Remember I said we'd been on "trial" for the past six weeks? It was supposed to be four.
"Hey guys my name is Rixx Javix I get butthurt about killboard comments then I backpedal but I still have more fun because someone in my corp fits small neuts and I'm Rixx Javix and I'm having fun and that thread full of butthurt was just a trololol my name is Rixx Javix my corpmates fits small neuts on vagas and dies to SF." — Jiro Rans
This comment on the RK killboard yesterday from one of our supposed Alliance mates perfectly sums up why yesterday, during our Corp Frigate Tournament, we quit the Rote Kapelle Alliance trial we were on. While there are many good pilots and a few really great pilots, there is also far too much space taken up by a handful of "my e-peen in bigger than your e-peen" asshats for anyone else to function under. Many of them may really believe that it all came down to not being able to take a few killboard comments here and there, but they are wrong. It all came down to the fact that RK is not actually an Alliance, but simply a vehicle for one Corporation - Stimulus - to have their own way.
I'm sorry, but we just left an Alliance like that.
Alliance is a great word that means an association created for the mutual benefit of those involved. "Integration" was the word thrown around during our initial talks about joining and we took that seriously for the first four weeks. We joined fleets, took a back-seat to Alliance FCs, listened, learned and paid close attention to "how-things-are-done". Eventually however, the state of the union became clear.
Much of that had to do with the EU TZ, during which RK is usually fast asleep. But that isn't the whole story, in fact just two weeks ago I posted a directive on our own forums about how LUCRH would deal with that issue. "Stay the course" was the general message. And then we had the 1v1 incidents, which have been written about here before, and one of my Corp m8s had the gall to die in a Vagabond with a Small Neut fitted on it. And our "trial" was extended by two weeks as a result.
And while we dealt swiftly and fairly with the pilot who betrayed the 1v1, the incident with the Small Neut (believe it or not) became an on-going problem and the subject of much back and forth on the forums and in the killboard comments. Meanwhile, said pilot is one of our best pilots and ranked very highly on the BC rankings. I even tied to diffuse the situation with humor, trolling the entire Alliance with an April Fools post on the RK forums, but even as win as that was (as you can see from the quote above) it was used against us over and over again. It became so bad that we all started flying with small neuts on our ships, I even flew a Drake with one once! Another attempt at humor that went right over some people's heads.
Believe me when I say this, RK is more than welcome to run their 'Alliance' anyway they want. I'd be the last person on Earth to suggest otherwise. But "integration" and "Alliance" to me suggest the possibility of a two-way street, a crossroads perhaps, where mutual respect and benefits get weighed against the positive impact new, fresh thinking can have. Again, if RK wants to run it their way then so much the better for them. Lucifer's Hammer wants no part of it.
To Atondros and Logan I want to publicly say thank you. You are both upstanding and honest pilots and I appreciate your help in the early stages. I was sorry to see Atondros replaced as Alliance executor two weeks ago, I never got the chance to speak with his replacement, but it wouldn't have mattered. Once our trial was extended we'd already made the decision to move on. Yes, that's right, we made the decision to leave two weeks ago. No one else in Lucifer's Hammer knew this for sure, but we've been investigating options since then. Sadly, having been in RK is actually hurting us in our search. For such a supposed 'elite' group, they certainly don't get a lot of respect. Somethings you don't learn until after the fact.
To Jiro Rans and the others of his ilk, who know who you are, I'd also like to say thank you. Thank you for revealing yourselves BEFORE we might have said yes. You saved us all a lot of grief. I would like to make a suggestion however, if you are willing to hear it. If one chooses to make his life's work the trolling of others, it would be best if he appreciated the fine art of BEING trolled. You've been played guys, played by those better at it than you. In fact, you are still being played and you don't even know it yet. Take it as well as you give it.
In the meantime, Lucifer's Hammer is looking for a new relationship. We are less than three months old and already ranked #3,197 on the BC rankings with 619 kills versus 184 losses (even though a bunch of those losses happened yesterday during our Corp Frig Tourney!). We are a pirate, zero space raiding corporation. Most of our members have negative sec status and the majority have 20m skill points or higher. We like to fight, play and have fun. If you'd like to talk about us joining your merry band, please feel free to contact me in-game or by email.
I'll be back later with the results of our Frigate Tourney.