figure, I'll sit it out and see if we actually can put this together. After all, it's 12:30 AM EST, which means our strong Euro group is just waking up, and the U.S. folks are really pushing into the later night. We've had larger fleets in roams - no reason it wouldn't pick up to around 100 - but then the other shoe drops. The majority of our small fleet is still in our home staging system. They haven't even begun the trip out here, and the road is heavily camped this close to the actual combat timer.

After some up and down discussion, it is determined that we will be able to utilize a Titan bridge courtesy of CH (currently blue to us for the war), and they've got a fleet that could be as large as 100. Things are starting to look up, although now the timer is at 15 minutes and counting... Count in local is now about 300, blues account for 20 +/- pilots. As the fleet is warping to the titan bridge, word comes out that the POS the Titan rests at is set to shoot non-alliance. Pilots should be entering a password before warping, CH is working on the POS settings, it sounds like this could end badly before it begins. Well, as it turns out, things get arranged and folks start bridging in a couple systems from FIO. Of course, the timer is up and the NC is now pounding on our SBUs, ready to end this siege. Our fleet arrives at the E9 gate into FIO, are alerted to the enemy count on gate, and the situation, and they call for all alliance pilots in FIO to get into E9. Most of us warp to 0 on the gate from our various spots and jump into E9. Two neuts follow us, and the fleet fails to pop or stop them, as they (in bombers) are able to warp off successfully.

We sit for a while on gate as intel feeds in from FIO. The bulk of the NC fleet is now on the other side of this gate - so our fleet sets up at optimal ranges. Of course, our FCs aren't thinking Sov warfare - why would they jump out when everything they need is on their side of the gate. They can sit there and end the Sov battle by destroying our SBU while we sit on the other side of the gate debating tactics. Finally a tactic is arranged, the whole fleet warps around to a secondary entry gate in FIO. As we approach that gate, the fleet splits back up and half goes back to the E9 system and gate into FIO. Apparently we will try a two-front assault in hopes of...I guess a good fight. At this point, the SBU is reported destroyed. The battle for FIO is over, NC defended. Our allies have jumped in, are trying to engage the NC fleet but are in HACs/BCs and don't have the firepower and armor to survive an assault from the NC fleet, which has at least 5 guardians on the field. After some brief discussion, our FC decides that we came for a fight, and we were going to do it, if the majority supports it. As most pilots are in T1 Battleships, and insurance still pays a win, we decide to jump in and go down in our true suicide fleet way.

As we jump into FIO, the NC bubbles the gate all to hell. Still cloaked, my overview is full of targets, and the FC starts calling targets. I realize that my little dictor is useless in this unless I can get out, so I align to a celestial and start to MWD out. I'm targeted almost immediately, and with two volleys I'm at 20% armor. I get out (in 80% hull) and am able to regroup and repair my armor - but as I watch and listen our fleet is going down steadily. At the end of the day, our KB shows 53 losses, 8 kills. I'm not going to try and paint a rosy picture, we got wiped off the field. But it is the nature of the beast - this alliance is about the fight, win or lose, as long as everyone (or the majority) supports the decision for a suicide fight. Round 1 of the battle for FIO and Fade goes to the NC.

Just under two hours from the alarm going off, I'm headed back to bed. We'll regroup and reassess in the morning, I expect.

War and Piracy (second rebirth)

2010-05-10T21:06:00.000-04:00

(originally written and posted July 2009)
The war rages on. But does it impact the life of a lonely pod pilot?

The war between the Empires continues, the blood toll rising daily. Families torn asunder, friends now turned to enemies; such is the cost of peace and politics in New Eden.
Some events go unheralded; victories and defeats all in the name of duty and honour.
Economies collapse, piracy is on the rise. Is there an end in sight? Can there ever truly be peace?

I never felt like a patriot. It wasn't me. My family were immigrants and industrialists, not warriors or statesmen. I had already drifted far from my origins. Becoming a Capsuleer, I knew I had become more than anyone in my family before - immortal, rich beyond their imaginings, and a wanderer in the darkness between stars. When the empire wars began nearly a year ago, I watched from the sidelines. It was, after all, not my problem. However, like many others, I was curious about the war. In the springtime after war broke out, I decided to take a short stint in the Gallente Militia.

As a solo pilot, I had never put much stock in the corporate experience. The company that helped train me was quick to let me go without a second thought, although life in The Scope wasn't much different. A large group of pod pilots fly in The Scope, but they don't have any common goals, aspirations, or the ability to really coordinate and work as a team the way other corporations seemed to. So when I went into the militia office to sign up for a term in the Gallente Militia, I didn't really pay attention to the details, and simply signed on the bottom line. That was not my first mistake, nor would it be my last.

I had recently relocated to Jufvitte, a border system on the edge of the disputed regions. There was a Federal Defence Union station in system, with a variety of agents to work for. I'd been running missions my entire career, and thought this would be no different. I called up the local agent on my neocomm and applied for a mission. I was shocked at the mission offered - fly 13 systems across high- and lo-sec Caldari Space and assault an outpost in their border zone. This mission went smoothly, although flying to and from the system was challenging, as I was chased 4 systems across The Citadel by the Caldari Navy. Several other missions were similar - fly far across space to a Caldari border system and assault an outpost.

One evening, as I was assaulting an outpost, I was surprised to see a Caldari Capsuleer warp into the mission. I hadn't paid close attention to the information packet handed out by the militia recruiter - and didn't realize that my arrival in the system would be noted, tracked, and I would likely be attacked by either Caldari militia or local pirates. My initial reaction was best - I immediately aligned and warped to my exit stargate. There was no ship waiting there, and I should have just jumped out and accepted my failure, as my ship was not configured to battle experienced pod pilots. But I was so used to the life of a hi-sec mission runner I just re-aligned to the deadspace gate and warped back in. At the gate there were two other Caldari pilots, and they were prepared to battle other capsuleers. Within moments I was webbed and scrambled, unable to get away as they locked weapons onto my Catalyst-class destroyer and began assaulting me. I returned the favor, targeting one of them and opening fire, but they were just out of range of my 125mm railguns, especially with antimatter charges. I was missing as often as hitting, and the well-known Caldari shield tank was holding up easliy against my intermittent fire. I continued to attempt to warp away as they quickly ate through the shields on my ship, and began to penetrate the armor. In an unbalanced fight (3 to 1) I sat basically unable to strike back and merely watch my ship dissove from under me. The explosion of my ship disrupted their scramblers just enough for me to get away - but having failed to complete my mission. My personal disappointment (and the frustration from the agent who had hired me) led to a quick end of my contract with the Gallente Militia. I flew for them for a mere two weeks, and had nothing to show but a Pend Insurance payout on my overpriced Catalyst. I was done, disgusted with my lack of understanding and unprepared to lose ships anywhere, anytime, to the raiding Caldari militia pilots. I contacted the local militia office, and resigned, realizing I wasn't made of "the right stuff" for the war.

Fast forward to high summer. I watched from the sidelines as the Caldari conquered system after system across Gallente space, reducing the "safe" space to fly in to small pockets of high-security systems scattered across known space. I was a more experienced pilot today - I still hadn't had to take out a fellow capsuleer, but I was smarter about how to avoid pirates and other pilots, and I had been studying the techniques of ship combat, improving my ability to command and utilize the offensive and defensive systems in my ships - I had even qualified to fly the advanced frigates and destroyers available to the Gallente pilot, although I felt I wasn't quite ready to fly and lose a ship that expensive. I was, after all, still a solo pilot. That was all about to change. I had come across a corporation that seemed willing to let me learn the actual techniques of combat against other pod pilots, and they had recently signed up with the Gallente Militia to fight back against the Caldari horde. I felt like it was time to try again - time to step back up and sign on the dotted line. I was going to re-enlist.

The Carebear in me...

2010-05-08T21:01:00.002-04:00

The carebear in me is having a bit of fun with PI on Sisi. Assuming that most of it sorts out with good information in the market for the PI command centers and skills, those who have spent a lot of time with it in Sisi and documented things should come out way ahead in the initial PI race, but it will probably balance out soon enough. What I've noticed (and hope is not consistent) is that costs to build items like extractors and storage facilities are 100% out, with no reimbursement when decommissioning a site. I would think that in the "far-future" that some small measure of recycling existed, so those decommissioned facilities return something (like 5-10%) of the commissioning cost. Either that, or they remain available but in offline mode, like various tower modules.

As I test the various processes for POS fuel creation, I know the wormhole crowd is getting excited, to go deep down the rabbit hole and hide their POS, since they can live there all alone without needing to travel out with this change. Of course as CCP does this, and the Meta 0 removal from loot tables, it is clear that they are slowly working towards a completely player-run economy. I wouldn't be surprised if in 6 months, with the next major release (or slowly, over the 6 months) Meta 0 items and those items constructable via PI disappear from the NPC hubs. Guess it's time to get my industry alt up with Production Efficiency V, and my item BPOs to ME/PE 20/20 for the oncoming change. The lag in Sisi today was crazy though - 20-30 seconds for my hangar to show any ships or items after login. Hope that isn't a failure in the battle of Lag that will make its way to Tranquility...

Skills Update: Main and Primary alt

2010-05-07T21:36:00.000-04:00

I often enjoy reading about other's skill plans, and where they are in any particular skill plan. Here's a quick summary of the two primary characters I'm flying right now. My main, SW, has just over 34 million skill points. As I spent a long time bouncing around and not focusing my skill plan, they are all over, although 51 of them are at Level V:
Corp Management: 137,180
Drones: 1,092,884
Electronics: 4,426,666
Engineering: 2,306,695
Gunnery: 9.052,096
Industry: 756,427
Leadership: 320,000
Learning: 4,111,530
Mechanic: 1,546,801
Missile Launcher Operation: 602,124
Navigation: 1,568,310
Science: 2,337,496
Social: 103,155
Spaceship Command: 5,648,520
Trade: 30,144
My super achievement is in gunnery - I have all the gunnery support skills to V except Trajectory Analysis, and Specialization in all Hybrid and Projectile Turrets up to at least 4 in small and medium weapons. The goal here is to fly all Caldari, Gallente and Minmitar T2 Frigates and Cruisers effectively. That skill plan is actually less than 6 months, including all T2 cruisers and frigate skills to L4 (except logistics).

My alt (just over 6 months old) is in a very different direction, with 7,777,309 total SP, and only 15 skills at Level V:
Corp Management: 0
Drones: 439,518
Electronics: 157,539
Engineering: 322,829
Gunnery: 22,158
Industry: 1,908,506
Leadership: 0
Learning: 1,359,241
Mechanic: 701,270
Missile Launcher Operation: 0
Navigation: 53,255
Science: 2,012,722
Social: 242,275
Spaceship Command: 549,246
Trade: 8,750

He's got multiple research agents and near-perfect refines on all non-null minerals. He is working towards maximized T2 invention in all 4 races for Frigates and Cruisers. Once that's done, T3 invention skills are in the queue.

I have a second alt, but she is very new, and shares skill time with one of the others, so she hasn't even passed the double-time training bonus yet. She's just getting learning skills in order before beginning her career. I'm considering working towards a focused Carrier/MOM pilot, but that would really require a third paid account to make it an effective plan. She will probably stay a neutral alt/cyno alt for some time...

When in a rut... wander a new direction

2010-05-05T22:18:00.004-04:00

So I've lived in the same area of space for most of my 2.5 years in EVE. Well, to be more specific, I've lived in two areas pretty much exclusively. One is Gallente empire space, and the other is NPC 0.0 in ORE/Syndicate space. I've also (as mentioned before) spent most of that time in NPC corps, and one player corp (now two). The hardest part about living in the current region of 0.0 is that we are blue to practically everyone, and our alliance has a reputation for hot-drops and heavy-loss-inducing suicide fleets. This translates (loosely) into fewer and fewer options for good fights. People either safe up, dock up, or just plain leave when a scout from my alliance appears in local. This has made 0.0 boring. I never thought I'd say that, but when I can safely rat in a pipe system in 0.0 with only 1-2 safes because 90% or more of all traffic is blue, 0.0 has lost its lustre.

Fortunately this should all change soon enough, with some opportunities for good fights coming, but the last month (almost two) has seen a rut where we have to go 15-20 jumps just to find a fight. But what has happened is that some of my favorite pilots to fly with have either gone MIA (not even logging in) or rogue in losec. Now understand - I don't think there's anything wrong with going to losec and losing a little sec status, even though I am still too much of a carebear to pod someone in losec. This rut extends even to my game, as I find myself spending more time in my industry alt, getting into POS production, R&D work with datacore collection, ship invention and T2 construction. Unfortunately (for me) I'm not doing it right, as I'm not inventing and building to earn ISK - I'm doing it for the day my PvP character is interesting again.

Most interesting to me, as the fledgling industrialist, is the odd drops and fluctuations of prices as a major update to EVE approaches. The industry CEO is a wizard with this, and regularly modifies what we are building in our POS farm, based on market cycles and material prices. Since I'm just getting started, I'm not really one to say "buy construction blocks" or something, but as I'm learning more I'm realizing that sometimes, the path to success is far from straight. I've been collecting the specific datacores I need for my ship invention, via a decent (L3) R&D agent near my Losec base. A recent returning player to the corp was evaluating the datacore market recently, and informed me that we were better off researching some random datacore, selling them on the market, buying the datacores we want for invention, and still be turning a profit of several million ISK per week - with no real work involved beyond posting buy and sell orders. So rather than researching Caldari and Gallente Ship datacores, I find myself researching odd physics skills. Moral of the story - sometimes the end goal is best achieved with a winding path. I will have plenty of datacores for my invention work, I will be earning additional ISK since I'm researching popular and expensive datacores instead of the ones I need, and buying my starship datacores on the market.

Territorial Claim Unit anchored...

2010-04-27T21:00:00.001-04:00

Well, Dominion is almost done, and our alliance has started taken Sov after living in NPC 0.0 for a few months. It had to happen, we have NAPed most of our neighbors, and the ones we didn't hug stations when we come around now, so we need to travel far to get any good fights. This is the beginning of our move to new hunting grounds, and I for one look forward to it.

Late to log in, I see a CTA in alliance, open up a chat and find the fleet already in position at a staging POS, and only about a dozen alliance members in our NPC 0.0 hub. After having lost a Megathron in a stupid race to a POS bash a couple weeks ago, I started rallying folks who were late to the party to fly up in Interceptors and Assault Frigates. Only 3 of us to fly, we made it in time to unload our ammo into both the Infrastructure Hub and the Territorial Claim Unit.

At it's peak, the fleet of about 50 was capital heavy, with only 15 support (BS and smaller), caps, moms and dreads on the field. We now hold Sov in two systems. Watch this space for more as it comes. We aren't very strong in US TZ, so the fleet was impressive for the amount of high-end DPS we can field in this TZ when necessary.

What's in your hangar

2010-04-25T21:00:00.001-04:00

Well, as I'm trying to get back in the swing of the blogging, I thought I'd join in on this one. I'll use my combat hangar in 0.0, although technically it's 2 hangars in two stations...

1 Nasty Neut Domi

2 Megathrons - one is a sniper, one short range melter

2 Myrmidons - one for ratting, one for roaming

1 Brutix - Blaster Brute, nothing unusual here

1 Arazu - this guy is my covert cyno pointer. The second most expensive ship I fly

2 Phobos - set up with a heavy tank, EFT claims over 100k EHP - these are the most expensive ships I own at the moment

3 Eris' - yep, more interdiction fun. My favorite is the one with the prototype cloak...

4 Nemesis' - two are standard painter/damps, two are...tackle bombers

1 Viator - because sometimes you just gotta GTFO

2 Taranis' - my favorite. That's why I only have two left at the moment down here, and 3 in transit...

1 Ares - not sure how I feel about this guy yet.

1 Thorax - because you sometimes need a T1 fit, T1 cruiser

2 Enyos - these are my alternates for the Taranis

2 Helios' - duplicates, cloaky scout/small transit ship

1 Ishkur - this is still a naked hull, not sure how I want her set up

2 Rifters - gee, what a surprise...

1 Fed Navy Comet - because everyone needs a faction ship in their hangar

Just for the fun of it I did a quick ship inventory in all of New Eden - Ignoring Noobships and Shuttles, I have 65 ships around, at least 50 of them are cruiser or larger, at least 15 are T2 hulls, and about 55 are fit and ready to go. That helps me sleep at night, knowing I am mostly prepared.

And very off Meme, yes I fly Gallente, but not super drone man - I have a rough 8.5 million SP in gunnery, and it's almost all in Hybrid Turrets and support skills. You do the math...

FNF: Thanatos Down!

2010-04-23T21:00:00.001-04:00

From the EVE Wiki:

"EVERYONE WANTS A CAPITAL SHIP KILL MAIL. Remember that, EVERYONE wants one. FREAKIN EVERYONE! If your grandmother that doesn’t play Eve heard about their awesomeness, she’d want one too."

Logging in around 01:15, it's quiet. No fleets up, no serious reports in Intel or Alliance chat. I say Hi to Illauron and Jack, both of whom are online. Within minutes, there is spam in alliance chat from Chad VanGaalen requesting DPS for a carrier kill. Everyone wants a carrier kill in their logs, right? I hop in the best BC I have (actually, the only BC I have in 4C at the moment), a Neutron Brutix, and undock, join fleet and get the destination from Chad's current location. 18 jumps out... ugh, OK fleet is forming up but we are short an FC. I warp to the LGUZ gate, and as I land there is a neut frigate there. I spin up the tracking boosters, start targeting, get set to release my drones...oops. I've undocked without any drones. I still target him, and unload a couple rounds (missing as I am fit with T2 Heavy Neutron blasters and am still 8k away from a frigate) as he jumps back out of the gate. I head back to the station to correct my drone mistake as the fleet continues to build.
Undock again, and head back to the gate, and finally an FC calls and we are to hold on LGUZ until the fleet is ready. At this point Chad is getting a little nervous about how long it will take us, the Thanatos is doing a plex and is almost done. Chad tells us to "burn burn burn" best speed to 00GD-D. There are about 10 of us on gate, as we jump into LGUZ (still without a scout) and we start running for Fountain. The fleet continues to grow as we make our way down the Sword pipe in Outer Ring, and after 3 jumps we've got a scout moving +1 then 2 systems ahead. As all pilots are burning best speed, the fleet is staggered across multiple systems, which (in retrospect) may have helped us. Just as we are approaching Fountain Chad informs us that the Thanatos is aligning out, and has finished the plex. The FC calls for him to tackle and the fleet to move as fast as possible. The actual destination is posted, with directions to avoid the IT station system next door, we are headed for CHA2-Q. Chad is holding the carrier in his Tengu, steady at 90% shields, we are burning as fast as our Battlecruisers will take us ignoring everything (including neutrals on gates) in an effort to get to Chad.
"There is a Paladin on the field" Chad reports "I'm being targeted."
Fo Shizz (FC) tells him to hold on as best he can, and our logistics and interdictor to burn ahead and get support as soon as possible. We are still 8 jumps out.
"1/3 shields" Chad's voice is a little nervous - he's in a Tech 3 cruiser and will lose a ton of skill points if he gets popped. "I have to warp out - and the carrier is warping out too."
The fleet continues to move, forming up on the C1XD-X gate in 00GD-D. Scout goes +1 again, as we now sit on gate, 17 Battlecruisers deep in IT/BLAST territory, waiting as Chad smacks in local with the carrier pilot.
"I've got him convinced I'm alone. He's headed to another complex" Chad reports. "I'm scanning him down now. I've got him - warping in."
We jump into C1XD-X, now two jumps out and aligning to B32-14 as Chad comes back up "Crap. He's warping back to his POS." The fleet stops two jumps out, on the B32-14 gate in C1XD-X, as Shizz comes up on comms.
"Everyone log out now. Log out, log back in to the character screen and stare at your pretty picture. DO NOT click any further. Log out NOW."
A tense few minutes follow as we sit blind, on vent, waiting for instruction. Shizz begins instructing us on the procedure to follow. "Ok - when we log in, jump, warp, jump, then join fleet. Do NOT join fleet until you are in system with Chad, then warp to him."
There's a lot of chatter on Vent now.
"Fleet comms guys. I'm going to mute people if you don't shut up!" barks Shizz.
"Ok" Chad speaks up "I've got him pointed again"
"Everyone log in and jump jump jump!" commands Shizz.
"The Paladin is back on the field" reports Chad.
We are auto-warping back to the gate. A fleet invite pops up on my screen. I click at it to make it go away.
"I'm at 50% shields" reports Chad.
As I land on the B32 gate, I start spamming the jump button. You cannot complete this action due to fleet smacktalk Crap. I clicked the join button on the fleet. 30 seconds of waiting before I can jump. I kick myself for explicitly doing what Shizz warned us not to, but since I'm stuck I go ahead and add Chad to my watch list. Smacktalk ends (the longest 30 seconds of my day) and I'm able to jump - warp - jump into CHA2-Q. Chad is now getting reps as the logistics and dictor have landed on the field. We target the fighters and drones first, Chad has to warp off to break target locks and repair up, everyone lays damage on the Paladin, which pops fairly quickly, then we start in on the carrier, which has entered Triage. Armor tanked carrier takes no real time to go through shields, but he's got a good tank and great repping, as we can't break his tank. Everyone is unloading everything we've got on this Thanatos, and we can't get him below 50% armor. There is some discussion of overheating, but we are waiting. Local starts to climb, and our scout goes to G95F-H to make sure an IT fleet does not drop on us and ruin our day.
The carrier goes into another triage cycle as we continue to unload our ammo into it, still not breaking the tank. Now our fleet has grown to 26 as we continue to unload into the carrier, now in it's third triage cycle. Suddenly an Iteron is on the field, headed for the carrier.
"Target the hauler. Target the hauler. They are attempting to re-stront the carrier!"
4 guys pop the Itty, and the can, and the wreck, before the carrier can re-stront. I check my hold. I have 4 rounds left in the hold and 23 rounds in my guns. I cycle down the guns, unload to the hold, and ungroup my weapons. I'm going to run out of ammo before we finish this, and there's a fight brewing on the way out! I get the guns reloaded and start them firing again, just as we break the tank a support gang finally arrives. We start targeting the support gang under orders until the FC realizes we have broken the carrier tank.
"All DPS on the carrier - All DPS on the carrier - overload your weapons - DO NOT burn them out" orders Fo Shizz, as we continue to unload on the carrier, his support fleet (which has been jammed beautifully by King Voodoo) warps off, realizing we have won the carrier and they will be cannon fodder in moments. My guns are cycling empty. I have one blaster with 23 rounds left as space fills with a bright blue explosion and the carrier ceases to be.

EVE Blog Banter 17: The Ladies of New Eden

2010-04-22T20:40:00.004-04:00

The EVE blog banter is a great way to test the pulse of the blogging community on a variety of issues. In previous incarnations the banter was one of the items I worked hard to write for regularly. It's hosted by Crazy Kinux, and the latest discusses women and EVE.

Crazy Kinux is... one of those who believes that, though the game should not be changed to specifically go after that part of the gaming population, EVE Online would greatly benefit if somehow the balance the 2 genders roaming New Eden would lean towards an equilibrium. So I ask...
What could CCP Games do to attract and maintain a higher percentage of women to the game. Will Incarna do the trick? Can anything else be done in the mean time? Can we the players do our part to share the game we love with our counterparts, with our sisters or daughters, with the Ladies in our lives? What could be added to the game to make it more attractive to them? Should anything be changed? Is the game at fault, or its player base to blame?

I think EVE suffers overall from a limited, focused playerbase. Let's face it MMOs in general target specific audiences, and although there are women in those audiences (I have gamed with women all the way back to junior high D&D), they are not as prevalent as men. What could CCP do? Well, to begin with let's look at the overall marketing strategy of EVE:
"It's your destiny - shape it as you will"

While that sounds good, it's not a clear message to sell the game to anyone, let alone women who aren't already MMO gamers. The excellent trailer created a while ago called "The Butterfly Effect" is the closest thing to a marketing piece that might, almost, appeal to a potential lady of New Eden. Why? Because women are, by and large, social creatures. I've been married 7 years and with my wife for almost 11, and one thing I see from her, the people we know, and the people we meet, is that in general, (and yes, I'm generalizng) women would look at the marketing campaign for EVE Online and say, "bleh, spaceships. Why would I want to do that?"

In reality, EVE doesn't need to change for women to play, although they may be more prone to emoragequit when they suffer the inevitable suicide gank or losec gatecamp. EVE offers everything that can appeal to women - it's a social environment (text chat, voice chat, interactions) and there are aspects of EVE that don't consume your every waking moment (various industry roles, anyone?), and there are competitive aspects to EVE (PvP, Market Gaming) that appeal to those who are more competitive. The problem is the message, and the venue. I don't see EVE ads when I'm shopping for flowers or anniversary gifts - only on my tech-geek sites. I know online advertising is targeted, but they need to reach beyond the target audience.

How does CCP market something so deep, so broad? With the easiest, broadest message: "It's your destiny - shape it as you will." If they were serious about expanding the playerbase to include women, they would need to market more about EVE than Sov warfare and large fleet battles, even though that's the endgame. Perhaps a campaign that focuses on the industrial side of EVE, especially with Tyrannis on the horizon, is the appropriate angle. EVE isn't for everyone, but right now, CCP is only marketing it to the fans. It's like telling a baseball fan how great it is to see a game in Fenway Park. They already get it - they aren't the folks you really need to market to (although you can't ignore them). A side benefit of marketing the other aspects of EVE? You would get more than just women - you would get those folks who are at best fringe fans of space/scifi - and introduce them to the grand, social world that is New Eden.

Other participants in the banter:

Astral’s EVE Trial By Fire

The Cataclysmic Variable

Depths Unknown

Diary of a Garbageman

Errant Thoughts

Eveoganda

EVE SOB

Garhead

The Ghost’s Report

Hydrostatic Capsule

La Vie D ‘Une Capsuliere

Learning to Fly

Life in Low Sec

Linked Dreams

Michael Williams – Master of None

The Nomadic Gamer

Ombeve

Prano’s Journey

Random Updates (I Guess)

Rantucket

Record of Alva Dyson

Starfleet Comms

Where the frack is my ship?

Talk Nerdy To Me

Wench with a Wrench

Saying goodbye to the house you grew up in

2010-04-14T12:00:00.002-04:00

After almost two years in EVE, I joined a Player Corporation last summer. Aurora Security (A.SEC) was (at the time) in Faction War on the side of Gallente. Within days of joining they left FW, with frustration of the blobs and problems with FW that have been well documented elsewhere. For a short period we were just a LoSec based corp, doing some wormholes, L4/L5 missions as a corp, a variety of industry, and some plexing. We lived under NBSI in our world, which meant we had targets all the time. A.SEC was my first real introduction to what EVE is meant to be. A group of players across the world working together and for them the game was all about fun. I learned how to fly safely in losec and 0.0 courtesy of Mr. Teu (retired). I learned about scouting roams, fitting long-range versus short-range, gank vs. tank, how to escape a gate camp (or at least have a chance). I moved to 0.0 with A.SEC, was introduced to bubbles, POS bashing (which I still can't do well), hot drops and bomber squads.

A.SEC fluctuated between 6-10 active members in my timezone in the early days. We fielded our own gangs for roams, we had groups to hassle invaders in our space (pre-Dominion), players who were new and old. An unfortunate turn of events led us to a rapid move from our first 0.0 home, which left several players with their entire hangar stranded in enemy territory. This happened to coincide with a few very active folks getting burnout and we went from having a steady 6-10 players online anytime to 4-5. We settled into our new alliance quickly though, and were able to contribute effectively and were recognized as a good addition. Life with Art of Defiance (-FFS-) was more interesting for A.SEC - this was a true PvP alliance, on roams, camps, ops daily, if not daily for each major TZ. FFS was made up (mostly) of experienced players - folks who had been playing for 2+ years. This was good and bad - lots of experience but lots of folks on the edge of burnout. During a particularly difficult stretch we had a new neighbor arrive in the form of Dead Terrorists (IKILU). After some preliminary shooting at each other, FFS and DT formed a NAP with the intent to drive Vanguard. out of their current residence. That worked well, with Vanguard departing within a couple months. However, FFS was seeing lower and lower participation, with the onset of holidays, new games, and just general burnout, and recruiting was not easy. A.SEC was suffering the same path of the alliance, but with optimism we moved forward, and FFS corps merged into DT.

A.SEC continued to struggle with recruiting and activity, and since DT is an aggressive PvP alliance, there were concerns all around about losing our access to 0.0 and the fun combat we love due to inactivity. It was decided to merge our PvP toons into a sister-corp from FFS that was also part of DT - Royal Enterprise (RENT). So, with much chagrin, I logged into EVE and dropped roles from A.SEC. First note: when you drop roles you lose access to everything - corp hangars, POS hangars, everything. Fortunately I was clear of assets in corp hangars, but if I'd realized that I would have waited a couple of days to help move assets about. The other part of this is that you can apply to a new corp as soon as you drop roles - and after the 24-hour cool down you can be accepted and just move from one corp to the other directly.

I will miss my time with A.SEC - although many of the other PvP pilots are joining me in RENT - it was my first true home in EVE, and the players I worked with impressed me with their willingness to educate and their great attitudes. With regret, I say goodbye to the house I grew up in - Aurora Security may you survive, thrive and grow through this tough time.

FNF: Central Serpentis Sparking Transmitter

2010-04-09T13:54:00.005-04:00

Friday Night Flights (FNF)
(originally posted Sept. 12, 2009)

Friday seems to be the best night of the week for me to log in and fly, and I've managed to have two exciting ones in a row. Mr. Teu asked me to fill out the report for our evening's adventures. Enjoy...

Life in 0.0 is new, and seems to involve a lot of cloaking, which makes me happy that the first ship I had out here was a scouting Helios. Friday night starts out quiet. Andro Missle from PoV is playing games in A2 when I log in - Vinny, Cracy and Mr. Teu are playing right back. Andro is in a Manticore, but with suddenly 4 of us in system, he decides to log off. Vinny gets some bookmarks set up out in A2 and logs as well, leaving Cracy, Teu and myself alone in A2 to do some ratting. I borrow a Brutix from Teu (thanks!) as I don't have anything larger than a Cruiser down here yet. We start hopping belts, looking for a good set of Serpentis Admirals on patrol, when Pascal Mage logs in. Now Pascal Mage is a serious warrior. He has over 400 kills logged in his two years of flying, many of those in a Gallente Megathron. We all quickly switch back to our ASSHAT ships, taking up position around PoV's Starbase, watching. Pascal first bops around in a capsule (oh, the wish to have a way to penetrate those shields!), then hops into a shuttle. Thinking he's going to make a run out to C4, I leave my station observation post to a random spot in the system, and drop a set of scan probes, in anticipation of having the system to ourselves. I instruct Aura to reactivate my cloak as I return to my idle spot above the PoV Starbase, and bring up my system scan grid.

"Sweaty - get out" exclaim's Mr. Teu tersely.
"Don't worry about the probe's I dropped them to scan" I reply, thinking he's concerned about the new scan probes in system
"No - you're not cloaked - GET OUT!"
I check my command consoe, and sure enough, I'm sitting 300k from the PoV station in a paper thin Helios - visible to anyone who's looking. I quickly warp to a spot about 100k from anywhere in system, reactivating my cloak.
"He's hopped into a Rapier" Mr Teu informs us.
"i'm sorry - I don't know why my cloak didn't enable. I swear I warped away, launched my probes, then came back cloaked" I apologize, cursing myself for not double-checking the status of my cloak.
"Don't worry about it. Let's get back to the POS and put up a show of force. Make him log off or leave. Everyone get into the biggest ship you can fly, even if you can't run any of the modules" replies Teu.
As we warp into the POS, I find myself boarding a Dominix class battleship for the first time. "Well, I can actually run everything fitted here except the remote reppers" - I guess I'm close to flying a battleship, I think happily.
Suddely Andro Missle logs back in. Teu's angry voice crackles over comms "Dammit. They've called our bluff. They've got a Manticore and a Rapier - we can't take that."

Still sitting safe inside the POS shields, I'm still basking in the excitement of flying a battleship as Teu tells us "put the big stuff away - they've called our bluff. We can't take them. Get back into your cloakies, warp to a safe spot and go get a beer - we'll try to wait them out."
Cracy laughs " That's a good thing, I couldn't run anything on that Battleship except a couple of the mids"
Teu laughs as well. "Well sit them out. Don't log off, we don't want them to know what hours we are on" I look quickly at the clock - 23:05. Hmm. Well, it is Friday. I can sit it out for a while. I hop back into my Helios and warp out to a safe spot in system, just as Teu's voice comes back over the radio "They are leaving the POS - everyone make sure you are cloaked up and deep safe!" Just as we check our status, both Andro and Pascal reach the Stargate and exit the system.

Taking my chance, I uncloak, drop 4 probes, recloak and warp to another location - checking that my cloak is active before activating my scanner.
"Well, I'm going to get back to ratting," says Cracy. "I really want an officer spawn."
"We'll support you on that" says Teu. "Sweaty, hop into a cruiser - I want us mobile in case they come back"
"I"ll be there in a few minutes - just want to scan the system and see if there's anything fun to do" I reply.

Aura quickly informs me of two signatures in system. One is a known Serpentis Port. I warp to it, recognize that it's mostly frigates and cruisers. As I continue to scan down the other site, my curiosity is piqued when i find it is a radar site. After some pinpointing, I discover that our system houses a Central Serpentis Sparking Transmitter. I report that over the comms.
"We'll probably have to wait for Pierre" says Teu "we don't have the ships to take something like that"
Disappointed but understanding his desire to keep the young pilots under his wing alive, I begin a search on the anomaly. Aura quickly recognizes a similar site in Guristas space:

A myriad of technological marvels inhabit this area of space, the physical guts of a powerful and well protected computerized network. A codebreaker module will be invaluable in uncovering the secrets that are likely hidden here, locked away inside data vaults and heavily encrypted digital networks.

"Teu, accoding to what I can find, it's got 12 missile batters, a pair of Battleships, and is a hacking site. I've warped in at 100, and that's all I see. Aura reports that when you approach within 30k it only spawns a wave of 8 mixed crusiers and frigates"
"Really? Can you use a codebreaker?"
"Yeah - I've done it a couple of times in losec"
"OK, let's formulate a plan"
Minutes later Cracy has a flight of drones destroying the missile batteries, one by one, and Teu is leading the two admirals far from the transmitter. WIthin a few more moments, the admirals ships are floating wrecks, and I move in to the transmitter, activating my codebreaker.
From datacenter to mainframe to communcations tower, I move through the 5 structures with my codebreaker, acquiring the secrets of this Serpentis complex. After hacking into the databank, I am excitied to find a collection of high-tech ship invention tools and components.

Collecting our rewards, we head back to the starbase, reveling in the possibility of tens of millions of ISK in sales from our discovery. Tired, I am ready to fly to my safe spot and sleep for the night, when Cracy's voice comes back over comms, somewhat excited. "I have a Triple Admiral Faction spawn here - there's a Shadow Serpentis admiral in the belt!" The sounds of explosions echo over the comms "Man they can hit hard too" he says, somewhat nervously.
"We'll be right there" replies Teu. "I'll borrow Deka's repper - Sweaty get in my Brutix and get out there"

We quickly warp to Cracy, finding him holding somewhat steady while dodging most of the fire from the three admiral's battleships. WIth our arrival, they refocus their attention on Mr Teu, as the battleship he has borrowed suddenly is the target of three angry Serpentis officers. Unfortunately, they have neglected the flights of drones released by Cracy and myself, and let Cracy get in close with his blaster-fit Brutix. Moments later the battleships are falling to our assault, one by one. Excited, Cracy reminds us both "I get any faction modules - I found them!" Just as reports come in of multiple PoV pilots two systems out, in YVA.
"Crap" says Teu. "I'm not letting them have this stuff. Sweaty get in there and loot the wrecks. Cracy, if you can get into a salvager we want to get that battleship salvaged" I'll guard for their arrival - if we don't get it all before they get here I'll pop these wrecks myself"

A tense 5 minutes follows, as we quickly move from wreck to wreck, gathering the remains from the destroyed ships.
"We have three Shadow Serpentis Modules here and 1000 rounds of large ammo - it's all your's Cracy" I report on the officer's wreck. Cracy whoops lightly, as we continue our work. FInally, just as the clock chimes two, we have recovered all the salvageable components from the wrecks, boarded our covert ops ships, and flown to our respective safe spots. As we all settled in for a well-earned rest, visions of ISK and advanced ships floated before my eyes. All in all, a very profitable and exciting Friday Night Flight...

Fuzzy Logic: I like small ships

2010-04-06T13:11:00.005-04:00

So I spend a lot of my time learning about PvP. I've flown PvE for almost two years before I joined a PvP corp. There's a funny thing about PvP that I'm finally starting to grasp - bigger is not always better. I've been flying small PvP ships (Interceptors, Assault Frigates) for about 6 months, and I make fewer mistakes than I used to (but I still make them) when taking them into fleet action. I scout pretty well (at least my FCs have said that), but I can fly larger stuff. I'm comfortable in BattleCruisers, and I'm starting to dabble in T2 cruisers (Recons and HICs), and I can fly Battleships.

Or, perhaps I should say, I have the EVE skills to fly Battleships. I've done a little plexing in an RR/Drone Domi, and I've taken a Sniper Mega into two POS battles. The Domi is still around, but both of the Megas died in their first engagements. One was just bad luck (got webbed at a POS bash and alpha'd by the POS gunners), the other was stupidity (never fly a small BS gang without a scout through active enemy space to a POS bash). But seriously, I really don't feel comfortable in those behemoths. Even though I can fit a full T2 Megathron, I don't feel comfortable flying it. Piloting styles are different as your ship gets larger, and flying a Battleship is much like flying a mining barge (in my experience) - big, slow to align, and quick to be targeted. It didn't stop me last night though...

I was in station, dealing with sorting some corp BPs when I started up Vent and looked for fleets. Sure enough, there was a fairly large fleet in action, but nothing in the fleet finder. I started pinging in alliance to find out where they were, what they needed, anything. I'm a team player (not a KM whore) and I'll bring out a ship to help alliance. They were flying sniper battleships at a POS takedown, 16 jumps out, with the last 7 or so in enemy territory. We were warned, enemy is active, and it's goons (a.k.a. SOLODRAKBAN), so be careful. I check in local (we've got 15 alliance in local atm) and only one other guy wants to get into the action, so we set out in our Sniper battleships (Apoc and Mega). That was, as I'm sure you experienced pilots know, our first mistake. Two battleships no scouts, and only intel is that "the road is clear most of the way, but there are goons about."

We get almost all the way to the POS bash (two systems out) when we jump (blind) into a "built-to-kill" gatecamp. Hurricane, Hurricane, Vagabond, Vagabond, Harbinger, Drake, Eris, Heretic, Stiletto, Falcon, Thrasher, Vengance, Cyclone, Stabber, Stabber. Two dictors, AFs, Intys, lots of DPS in Battlecruisers and HACs. I hold gatecloak, analyze the bubble I'm in, and find the nearest edge. Start to burn for the edge, MWD overheated, DCU on. My co-pilot is down in one volley, maybe two, and I'm out of the bubble. Second mistake: I didn't burn for a celestial - just the edge. I'm out of the bubble, and I align to the out-gate (third mistake). The secondary bubbler gets in range and suddenly I'm bubbled again, I'm targeted, and 3-pointed. No MWD, in a bubble, in a Battleship - I lasted maybe 30 seconds. I didn't get my pod out either. Oh well, 10 million isk in upgrading my clone (again). At least the ship was insured, and fitted with mostly T1 mods, so I break (almost) even on the insurance return. So I've flown Battleships twice into PvP combat, and lost them both in their first battles. On the other hand, I lost an interceptor last month that I'd flown regularly for almost 5 months. I'm sure the tides will change, but at this point, I like to fly small ships. I know the cost gets close to a Battleship hull when you fully fit and rig a T2 frigate, and the T2 cruiser is equal in price to a fully fit Battleship (if not more expensive), but I would rather fly those than the sub-capital king.

A Brief History of Time, Part 2

2010-03-24T17:15:00.000-04:00

I finally joined a player corp in August of 2009, almost 2 years after having started EVE. I'd been podded a few times but never had a player kill in all that time, like a true carebear. I wanted to break that mold, to prove I was more than a missioning, mining drone in a game of people who interact with each other daily. Funny enough, I had the skills (technical, EVE skills) to fly great PvP ships like the Taranis or Thorax, but I had no idea what to do. So I joined a corp, and within a couple weeks that corp joined a 0.0 alliance, and I found myself facing a simple decision: live alone, in emipre, while the corp made millions (individually and as a corp) in 0.0, or find a way to get to 0.0. Never one to do it the easy way, I moved my medical clone to our 0.0 station base, and hopped in a scanning Helios (yes, I could fit a covops cloaking device too) to fly down directly.

I figured I'd probably lose the ship, if not the ship and the pod, but it would be a great learning experience, so what the heck.

With a senior corp member on Teamspeak with me for moral support and advice, I navigated my way 24 jumps through losec and 0.0 to our new home, moved my medical clone to the medical station in system, and started ratting in the only battlecruiser I owned, to earn the ISK to survive and grow as a new denizen of 0.0. That was all in August of 2009. Since then, I've probably spent 2 weeks in empire total - most of that trying to sell off the Meta3/Meta4 loot I've found, and to fit up replacement ships as I've lost them in 0.0. I learned quickly how to chain belts (and yes, it does still work) to get the most ISK/hour, at one point I was easily pulling down 10million ISK + per hour ratting, not including the loot or salvage - just in bounties.

Since joining a corp, my EVE time has actually skyrocketed. I used to play 2-3 nights a week for an hour or so (whatever a mission took to run). Since Dominion, I'm logging 2-3 hours 5+ nights a week, running two characters simultaneously.

So that's the history, in short summaries. I'll be migrating some posts I've made on our corp forums to this blog, to flesh it out. See you out there!

Two years, Three Months, and two blogs later...

2010-03-23T13:06:00.000-04:00

So I started playing EVE when they released a Mac OS X client back in December of 2007. Looking back, I had no idea what I was getting into. I had played MMO space sim games dating back to Compuserve, but nothing prepared me for EVE. I didn't even pay attention to the training queue for at least two weeks, I thought I could rule the game from my fancy Tristan frigate I mined HOURS to buy, and I was playing a multi-player game all by myself.

That wasn't too bad for the time. In RL I had just become a dad, and my wife and daughter occupied most of my attention. A few months later though, I had introduced a couple of co-workers to EVE and they were already in a player corp, raking up kills and flying ships bigger than I did. I was accused of being a carebear, and it was true. I hemmed and hawed about joining a player corp, but just never found the right group, or came up with a new excuse why I needed to play alone in this game where at any given time almost 30 thousand other people were in the same universe. Then came expansion after expansion, and I still ran L1 missions in my destroyer, not looking at the bigger picture. I could hop in and out of game in short time that way, even though I never made a lot of isk, and I never got a bigger ship. I kept skilling up though, dabbling here and there, today a mission runner in a T1-fit Tristan, tomorrow mining in a Navitas. Slowly I trained skills for bigger ships and better items, which really paid off once I woke up and joined into EVE Online - the real game.

I played alone until the release of Apocrypha, when I immediately jumped on the scanning bandwagon and was in a wormhole within the first 24 hours, with acceptable scanning skills. I ran into a gang of pirates in that wormhole, and they were stuck, lost and needed help to get out. We chatted, I scanned them down an exit wormhole, they invited me to their corp but I wasn't ready to play with others, I was still a loner at heart. I started blogging with a contest promoted by CCP and a new EVE-bloggers website, which went great for all of 2 months until the guy hosting the website lost everything I'd written. I started up again, but was depressed at the loss of my work, and I stopped writing. It was appropriate, then that the site shut down shortly thereafter.

My life in EVE went on, I could fly mean, T2 fit battlecruisers in my missions, I could mine in various Exhumers, even fly Iteron IVs and had recently skilled to fit and fly an interceptor. But I was slowly burning out, a lone candle in the depths of space, with no-one to share the experience with. I was the ultimate failure of EVE, almost two years into the game and I had played alone the entire time, and was on the verge of quitting. That was July, 2009.

This blog is my third iteration, the third time I try to write about my life in EVE. Welcome to my wanderings in the darkness that is EVE Online...